Light Barrier

My ominous feeling suddenly became stronger.

The moment Han Dang entered the apartment, his heart skipped a beat.

The reason he chose to take action today was that Gu Shen’s assessment was today. According to the intelligence, Mr. Tree had returned to Oto City. In order to ensure Gu Shen’s safety, Zhou Jiren would definitely accompany him during the assessment.

Without this old man around, there would be no need to worry too much when taking action.

Such a strong ominous feeling… Is it that woman surnamed Luo? Han Dang quickly stepped out of the elevator and arrived at the door of Gu Shen’s apartment. If possible, he didn’t want to have a direct confrontation with that woman.

He and Luo Er had joined the Adjudication Bureau at the same time, so he knew very well… how troublesome it was to deal with her.

But time did not allow him to hesitate.

He had to retrieve the item and submit it to the assessment team to end all of this.

Once the bow was drawn, there was no turning back!

Han Dang placed a hand on the door frame and took a deep breath.

The True Words Domain instantly activated, and several shadows overlapped in front of the apartment door. He used the simplest Profile, and the password to open the door lock appeared in reverse in his dream…

Click.

It went smoothly.

The door opened.

Han Dang went straight to the bedroom. He saw a large standing storage cabinet with a pocket-sized bronze lock on the third drawer from the top.

This kind of lock required a key to open.

Of course, Han Dang would not foolishly search for the key.

The sense of urgency in his heart grew stronger and stronger. He extended his palm and covered the surface of the small bronze lock. His mental power surged out like a tide. In an instant, the lock broke, and the drawer opened smoothly.

“…” Han Dang’s expression darkened as he stared at the item inside the drawer.

It was a long, flat metal box.

The same type of pocket-sized lock firmly secured it, and there was a neat warning written on the box. “Don’t open without permission.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

The next moment, Han Dang’s expression changed drastically.

Someone came!

He quickly reacted and immediately held the locked metal box in his arm. Then he dashed toward the bedroom balcony and crashed through the large floor-to-ceiling glass window. The sound of glass shattering echoed on the street below.

People looked up one after another.

But the upper floors of the apartment building were calm.

All of this seemed like an illusion.

Countless shards of glass flew in the air. The moment they shattered, an indescribable rule changed their movements and made them flow back like water.

Clatter, clatter.

The flowing water solidified, and the glass reassembled.

Han Dang’s pupils constricted. He was still in the posture of charging out, but the direction he was flying in was completely opposite to what he intended.

He had wanted to jump out of the window and escape from Gu Shen’s high-rise apartment. But now, he was heading toward the door.

What’s happening? What ability is this?

His mind was blank, and he keenly captured a sense of crisis. There was a strand of extremely thin but tightly stretched black hair stuck to the edges of the door frame.

This strand of hair gleamed with a chilling light.

If he collided with it, he would be sliced apart!

It’s… that woman’s sealed object!

Han Dang’s gold-rimmed glasses shimmered with a faint light as he raised two fingers and placed them on his Adam’s apple. The moment he collided with the strand of hair, there was no sign of this iron-like hair decapitating him.

Ting!

There was a crisp sound.

The adhesive on both ends of the strand of hair broke, and a cloud of dust burst out on both sides of the door frame. Han Dang stopped his momentum awkwardly, steadying himself as he glared sinisterly at the trio outside the smoke and dust.

Nan Jin drew two sabers, fully vigilant, highly focused on the upcoming battle.

Zhong Wei had his hands in his pockets, appearing relaxed. He looked around Gu Shen’s apartment and didn’t even look at Han Dang… because he knew that this battle might not happen at all.

Or perhaps it was already over.

Senior Sister Luo had her sleeves rolled up to her elbows, revealing her arms densely wrapped with black hair. They flowed to the floor like a waterfall, and at some point, a layer of it had covered the surface of the apartment, obscuring the light from outside the windows, leaving only the light of the ceiling lights.

“We meet again, Han Dang.” Senior Sister Luo pulled over a chair, sat down casually, and smiled. “Over the past few years, there have been fewer and fewer agents capable of carrying out high-risk missions. Since you’ve come to Oto City, why are you sneaking around? You could have come to have tea with me.”

“Luo Er…” Han Dang stood amidst the dust and debris from the collapsed door frame, frowning. He waved his hand and used his mental power to disperse the dust.

Since he was caught, there was nothing much to say.

