Realm Walker

Guan Ya froze. Her first reaction was disbelief, pure and instinctive. She tapped her screen to open the forum post and skimmed through it. The contents described how Yuanshi Tianzun had been ambushed the previous night and killed in his own home, cause of death unknown.

No details were given about how it happened, but experienced official Walkers understood what had happened immediately. Unknown cause, bizarre circumstances—it could only mean one thing.

Assassination.

Across the Songhai Branch and every regional division, official Walkers read the post and seethed with fury. The assassination of a colleague struck a deeply personal nerve.

⤷ Who did it? The Psychic Assembly or the Xiahou family? Are they trying to provoke the Five Elements Alliance?

⤷ It can’t be the Xiahou family. Yuanshi Tianzun has B-rank Merit to his name. The Xiahou family would have to be out of their minds to assassinate him. If they actually pulled something like that, the Council of Elders and the Alliance Chiefs would come down on them like a hammer.

⤷ Are the people at the Songhai Branch completely useless? They can’t even protect a talent like him? I just checked the Taiyi Sect forums and it’s nothing but mockery. They’re saying the Five Elements Alliance can’t even keep one person safe.

⤷ What does that have to do with the rest of us in Songhai? It’s the Kangyang District people who dropped the ball.

⤷ He’s gone, just like that? What a waste...

Guan Ya’s expression had turned ashen. She scrolled through a few more comments, then closed the forum entirely. She still refused to believe it.

On impulse, she opened her contacts and dialed Yuanshi’s number. If he picked up, she would laugh and tease him, ”Oh, aren’t you supposed to be dead? How are you still alive?”

If the call didn’t connect... If the call didn’t connect...

—We’re sorry, the number you have dialed is not available. Please try again later.

The color drained from her face, bit by bit, until there was nothing left. She stood frozen for several seconds, then snatched up her handbag and bolted toward the stairwell, staggering and frantic.

She had to go to Yuanshi’s home. She had to see for herself.

She burst out of the glass building and was about to get into her car when she stopped short, struck by a sudden thought. Yuanshi’s cousin, Chen Yuanjun, was the captain of the security team at Kangyang District’s Public Security Bureau.

She changed direction immediately, heels clicking against the pavement as she rushed toward the Bureau building.

Her pace was hurried and urgent as she pushed through the doors of the administrative building and approached the front desk. ”Chen Yuanjun, your captain... Did he come to work today?”

The clerk behind the desk clearly recognized her. A flicker of surprise crossed the woman’s face at the unexpected inquiry about Captain Chen, though she answered with a polite smile, ”Captain Chen is upstairs. Shall I call him down for you?”

Upstairs... Guan Ya studied the clerk for a moment, then suddenly shook her head. ”No. No, that’s fine.”

Chen Yuanjun was at work, going about his day as normal. The clerk’s eyes sparkled with curiosity and the unmistakable gleam of gossip, but Guan Ya ignored her. As a Scout, her instincts immediately told her something didn’t add up. Either Chen Yuanjun hadn’t been informed of his cousin’s death, or Yuanshi wasn’t dead at all.

She turned and left the Bureau, stepping out into warm sunlight. She found a quiet spot, drew in a deep breath, and called Fu Qingyang.

Her cousin’s cold, clipped voice came through the line.

—What is it?

Guan Ya kept her voice low. ”Where is Yuanshi? Is he dead or alive?”

She held her breath as the question left her lips.

—He and I set up a play. He’s faking his death for a few days. I’ve already informed Li Dongze. Since you’ve figured it out, go along with it.

Fu Qingyang’s tone was as calm as ever. Guan Ya let out a long exhale, tension flooding out of her body all at once. ”Can I ask why?”

—Your clearance level is too low. You don’t have the authority to know.

She ground her teeth. ”I should have beaten you up more badly when we were kids.”

—I have things to do. Don’t bother me unless it’s important.

Fu Qingyang hung up.

The sun was bright and warm. Guan Ya tucked her phone away, and her mood brightened to match. She strolled back toward the glass building, her bag swinging against her shoulder.

She suddenly stopped mid-stride, her elegant brows coming together in a frown. Among the entire official roster, only three people knew Yuanshi’s true identity: herself, Li Dongze, and Wang Tai. Fu Qingyang had notified Li Dongze and asked him to play along, but he hadn’t bothered to tell her, his own cousin...

