Chapter 725: Unsuspecting
‘Holy crap…I won? I won!’
[That you did…welp, my job here is done. So I’ll be on my way.]
‘Huh? Where are you going? Aren’t you suppose to like…stay in my head in order to let me tap into your power? That was the deal, right?’
[No and you won’t need me anyways. Power’s unlocked, just remember what it felt like.]
‘Oh…neat.’
[Also, I hope you know how to lie to police because they’re about to be here in ten seconds.]
‘Wait, what? Cops?’
[So long!]
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∆∆Whoa…∆∆
∆∆What aether art is that?∆∆
∆∆I don’t know…but it feels…majestic.∆∆
‘Wait…I recognize this feeling…’
Moments before Captain Zhen Bai Yin and his men could enter the market district and rescue Zhen Li from what they assumed to be the gruesome fate of fighting an Aether Grandmaster by himself, a giant dragon made of steam appeared out of nowhere and began to soar towards the sky.
From where they were standing, they could sense that the dragon in question was actually a construct composed of high quantities of Ignati and Aquarii aether. However, there was something weird about it.
Mixed into these two types of aether, the group could identify that some weird energy was mixed in. Most of the group couldn’t identify what this weird energy was, but Captain Zhen Bai Yin could at least recognize it.
‘This weird energy…it’s just like back at the arena…’
The dragon made of steam continued to soar into the sky until reaching some invisible limit. Once this limit was reached, the dragon proceeded to disperse into nothingness. As if it was summoned to handle a single task before returning to whatever plane of existence it originally belonged to.
∆∆And now it’s gone…∆∆
∆∆Wait…was that attack Zhen Li’s or Zhen Jun Yao’s?∆∆
∆∆Oh…that’s a good point.∆∆
∆∆Soldies! Onward.∆∆
With the show now over, the Zhen Clan soldiers stopped their staring and began moving towards the market district once more.
∆∆Keep your hands on your blades, but don’t draw them yet. Once we determine the situation get ready to attack.∆∆
∆∆Sir yes sir!∆∆
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‘Gods above…I actually did it…I actually defeated him!,’ Zhen Li thought to himself as he was about to raise his arms in victory, stopping once he remembered that one of his ribs was broken.
‘Ow! Right…need to not exacerbate that further…need to apply my aether a bit..m’
Zhen Li could honestly not believe his eyes as he stood over there defeated and unconscious form of Zhen Jun Yao.
He had heard tales of warriors begin able to defeat those of higher cultivation levels than themselves, but he always figured those tales were exaggerated for the sake of entertainment and memorability. But now, lo and behold, he was now the protagonist of one of those tales.
Granted, he had assistance in the form of a weird demonic spirit that had suddenly absconded after helping him in this fight, but nobody had to know that.
‘Wait…now that think about it…what are the chances those other guys probably had some sort of tool or cheat-like ability that helped them to…wait…cheat-like? Why do I know that term?’
It should be noted that besides the power-up and the ability to use Ignati aether, the demonic spirit that hopped into Zhen Li’s body had left a little bit more than just power.
‘Wait…now that I think about it..why is my head full of terms and phrases I’ve never heard of until now? Why do I know their meaning? Wait, no, focus. That demonic spirit mentioned something about cops showing up to-‘
*Sound of boots and armor approaching.*
‘Ohhhh, that’s what she meant. Huh…I guess “city guard” and “police” are technically the same thing…or at least synonymous…’
As Zhen Li stood there, his thoughts a bit of a mess, a group of soldiers in uniform steadily approached him and the unconscious Zhen Jun Yao.
Seeing that the leader of this group was none other than Captain Zhen Bai Yin, Zhen Li visibly relaxed while letting out a sigh of relief.
Out of practically everyone in the Zhen Clan, Captain Bai Yin was the most straightforward, straight-laced and trustworthy of the bunch.
Hell was more likely to collapse than Bai Yin turning traitor.
Once the group of warriors was in earshot, Zhen Li could hear the captain give orders in a rapidfire manner.
∆∆You two, secure the area. You two, check on Zhen Jun Yao and determine if he’s dead or not. Cuff him if he’s still breathing. Dong Ren, with me.∆∆
∆∆Sir!∆∆
With remarkable efficiency, the Zhen Clan soldiers proceeded to split up and do as instructed like clockwork.
