Chapter 979: Morio Town in Flames? |
“By the way, how’s the situation over there?” Watanabe Ryuusei suddenly shifted the topic.
Honekawa Suneo shook his head and replied with some frustration, “Things are still the same on that side. Trying to extend our influence there is proving to be quite tricky. But on a different note, what should we do with the person we captured a couple of days ago? At this point, we’re almost certain that he just accidentally wandered into our territory.”
Two days ago, a patrol team led by Nobi Nobita came across a panicked young man not far from their base. They seized the opportunity to capture him and brought him back. Only Nobi Nobita and one of his subordinates were seen, and they kept the man hooded the entire time, throwing him straight into the confinement room.
After some interrogation, the young man consistently claimed he was just a tourist visiting Mount Fuji. He said he was curious about the urban legends surrounding Aokigahara Forest, which led him to enter the forest. According to him, his family was still waiting for him at a hotel at the foot of Mount Fuji.
To verify this, Honekawa Suneo personally took a team to investigate the young man’s identity and check the reliability of his statements. So far, everything seemed to check out.
“Better safe than sorry. After all, we took over this secret base from another cult, so we can't rule out the possibility that they might have noticed something’s amiss here. Suneo, keep digging into that man’s background... Of course, we aren’t like those other cults, so treat him decently. And also, remind the procurement team to be extra careful. They’re supporting the livelihoods of over a thousand people here.”
Watanabe Ryuusei pondered for a moment before standing up. “I’ll head over to the excavation site for a look. Although we didn’t come here specifically for those Old Gods’ ruins, a bit of side income wouldn’t hurt.”
Just then, Minamoto Shizuka rushed into the room.
Seeing her, Watanabe Ryuusei’s eyes lit up. “Shizuka, is there news about my father?”
Moreover, Watanabe Masao was still being hunted by Blackstone Mountain Prison, and Ryuusei knew the prison well enough to not want his father to fall back into their clutches. Thus, Ryuusei’s plan was simple: locate his father and send him to Hokkaido to lay low.
Minamoto Shizuka nodded and reported, “Our people found a lead in Tokyo. Yesterday, there was a theft on the outskirts—two middle-aged men stole a delivery van from a convenience store. Based on witness descriptions, it appears to have been your father and his companion.”
Watanabe Ryuusei furrowed his brows in confusion. “What’s going on? Why would my father go to the outskirts of Tokyo? They should have been trying to leave the city as quickly as possible.”
After a moment of hesitation, Shizuka added, “The witnesses also claimed that the culprits were heading deeper into Tokyo.”
This revelation only deepened Ryuusei’s puzzlement.
“Tokyo? Why would my father go there? He should know I’m not in Tokyo right now.” Watanabe Ryuusei rubbed his chin. “There must be a reason they headed into the city. Could someone else be controlling his actions? But that doesn’t make sense either.”
He turned to Minamoto Shizuka and Honekawa Suneo, asking, “What do you think about this situation?”
Both Shizuka and Suneo shook their heads, equally baffled.
Ryuusei sighed. “Alright then, Shizuka, keep sending people to Tokyo to gather more intel on my father’s whereabouts. And while you’re at it, see if the Public Faction is planning any major moves... Also, get a few trusted people to head to Osaka and inform Zhang Jingxu of our current situation.”
“Are you suggesting that we’re going to join the Warrior Faction?” Honekawa Suneo asked in surprise.
Despite retreating to Mount Fuji after leaving Tokyo, Ryuusei and his group were still well-informed. They were aware that Zhang Jingxu and Lu Tianya, who had allied with the Sawada Family, were now significant figures within the Warrior Faction.
Watanabe Ryuusei nodded solemnly. “At this point, we can’t afford to hedge our bets any longer. If we were to join the Public Faction, we’d likely be sidelined or even sold out to Blackstone Mountain Prison because of my father. We know how Blackstone Mountain Prison operates. More importantly, with Zhang Jingxu and his associates having risen in the Warrior Faction, joining them means we’ll have someone to cover our backs.”
He paused before continuing, “Besides, what we’re currently planning is beyond the capabilities of our Worshipers of the Yellow Sect alone. We need Zhang Jingxu’s support if we’re to move forward with our next step. Alright, Shizuka, Suneo, you two can get to work. I’ll head over to the excavation site.”
Shizuka and Suneo nodded before leaving the room.
But just as they exited, a shadowy figure appeared silently behind Watanabe Ryuusei.
Despite its quiet entrance, Ryuusei sensed its presence. Without turning around, he said, “Why are you here again?”
The shadow didn’t speak, merely conjuring a letter that it placed on the table before vanishing once more.
With a sigh, Watanabe Ryuusei picked up the letter. On it was a Yellow Sign.
Meanwhile, back in Morio Town...
Liu Xing and his companions were busy setting up their new residence. Although they were well aware that their stay in Morio Town would likely last no more than a week or two, and that they’d probably never return once they left, they still took the time to make themselves as comfortable as possible during their short stay.
Of course, Liu Xing and his group didn’t forget to install various devices throughout their new home to prevent any potential ambushes.
Once everything was set up, Dio arrived in an old classic car.
