Chapter 2326 — Wei Zhao's Purpose

The ingredients in the poison formula were not easy to buy, but Wei Zhao simply sent Feng Tianlong a text message asking him to bring them along when he came. These things should not be difficult for Feng Tianlong—after all, none of the ingredients were rare.

Feng Tianlong quickly replied that there was no problem. Wei Zhao put on the Thousand-Silk Mask and returned to the alley, to the spot where Brother Dafeng had parked the car.

Brother Dafeng was waiting obediently in the car, though his hands and feet could not move, so he could not go far anyway.

Still, Wei Zhao had kept an eye on the position of Brother Dafeng's hands and feet. Since he had left until now, they had not shifted at all—meaning Brother Dafeng had not tried to struggle. Otherwise, the moment his body moved, the position of his hands and feet would certainly have changed.

That made Wei Zhao nod inwardly. This Brother Dafeng was still usable.

"Brother Eagle, you're back?" Brother Dafeng was rather delighted to see Wei Zhao return. Wei Zhao might look covered in blood, but he had come back—and he had walked over calmly, not fled back. That meant one thing: Wei Zhao had dealt with the Third Boss and all his men.

Wei Zhao pulled open the car door and got in. "The Third Boss's men are all dead. He's crippled. I had the Mystery Investigation Bureau take him away—I doubt he'll be coming back."

"Then congratulations, Brother Eagle!" Brother Dafeng said hurriedly. "Brother Eagle, from now on Dafeng follows you. Where do we go next?"

"Nowhere for the time being." Wei Zhao glanced at Brother Dafeng. "Dafeng, is your hand all right? Is it serious?"

"Hey, it's nothing. I'm a cultivator at the peak of the late Mystic rank, after all. A little injury like this doesn't affect anything—I could still shoot down a plane." Brother Dafeng grinned broadly. In truth, he was somewhat gloomy inside. Wei Zhao had stomped on his hand hard; though it was usable for normal purposes, he would never be able to exert force with it again. For a cultivator, that was essentially half-crippled.

Wei Zhao nodded, casually took Brother Dafeng's hand, and circulated the second layer of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art, rapidly repairing the injury. Then he said, "I need you to work for me, and a cripple won't do. But if you fail to handle things properly, I won't mind sending you to see the Third Boss."

"What? This... my hand is healed?" Brother Dafeng stared at his hand, restored to its original state, and was both shocked and overjoyed. He had said what he said earlier, but he had still been unhappy about it inside—he was a cultivator, and a hand that could only do ordinary things was no different from being crippled. Now that it was healed, he was truly overjoyed. But after the joy came a hurried declaration: "Rest assured, Brother Eagle! From now on Dafeng is your man. Whatever you tell me to do, I'll do!"

"I want you to stay here, take over the Red Conch's branch, and sit in the Big Boss's seat. Any problem with that?" Wei Zhao said.

"Me? Big Boss?" Brother Dafeng was stunned. He had not expected Wei Zhao to make such a demand. He had never considered such a thing before—he had only thought of helping Wei Zhao with odd jobs after they escaped together. He had never imagined Wei Zhao would have him replace the Third Boss and become the Big Boss of the Red Conch branch.

"Don't tell me that after all these years you have no connections at all in the Red Conch headquarters. You managed to get transferred from that wretched poison-refining base to this comfortable post—you must have your own channels, don't you?" Wei Zhao asked.

"Channels I do have, but my strength is simply too low. Even if I don't reach the peak of the late Earth rank, I at least need to be Earth rank. Otherwise the headquarters will still send one or more Earth-rank experts to keep watch..." Brother Dafeng said hesitantly.

"I'll get you to Earth rank. You've heard of the Minor Qi-Gathering Pill, haven't you? I can give you one to help you break through to the early Earth rank. The rest of the road is up to you." Wei Zhao said, "As for how to keep them from sending anyone over, I don't need to teach you that, do you? You said the Mystery Investigation Bureau is watching closely—if cultivators enter the country and they get wind of it, things go wrong easily. As a native local power, you have the advantage."

"I understand, Brother Eagle. Thank you so much!" Brother Dafeng said solemnly. "If I have a Minor Qi-Gathering Pill, I'm confident I can take the Big Boss's seat in the branch!"

"Once you've secured that position, find a way to maneuver things afterward. Best if you can get transferred to the poison-refining base as some kind of supervisor. If that truly can't be done, then gather as much intelligence about the poison-refining base as you can!" Wei Zhao said.

"Understood!" Brother Dafeng nodded.

"That's all for now. Make your own plans, go into hiding first, and come out only after the Mystery Investigation Bureau has taken the Third Boss and the rest away," Wei Zhao said.

"Yes, Brother Eagle!" Brother Dafeng answered hurriedly.

Wei Zhao went straight back to the Fire Wolf Hotel. Chen Buyi had already begun clearing the battlefield; everyone connected to the Red Conch had been loaded onto vehicles and sent to the Mystery Investigation Bureau's base. Chen Buyi was waiting here only for Feng Tianlong and Wei Zhao.

Wei Zhao greeted Chen Buyi and went upstairs. Sun Jingyan breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Wei Zhao return.

"It's finally over. I never expected so many things to happen on this trip." Sun Jingyan said with some emotion, "It was all for me. Thank you, Wei Zhao!"

"Don't put it that way. This business in Qingrun City helped me a great deal. If the car hadn't been stolen, I never would have found my way here," Wei Zhao said.

"Anyway, I'll remember it in my heart." Sun Jingyan spoke to Wei Zhao with utter seriousness and sincerity. "From childhood until now, no one has ever cared about me so much..."

"Don't tell me you've fallen in love with me out of gratitude?" Wei Zhao looked at her expression and asked with a smile.

"A little bit." Sun Jingyan nodded seriously. "Only, don't you seem to have a few too many girlfriends?"

"I only have one lover," Wei Zhao said.

"You... aren't you going to heal your injuries?" Sun Jingyan's face flushed red, and she felt a little embarrassed, changing the subject.

"Heh..." Wei Zhao smiled faintly. So Sun Jingyan could get embarrassed too. He shook his head and, not teasing her further, sat cross-legged on the bed and circulated the second layer of the Xuanyuan Dragon-Taming Art to heal his injuries. In truth, none of the injuries inside Wei Zhao's body were serious; treating them sooner or later made little difference.

In the blink of an eye, evening came. Feng Tianlong arrived, bringing the medicinal ingredients Wei Zhao needed for refining the poison.

Feng Tianlong had a great deal to do and had to return overnight to interrogate the Third Boss, so he merely treated Wei Zhao and Sun Jingyan to a meal before taking his leave.