Speculation

A cold smile flickered across Yue Shi's lips upon hearing the news of the Glory Association's imminent arrival.

With the strength of Rank 4, he was no longer the weak prisoner at the mercy of others he once was.

Furthermore, his diverse array of supernatural powers served as his greatest confidence in seeking revenge.

With his current methods, assassinating someone would not be difficult, even if they were under heavy protection.

At the thought of the name Su Yuanhe, Yue Shi's heart began to pound uncontrollably, like a predator catching the scent of blood.

However, that burning impulse was quickly suppressed by his reason.

The Glory Association was no ordinary group. Especially in public, the security around their core figures would be insanely tight; normal methods would likely fail to even get him close.

This matter required careful planning and a patient wait for the right opportunity.

Speaking of which, if the Glory Association was coming to Amber City... would Su Yuanhe be coming with them?

When he was dealing with The Reveler incident, the minions from Lab 0 he had killed mentioned that Su Yuanhe would be leaving the laboratory soon for an important matter.

Even if Su Yuanhe didn't come to Amber City, he should at least be able to force his whereabouts out of the members of the Glory Association.

Then, a deeper question occurred to Yue Shi.

Amber City was a relatively remote city, underdeveloped in many aspects and very close to forbidden zones. Why would a juggernaut like the Glory Association suddenly visit?

Their purpose was definitely not simple.

After some thought, Yue Shi quickly narrowed it down to several possibilities:

First, they were after the director of the Qingshan Sanatorium. Lab 0 loved to capture transcendents and supernatural creatures to use as experimental subjects, and the director's ability to set rules was a priceless treasure for any research institution.

Second, perhaps it was because of the minions who had died previously. Lab 0 had already lost two consecutive groups of people at Yue Shi's hands, and all of them had been killed in the surrounding area. If Lab 0 had a way to determine where those people died, they might follow the trail to Amber City.

Third, the Glory Association might also be after that "lost item." The silk thread known as the 【Bridge】 was involved in many things, and it might be related to them as well.

Besides these three points, there might be other reasons Yue Shi was unaware of.

These possibilities weren't mutually exclusive. Yue Shi felt it was very likely that the Glory Association was coming with multiple objectives in mind.

Yue Shi's greatest advantage now was that he was in the shadows while the enemy was in the light; he could strike unexpectedly.

However, the depth of the enemy's strength was unknown, and he didn't know if he could handle them.

After thinking for a long time, Yue Shi felt a headache coming on. He really wasn't someone suited for intellectual games.

By nature, he preferred to use absolute power to crush his enemies rather than this mentally exhausting scheming.

His biggest fear was spending a long time planning only for it to be completely useless because his calculations were wrong, ultimately forcing him to resolve things with violence anyway.

"Forget it. Thinking too much now is useless. I'll just play it by ear when the time comes."

He would act according to the specific situation. If an opportunity arose, he would deliver a lightning-fast strike; if not, he would settle for a sneak attack and then go back into hiding.

There was plenty of time. As long as he stayed alive, his strength would continue to grow...

That night, Yue Shi washed up carefully, calmed his mind, and went to bed early.

He needed to conserve his energy lately.

As per his habit, several ravens stood silently in the shadows of the bedroom, acting as sentinels.

Layers of illusory black feathers wrapped around him like a gentle cocoon, isolating him from all outside observation as he gradually sank into a deep sleep.

He slept straight through until after eight the next morning.

When he woke up, sunlight was streaming in through the gaps in the curtains.

He habitually picked up his phone and found an unread text message.

He thought it was another task from Ling Xun, a new supernatural incident that needed urgent handling.

But when he opened it, he saw it was from Zhong Mo.

The message was very brief: 【In the coming period, Amber City is likely to fall into chaos. It's best to leave now before the mess starts.】

Yue Shi narrowed his eyes and sent a perfunctory "Received" in reply, saying nothing more.

Who knew if there was some conspiracy hidden behind Zhong Mo's seemingly concerned warning?

Even though he had woken up late, he still had to go to work.

Given the lax atmosphere of the Amber City Investigation Bureau, no one would even ask about a transcendent arriving late.

Yue Shi ate a simple dinner and unhurriedly made his way to the office.

As soon as he walked in, he heard Ling Xun announcing something, his tone unusually serious: "A B-rank incident occurred last night."

"Oh?" Yue Shi raised an eyebrow. Thinking he would be busy as soon as he started work, he asked casually, "What's the situation?"

Ling Xun rubbed his temples. "It was at an old church on the edge of the city. Over a hundred people were under mass mental control, gathered there for who-knows-what."

"But strangely, when the Investigation Bureau received the report and arrived at the scene, we found that the source supernatural creature controlling the crowd was already dead. The controlled people were gradually waking up, and no one was injured."

"Who took down the creature?" Wei Siqi asked.

Ling Xun shook his head. "I'm also wondering who did it. I've already asked several well-known organizations and lone wolf transcendents in Amber City, and no one has claimed credit."

"Based on the traces left at the scene and the autopsy report of the creature, its hazard level might have exceeded a normal B-rank, almost touching the edge of A-rank. Whoever killed it must be a master, and... they actually didn't take the creature's corpse to exchange for money. That's even stranger."

Yue Shi stroked his chin and didn't join the conversation. He silently thought that the waters of Amber City were deeper than he had imagined.

How did the saying go?

Ah, right...

The smaller the temple, the fiercer the demons; the shallower the pond, the more monsters it hides.

Ling Xun sighed, looking worried. "I feel like things haven't been peaceful in the city lately. C-rank incidents used to be rare, but now B-ranks are popping up in clusters. These are troubled times..."

Yue Shi thought that was indeed the case. Not only were supernatural incidents appearing in clusters, but they also effectively muddied the waters. At the very least, Boss Pi was completely hidden, and the Investigation Bureau had no extra energy or manpower to track him down.

After Ling Xun left, Yue Shi sat at his workstation as usual, slacking off and drinking tea while his gaze drifted toward the street outside the window.

Through the glass, he could clearly see the heavy traffic, just like any other day.

Soon, a figure caught Yue Shi's attention.

It was a strangely dressed young man with light brown hair and deep-set eyes. From Yue Shi's vantage point looking down, he could see the man was slightly balding on top.

Although his appearance was ordinary, his clothes were exceptionally eye-catching: a black long-sleeved robe with a white collar, looking like a priest's cassock. In addition, a silver cross necklace hung from his chest, and he was holding a thick book in his hands.