13: Chapter 13: Exposing the Mastermind and Returning the Property to Its Rightful Owner

Wang Chong's efficiency was even faster than Han Ming had anticipated.

Before the first class of the afternoon had even begun, Wang Chong, accompanied by Li Lei and Zhao Hu, ran up to Han Ming with a look of seeking credit, saying:

"Young Master Han, we found it!"

Wang Chong looked left and right, then lowered his voice: "Yesterday morning, when Lin Fan left the school gate, someone saw that Li Wanpeng from our class following him stealthily the entire time."

Han Ming's eyes narrowed slightly: "So it was him. Where is Li Wanpeng?"

"He hasn't been to the classroom all day. I heard he's been Cultivating in the school's Cultivation Room all day," Wang Chong said.

Han Ming stood up: "Let's go. We're going to the Cultivation Room to find him."

A dozen minutes later, the group arrived at the school's Cultivation Room.

The school's Cultivation Room was located in an independent building behind the teaching area. It had gray-white exterior walls, was three stories high, and had a sign hanging at the entrance that read "Third Martial Arts High School Cultivation Center."

This was a place for Cultivation open to all teachers and students in the school. It had martial arts arenas for practical combat practice, as well as independent quiet rooms for secluded Cultivation.

The interior of the quiet rooms was equipped with basic Spirit Gathering Arrays. Although the effect was average, the advantage was that it was quiet, making it a good place to make a sprint for a Breakthrough.

In the duty room at the entrance, an old man with graying hair, wearing a gray training uniform, was bowing his head, reading a newspaper, with a registration book placed beside his hand.

He was a retired teacher from the school, surnamed Chen, with the strength of a 1-Star Great Martial Master, responsible for guarding the Cultivation Room and maintaining order.

Just as Han Ming's group reached the entrance, Teacher Chen looked up, his gaze sweeping over them before finally stopping on Han Ming's face.

"Here to Cultivate? Come over and register."

Teacher Chen's voice was flat, revealing no emotion.

"Teacher Chen, I'm here to find someone." Han Ming's attitude was fairly respectful.

Don't look at this Teacher Chen as just a gatekeeper; he had been at the school for decades, and the students he had taught were spread all over Jiangbei, so his connections were not shallow. Moreover, it was said that he had been injured on the battlefield back in the day, which was why he retired to teach, and his strength could not be underestimated.

"Finding someone?" Teacher Chen put down the newspaper and pointed to the registration book on the table. "Check the registration records yourself. You cannot enter the quiet rooms or martial arts arenas at will; those are the rules."

"Understood."

Han Ming walked to the table and flipped through the registration book.

There were not many registration records for this morning, and he saw the name "Li Wanpeng" at a glance.

Han Ming closed the registration book and said to Teacher Chen, "Teacher Chen, I'm going up to find him; I have some private matters to handle."

Teacher Chen glanced at him without speaking, only pointing to the "Cultivation Room Management Regulations" posted on the wall.

Article 1: Private fighting, making noise, or disturbing others' Cultivation inside the Cultivation Room is prohibited.

Han Ming smiled: "Don't worry, Teacher Chen, I'm just going to have a chat with him; I won't make a move."

Teacher Chen was noncommittal, picking up the newspaper again and looking at him no longer.

Han Ming led Wang Chong and the other three directly to the third floor.

They soon arrived at the Cultivation Room where Li Wanpeng was. Han Ming stood at the door and raised his hand to knock.

"Knock, knock, knock."

There was no response from inside.

He knocked two more times, increasing the force.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Still no movement.

"Li Wanpeng, open the door." Han Ming's voice was not loud, but it carried an unquestionable sense of oppression, "I know you are inside."

Inside the quiet room, Li Wanpeng, who was sitting cross-legged on a meditation cushion, shuddered violently.

He heard the voice outside—it was Han Ming!

How did he find him?

Li Wanpeng's face turned pale, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

After robbing Lin Fan of his money and Medicinal Pill yesterday, he had been terrified all day, afraid of being discovered. Early this morning, he had hidden in the Cultivation Room, wanting to quickly refine the stolen blood qi pill to increase his strength.

As long as his strength was strong enough, even if the matter was exposed, he would have the confidence to face it.

But he never expected that Han Ming would come knocking so quickly. He knew that money had been given to Lin Fan by Han Ming.

"Li Wanpeng, you know why I'm looking for you. If you don't open the door again, I'm going to report this to the Supervision Bureau."

Outside the door, Han Ming's voice sounded again, icy and devoid of any warmth.

Inside the Cultivation Room, Li Wanpeng's face turned ash-white.

The Supervision Bureau!

That was the agency responsible for law enforcement and supervision of the Martial Arts Alliance, specifically dealing with illegal and criminal activities by Martial Artists.

Once the Supervision Bureau was alerted, the matter of robbing one million simply couldn't be hidden. At best, his cultivation would be crippled and he would be expelled from the Martial Arts Academy; at worst, he would be directly sent to a mining area to dig until he died!

