Chapter 457 - 409: Sudden Change (Part 2)

Chapter 457: Chapter 409: Sudden Change (Part 2)

This year, they had finally turned a profit. To think something like this would happen at such a critical juncture.

Zhao Lin walked from the bow to the stern of the ship, but he found no signs of a struggle, nor any useful clues.

"I’m afraid you’ve run into rogue cultivators."

Yan Zhen Pass stayed behind on the war vessel. Zhang Lie walked over, glanced at the situation on the ship, and said, "These types are only after riches. They generally don’t kill, so your man is probably still alive."

"I hope so."

Zhao Lin sighed softly. He boarded the Spiritual Vessel, walked to the control platform, and tested it. He was surprised to find that even though the Spiritual Vessel was severely damaged, its flight Array was still operational.

He performed the activation sequence, and the Spiritual Vessel actually began to rise, wobbling unsteadily.

"This old thing is surprisingly sturdy!"

Zhang Lie commented in praise, then quickly returned to his war vessel.

Zhao Lin cupped his fists in salute to the two men, then piloted the Spiritual Vessel toward the market, searching for Tang Zhengquan along the way.

Zhang Lie and Yan Zhen Pass followed in their war vessel, providing escort from high above.

Because he was flying at a low altitude, the Spiritual Vessel moved very slowly. Furthermore, Zhao Lin was worried he might miss Tang Zhengquan, so he constantly flew in a zigzag pattern as he advanced.

By the time he returned to the market, the sun had set, and the sky was growing dark.

Zhao Lin brought the Spiritual Vessel to a steady halt and leaped down. Suddenly, he saw a figure in the distance, stumbling as it ran toward him.

"Brother Tang!"

By the light of the market’s lamps, Zhao Lin clearly saw the person’s face and rushed forward in a single bound.

Tang Zhengquan saw Zhao Lin, too. No longer able to stay on his feet, he collapsed.

Zhao Lin quickly caught him, asking, "Brother Tang, are you all right?"

Tang Zhengquan’s face was ghastly pale and utterly dejected. He said with great difficulty, "The cargo is all gone. I..."

Zhao Lin cut him off. "I already know. As long as you’re safe, that’s what matters. Are you injured?"

Tang Zhengquan caught his breath and replied, "I was hit by a turbulent blast of Evil Qi, but it’s nothing serious."

He was about to say more, but Zhao Lin raised a hand to stop him. "Having Evil Qi invade your body is no small matter. Let’s get back to the shop first."

He turned to Zhang Lie and Yan Zhen Pass. "Thank you, fellow Daoists. I am eternally grateful. We will take our leave here."

"You’re too kind, Shopkeeper Zhao. We’ll take our leave now."

Zhang Lie and Yan Zhen Pass cupped their fists in farewell and returned to the regional office to report on their duties.

As far as they were concerned, since there were no casualties and only some cargo had been lost, there was no need to pursue the case.

It was late, and all the shops in the market had already closed.

When Zhao Lin and Tang Zhengquan returned to Golden Core Hall, Gu Dezhao was standing by the door, anxiously looking around. He had made a special trip to the regional office during the day and learned of the attack on the Spiritual Vessel. He’d been on pins and needles all day.

Seeing the two return, he calmed down slightly and came forward to ask, "How are things?"

"Ah, Brother Tang, you’re injured?"

Gu An and Li Sancai also came over, their voices filled with concern.

Gu Dezhao hadn’t revealed the news to anyone else so as not to affect the shop’s business, but seeing the current situation, the others knew that something major had happened.

As Zhao Lin helped Tang Zhengquan into the shop, he said, "Brother Tang has been afflicted by Evil Qi. Bring a Purifying Evil Pill."

Li Sancai acknowledged the order and trotted to the storeroom, fetching a bottle of Purifying Evil Pills for Tang Zhengquan to take.

The group went to the back courtyard and sat down, while Tang Zhengquan began circulating his energy to one side, expelling the Evil Qi.

Zhao Lin used this time to recount the entire incident: the cargo Spiritual Vessel being hijacked, Tang Zhengquan’s message via Hongyan Talisman, and how he had rushed to the scene to mount a rescue.

Everyone was left speechless with shock after hearing the story.

After a long moment, Gu Dezhao asked, "Was there nothing left of the cargo?"

Zhao Lin slowly shook his head.

Gu Dezhao gave a bitter smile. "That was our last shipment for the year-end accounts. Half of it was valuable goods. There were fifty sets of magical robes alone, not to mention three hundred jars of high-grade Spirit Tea and fifty True Meaning Jade Slips!"

Hearing this, the color drained from everyone’s faces.

A single magical robe was worth anywhere from five hundred to a thousand Spirit Stones, so dozens of them amounted to tens of thousands of Spirit Stones. The high-grade Spirit Tea and True Meaning Jade Slips were also incredibly valuable.

Zhao Lin turned to the accountant. "Elder Wan, after losing this shipment, will the shop still be profitable for the year?"

