Realm Walker

Chapter 92: Dark Rose's Goal

The Fu Family Bay was a villa community situated in the prime real estate of Kangyang District. In Songhai, suburban villas averaged somewhere between ninety thousand and a hundred and twenty thousand per square meter. As for villas in the city center, Zhang Yuanqing had never looked into it.

Still, he lived in Kangyang District, so he had certainly heard of the illustrious Fu Family Bay. A few years back, the most expensive villa there had sold for a staggering three hundred and fifty million yuan.

A luxury community of this caliber was not the sort of place a common taxi could simply drive into. Zhang Yuanqing stepped out at the front gate to the compound and waited in silence for a few minutes, until a mature beauty in a trench coat came sauntering toward him, hips swaying with effortless grace.

The woman's smile was warm and gentle. "Yuanshi Tianzun?"

"That's me." Zhang Yuanqing replied with a nod.

"Centurion Fu sent me to escort you," she said with another smile.

She was tall and striking, with long legs sheathed in black stockings and makeup that was refined yet understated—a genuine beauty by any measure. Zhang Yuanqing followed her through the wide community streets for a good ten minutes before they stopped outside a grand villa.

Beyond an ornate wrought-iron gate lay a courtyard that could only be described as a private garden. Flowering trees, rockeries, and reflective pools had been artfully arranged alongside winding garden paths, creating an atmosphere of refined elegance. A towering three story villa stood at the center of it all, ensconced among the beautiful scenery like a palace surrounded by its grounds.

Tsk tsk. As expected of a pampered young master born into obscene wealth, Zhang Yuanqing thought sourly. By comparison, he, a Songhai native from a perfectly comfortable family, might as well have been living in a cardboard box.

The young woman fished an access card out from her trench coat pocket, swiped it against the reader to open the iron gate, and led him inside. They crossed a cobblestone path, passed through flower beds bursting with color, and arrived at the villa's main hall.

The floor was laid with marble tiles polished to a mirror shine, and the décor struck a balance between opulence and understated class. Directly in front of the entrance was a grand double staircase, and there were three bunny girls busy cleaning up the living room.

Zhang Yuanqing froze. Hmm? Bunny girls? And high-quality bunny girls, no less...

At that moment, the mature beauty who had escorted him inside shed her trench coat, revealing a black, form-fitting bunny girl uniform underneath. She placed a pair of white rabbit-ear accessories on her head and smiled.

"The centurion is waiting for you upstairs. Follow me."

In the blink of an eye, she had transformed from a poised, elegant woman into a uniformed bombshell, all curves and endless legs.

She led him to a study door on the second floor and said softly, "The centurion is waiting inside."

With that, she turned and left. Zhang Yuanqing raised his hand and knocked on the double doors.

"Come in," Fu Qingyang's voice came from within.

The doors were unlocked. Zhang Yuanqing pushed them open gently, and the room's interior came into view. To call it a study was generous. It was more like a reception hall. A deep red carpet covered the spacious floor, and the room was furnished with expensive wooden sofas, antique display shelves and bookshelves. Oil paintings, suits of armor, Western iron swords, and traditional Chinese blades adorned the walls.

Fu Qingyang sat behind a desk directly facing the doors. Behind him, instead of a bookshelf, hung a large painted portrait of himself.

Guan Ya wasn't wrong. This guy really is full of himself, Zhang Yuanqing thought as he walked the length of the carpet and stopped before the desk. "Centurion."

Fu Qingyang grunted in acknowledgment and gave a curt, stern faced nod. Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help silently judging him. Some people act all cold and ascetic on the surface, yet behind closed doors they keep bunny girls on staff...

"Xiahou Tianyuan is being held in the basement," Fu Qingyang said. "I'll take you down shortly."

"Is there really not going to be a problem just killing him like that?" Zhang Yuanqing asked.

"Setting aside all the other crimes he's committed, colluding with a covert organization alone is enough to warrant killing him a hundred times over," Fu Qingyang replied evenly. "After you perform the spirit interrogation, I'll arrest Xiahou Xin and have him executed according to the law, and then Xiahou Chi as well, though that would require a formal application, since he's being held at Elder Teddy's zoo."

There was no denying it. The White Tiger Legion's centurion was truly decisive when it came to cutting down enemies. Zhang Yuanqing marveled at that realization. Too bad he's a total horndog, he added silently. The instant he had laid eyes on those bunny girls, his imagination had churned out a hundred gigabytes worth of fantasies. His DNA had nearly activated on the spot.