***

Fu Qingyang set down his phone, propped his elbows on the desk, and steepled his fingers beneath his chin.

His cousin’s concern for Yuanshi Tianzun went well beyond that of an ordinary colleague.

Over the past few weeks, Guan Ya had frequently praised the young Walker in his presence. She called him talented, said he had real potential, complimented his sharp mind. At first, Fu Qingyang had taken it as a normal degree of professional admiration.

And it had been, at first. But he had quietly kept watch, monitoring the subtle shifts in how his cousin talked about Yuanshi. That little test just now had confirmed it. Her feelings for the kid had climbed another notch.

This was not a good development. The Fu family would never allow Guan Ya to be with someone of such insignificant standing. The potential son-in-law his aunt had her eye on came from a family that rivaled the Fu family itself.

Then again, looking at it from a different angle, if this spurred his cousin’s competitive drive, perhaps it wasn’t entirely a bad thing.

Of course, Yuanshi might not even be interested in her. A line suddenly flashed through Fu Qingyang’s mind: ”Not like me. I only like long legs in black stockings. I am a man of simple tastes...”

The corner of his mouth twitched.

***

Guan Ya returned to the office to find Jiang Jingwei and Acting Squad Leader Teng Yuan deep in a somber conversation.

When she appeared, Teng Yuan pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose and spoke in a low, heavy voice, ”I’ve heard about what happened to Yuanshi Tianzun. He died for the organization. He died in the line of duty. I believe his family deserves a compensation package.”

Jiang Jingwei’s expression was equally pained. ”I didn’t protect him well enough.”

Guan Ya considered for a moment. ”How much do you think would be appropriate, Squad Leader?”

Teng Yuan’s voice was grave. ”A hundred million. What do you think?”

A hundred million yuan? Have you lost your mind? Nobody is going to approve that... Guan Ya’s mouth twitched. ”Sure. If it makes you happy. Feel free to submit the request.”

***

It was a rare day off, and with no morning classes to attend, Zhang Yuanqing slept in beautifully. When he finally opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was Little Goofball crawling around the room with his uncle’s wallet balanced on top of its head, entertaining itself with gleeful abandon.

He sighed. This little idiot. You’d think you could find me something useful for once, but no. It was always either Auntie’s underwear or Uncle’s wallet.

If this kept up, the local news crew would be knocking on the door any day now. He could already picture the lead headline for the nightly news.

His Auntie’s lingerie keeps vanishing. His Uncle’s wallet disappears time and time again. Is this a moral collapse or twisted human nature? Tonight at eight, join us as we step into the world of the notorious nephew, Zhang Yuanqing!

He wandered into the living room. Auntie had already finished breakfast and was in her room. She had dolled herself up, looking lovely as she prepared to head out for work.

Zhang Yuanqing blinked. ”Aren’t you about to be late?”

Jiang Yu’er poked her head out, glanced furtively toward the kitchen, and whispered, ”Shh! Your fiery grandmother just finished chewing me out. Don’t bring it up again. If she hears you, she’ll start all over, and I can’t take any more.”

She had overslept that morning, burrowed under the covers with her rear sticking up in the air, dead to the world until half past eight, when her short-tempered mother had literally smacked her awake.

Zhang Yuanqing studied his aunt’s lovely face. The dark circles beneath those soft, gentle eyes were heavy, but they did nothing to diminish her beauty. If anything, they lent her a delicate, vulnerable air.

”What were you doing last night?” he asked in a judgmental tone. ”Were you secretly practicing the art of harvesting yang to nourish yin?”

Auntie spat in mock outrage and struck a dramatic pose, pinching her fingers daintily. ”For your information, I was cultivating the Jade Maiden Heart Sutra!”

”Well then, I’ll just have to counter it with twenty years of mastering the Dog Beating Stick technique.”

The two of them traded a few playful slaps in the living room, flailing at each other in a ridiculous display of turtle-fist, until Grandma came storming out of the kitchen.

”Get to work already!” she roared.

Jiang Yu’er wiggled her hips and slipped out the door.

