Chapter 9: Gongyang Xuanying

The fire at the underground factory on the outskirts of the city was no small matter. Even if someone had suppressed the incident behind the scenes, there still had to be an official investigation report signed by the on-site personnel.

As long as he could locate the file regarding the fire and identify who was involved, Lu Yan had a high chance of finding the demonic cultivator’s planted pawn within the police department. From there, he could trace the clues step by step.

This approach was a bit troublesome, but its impact was minimal.

If Lu Yan were to resort to using vengeful spirits to directly interrogate or threaten people, he would leave behind too many traces. Once the world updated, the information mapping from the Urban Version to the Xianxia Version would create hidden dangers.

In the Urban Version, Lu Yan was the only cultivator. But in the Xianxia Version, he was just a newly initiated disciple, a nobody. Any information mapping could become a fatal threat to him.

To avoid such risks, he had to act with utmost discretion.

After confirming the archive room’s location, the vengeful spirit easily passed through the door and entered.

Looking around, the room was lined with neatly organized shelves filled with various files. In the upper left corner, a surveillance camera was quietly recording.

The vengeful spirit raised a hand, and dense Yin energy surged, forming a haze of shadowy fog that obscured the camera. Then, it began its search for the case files.

“Corpse dismemberment in North City… Adult male missing case… Telecom fraud… Serial murders in Luocheng—what is this, Gotham?”

Lu Yan couldn’t help but comment sarcastically as he browsed the files through the spirit’s vision. He then began searching based on the timeline.

It wasn’t until he flipped to entries from over two months ago that he finally found the report regarding the factory fire on the city outskirts.

It was an unremarkable entry, and the conclusion stated that the fire had been caused by an electrical appliance malfunction.

Since it was an abandoned factory and no casualties were reported on the surface, the case hadn’t drawn any real attention.

But on the investigation officer’s signature line, the name Li Zhaoheng was written clearly.

Lu Yan’s eyes narrowed slightly. He had the vengeful spirit search the personnel archives and soon found Li Zhaoheng’s name and residential address.

Once the moved files were restored to their proper places and the Yin fog withdrawn, the spirit slipped silently out of the police station. Throughout the entire process, no one noticed anything.

Back in the hotel, Lu Yan recalled the spirit into the Soul Banner and quietly left.

That night, reeking of alcohol, Li Zhaoheng stumbled back home.

Lying on his bed, the joy on his face was hard to conceal as he thought about the promise he’d received over drinks earlier that day.

“After all these years… I’ve finally made it!”

He was already forty-two years old and had been stuck in his current position as a police captain for thirteen long years.

Back then, he had cracked several major cases back-to-back, earning him the title of “Luocheng’s youngest detective captain”—even acquiring the nickname Luocheng’s Ace Detective.

But everything changed after one particular mission. He had refused to release a certain suspect as ordered by higher-ups. As a result, his career stalled for over a decade.

Years later, he learned that the suspect was the illegitimate child of a powerful figure.

Thirteen years of grinding down had eroded his youthful sharpness. He eventually learned to bow his head, to go with the flow.

Since advancement was no longer an option, he figured he might as well line his pockets and enjoy a better life.

Two months ago, a fire broke out at an abandoned factory on the outskirts of Luocheng. Technically, the case wasn’t his responsibility—but Li Zhaoheng had discovered that the factory was secretly connected to a major figure from Myanmar with far-reaching influence.

So, he volunteered to take the case, using the opportunity to approach that major figure and help cover up the truth of the scene.

On the surface, it was a simple electrical fire. How the conclusion was drawn was entirely up to what Li Zhaoheng said.

But when he personally witnessed people pulling charred bodies from beneath the ruins of the factory, he realized things weren’t so simple.

Still, having chosen to wade into this filth, he didn’t hesitate.

After the incident, the major figure vanished without a trace, never making any promises to Li Zhaoheng.

It wasn’t until today that the figure reappeared in Luocheng. One of his trusted subordinates hosted a banquet for Li Zhaoheng.

At the feast, Li Zhaoheng finally received a promise—the figure would clean up the police department and promote him.

There was only one condition: he had to find someone named Lu Yan.

After waiting thirteen long years, this was the break he had been hoping for. Overjoyed, he agreed immediately.

Drunk and content, Li Zhaoheng lay on his bed, replaying the instructions in his mind. He was eager to rush back to the station and dig up everything he could on Lu Yan.

Just then, the lights in the bedroom suddenly went out.

“Power outage?”

He instinctively looked at the dead lightbulb, preparing to get up and check the circuit breaker.

But at that moment, a pitch-black figure appeared at his bedside, and a chilling aura swept across the room.

“Who’s there?!”

Li Zhaoheng tried to shout, only to realize—he couldn’t make a sound.

His mouth opened and closed, but only raspy breaths came out. The biting cold and the sight before him made him tremble uncontrollably.

“Why?”

A hoarse, shrieking voice echoed from the shadowy figure. It struck directly at Li Zhaoheng’s soul, muddling his thoughts, plunging his mind into chaos.

The next moment, a hideous face emerged from the darkness.

Pale, as if sewn together from multiple tormented souls, its appearance was grotesque and disturbingly wrong. A wave of horror exploded through the room.

“We died so unjustly!”

“My organs… they hurt! My eyes hurt!”

Bloody tears dripped from hollow black sockets as the vengeful spirit’s wails continued.

“Why did you help them hide it?”

“Why didn’t you avenge us?”

“I’ll rip out your eyes, carve out your insides, make you suffer the same pain we did!”

By now, Li Zhaoheng was utterly terrified.

He understood—it was the vengeful spirit of those factory corpses, come to claim his life!

He struggled to speak, and finally, just as the spirit’s hand reached for him, his voice returned.

“It wasn’t me! It wasn’t me!”

“It was Gongyang Xuanying! Gongyang Xuanying!”

“His subordinates were the ones who ordered me to cover up the truth. He’s the one who killed you all!”

The vengeful spirit shrieked again:

“Who is Gongyang Xuanying?!”

“He’s someone who appeared in Luocheng a few years ago, supposedly a descendant of a powerful figure from Myanmar. He runs some border trade businesses here.

“People say he’s been sourcing compatible organs in recent years to send back to Myanmar for transplants. Higher-ups have investigated him before, but never found solid evidence.

“He’s currently staying at the Fenglan Grand Hotel. If you go there, you’ll definitely find him and his people!”

The vengeful spirit fell silent, seemingly processing the information.

Seeing this, Li Zhaoheng gritted his teeth and added:

“After the factory incident, Gongyang Xuanying immediately fled to Myanmar and only recently returned to Luocheng.

“Today, he asked me to look into someone—that person is definitely involved in all this.”

“His name is Lu Yan!”

(End of Chapter)