Chapter 1073: Chapter 24: Path Dependence on the Psychological Level
Some people grovel outside but return home to beat and scold their parents and family.
Simply put, it’s nothing more than bullying the weak.
Lacking the courage to challenge the strong, they mistake their family’s goodwill for weakness.
Yang Jian’s act of selling out the entire local Yang Family did not intimidate Wang Yunxiao but instead revealed a weakness.
If you have the capability, take on the Navy; killing your family doesn’t make you a hero.
No matter the reason, whether public-minded or selfish, once he formed this psychological dependency, his options became limited.
The last time in Lanton, Wang Yunxiao was a wanted man.
This time in Tianmen, their roles have reversed.
Now he’s the wanted man, while Wang Yunxiao has access to nearly infinite official resources.
No matter what tactics he uses, be it invisibility or disguise, once his approximate location is determined, under the Astrologer’s surveillance, he can’t hide.
Even without the power of the Three Bureaus, Wang Yunxiao has plenty of tricks; he just never needed to use them before.
“…Alright, I’ll wait for your call.”
After hanging up with Yan Yu’an, Wang Yunxiao turned his attention back to the file in his hand.
The Four Seas Commerce Guild’s presence in Tianmen is an open secret.
These things are not easily hidden; after all, they’re not after intelligence but initial investments to build connections.
Just like Boss Mu, who has never hidden his vast sums of cash.
Wang Yunxiao now holds a list of names collected by the Navy.
Mu Yuming’s name stands out on the list.
Apart from the murdered merchant, there are seven others like him, scattered across various industries.
Tianmen City is vast, and finding someone isn’t easy; you can’t just casually find an address and teleport there with a camera switch.
If he hadn’t gone to Li Mumu’s house by chance in her car before, Wang Yunxiao wouldn’t have known she moved to a new place.
It’s the same for others.
Unless Yang Jian also has a network, gathering enough information requires validation.
Wang Yunxiao dialed one of the phone numbers.
“…”
No answer.
“This is it, let’s check it out first.”
Wang Yunxiao chose a grain merchant from the list, whose main business was importing rice from Southeast Asia to sell in Tianmen.
Thanks to prosperous ocean trade, rice prices in Tianmen are always cheaper than other staples like millet, cornmeal, or flour.
Out of the port, the prices inland are quite different.
Choosing this person wasn’t due to any shady dealings — everyone’s accounts have some discrepancies.
It was mainly because his residence is close to the Yang Family.
When Wang Yunxiao drove to the mansion, it was still brightly lit, but the gate was locked, and no one responded.
Breaking in revealed that the family of seven, old and young, sat neatly at the dining table, bleeding from their orifices, their bodies already stiff.
“Professor Yu, I need your help.”
Wang Yunxiao didn’t rush the investigation, knowing he’s not a professional, and preferring to rely on someone more capable at the moment.
Yu Tongxuan nodded and took off his blindfold, glancing around.
“Five hours ago, the people were here.”
“Can you deduce the method they used or any specific characteristics?”
“It seems like an Advisor.”
“The kind that writes things down in a notebook?”
“Exactly.”
Wang Yunxiao pulled out his notebook and handed it to Yu Tongxuan: “Is it like this?”
“Yes.”
What a coincidence, thought Wang Yunxiao.
After experiencing so much, you realize there’s nothing new under the sun.
Criminals think reading a few novels gives them creative methods when similar records crowd over police archives.
The Twelve Laws system wasn’t imagined out of thin air; it has roots and legacy, refined over time into a modern cultivation textbook.
The Righteous Path’s cultivation method is also about jotting things down, too much like Wang Yunxiao’s notebook—except one outputs information, the other inputs, hard not to link them.
This is the third notebook he’s found. He and Li Mumu share one; Little Witch Uesugi Risa has one, now Yang Jian has another.
This isn’t coincidence—it’s evidently a structured import.
“Can you see what he wrote in it?”
“You think I’m an Immortal?”
Yu Tongxuan shook his head, exasperated: “But I’ve memorized his traces. If he comes within a hundred-meter radius of me, I’ll spot him.”
“That’ll do.”
All he needs is a human radar.
“Did he do anything else?”
Yu Tongxuan glanced around, picking up a three-centimeter Thousand Paper Crane from the table.
“He folded this.”
“Quite the aesthetics, has some romantic sentiments.”
One look at the crane, and Wang Yunxiao knew it was made from notebook paper.
Unfolding it revealed a line of text inside.
“Truth and lies are indistinct, reasons and wrongs disturb the heart.”
Wang Yunxiao turned back to the seven bodies at the table. Besides bleeding, there were no visible injuries, no clear method discernible.
He picked up a piece of meat from the table and ate it.
“What the—”
Yu Tongxuan was about to object but was too late.
“It’s fine.”
After tasting, Wang Yunxiao pondered silently.
“No poison in the food. Please check the bodies for hidden wounds.”
“The skulls are fractured, brains shattered.”
Wang Yunxiao took Yang Jian’s seat, scrutinizing the table, seeing everyone’s expressions at once.
“He’s not the killer.”
“Why say that?”
Yu Tongxuan was puzzled: “No one else is here, I can guarantee that.”
“In the Yang Family massacre, he didn’t kill—someone else did. It’s the same here; he’s watching the show from the sidelines.”
Wang Yunxiao shared his judgment.
“The question is, whose knife did he borrow this time? Did this grain merchant offend someone recently?”
Yu Tongxuan laughed: “Does he fancy himself a righteous hero dispensing justice?”
“Hard to say.”
Picking up the phone, Wang Yunxiao dialed the next number on the list.
“Hello?”
Surprisingly, this time the call went through.