Thud, thud, thud!
The urgent knocking awoke Wang Jixuan from his meditation.
He sprang up sensitively, and that extremely minuscule, newly-formed streak of Qi immediately subdued back into the Dantian of his abdomen.
Wang Jixuan glanced at the clock on the wall; he had only been cultivating for less than two hours, or three and a half hours in terms of this place's time-keeping. He, who had hoped to restore some strength, found himself helplessly realizing...
The Spiritual Energy of this place was too thin;
He had full insight but hadn't even crossed the threshold of the Qi Refinement Realm, managing only to slightly enhance his senses and increase his physical strength, obtaining a thread of basic inner energy.
'Later I will still need to find some Spirit Stones to set up a Spirit Gathering Array Formation.'
Thud, thud!
The force behind the knocking outside increased a bit.
Wang Jixuan could vaguely sense a total of three people outside by now.
Retaliation from a gang?
He flashed behind the door and asked tiredly, "Are you knocking on my door?"
"Thirteenth Floor Security Team! Open up! Assist in the investigation!"
Wang Jixuan was dubious, but he was also skilled and courageous. With that streak of Qi he had just acquired, plus the four-foot-long metal pipe behind the door that served as a collectible, he was confident in repelling the intruders.
Thus, he pressed the electronic lock and stood still against the wall, holding his breath.
The sturdy legs in half-boots kicked the door wide open.
Two men and one woman, all members of the Security Team dressed in light blue uniforms, squeezed into the standard compartment of a third-level ordinary citizen.
'They are indeed government officers.'
Wang Jixuan subtly put the metal pipe back into the corner and took the initiative to ask,
"Is there something you need from me?"
The three were clearly taken aback, and the somewhat frail girl instinctively stepped back twice.
The leader among the three was a middle-aged man with slicked-back hair parted on the side, whose clean, light blue uniform stood out awkwardly against the always somewhat dim atmosphere around.
The man's features were regular; though not particularly striking, his high nose bridge and deep-set eyes gave off an aura of 'uprightness.'
Wang Jixuan noticed a small bauhinia badge pinned to the man's chest.
It seemed to be proof of a certain official rank.
Behind the middle-aged man, the muscular Security Team member glared and cursed, "What are you hiding over there for? Come out and cooperate with our investigation!"
"Don't be so harsh," the middle-aged man frowned and said, "You two go out and wait for me first."
"Yes! Captain!"
The two officers saluted with a sharp hand-to-chest gesture, and the burly young officer gave Wang Jixuan one last warning glare before leaving, while the female officer with the folder cleverly closed the alloy door.
The light inside the room was dim, and the middle-aged man walked over to the side on his own and found the light dimmer, which he turned up to the maximum.
Suddenly, the room brightened up.
"My name is Zhou Zhengde," he introduced himself as his eyes, eagle-like, sized up Wang Jixuan, "Wei Na's ex-boyfriend, it was she who asked me to find you."
Wang Jixuan leaned against the wall without moving, hands tucked into his pockets.
He really wanted to appear more nervous as it would be more in line with Mu Liang's personality, but...
He simply couldn't muster the anxiety.
"Do you need me to vouch for her self-defense?"
"You'll help, right?"
Zhou Zhengde's gaze softened a bit, and he sighed,
"She's a good person, I mean, she's a decent person, not strictly a good woman, but she didn't betray me during our relationship, which gave me a very nice dating experience.
"You know, with so much environmental pressure, sexual liberalism has become a way of life for half the population, though we officials don't endorse it.
"Back to the matter at hand.
"Later you'll need to sign a few documents, and I'll record the whole process as material for the Law Enforcement Officer's judgment.
"Can you tell me now... what exactly happened? The real situation, this trouble is quite thorny."
Quite thorny?
Does the gang's strength make even the government officers wary?
Wang Jixuan nodded and said at an unhurried pace,
"At that time, Dr. Wei Na checked my mental state and determined that I didn't have any self-destructive tendencies, just that I accidentally got caught by a cloth strap around my neck, and she issued that certificate for me.
"Those three who claimed to be from the Black Fire Gang were very vicious; the gang leader named Hua grabbed Wei Na's hair and dragged her to the ground. He wore hard leather shoes and kicked Dr. Wei Na's abdomen fiercely, and at that moment... I was petrified.
"They said I was Wei Na's boyfriend..."
"Ahem, excuse me for interrupting."
Zhou Zhengde pondered for a moment and said,
"Are you? Young man, are you Wei Na's boyfriend?"
"I'm not," replied Wang Jixuan, "we just met in the Compartmental Clinic."
"Have you been intimate with her?"
Wang Jixuan smiled, "No, I am a sexual conservative."
Zhou Zhengde's eyes immediately brightened, "That's great, you'll definitely get a wonderful female partner as your gene matching recommended spouse for your twenty-fifth birthday... that is, did she tell you that she's going through early menopause?"
"Hmm?" Wang Jixuan's head filled with question marks.
"I've digressed," Zhou Zhengde cleared his throat, his tone a bit higher than before and more relaxed in his seat, "Continue."
Wang Jixuan pointed to his arm wrapped in a haphazard bandage: "I was actually terrified at the time, that guy was holding a gun to me, asking me to persuade Dr. Wei Na to accept their invitation for organ removal surgery. I don't know where the courage came from, but I turned and snatched the gun away. He was clearly stunned by my sudden resistance, and then I punched him with all my strength... People explode with potential when they're angry, and at that moment my mind was completely blank."
"Yes, I've had similar experiences,"
"This Black Fire Gang occupies one-third of the organ trading market in the Lower City, and that's how they survive."
Fury that Zhou Zhengde could not fully conceal shone in his eyes:
"These scumbags! Bastards! If it weren't for... forget it, there's no need to complain to you about this!"
