321: Chapter 320 I Have Something for You

"Perhaps... Elder Yan pushing me into the spotlight isn't truly about inciting conflict between me and the Night Watchers from various regions. His underlying goal might be to intentionally escalate the friction between himself and me..."

Chu Xuan lowered his eyes, various thoughts flashing through his mind.

"He kept saying I should prioritize the big picture, seemingly stopping the killing, but the sealing power he used on me wasn't even as strong as the seal cast through the ring. He clearly didn't use his full strength, allowing me to easily kill You Hongle and the other two."

"So next, is there a possibility..."

"Because of my status as Inspector, other Night Watchers might refuse to accept me. When a heated conflict arises, Elder Yan will appear again to act as a mediator, sparking my intense dissatisfaction and deepening the rift between us..."

"Is Elder Yan being monitored by someone? What is the purpose of him acting with me?"

Chu Xuan murmured in his heart: "It's just... even if my true strength hasn't been fully revealed, with the actual record of killing the Azure Dragon and the ability to strip Specter powers, a normal person might not be convinced by me, but they shouldn't become my enemy for no reason..."

"Unless they are like Huo Gui—people without a Specter inside them but who work for the Resurrection Society. They might instigate things or show up personally..."

"Members of the Resurrection Society with Specters inside them probably wouldn't dare show their faces before me easily, as I'd see through them at a glance. But those World Traitors chosen by the Dark World might not be so easily detected..."

"So, does Elder Yan have another layer of purpose—to fish for them?"

Then, another thought occurred to Chu Xuan: "There's also the possibility that while Yan Guofa intends to kill me, his body is decaying and his health points are too low. Fearing he might fail, he's taking this circuitous route to lay a smoke screen..."

"Or perhaps, he is still hesitating and hasn't made up his mind..."

Chu Xuan toyed with the paper effigy in his hand and the ring with sealing power on his finger: "So, even if these two items are eventually proven to be harmless, it doesn't prove that Yan Guofa is trustworthy..."

As various thoughts rose and fell in his mind, Chu Xuan realized that the current situation was indeed as treacherous as the suspicions he had when he first heard Old Wu and the others talk about the Resurrection Society back in Yinshan Village.

In this world, it wasn't just that Specter incidents were becoming increasingly severe; even the internal upper echelons of humanity had been infiltrated and could not be trusted.

Who was human? Who was a Specter?

The human of today might be the Specter of tomorrow.

After a long period of contemplation, Chu Xuan suddenly smiled.

No matter what Yan Guofa was planning, since the other party wanted to act, he might as well play along, as long as he could reap benefits from it.

What he needed to do now was gather resources, make full preparations, and increase his Rank as quickly as possible.

Only by becoming strong himself could he have something to rely on when facing all the unknown variables.

While Chu Xuan was lost in thought, a video call rang. It was from Zhang Qiang. The corners of Chu Xuan's mouth curled up slightly, and a hint of a smile flashed in his indifferent eyes.

He answered the call, and immediately, a bearded face filled the entire screen:

"Hey! You brat, where the hell did you disappear to these past few days? You didn't even think to call back, making me worry for nothing. Do you have a conscience?"

Chu Xuan chuckled. "Uncle Qiang, it's a long story. I ended up undergoing Transmigration to another world, and I only just got back."

"You kid, you really did something earth-shattering, even becoming an Inspector. Are you planning to take over Elder Yan's job? But don't get cocky. You're not the only one who's gotten stronger. I've had my own fortuitous encounters. I'm already at Rank 9 now, so I can still beat you up..."

Zhang Qiang squinted his eyes, puffing out a cloud of smoke with a smirk. "By the way, where's Little Tang? Tell him to stop hiding. He beat me up before he left, and I definitely have to settle that score!"

Chu Xuan shook his head. "Tang Zheng is still in the other world; he hasn't been able to come back yet."

The smile on Zhang Qiang's face instantly stiffened slightly.

Chu Xuan smiled. "Don't worry, Tang Zheng will be fine. That place is a blessed land for him. It's just that by the time he returns, you might not be his match at all and will get a sound thrashing."

