Chapter 574: Gun strikes the bird that takes the lead
"Emissary Yang, long time no see. " Huo Laoban, his face beaming, his demeanor warm, proactively greeted Yang Haoran.
<r>Yang Haoran also wore a wide smile and was equally enthusiastic, shaking Huo Laoban's hand in greeting.
<r>"Heh heh, indeed, it's been a while, Emissary Huo."
<r>Seeing their warmth, Shi Kai was a little surprised, chuckling, "So you two know each other? How coincidental."
<r>"Emissary Shi, long time no see. I never expected to be carrying out a mission with you this time; I'm truly honored."
<r>Huo Laoban smiled at Shi Kai, then shook his hand again. It was clear he also knew Shi Kai.
<r>"What honor? Emissary Huo, don't tease me. Truth be told, you're still my senior. Working on a mission with you is my honor, heh heh. " Shi Kai adjusted his hat brim and chuckled at Huo Laoban.
<r>"You're too kind, Emissary Shi, too kind. Our ability to carry out this mission together is simply fate between us."
<r>
From their conversation, Yang Haoran not only discerned some things but also overheard others. What concerned him most, however, was Huo Laoban's strength.
<r>Even Shi Kai considered himself a junior in front of him, which indicated that Huo Laoban had been an Emissary of Death for far longer than him. m. i. c
<r>In the Underworld Office, the length of an Underworld agent's time in office was not the sole criterion for measuring one's strength, but it could certainly be used as a reference.
For the vast majority of Underworld agents, the longer they held their position, the stronger they would become, and conversely, the weaker. There were only a small number of exceptions.
<r>Among this small group, some had transformed themselves through fortuitous encounters, while others had changed themselves through effort and intellect, allowing them to stage a successful reversal.
<r>Since Huo Laoban had been an Emissary of Death longer than Shi Kai, it strongly suggested that Huo Laoban's strength far surpassed Shi Kai's.
<r>Yang Haoran had no idea of Shi Kai's strength at the moment, so he couldn't use Shi Kai's abilities to guess Huo Laoban's. If he could know when each Emissary of Death had taken their post, like Luo Yao could, then he might be able to make a rough estimate of his target's strength based on that.
<r>Though he couldn't ascertain Huo Laoban's strength right now, Yang Haoran didn't take it too much to heart.
<r>For him, understanding Huo Laoban's strength would be ideal, but it didn't matter if he couldn't. After all, he simply wished to avoid contact with Huo Laoban; they weren't mortal enemies, so there was no need to understand him so thoroughly.
<r>Once this mission was over, Huo Laoban would return to his New Sun City, and he to his Lecheng. As long as they didn't cross paths again, that would be enough.
<r>Huo Laoban's exchanges of pleasantries with Shi Kai concluded. He glanced at Yang Haoran with a smile, then addressed both of them, "I was delayed for a bit, so I arrived late. What's your plan now?"
<r>"Plan? I just arrived, so I'm not very clear. Is there a plan already? " Shi Kai looked at Yang Haoran and asked.
<r>Seeing both of their gazes fall upon him, Yang Haoran smiled and shook his head, saying, "Compared to you two, I only arrived a little earlier than you, and know a bit more about the situation here. As for a plan, you'll have to ask this acting Emissary."
<r>In this situation, even if Yang Haoran had a plan in mind, he wouldn't voice it. The reason was simple: among the three Emissaries of Death, he had the least experience. If he were to eloquently spout a bunch of plans, he saw no benefit in it.
<r>The gun strikes the bird that takes the lead, and the knife cuts the local snake. With Yang Haoran's personality, he would absolutely not do such a thing unless he had a specific purpose.
<r>He felt that such showboating was better left to more experienced individuals. He only needed to secretly figure out a way to achieve his goals.
<r>Therefore, he decisively told the two that he had no plans and passed the ball to the second-in-command, the Old Crone.
<r>As Yang Haoran spoke, the gazes of the three men successively fell upon the Old Crone. Seeing all three Emissaries of Death looking at her, even the Old Crone, who had experienced many trials and tribulations in her daily life, couldn't help but feel a little nervous.
<r>Before the Old Crone could even open her mouth, Shi Kai spoke up first.