"I know Wei Na's character very well. Although her views on genders are often criticized, she has been determined to be a physician since she was young. I grew up with her, once being her best friend, until that one time I couldn't hold back and crossed the line, changing the nature of our relationship."
"You know, she's a very feminine woman, and I had been drinking."
"It's just a pity that she's not willing to be my wife and stay loyal to our marriage... she can only accept an open marriage."
Wang Jixuan rubbed his forehead with his fingers: "Captain Zhou, why don't we gather the evidence now."
"Ha, of course, we can! However, later on, you don't need to mention the part about you punching them."
Zhou Zhengde narrowed his eyes slightly:
"You just need to say... the situation was chaotic at the time. These three guys wanted to kill you, and Dr. Wei Na jumped up to fight over their firearms. In the midst of the fierce struggle, you heard seven or eight gunshots, and then you saw Wei Na clutching the handgun, trembling as she knelt down."
"That way, you won't have any legal trouble, and Wei Na will have more leverage."
"Is that okay?"
Wang Jixuan nodded: "That will do."
"Splendid! You really are a clever young man!"
Zhou Zhengde stood up to call his subordinates.
"I want to ask," Wang Jixuan took the initiative to speak, "by 'no legal trouble,' you mean to say that there are other troubles?"
"The one who died is the Black Fire Gang's Thirteen, a small-time leader, a villain, scum, trash, but he is the real younger brother of the Black Fire Gang boss."
Zhou Zhengde clicked his tongue lightly:
"The two guys who escaped have already told the Black Fire boss what they saw, and his people sent me a letter telling me not to interfere.
"The Black Fire Gang needs to establish their status and deterrent, and they will definitely seek revenge against Wei Na and you.
"I will do my best to protect Wei Na. She is one of my best friends, and although the Black Fire Gang has some background, they wouldn't dare to openly attack the security office.
"So, it's very likely that they'll vent their anger first on a third-level ordinary citizen with no power or background.
"As a reciprocal for recording this evidence, I will immediately arrange a new place for you to stay, but this can only fool the Black Fire Gang for a while... or I could frame you with a crime and lock you up in the security office prison, but that would demote you to a Level 1 Citizen and you'd lose your relatively easy job."
Wang Jixuan immediately said, "The former is enough, thank you."
"Mutual need, that's all. Structure and principle are the traits of us Middle City folks."
Zhou Zhengde patted Wang Jixuan on the shoulder and smiled:
"Your mental strength is quite good.
"No wonder Wei Na's eyes light up when she talks about you, I rarely see her with that expression.
"You guys really didn't sleep together? Seriously, I'm just curious to ask. She is a sexy goddess, and I'm already done with her."
Wang Jixuan looked troubled.
This captain had a serene aura and his eyes gleamed with spirit; he was not like a villain... he was just a bit of a chatterbox, and overly concerned with Dr. Wei Na's private life.
'Tsk, the strange emotions of mortals.'
...
[Thirteenth Floor, D Section, Passageway 17, Room 72.]
Having just packed his simple luggage, Wang Jixuan toyed with the blue card left by Captain Zhou, pondering the likelihood that it was a trap.
He dared not trust a stranger easily, even though he found this captain, overall, quite agreeable.
Through Mu Liang's memories, Wang Jixuan had a moderately deep understanding of the Fortress.
The Fortress was divided into three parts: Upper, Middle, and Lower. The Upper City comprised the first to the sixth floors and was the permanent area for fortress combat personnel and various military factories.
The Middle City referred to the seventh to the forty-fifth floors.
About 430,000 people lived there. Each floor had several factories and a large amount of indoor farms. Every citizen had to work in these factories or farms before they lost the ability to labor.
If the Upper and Middle City were the foundation and pillars of No. 76 Fortress, then the Lower City was synonymous with chaos.
Living in the Lower City were approximately 200,000 to 300,000 people. Originally just six floors of space, due to various 'historic' issues, it gradually evolved into a different world.
Decrees made by the Fortress Governor were only effective in the Upper and Middle City, leaving the Lower City isolated.
The Lower City was rife with violence and degeneracy, hiding its bloodshed and disorder behind the pretense of freedom.
The underground fortresses of the Middle Ages Basin were numbered up to '136', but only eighteen fortresses still existed in this area. The collapse of most fortresses was not due to external attacks by Blade Beasts, but rather perished by so-called freedom uprisings.
Most fatal was that after seventy to eighty years of downward expansion, the Lower City had compromised the defensive layers at the base of Fortress No. 76.
——All of this was once written on the information boards on the streets of the Middle City.
Under these circumstances, members of the Black Fire Gang, who roamed certain areas of the Lower City with firearms, brazenly appearing on the Thirteenth Floor of the upper parts of the Fortress...
If there wasn't connivance from the Central City Security Team, Wang Jixuan wouldn't believe it even if Hua were beaten to death several more times.
From this perspective, Wang Jixuan dared not fully trust Zhou Zhengde, unless he could ascertain specifically which officials were the traitors colluding with the Black Fire Gang.
Master Wang pondered in secret:
'I need to find a place to hide for several months. Just let this Dao Body step into the Qi Refinement Realm, and then I should be able to confront these mortal factions head-on.'
'Those hidden weapons, which are powerful against mortals, are also a big problem for me now.'
'The Mechanical Techniques of this world are not to be underestimated. According to the memories of the original body, there is even such Mechanical Armor that can pulverize stones and blast mountains.'
Knock, knock, knock!
The sudden sound of knocking made Wang Jixuan leap behind the door like a nimble cat, casually grabbing a metal pipe with a circle of screws tied to its end.
"Who is it?"