Chapter 33 – Deterrence and all parties
【Moon Shadow, kill... kill... kill her!】
......
【Your Highness, I can't do it!】
......
The Wind Whisperer wasn't a very reliable ability.
The information it provided was either fragmented or completely chaotic.
Zhang Ping only caught a snippet of conversation between the Moon Prince and Moon Shadow, but it confirmed his suspicions: Chen Junting's power likely surpassed her rank.
The Holy Mother's Blood was definitely not simple!
When the Moon Prince returned to the City Lord's mansion, Zhang Ping followed the water channels back to the alley where the battle had taken place.
After the thunderstorm, all the residents had been awakened, but after the initial commotion, the alley was now silent. People peeked out from their homes, but no one dared to come out or approach the bodies.
This was good; he had risked coming back to loot the bodies.
Earlier, in the heat of the moment, he hadn't had time to collect the spoils.
But now that the battle was over, he couldn't let the equipment on the bodies fall into the wrong hands.
The masked man's body had been completely incinerated by the lightning, along with all his equipment, but the other two bodies were untouched.
Zhang Ping approached the telekinesis man's body, suppressing his discomfort. He first removed the copper ring from his head, then picked up the green lantern from the ground. After placing these items into the Golden Treasury, he took the ring from the man's hand.
After thoroughly searching the body and confirming there was nothing else, he quickly turned into a stream of water and left.
In a distant house, several Awakeners gathered, secretly observing.
"Big brother, is that a Mutated Beast?" a girl asked uncertainly, looking at Zhang Ping's ink-like body.
The blond man beside her chuckled, "A Mutated Beast that knows how to loot? It's probably a person."
"Look, someone else wants a piece of the action. This should be interesting," another man, only about 1.5 meters tall, said mockingly.
In the alley, just as Zhang Ping approached the first person he had killed, a ball of fire suddenly exploded beside him.
"Buddy, that one's yours, this one's mine. How about it?" A red-haired man with a sun tattoo under his right eye emerged from the shadows, grinning roguishly, a fireball in his hand.
Zhang Ping's body, initially a shapeless mass, began to take form, shrouded in Nether Mist.
As he reverted to human form, the Face of Death coalesced on his face, and a black, ghostly cloak billowed around him.
He drew the Fear War Scythe, turned his head, and looked at the man with hollow eyes. "What did you say?"
"Gulp!"
The red-haired man's eyes widened in terror. He instinctively swallowed, and the fireball in his hand extinguished instantly.
Just as he was about to retreat, his legs gave out, and he collapsed to the ground.
He tried to prop himself up with his hands, but his fear was so overwhelming that his limbs wouldn't cooperate. After several failed attempts, he gave up.
"Big... brother, let's... let's talk this out," he stammered, looking up at Zhang Ping with a tearful face.
Zhang Ping absorbed the man's fear, then suddenly swung the scythe at his neck, stopping abruptly at the last moment. A large amount of purple fear mist erupted from the man's head, filling the entire street.
The mist formed a vortex above Zhang Ping's head and was quickly absorbed into his body.
The red-haired man stared blankly, his mind almost shattered by fear.
"Next time, make sure you know who you're dealing with."
Zhang Ping slowly retracted the scythe, then picked up the green lantern.
He floated over to the severed head, suppressing his nausea as he removed the copper ring, then turned to leave.
In the distant house, the three Awakeners who had expected a show were dumbfounded.
"Big brother, what was that just now?" the girl asked, trembling as she clung to the blond man's arm.
The blond man shook his head. "Hard to say. Could be an Awakener, could be a Mutated Beast. I don't know."
"How could it be a Mutated Beast? He spoke just now. He should be human," the 1.5-meter-tall man said seriously.
The blond man, regaining some composure, said, "He's about 2.5 meters tall, uses a war scythe, and has the ability to change his form at will. If you encounter him in the future, be very careful. Avoid provoking him if you can."
"Ahhh!"
At that moment, the red-haired man in the alley let out a scream, got up, and ran away, leaving a yellow puddle on the ground.
The three in the house exchanged glances, feeling fortunate they hadn't intervened.
On the other side, Zhang Ping made his way to less populated areas.
Gradually, the Assassination Ring and the Night Walker's abilities began to take effect, and the attention on him lessened.
Finally, he used the extensive water channels to quietly return to Iron Soul.
......
The next day, the sun rose as usual.
When Zhang Ping got up, he saw a tail covered in eyes sweeping across the sky over Mingzhu City.
Was the Moon Prince monitoring the entire city?
If so, the Illusory Light Sky would be ineffective against the Moon Prince.
The Moon Prince's tail was too fast. Just dealing with one tail would exhaust the Barrier Group. If there were more tails, the Barrier Group would be helpless.
