Upon seeing the assassination mission targeting him, Feng Qi was momentarily stunned.
About every fifteen days, the Domain Weak Tribe Alliance would send over recently acquired tasks that were ready for listing to Tiger Soul Research Institute, where he would review them.
Any tasks he didn't want to be listed would be vetoed in advance, ensuring they never appeared.
At this stage, all tasks acquired and executed by the Domain Weak Tribe Alliance within Star City were fully under his control.
This was something he had learned from Old Mist.
By controlling the intelligence network of the Domain Weak Tribe, even if something adverse to him was happening, he could learn about it in advance.
Now, seeing this assassination task aimed at him, Feng Qi felt a sense of confusion.
Logically speaking, he had been very low-key recently. He hadn't made any shocking breakthroughs in cultivation that would cause the outside world to take notice. So why had he become a target for assassination?
What had he done to mess with some of the Domain's hidden forces?
While pondering, his mind first turned to the Super Virtual Game.
Recently, the promotion of the Super Virtual Game had been in full swing. Perhaps its emergence had triggered the Domain's hidden forces, making them view him as a dangerous target.
But upon further reflection, he felt that the likelihood of this was very low.
At this point, only those within the Dawn Organization, whom he had thoroughly vetted through multiple timelines, knew his true identity.
As for the other departments within Dawn, they only knew of the organization's existence, not of his role behind the scenes.
It was understandable that the exposure of the Super Virtual Game might cause alarm. He had already prepared himself for that. But no matter what, it was unlikely that the target would be set on him directly.
If the problem wasn't internal, then where else could it have come from?
This question made Feng Qi fall into deep thought.
He began considering his recent activities, wondering if there had been any exposure of his position.
Suddenly, a light bulb went off in his mind, and he thought of the Energy Research Institute.
He had recently visited the Energy Research Institute and signed the agreement for the installation of a new energy line with the highest level of authority from Tiger Soul Research Institute.
"Could this be where the problem lies?"
However, after thinking carefully, Feng Qi found this theory unlikely.
He could understand if the Domain's hidden forces targeted Tiger Soul Research Institute, or even Crimson Research Institute.
But why the Energy Research Institute?
The Energy Research Institute had limited influence within Star City, and it was directly governed by the Star City Supreme Council, with every development restricted.
Controlling the Energy Research Institute seemed like a thankless task.
Feng Qi couldn't fathom any Domain force being foolish enough to make such a move, as there would be no real benefit in doing so.
Moreover, the Energy Research Institute had to report its resource consumption every month. Trying to siphon resources would be difficult, unlike Tiger Soul or Crimson Research Institutes, where they could freely decide how resources were used.
But to be safe, he immediately stood up and walked over to his screen.
Waking the screen up, he accessed the permission database.
After typing in Yin Ling's name, he filtered by gender and time.
After a moment, detailed information about Yin Ling appeared on the screen.
Upon reviewing the information carefully, Feng Qi found that Yin Ling's profile was perfectly normal and had no discrepancies.
According to the information, Yin Ling was born in the West District of Star City, and both of her parents had worked as part of the management at the Energy Research Institute. She attended the Ling Materials Academy at Old Day City and graduated with excellent marks. Afterward, she returned to Star City to join the Energy Research Institute as an intern.
During her time there, Yin Ling showed exceptional skills in various aspects, rapidly rising through the ranks.
Eventually, two years ago, after the previous director retired, she was voted in as the new director by the Star City Supreme Council.
...
Given Yin Ling's authority, she wouldn't have been able to tamper with the information in Star City's permission database.
This was enough to confirm the credibility of the information.
Additionally, since Yin Ling was born in Star City, she was not a newcomer who suddenly appeared. This significantly lowered the possibility of her being a Domain Creature.
But Feng Qi didn't completely rule out the possibility.
After all, there were always ways for the Domain forces to infiltrate human society. Tricks like the "substitute prince" were far too common.
Mind control, soul parasitism, behind-the-scenes manipulation… after seeing so many timelines, he had witnessed every kind of infiltration tactic.
Simply looking at the permission database could never be enough to conclude that the information was fully trustworthy.
But one thing was certain.
Controlling the Energy Research Institute wouldn't yield much benefit.
Yin Ling's career trajectory was clear. If she were a Domain Creature, she would have arrived before Old Mist and the Night Shadow Clan made their appearances.
Why didn't she choose to control a higher-level research institute, instead of going for one of the lowest-ranking ones like the Energy Research Institute?
Why not take control of Tiger Soul or Crimson Research Institute?