Everyone was just playing their part in this show and had a tacit understanding with each other. Now, it was just a matter of stepping onto the stage openly.

“You should know what mission I’m here for in Oto City.” Han Dang tapped the locked metal box in his arms with a finger and said calmly, “That junior of yours hasn’t been officially accepted and doesn’t have a clean background. I’m afraid he doesn’t meet the entry assessment standards of the Adjudication Bureau.”

“Oh, is that so?” Senior Sister Luo replied calmly. “Why do you think so?”

“The evidence is in my hands,” Han Dang said coldly. “The truth about the fire case, I believe you know better than I do. I’ve already submitted the report to the assessment team. If they don’t take action, I’ll continue escalating the report upwards until the Parliament sees the truth.”

“The truth?” Luo Er said faintly. “Rather than calling it the truth, it’s more like the means you’re using to achieve your goals. Since you don’t want to beat around the bush, I might as well make things clear too. You and Zhu Wang are pursuing the matter of the pardon order because you want to overthrow my teacher and take over the position of the grand adjudicator of the Adjudication Bureau.”

Han Dang narrowed his eyes but remained silent.

“You should be aware of the latest outcome of the meeting. Parliament Member Zhao vetoed the impeachment.” Luo Er smiled. “You might not understand why. So many people clearly want my teacher to be removed from his position, but this impeachment still failed.”

The moment she finished speaking, the entire apartment began to shake, and the incandescent lights emitted an ear-piercing buzz.

Han Dang’s expression turned grim.

He wanted to unleash the True Words Domain, but it wasn’t until this moment that he realized that a mental power several times stronger than his was already covering this place, firmly suppressing his mental power.

Just like a seedling underground, it was struggling to take root and germinate.

Is this… the mental power of this woman? This immense mental power made Han Dang feel helpless, just like… facing his teacher.

Could it be… Han Dang thought of a possibility and instantly felt uneasy.

Senior Sister Luo played with the black hair in her palm and said softly, “Yes, just as you’ve guessed, not long ago, I passed the trial of Deep Sea’s Twelfth Layer and was bestowed the title of ‘Heavenly Pupil’ by the Parliament. This news hasn’t spread yet. Only a few people know.”

Han Dang hugged the box tightly, his face turning pale. “Im-impossible…”

He was the most prominent young leader of the Adjudication Bureau, and he had always been stronger than his peers. And Luo Er… was indeed a formidable opponent. But after so many years, he had never thought this woman would surpass him.

The trial of Deep Sea’s Twelfth Level… was a chasm that separated countless geniuses.

He was still struggling hard in front of this moat.

But Luo Er had already crossed this moat and received a title.

After Senior Sister Luo said this, Zhong Wei’s face was as calm as usual. He already knew this news. But Nan Jin was shocked. As far as she knew, experts who passed the trial of Deep Sea’s Twelfth Level were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. Every one of them had their own exclusive, unique title.

Zhou Jiren’s title was ‘Heaven-Reaching Tree’, which was why many people respectfully called him Mr. Tree.

Due to the transcendental incident many years ago, Luo Er’s body had stopped aging at fifteen years old. She looked very young, but in fact, she was around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. She had already reached a height that many people could never reach in their lifetime.

“Now, do you understand why the impeachment failed?” Senior Sister Luo sat upright on the chair and smiled gently. She raised her palm and waved casually. “Even if your teacher, Zhu Wang, comes personally, he might not be able to take this box from me!”

The next moment, formidable mental power surged out like a tsunami.

Han Dang grunted, unable to resist the immense disparity in mental power. He was knocked back several steps, and his back hit the wall. He could only watch helplessly as the bronze box flew out of his arms and landed in Luo Er’s palm.

The moment it arrived in her palm, black hair quickly wrapped around the lockbox.

Senior Sister Luo gazed thoughtfully at the bronze box in her palm.

An amused smile appeared on her face as she looked at Han Dang pitifully. “Even if you take this box away, what can you do?”

The black hair on the surface of the box receded.

Only a slender strand of hair remained. It entered into the lock’s tongue and rotated.

Click.

The lockbox slowly opened in front of everyone.

Han Dang’s expression turned exceptionally ugly.

He couldn’t believe that the lockbox he had spent so much effort to obtain contained… nothing inside.

No evidence, no sealed object, let alone any ruler.

It was completely empty.

He had been… fooled by Gu Shen at the orphanage.