Chapter 312 - 169: Arresting the Grocery Store Owner

Yang Wenqing's eyebrows shot up at those words.

'In other words, this Wu the Sixth before me is almost certainly connected to the explosion. And this isn't just a simple bombing case—it's tied to the undercurrents of Donghai Province.'

He subconsciously scanned his surroundings again, his gaze as sharp as a blade. It swept over the blurred faces beyond the police tape, the windows of the surrounding buildings, and the shadows on the rooftops, trying to catch any hint of abnormality.

Suddenly—

"BANG!"

A sharp, sudden gunshot tore through the morning street's silence.

The shot came from the roof of an old, three-story building to his front left.

Yang Wenqing was already on guard. In the same instant the shot rang out, he brought the index and middle fingers of his right hand together, swiftly tracing a simple runic pattern in front of his chest and shouting, "Golden Light Body Protection!"

"BUZZ!"

An oval shield of light instantly expanded from his body, enveloping himself, Liu Xin and Li Yue beside him, and the nearby Wu the Sixth, along with two guards.

"CLINK!"

The moment the shield formed, a special spirit-breaking bullet, glinting with a cold, blue light, struck it precisely where it covered Wu the Sixth's heart. The shield rippled violently, golden runes flashing rapidly as it firmly withstood the impact.

"Get him!"

Liu Xin shouted.

The guards, reacting beside her, immediately activated the Protective Arrays on their wrists and moved toward the sniper's position.

But just then, Wu the Sixth, who had been squatting on the ground with a numb, ashen face, suddenly trembled. An incredibly bizarre light erupted in his eyes. It wasn't fear or despair, but an indescribable mix of vacancy and madness.

"Ghh... ghh..." He made meaningless gurgling sounds in his throat, then whipped his head around to look at the hard, blue-bricked wall beside him. The next second, Wu the Sixth summoned all his strength and slammed his head violently against it!

"THUD!"

A dull impact echoed.

After the impact, Wu the Sixth's head didn't bleed profusely like a normal person's. Instead, it paused unnaturally for a moment. Then, the flesh at the point of impact split open, revealing the stark white skull beneath. But the skull itself was covered in fine, ceramic-like cracks!

Even more terrifying, bright red blood mixed with a fluid resembling spoiled brain matter gushed from the cracks and the wound, quickly soaking his hair and one side of his face. An indescribable, bizarre odor—a mix of metallic sweetness and decay—instantly filled the air.

Wu the Sixth's body convulsed violently twice. His eyes were quickly overcome with red before turning dim, finally losing all light. He then fell backward, ramrod straight, and slammed onto the ground. All that remained was the gruesome wound on his head, still slowly seeping a mixture of red and white fluid.

Yang Zhong rushed over at top speed, activating the Protective Array on his own wrist to shield Yang Wenqing's side. Yang Wenqing dispelled the Golden Light Body Protection Spell and stared expressionlessly at Wu the Sixth's corpse, which was rapidly losing all signs of life. He let out a breath.

'I thought I could hand this guy over to the city's special investigations unit and wrap things up.' After learning that big shots from above were making moves, the only thing Yang Wenqing wanted was to close the case as quickly as possible.

Still, this outcome was acceptable. Although the lead seemed to be a dead end, they had already secured some evidence. Wu the Sixth himself was a clue and a piece of evidence; even this grocery store was a lead.

He composed himself and gave a low-voiced order to the still-shocked Liu Xin and Li Yue:

"Li Yue, secure the ledger and all other evidence. Take them back to the precinct's technical and forensics departments for a thorough examination."

"Team Liu, organize a team to conduct a full search of that old building where the shot came from. I want that sniper, dead or alive. Also, notify the surveillance team to raise the alert level on the three other suspects to maximum. If there's any unusual activity, you are authorized to use any means necessary."

"Yes, Chief!"

The two of them suppressed the shock in their hearts and immediately left to carry out their orders.

Yang Wenqing turned and, under Yang Zhong's protection, left the scene, which was thick with the smell of blood and a bizarre aura. By the time he returned to his office at the precinct, half an hour had passed.

Kong Yu was already waiting in the outer office.

