Tang Yue must have rushed from Hangzhou to Jinlin at full speed, arriving in just five hours and not forgetting to bring her personal squad of Adjudicators. I gather that after our successes in Shanghai, she got promoted several ranks, landing a position high enough to mobilize up to five High-tier mages at her discretion. And that's no small potatoes!
One such mage could head a small town like Bo City, and here are five! Not every prestigious Beijing clan has that many. The Lu Zheng Ge and Lu Nian clan has only four High-tier mages total, including my new subordinate. And they're fine! Perfectly respectable folks with enough power and connections to secure a cushy spot in Beijing.
So, it's clear how badass Tang Yue is now. And it's also clear how much the Black Church hates me if they've already thrown over ten such mages at me. Though maybe Salan is just dumping her personally disloyal subordinates on me. Not sure. But at minimum, she footed the bill for gear like those cursed bracers from her own budget, so I definitely drained her blood good.
Upon arrival, Tang Yue, leveraging her physique enhanced by me, simply leaped off the White Eagle and landed right in front of me, glaring furiously and occasionally shifting her gaze to Lu Nian standing a bit aside – whom I'd fortunately briefed thoroughly.
"Report, now. And I hope it explains why this deserter is with you, or as soon as I finish reading, he'll be off to a military tribunal." Extending her hand, Tang Yue tried to crush me with a dry, commanding glare, but I just handed her the quickly written hundred-page report with a warm smile. With my physical conditioning and mind acceleration from spirit magic, plus time acceleration magic, knocking it out on time was no trouble...
Puffing with rage, she silently snatched the stapled stack from my hand, slipped on a small monocle from her pocket, and started flipping through it fast. Ooh, cool artifact! Never used one myself since spirit element magic far outdoes it, but I've heard of them. These help read faster and handle paperwork. Super popular with high-level bureaucrats who can afford them.
As she read, Tang Yue's face shifted repeatedly: anger to shock, shock to disbelief, disbelief to realization, then back to anger. This girl has incredibly expressive features. And that glare of hers, after five minutes of reading, was scorching me.
"What is this adventure tale with drama elements?! When did I give Lu Nian, the 'poor misunderstood genius,' a secret mission in exchange for future funding of his projects?! When did I oversee every step of his, including negotiations to rope in the Black Church and squeeze their budget via an assassin contract?! And why, in this whole story, is your role reduced to just going and killing a rising star of the Assassin Temple who threatened our country's security and sovereignty?! Why does your scribble make it look like I'm some Gray Eminence of the Magic Court, monitoring external and internal affairs, pitting the state's enemies against each other, and sending subordinates to handle the sharpest issues?! And on top of that, I somehow recruit misunderstood geniuses rejected by society?! Have you mixed anything up?!" Tossing my report on the ground, Tang Yue grabbed her hair and screamed at the sky.
Luckily, she'd activated an anti-eavesdropping artifact right at the start of the talk. An upgraded one! It used to just block sound; now it adds optical interference so lips can't be read. Higher position must mean better privacy precautions.
"Because that's exactly what you did, Tang Yue; don't you remember? Oh, wait, I recall! You planted a spirit parasite on yourself that seals memories! How could I forget?! You sacrificed for all of us so the plan wouldn't be exposed! Don't worry; I'll make sure everyone knows of your sacrifice!" I grabbed her shoulders and looked her sincerely in the eyes, making her stare back stunned.
"What nonsense are you spouting? What spirit parasite?" She asked, bewildered.
"Don't play dumb; you know what it is. I'm talking about that bug that seals specific target memories so they pass, say, a lie detection by a spirit mage. Side effect is headaches when suppressed memories try breaking out, but that was a small price to bleed the Black Church dry, ruin their ties with the Assassin Temple, catch a few Deacons in Blue, and eliminate a killer threatening our brave officials! Tang Yue, you're a tactical genius!" I looked at her with admiration.