After a quick breakfast, Zhang Yuanqing returned to his room and retrieved the wallet from Little Goofball’s head. He slipped three crisp red bills out of the wallet and sent the spirit servant on its way with a simple command: Put it back.

Come to think of it, his uncle was such an oblivious fool if he still hadn’t noticed his wallet getting thinner. No, the man probably hadn’t even realized his wallet was missing in the first place.

He watched Little Goofball crawl out of the room, then turned his attention back to the matter at hand. If the operation three days from now succeeds, we’ll be one step closer to Black Wuchang. But Heaven’s Injustice probably doesn’t know where Black Wuchang is hiding. It all depends on what intelligence the spirit communion turns up. Fu Qingyang must realize this too. I just don’t know what his next move will be...

Just then, his phone chimed with an incoming message.

Zhang Yuanqing picked up the phone and checked the notification. It wasn’t for Yuanshi Tianzun, at least. He had already removed the Yuanshi Tianzun SIM card the previous night.

The sender was Xiao Yuan.

The number linked to that particular mailbox belonged to an unregistered SIM card that Zhang Yuanqing had asked his cousin to help him acquire. He wasn’t foolish enough to use his Yuanshi Tianzun identity when communicating with an Evil-class informant.

So she’s dug up some intel? His spirits lifted as he opened the message.

Xiao Yuan: Subordinates of the Psychic Assembly’s other vice president, Hex King, have recently put out a bounty on the black market for Black Wuchang and his subordinates. The Hex King may have intelligence on Black Wuchang, but I can’t get to it.

Xiao Yuan: I did manage to get the contact information for one of the Hex King’s subordinates. His Spirit Realm ID is ’Blood Steamed Bun.’ His contact details are as follows...

Xiao Yuan: Second, the bounty list for Evil-class Walkers was updated yesterday. At the Saint tier, Fu Qingyang and Fire God are tied for first. At the Transcendent tier, the Songhai Branch’s official Walker Yuanshi Tianzun made the list at the very bottom, though I hear that guy is already dead, so he probably got taken out for the bounty right after the list was refreshed. This information should be useful to you. You can pass it along to your superiors.

Xiao Yuan: Third, Li Xianzong, a Level 3 Enchanting Demon from the Bing Zhu Sect, recently assassinated a Level 4 Saint from the Psychic Assembly’s Southern Division by himself. That one feat alone should be enough to push him into the top five of the Evil-class Transcendent rankings.

That fifty thousand yuan is starting to feel like a rip off. Maybe you should consider paying me back in other ways, Auntie Xiao Yuan, Zhang Yuanqing grumbled inwardly.

After careful analysis, though, he decided the fifty thousand had actually been well spent.

This black market, where Evil-class Walkers gathered, was already buzzing with news of Yuanshi Tianzun’s death. That meant the intelligence had spread successfully, and the operation slated for the following night had just gained a few more percentage points of success.

Beyond that, he had just learned about the bounty list. So, it wasn’t just the official authorities that put out bounties. The evil factions maintained their own hit lists, targeting elite members of the Five Elements Alliance. And he, a Nocturnal Specter who had cleared two S-rank dungeons consecutively, had actually made the list. Granted, he was dead last on it, and wouldn’t be there for long.

Who are you looking down on? I’m going to be number one on that list someday, he thought to himself with a smirk.

That first piece of information is the real prize. Blood Steamed Bun may be an Evil-class Walker, but the enemy of my enemy can also be a friend. When it comes to getting my hands on the Registry, the official Walkers can be considered my rivals just as much as my allies.

Zhang Yuanqing had been agonizing over how to steal the Registry for some time now, but had been unable to formulate a clear plan. His original idea had been to commission the Palace Master to help seize it. But with Black Wuchang still missing, he couldn’t put together a detailed strategy, and that uncertainty gnawed at him.

Now, a bold new idea sparked to life. Perhaps, in addition to the Palace Master as his trump card, he could also reach out to the enemy.

It was time to muddy the waters. The officials, Dark Rose, Black Wuchang, the Hex King, all of their attention would be fixed on the Holy Grail. In the midst of that chaos, a Sovereign-tier Palace Master swooping in to grab the Registry would face far less resistance.

”It’s time to try making contact with one of the Hex King’s people.”