Slaying God: I, the insane and witty god

It was a short instruction sent by Zuo Qing.

The brief moment of relief that had just begun to ignite inside the private jet vanished completely.

Baili Pangpang and Cao Yuan immediately sensed that something was wrong, stopped talking, and looked at Lin Qiye with concern.

"What's wrong, Seventh Brother?"

Lin Qiye didn't say anything, but simply showed them the contents of his phone.

[Call back immediately. — Zuo Qing]

There were no superfluous words, but the sense of urgency and command was palpable even through the screen.

Lin Qiye took a deep breath, dialed Zuo Qing's number, and pressed speakerphone.

The call was answered almost instantly, and Zuo Qing's calm yet slightly hoarse voice came through.

Without a single pleasantry, they went straight to the point.

"Where are you now?"

"On the special plane back to base, what's wrong, Lao Zuo? Is something urgent?" Lin Qi-ye asked, feigning nonchalance.

"It's far more serious than a fire burning your eyebrows." There wasn't a trace of emotion in Zuo Qing's voice.

"I received a report from Lu Wuwei regarding Shen Qingzhu's matter."

The air inside the cabin instantly froze.

Lin Qiye's heart leaped into his throat: "Any news?"

"No."

Zuo Qing's two words were like two heavy hammers, striking hard into everyone's hearts.

"The Heavenly Court used the 'Heavenly Eye' system, and Lu Wuwei also personally took action in an attempt to trace the dimensional coordinates of the disappearance of the Kexi Divine Kingdom."

But the result was... a blank page.

Zuo Qing's voice lowered.

"That divine kingdom was as if it had never existed in our universe, erasing all traces."

"We...can't find it."

Lin Qiye clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

A hint of disappointment, difficult to conceal, flashed across Wu Hen's perpetually unchanging face.

“So… Sister Qingzhu…” Baili Pangpang’s voice trembled.

"His whereabouts are unknown." Zuo Qing's voice carried a hint of weariness.

"I can only say that, with the current methods known to humankind, we cannot find her in Great Xia... no, we cannot find her with the current methods known to humankind."

"You should prepare for the worst."

The glimmer of hope that had been kindled was completely extinguished by this bucket of cold water.

The cabin was deathly silent, with only the roar of the engines reminding them that they were still flying.

"I understand." After a long silence, Lin Qiye finally spoke, his voice hoarse beyond belief.

"Is there anything else?"

"Yes." Zuo Qing's tone returned to its usual cold, businesslike tone.

"About Zhou Ping."

The name simultaneously invigorated Lin Qiye and Wu Hen.

"As you know, after Commander Ye Fan sacrificed his life, many of the covert networks he was in charge of were cut off."

“Zhou Ping is one of the most important ones. He has too much information about the ‘mystery’, especially the ‘Pantheon’.”

Zuo Qing paused for a moment,

“We urgently need to find him, but no one within the Night's Watch knows how to contact him.”

Lin Qiye frowned: "So, what you mean is?"

"Go to the evil society."

Wu Hen suddenly spoke up, giving the answer for Zuo Qing.

"They are information brokers in the underworld; perhaps they have a way."

“That’s right,” Zuo Qing said approvingly.

"I want you to contact the Evil Society and get Zhou Ping's information from them at all costs."

“Especially their president, Memorial.”

"That woman..."

Lin Qiye felt a headache coming on when he thought of Ji Nian's stubborn and unyielding manner on the cruise ship.

"She's not easy to deal with."

"To get her to agree, we'll probably have to offer something she can't refuse."

On the other end of the phone, Zuo Qing remained silent for a moment.

“If it were just a routine intelligence transaction, I wouldn’t have specifically sought you out.”

"This time, perhaps you could try another approach."

"What way?"

"Play the emotional card."

Lin Qiye almost thought he had misheard: "What? Play the emotional card with that ice-cold face? Lao Zuo, are you out of your mind?"

"I'm referring to Commander Ye Fan's emotional appeal."

Upon hearing this, both Lin Qiye and Wu Hen were stunned.

"Is there any connection between the memorial and Commander Ye?"

"It's more than just a relationship."

Zuo Qing's tone carried a hint of complex memories.

"It's normal that you don't know. This happened more than ten years ago. It was a scandal that we forcibly suppressed."

"More than a decade ago, Jinian was just a teenage girl, and her family had a deep-rooted influence overseas,"

"They wanted her to return to Daxia for a marriage alliance, but in a fit of anger, she ran away and came back on her own."

