I, Lord of Prayer

"So we're just going to leave him hanging like this?"

Zhou Chen quickly finished his steamed bun, wiped his hands with a tissue on the table, and mumbled, "Even if it's a polite refusal, Fu Qing will probably start preparing preventative measures, right? If he's determined to erase the evidence, it might be very difficult to touch him later. 🌷♡ ➅❾Şђย𝕏.匚ｏ𝓂 🍔👌"

"That depends on you," Jiang Che said.

"Huh?" Zhou Chen was taken aback. What does this have to do with me?

Jiang Che calmly said while drinking his soy milk, "The sooner you infiltrate the Eternal Flame, the sooner we can close the net and capture Birdman, Snow White, and other smugglers while eliminating the Eternal Flame."

As their powerful backer, Fu Qing is inevitably involved. They'll pin a charge of colluding with the Abyss Cult on him, and no matter how many identities he has, he won't be able to escape it.

"I see..." Zhou Chen understood. Colluding with the Abyss Cult was a serious crime, and even someone like Fu Qing, who held a high position, could not escape the judgment and punishment of the Star Society.

Whether Fu Qing knew that the birdman was a fanatical follower of the Eternal Flame or whether he cooperated with him is unknown and unimportant, because "colluding with the Abyss Cult" is just an excuse. Even if this charge is removed, there will be another one.

If Jiang Che were determined to kill Fu Qing, he could probably come up with more than ten charges to pin on him.

As for Jiang Che's reasons for doing this, Zhou Chen could more or less guess some of them. It was either related to past revenge or to her current situation—a big shot who controlled almost all the import and export businesses in the Jinzhu region was secretly doing all sorts of dirty tricks. If she accidentally caused a big mess, her promotion assessment would be affected.

Just then, a dialog box popped up on the computer screen, displaying an urgent message from the special operations team.

"We've caught Iron Python and Lady Gray." Jiang Che raised an eyebrow; this was indeed good news.

"They caught them?" Zhou Chen was somewhat surprised. He hadn't expected Qunxing to act so quickly, capturing the two people in just over a day. Birdman had said that Iron Python would soon become a corpse, which meant that someone had already tried to kill Iron Python. But it seemed that they had captured the two alive.

  

He stood next to Jiang Che, looking at the latest news on the screen:

"Iron Python was intercepted and killed during his escape. Several special operations team members arrived in time and saved Iron Python. The attackers detonated the curse implanted in their bodies and committed suicide immediately, leaving not even a trace of their souls behind..."

Lady Grey sensed something was wrong and secretly fled. On her way, she was attacked by dozens of masked men. After hearing the gunfire, the special operations team members quickly arrived and captured Lady Grey and her trusted henchmen. The masked men also detonated their curses and committed suicide.

Based on the operators' recollections, it can be confirmed that all the attackers were ordinary people, and no Ascended individuals were present.

Zhou Chen frowned: "These attackers have been implanted with a curse?"

"They are probably assassins trained by certain people to carry out murders and cover-ups."

Jiang Che sighed softly, as if he could already see the enormous workload ahead, and turned to look at Zhou Chen: "You'll continue working, right?"

"..."

Stared at by that chillingly calm gaze, Zhou Chen could only nod obediently, inwardly roaring to the heavens.

What a tragedy! Why didn't I run away sooner!

·

Zhou Chen thought he would be overwhelmed with work, but he found that he didn't actually have much to do. He was just handling various approval tasks for Jiang Che, granting various investigation permissions, and organizing and summarizing relevant documents.

As for the on-site investigation and interrogation, Jiang Che personally presided over them.

As Jiang Che's "secretary," he should have gone along, but he was currently on a special mission, and there was an "undercover agent" in the Star Society, so he could not appear in a place that did not fit his "identity" to avoid arousing suspicion.

In the afternoon, Jiang Che suddenly called and told him to go back and rest, since he had to meet with Birdman that night, which was the most important thing.

After leaving get off work early with great joy, Zhou Chen found Lao Yang and asked him to go out for dinner.

Yang Gang returned from his mission, starving after not eating for over ten hours, and agreed without hesitation. (っ◔◡◔)っ♥ 69shux.com ♥

"So... when you say 'street food stall,' you mean the cafeteria?"

In a private room in the Special Task Force's canteen, Yang looked speechlessly at Zhou Chen across from him.

"Isn't this food stall big enough? A meal like this would cost over a hundred at a restaurant. Look at these crayfish, they'd cost 128 per pound outside, but you can eat as much as you want in the cafeteria." Zhou Chen peeled the spicy crayfish, eating with great relish.

As an employee of the Stars Club, the best perk is undoubtedly the food. The meals are incredibly plentiful, especially in departments like the Special Operations Group, which are full of Ascended Individuals. The food there is top-notch, far superior to any so-called high-end restaurant outside, and it's also incredibly cheap.

"That makes sense..." Yang thought about it and felt that it made some sense.

"What were those assassins like when you captured Iron Python and Lady Gray?" Zhou Chen asked curiously.