Zhen Li for his part just stood there as Captain Zhen Bai Yin and the soldier known as Dong Ren simply walked up to him, while two other soldiers picked up Zhen Jun Yao and put him in handcuffs.
‘Wait…did…did I not have to actually fight him?,’ Zhen Li realized as soon as Zhen Jun Yao get taken away. The fact that the Zhen Clan’s family guard was already handcuffing the guy implied that someone higher up than himself had learned Zhen Jun Yao was a traitor before he did, or at least, around the same time he did.
A mild grimace formed on his face at this thought, but he quickly schooled it away once Captain Zhen Bai Yin got close enough to talk to him.
∆∆Xiao Li! Are you alright?∆∆
∆∆I’m fine, unc-Captain. I’m fine,∆∆ Zhen Li dismissed with a wave of his hand. ∆∆Well, actually, one of my ribs are broken and it hurts like-∆∆
∆∆Dong Ren?∆∆
∆∆On it.∆∆
As quickly as he brought up the issue, the soldier by Zhen Bai Yin’s side proceeded to use a healing aether art on Zhen Li’s wound.
A wave of relief washed over Zhen Li as he felt his rib mend itself and his organs stitched themselves back up. It mildly tickled, but it was better than being in constant pain…and organ damage.
∆∆Phew…that’s better. Thank you, captain.∆∆
∆∆No problem. Now…mind telling me what happened here?∆∆
∆Ah well…∆∆
While Zhen Li wasn’t sure exactly how much he could tell the captain of the family guard, there was one detail he knew to leave out.
Not like anyone would believe him on that front anyways…
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[So…how was that dude’s head?]
[Honestly? Surprisingly noisy and a whole lot of self-deprecation. I figured my presence would’ve helped to mute all that, but I think that it’s most of his personality. Would explain his arrogant ass behavior the first time around.]
[Defensive…beasts…bark…the loudest…]
[I thought the phrase was “the smallest dog bark the loudest”, right?]
[I think you’re thinking “it’s the size of the fight in the dog that matters, not the size of the dog”…I think.]
[Either way, everything went as planned.]
‘Excellent.’
________________Meanwhile_______________
“Damn, your master works fast.”
“Nah. He just likes to be efficient.”
At the edge of a courtyard at the Zhen Clan’s estate, Zhen Liu and his cousin, Zhen Hai, were staring into the distance in the direction where a certain internal issue was being resolved.
“Still find it mildly bullshit that we weren’t the ones to turn this traitor in ourselves.”
“I told you the reason why.”
“I know, but still.”
Several hours ago, and a bit after the incident in the vault, Zhen Liu had done a bit more than just tell Matriarch Zhen Xun Tian about how Zhen Jun Yao was a bit of bastard.
In order to back his claim up, Zhen Liu had roped in his cousin, Zhen Hai, so that he could regale the matriarch about his encounter in the arena on the day of the attack and the weird jade aether treasure that he found after the fight.
Zhen Liu already knew what the thing, thanks to Logos and Pathos, but he had no idea if the matriarch knew.
Evidently, that fear was unwarranted because her normally jovial and free-spirited face turned practically glacial as soon as she saw it.
This was the first time either himself or Zhen Hai had ever seen the matriarch mad, and it was something they never wanted to see ever again.
On a side note, it should be noted when an aether warrior gets mad, their abilities have a tendency to…go a little haywire.
Thankfully, neither of them were the target for this rage, but still.
After that moment though, Zhen Hai was promised a reward for uncovering this spy and plot, while Zhen Liu wasn’t given anything due to already being promised some goodies for previously performed actions.
That all said, when the matriarch had left the two of them to their own devices, Zhen Hai had a realization.
“Wait…isn’t there a really good chance that Zhen Jun Yao has a way to escape from captivity if the matriarch sends the family guard after him? What if we just take care him ourselves.”
“See I thought about that too, so I asked my master about this thought. He told me that it was better to let the main clan resolve their own mess so they can regain their morale. That and he said he owed someone here a favor anyways.”
“A favor? For what?”
“I don’t know.”
