Chapter 59: Chapter 54: Manhunt
The next morning, the manor of Councilman Tyrone’s house was sealed off, but news still spread rapidly.
A councilman had been beheaded at home—an absolute major event—causing gossip circles to buzz excitedly.
Some said it was a robbery, as all valuable items from Councilman Tyrone’s home had been taken, and the safe was pried open. His underage children were not harmed, suggesting that the culprits were not extremely vicious.
But even if it were a robbery, it was certainly no ordinary one. The defensive forces at the councilman’s home would have been very strong; all guards were killed, and the surveillance was destroyed. This was undoubtedly a well-planned criminal act.
Ultimately, the attack was labeled a thugs’ terror operation. The City State Guard took over the investigation with assistance from the Law Enforcement Team, sealing the city’s main entrances and conducting strict personnel checks.
The thugs were heavily armed that night and had stolen weapons and Federation credits from Councilman Tyrone’s house. As long as the inspections were stringent, the thugs couldn’t escape the city.
The entire main city was filled with the presence of the Law Enforcement Team.
A thorough, city-wide search would commence, accompanied by a hefty reward for public tips, determined to drag the murderer into the open.
The entire main city was shrouded in a tense atmosphere as countless people discussed the incident.
A councilman was killed at home by thugs, and it was a beheading—such chilling news.
No one knew who would dare to do such a thing.
“Thump, thump, thump…” Intense knocking sounds came from the small tavern.
Xiao Qi went downstairs to open the door, only to see three members of the Law Enforcement Team burst in, with the leader saying, “Law Enforcement inspection, please cooperate.”
They said ‘cooperate,’ but they had already barged in.
Clearly, it wasn’t their first time doing such a thing; they cared little for the privacy of the citizens.
Song Si, with a cigarette in his mouth, watched his subordinates conduct the search, feeling somewhat agitated.
Damned thugs, he didn’t know where they got the guts to kill a councilman.
Now they were ordered to conduct a sweeping search—how long would they need to search the entire main city?
Hopefully, they would catch the culprit soon. Otherwise, they were not going to have good days ahead.
“Nothing,” the Law Enforcement Team members reported to Song Si after the search was complete.
Throwing the cigarette butt to the ground and stomping it out, Song Si said, “Check upstairs.”
With that, he headed upstairs.
Xiao Qi watched their figures intensively, his mechanical arm hidden in his sleeve morphing to reveal a gun barrel, silently following behind.
On the second floor, Xu Mo and two others were present.
Seeing Ye Qingdie, Song Si’s eyes brightened slightly. He waved his hand, and two subordinates began searching everywhere.
“Officer, we run a small tavern. Have we committed any crimes?” Ye Qingdie asked Song Si.
“No,” Song Si said, staring at Ye Qingdie and stepping forward. “It’s just a routine check.”
He glanced behind Ye Qingdie as he spoke.
“Officer, the room contains some personal items. Could you perhaps overlook them?” Ye Qingdie said while handing over some Federation credits, which Song Si glanced at but did not take.
“If you have time, Officer, you’re welcome to come for a drink,” Ye Qingdie continued.
“Sure,” Song Si said with a smile as he accepted the Federation credits, glancing at Xu Mo beside Ye Qingdie, feeling slightly familiar.
But he couldn’t remember where he might have seen him, perhaps somewhere before.
The three men turned and left.
Xiao Qi silently retracted the mechanical gun and concealed it with his sleeve.
After they left, the smile on Ye Qingdie’s face vanished, replaced by a layer of cold frost, radiating murderous intent.
“It was him last time, right?” Ye Qingdie asked Xu Mo.
“Yes,” Xu Mo nodded.
During the church incident, it had indeed been Song Si leading the team, giving the direct order to open fire and kill Uncle Fang.
“Bad luck,” Xiao Qi grumbled. “I really wanted to shoot them dead.”
To think Sister Butterfly had to suffer in silence with a smile.
They hadn’t endured such treatment in a long time.
“Bear with it,” Xu Mo said. “We’re probably not going to have peace these days. Our tavern has been frequented by many since the housekeeper’s visit. Nothing happened then, but who knows if it might bring troubles later?”
As he spoke, he walked toward the door Ye Qingdie was blocking—behind it was the Cultivation Room, the secret area.
If Song Si had insisted on entering that door, he would have probably been dead.
Patrol teams flooded the streets, searching every house; after all, it was a councilman who was killed, and other prominent figures were naturally scared.
In such an environment, everyone felt endangered, and many criminal gangs were inadvertently rooted out, cursing the thugs in their hearts.
Of course, public officials were not included in the searches; the Law Enforcement Team didn’t have such high authority.
Sophie’s family were public officials. She was very surprised upon receiving the news.
She had previously hoped to climb the social ladder through Elsa and Chairman Tyrone.
Moreover, it seemed that the incident occurred just after she had left the tavern yesterday, adding a hint of eeriness to the situation.