Zhang Qiang's expression softened slightly, then his eyes widened. "Impossible..."

"You old chimney, get out of the way."

Before he could finish, the phone was snatched away by someone. It was Zhao Hongchan. Although she was still holding her baby, she had recovered her usual fiery personality.

She coaxed the child, "Quick, say Daddy..."

"Daddy." The baby, not even a month old, babbled. He hadn't grown teeth yet, but he could already speak.

Chu Xuan's forehead was immediately covered in black lines.

He still remembered that after the Dream Return, when he stripped the Specter from this baby's body, Zhao Hongchan had spoken without filter, intending to let him be the child's father. He didn't expect her to try it again.

He certainly didn't have the ambitions of Cao Cao.

"Look at how scared you are. I wouldn't even be interested in a little chick like you!"

Zhao Hongchan gave a cunning smile and stuffed the phone to Qin Qing, who was standing nearby, muttering, "You were nagging about him every day before, so why are you silent now that you see him?"

Qin Qing gave a gentle smile, like a breeze over a lake. "It's good that you're alive."

"Yeah." Chu Xuan smiled.

The two exchanged a few brief words, their gazes clear, like spring water—a friendship between noble spirits.

This scene made Zhao Hongchan, who was beside them, press her hand to her forehead and sigh, blinking as she said, "Did I misunderstand?"

No one paid her any attention. Next, Bai Yunfei and Han Feng also pushed into the frame to say hello; they were clearly in the middle of a meeting.

To Chu Xuan's surprise, Qin Shaowu was actually there as well, and looking at the insignia on his uniform, he had unexpectedly become an official member.

"Brother Xuan, I awakened a Talent!"

Qin Shaowu laughed loudly. "I awakened a Talent in the Night Demon Domain. You definitely won't imagine how awesome my Talent is; it's simply too strong. I'm already Rank 3 now."

Chu Xuan raised an eyebrow slightly. "What Talent?"

"Hehe! It's a secret. You'll find out when the time comes." Qin Shaowu winked.

During this conversation, a military off-road vehicle drove up, and three people got out. They were Tan Ziming, Xu Shuya, and Su Qiaoqiao.

Seeing Chu Xuan on a call, they didn't disturb him and waited to the side.

After talking a bit more, Chu Xuan learned that although Dark Rifts had appeared consecutively in Haicheng and many people had died, the situation was generally under control.

One thing that surprised Chu Xuan was that every official member in Haicheng had seen an increase in their Rank.

Besides Zhang Qiang breaking through two Ranks to reach Rank 9, Zhao Hongchan had also broken through to Rank 9 and even hinted that she was about to reach Rank 10.

Then there was Han Feng, who had only just reached Rank 5 when he teamed up with Chu Xuan, but was now at Rank 6 and very confident about stepping onto the threshold of Rank 7 soon.

And according to them, the Specters in Haicheng over the past few days hadn't reached such a rampant level.

Thinking of the fortuitous encounter Zhang Qiang mentioned, Chu Xuan became thoughtful, then advised, "Everyone, try to reach the limit of all four basic attributes before you advance to the next Rank."

"Is there a reason for that?" Zhang Qiang caught the underlying meaning in Chu Xuan's words.

Chu Xuan shook his head slightly.

This was a hint from Future Tang Zheng. Soon, the attribute values that could be increased at each Rank would become fixed, and it would no longer be possible to add extra points through spirituality value.

Since this was something that hadn't happened yet, Chu Xuan couldn't easily explain the reason, so he just said calmly, "Heaven's secrets cannot be revealed. Just do as I say."

"Heh, guess I asked for nothing."

In the video call, Zhang Qiang took a deep drag of his cigarette and said with a serious expression, "Even Captain-General Yang couldn't see through Revelation's identity, yet you exposed him. You're probably already on the Resurrection Society's hit list. You must be cautious in everything you do."

"The national offline captains' conference is coming up. I'll be heading to the capital soon, and I'll have something to give you then. Until then, don't be too reckless. Just stay steady for now."

Chu Xuan was a bit curious. "What are you giving me?"