"What?! But… it can't be! But the headaches were real… I felt them almost daily since we parted last time… I thought it was from constant Imperial tax agents… but now I'm not sure." Tang Yue's eyes went blank as she doubted her life.
So easy to fool her! Back then on our first mission, the assassin slipped her an aphrodisiac unnoticed; now she buys my on-the-fly bullshit. Sure, she'll realize it was crap after a thorough check by a qualified spirit mage, but by then I'll be hundreds of kilometers away, out of her reach!
Plus, it'll teach her a lesson – don't buy unproven bullshit! Man, I'm such a nice guy, giving free life lessons in society… Lately, I've been doing it too often. Gotta stop, or I might accidentally wreck the country. Doubt a pure action hero bent on saving mankind like me knows how to build proper policy. Hell, I'm not even concrete-sure on my own future plans.
"Don't worry, Tang Yue; I'll handle Lu Nian and funding his new projects myself, as agreed. You go hand this report to your uncle – the Magic Court Chairman. Remember, per your grand plan to elevate China, we've only done phase two! The rest depends on how high you climb the career ladder! And we won't forget your sacrifice!" I patted her shoulder and handed back the tossed papers.
"Yes… I'll do that. You know, judging by our meeting patterns, next time you summon me like this, I'll need to cuff one of the Cardinals in Red, like Salan." Nodding awkwardly, Tang Yue smiled and tried joking to lighten the solemn mood.
"Tang Yue, you really are a genius! Even with sealed memories, you guess the next plan stages! As expected of you!" Boosting my emotions with spirit magic, I beamed at her with huge admiration.
"Yes… ha-ha… yeah… that's me…" With utterly dimmed eyes and stiff legs, she trudged to her subordinates, who'd loaded the three captured Deacons in Blue onto White Eagles and were ready to fly on her order.
A minute later, as I watched the birds vanish from Jinlin, my girls and Lu Nian – who'd been in the anti-eavesdropping artifact's range and heard our whole talk with Tang Yue – approached.
"Mu Bai, you know once Tang Yue realizes you pranked her, she'll dig you up from underground and torture you. Got a sudden masochism fetish? I can satisfy it myself; no need for outsiders." TuTu teased with a playful smile, sticking out her tongue.
"Poor woman. Once she uncovers your deception, I'll even help her tie you up with my vines. You fully deserve it." Jiao Jiao sighed, covering her face with her palm and shaking her head.
"I'm just teaching her vital life lessons; don't worry. And when Tang Yue figures out the joke, she'll get another promotion anyway. Not for my report, but for real results – strip the sophistry and Gray Eminence crap, and the op outcomes are true. Just the Black Church-Assassin Temple rift is huge." I shook my head.
"Why wouldn't they get along? You killed Bei and captured their deacons. Shouldn't they team up to wipe you out?" TuTu asked curiously.
"They would have, but pretending not to notice the sound mages spying with special artifacts, I dropped a couple intriguing lines. That's all rabid dogs like them need to start fighting each other." I grinned slyly. The girls called me a schemer again. Embarrassing to admit now, but it was pure improv after sensing surveillance. Bei's reaction to my words was hilarious, though.
"So, I'm officially under you now, and all desertion charges against me and my people are dropped? If so, I'm happy to call you boss." Lu Nian extended a handshake with a creepy smile. Oh, almost forgot the leash! After his betrayal meeting Bei, it's vital!
"Of course, I keep my promises. It'll be a pleasure working with you." Smiling friendly, I gripped his hand hard, deliberately injecting delayed-action poison so he'd feel it; his smile vanished, face paling sharply.
"That's our guarantee of fruitful, friendly cooperation. Trust me, you don't want to learn this mix's effects." My eyes gleamed dangerously as I released him. Lu Nian could only fake a smile, already plotting to analyze and neutralize the poison in his body.
Good luck with that. Many of Gu Daiyu's students couldn't master it even with her explaining mechanics and process. It'll be fun watching him try. Maybe he'll find loopholes I can discuss with Gu Daiyu to improve it.