225: Chapter 225 Huge Loss

Religious Affairs Committee.

Zhang Zhiyang's office.

Zhang Zhiyang did not say much more to Shen Yuhai; after exchanging a few pleasantries, he hung up the phone. He then picked up the landline on his desk and dialed a number: "Help me connect to Mr. Zhao."

A few seconds later, he hurriedly said: "Mr. Zhao, the case of Tian Chunming is mostly handled."

"Oh? Is he dead?"

"No, he was rescued by people from the Qunying Society, but Tian Chunming's two arms were severed by Han Jingyang and Shi Xiaoya working together, rendering him a cripple."

"What about the arms? Can they be reattached?"

"The arms are at the Quancheng police station. Besides, those two arms were held by Han Jingyang for an hour or two, and with the weather being this hot, the blood has long since drained out and most of the viability has been lost. No matter how brilliant the medical skill, they cannot be reattached. Unless Tian Chunming has the ability to regenerate severed limbs, he certainly won't have a chance to come out and stir up trouble again."

"What about metaphysics?"

"That... currently, it seems that apart from Han Jingyang, no one else has this ability."

"Han Jingyang, huh," Mr. Zhao on the other end of the phone sighed with emotion: "He truly is a talent. You should pay close attention and keep an eye on him. Provide appropriate intelligence and armed support when necessary; you must ensure his safety. This metaphysics stuff is indeed quite mysterious. It's not easy for such a young expert willing to show his face to emerge; he cannot be allowed to die young. He might be of great use in the future."

"I will do my best."

"There is one point to note: do not let him realize that we are helping him. Make it look like a coincidence or something else; the more covert, the better. Young people nowadays are different from before; the more capable they are, the more arrogant they become. Helping him openly will instead cause him resentment."

"Understood, I will figure out an appropriate scale and method."

"Hmm, that's all for now. Other work continues as usual. The current priority is to dig deep into those rats from the Qunying Society, focusing on gathering intelligence. Do not alert the enemy."

"Yes."

He hung up the phone.

Zhang Zhiyang scratched his head and sighed: "It's a dilemma. Both sides are people I can't afford to offend. How am I supposed to do this job? It would be better to just be a section chief at the Bureau of Religious Affairs."

As he said this, he picked up the phone and shouted: "Meeting."

Jiguang Zhai.

After Han Jingyang and the other four entered, they all relaxed, like a group of fierce tigers returning to their lair, instantly letting down their guard.

The environment here was good and safe enough, giving them the qualification to relax.

However, the expressions of the five were not very good, especially Liu Jing, whose mouth was pouting so high that an oil bottle could be hung from it: "Boss, that Shen person is ungrateful and turns his face faster than turning a book. Yesterday he was still so enthusiastic toward us, but today he changed his face. It's just a few dharma instruments, is it really necessary?"

Shi Xiaoya, however, shook her head: "It should be the intention of the Bureau of Religious Affairs or even the Religious Affairs Committee. Shen Yuhai has no choice. Just wait and see, Shen Yuhai will come to explain."

Han Jingyang waved his hand: "Let's not talk about him, and let's not worry about them. Let's do a summary. This is the first time our group has encountered a truly formidable enemy, and we won very luckily. This valuable experience was exchanged by us with blood and lives, so don't waste it."

Everyone nodded in unison.

Xu Xin almost lost his daughter.

Han Jingyang and Shi Xiaoya had almost lost their own lives as well.

Or rather, both of them used up one life each.

Reality is not a game; every life is priceless.

Only Liu Jing just tagged along, without any opportunity to make a move the whole time.

Uh, that's not quite right either.

In the eyes of Tian Chunming and others, Liu Jing's strength was much greater than Shi Xiaoya's. Liu Jing's departure, to some extent, caused Tian Chunming to lower his guard and underestimate Han Jingyang and Shi Xiaoya.

If Liu Jing had been present at the time, Tian Chunming would definitely not have been so careless. After all, the combat power Liu Jing displayed in previous battles was quite fierce and eye-catching, while Shi Xiaoya was a genuine ordinary person, an ordinary person who had practiced Xingyi Quan but was only of average skill.

Therefore, Liu Jing's role cannot be ignored either.

Of course, the most important ones were still Han Jingyang and Shi Xiaoya.

Two ordinary people not only defeated the overbearing Tian Chunming but also severed his two arms; this achievement was truly incredible.

Xu Xin couldn't understand: "Brother, how did you two do it?"

Han Jingyang waved his hand: "Deception, a sneak attack. Although the old guy was cautious, when facing two people with no combat power like us, he inevitably lowered his guard. We used a ruse to feign injury; the old guy didn't suspect a thing and approached me and Xiaoya without any defenses, and then, there was no 'then'."

Shi Xiaoya chuckled: "It's a pity, actually. There was an opportunity to cut off that old dog Tian's head, but my strength was still lacking."

Xu Xin shook his head: "Being able to cut off Tian Chunming's two arms is already very, very impressive. His strength is too great; I really don't know how he trained to achieve it. If I were given another chance, I estimate I still wouldn't be able to withstand a single move. So, this achievement of yours is enough to be proud of for a long time."

Impressive? Indeed, it was impressive. But it was mainly because Han Jingyang's item skills were powerful enough.

But the risk was also very high.

Each of Han Jingyang's attack-type skills could instantly kill the vast majority of so-called experts, yet when they hit Tian Chunming, it was painless and itchy, barely breaking his defense.

Additionally, it was also because the defensive power of Han Jingyang's dragon plaque was strong enough to withstand one of Tian Chunming's blows; otherwise, Han Jingyang would already be gone.

Of course, the luck attribute attached to the Japanese silver dollar around his neck also played a key role. Although it didn't show itself, in hindsight, he was truly lucky; if it had been even a tiny bit different, both he and Shi Xiaoya would have died at Tian Chunming's hands.

Because of this, Han Jingyang sighed: "We underestimated Tian Chunming when setting up our tactics. We cannot be this reckless in the future."

Everyone nodded in unison.

Although the battle lasted for a very short time, the danger was real.

It's just a pity that not only did we not get any spoils of war, but we also suffered huge losses: seven or eight skills were used, one item was ruined, and the Sun Simiao Tiger-Subduing Picture Jar, which had only been in our hands for a few days, entered a dormant state after using its skill three times, making it unusable for the next year or two.

And then there was Chaotian Temple, which was also quite seriously injured. Its form had clearly lost its previous solidity, and its state of Qi-materialization was quite severe, looking as if it might fall apart at any moment; it could only recuperate within the shikigami token.

Fortunately, with the blessing of the "Spirit Nourishing" attribute, the recovery speed was not slow, and it is estimated that it will return to normal in a month or two.

Doing the math, it was a loss.

Han Jingyang sighed inwardly; he would never do a losing business deal again.

Damn it.

And even more so, he must not take petty advantages.

This time, it was exactly that: taking a petty advantage led to a big loss.

He had originally thought about borrowing the hands of Shen Yuhai and his people to naturally obtain the dharma instruments that Tian Chunming had placed at Liu Qing's house, but in the end, it was like throwing a meat bun at a dog—it never returned.

It would have been better to just work a little harder himself.

Learn the lesson.

Han Jingyang and the five exchanged experiences, summarized the lessons, and then ordered takeout to have a hearty meal.

Just as they were preparing to go home to rest, Shen Yuhai led his daughter, Shen Lele, and pushed the door open. He entered with a smile and greeted them: "Brother, I have important information to tell you."