Chapter 72 - 72: Searching for Lin Zhen (Il)
At the Long Wind Martial Arts Academy, the headmaster, Qin Yunfei, sat solemnly in the chair behind his desk as he looked at the two sets of documents in his hands.
Standing in front of him were four martial artists, all at the peak of the Primary Battle General Stage.
These four were part of a war general squad of the Long Wind Martial Arts Academy, teammates with Xu Mao, their names were Tie Shan, Zhao Shenji, Han Fengju, and Wu Ming.
Tie Shan was a formidable warrior who used a shield with the strongest defense. Zhao Shenji was a gunman who carried a sniper rifle with immense power and was capable of firing grenade rounds. It was said that he could shoot down fighter jets from the sky.
Han Fengju’s weapon was a long spear, and he was the leader of the squad with the highest strength.
Wu Ming’s weapon was a pair of daggers that he could use to move through darkness, killing people silently. Together with Xu Mao, they formed a small team, with Xu Mao being the weakest in strength, but the oldest and having the most seniority.
Although Xu Mao was an Advanced War General and the other four were only at the peak of the Primary Battle General stage, Xu Mao was no match for any of them in a fight.
Because these four were elites of the Long Wind Martial Arts Academy, they were the trump cards among war generals. Each of them was an extraordinary master who could fight across levels, known as the Long Wind Four Gods by outsiders.
However, at the moment, the Long Wind Four Gods were all looking somewhat fearful at Qin Yunfei, worried that the headmaster might suddenly erupt. “Have you verified the information in these two documents?”
Tie Shan spoke up, “Headmaster, we have verified it. Xu Mao’s last known location was in Yi Lan County Town. We retrieved satellite data and found pieces of his phone and clothing on the outskirts of Yi Lan County Town, close to the Blue River. We confirmed that this was the location of his death.”
Zhao Shenji continued, “At the place he died, we found traces of an armored vehicle leaving from the tire marks on the road. According to the investigation, the vehicle is the only armored car leaving Yi Lan that day. In fact, only one armored car left Yi Lan after the tragedy. We obtained surveillance footage from Peony City and Ice City and identified the driver as Shi Lei from the Gale Martial Arts Hall’s Demon Hunter squad.”
Han Fengju carried on, “We also went to the supply station near Yi Lan and confirmed that almost at the same time the armored vehicle left, Lin Zhen from the Demon Hunter squad also left.”
Finally, Wu Ming continued, “Afterward, we secretly found the armored vehicle and discovered remnants of blood in the carriaze. It has been proven to be Xu
Mao’s blood.”
Qin Yunfei’s face darkened, “What are the backgrounds of the Demon Hunter squad? Who is Lin Zhen? I think I’ve heard of him.”
“Headmaster, the Demon Hunters are just a low-ranking team of war generals. The team leader Shi Lei is only a third-level War General and has nothing outstanding. The team has a total of five members, among which Zhao Liang and Gao Yan left Yi Lan shortly before the tragedy occurred. The remaining three stayed there, however, Lin Zhen is somewhat famous. Back when he privately customized a 99% improvement rate, he gained much popularity, becoming the Hua Xia’s custom record. Later, he performed exceptionally well on several occasions. Though only at the Warrior phase, he has strength comparable to a low-level War General.”
“How do you analyze Xu Mao’s death?” Qin Yunfei asked.
“Based on various clues, Xu Mao should have been killed by the three members of the Demon Hunter squad. We also found blood samples from another person at the location of Xu Mao’s death, which were confirmed to be Ye Tiancheng’s, a Primary Battle General from the Demon Hunter squad. We simulated the scene and drew this conclusion.’
Tie Shan continued, “We believe this is what happened. The three Demon Hunters may have been eyeing Xu Mao’s possessions and lured him into the armored vehicle on purpose, then launched a sneak attack in the confined space there. In Xu Mao’s desperate counterattack, Ye Tiancheng was killed, but Xu Mao was ultimately defeated by his opponents. Shi Lei and Lin Zhen took his belongings and sold them all. We investigated Shi Lei these past few days and found that he suddenly became wealthy, most likely using the money from Xu Mao!”
