15. An investigation and a hidden perpetrator.

(In the morning, Golden Prosperity City Lord's Mansion)

Zheng Renshu's office exuded an air of quiet authority. Next to the window in the back of the room stood two imposing statues of fierce beasts, their eyes carved with an intimidating gaze that seemed to watch over all who entered. Tall bookshelves lined the walls, filled with meticulously arranged volumes of ancient texts and important documents, the faint scent of old paper lingering in the air.

In front of a large wooden desk, polished to a deep, rich sheen, sat the city lord, his back straight and posture commanding, his fingers resting lightly on the arms of his chair and said "Tell me what was so important that you had to wake me up."

"My Lord, there has been a situation at the Merchant district. This time, a few of the culprits were caught red handed. However, due to the massacre that had occurred in the warehouse district they were understaffed and let the culprit escape. They did manage to damage on of the culprits this time though. He left behind his hand, which had a ring on it."

The butler stood a few steps away, silent and attentive, his hands folded neatly in front of him, explaining the situation that unfolded in the warehouse district. The flicker of candlelight cast long shadows across the room, making the statues appear even more lifelike, as if they might spring to life at any moment. The room felt heavy with the anger of Zheng Renshu and the paranoia of being betrayed.

Zheng Renshu was angry, but he kept himself calm. He said "Do you have the ring?".

The butler replied firmly "Yes my lord. I have kept the hand near my person to make sure that nobody would be able to tamper with the evidence."

Then the butler walked out of the room and came back with a box after a few minutes. He opened the box and showed it to Zheng Renshu. In the box lay a cut-off left hand with a ring around the ring finger. The ring was simple yet striking, with a smooth jade stone nestled in a polished silver band. Its surface was etched with subtle, swirling patterns. While not overtly grand, there was a quiet weight to it, a presence that seemed to hum softly with an unspoken history.

To both Zheng Renshu and the butler, this ring was unrecognizable and did not show which clan it belonged to. However, they knew that you would only put a ring on the ring finger of your left hand when you show your commitment or loyalty. To find the owner of the ring, they would have to find the other pair or someone with a similar ring.

Zheng Renshu sharply looked at the butler and ordered "Investigate the city for anyone who is missing their left hand. Don't mention anything about the ring. If that does not work, we will go to the other families and show the hand. The one who shows a reaction, will be the one we will go to war with.".

The butler had already expected this. His lord was at his limit, his paranoia reached its peak. If anyone showed signs that they had something to do with the chaos in the city, then he would be killed by the city lord himself.

Not waiting a moment, the butler left. Seeing the butler do as he was told, Zheng Renshu picked up the box with the hand. He moved towards one of the bookshelves and tilted one of the books. When he did that, one of the statues moved forward revealing a secret vault. Zheng Renshu dropped a bit of blood in the mouth of the statue and the vault opened. He placed the box inside and tilted the book back. Shortly after, everything returned to normal.

Then, Zheng Renshu quickly left and tried to go back to sleep.

 ...

(At the same time, Golden Prosperity City Temporary Residence of the Jing Family)

The Jing family head Jing Zhenlong sat at his grand, polished desk, the weight of his thoughts evident in the furrowed lines on his brow. The dim light from the lantern flickered across his face as he stared at a map of the city spread out before him, his fingers tapping rhythmically against the surface.

Jing Dun and Jing Ciao stood before their family head, heads bowed in a mixture of respect and fear. Jing Zhenlong asked in a solemn tone "What happened?".

Jing Ciao quickly with his hand severed winced slightly, his empty sleeve hanging limp at his side, the wound still raw, though bound with cloth stained in blood. His voice trembled as he explained, "Family head, we found a secret tunnel hidden inside the well. We got curious about why we were guarding a well outside of the city, so we entered, we stumbled upon one of the warehouses. We thought it was a secret vault, because it was silent and there were crates with treasure around. However what actually happened was a mass murder in the warehouse. The guards found us stuffing gold coins in our robes and now, we have been implicated. We had no choice but to run, since they came at us with the intention to kill."

Jing Zhenlong's piercing gaze flickered between the two, his expression unreadable, the weight of his silence pressing down on them like a storm cloud. Jing Ciao's arm with the missing hand shifted uneasily, as if the missing limb were a constant reminder of the cost of their unintended involvement, while Jing Dun stood motionless, his face betraying nothing but the tension in the air.

Then Jing Zhenlong said "You will hide. When someone asks, we will inform them that you are in seclusion. Nobody is to know about this event. Understood?"

