Chapter 58: Applying Pressure

Zheng Yishan wore a broad smile as he knocked on the office door of the Commander.

“Sir, you wanted to see me?”

Gongyang Yan cast a cold glance at Zheng Yishan.

Zheng Yishan’s mood instantly plummeted.

“The search of the ancestral home of the Fu family, you were in charge of that, correct?”

Upon hearing this, Zheng Yishan’s mind raced. The golden coffin was indeed valuable, but he knew better than to covet such an item. The entire search operation in Fairness Town had uncovered a vast fortune. The money seized alone could fund the Demon Suppression Division of Dongbin Town for thirty years. Clearly, Fairness Town was obscenely wealthy.

During this operation, he had taken his share, but there was no way the Commander could know—unless Inspector Zhang had betrayed him.

“Yes, sir. We searched every inch of the Fu ancestral home, leaving no stone unturned, and brought all the wealth back to headquarters,” Zheng Yishan answered respectfully, his expression unchanged. Anyone who had made it this far under Gongyang Yan’s command had to have mastered such composure.

“Every inch?” Gongyang Yan sneered, lifting the ledger in her hand. “Do you know where this register, listing all the shadowy bosses of Fairness Town, was found?”

At these words, Zheng Yishan’s heart skipped a beat. He immediately realized his mistake.

That damned brat—he’s set me up.

He hadn’t expected Baili Feihong to return to the Fu ancestral home and find such an important list. To the Commander, the ledger in her hand was worth more than any treasure.

“Please forgive me, sir. It was my oversight; I failed to retrieve such a vital item from the Fu residence,” Zheng Yishan pleaded, his face filled with panic.

“Fairness Town has illicit opium dens, openly selling narcotics. Such rampant crime ignored by the constabulary, and the Demon Suppression Division’s lax supervision—these are grave derelictions of duty,” Gongyang Yan’s every word cut into Zheng Yishan like a knife.

Sweat beaded on his brow. His heart trembled.

Having worked under Gongyang Yan for so long, he knew well that despite her youth, she was ruthless in her methods.

“Please, sir, forgive my failure,” Zheng Yishan said, dropping to his knees.

Kneeling before a superior was a practice long since abolished in the Division.

“Get up,” Gongyang Yan said, her tone calm once more.

Zheng Yishan stood hurriedly, wiping sweat from his forehead.

“This register records every shadowy boss in Fairness Town involved in the smuggling and sale of opium. Take it, arrest everyone listed, return the confiscated assets to the treasury, and you’ll be credited with a major achievement,” Gongyang Yan said, tossing the ledger to him.

She had already memorized its contents.

She wasn’t worried Zheng Yishan would destroy it. As for evidence? The Demon Suppression Division did not require evidence to act. Besides, this involved her special mission.

“I accept the order,” Zheng Yishan replied solemnly, tucking the ledger inside his robe.

“You may mobilize any demon suppressors you need—except for Baili Feihong. He has a more important mission.”

The opium case was not over yet. Until the Night Demon was brought to justice, it would not be resolved.

“Understood,” Zheng Yishan replied respectfully.

As she watched him leave, Gongyang Yan smiled faintly. Zheng Yishan needed to be kept in check, but she was loath to strip him of his rank. He was far too useful; losing him would weaken her grip on the Division.

Zheng Yishan was a capable man, adept at handling the dirty work cleanly. She entrusted this matter to him rather than Baili Feihong, fearing Baili would stir up a hornet’s nest and make things difficult to contain.

After all, the Demon Suppression Division was not the sole power here. She had to consider the interests of other factions, who might refuse to play along if pushed too far.

“Black Heaven Deity, Black Heaven Deity…” Gongyang Yan’s head throbbed with pain. As a core member of the Gongyang clan, she knew well how terrifying this ancient evil god was.

“The Dali Mountain affair isn’t resolved, and now a cultist of the Black Heaven Deity appears.”

The underworld organization’s schemes on Dali Mountain remained unclear, and now another cultist had emerged.

“What is it about Dongbin City? Evil organizations that are rare elsewhere all seem to sprout up here,” she mused.

After a long period of contemplation, she put pen to paper, writing of these matters to send back to her clan and the Division. She needed to borrow their strength.

Jiang Dongliu of the Yin-Yang Celestial Sect was a troublesome figure. Not to mention the ancient Ice Maiden Han Su, who had escaped. Headquarters had already dispatched experts to hunt her down. The underworld would not let Han Su fall into their hands, for she was the sister of the underworld’s founder—an ancestral figure to all its members.

The underworld sought the Gate of the Yellow Springs, and Han Su would play a pivotal role.

“In this vast Dongbin, there is no one but myself to rely on,” Gongyang Yan felt a moment of helplessness.

But she understood: this mission could only succeed—failure was not an option. Success would pave the way for her to become a Martial Saint. Failure would see her cast aside by her clan, squeezed of all value, and married off in a political alliance.

“Divine abilities, divine abilities. Soon, my vital embryo will produce a divine seed, and I’ll step into the realm of true power,” she thought, the urgency bringing immense pressure.

This was her first time feeling thus.

After his meal, Baili Feihong returned to the office, nodding and smiling at the approaching Zheng Yishan.

“Just you wait, boy,” Zheng Yishan snarled, threatening him.

Baili Feihong’s expression turned cold. He no longer feared Zheng Yishan; at his current level of blood refinement, he could easily defeat him. In the future, he would only grow stronger. In this society, power dictated status. Rank without strength was meaningless. The various factions of Dongbin City feared the Demon Suppression Division because they feared the Commander.

“I’ll wait,” Baili Feihong replied with a smile, infuriating Zheng Yishan even more. This upstart, so arrogant, basking in the Commander’s favor!

After a while in the stifling atmosphere of the office, Baili Feihong could bear it no longer and went downstairs. He wandered over to the mission hall, studying the tasks posted on the board.

Many new missions had been put up. One in particular caught Baili Feihong’s eye.

[HLD: A fisherman was killed here. Witnesses reported seeing a massive shadow, hundreds of meters long, in the sea. Mission One: Investigate and obtain information on the shadow. Reward: One Class C Medal, one hundred gold coins.

Mission Two: If it is a demon or monster, eliminate it. Reward: One Class A Medal, ten thousand gold coins.]

“The Division’s coffers must be full now,” he mused. “In the past, only the medals were tempting. Now, even the financial rewards are generous.”

After a moment’s thought, Baili Feihong tore down the mission notice.

HLD lay thirty nautical miles off the coast of Dongbin, one of the area’s key offshore islands. Shaped like a gourd, it took its name from this resemblance. Yet the place teemed with beasts and was plagued by pirates, so it had never been developed.