Embers Ad Infinitum

“Huh?” Long Yuehong recalled his past encounter and asked in shock, “Team Leader, are you saying that Old Clothing Bazaar’s boss was dozing off because of an Awakened ability? That Advanced Hunter obtained clues through a dream?”

“I can only say that it’s possible,” Jiang Baimian replied seriously. “But if that weren’t the case, I can’t figure out how Oudick confirmed that the gunman had a female accomplice before the clues were released. He also went all the way to Lin Feifei’s room and realized that we had already searched it.”

At this moment, Bai Chen—who was listening quietly—interrupted. “Anyone who can become an Advanced Hunter in their thirties has to have some impressive abilities.”

However, some relied on team strength, some relied on connections, and others mainly relied on their own strength.

“Indeed.” Long Yuehong indicated that he could completely accept the idea that an Advanced Hunter was an Awakened.

It had to be known that Bai Chen had used so many years to barely advance beyond Official Hunter and become an Intermediate Hunter. There was still a Senior Hunter between her and Advanced Hunter.

The further one progressed as a Hunter, the more difficult it would be to advance. The credit points required would increase exponentially. In the early stages, one might only need one or two missions to advance from a Rookie Hunter to an Official Hunter.

Jiang Baimian nodded and reminded them, “If you discover that fellow nearby later, don’t go to a quiet and uninhabited place. The more people there are, the safer it will be.”

Upon seeing that Long Yuehong was a little scared, she added, “This doesn’t mean that your lives will be in danger. It’s just that there are many secrets that you might not be able to keep in your minds.”

It was very difficult for a person to control what they should and shouldn’t think in a dream.

After discussing this matter, Jiang Baimian counted out 50 Oray from the stack of notes and handed it to Bai Chen. “Get some bullets and food that can be stored for a period of time.”

Although they didn’t encounter many enemies on their way to Weed City, they still expended a lot of bullets. This was because they had to stop the car every few days for shooting practice to prevent their skills from getting rusty. It would spell a decrease in strength when they encountered a situation.

Talent was one thing for every good gunman, but building their skill up by expending a large number of bullets was another.

“Why do we need food?” Long Yuehong asked, not understanding.

Weed City had plenty of food and plenty of variety.

Jiang Baimian laughed. “Maybe I’m always thinking too much. The disappearance of Lei Yunsong and Lin Feifei, the organization that promotes the idea that knowledge is toxic, the death of the intelligence peddler—Liu Dazhuang—the appearance of an existence suspected to be an Eternal in the guild, and the participation of a high-ranking Hunter.

“All of these matters mixed together makes me feel like a storm is brewing. It would be fine if nothing serious happened. But once the situation worsens, having more bullets and more food means that we have a higher chance of survival.”

“That makes sense…” Long Yuehong thought for a moment and agreed. He felt that it gave him a sense of security.

Jiang Baimian then said, “Your next mission is to replenish our supplies. Shang Jianyao and I will return to the Hunter’s Guild and pay attention to any new clues. When noon comes, and nobody is in Red Silk Alley, we will go and find the Old Clothing Bazaar’s boss.”

At this point, she smiled and said, “The mission of finding Lei Yunsong and Lin Feifei’s traces will be left to the Ruin Hunters.”

There was no trick to this. It mainly relied on a massive number of people being involved in the investigation. Jiang Baimian felt that there was no need to waste her team’s energy. After all, there were many ‘volunteers.’

After learning about the female accomplice, it wouldn’t be long before the Ruin Hunters learned that Lin Feifei was wearing a hat and a mask while carrying a black travel bag. She left her rented place, entered Yellow Corner Alley, and walked toward South Street.

Although such attire was relatively special and could easily attract attention, not many people would have a deep impression of it without any particular pause. This was because people mainly cared about things that repeatedly appeared in their line of sight. As they walked, they might only glance at each other before brushing past each other.

…

After separating from Long Yuehong and Bai Chen, Jiang Baimian and Shang Jianyao returned to the Hunter’s Guild. They sat on chairs at the edge of the lobby and waited for the subsequent investigation results.

“I have the feeling that I’m a high-ranking member of the guild.” While waiting, Jiang Baimian laughed. “We are sitting here while others run errands.”

Shang Jianyao looked up at the ceiling. “Shall we go somewhere else?”

Jiang Baimian easily understood Shang Jianyao’s meaning and raised the question with a teasing smile. “Aren’t you worried that you’ll encounter the vice president named Christina when you go up? I wonder if she’s back…”

Shang Jianyao replied seriously, “I’ve thought about it. I can dance with her.”

“Which direction are you taking? I mean your relationship,” Jiang Baimian asked with interest. “Godmother? Siblings? Confidant? Having the same hobbies? Father and daughter?”

Before she could finish her sentence, she saw the Advanced Hunter named Oudick enter. He looked around and walked toward her.