"Damn it…"

Li Wanpeng gritted his teeth, and in the end, he stood up and opened the door to the Cultivation Room.

Li Wanpeng's pale, terrified face poked out, his eyes flickering, not daring to look Han Ming in the eyes.

"Young… Young Master Han, what do you need me for?" His voice was dry, carrying unconcealable nervousness.

"Go inside and talk."

Han Ming calmly spat out the three words, his tone devoid of emotion, but it made Li Wanpeng's heart shrink violently.

He didn't dare to refuse, so he had to pull the door open and turn sideways to let Han Ming in, while he himself shrank into the corner like a frightened quail.

The Cultivation Room wasn't large, only about ten square meters, with only two meditation cushions and a crude Spirit Gathering Array base. The air was permeated with the faint scent of Medicinal Pills, which had not yet completely dissipated.

"I'm asking you, where are the things you robbed from Lin Fan yesterday morning?" Han Ming couldn't be bothered to beat around the bush with him and asked directly.

"Young Master Han! I was wrong! I was truly wrong!" Li Wanpeng fell to his knees with a thud, tears and snot streaming down his face. "I was just momentarily possessed by a devil; seeing Lin Fan suddenly have so much money, I was overcome by greed for a moment…"

Han Ming couldn't be bothered to listen to his explanation and interrupted him directly, saying in an icy tone: "Take the things out. Lin Fan's bank card and the remaining blood qi pill."

Li Wanpeng's body stiffened, and a look of intense struggle and unwillingness flashed across his face.

There was still 920,000 in that card, and he had only refined two of the blood qi pill; this was a massive sum of money and resources he had never possessed before.

With these, he could also charge towards a higher Realm and change his fate.

He looked up and saw Han Ming's icy gaze, as well as the menacing looks from Wang Chong and the others at the door.

He had no doubt that if he didn't hand them over, Han Ming would really call the Supervision Bureau. By then, everything would be over.

"I… I'll give it…" Li Wanpeng seemed to have been drained of all his strength. With trembling hands, he took out a bank card from his inner pocket, and then, from a backpack in the corner of the Cultivation Room, he fished out five porcelain bottles, holding them up to Han Ming with both hands.

Han Ming took them, glanced at the last digits of the bank card, and confirmed it was correct.

He also opened the porcelain bottles to take a look; there were forty-eight pills left in total, with two having been consumed by Li Wanpeng.

He weighed the bank card and porcelain bottles in his hand, then looked at Li Wanpeng, who was slumped on the ground with a deathly pale face, and said in an indifferent tone:

"Today's matter ends here. Remember, if there is a next time… you should know the consequences."

"Yes, yes, Young Master Han, I wouldn't dare again."

Hearing Han Ming say the matter ended here, Li Wanpeng let out a sigh of relief and hurriedly nodded in assurance.

He couldn't afford to provoke Han Ming.

Han Ming no longer paid him any mind, turned around, and led Wang Chong and the other three away.

"Young Master Han, are we just letting that kid go like this?"

After leaving the Cultivation Room, Wang Chong hurried a few steps to catch up with Han Ming, his eyes looking at the porcelain bottles in his hand with some heat, speaking indignantly.

"Alright, put away those little thoughts of yours. There are a few blood qi pill here; each of you take one."

How could Han Ming not know what he was thinking? He took a small porcelain bottle from his bosom and tossed it to him, saying.

These were what he had left over from his Cultivation last night, so it was just right to reward them.

"Yes, yes, thank you, Young Master Han!"

Upon hearing this, the group took the porcelain bottle, beaming with joy, and hurriedly thanked Han Ming.

Helping out with a small favor and pocketing over a thousand—Young Master Han was truly generous.

Han Ming no longer paid them any mind and went straight back to the classroom to find Lin Fan.

Lin Fan looked up, and seeing Han Ming approach, his brows furrowed subconsciously, and a hint of vigilance flashed in his eyes.

Han Ming placed the bank card and the porcelain bottles on Lin Fan's desk with a crisp motion.

"Your things, I got them back."

Lin Fan's pupils contracted slightly, his gaze falling on the card and the porcelain bottles, his breathing stalling for a moment. He recognized them; they were exactly the bank card and blood qi pill that had been stolen after he was knocked unconscious.

"This was… done by you?"

He looked up, his gaze sharp as he looked at Han Ming, and said in a cold voice.

"Don't misunderstand; it was Li Wanpeng who did it. I just helped you get them back, that's all."

Han Ming's voice was not loud, but it was enough for the few classmates around to hear, which could also be considered a disguised clarification and warning.

"The money in the card should be untouched; he used two of the Medicinal Pills. The rest are all here."

Having said that, Han Ming didn't say anything more and turned back to his own seat, leaving Lin Fan alone, staring blankly at the things on the table, after which his gaze towards Han Ming became somewhat complicated.

Lin Fan put away the bank card and blood qi pill on the table, his eyes narrowing, his gaze becoming sharp.

Li Wanpeng… it was actually him.