Seeing Yang Wenqing return, Kong Yu immediately stood up. "Chief."

Liu Qin also rose to greet him.

A gentle smile appeared on Yang Wenqing's face as he nodded at him. "Come in and talk."

The two of them walked into the office.

"How are things with the special investigations unit?" Yang Wenqing asked directly as he sat down behind his desk.

Kong Yu reported, "They've requested our precinct provide a modified patrol Flying Shuttle. It needs to be fitted with a special Spiritual Attribute monitoring Array, which they say can screen the entire urban district for everyone's life-force spiritual signature and emotional fluctuations."

He paused, then added, "That Array has a huge power consumption. The drive core requires at least one standard Energy Stone per day."

One Energy Stone a day was within the precinct's budget. Yang Wenqing pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Fine. Have them send over the modification specs and the Array core. You coordinate with the technical and logistics departments to get it done as soon as possible. The funds will come from the special operations budget. I'll approve it."

'Problems that can be solved with money aren't big problems, for now.'

"Yes, sir."

"Have a seat."

Yang Wenqing gestured for Kong Yu to sit, then casually recounted everything that had just happened at Sun's Grocery Store.

Then, his tone became meaningful. "Doesn't the special investigations unit want to investigate? You can share these leads with them as you see fit, including the information on the three suspects still under surveillance. You can also make a copy of the ledger and send it over. Let them deal with the headache and dig deeper."

This was both fulfilling his duty to cooperate and using the special investigations unit as a tool to probe deeper waters, while also relieving himself and his precinct from the direct pressure of the investigation.

Kong Yu understood immediately. "I understand, Chief. I'll handle it with discretion."

"Good. I trust you to handle it." Just as Yang Wenqing was about to add a few more words, a unique fluctuation of Spiritual Qi emanated from the badge on his chest.

It was the private channel of Deputy Chief Qi Yue from the city bureau.

Yang Wenqing immediately gave Kong Yu a look. Kong Yu took the hint, rose silently, and quickly exited the office, gently closing the door behind him.

Only then did Yang Wenqing accept the communication. "Chief Qi."

"Wenqing..." Qi Yue's voice came through, less casual and more formal than usual. "I'm calling to give you a heads-up. Given the current importance of the Lingshan New District and the complex situation it's facing, the Provincial Government has decided to station a supervisor at your precinct."

'A supervisor?' Yang Wenqing's eyes flickered. Such a position was usually created only in special circumstances. Nominally, their role was to assist and guide, but their actual authority could be vast or negligible, making the situation quite delicate.

Qi Yue continued, "This supervisor is being sent down from the Civil Affairs Bureau. They're a grade-eleven, same as you. Everything in the New District is still under your command. The supervisor is responsible for assistance and oversight, not direct intervention in daily command and decision-making." ℯℯ𝑙.

"Thank you, Chief Qi and the Provincial Government leadership, for your trust," Yang Wenqing immediately replied.

"Mm..." Qi Yue grunted, then lowered his voice slightly. "However, Wenqing, this supervisor represents the interests of certain parties in the province. The candidate hasn't been finalized yet. My advice is this: cooperate by the book professionally and provide the necessary support. But privately, keep your interactions to a minimum. Most importantly, don't get easily drawn into any conflicts. Your top priority right now is to keep the Lingshan New District stable. Understand?"

The message was quite blunt. This supervisor was a hand extended by certain powers or factions within the province, possibly vying for interests in the upcoming redistribution of mining areas, or perhaps for other reasons. Qi Yue was warning Yang Wenqing to keep his distance, not to be used as a pawn or get dragged into a higher-level power struggle.

"Thank you for the reminder, Chief Qi," Yang Wenqing replied solemnly.

"Good. The person will arrive tomorrow afternoon and go directly to the Civil Affairs Bureau, so just be prepared. Also, your master should have told you that the Central Hub has some ideas for our Donghai Province. This afternoon, a Second Seat from the joint conference will be inspecting our Donghai Province on behalf of the Central Hub."

With that, Qi Yue cut the communication signal.

Yang Wenqing put down the badge and leaned back in his chair, his fingers tapping lightly on the desk.