Oudick—who was wearing a thick, black coat—looked at the metal object in Jiang Baimian’s ear and raised his voice slightly. “I can use the information regarding which area the woman named Lin Feifei last went to in exchange for what you got. But you need to guarantee something of value.”

“That fast?” Jiang Baimian deliberately pretended to be surprised. She suspected that Oudick had used his Awakened abilities to complete the investigation quickly and thus managed to find Lin Feifei’s traces after leaving Yellow Corner Alley.

Many things couldn’t be recalled when humans were awake, but they could replay the corresponding scene in their dreams.

Shang Jianyao clapped. It was unknown who he was praising.

Oudick was a little stunned by Shang Jianyao’s applause. He fell silent for a few seconds before saying, “I have my ways.”

Jiang Baimian deliberated for a moment before saying, “Alright, I guarantee that we found valuable clues in that room. If you don’t believe me, we can trade in the form of a mission and have the guild vouch for us.”

She had suggested the latter option to ensure that the other party wouldn’t choose it. After all, she didn’t want everyone to know about the organization’s participation. This might put Lin Feifei and the others in danger.

The reason she believed it was very likely that Oudick wouldn’t choose this option was that she could tell that he was a person with certain morals and confidence from his work style and current status.

Or maybe it had something to do with the price he paid.

When Old Clothing Bazaar’s owner was dozing off, he could clearly walk away with the clothes.

In addition, if he did have the Awakened ability to make people fall asleep and affect dreams, he could’ve left after receiving the information and waking the other party up. There would’ve been no need to buy any old clothes.

Oudick thought for a moment and said, “There’s no need. If it’s not worth it, I’ll ask for the difference in price back.”

Jiang Baimian heaved a sigh of relief when she heard that. After all, she was not absolutely confident. After this matter, she gained a deeper understanding of Oudick’s character and behavior.

“Deal.” Jiang Baimian smiled.

Oudick nodded and pointed at the guild entrance. “Let’s talk outside.”

Jiang Baimian stood up at a moderate pace and secretly glanced at Shang Jianyao before rubbing her index finger with her thumb. Her gesture meant that she was going to begin with Plan B.

Be prepared. Use your abilities immediately if anything goes wrong!

It had to be known that the other party was very likely an Awakened, and his abilities were in the domain of sleep and dreams.

As for Jiang Baimian herself, her role was to have Oudick focus on her and become the other party’s first target to buy time for Shang Jianyao.

Although she was confident and had done a lot of research in order to deal with Awakened, she still felt that she couldn’t completely guard against them at close range and needed to rely on Shang Jianyao.

This was because there were too many Awakened abilities. Some abilities could even induce cardiac arrests and wipe memories. Without obtaining information first, it was impossible to deal with all of them.

After leaving the Hunter’s Guild and arriving on West Street, Oudick lowered his hands and casually said, “Lin Feifei carried her black travel bag and walked out of Yellow Corner Alley. She first walked to South Street, then Central Square. She then turned to West Street and walked into that alley.”

As he spoke, Oudick stretched out his right hand and pointed diagonally across.

It was the entrance to an alley. The straight-line distance was more than 40 meters away from the Hunter’s Guild. Beside it were two ostentatious bars—Flying Bird and Wild Tree.

“Flying Bird Bar…” Jiang Baimian muttered the name.

Thinking that she was asking a question, Oudick added, “That alley’s name is Wild Wolf. The name was later changed. It’s filled with places similar to bars, and it also hides the underground market in Weed City.

“I spent a lot of effort to find a few witnesses and confirmed Lin Feifei’s whereabouts. However, that was as far as I got. The people in Wild Wolf Alley don’t wake up so early, so there won’t be any witnesses. We have no way of knowing if Lin Feifei passed through the alley and went somewhere else or entered a bar inside.”

“Is that so…” Jiang Baimian thought for a moment and took out the pamphlet from her pocket. “We found this under the bed in the room that Lin Feifei rented.”

She handed the pamphlet to Oudick and paid close attention to his expression. If she determined that the other party was related to the organization that promoted the idea that knowledge was toxic, she would immediately get Shang Jianyao to ‘make friends!’

After Oudick took it, he unfolded it and read it. His eyebrows gradually furrowed. “They…”

Jiang Baimian’s heart palpitated as she asked, “You know them?”

Experts who could advance to the rank of Advanced Hunter in the Hunter’s Guild definitely had plenty of knowledge in all aspects, regardless of their strength.

Oudick’s gaze swept between Jiang Baimian and Shang Jianyao twice before he said thoughtfully, “Such ideas and slogans are very similar to a religious organization that has been relatively active here in the past few years.”

“What do they call themselves?” Jiang Baimian asked. Anything she got now would be a bonus.

Oudick replied with a slightly solemn expression, “Anti-intellectualism Church.”