Chapter 58: Ill Omens Must Die (IV)

Su Gao was as tight-lipped as ever. Seeing Fu Qian lost in thought, she kept quiet and said nothing more.

The two Nightwatchers had detoured halfway to investigate the headless young woman’s home, leaving only the two of them in the vehicle.

Fu Qian cast a glance at the scenery outside.

He had to admit that this place possessed rather picturesque views: antique-style architecture, bustling crowds, and people taking leisurely strolls under the warm sunshine.

It was hard to imagine what kind of disaster could possibly befall them.

They were currently on their way to the West Plain City Nightwatcher base.

Su Gao had just mentioned that the local Nightwatcher base held some files regarding the "Omen," suggesting that Fu Qian might want to take a look.

Naturally, Fu Qian welcomed this eagerly.

As the undisputed top organization in this world, obtaining some information about his target from the Nightwatchers was the best possible scenario for him.

After pondering the matter of the disaster for a while without getting any leads, Fu Qian shifted his attention back to Su Gao.

With her curved sword resting on her lap and sitting quietly, Su Gao felt almost devoid of any living presence.

Less than a third of her face retained real flesh and skin; the rest was exposed white porcelain-like bone, making her look almost like a battered, life-sized doll.

Yet Fu Qian knew clearly that compared to their last encounter, her strength had increased by much more than just a little bit.

It was hard to imagine what had transpired in the interim.

"Executioner"—the title alone sounded murderous, and her status within the Nightwatchers was likely not low.

Judging by the implications, she was probably the type of hunter who operated without regional restrictions, roaming everywhere to hunt down outlaws.

According to Su Gao, she had applied to join this special department only after the previous incident.

One could imagine that the events of last time had affected her far more deeply than her casual tone suggested.

However, since she did not volunteer the details, Fu Qian would not ask.

"So you're essentially a hunter now? Specially tasked with pursuing targets on the Nightwatcher wanted list?"

"Yes."

Su Gao lowered her gaze and nodded gently.

"It feels like... this kind of work suits me better."

This kind of work? Hunting and killing?

Then you are truly a top-tier expert!

Fu Qian touched his chest. Putting everything else aside, this young woman's blade technique could only be described as ferocious.

Of course, this was an absolute boon for him.

A powerful teammate of at least intermediate tier, who was even affiliated with a special operations department, was simply the most suitable companion for this mission.

While they were talking, they had arrived at the West Plain City Nightwatcher base.

Unlike Qi Xue and the others' arrogant and imposing skyscraper, this place was much more modest by comparison.

It was a three-story building with dark red outer walls, which looked quite aged from the outside.

"Executioner Su, how is the situation?"

As soon as they stepped inside, someone came forward to greet them.

The man appeared to be in his forties, with slightly graying temples and quite casual attire.

Upon seeing Fu Qian, the man looked noticeably surprised, unable to figure out how an extra person had appeared from a routine trip outward.

Thus, he fixed his gaze on Su Gao, hoping she would offer an explanation.

"It was indeed done by an Extraordinary, but we cannot confirm yet whether it is the Omen."

Su Gao nodded.

"Captain Qiao, please help me retrieve the files on the Omen."

Captain? This person was actually the head of West Plain City?

Fu Qian sized up the Captain Qiao before him. Judging by his aura, he was indeed a cut above Lu Jun and his partner, hovering around the seventh tier in strength.

West Plain City wasn't large, but no matter what, the Nightwatcher staffing here was overly shabby to an almost pitiful degree.

Hearing that Su Gao wanted to look at the Omen's files again, Captain Qiao looked somewhat puzzled.

After hesitating for a moment, he still mustered the courage to address Fu Qian.

"And this gentleman is...?"

"This is Mr. Fu."

Before Fu Qian could answer, Su Gao stated directly.

And then?

Captain Qiao stared blankly at Su Gao for a few seconds, hoping she would elaborate, but unfortunately, the latter was notoriously stingy with her words and merely fixed her eyes on him.

In the end, Captain Qiao cracked under the pressure first, retreating to the back to fetch a document.

"Thank you!"

Su Gao reached out, took it, and handed it to Fu Qian without hesitation.

Captain Qiao's eyes nearly popped out of his head—these were classified files!

However, recalling the rumors that this person would resort to decapitation at the slightest disagreement, he swallowed hard and kept his mouth shut.

It really was just a tiny scrap of files!

Fu Qian stroked the few thin pages in his hand, the vast majority of which recorded the Omen's criminal history.

As for information about the man himself, aside from the fact that he was male, there was virtually nothing.

However, these criminal records clearly hinted at a pattern of torture and mutilation; most of the corpses were dismembered and deformed, with some even missing their internal organs, accompanied by the remark "possibly consumed."

"By the way, why is this guy called the Omen?"

Fu Qian swiftly flipped through the files and recalled a question.

"He called himself that."

Su Gao explained softly from the side.

"The target once left similar information behind after committing a crime, and since then, everyone has uniformly used this name to refer to him."

"It seems his targets are still primarily Extraordinaries?"

He had noticed earlier that most of the victims were still Extraordinaries, with very few ordinary people involved.

"Yes, but there is almost nothing in common among the victims. For now, it looks very much like killing purely for the sake of killing."

"In fact, counting today's incident, this is already the Omen's second operation in West Plain City."

"The first victim was also an Extraordinary. It feels like his frequency of committing crimes is getting higher and higher."

Mmm.

Fu Qian turned his head toward Captain Qiao.

"Captain Qiao, may I take a look at the roster of Extraordinaries?"

"A roster of Extraordinaries?"

Fu Qian's request startled Captain Qiao.

"The roster of all Extraordinaries within West Plain City. I'm sure you must have one."

"We do, but..."

Captain Qiao still wanted to put up a struggle, but the glance Su Gao sent floating his way made him fall silent instantly.

Huang Lezhan, Huang Jianyuan, Huang Zhaoliu...

Fu Qian flipped through the directory in front of him, his frown deepening the more he read.

"How come they all share the surname Huang?"

"You didn't know?"

Captain Qiao was equally surprised.

"The Huang family is one of the top Extraordinary families at present. Although the West Plain branch is only a collateral line, their heritage spans over a century, so it's quite normal for them to have accumulated some foundation.

Coupled with the fact that West Plain isn't very large to begin with, the vast majority of Extraordinaries naturally come from their household."

I see!

Such local magnates could easily monopolize cultivation resources, and coupled with bloodline inheritance, it was no great surprise that they dominated the directory.

Judging from this, the Huang family accounted for well over half of the entire city's Extraordinaries, and having operated here for a century, a family like this probably held absolute sway over the region.

Could this be the reason why the Nightwatcher lineup here was so shabby? Did the two sides share some tacit understanding on certain matters?

However, that didn't matter. With such a family around, it was simply—wonderful!

An Extraordinary family entrenched locally for a century would undoubtedly be extremely well-informed.

As long as there was suitable incentive, their operational efficiency would certainly be quite high.

"Have you had any contact with them?"

Fu Qian looked at Su Gao, who shook her head.

"I only just arrived not long ago myself."

"In that case..."

Fu Qian pondered for a moment.

"We'll find time to pay them a visit."

Unaware of Fu Qian's background, Captain Qiao frowned in warning.

"Although we don't need to care too much about these local factions, we should still exercise some caution when dealing with them. If they are willing to cooperate on certain matters, it will save us a lot of trouble."

"Rest assured."

Fu Qian recalled Ji Liushuang and the others he had encountered previously in the Crucible.

"I have extensive experience dealing with them."