Just then, Fu Qingyang frowned. "Do you have a problem with me?"

Huh? Zhang Yuanqing blinked, shaking his head frantically. "No, no. You are brilliant and mighty, Centurion."

"You do."

"I don't."

"You do." The wealthy young master's brow furrowed deeper. "Nothing can be hidden from a Scout."

Well... Seeing there was no point pretending, Zhang Yuanqing gave up the act and grinned sheepishly. "I just never expected Centurion Fu to be keeping such lovely company tucked away. Your tastes are exquisite, and truly worthy of a centurion. Not like me. I'm a simple man. All I need is a pair of long legs in black stockings. My interests are so shallow."

One of Fu Qingyang's eyes twitched, and he was silent for several seconds before offering an explanation. "They're servants. They only handle housework and cooking."

What? They only handle housework and cooking? That's how you use bunny girls? Zhang Yuanqing's heart was filled with anguish at the sheer waste.

***

They descended the staircase, Zhang Yuanqing trailing behind Fu Qingyang, until they reached the second basement level. The floor was laid out like a hotel, with a corridor covered in red carpet flanked on both sides by individual cells. A well maintained ventilation system kept the air circulating freely.

Why does he have a dungeon in his house? Is this a personal hobby, or a White Tiger Legion thing? Zhang Yuanqing wondered as he looked around curiously.

Fu Qingyang stopped before an iron door, struck a match, and lit a cigarette. He gazed through the barred door into the cell beyond. Zhang Yuanqing followed his line of sight and looked inside.

Xiahou Tianyuan sat on the edge of a single bed, bound in steel shackles, with a wooden cangue locked around his neck. His complexion actually looked decent, suggesting he had not gone without food or clothing during his confinement.

Zhang Yuanqing studied the prisoner carefully. The shackles and cangue are probably Spirit Realm items. Otherwise, they'd never hold a Level 3 Spirit Realm Walker.

Xiahou Tianyuan had long since heard their footsteps. He glared venomously at the two figures at the door, and his gaze finally settled on Zhang Yuanqing, and a cold smirk twisted his lips. "Oh, come to visit your daddy? I'm doing just fine in here. Once I get out, I'll skin you alive and rip every tendon from your body, you ungrateful little bastard."

His eyes slid to Fu Qingyang, and he snorted. "Fu Qingyang, how long do you think you can keep me locked up? I'm a direct descendant of the Xiahou family. That evidence you've scraped together will hold me for a few years at most. Once I advance to the Saint tier, the Xiahou family will get me out."

Even behind bars, he remained utterly fearless.

He had accepted his capture, but so what? He faced a few years of imprisonment at worst. If he managed to advance to the Saint tier during one of the large-scale killing dungeons happening at mid-year or year's end, his family would pull out all the stops to secure his release. Other factions within the clan might want him dead, but the moment he became a Saint, the Elder Council would protect him without question.

"Your Xiahou family traveled all the way to Songhai," Fu Qingyang said coolly, "just to avenge Xiahou Tianwen?"

Xiahou Tianyuan responded with nothing but a cold, silent sneer.

Zhang Yuanqing stepped into his role as the setup man. "I think there's more to it than that."

Fu Qingyang glanced at him, expression impassive. "Oh? Do tell."

"I believe," Zhang Yuanqing said, "that the Palace Master very likely extracted certain secrets from Xiahou Tianwen. That's the real reason Xiahou Chi brought those from his main branch all the way to Songhai. It was to silence witnesses."

Fu Qingyang feigned a sudden realization. "Then what sort of secret do you think it is?"

"It could be something like Xiahou Chi's branch of the family secretly colluding with Dark Rose," Zhang Yuanqing answered.

The instant those words left his mouth, Xiahou Tianyuan's eyes went wide, and the arrogance and defiance on his face were replaced by shock and blank disbelief. A tidal wave of panic crashed through his mind. No. That's impossible. How could they possibly know—?

Xiahou Tianyuan quickly reined in his emotions and reassumed his previous defiant posture . "I have no idea what you're talking about. What is this, a trumped-up charge? The Xiahou family may not match the Fu family, but we won't stand for you smearing and framing us so brazenly, Fu Qingyang."

Fu Qingyang stared at that obstinate face for a long moment. Then he reached into his pocket, pulled out the access card, and handed it to Zhang Yuanqing.

