Chapter 30: Good Night

However, his hand stopped just as it was raised halfway.

He saw a sliver of moonlight pierce through the clouds, perfectly passing through the window and spilling onto the wooden floor at his feet. Light and shadow danced, and two characters slowly appeared.

"Go back."

Below these two characters, a playing card was reflected.

It was a gray JOKER, a gray King.

The moment he saw this card, Chu Muyun's pupils contracted. He immediately lowered his arm, and the short knife slid into his sleeve like a swimming snake, disappearing from view.

A dark grey cloud drifted in with the wind, obscuring the faint moonlight, and the characters on the floor vanished as if they had never appeared.

Chu Muyun took a long look at the sleeping Chen Ling, then turned and left.

As he gently closed the door, the room fell into a dead silence.

Several seconds later, from the shadows in the corner, Chen Yan, dressed in pajamas, slowly walked out.

The youth's crimson eyes stared intently in the direction of Chu Muyun's bedroom, and at some point, a blood-stained boning knife appeared in his hand.

As Chu Muyun's bedroom door fully closed, the youth's eyelids drooped and closed. When he opened them again, a chilling murderous intent was buried deep within his eyes.

Ethereal auroras shimmered outside the window. Chen Yan turned his head slightly and looked at the sleeping Chen Ling on the bed.

"Brother... Good night."

He murmured to himself.

As his words fell, his figure quietly passed through the wall, returning to his own room.

Meanwhile.

Sector Three, Enforcers Headquarters, office.

"Brother Ma, there's news from Ice Spring Street," a three-stripe enforcer hurried in, saying.

Ma Zhong raised an eyebrow. "What's the word?"

"Uh..." The enforcer hesitated for a moment. "They're using very strong language."

Ma Zhong looked confused. "Why? Is it because the lockdown hasn't been lifted yet?"

"No, they're saying you're dishonorable. Not only did you fail to keep your promise, but you also sent someone to insult them." The enforcer added, "It was that probationary candidate you assigned to support Ice Spring Street... Apparently, he beat up the people from Black Axe Tavern, and Bone Knife is absolutely furious."

"Probationary candidate?" Ma Zhong asked, puzzled. "Who was that again?"

"One is Wu Youdong, the other is Chen Ling. Wu Youdong was so scared by those people that he voluntarily withdrew from the Enforcer exam. The one who did the beating was Chen Ling."

"I seem to remember... Is he that kid from Frost Street whose parents were driven mad by the Calamity?"

"Yes, that's him."

"He could beat up those guys from Black Axe Tavern?"

"I didn't believe it either, but that's what happened." The enforcer paused, then carefully asked, "Brother Ma, do you think... he might have received divine favor?"

Ma Zhong didn't answer. He frowned and put a cigarette in his mouth. The enforcer immediately stepped forward, took out a lighter, and lit it for him.

"Are we really going to have another enforcer in Sector Three?" Ma Zhong exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Currently, out of the five enforcers in Sector Three, three are ours... But if another one appears, that would be troublesome." The enforcer muttered, "He beat up the people from Ice Spring Street, so he must know some things. It'll probably be hard for him to join us... Instead of letting him grow and become Han Meng's helper, we should deal with him beforehand..."

The enforcer's eyes narrowed slightly, and he made a slashing motion across his neck with his hand.

Ma Zhong scoffed, "Chang Lin, Chang Lin... Your perspective still needs a lot of training."

The enforcer, identified as Chang Lin, was taken aback. "Was I wrong?"

"Yes, but your vision is too narrow." Ma Zhong flicked the ash from his cigarette and said calmly, "Even if this kid received divine favor, he's only first-tier right now. It would take a long time for him to pose a threat to us. Instead of dealing with him, we should change our target... and solve the problem fundamentally."

"Are you saying... Han Meng?"

"Before Han Meng arrived, Sector Three was our domain. Our operations back then were the largest among the seven sectors; even Ice Spring Street now is only half our former scale... But ever since that guy parachuted in as the head of Sector Three, he purged Sector Three, directly cut off our sources of income, and forced us to rebuild our connections in Ice Spring Street."

Ma Zhong's eyes grew cold as he stubbed out his cigarette in the ashtray. "He's the Chief Enforcer of Sector Three. Normally, we don't have an opportunity to act against him, but now, it's different..."

"Why is it different?"

"Under what circumstances would a four-stripe enforcer die in Sector Three?"

Chang Lin pondered for a moment. As if something clicked, his eyes suddenly lit up. "A Calamity?"

"The Chief Enforcer of each sector is an important position. If anything happens to him, someone from Aurora City will definitely come to investigate. Normally, we can't touch him, but now there's a ready-made 'culprit'... a 'culprit' who conveniently appeared in Sector Three, once directly defeated Han Meng, and then vanished without a trace!"

Ma Zhong said with a cold laugh, "Kill Han Meng and fake it as a Calamity attack where both perished. This not only eliminates this major problem above our heads, but also provides a legitimate reason to unseal Sector Three and immediately restore trade flow with Sector Two... In this way, the anger from Ice Spring Street will also subside."

"But what if, after it's all over, that Calamity reappears?"

"Who can prove that the one that appears later is the same one from now?"

Chang Lin was stunned for a moment, and couldn't help but exclaim, "Only Brother Ma could come up with that!"

"Now that Han Meng is injured by the Calamity, his strength isn't what it used to be. As long as we plan properly, he's sure to die." A hint of murderous intent flashed in Ma Zhong's eyes. "Call Old Tao over too; we need to discuss this thoroughly..."

"Okay... Oh, right, what about Chen Ling?"

"Him..." A glint flashed in Ma Zhong's eyes. "Don't let him interact with those Ice Spring Street people anymore, to avoid further angering them... First, find an excuse to get him to join the Enforcers. Once Han Meng is dealt with, we'll be his direct superiors. Then, won't we be able to do whatever we want with him?"

"Understood."

"Morning, brother."

Chen Ling pushed open the door and saw Chen Yan sitting in the living room, smiling as he turned to greet him.

"Up so early?" Chen Ling asked in surprise.

"Couldn't sleep last night, so I got up early to memorize some lines." Chen Yan raised a handwritten script in his hand and said earnestly.

Chen Ling nodded. Just as he was about to wash up and leave, Chu Muyun also pushed his door open and came out.

"Looks like it's your turn to wake up late today."

"...Yeah."

Chu Muyun responded casually, his eyes a bit dark, suggesting he hadn't slept all night either.

"Does your exam end today?" Chu Muyun asked, as if remembering something.

"Yes, today's the last day."

"Go for it, brother!" Chen Yan made a cheering gesture. "You'll definitely become an enforcer!"

"I hope so." Chen Ling smiled faintly.

After what happened yesterday, Chen Ling no longer had high hopes of becoming an enforcer. For ordinary people like him and Wu Youdong, becoming an enforcer through their own efforts was incredibly difficult. What's more, he had beaten up the people from Black Axe Tavern yesterday, effectively making him an enemy of Enforcer Ma Zhong from Sector Three. The other party certainly wouldn't let him get promoted.

But even if he couldn't become an enforcer... wouldn't it be good to go to Ice Spring Street and reap some expectation points?

Chen Ling thought to himself, stroking his chin.