From Abyssal Invasion to Bursting Stars with a Single Sword-Chapter 139 - 119: Truth and Reality

For those unaware, Gao Zhitin's request seemed a bit odd.

However, no one present found it strange.

Lu Heng smiled, accommodated his request, stood up, and extended his left hand; covering Gao Zhitin's mouth from behind with it, he then lifted his right hand, mimicking an injection action near his neck:

"Like this?"

At that moment, Gao Zhitin's pupils contracted sharply, because the sensation was too familiar.

His heart pounded wildly, he gasped for breath, "It was you, wasn't it?"

Lu Heng laughed heartily, sat back down in his chair, and said to Chen Linian, "Does your apprentice also use intuition to solve cases? Did he learn that from you?"

Chen Linian had regained his composure and said leisurely, "My intuition is seldom wrong."

Lu Heng teased, "Too bad intuition can't count as evidence."

Actually,

Chen Linian already knew clearly what had happened.

This was a struggle between two forces, and it was impossible to clearly state who was right or wrong.

First, Lin Zeyu had been attacked, but he was lucky to survive.

Everyone actually knew it was Kenji Ono, the President of the Asia-Pacific region of the Chunshang Group, who did it, but there was no evidence.

Before today, the Lin Family had been negotiating with Kenji Ono, but no agreement had been reached.

And today's incident was clearly Lin Zeyu's retaliation.

From a basic moral perspective, it was Kenji Ono who struck first and should bear the primary responsibility for the feud between the two families.

But now, he was dead.

And the law never follows simplistic views; it only speaks to evidence.

That is to say, if Iron Blood can find evidence of Lu Heng and Lin Zeyu attacking Kenji Ono, the case must be pursued.

Reality is not a TV drama; justice and the law do not always stand on the same side.

Moreover, Kenji Ono's sensitive identity made the situation incredibly complex.

Facing complex matters, the best approach was—to cut the Gordian knot quickly.

And that is what Lu Heng did, solving everything with one strike, leaving the remaining troubles to others.

…

Chen Linian didn't manage to obtain any useful information and stood up to take his leave.

Lin Zeyu escorted him to the door and at the doorway, took out a business card to hand over, saying with a smile, "Inspector Chen, you're always welcome to come over for a drink and chat as old friends. But if it's to investigate a case, please directly contact my lawyer."

Chen Linian sighed, hesitated for a long moment, but still said, "Hideyoshi Tsugawa is the successor to the Kashima Shintou Sword Saint, and now he's dead in Coastal. Things won't simply end like this; you all need to be careful."

Lin Zeyu replied in a relaxed tone, "I'm also forced into a corner; I took a bullet and after all these days, no one has told me how the investigation is going. I hope, Inspector Chen, when you investigate, you don't underestimate us, that would be good."

Chen Linian said nothing more, stuffed the business card into his pocket, and turned to enter the elevator.

…

On the road.

Gao Zhitin was silent as he drove, without speaking a word.

Curious, Chen Linian asked, "Why so quiet? The suspect didn't say a word when he impersonated you either."

"It was him!" Gao Zhitin suddenly blurted out two words.

"Then what?"

"There's no 'then what,'" Gao Zhitin sighed heavily.

"Weren't you the most persistent before? Following up on clues until the very end," Chen Linian teased with a smile.

"Master, you know who it is too, right?" Gao Zhitin counter-asked.

"This world has never lacked secrets that everyone seemingly knows, both in the past and now."

"What should I do then?" Gao Zhitin sounded somewhat helpless.

"What do you want to do?"

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"I don't know, I suddenly don't want to investigate anymore."

"Why?"

"No reason, just don't feel like it. Kenji Ono sent people to kill first, and then he got killed in retaliation..."

Gao Zhitin stopped the car by the roadside, turned his head, and said indignantly,

"Does that mean one can't fight back if they're being hunted down by people sent by Kenji Ono? If there's no evidence found of Kenji Ono hiring assassins, does that mean he can forever evade the law?"

Chen Linian shook his head smiling, "Yeah, as long as there's no evidence, he can forever evade the law. Welcome to the real world."

For a moment, Gao Zhitin was perplexed, not even sure to whom his master was referring.

After a while, Gao Zhitin asked again, "But in Kenji Ono's courtyard, Lu Heng's fingerprints and skin tissue were found."

"So what?"

"That proves he was there, and perhaps, he killed those people."

"Facing a group of people illegally armed within the country, there's unlimited self-defense. Even if he admitted to killing those people, what could happen?" Chen Linian anticipated the outcome of the investigation.

Actually.

After visiting the scene at Kenji Ono's mansion, Chen Linian could already reconstruct a rough sequence of events in his mind.

It was indeed a trap set by Kenji Ono, a banquet with hidden dangers.

Only, Kenji Ono hit a snag.

If it wasn't Kenji Ono who died but instead the person he targeted, the outcome would have been different.

Then, the law enforcement team wouldn't even be able to enter Kenji Ono's mansion to investigate.

…

Jinxiu Imperial View.

After seeing Chen Linian and his apprentice off, Lin Zeyu came back and said, "Before that Chen guy left, he told me Hideyoshi Tsugawa is a descendant of the Kashima Shintou Sword Saint from Fusang, and he also said that things won't end so easily. That 'pants sword saint' won't come for revenge, will he?"

