Free Web NovelChapter 570: Chapter 496: Test
Not long after, Yang Xiao used the ability of the Soul-Capturing Mirror to leave quietly, returning alone to Rongcheng, while Ling Yanyu kept Yang Xiao’s departure a secret. He understood that only Yang Xiao’s presence could command authority over the Guardian Snake and Guardian Yun. As for himself, without the Sect Hierarch, he was a joke.
He arranged for someone to buy two breakfasts, and when they arrived, he personally went downstairs to receive them, bringing the breakfast up. Following Yang Xiao’s instructions before he left, this person’s three meals a day could not be missed.
After returning to the second-floor living room, Ling Yanyu suddenly discovered a Grudge Mask prominently placed on the coffee table. He walked over, picked it up and put it on, carried the breakfast to the bedroom door, inserted the key into the lock, and pushed the door open.
The bedroom was dark, the lights off, and the curtains tightly drawn. The man was chained to the wall, handcuffs and foot shackles all in place, not only was his mouth gagged, but his head was also covered with a black hood.
However, upon closer inspection, Ling Yanyu discovered that it wasn’t a black hood, but black stockings folded up.
After pulling off the stockings and removing the gag from the man’s mouth, the imprisoned man gasped for air. Upon seeing the unfamiliar mask of Ling Yanyu, he couldn’t help but plead for release. But before he could finish his sentence, Ling Yanyu kicked him to the ground.
Stepping forward, Ling Yanyu stepped on the man’s left hand, applying pressure with the tip of his shoe, causing the man to cry out in pain. Ling Yanyu’s voice was cold as he said, "Don’t talk to me, not a word, it’s better for both of us, do you understand?"
"Understand... I understand!"
Ling Yanyu lifted his foot, and the man clutched his left hand, not daring to breathe heavily, only to watch as Ling Yanyu crouched down and brought a portion of the food before him, which included a serving of white porridge, two fried dough sticks, a boiled egg, a cup of soy milk, and two small dishes.
The other breakfast was Ling Yanyu’s own. He sat cross-legged on the ground, placing his portion in front of him, identical to the man’s, "Starting today, what you eat, I will eat. I’ll eat first, so if there’s poison, it’ll kill me first."
"Is that necessary?" The man clutched his wound in agony, knowing the Yu Yuan Sect was full of lunatics, but the person who had captured him and the one in front of him now seemed to be not quite sane either.
"Smack!"
Ling Yanyu raised his hand and slapped the man across his face, knocking him to the ground before shaking his hand slightly, lifting the mask up a bit, and taking a bite of the fried dough stick in front of him. He coldly said, "You are not to speak to me."
Since the man’s birth, this was the most oppressive meal he had ever eaten. His serving of fried dough sticks, soy milk, white porridge, even the boiled egg and pickled vegetables, were all first bitten by the man in front of him. After a few minutes, the man nodded, signaling that he could eat.
After eating, Ling Yanyu brought over a basin of water for the man to wash up and laid down the rules for him, including meal times and daily toilet times, meticulously, stricter than prison management. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
"Any more questions?" Ling Yanyu stood up, seemingly about to leave.
The man shakily raised his handcuffed hands, asking in a low voice, "Yes, how long... how long do you plan to keep me locked up?"
"Smack!"
Another slap, Ling Yanyu retracted his hand and said indifferently, "You are not to speak to me. You will be locked up until the appropriate time comes."
The man’s head was buzzing, uncertain if it was from being struck or confused; somehow, he found it a bit hard to understand what the other was saying.
Having locked the man up again, put on the stocking mask, and gagged his mouth, Ling Yanyu left the room, locked the door from the outside with a key, and then respectfully took off his mask and placed it back in its original spot.
Elsewhere, Yang Xiao, having changed into new clothes, took an illegal taxi and had already left Xiang Ma Town, returning to Rongcheng before noon. First, he went back to his apartment and settled the items he had brought back with him, including a tambourine and an ivory-handled dagger.
He didn’t store these two items in the Mirror World since the Mirror Ghost had already begun to make moves. He took out two silver boxes and stored each magic artifact separately in a hidden corner of his wardrobe, casually covered with a few items of clothing for camouflage.
The fact that the Mirror Ghost could also use magic artifacts was something Yang Xiao hadn’t anticipated at the outset. Now that it had a Universal Key, gaining more magic artifacts would make it increasingly troublesome to deal with in the future. Yang Xiao’s first priority now was to get rid of the Mirror Ghost; everything else could wait. freewebnøvel.coɱ
After having lunch and resting briefly, Yang Xiao received a call from Beibei, asking him to come over right away. By the time he got a taxi over there, Beibei was already waiting at the base of the Patrol Defense Bureau’s office building.
Upon seeing Yang Xiao, Beibei quickly approached and urged, "Hurry up and come with me, the people from the Provincial Office are already here, and they’ve checked everyone but you."
"So soon?" Yang Xiao asked as he walked, "How did it go?"
Hearing that, Beibei sighed, "Apart from my ranking as Upper Grudge Level, not one person made the cut, but we’re all used to it."
"But this time it’s different. I heard that Qu Muzhi from the City Center Official Residence has once again broken the record of Rongcheng’s investigation teams from previous years. This is very unfavorable for our Director Nalan, who is ambitious," Beibei explained. "And you know, Director, our chief cares a lot about face."
"What does this test include, and what score is considered passing?" Yang Xiao asked curiously.
"Mainly the intensity of spiritual power. For regular investigators, nearing the Middle Grudge Level suffices for passing, while the deputy and the team captains need to reach the Upper Grudge Level standard."
Through Beibei’s introduction, Yang Xiao also got a clearer understanding of the Angel Envoys’ divisions of spiritual power intensity. The spiritual power of an average investigative team member is roughly at the Lower Middle Grudge Level; reaching Middle Grudge Level qualifies one as an elite member, while Captain Level figures usually possess Upper Grudge Level standards, with the stronger ones approaching the threshold of the Fierce Grade.
For Angel Envoys, the intensity of spiritual power directly correlates with combat capabilities. The combat power of a Patrol Defense Bureau investigation team captain is about on par with an Evil Cultivation Team Captain, like Qilong from the Qingfeng Public Office who he had slain, whose strength was not inferior to that of Wu Zhengwu and others.
The more exceptional ones among the captains could approach the Fierce Grade threshold, like Tong Han who was just one step away from ascending to a Resentment Sect Venerable.
Of course, special cases like Qu Muzhi, the Demon Rakshasa, should not be included.
At the Venerable One level, almost all are genuinely at the Fierce Grade standard. During that operation to surround Granny Hong, several team captains joined forces, and still a deputy captain died, leaving everyone injured. If it weren’t for Yang Xiao’s older sister turning the tide at the last moment, they might have all perished there.
For Yang Xiao at that time, individuals at the Venerable Level were like insurmountable mountains.
Now, to speak boastfully, one-on-one, the ordinary possessor of the Character "Li" Mask was not much of a threat to him.
Of course, this didn’t include special figures like the City God Master, who was outstanding among the Li Generation. Holding two magic artifacts, one offensive and one defensive, and using them in combination, she even garnered high praise from the possessor of the You Character Mask, the Pingxi Marquis.
