Chapter 658: Target

Some local families in Dongjiang Province had records of multiple reports filed against them in the archives. The nature of the reports varied wildly: land encroachment, market monopolization, bribing officials, and even clues involving Star Realm smuggling. Yet, every single report had ended up dropped with no follow-up.

Rumors that certain mining companies in the Southwest Region were suspected of using child labor, engaging in illegal detention, and even murdering investigators had appeared more than once in the archives. But every investigation had been terminated due to "insufficient evidence."

Xu Wuyi read through them one by one, his brows furrowing tighter with each passing entry.

Every one of these documents was shocking. However, behind each file, the exact same status was marked: *Investigation suspended, insufficient evidence, pending further verification.*

He knew exactly what this meant. It meant that all of these factions had powerful backers behind them.

Those backers might be branch members of a major family, officials wielding actual power in local departments, generals in a military district, or even the junior relatives of a Grandmaster. They didn’t need to do anything personally. They simply needed to put in a word at a crucial moment to derail an investigation entirely.

This was the other side of the world that Xu Wuyi had wanted to see. Not the glamorous, polished surface, but the surging undercurrents hidden beneath it.

***

The sixth day, the seventh day, the eighth day.

Xu Wuyi continued to sit at his desk every day, staring at the screen of his personal terminal and flipping through the mountainous piles of archival data. He hadn’t spoken an extra word to his team members, nor had he assigned any tasks.

Zhou Bin and the others were starting to get antsy.

On the afternoon of the ninth day, when Xu Wuyi went to the pantry to get some water, he heard hushed conversations drifting over from the office area.

"It’s been over a week. What exactly is Captain Meng doing?" It was Fang Xiaoxiao’s voice, carrying obvious impatience. "Every single day, he just sits there looking at files, looking at files, looking at files. Our Team Four is here to carry out missions, not to act as clerks."

"Don’t rush it," Zhou Bin’s voice was steady. "It’s perfectly normal for a new captain to need time to familiarize himself with the situation."

"It takes a week to familiarize himself with the situation?" Fang Xiaoxiao retorted. "I think he just doesn’t want to take on any missions. Haven’t you guys noticed? The files he’s reading are all tough nuts to crack. The Zhao Family, the Qiao Family, those major financial groups with profound backgrounds. Do you think he’s scared stiff and doesn’t know where to start?"

"Xiaoxiao, that’s enough," Zhou Bin’s tone grew slightly heavier.

Fang Xiaoxiao snorted and said no more.

Sun Jing’s voice sounded, carrying his usual faint smile. "I actually think Captain Meng is quite interesting. Have you noticed? Even though the files he’s reading are all tough cases, he reads them very carefully. He goes through every file from beginning to end, not even skipping the notes and attachments."

"So what?" Fang Xiaoxiao said. "No matter how carefully he reads them, what’s the use if he doesn’t take action? Our Team Four hasn’t gone on a mission in three months. If this keeps up, how will headquarters look at us?"

"We haven’t been on a mission in three months because there haven’t been any suitable ones," Li Zhaowen’s voice interjected. "Those simple missions were snatched up by other teams long ago. The remaining ones are all tough nuts that no one dares to take lightly."

"That’s exactly why we need a captain to make a decision," Fang Xiaoxiao said. "But has this Captain Meng of ours made one?"

A brief silence fell.

Chen Yunxuan’s voice sounded softly, carrying a trace of hesitation. "Maybe... maybe Captain Meng is looking for the most suitable target? He just arrived, so he has to choose one he’s confident in. He can’t just act recklessly, right?"

"Yunxuan, you’re too naive," Fang Xiaoxiao said. "In the Inspection Department, where are there any guaranteed actions? Every mission is a gamble with our lives. The key is whether or not he dares to gamble."

"So you’re saying Captain Meng doesn’t dare to gamble?"

Fang Xiaoxiao did not answer.

Holding his water cup, Xu Wuyi stood at the entrance of the pantry, listening to their conversation. He wasn’t angry. On the contrary, he felt that these team members had a point.

For a newly arrived captain to assign zero tasks for over a week and just sit there reading files every day—if it were him, he would have had his own thoughts about it too. But he genuinely needed time. Not time to familiarize himself with the situation, but time to find the most suitable target.

Many of the files he read involved major factions, prominent backgrounds, and powerful backers. With his current strength and status, it wasn’t impossible to touch those targets, but it would be highly troublesome.

He needed to find a target that carried enough weight but wouldn’t entangle him in too much trouble. One that could establish his authority and serve as practice, without triggering a massive backlash.

After searching for nearly a week, he had finally found such a target. Tianhai Group.

Headquartered in Xingjing City East District, this financial group was ostensibly a legitimate enterprise engaged in Star Realm trade. However, according to the intelligence gathered by the Inspection Department, they were suspected of large-scale Star Realm smuggling.

This so-called Star Realm smuggling referred to the act of illegally transporting contraband by utilizing the Transmission Channels leading to various Star Realms. This contraband included High-Energy Weapons, military-grade materials, and even certain special resources whose trade was strictly prohibited.

Tianhai Group was massive in scale, boasting assets exceeding hundreds of billions, and they were considered prominent in Xingjing’s business circles. More importantly, they didn’t have a Grandmaster presiding over them. Their only backer was a relative of a certain military general.

Although that general’s rank wasn’t low, he hadn’t reached the Grandmaster Level; he was merely a Quasi-Grandmaster. Moreover, the relationship between that general and Tianhai Group was limited to casual interaction between relatives. There were no substantial exchanges of interests—at least, not on the surface.

As long as he acted fast enough, that general wouldn’t even have time to react before he could secure the evidence. Even if the other party caused trouble afterward, or if he discovered deeper entanglements, Xu Wuyi feared no one below a Grandmaster.

It was a perfect target. They had enough strength, enough weight, and there was enough evidence against them, yet taking them down wouldn’t cause too much of a backlash.

Xu Wuyi carried his water cup and walked back into the office area. Seeing him enter, Zhou Bin and the others immediately stopped their conversation and lowered their heads to stare at their respective screens. Xu Wuyi walked to his seat and sat down without saying a word.

***

The twenty-fourth of the twelfth lunar month.

At 9:00 AM, Xu Wuyi appeared punctually in Team Four’s office area. Zhou Bin and the others were already seated at their respective desks. Seeing him arrive, they merely nodded and continued busying themselves with the tasks at hand.

Xu Wuyi walked over to the round table and sat down. Then, he spoke.

"Everyone, come over for a meeting."

His voice wasn’t loud, but it was clear. Zhou Bin looked up, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Fang Xiaoxiao moved the fastest; she stood up almost instantly and walked over to sit by the round table. Sun Jing set down his teacup and strolled over leisurely. Li Zhaowen pushed up his glasses and closed the documents in his hands. Chen Yunxuan jogged over and sat down next to Fang Xiaoxiao.

The five of them sat around the round table, their eyes all landing on Xu Wuyi.