Wan Jingsheng let out a heavy sigh. "We earned a lot this year, so we can absorb the loss. But you can forget about any dividends."

Everyone had mixed feelings about this. They were relieved that Tang Zhengquan’s life had been saved and the shop could continue operating, but it was a bitter pill to swallow that their dividends were gone.

More than the financial loss, Zhao Lin was concerned with who was responsible. He took out the remnant of the Hongyan Talisman and slapped it on the table.

"Everyone, take a look at this and see if you can find any clues. We can’t just swallow this loss. Even if we can’t get the cargo back, we need to know who to collect this debt from in the future!"

One by one, they took the talisman fragment and immersed their Divine Sense into it to view the recording. Afterward, all of them could only shake their heads.

Gu Dezhao sighed. "The sect requires all active Spiritual Vessels to display their registration marks on the bow and stern. That dark vessel was clearly modified; it had no markings whatsoever."

Gu An chimed in, "All those fellows were masked, and they didn’t use a single bit of Magic from start to finish. It’s impossible to tell where they came from."

Zhao Lin knew this was true and couldn’t help but fall into deep thought.

Just as everyone was at a loss, Tang Zhengquan finished circulating his energy, got up, and walked over.

Gu Dezhao quickly handed him a cup of Spirit Tea. Tang Zhengquan took a couple of sips, and some color returned to his face.

Zhao Lin snapped out of his reverie and said, "Brother Tang, we’ve only seen what was on the talisman. It’s not as clear as what you observed on the scene. Could you recount the events for us in detail?"

"Very well!"

Tang Zhengquan cleared his throat and recounted the incident once more.

He had departed from Han Chi County that morning. Around noon, he suddenly noticed a Spiritual Vessel following him.

Tang Zhengquan immediately activated the warning Array, which emitted a loud buzzing sound, and veered to the side to give way.

Unexpectedly, the other vessel paid him no mind and instead accelerated to catch up.

Tang Zhengquan glanced back and saw that the cultivators on the dark Spiritual Vessel were masked. Realizing something was wrong, he immediately released the Hongyan Talisman.

"You all saw what happened next. The Spiritual Vessel was shot down, so I had no choice but to jump ship and flee for my life."

Gu Dezhao thought for a moment, then asked, "They didn’t pursue you?"

Tang Zhengquan shook his head. "No. I deliberately dropped into the forest and used two Concealment Talismans. I don’t know if that’s why, but in any case, they didn’t come after me."

Gu Dezhao stroked his beard. "They were probably rogue cultivators, only after wealth, not lives."

But Zhao Lin felt things weren’t that simple. "Brother Tang," he said, "think again. Did the three masked men say anything? Or make any distinctive movements?"

Tang Zhengquan shook his head again. "They didn’t say a single word the entire time. However, as we were falling, they must have thought our Spiritual Vessel was completely out of control, because they got cocky and tried to press down on us from above."

"I seized the opportunity to use the Array to fire off flying spears, attacking the underbelly of their vessel. I didn’t expect it, but I actually hit them."

"A piece of the hull on the dark vessel’s stern was torn away, revealing a symbol."

Zhao Lin’s spirits lifted. He leaned forward and asked, "What kind of symbol?" He immediately had someone bring a brush and paper and spread them out on the table.

Tang Zhengquan picked up the brush, recalled the image carefully, and drew a strange symbol on the paper: the top half was a crescent moon, and the bottom half had three plum blossoms arranged in a triangle.

The symbol looked familiar to Zhao Lin, but he couldn’t remember where he had seen it before. He stared at the drawing for a moment, noticing the number of petals on the flowers was inconsistent—some had five, others six. He asked, "How many petals did the flowers have?"

Tang Zhengquan replied, "Things were happening so fast, I only got a quick glance. I just remember the general shape."

Zhao Lin looked inquiringly at Gu Dezhao. "Elder Gu, have you ever seen it?"

Gu Dezhao frowned in thought for a moment before also shaking his head. "From its shape, it seems to be an insignia, but none of the prefectures or counties within our Chenghua Sect use such a symbol."

"As for the cultivator clans, there are far too many different insignias and crests. They’re all so varied, I’m not familiar with them all."

Zhao Lin nodded. ’This is our only lead,’ he thought.

He folded the piece of paper and stood up. "Brother Tang, get some rest. To recover quickly from the Evil Qi, you’ll need no shortage of pills and Spirit Stones. The shop will cover all the expenses."

"Oh, and Gu An, take Brother Tang to the medical hall tomorrow to get checked out."

Gu An quickly agreed.

Tang Zhengquan said gratefully, "Thank you, Shopkeeper Zhao."

Zhao Lin replied with a serious expression, "Brother Tang, you were injured while transporting goods for us. It’s only right that the shop pays. You just focus on your recovery and don’t worry about anything else."

He then looked around at the others. "I will handle this matter. Don’t mention it to anyone outside. The shop will open for business as usual."