Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1099: Return

"…On the 23rd, we arrived at Dai Town, a beautiful countryside town, but it is no longer as peaceful and picturesque as it once was. Now, it’s like a gaudy dancer dressed up and standing on stage, waiting for customer after customer."

In a small inn, Ren Ziling paused her fingers on the keyboard, frowning at the document folder on her screen titled Ren Ziling’s Strange Case Files. A moment later, she deleted the two lines she had just written.

She brought a cup of hot tea to the window and gazed out at the thick fog beyond the town.

Word was the fog was still spreading—it might reach the town within a few more days. Many townspeople were already anxiously packing up and evacuating with their families.

Still, a few businessmen remained, holding out in the hopes of making a profit—after all, travel costs had multiplied, and even a bottle of water now sold at scenic spot prices. Their primary customers? Media crews flocking in from all directions.

Of course, it was unclear whether there were others among them. The town government had issued a notice: within three days, everyone would be required to relocate.

As a journalist with ambition—someone who refused to be a washed-up nobody—Deputy Chief Editor Ren had insisted on taking paid leave after failing to get official approval from the boss. She’d dragged along Li Zi and Akiko, determined to uncover something. If not, the trip might turn out to be a major loss.

Ren Ziling massaged her temples and leaned by the window, staring silently at the pure white fog, thick like clouds.

Then came a knock. Li Zi entered with a kettle of hot water and grumbled, “Sister Ren, this innkeeper’s outrageous. Even tap water isn’t free!”

“Not much we can do,” Ren Ziling shook her head. “We arrived late—just having a room is already lucky. Where’s Akiko?”Li Zi sat on the edge of the creaky single bed. “She said she’s walking around to see if she can dig up any info.”

The old bed groaned under her, and Li Zi’s stomach growled in unison. Her food had run out on the way, and she hadn’t had a chance to restock.

Even worse, the ruthless Deputy Chief had been draining Li Zi’s savings under the excuse of reimbursable expenses the whole trip.

Ren Ziling returned to her seat, pretending not to hear the growling, and said casually, “She’s pretty proactive.”

Truthfully, Ren hadn’t planned to bring Akiko along, but the rookie had overheard her and Li Zi discussing the mission, showed great interest, and eagerly volunteered.

Though rough around the edges, Ren Ziling had a soft spot for mentoring newcomers. After agreeing Akiko would pay her own way, she brought her along without complaint.

“Maybe she found her calling as a journalist,” Li Zi mumbled as she sprawled across the bed, staring at the ceiling in a daze… starving…

Suddenly, she caught a whiff of something and sat up, eyes sparkling. “Sister Ren, what are you eating? It smells amazing!”

Ren Ziling was just swallowing something from a crushed wax pill and washing it down with hot water.

“Black Chicken White Phoenix Pill,” she said, tossing the crushed wrapper into the trash. “Got it in the mail from that brat Luo Qiu—called it a New Year’s gift since he’s not coming home… Giving me something like this for New Year’s! Makes me feel twenty years older in an instant! If it didn’t make me feel great, I wouldn’t have touched it!”

“Hey, your skin has been glowing lately,” Li Zi looked her up and down. “You look younger. Got any more? I want some too.”

“Shoo!” Ren waved her hand at her. “That was the last one. Want the wrapper instead?”

“So stingy…” Li Zi pouted and flopped back down like a caterpillar.

Watching Li Zi act less and less human every day, Ren shook her head and began pulling on her boots. Even Akiko was out gathering leads—how could she sit idle?

“Li Zi, we’re going out to get some info too—wait… what are you eating now?”

“So good… strawberry flavor…”

Ren Ziling looked over and saw Li Zi chewing on a pink rubber loop.

She jumped to her feet in alarm. “Li Zi! That thing’s not meant to be eaten with your mouth!!”

She lunged for the pink rubber loop, tugging on it to get it out of Li Zi’s mouth. The thing was absurdly elastic—together they stretched it out over ten centimeters.

“Be a good girl and give it to me!!” Ren Ziling shouted.

“Let me chew a little more!”

“Give—it—back!!”

Their tug-of-war continued.

Just then, the door flew open and Akiko rushed in, speaking clumsy Mandarin with a heavy accent, “Sister Ren, I found someone for an interview—eh?”

Akiko blinked. Ren Ziling blinked back instinctively, and in that moment, the rubber band snapped back and smacked Li Zi right on the nose.

“Ow! I wasn’t eating with my nose!”

“Wait, Akiko—!” Ren tried to explain.

“I—I’ll wait outside!” Akiko slammed the door and ran downstairs in a panic.

Ren froze, then slowly sat down. She took out a pack of feminine cigarettes, lit one, took a drag, and exhaled—her smoke blending with the fog outside.

And so, Deputy Editor Ren softly muttered: “Sh*t…”

——

Trapped inside the fog zone, Yan Xiaoxi had nearly lost all communication with the outside. Reinforcements could only arrive on foot—painfully slow.

With all electronics disabled, even research on the Jade Dragon Pillars had halted. They had to rely on manual couriers to exchange information, severely limiting the Management Bureau’s efficiency.

Yet during this chaos, the third, fourth, and fifth Jade Dragon Pillars had already quietly appeared.

Thankfully, Mr. Blind had successfully calculated the likely location for the sixth pillar.

Croaching Dragon Estate had used Daoist magic to summon lightning and temporarily converted it into electricity to maintain daily operations.

After the previous battle on the hillside, motivation among both Daoist and Demon factions had dropped significantly. Fewer than half showed up to the next meeting.