He thought that perhaps there was another possibility.
This particular Domain force might have been too weak and believed that they could never control Tiger Soul or Crimson Research Institute, so they settled for the Energy Research Institute as a second choice.
Although the resource usage of the Energy Research Institute had to be reported, it was still possible to skim a small portion of resources to subsidize internal needs.
This guess seemed plausible, but there was a logical flaw.
The characteristic of the Domain Weak Tribe was its lack of resources and weak overall combat strength.
How could they waste resources on trying to kill him? This was simply a thankless task.
The newly planned energy lines had no relation to the Energy Research Institute's interests. He was just a signer. Even if he were dead, the energy line construction would still continue.
After considering all the possible scenarios, Feng Qi eliminated the idea that there was something wrong with the Energy Research Institute.
So, where did the problem lie?
After thinking for a moment, Feng Qi decided to initiate a fishing operation.
First, cast the bait, then lure the snake out of its hole.
With this thought in mind, he pulled out his encrypted phone from his pocket and dialed a number.
After a brief wait, the phone connected, and a hoarse voice came through:
"Who?"
"It's me!"
Hearing the familiar voice, the tone on the other end of the line immediately warmed:
"Lord Narrator, what can I do for you? Have you checked the task list recently? Do you need me to cancel some tasks in advance?"
Faced with a series of questions, Feng Qi replied indifferently:
"There's a task I need to ask you about."
"Go ahead."
"I looked over this batch of tasks and noticed there's an assassination mission to kill Feng Qi, a teacher from Star City Academy. I want to know who issued this task."
There was a brief silence on the other end before the reply came:
"Lord Narrator, the task issuer used an encrypted phone to publish the mission. When the deposit was received, the person was completely covered, and it was impossible to make out their appearance or build."
Upon hearing this, Feng Qi wasn't surprised.
The Domain's hidden forces were most concerned with protecting their identity, so it was completely understandable that no information was revealed.
"Lord Narrator, do you wish to cancel this task?"
"No, it can't be canceled. Immediately release this task, but have it assigned under your name. Do not let any other forces claim it."
"Under my name?" The person on the other end sounded surprised.
"You mean, I should go out and personally assassinate Feng Qi, the teacher from Star City Academy?"
Feng Qi: ...
"Of course not. I want you to take the task, then wait for two days, announce that the mission is complete, and come forward to collect the reward. I'll accompany you at that time."
Upon hearing this, the Domain Weak Tribe Alliance manager on the other end clearly understood Feng Qi's plan.
"Lord Narrator, you want to lure them out?"
"Exactly."
"Alright, I'll arrange it for you."
After discussing the details of the mission, Feng Qi hung up.
Next, he dialed Mu Qing's number to explain the next mission.
Since the Domain's hidden forces didn't want to reveal themselves when issuing the assassination task, Feng Qi planned to use a fishing method to draw them out.
The tactic was similar to what Old Mist had once used.
At that time, it wasn't clear who controlled Tiger Soul Research Institute, or what their strength was.
All Feng Qi knew was that the force controlling Tiger Soul Research Institute had been conducting research on magical techniques, even restricting Lin Ran's freedom for this purpose.
In order to investigate, Feng Qi had teamed up with Lin Ran to send a list of spirit materials to the Tiger Soul's hidden forces.
Among the materials was a request for Bloodstone.
The Night Shadow Clan had taken the bait and sent a member to complete the trade with Old Mist.
The result was that Old Mist successfully managed to infiltrate the Night Shadow Clan and laid the foundation for the eventual downfall of the Night Shadow Clan, ultimately becoming the new ruler of Tiger Soul Research Institute.
This time, Feng Qi was using a similar fishing method, using the task to lure the hidden force out of its hole.
To be on the safe side, he decided to bring Mu Qing along when the trade would be made in person.
Even if an unexpected situation arose, Mu Qing's strength would be more than enough to handle it.
Now, all he had to do was wait.
Two days later, Feng Qi, who had been waiting for the reply, received a call from the Domain Weak Tribe Alliance management.
He was informed that the "task was completed," and he could proceed with the follow-up trade.
...
Late night.
In Star City's East District, the bustling commercial center building.
Feng Qi, wearing a specially made black mask, stood atop the building, gazing down at the dazzling lights below.
The prosperity of Star City East District was all in his view.
Behind him stood Mu Qing, also wearing a black mask, along with the Star City Weak Tribe Alliance management.
The trade for completing the task was set at the top of the building.
Feng Qi's gaze swept constantly over the area below as he waited for the target to appear.
