479: Chapter 479 Burning with Rage

At the foot of Zhongnan Mountain.

Han Jingyang stared intensely at the compass, guiding Liu Jing.

Suddenly, the compass needle trembled violently for a few seconds before stabilizing.

However, the stabilized needle continued to quiver slightly.

What was going on?

Could it be that Liu Tingting's parents...

Thinking of the worst-case scenario, he hurriedly turned to look at the equally anxious Liu Tingting, only to see the warm white halo above her head fading at a visible rate.

Damn!

Something has happened!

Han Jingyang was inwardly alarmed, but his expression remained calm as he faintly reminded Liu Jing, "Hurry up."

Liu Jing had known Han Jingyang for over a year and understood his temperament well. Upon hearing this, she immediately realized some change had occurred. She calmly glanced at Liu Tingting through the rearview mirror, sighed sympathetically, and quietly accelerated.

After speeding along the winding mountain road for more than ten minutes.

The car pulled up at the entrance of a quiet and elegant fenced garden.

Liu Tingting jumped out of the car and took a glance: "Is this the place?"

Then, she froze in place as if struck by lightning.

After a long while, her lips trembling, she called out "Mom, Dad," and stumbled toward the courtyard.

Han Jingyang gave Liu Jing a look.

Liu Jing quickly followed to support Liu Tingting.

Han Jingyang crossed the fence and headed straight for the main house. He kicked the door open and searched everywhere, but there was not a soul to be found. Moreover, there was no sign of a struggle inside, which showed the perpetrators had planned this well in advance; it was not a spur-of-the-moment act.

Damn it!

Animals!

Murdering for treasure and fleeing to avoid punishment!

Damn!

This is not over!

No!

It has only just begun!

Han Jingyang took a deep breath, suppressing the fury in his heart. He turned and walked into the courtyard, briefly observed the injuries on Liu Tingting's parents, took photos, and sent them to Chen Zhongfei, explaining the situation briefly.

Soon, Chen Zhongfei called back: "Brother Han, I am truly sorry, but I'm afraid I cannot help you."

"What happened?"

"I was injured. I was ambushed while leading a mission last night, and we were almost wiped out. All my subordinates, except for Old Liang, are in the hospital. It will take at least half a month for them to be discharged."

Han Jingyang was shocked.

Who would dare to ambush Chen Zhongfei?

Did they have a death wish?

To openly defy the Bureau of Religious Affairs—even if they won once, what of it? Wouldn't they eventually be wiped out by the authorities?

It had been this way for years.

Where did the authority of people like Chen Zhongfei come from?

It was fought for!

It was beaten into shape by the authorities.

For those who played by the rules, Chen Zhongfei and his team would play by the rules as well.

For those who didn't, for those who crossed the red line, the authorities wouldn't talk about rules with you. They would use whatever weapons they had—from the early Type 56 and Type 81 rifles, to small mountain cannons, to the current M99, DZJ087, and QLU11. No matter how powerful a cultivator was, they couldn't withstand such terrifying saturation attacks.

Even he, covered in defensive dharma instruments, couldn't take more than a few hits, and the authorities had far more than just those—they had even heavier weapons of mass destruction.

It still came back to that same saying: even the most terrifying existence could not withstand two rounds of 203mm artillery fire.

That was why, all these years, the authorities and the Jianghu had maintained a relative tacit understanding.

The authorities wouldn't push too hard.

And the people of the Jianghu would try their best not to cross the red line.

But now, someone actually dared to ambush Chen Zhongfei and his team, and even managed to wipe them out. Even if no one had died, it was an extremely serious provocation with severe consequences.

Could it be that the waters in Xian were already this deep?

Han Jingyang took two deep breaths and asked calmly, "Are your injuries serious?"

"They're okay. The other side held back; they didn't want to burn all bridges." Chen Zhongfei paused here, lowered his voice, and said, "I suspect their main goal wasn't me, but you. They injured me but didn't kill me, with the intention of making me unable to provide you with help during this period. This plan started back when they smashed the restaurant the night before last. So, you must be very careful."

Han Jingyang felt a chill.

If what Chen Zhongfei said was true, then the culprits' audacity and ambition were not just large, but extremely, extremely large—large enough to dare to cross the red line.

But what was their goal?

What was the purpose?

Was it him and the dharma instruments on him?

Was it worth it?

To go to such great lengths for a few dharma instruments?

If they failed, the Jianghu and martial arts circles in Xian would likely face at least one major purge.

Even if they succeeded, they would still face a major purge.

The authorities would not allow this city to be thrown into chaos by those Jianghu and martial arts people.

Unless... those people causing trouble weren't afraid of the authorities' purge at all.

What kind of people wouldn't be afraid?

Han Jingyang had a vague guess in his heart, making his mood even heavier and his rage burn even brighter.

Not learning their lesson?

Banking on luck?

Then I will let you see the power of Mr. Han from Quancheng!

Han Jingyang patiently chatted with Chen Zhongfei for about ten minutes. After hanging up, he walked to Liu Tingting's side, gently embraced the woman who was crying until she almost fainted, held her cold little face, stared into her dazed eyes, and said softly, "I will avenge you, believe me!"

Liu Tingting, in a daze, saw the look in Han Jingyang's eyes and threw herself into his arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

Soon.

Chen Zhongfei's other colleagues arrived at the scene. After communicating with Han Jingyang, they cordoned off the area, took photos, collected evidence, and searched for clues. When they left, they took the bodies of Liu Tingting's parents with them.

Although Chen Zhongfei's colleagues were also from a department under the Bureau of Religious Affairs, they were not a combat unit. They were ordinary people skilled in technology, reconnaissance, and intelligence. There was little they could do, and since they had no personal relationship with Han Jingyang, they were just doing their jobs.

Liu Tingting, of course, had to go back.

He also arranged for Liu Jing to go with her.

He was worried that Liu Tingting might also become a target.

Because he suspected that the murder of Liu Tingting's parents was also part of the series of plans against him that Chen Zhongfei had mentioned.

If that was the case, he had even more responsibility to protect Liu Tingting, because although he didn't kill her parents, they died because of him.

While he wouldn't feel guilty to the point of breaking, he wouldn't be completely indifferent either.

He was no saint, but he wasn't a heartless killing machine either.

He was just an ordinary person, and his actions, thoughts, and feelings were no different from any normal person.

Once Liu Jing had left.

He took out the compass again.

Before Chen Zhongfei's colleagues arrived, he had searched the bodies of Liu Tingting's parents and successfully found a useful clue.

Liu Tingting's mother's blood.

Specifically, her heart's blood.

As long as the killer was still carrying the weapon used to kill Liu Tingting's mother, he could follow the trail and find them.

But this time, he would have to face the unknown enemy alone.

Perhaps, this was also the result the killer wanted?

Han Jingyang narrowed his eyes, looked up at the cloud-shrouded Zhongnan Mountain stretching for thousands of miles, glanced at the compass in his hand, and headed straight into the mountains.

At the same time.

Inside the Xuanzhen Temple deep within Zhongnan Mountain.

Zhang Fazhong was holding the purple-gold Bagua plaque in his hands, admiring it lovingly. He looked at it from left to right, liking it more the longer he looked.

Just as he was feeling happy, he heard footsteps coming from outside the door. He hurriedly composed his expression, tucked the purple-gold copper Bagua plaque into his robe, straightened his headpiece, and went out holding his whisk: "Senior Brother Faxin, aren't you in the city? When did you return? Ah—"