The two immediately bowed and replied in relief "understood family head!"

Without waiting for them to finish, Jing Zhenlong ordered "Leave. Don't show your face until I call for you"

The two left immediately.

Then Jing Zhenlong called his butler by ordering "Come in."

The butler quietly entered the room. The butler stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his expression carefully neutral, awaiting the next command.

"Tell me what you know about the raid." the family head's voice was low, yet every word carried the force of authority. After the butler explained what they managed to acquire from the Zheng family. Jing Zhenlong said "how did this happen? A raid on a warehouse... and now one of my own is maimed, while the culprit remains a ghost." The butler's tone was measured as he replied, "There are no signs of forced entry, no trace of the intruder. It appears to have been planned with meticulous care. And as for the family members, they claim it happened as they stumbled upon the raid, but..."

Jing Zhenlong cut him off with a sharp gesture, the tension in the room thickening. "And the other guards? The other witnesses?"

"None saw the attacker," the butler answered, "and those who did see someone were the guards who found our own when they were looking through crates of gold coins."

Jing Zhenlong leaned back in his chair, his fingers now rubbing his temple as he thought, his mind racing for answers. The absence of the culprit was troubling enough, but the idea of one of his own being involved, whether as a victim or worse, as a pawn, was even more concerning. "No evidence, no leads, and now this... I'm left with more questions than answers. How convenient for whoever is behind this." His voice dropped to a near whisper, dark and heavy with suspicion. "We must uncover who is playing this game. And we must find them before they strike again. Investigate all forces that are involved in the struggle in Golden Prosperity City. This cannot be done by a rogue."

After hearing the command, the butler bowed and left the room.

Jing Zhenlong leaned forward in his chair, putting his hands on his face. Behind the fingers was a face full of exhaustion, but he knew that this was far from over.

 ...

(2 Hours later, Slums outside of Golden Prosperity City)

It was still dark outside when Mo Tian slipped through the door, his movements quick and fluid, as if the excitement had given him an energy he couldn't contain. He dropped a bundle of scrolls and books onto the table with a soft thud, his grin spreading wider as he ran his hands over the precious manuals, feeling the weight of knowledge in his grip. His breath was rapid, not from the physical exertion, but from the thrill of his heist on the warehouse.

Mo Tian sat down on a chair. The soft rustling of parchment and the sharp scent of old ink soon filled the room as Mo Tian eagerly untied the first scroll, his mind already racing through the possibilities of what he could learn.

After reading every scroll and manual Mo Tian realized that he did still not have enough cultivation methods to fill the requirements for his Cultivation method. However there were a lot of movement arts in this batch. Since Mo Tian could not move out for the time being due to the investigations, it would be best to try and create a movement art. His movement Art is only at the Mid-Grade. In comparison the 'Heavenly Demonic Weapon Arts' was already a Top-grade Art before the reward and has been upgraded to a Law-Grade Art after the reward.

The problem with movement Arts is that they are both hard to create and hard to find. Looking at the stacks of scrolls, Mo Tian had around 25 movement arts and all of them were either Low-Grade or Mid-Grade from Mo Tian's Experience. Although he learned all of them, the [Host Status] only showed the Mid-Grade Basic Movement Art. This meant that out of all the movement Arts he learned. This was the most powerful one.

After making his training plan, Mo Tian began to sit cross-legged again. Having finished reading and internalizing all the basic movement arts he had gathered during his raids, Mo Tian entered the Mind Space once more. The projections of himself flickered into existence, their forms shifting seamlessly between dodges, sidesteps, and even rolls. As he observed their motions, he envisioned perfect evasions. He focused on every shift in weight, every pivot, every slip between attacks honed to an art beyond instinct. With a mere thought, the illusions sprang into motion, weaving through unseen strikes like shadows slipping through cracks in reality.

He cycled through the movements, testing footwork, refining his balance, and adjusting his angles, watching as the projections danced through a battlefield sculpted by his mind. Every misstep dissolved into mist, but from each failure, a new sequence was born. Each one was different one faster, one smoother or more untouchable despite being slower. He saw gaps before they could be exploited, envisioned counters before an enemy could strike, shaping a technique that would allow him to drift between attacks like a specter untouched by the chaos of battle.

With every perfected motion, his mastery deepened. Agility, fluidity, awareness, each dissected and rebuilt into something beyond mere reaction. He envisioned gliding past blades, slipping under strikes, rolling through gaps in defenses with impossible grace.

Time passed as Mo Tian started his training again…