"They were armed with guns and wearing masks. Each of them had undergone rigorous training, and their physique and combat experience were comparable to special forces soldiers, but they were definitely no match for the Ascended Ones." Yang recalled, "They fought fiercely, completely reckless. They were probably brainwashed and manipulated. There was no light in their eyes. When they finally detonated the curse and committed suicide, they didn't hesitate at all."

They were likely implanted with the Soul-Dissolving Curse, which, as the name suggests, dissolves the soul after it erupts, leaving no trace and thus no clues.

This is a very serious matter. Jiang Che had a cold face when he was there; he looked terrifying, can you imagine?

"If something like this happens to your subordinates, and you might be held accountable, no one would be in a good mood," Zhou Chen said.

Yang looked around to make sure no one was near the private room, then leaned closer and whispered with a wink, "By the way, I heard from the secret operations team that you guys spent the night in the office last night... You're not thinking of taking your boss away and living off her, are you?"

"!!"

Zhou Chen stared in horror, pointing to his eyes and ears.

Yang realized what was happening and his face turned pale with fright. Damn it, he forgot that this kid had a surveillance camera on him!

Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no, this next mission isn't the end of my life, is it...? No, Jiang Che is still dealing with Iron Python and Lady Gray, she doesn't have time to watch the surveillance footage, and besides, it's not during a mission, so the chances of her specifically watching the replay are slim. Calm down, calm down, I'll bribe the secret operations team later...

Yang calmed down a bit and quickly changed the subject: "Well, speaking of which, I'm currently planning to advance my skills, but I'm a little short on cash... Could you lend me some money?"

"Oh... wait, you're advancing?" Zhou Chen feigned surprise.

"Having stayed at level one for so long, it's time to advance."

Yang said, "As you know, besides advancing naturally, Ascended beings can also be assisted in their ascension through alchemy rituals. I'm still a long way from advancing on my own, and I can't wait any longer, so I've decided to advance using a ritual."

The advancement of a first-tier Ascended being depends on the quality of their spirit. When they reach a certain level, their soul will be sublimated again, naturally entering the next stage, the Silver Sea. When they are still some distance away from advancing, they can usually choose two paths.

One approach is to continue meditating and gradually improve, while the other is to use alchemical rituals as an aid.

Both methods are very stable and have their own advantages: the former is slow, and may take one or two years or even longer to reach the advanced standard, but it does not require spending money; the latter is fast, but requires spending money to prepare alchemy materials and rituals.

Most Ascendants grit their teeth and choose the latter, advancing as quickly as possible to gain power—after so many years of research by the Star Council and the Alchemy Association, the advancement ritual has long since become free of any side effects, and can even give those Ascendants who have been unable to advance for a long time a chance. The only drawback is that it is extremely expensive.

In addition to the most basic version, the advancement ritual also has a customized special version, which not only increases the chance of advancement, but also has a certain probability of activating extraordinary abilities, thereby generating more novel and unique abilities.

Therefore, those who choose to advance through alchemy rituals will almost always spare no expense to have an alchemist tailor-make an advancement ritual for them; no one can resist the temptation of power.

This shows that alchemists are really in high demand.

"How much do you need?" Zhou Chen asked.

"I still need 1.5 million." Yang sighed sadly. "You know, I already have a large loan on me, and the banks won't lend me any more money. I wouldn't have come to you if I hadn't really had no other choice."

Zhou Chen pretended to think for a moment and said, "I can lend it to you. Anyway, I don't need that much money right now."

Yang quickly patted his chest and assured him, "Don't worry, after I advance, I'll be able to take on higher-level missions, and I'll be able to pay you back in less than a month."

The transfer was not troublesome, and a few minutes later, Yang's account had an additional 1.5 million.

Inside the wishing bottle, the seventh star has completely solidified.

Zhou Chen was satisfied and began to look forward to the night.

He planned to wish for the restoration of his soul while taking Canaan Blue, so that he could pin all the problems on Canaan Blue.

His soul has now recovered to about 53%, and this time there's a minimum guarantee of another 5% recovery...

Zhou Chen breathed a sigh of relief and couldn't help but smile; he saw a glimmer of hope.

·

late at night.

In the Birdman's Club.

Zhou Chen changed into the killer's outfit, and as soon as he stepped out of the elevator, he heard the birdman's whistling.

"Welcome, our Mr. Serial Killer."

The birdman, wearing a golden bird mask and a suit, bowed elegantly to Zhou Chen, his tone cheerful: "Thanks to you, Iron Python and Lady Gray have been eliminated. From now on, Jinzhu's underworld has two fewer powerful competitors, and the pie in my hands has become even bigger."

"so--"

The birdman clapped his hands and laughed, "I've prepared a big gift for you."

The henchman solemnly placed an alloy box on the table. The box was engraved with a sealed alchemical matrix and covered a keyhole. It could only be opened with the corresponding alchemical key.

The birdman took out a copper key from his pocket, inserted it into the keyhole, turned it, and with a click, the box opened.

A Canaan Blue crystal, about the size of a fingernail, lay quietly inside, radiating a deep blue halo that gave one the illusion of being at sea.

"Now, it's yours."