Qin Yunfei didn’t pick up on their words, but instead took up the other set of documents in his hands. In comparison to Xu Mao’s death, he was more concerned about the content of this document.
“Chen Jingchou is dead!”
At his words, a wave of discomfort washed over Qin Yunfei. Although Xu Mao was an Advanced War General, his position in Qin Yunfei’s heart was far inferior to that of Chen Jingchou, someone he had intended to become the future headmaster.
He was already a Level Eight War God now, and had originally planned to focus on cultivating Chen Jingchou. After all, he was a Spiritual Mind Master, and once he broke through to the Star Realm in the future, he would pass the position of Hall Master to him. That’s why he had adopted a laissez-faire approach, letting Chen Jingchou go on his own, but he didn’t expect an accident to happen.
“Hall Master, we have carefully investigated this matter and have confirmed Chen Jingchou’s place and time of death. However, the investigation is somewhat difficult because there were too many cars and people heading to Oil City two days ago. We have mobilized many people to investigate one by one, but at present, there are still over a hundred suspected vehicles that have been investigated. The list is already in your hands, and it might take ten more days to thoroughly investigate them.”
Qin Yunfei glanced at the list in his hand and slammed it onto Tie Shan’s face: “What kind of list is this? Hundreds of names; do you want me to solve a puzzle?”
The thin sheet of paper thrown out by Qin Yunfei had significant power, like an iron plate, and it actually drew blood from Tie Shan’s face!
“If you can’t determine the key suspects, do you several know what the consequences will be?” Qin Yunfei’s killing intent was already showing.
Tie Shan shuddered in fear and said, “Hall Master, it’s not that there are no key suspects, but there is no evidence for these things, and I can only make bold guesses.”
“Speak!”
“In my opinion, there are three key suspects. One is the young owner of Jinyu Group, who has a personal grudge with Chen Jingchou. He went to Oil City that day and brought two bodyguards with him. However, our investigation shows that he spent the night at a nightclub and didn’t have time to commit a crime, but it cannot be ruled out that this person used some deceptive tactics.”
“Continue.”
“The second person is a lone Martial Artist named Liuhuo, who also went deep into the Wilderness Area and spent lavishly upon returning. We are currently investigating this matter in secret.” “And the third person?”
“The third person is Lin Zhen.”
“Lin Zhen again?” Qin Yunfei frowned, “Isn’t Lin Zhen just a warrior phase?”
“Yes, but we found that Lin Zhen’s car left Ice City one day earlier but did not pass through Oil City. However, at the location of Chen Jingchou’s death, there were indeed traces of another vehicle, which can be confirmed as an off-road vehicle that matches Lin Zhen’s type. However, there are too many of these vehicles, and we cannot confirm if it was Lin Zhen.”
Tie Shan hesitated for a moment before continuing, “And we’ve analyzed that Chen Jingchou’s strength has almost reached the limit of the warrior phase. Lin
Zhen alone shouldn’t be his opponent.”
Qin Yunfei stood up: “I also think that very few people in the warrior phase would be Chen Jingchou’s match, but regardless of whether Lin Zhen is the killer or not, this person must not be let go.”
Tie Shan and the others were stunned. Was the Hall Master implying that they should spare no one, even at the risk of killing the wrong person?
Qin Yunfei opened the computer on the table, logged in to the forum, turned the screen, and said to the others, “See? The Blue Sky Martial Arts Hall is challenging everywhere, and the call for finding Lin Zhen is now high. I originally planned to wait for Chen Jingchou to come back to deal with the Russians from Blue Sky, but now he cannot return. We can’t leave this opportunity to Gale, so Lin Zhen can’t come back either. Do you understand?” The four people looked at each other and nodded in understanding.
They quickly divided the tasks. Han Fengju and Wu Ming continued to investigate the other two key suspects, while Zhao Shenji and Tie Shan, the two Advanced War Generals, were responsible for finding Lin Zhen.
Qin Yunfei gave them the task: they must see Lin Zhen alive or dead, and they must do it before anyone else finds him!