Zhang Yuanqing took the card and swiped it across the scanner. The door opened with a beep. As he stepped into the cell, he reached into empty air and closed his fist. A forty-centimeter long yanagiba materialized in his grip, its blade gleaming with cold light.

Xiahou Tianyuan's expression grew frantic. His eyes darted between the knife and Zhang Yuanqing's face, alarm and fury warring across his features. "You... What do you think you're doing?!"

Zhang Yuanqing bared his teeth in a grin. "Killing you for a spirit interrogation."

Xiahou Tianyuan's face went rigid, then he erupted into hysterics, like a cornered cat with its fur standing on end, roaring at the top of his lungs, "You dare kill me? Yuanshi Tianzun, you dare kill me?! I am a direct heir of the Xiahou family! My father is a descendant of the Great Ancestor! Kill me, and the Xiahou family will never forgive you! What are you? Just a lowly Walker. How dare you kill me?!"

Zhang Yuanqing advanced step by step. Xiahou Tianyuan's expression shifted from fury to naked terror as he babbled desperately, "Yuanshi Tianzun, don't let Fu Qingyang use you! He's using you! The conflict between us isn't beyond reconciliation. Don't be his pawn—"

"I think the world would be a better place," Zhang Yuanqing said as he circled behind the prisoner, "with someone as rotten as you dead and gone."

With one hand, he tilted Xiahou Tianyuan's chin upward, exposing the length of his throat. With the other, he pressed the yanagiba against the prisoner's carotid artery and drew it across in a single, gentle stroke.

Blood erupted like a fountain, painting the walls and floor in vivid, ghastly red, and the Bloodthirsty Blade's hemorrhage effect accelerated the process.

Xiahou Tianyuan pitched forward onto the ground. He thrashed weakly for a few moments, then gradually went still. His eyes, brimming with venomous hatred, remained locked on Zhang Yuanqing until his final breath.

Dismissing the yanagiba, Zhang Yuanqing quickly reached out to the spirit that was already beginning to dissipate. Inky darkness surged in the depths of his eyes.

Before long, the scattered fragments of the spirit were gathered together, coalescing above the corpse into a translucent, ghostly figure. Its gaze was vacant, but its expression was savage and cruel. The living could control their expressions, but a spirit reflected a person's true nature with unflinching honesty. And Xiahou Tianyuan was, at his core, a savage and cruel man.

Zhang Yuanqing opened his mouth and inhaled. The spirit was devoured in an instant, and a torrent of fragmented, chaotic memories flooded into his sea of consciousness. The memories were broken and disordered, flashing through his mind like a dying man's final reel.

They were fragments of Xiahou Tianyuan's past. The man had gathered a gang of followers as early as middle school, bullying weaker students and assaulting his English teacher, only for the family to swoop in and make the whole incident disappear. But he never changed. He went on to attack several female classmates, and by high school had learned to use money to pave his way, toying with teachers and students alike while tormenting anyone weaker than himself.

After reaching adulthood, the damage only escalated. He coerced business owners, conspired with state enterprise executives, and kept rogue Spirit Realm Walkers on retainer as personal enforcers. Scene after scene blurred past until, at last, Zhang Yuanqing reached the memories that had left the deepest impression on Xiahou Tianyuan's mind.

He was in a study, with every door and window sealed shut. The lights were bright. Seated beside the desk was Xiahou Xin, his expression grim and severe.

He looked at his son standing before him and said in a low, heavy voice, "Dark Rose is an organization so terrifying it defies imagination. Its influence permeates both official institutions and civilian life. One day, every Spirit Realm Walker will be crawling at its feet."

"Dad, an organization that powerful could easily carve out its own territory and become a new official faction, or even a major evil organization. Why stay hidden?"

Xiahou Xin was quiet for a moment, then replied with a question of his own. "Do you know why the Five Elements Alliance and the Taiyi Sect became the official organizations?"

"Because the majority of the Walkers are of a Lawful alignment?"

"No. It's because the five Alliance Chiefs alone hold the Spirit Realm's ultimate secret, which also encompasses the leaders of every long-standing evil organization."

After a notable pause, he continued, "Tianyuan, the opposition between Lawful and Evil is far more complicated than you can imagine. What Dark Rose intends to do is dominate the Spirit Realm."

The vision shattered, and Zhang Yuanqing withdrew from the spirit interrogation.