"That girl wasn't like this back then; she was unruly and inherited her family's strange abilities,"

"They caused a huge mess in Huaihai City, almost turning half the city upside down."

Lin Qiye and Wu Hen exchanged a glance, both seeing the shock in each other's eyes.

That woman who always wore gold-rimmed glasses and had a refined appearance, did she have such a wild past?

"Who handled it back then?" Wu Hen asked sharply.

"Ye Fan".

Zuo Qing's answer confirmed their conjecture.

"Ye Fan, who was then the captain of the Seventh Special Squad, went to Huaihai alone."

"Everyone thought it would be a fierce battle, but... he didn't make a move; he just chatted with that girl all night."

"Nobody knows what they talked about."

All I know is that the next day, Ji Nian obediently followed Ye Fan back to Yanjing.

"Ye Fan, under immense pressure, protected her and nominally accepted her as a disciple, teaching her for two years."

"Later, she left Daxia and founded the Shangxie Society."

"So... Ji Nian is Commander Ye's apprentice?" Lin Qi... Ye was completely dumbfounded.

"You can say that."

"Although their master-disciple relationship was short-lived, Ye Fan is the only person in this world whom I truly revere and believe in."

Zuo Qing's voice drifted over softly.

"After Ye Fan died, she sent people to bring the best white flowers that the Shangxie Society could find, which covered the entire cemetery path."

She herself did not show up.

After Lin Qiye hung up the phone, the atmosphere in the cabin had changed from heavy sorrow to a more complex sense of shock and astonishment.

He rubbed his temples, feeling a buzzing in his head.

"Where to?" Wu Hen asked.

"We're not going to the base," Lin Qiye ordered the driver as he stood up.

"Change course, head to the western suburbs of Yanjing,"

Night Watch Cemetery.

The white granite tombstones stood silently in the night, like a group of silent sentinels.

This is the resting place of the heroic souls of the Great Xia Dynasty, and the air is filled with solemnity and sorrow.

Lin Qiye and Wu Hen walked on the path, and under their feet they could still feel the traces of dried petals left over from that year.

They walked straight to the deepest part of the cemetery, to the cenotaph that belonged to Ye Fan.

Before I even got close, a figure came into view.

She was a woman wearing a black trench coat, her long, black hair gently blowing in the night breeze.

She stood quietly in front of Ye Fan's tombstone, neither crying nor speaking, just standing there.

It is a memorial.

She seemed completely unaware that someone was approaching from behind; she simply reached out her hand.

He gently stroked the black and white photograph on the tombstone with his fingertips.

The man in the photo has a gentle yet firm smile.

"You're a liar."

Her voice was very soft, as soft as a breeze, yet it carried a heart-wrenching weight.

“You said… Night’s Watchmen must die when they are supposed to, without hesitation. But you didn’t say that not even a trace of their souls should be left behind.”

"How am I supposed to find you? Huh?"

"Ye Fan...you taught me to control my power and to see through people's hearts,"

"But it didn't teach me... how to face a teacher who had even given up on reincarnation."

Her shoulders trembled slightly, revealing the emotions that had always been hidden behind a cold exterior.

At this moment, a crack finally appeared.

That wasn't a hysterical breakdown, but a deeper, more suffocating despair.

Lin Qi-ye stopped in his tracks, and Wu Hen stood silently beside him.

They watched silently, without uttering a sound to disturb this belated memorial.

After an unknown amount of time, Ji Nian withdrew her hand, as if she had locked away all her emotions again.

She turned around, seemingly preparing to leave.

"In memory of the president," Lin Qiye finally spoke.

The commemorative journey abruptly halted.

She slowly turned her head, her eyes hidden in the darkness.

It has returned to a state of utter stillness, even colder than before.

"Is something wrong?"

"I want to ask you about someone."

Lin Qiye didn't beat around the bush; he knew that with this kind of person, any roundabout approach was a waste of time.

"Shangxie knows how to do business, and he sets clear prices."

"This person might be priceless," Lin Qiye said, staring into her eyes and emphasizing each word.

His name is Zhou Ping.

The moment the words left his mouth, the surrounding air seemed to freeze.

The composure on Ji Nian's face was instantly shattered, and an indescribable sharpness burst forth from her eyes.

Like two poisoned daggers, they were firmly embedded in Lin Qiye's body.

She didn't answer immediately, but remained silent for a full three seconds.

Those three seconds felt like an eternity.

Finally, she spoke slowly, her voice as cold as ice, filled with intense scrutiny and murderous intent.

"Who exactly did you hear that name from?"