Dio didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point, "We've confirmed the cause of the fire in that forest. Just as Sirius mentioned, someone did use fire-element Magic Spells there. We found obvious traces of spells on several trees, and judging by the pattern and positions of these marks, it appears that someone was randomly casting fire spells around that spot. This randomness makes it difficult to discern what they were actually trying to achieve, but we can at least be certain that it wasn't an attempt to attack an enemy."
"So, could it have been an attempt to set the forest on fire? Or maybe an ability going out of control?" Li Hanxing speculated.
Dio nodded noncommittally, "That’s certainly possible, but we don't think it's very likely. Our current theory is that this incident was orchestrated by one of the Swollen Woman's subordinates, possibly as a way to send us a warning and prepare us for what's coming."
Hearing this, Liu Xing couldn't help but quip, "Oh? Since when did the Swollen Woman get so considerate that she'd actually send a warning in advance?"
Dio shrugged and chuckled, "Believe it or not, some things are just that bizarre. There's even precedent for it. About a year ago, the Swollen Woman sent an assassin after us. This assassin had a rather peculiar situation—he had two ordinary brothers who looked exactly like him, down to their accents. He would often disguise himself as one of his brothers to carry out his missions. And guess what? Before that, the Swollen Woman put up a cryptic public service ad on a billboard in the new district. The ad featured three identical little birds."
"In other words, if the Swollen Woman is sending any particularly eccentric underlings into Morio Town, she usually leaves some sort of hint. These hints are often subtle, unlike today's dramatic show. But even so, we believe this is her way of signaling that the new assassin might plan a large-scale attack... like setting the entire town ablaze. Morio Town’s old district, being mostly wooden structures, would be a nightmare if a fire were to break out."
Liu Xing furrowed his brow, realizing that Dio's warning was no exaggeration. Mai Yuqiang’s home, for instance, was a typical wooden structure, highly flammable if a fire spread.
The situation in the new district wasn’t much better either. Due to its unique circumstances, Morio Town had essentially turned into a hub for food businesses, with nearly half of its merchants involved in the restaurant industry.
The reason was simple: Morio Town was wealthy and carried a deep sense of nostalgia. As the saying goes, those who understand the world's hidden truths are never short of money, and these individuals formed the town’s primary populace. Many of them were wealthy yet had nowhere else to spend their money.
Most importantly, these people, hailing from different parts of China, had little to no chance of returning to their homeland. As a result, they channeled their homesickness into food, leading to the proliferation of specialty dining establishments. Over time, Morio Town became Nagoya’s unofficial “Chinatown,” attracting food enthusiasts seeking authentic Chinese cuisine.
But back to the main point—what’s the biggest threat to a restaurant? Fire, of course.
With so many flammable materials in these establishments, a fire could quickly spiral out of control. If a fire broke out in the new district, a chain reaction could occur, with restaurants going up like a string of firecrackers.
To make matters worse, the Morio Town Protection Association was essentially powerless against a large-scale blaze since, at the end of the day, they were still just human.
“If a fire isn’t contained immediately, the entire town could turn into a sea of flames,” Dio said grimly. “That’s why we suspect the Swollen Woman is trying to give us a heads-up. It’s likely that this new assassin will attempt indiscriminate arson in the city. If that happens, it will be a huge challenge for us.”
As he spoke, Dio pulled out a detailed map of Morio Town from his car and spread it on the table. “This is the most comprehensive map we have of Morio Town. As you can see, the town is crisscrossed with roads and intersections. Except for the commercial district, the layout is pretty chaotic. If that assassin starts setting fires, unless we can pinpoint his location quickly, catching him will be nearly impossible because we won’t know where he’ll head next.”
Just as Dio described, the map showed that Morio Town’s layout was indeed a fragmented mess. Even in the new district, there were streets branching off every few buildings.
Aside from the main roads, the side streets were only about ten to twenty meters long...
This meant that if the assassin was agile, he could slip into a different street in less than ten seconds, making it easy to lose track of him.
And losing him would mean he could set another street’s row of restaurants on fire.
“Another challenge in tracking this assassin is that Morio Town lacks any real vantage points. The tallest building here is Bai Liang’s department store, which only has four floors. So, we can’t set up a permanent watchtower, nor can we afford to have someone constantly flying overhead to monitor the ground. Which means...”
Dio trailed off, looking meaningfully at Liu Xing and his companions.
Liu Xing immediately understood what Dio was hinting at.
With a resigned shrug, Liu Xing said, “Alright, Dio, we get it. The real reason you came here is to recruit us as volunteer patrols, right?”
Dio nodded, smiling, “Exactly. That’s the plan. Our Morio Town Protection Association is severely short-staffed, and regular folks wouldn’t be able to handle this without spooking the target. But Liu Xing, you and your team are the perfect candidates. Plus, while you’re patrolling, you can also keep an eye out for the leopard. I’m certain it’s still somewhere in the new district. But the most important thing is, regardless of the situation, we’ll compensate you for your time on a fixed schedule.”
Since Dio had laid it all out, Liu Xing and his companions had no choice but to accept the mission.
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Chapter 980: The Gate to the Two-Dimensional World