Chapter 93: Following the Clues

Chapter 93: Chapter 93: Following the Clues

Xiang Yi tried to stand up.

But right now, he couldn’t even move a single finger.

His mind had indeed pushed past its limits, but his body was still teetering on the edge of its own.

After struggling a couple of times, Xiang Yi gave up.

In his current physical state, it was a real struggle to make his body do anything else.

Besides, this was probably the safest place for him on all of Anka Star right now.

The moment his mind relaxed, Xiang Yi immediately fell into a deep sleep.

「Meanwhile.」

「Asteroid Prison.」

The warden closed the computer on his desk.

The last images recorded by the orbital satellite were already saved on the computer, ready to be sent out at any time.

He got up, took a bottle of strong liquor from the cabinet behind him, and without bothering to pour it into a glass, chugged half the bottle straight down.

He Dong happened to walk into the office at that very moment.

Reeking slightly of alcohol, the warden said to He Dong, "Go on, have the cook whip up a couple of good dishes for me."

Although the warden and He Dong were of a similar rank, his words were more or less disrespectful.

However, He Dong didn’t get angry. He could see the warden was preparing for one last indulgence before going to beg for forgiveness.

He took out his terminal and spoke a few words to the cafeteria cook. When he turned back, he saw the warden had already slumped over the desk, muttering.

"Finally dead... Good riddance."

"Tomorrow, after I wrap everything up, I’ll go deliver this file to Chairman Liu."

"And then... I’ll leave it to fate."

「Time passed.」

Xiang Yi gradually woke from his slumber.

He still felt weak all over, but at least he could move.

Moreover, the surrounding temperature seemed to have returned to normal, and the sounds of footsteps and construction equipment he’d occasionally heard in his sleep had also vanished.

The junkyard had been completely reduced to ruins, and it seemed no one cared about this place anymore.

Seeing this, Xiang Yi took off his helmet.

The confined space of the basement had a faint, rotting smell that was slightly suffocating.

However, the source of this rotting smell was also what allowed him to have a bite to eat when he was at his weakest.

Shi Tie lowered the machine gun he’d been clutching, opened his backpack, and handed a few pieces of jerky to Xiang Yi.

Because of his parched throat, the jerky was a bit hard to swallow.

But Xiang Yi endured the pain in his throat, chewing the pieces and forcing them down.

After resting for a little while longer, the warmth in his stomach restored a bit of his strength.

His head still throbbed with pain, and his whole body felt drained.

But for some reason, this familiar feeling of pain gave Xiang Yi a sense of reassurance.

He leaned on Shi Tie and managed to stand up, then took out his terminal to check the time.

The terminal wouldn’t turn on. The battery was dead.

He could only shake his head helplessly, put the terminal away, and look up.

The heavy metal plate above his head parted like a liquid, revealing the starry sky outside.

’Pain...’

Xiang Yi couldn’t help but frown.

Just like the aftereffects of overloading his Spiritual Power before, his brain would feel a needle-like pain whenever he used his Spiritual Energy.

But he was gradually getting used to this pain.

Xiang Yi climbed out of the basement and onto the surface.

He could see that the area around the junkyard had been cordoned off with barrier tape, but no one was standing guard. Only the shadow of a nearby mountain of trash kept him company.

He looked up at the sky again.

Although he couldn’t see them with the naked eye, there were definitely a considerable number of satellites orbiting above the city.

As long as he was active, it would be impossible to avoid their surveillance.

Of course, it was unlikely that someone was staring at the satellite feeds 24/7, so the fact that he was still alive wouldn’t be exposed so quickly.

Xiang Yi didn’t dwell on things he couldn’t change and quickly returned to the nearby sewers.

The Living Iron Generator was still operating normally, its charge only down by 2%.

The prison had used satellites to pinpoint his coordinates, but apparently, they hadn’t found his hidden shelter, which was good news.

Xiang Yi quickly charged his terminal and turned it back on.

The time displayed on it showed that it was now the night of the second day after the orbital laser strike.

He had slept in the basement for over a day.

The terminal also showed three missed calls, all from Master Chang.

However, Xiang Yi didn’t call back. Instead, he shut off the terminal, lest anyone realize he was still alive by managing to call him.

He didn’t want any interruptions until he had accomplished his own goals.

As some boiled water and more food settled in his stomach, Xiang Yi’s physical condition gradually improved. He was getting ready to change his clothes.

Just then, he noticed the slightly shriveled skin on his arm, along with some red dots that were slowly fading.

’This is just...’

The anger he had just managed to suppress flared up again, and his expression grew even colder.

He quickly cleaned himself up and packed some extra food.

Xiang Yi took Shi Tie and headed for the Southeast City District.

「Nighttime.」

The number of patrolling police cars was noticeably smaller.

The district, being closer to the suburbs, wasn’t as bustling as the city center. Even Shi Tie was completely inconspicuous at night, making it even easier to move under the cover of darkness.