Though they hadn’t completely withdrawn, many were clearly slacking off.

Su Mubai and Zi Xing, however, still attended every meeting.

“Based on our calculations, the sixth Jade Dragon Pillar is likely to appear in one of these three locations.”

Yan Xiaoxi marked the locations on the map per Mr. Blind’s deductions. Zi Xing frowned and asked, “Section Chief Yan, how were these spots determined?”

“The Management Bureau has personnel proficient in formations and computations. Outside the fog zone, we used a large number of computers to simulate and calculate—these were the results,” Yan said calmly.

“Chief Yan,” Zi Xing spoke after a moment of silence. “Let’s put aside the intentions of the 71st generation of Heavenly Heart for now… but shouldn’t we be more transparent with one another?”

Yan Xiaoxi frowned. “What are you implying, Young Master Zi Xing?”

Zi Xing said seriously, “I heard that Croaching Dragon Estate was attacked not long ago… and the attackers wore black clothing and bronze masks. There were three of them. Two were killed. Is this true?”

“It is,” Yan Xiaoxi replied expressionlessly.

Zi Xing continued, “In fact, those two so-called attackers weren’t killed—they committed suicide. Is that also true?”

“It’s true.”

“And those two who took their own lives were among the Daoist and Demon members who opposed you and left during that previous disagreement. Is that also true?”

“Also true.”

“Then why did you keep this from us?” Zi Xing’s voice turned cold. “If not for the intelligence resources of my clan, you would’ve kept this secret, wouldn’t you?”

“I ordered it kept quiet to avoid unnecessary panic,” Yan Xiaoxi replied, meeting Zi Xing’s gaze before turning to Su Mubai. “Gentlemen, the current situation is not in our favor. I don’t know what consequences this news would bring if it got out. At this point, secrecy is the best option.”

“Yan Xiaoxi,” Zi Xing said gravely, “I stayed here because of the agreement, not to be manipulated by your half-truths. Perhaps your Management Bureau believes that with your advanced weapons, you can handle this alone and have no need for help from others.”

“We shouldn’t be arguing right now,” Su Mubai interjected. “We must focus on stopping this incident. The fog keeps expanding, and no one knows how much farther it’ll spread. I’m sure the outside world is already in chaos, and no matter how hard the country tries, this can’t be covered up much longer. Chief Yan, I think Young Master Zi Xing has a point… We’re not unwilling to cooperate—we just hope for basic respect.”

Yan Xiaoxi took a deep breath. After a moment, he said, “I suspect that quite a few among the Daoist and Demon alliance are already followers of the 71st generation of Heavenly Heart.”

Zi Xing and Su Mubai exchanged a glance.

Zi Xing frowned. “But what about when we were captured in that fake cave dwelling?”

Yan Xiaoxi said, “I suspect that among those captured, including both of you, several were actually ‘volunteers.’ That could explain how the 71st generation of Heavenly Heart managed to seize so many elite members without anyone noticing. Of course, this is only based on current intel—it may not be accurate. But if it is…”

“If it is,” Su Mubai added, “we don’t even know how many people here at Croaching Dragon Estate are actually… on our side.” He gave a bitter smile. “In that case, even the person next to you could be… This is indeed a terrible situation.”

He glanced at Zi Xing—his meaning was obvious: You, Young Master Zi Xing, might be one of them.

Silence filled the conference room.

After a long while, Zi Xing sighed and asked quietly, “Can we even win this war?”

Yan Xiaoxi was about to respond when a Bureau agent suddenly rushed in, face filled with tension but also excitement. “Section Chief! We’ve received a communication from Captain Ling Feng!”

Yan Xiaoxi, Su Mubai, and Zi Xing immediately stood up!

——

The location of the sighting was near Dai Town.

Those who appeared were Captain Ling Feng and a group of Management Bureau agents—along with Cang Jinshui and Qu Xinghe from the Demon clan. Due to disrupted communication, it took nearly half a day for the news to reach Yan Xiaoxi.

Then another half-day was spent traveling from Croaching Dragon Estate to Dai Town, where they reunited with Captain Ling Feng’s group, who had just emerged from the Penglai Treasure Vault.

They had been missing for almost half a month. In that time, chaos had erupted across the outside world. Their return lifted everyone’s spirits—especially with the appearance of the Four Celestial Spirits’ Cang Jinshui and Qu Xinghe.

“That’s how it happened.”

That night, the group gathered. Captain Ling Feng pointed to a patch of ground behind a grain storage warehouse. “We came out from this exact spot. But after everyone had left, the passage vanished. President Baijie might still be working from the inside—there’s a chance more of our people could emerge… though it’s just a guess.”

Dr. Zhao, who had accompanied the team, quickly had his assistants set up instruments around the area.

Meanwhile, Captain Ling Feng and the others recounted their experience inside the Penglai Vault—including terrifying encounters with Gaia.

The story was beyond belief and sent chills down the backs of everyone present. The existence of such a place—capable of instantly wiping out the combined elite forces of both Daoist and Demon sides—was more terrifying than even the 71st generation of Heavenly Heart.

“What’s this?”

While Yan Xiaoxi and the others were still digesting the shocking news, Dr. Zhao curiously looked at an item one of the agents held.

“It was retrieved from inside. There are a few more like it.”

The agent held up a short metal rod and waved it.

A beam of light instantly shot out, slicing clean through a large nearby rock.

Dr. Zhao adjusted his glasses. “Let me take a look at that.”

(End of Chapter)