Pulling out his phone, he checked the time—it was already time for the transaction, but the target still hadn't appeared.
Unable to stop himself from frowning, Feng Qi asked:
"Hei Long, has there ever been a case where a mission was marked as completed but the person skipped out on the payment?"
"It has happened, but the probability is very low. After all, many major forces can't take on missions directly, and we have to handle them. This is a long-term trade, and they wouldn't cut ties with us just because of one instance of skipping payment."
"How do you know they won't just switch identities and continue to freeload from you guys later?"
"Such a situation basically doesn't exist. The ones who give us assassination tasks are never small forces. Small forces wouldn't waste resources on assassination missions. Big forces don't even care about this small amount of resources."
"Besides assassination missions, other tasks like collecting spirit materials require face-to-face delivery once completed, which eliminates the possibility of a potential skip."
At this point, Hei Long paused and then continued, "If there's ever been a case of someone skipping out on payment, it's usually the management's responsibility to cover it. The reward still has to be distributed. If we couldn't guarantee this, no weak tribe force would choose to cooperate with us. This is the foundation of the weak tribe alliance."
After hearing Hei Long's explanation, Feng Qi couldn't help but nod.
The management of the Domain Weak Tribe Alliance seemed to profit handsomely from each task without having to appear in person, taking a cut from the task rewards. However, they also shouldered significant risks.
"Here!"
At that moment, Mu Qing, who had been silent, suddenly spoke.
Feng Qi turned his gaze toward the distance.
In the sky, a silver-white figure was rapidly approaching.
After several flickers in the air, the silver-white figure wrapped in light appeared on the rooftop.
A strange, sharp voice emerged from within the silver-white light:
"Are you sure Feng Qi is dead? Why haven't I seen any news reports?"
Feng Qi's voice was indifferent as he responded, "Yes, Feng Qi is dead. As for why there hasn't been a report, I don't know. But did you see any recent news about him?"
"I trust you. Please don't disappoint me."
With that, the silver-white figure handed over the metal box it was holding.
Seeing this, Feng Qi extended his hand and took the metal box.
Just as the arm wrapped in silver-white light was about to retract, Mu Qing's figure suddenly appeared beside it, swiftly reaching out and grabbing its wrist.
"What are you trying to do?" The voice owner sounded genuinely surprised.
"The most important thing in a transaction is honesty. You choosing to hide your identity is a sign of extreme disrespect toward us. Let's take a look at your face first."
Behind them, Hei Long instinctively glanced at Feng Qi, who wore a black mask. He couldn't help but suppress a chuckle in his heart.
But of course, Hei Long didn't dare to voice this out loud in front of Feng Qi.
With Feng Qi's words, Mu Qing moved.
A terrifying force erupted instantly, and with a sharp tug, the silver-white figure was dragged several steps forward, stumbling.
The jade-colored light around Mu Qing swirled, and the silver-white glow was soon completely dispelled.
Seeing this, Feng Qi took a step back and didn't plan to interfere.
He had absolute confidence in Mu Qing's strength.
From a historical perspective, within Star City right now, no one could match Mu Qing's power.
Perhaps only Tian Shu, who was self-imprisoned, might have the ability to face Mu Qing.
But even in that case, Feng Qi believed Mu Qing would still be the stronger one in an actual fight.
The legendary titles of history's greatest demons were no idle boast.
"Keep them alive!" Feng Qi reminded at this moment.
Figuring out who issued the mission was crucial.
However, what Feng Qi considered even more important was uncovering the forces behind the task issuer.
If they killed the task issuer now, the trail would be lost, and they wouldn't be able to trace the lurking Domain force in the shadows.
Upon hearing his reminder, Mu Qing nodded solemnly.
Breathing in, the jade-colored light began to swirl around her body again, heading toward the silver-white figure.
Faced with Mu Qing's restraining pressure, the silver-white figure couldn't resist at all. Its body trembled uncontrollably under the intense pressure.
This trembling wasn't purely from fear; it was more from the overwhelming aura exerted by Mu Qing.
Even Hei Long, who was standing not far behind, couldn't help but tremble slightly, though his eyes were filled with excitement. He felt as if he had found a powerful ally.
Only Feng Qi, who had trained in Tiger Fist, was able to bear the intense pressure from Mu Qing.
As the jade-colored light flowed across Mu Qing's body, the silver-white glow was dissipated in large swathes.
Watching the silver-white figure's features slowly reveal themselves, Feng Qi's eyes glimmered with anticipation.
The truth behind this assassination mission was about to be uncovered.