Still, Sophie never linked Xu Mo to the thugs who had killed the councilman. How could she suspect a bartender of a small tavern?
She only wondered if, before the incident with Chairman Tyrone, someone had been sent to the tavern to kill Xu Mo and the others.
Thinking of that despicable woman in the tavern, she was still furious.
She would go and see for herself tonight.
……
In the suburbs of the City State Main City, there is a relatively affluent villa area.
The residents here, although not holding public office, are considered fairly successful, so this area has always maintained a high level of privacy and rarely suffers disturbances from the outside world.
However, this time, the villa area was also subject to routine inspections.
The death of the Councilman, involving thugs, suggested a possibility that they could be residing here.
Yet, it was members of the City State Guard who were conducting the routine check here.
In the yard of one of the villas, laughter could be heard; Bai Wei and Mia were playing with Yaoer.
Master Batu, on the other hand, was lying on a chair, quite comfortably, seemingly enjoying the moment.
Last time he left the department store, Xu Mo had given him a sizable amount of Federation currency, which he hadn’t hesitated to spend.
Outside the yard, a housekeeper walked up to Master Batu and said, “Master, the City State Guard is here for a routine inspection and hopes for cooperation.”
“What has happened?” Master Batu asked, squinting his eyes.
“It is said that a Councilman’s home was broken into and murdered by thugs, and now the entire city is hunting the murderer,” the housekeeper replied.
“Let them in,” Master Batu said.
The housekeeper nodded and left, and shortly after, two fully armed members of the City State Guard entered, with Mia and the others looking anxiously at the newcomers.
“Search as you will, just don’t break anything,” Master Batu said.
“Thank you for your cooperation,” the two nodded, entered the villa to search, and emerged not long after.
A chubby man, two young women, and a child did not exactly fit the profile of thugs.
Arriving at the gate of the yard, one of them took out a photograph and glanced back at Master Batu, who was almost unable to open his eyes due to his bulk, bearing no resemblance to the handsome young man in the photograph.
But the chubby appearance matched, although it might just be a coincidence.
The two left the place, and the housekeeper locked the yard gate.
Mia walked over to Master Batu, having overhead the housekeeper’s words.
“Dad, could it be Xu Mo?” she murmured softly.
The incident from a year ago left an impression, and she had inquired about what had happened afterwards—a massacre in the black market, rivers of blood.
If the man in the Arena really was Xu Mo, given his character, it was very likely he would target those ‘big shots.’
She still vividly remembered the image of Xu Mo clad in armor, wielding a sword.
Xu Mo was the warrior of her ideals.
“Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?” Master Batu whispered, glancing at Mia beside him.
Even without confirmation that the man in the Arena was Xu Mo, Mia had already personalized it, clearly having subconsciously convinced herself that he was Xu Mo.
That young man’s talent was potent, and after the death of his parents, he began to cultivate earnestly, making rapid progress, soon capable of contending with Cobra.
If he had indeed been quietly cultivating for a year, it truly was possible he had grown quite powerful.
However, the idea of him murdering a Councilman still seemed a bit far-fetched to Master Batu.
It probably wasn’t that severe…
“Dad, I plan to go to the Arena,” Mia spoke up.
“Isn’t he Gold Level? Have the housekeeper first find out when there’s a Gold Level event happening and then go over,” Master Batu said. “You better not get too emotionally involved these days.”
“I understand,” Mia nodded.
Recently, some changes had occurred in her, and she wasn’t sure what was going on.
She could perceive others’ emotions more clearly, and if she herself became emotional, it could affect others.
Mia felt that her father might be hiding something from her.
……
By the time Elsa received the news, it was already late. She had been kept under surveillance, not allowed to leave her house.
Only when someone came to investigate did she learn that Councilman Tyrone had actually died.
With her overseers lacking a master, they naturally withdrew.
Elsa ran frantically towards the direction of the tavern.
Arriving outside the tavern, she was gasping for breath, her legs weak—not just from exhaustion, but also fear, fearing for Xu Mo’s safety.
Her eyes were also red; she hadn’t slept at all the previous night, had cried half the night, the anxiety was unbearable; she was truly frightened.
Seeing the tightly closed doors of the tavern, her heart pounded as she walked up, crying and knocking on the door.
After knocking for a while with no answer, Elsa cried even harder.
The knocking sound grew softer, and Elsa squatted down, feeling utterly weak, hugging her knees.
Why had this happened?
She suspected she was a harbinger of disaster; her father had done many bad things for her and ended up dead, her mother became Councilman Tyrone’s mistress to protect her, and now had she caused Xu Mo’s death too?
Then, with a creak, the tavern door opened.
Elsa paused, lifted her head, and saw a handsome figure standing there, looking down at her with a smile, “Good evening, Miss Elsa, what happened?”
Elsa paused, then, amid her intense crying, began to laugh.
On Bar Street, a figure stood afar, staring at the opening door, his face’s smug smile gone, turning very ugly; Sophie had come to see the outcome.
They were still alive?
How could they still be alive?