This meant the Illusory Light Sky had lost its effectiveness.
Zhang Ping felt a slight unease. Without the Illusory Light Sky, the Sweep Team couldn't openly expel Mutated Beasts, and Mingzhu City would soon face their invasion.
The Moon Prince's tails continued to sweep the sky until noon.
Zhang Ping observed that the Moon Prince wasn't using his full power, only extending five tails from the City Lord's mansion.
These five tails crisscrossed the city, creating overlapping surveillance points. Although there were gaps, the tails moved so quickly that doing anything under the Moon Prince's watchful eyes would be extremely difficult.
Zhang Ping had no choice but to stay at Iron Soul and forge weapons.
......
At the City Lord's mansion.
The Moon Prince sat on the balcony, facing Chen Junting.
"Luo Shiyu, what's your relationship with the City Lord?" Chen Junting asked curiously, munching on a cookie.
The Moon Prince frowned and replied coldly, "We have no relationship."
"Oh, I see. No relationship," Chen Junting said, as if enlightened.
She poured herself a cup of tea, took a sip, and frowned. "This tea is made with terrible water. The person who brewed it must be an idiot. I'll go make a new pot."
She got up and left with the teapot.
The Moon Prince sighed in relief. It had wanted to imprison Chen Junting, but whenever she knocked on a door, any Tianchang Fox that heard it would instinctively open it for her.
The lower the level of the Tianchang Fox, the more likely they were to be influenced.
Several young Tianchang Foxes had already become her followers, clamoring to follow her.
In this situation, the Moon Prince had to keep Chen Junting close to prevent her from corrupting other Tianchang Foxes.
The problem was that Chen Junting's power was too strange. It couldn't resist her bizarre charm.
At this point, it couldn't even feel hostility towards her.
It felt a sense of helplessness.
No matter what Chen Junting did, it couldn't get angry or stop her.
When Chen Junting returned with the teapot, the Moon Prince couldn't help but ask, "You've been out for half a day. Won't your parents be worried?"
"My father died when I was very young. I've lived with my grandfather since then. He never let me go out to play or talk to others. Now that I've finally escaped, I don't want to go back so soon," Chen Junting said, pouring tea for the Moon Prince and herself.
She took a sip and smiled contentedly.
The Moon Prince picked up the teacup with its massive paw, took a sip, and frowned. It didn't like the taste.
"How is it? Good, right? My grandfather loves the tea I brew. He says it makes him feel invigorated," Chen Junting said cheerfully.
The Moon Prince put down the cup and hesitantly nodded. "Yes, it's very good."
"Then drink more!"
Chen Junting smiled and refilled the cup. The Moon Prince frowned, glanced at her expectant face, and reluctantly drank the tea.
"Great tea! Another cup!" Chen Junting said happily.
The Moon Prince ended up drinking the entire pot. It felt an urgent need to relieve itself. Normally, it would have done so on the spot, but seeing Chen Junting's gaze, it decided to head to the restroom.
In an instant, its five tails retracted.
......
Mingzhu City was an ancient city.
It held many secrets, with countless hidden chambers, secret rooms, and even virtual spaces created by special abilities.
Only those with special means could enter these spaces.
Huang Zeming walked through the long corridors of the City Lord's mansion, lightly tapping the right eye of a statue before continuing to the study.
In the study, he walked in a peculiar manner towards a seat. When he sat down, his spirit appeared in another space.
It was a white, foggy space. He spoke, "Zhu Family of Beast Tamers, Solar Clan, I am Zhu Zeming!"
The mist before him cleared, forming a circular plaza.
Many people were already gathered there.
"Zhu Zeming, what happened last night? Why was there such a big oversight?" an elder immediately questioned.
Zhu Zeming entered the plaza and humbly said, "Great Elder, please allow me to explain the situation."
"Speak!" the Great Elder said calmly.
Zhu Zeming said solemnly, "The Sweep Team has a hidden agent named Zhang Ping in Mingzhu City. Zhu Zejun's actions were discovered by Zhang Ping. However, I have identified this agent, and I will find an opportunity to eliminate him tonight."
"And what of Chen Junting? Is she alive or dead?" the Great Elder asked with a frown.
"Chen Junting is alive, but she's in the hands of the foxes. I'll need an opportunity to get her out of the City Lord's mansion. When the time comes, I'll need the family to send someone to assist," Zhu Zeming replied.
"Make sure to get Chen Junting out of the City Lord's mansion. She's a crucial part of our plan to deal with Situ Shibai," the Great Elder said sternly.
Zhu Zeming immediately bowed his head and said, "Yes, I will arrange it as soon as possible and ensure nothing goes wrong!"