<r>"Their previous plan definitely won't work. After all, we weren't here then, and they certainly didn't factor us into their plans, so how can that count?"
<r>Shi Kai's words weren't entirely unreasonable. Before the three of them appeared, the plan discussed by the Old Crone and the other Night Watchers certainly hadn't factored them in. Now that three powerful Emissaries of Death had been added, the plan would definitely need to change.
<r>"The Emissary is absolutely right. The plan we discussed previously was based solely on the strength we possessed at the time. Now, with the assistance of three Emissaries, the plan definitely needs to be changed," the Old Crone said respectfully, understanding full well that the previous plan wouldn't count.
<r>"Heh heh, Emissary Shi certainly makes perfect sense. However, that doesn't mean the plan you discussed earlier is entirely useless. First, inform the three of us about the detailed situation here, and then we'll listen to the outcome of your discussions. Perhaps your plan might offer some help for our current operation," Huo Laoban chuckled.
<r>His words both won over Shi Kai and gave the Old Crone and the present Night Watchers an out, causing their goodwill towards him to increase significantly.
<r>"Exactly. Regardless of whether your plan is useful or not, we must first understand the situation here. That's the most important thing," Shi Kai stated.
<r>"Your subordinate will now report the detailed situation to the three Emissaries. I will absolutely conceal nothing."
<r>With that said, the Old Crone organized her thoughts and recounted everything that had happened recently to the three men, from beginning to end.
<r>The Old Crone spoke in great detail, and Yang Haoran and the other two listened very carefully. However, Yang Haoran already had some understanding of most of this information; only a small portion of it he had not learned from the previous Night Watchers.
<r>As for why the previous Night Watchers hadn't told him this small portion of information, there were only two possibilities: either they had deliberately concealed it, or they hadn't known it themselves. In his opinion, the second possibility was more likely.
<r>After the Old Crone finished speaking, Huo Laoban asked many targeted questions. These were all crucial questions, very helpful for the current operation. Unfortunately, the Old Crone could only answer some of them; there was a portion she did not have the ability to answer.
<r>After Huo Laoban stopped asking questions, he asked Shi Kai and Yang Haoran if they had anything to inquire about. Shi Kai voiced some doubts in his mind, and Yang Haoran also symbolically asked a few questions.
<r>Afterward, at Huo Laoban's signal, the Old Crone once again recounted the plan they had discussed earlier.
<r>Before Yang Haoran appeared, the Old Crone and the other Night Watchers were discussing countermeasures. Yang Haoran's arrival was so sudden that they had to suspend their discussions. As a result, no definitive plan had been finalized, and it was naturally incomplete.
<r>Nevertheless, to provide more assistance to the three men, the Old Crone fully revealed this incomplete plan.
<r>This plan not only involved the Yunchuan City Underworld Division's currently remaining forces, but also the Spirit Police, the Talisman Order, and other individuals willing to assist their Underworld Office.
<r>The Spirit Police had been of the greatest help to their Underworld Office in recent days. This wasn't because their relationship was particularly good, but rather because these matters also fell within the Spirit Police's jurisdiction.
<r>It would have been one thing if Spiritualists merely attacked the Death God Temple; as long as they didn't cause too much of a stir and harmed no ordinary citizens, the Spirit Police could completely turn a blind eye.
<r>However, when vengeful ghosts claimed lives, the Spirit Police had no choice but to intervene, as this was inherently their duty.
<r>Yunchuan City was now in utter chaos. The attack on the Death God Temple by Spiritualists was only one part of it; more significantly, ghostly entities were running rampant, causing an enormous impact on ordinary citizens. Therefore, the Spirit Police had to do their utmost to deal with these ghostly entities.
<r>As for the Talisman Order, they didn't deploy all their strength like the Spirit Police. They only mobilized a portion of their Talisman Masters; while not entirely meaningless, their contribution wasn't very significant.
<r>The other individuals willing to help were mostly Exorcists. Their strength varied, and while they offered some assistance to the overall situation, their help alone could not turn the tide.
<r>After gaining a detailed understanding of the situation, Shi Kai was the first to ask, "Gentlemen, how do you think we should handle this matter?"
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