Xiang Yi successfully reached the bar the gang member had mentioned that day. He put on a pair of sunglasses and walked right in.

The way he looked now, even Master Chang might not recognize him at a glance, let alone anyone else.

Of course, he left Shi Tie in a nearby alley.

The bartender mixing drinks at the bar saw an unfamiliar face approach, his expression changing slightly, but he still asked Xiang Yi as usual, "What’ll it be?"

"I heard that a Wang Guowei is in charge here?"

The bartender’s expression grew wary, and with a small movement of his hand, he drew the attention of the nearby bodyguards.

"Who’s Wang Guowei? Never heard of him. You’re not here to cause trouble, are you, kid?"

’So what the guy said today was a lie.’

"No, I honestly don’t know, so I came to ask. For now, I’ll have a glass of your best stuff."

The bartender pointed to the payment QR code nearby, and Xiang Yi scanned it and paid a thousand.

A glass of liquor was quickly placed on the bar, but Xiang Yi didn’t touch it. Instead, he started gnawing on the jerky he’d just brought from the sewer. He casually set the drink aside and asked, "Do you know where Guo Long’s territory is?"

"You’re a strange one."

Since the money was already paid, and the bartender could see Xiang Yi had no intention of drinking, he pointed outside and said, "Two blocks north. The three streets after that are all theirs."

"Thanks."

Xiang Yi got up and left.

The bartender hadn’t expected Xiang Yi to be so decisive.

He shrugged, took the drink Xiang Yi hadn’t touched back behind the counter, and prepared to sell it to the next customer.

Meanwhile, Xiang Yi retrieved Shi Tie and continued through the city district.

Two blocks north, the liveliest place in the area was still a bar.

The atmosphere in this bar was even more chaotic than the last one, making it difficult to get information in a place like this.

’Besides, I can’t be sure if that bartender gave me bad info, too. Wait, no. It looks like he was telling the truth.’

Among the people on the bar’s dance floor was a guy Xiang Yi found very familiar.

Although they had apparently only met once, Xiang Yi remembered him. He was one of the gang members who had come to cause trouble at Master Chang’s place the previous day.

Only a day had passed and he was already out, and he was chatting familiarly with a few of the staff members here.

’Then this has to be the place. This is one of the Guo Long gang’s businesses.’

’Where’s the manager here?’

His gaze swept over the dance floor and the bar. The few security guards seemed very casual, unlike at the bar Xiang Yi had just been to.

’Is he not here...?’

Seeing this, Xiang Yi approached the dance floor and got close to the thug.

He gripped his pistol and quietly pressed it against the man’s waist.

The man had been holding a scantily clad woman.

When he felt something at his waist, he didn’t react at first and even cursed, "What the hell? You blind?"

But when he turned his head and saw the murderous look in Xiang Yi’s eyes behind the sunglasses, he instantly remembered what had happened the previous day, and fear filled his gaze.

He also immediately guessed what was being pressed against his waist.

"Come outside with me."

"Okay..."

His voice trembling, the man let go of the woman in his arms and followed Xiang Yi out of the bar and into a dark alley.

As soon as he saw Shi Tie, the man suddenly dropped to his knees before Xiang Yi.

"Bro, I only went to your place yesterday because the boss told me to. Please, be the bigger man and spare my life."

Xiang Yi couldn’t be bothered to waste words on the thug. "Who’s your boss?"

"Boss Guo... Guo, Guo Long."

"Do you know where he is?"

The thug had a bitter expression. "How would a small-timer like me know?"

"Then what about the manager here?"

Hearing this question, a glimmer of hope flashed in the thug’s eyes, and he quickly said, "He’s next door getting a foot massage. We all usually listen to him."

He pointed to another shop across the street where a few people were soliciting business at the entrance.

"He’s definitely in the best room on the second floor, the one at the very end. If you need something, he’s the guy to see."

"I see. Thanks."

The thug was about to say something more when he suddenly felt an immense force on his neck, and then everything went black.

Shi Tie tossed the thug’s body into a dumpster in the alley, then followed Xiang Yi as he took a roundabout route through the side alleys to the back door of the foot massage parlor.

The lock on the back door was easily opened under the control of Xiang Yi’s Spiritual Energy.

Just inside was a staircase leading to the second floor.

He listened carefully. Aside from the sound of a shaking bed, there was no other movement upstairs.

Xiang Yi had Shi Tie stay quiet downstairs and went up to the second floor himself.

The second-floor hallway was very narrow, with many rooms, and nearly every room was occupied.

Xiang Yi walked straight to the room at the very end and used the same method to open the lock.

The two people inside seemed to be having a good time.

It wasn’t until Xiang Yi knocked out the woman who was moving up and down with the butt of his gun and pressed the muzzle to the manager’s forehead that the man finally realized something was wrong.