First-Year Internship—And You Went to Site 749 to Contain Monsters?!

One was a highly cultivated monk, whose kasaya could hold back a flood.

One was a thousand-year-old serpent demon, who could drown an entire city at the slightest provocation.

And then—

Eighteen years passed.

Bai Suzhen’s son, Xu Shilin, grew up and said, ”Fahai, I want you to open the pagoda and release my mother with your own hands.”

Fahai looked at him.

”How many dishes did you eat today to get this inflated?”

Forget being a teenager—even if you were over a hundred years old, you still wouldn’t be able to take me down.

And then…

Fahai was dumbfounded.Xu Shilin became a top scholar, Leifeng Pagoda was deemed an old, hazardous structure, and Fahai was dismissed for misconduct in a scenic area—in short, he became just ”Mr. Fa.”

Eighteen years was just a nap to a serpent demon who had cultivated for over a thousand years.

She woke up from her afternoon slumber, and her grown-up son was knocking, telling her to come out for tea.

See?

People who can’t pass a background check should never get a government job.

Otherwise, who knows if they’ll pull someone out after they make it in?

And once they do, it’s a slap in the face to those who died, to those who suffered—

To the family who spent their life savings on a home, only for it to be washed away in an instant.

To those who couldn’t escape and perished, their entire family gone.

At least, when the main culprit was locked away, there was some sense of justice.

But before you even die, they walk free.

You age, they don’t.

Their son becomes a scholar, marries a wife who loves him, has a caring little sister—a picture-perfect family.

And what about you?

Just thinking about it gives you a stroke.

—

Hearing Lu Ding ask about Zhou Yun, Shi Lei fell silent for a moment before answering.

”His situation is… special, so…”

”Special? How special?”

”What if I arrive today, he recognizes me, and the next moment, he runs off to inform the Daheshan bandits?”

”What if that gives them time to prepare?”

”And when I go up the mountain, I walk straight into a fully prepared Si Ming Realm powerhouse, who smashes me with an opening strike?”

A prepared Si Ming Realm cultivator and an unprepared one were two completely different things.

Even a half-dead camel was still bigger than a horse.

If Lu Ding failed to land a surprise attack, he’d be forced into a battle of attrition—trading blows and grinding it out with the old man.

At that point, who knew which of them would last longer?

Shi Lei was well aware of this possibility.

If it happened, the situation could spiral out of control, leading to avoidable casualties.

Hearing Lu Ding’s words, Shi Lei felt an inexplicable pressure, but he didn’t shy away.

”This was my oversight,” he admitted, ”but I’ve already ordered everyone to keep quiet and made sure he stays out of it.”

”His mother was a close friend of our deputy director, Qiu Wangshui. After she passed, he lived with Deputy Director Qiu.”

”Later, he accidentally unlocked his cultivation potential and became a Cultivator of Qi. After a long period of observation, he was recommended by Qiu Wangshui and granted an external member status in 749.”

”Later, Formal Investigator Cao Zi’ang came to Kaoshan City on a mission. Zhou Yun helped him significantly, and with both Investigator Cao and Deputy Director Qiu’s recommendation, he was converted into an intern investigator.”

Cao Zi’ang?

Never mind, then.

That guy had a few screws loose—this was exactly the kind of thing he would pull.

Even in death, he was still causing trouble.

The guy had already turned into dust, and he still left this mess behind.

But Lu Ding also caught something in Shi Lei’s explanation.

From the looks of it, Shi Lei hadn’t exactly had a choice.

First, Deputy Director Qiu recommended Zhou Yun.

As a long-time colleague, there were times when personal favors couldn’t be avoided.

So the external member status?

Lu Ding could understand that.

After all, even Wuzang Shengshe had external members.

If you had contributions, if someone recognized your abilities, and if you weren’t a dangerous criminal, then why shouldn’t you get external status?

But becoming an intern?

That was too much.