"Probably."

In his previous life, Lu Heng had heard of Fusang's Kashima Shintou swordsmanship, a very powerful force during the Abyss Descent Era.

After the Abyss Descent, the situation of Fusang's four islands was one where power was divided among four groups, with Kashima Shintou playing a very important role.

Kashima Shintou was actually a derivative faction of the genuine Katori Shinto-ryu.

And this Sword Saint of Kashima Shintou was a leading figure in the new faction, very famous in later generations, a person with peak combat power.

Lu Heng wasn't sure about the relationship between Hideyoshi Tsugawa and this world-renowned Sword Saint. Even if that famous Sword Saint came looking for a fight, he'd fight if he had to.

Reborn in this world, if he was going to do anything, it would be to become the strongest person.

So, no matter who it was, he wasn't afraid to fight.

...

Lu Heng took the Spirit Resistance Ring out again and slowly twisted it on his finger, then drew the famous blade, the "Izumi Tiger Cutter."

This "Izumi Tiger Cutter" was the tachi used by Hideyoshi Tsugawa, already integrated with the Abyss Rules.

"Izumi Tiger Cutter +6 (Integrated)"

"Item Level: B Level"

"Specifications: Length 121 centimeters, blade width 3.2 centimeters, weight 1.5 kilograms"

"Attribute: Attack Power 200"

"Special Effect: Sharp Blade"

"Evaluation: Crafted using a three-layer hardening steel process, extremely sharp."

This weapon was also B Level, the same as the current level of the Aurora Blade.

Previously, when the Aurora Blade was at C Level, it was reforged with a B Level Scarlet Blood Sword, upgrading the Aurora Blade to B Level.

This B Level "Izumi Tiger Cutter" could actually be used as forging material as well.

But since this "Izumi Tiger Cutter" was only B Level, using it as material wouldn't be enough to upgrade the Aurora Blade to A Level.

So, for now, he'd stow it away until he collected more forging materials for further forging.

Or, if he got the right price, he might consider selling it.

However, this blade was a renowned Fusang sword, and everyone knew it was Hideyoshi Tsugawa's weapon, so selling it could be troublesome.

Better to wait until he had enough materials and then use it to upgrade the Aurora Blade.

Lu Heng grasped the Izumi Tiger Cutter and practiced a few sword moves.

Lin Zeyu, curious, asked, "Is that Hideyoshi Tsugawa's sword? Let me take a look."

As he spoke, he reached out to take it.

"Stop that, dare you, a gun-wielder, touch this blade?" Lu Heng gave him a glare.

"Hey! Now, I'm not convinced," Lin Zeyu protested with renewed vigor.

Lu Heng was just joking and handed it over, saying, "A Fusang renowned blade, if sent to an auction in Fusang, would probably fetch a sky-high price."

Indeed, it would fetch a sky-high price, and the quenching level was already at Level 6.

It probably was a piece quenched by the "Quenching Master" He Shangyong in the Abyss World.

Lin Zeyu, holding the Izumi Tiger Cutter, exclaimed in surprise, "It has a quenching level of 6 and even a special effect. This blade is pretty fierce."

As time passed since the Abyss Descent, the world began to see more and more Quenching Masters.

Not only that, but other vice professions such as Forging Masters would appear.

Big powers, willing to spend the money, would slowly accumulate weapons with special effects.

Lin Zeyu clenched his fist and said, "No, I feel our dual special effect weapons are losing their overwhelming advantage; we need to keep upgrading."

"Can we still purchase quenching materials?" Lu Heng asked.

"It's difficult, the price of quenching materials changes every day, rising more outrageously than Bitcoin," Lin Zeyu complained.

Not just quenching materials, but spiritual injection materials were the same, skyrocketing in price.

This was to be expected.

As Superpower Users' demand for weapon quenching grew, the price of quenching materials would soar.

Moreover, now other Superpower Users could enter Quenching Castle, and more would seek Gulu's quenching services.

However, the opening hours of Quenching Castle were uncertain; everything depended on fate.

Mainly, it depended on Gulu's mood, whenever Gulu felt like inviting Power Users into Quenching Castle to taste delicious food, that's when the doors would open.

And for ordinary Power Users seeking Gulu's quenching, they could basically only quench for themselves; taking up quenching orders was basically impossible.

That "Quenching Master" He Shangyong, having failed the last quenching assessment, had already lost his qualifications to perform quenching in Quenching Castle.

So, the only one who could take quenching orders was still Lu Heng.

Lu Heng began considering an idea: "How about we have the parties pay the quenching fee in quenching materials? We could increase the base success rate a bit for that."

Lin Zeyu's eyes lit up, and he said, "I think this could work, how much can the base success rate be raised?"

After some thought, Lu Heng said, "I personally think 80% is secure, but we need to leave some margin."

Lin Zeyu clapped and said, "Then let's go with 75%; this base success rate will scare other Quenching Masters to death."

Because the base success rate required filling the gap with quenching materials.

If any quenching was accidental and the success rate fell below 75%, you had to pay out of pocket to make up for the failed quenching level.

Of course, after a number of quenching sessions, the overall success rate would definitely be sufficient.

With Lu Heng's current quenching success rate easily stable at around 85%, offering a base success rate of 75% wasn't a problem.

...