External members could access certain resources and benefits, but an intern had direct exposure to 749’s operations and some level of authority.

And Cao Zi’ang was from Yunhai 749.

Pushing Zhou Yun’s appointment through Shi Lei was just a courtesy notification—not a request.

Since Zhou Yun was already an external member, of appropriate age, and Kaoshan City was a remote area, it wasn’t surprising that a formal investigator and a deputy director were able to push his intern status through.

Shi Lei had been cornered into this decision.

Lu Ding could understand it.

But he couldn’t accept it.

This was a hidden landmine.

And worse—

It had the potential to explode in his face.

If something went wrong on this Daheshan operation, and this guy screwed it up...

Lu Ding fell silent.

The atmosphere in the car grew heavy.

—

Soon.

Shi Lei’s car arrived at the meeting point.

On the gathering square, investigators stood at attention, waiting for the special agent’s arrival.

Not far from the lineup—

A sharp-featured woman was pushing a young man away.

At a glance, Lu Ding matched the youth’s face to the photo in Zhou Yun’s file—a perfect match.

”Aunt Qiu, I’m an investigator too!” Zhou Yun argued.

”If there’s a mission and you’re all going, why can’t I?!”

”Brother Hai, Xu-jie, Brother Gou, say something! Help me convince Aunt Qiu!”

Zhou Yun wasn’t stupid.

The Ghost Festival had already passed midnight, and they still had urgent business?

So he checked his phone and asked the on-duty investigators what was happening.

When no one replied or gave vague answers, he figured something was up.

So—

He secretly followed along.

And he happened to arrive right as the team was assembling.

At first, Qiu Wangshui had been gently persuading him to leave.

But the moment Shi Lei’s car pulled up, she froze.

Through the windshield, her gaze met Lu Ding’s.

Her heart skipped a beat.

Then—

Her face changed.

Why the hell was he the special agent!?

Wasn’t he supposed to be in advanced training!?

If he found out about Zhou Yun’s ties to Daheshan—

Given his track record and approach to handling matters…

Zhou Yun was doomed.

At that moment, Qiu Wangshui snapped.

”Zhou Yun! Obey orders! Leave immediately!”

The car hadn’t even come to a full stop yet—

The door flung open.

A figure flashed out, suspending itself an inch above the ground, blocking their path.

”Leave?”

”Where do you think you’re going?”

—

To Zhou Yun, the instant this stranger arrived, it was like the surrounding light had been swallowed by darkness.

An overwhelming pressure pressed down on him, making it hard to breathe.

But the shoulder insignia on the man’s uniform told him—

This was a 749 investigator.

And he himself was a 749 intern investigator.

Logically, the guy shouldn’t make things hard for him.

But then—

Lu Ding spoke.

And his next words shattered every expectation Zhou Yun had.

”Zhou Yun, is it?”

”I’m Lu Ding, special agent from Yunhai 749, sent here on orders to exterminate the cultivators of Daheshan. What are your thoughts on this?”

The weight of those words was overwhelming.

For a moment, everyone present froze in place.

Special Agent Lu Ding?

The same Lu Ding from Bao Fan District? The one who took down the Corpse-Shattering Taishui?

Wasn’t he supposed to be on a guaranteed promotion track?

Exterminate Daheshan?

Since when was there an order to wipe out Daheshan?!

These were the questions racing through everyone else’s minds.

But for Zhou Yun, only one part stood out—

Exterminate the cultivators of Daheshan?

That meant...

His grandfather. His uncle. They were among them.

A flicker of panic and worry flashed through Zhou Yun’s eyes.

And at that exact moment—

Lu Ding, who had been watching him from above, caught it.

Eye contact confirmed.

BANG!!!

In the next second—

Zhou Yun’s entire body was sent flying, crashing onto the ground, unconscious.

No one had time to react.

Why did Lu Ding suddenly attack?!

”Special Agent Lu!!”