Chapter 85

86. Chapter 86: Escort and Evacuation

Li Yi, as the only person who had broken the illusion and remained unaffected by the bone mural, now proved his value.

In this three-way struggle, he became the final counterweight, shattering the balance and securing the final victory for the Investigation Bureau; without him, the struggle over the odd artifact would have dragged on much longer, possibly even sparking a major war among cultivators.

At this moment, Li Yi said nothing and returned to the side of the bone mural.

This slab of white marble was not large—less than two meters high and less than three meters long—and a normal person could never move such a heavy wall; but Li Yi was a cultivator who had opened his spirit medium, and his strength was far from insignificant—he had no trouble moving heavy objects alone.

“Lift!”

He gripped the edge of the wall with one hand and supported it from below, his muscles taut as he surged with power—alone, he hoisted the broken section of wall off the ground.

“Li Yi, can you move?” Zhang Lei asked immediately.

“No problem. I can handle the weight. Commander, have a vehicle ready downstairs—I’ll transport it back to the training base by myself.” Li Yi’s voice was loud and full of vigor; clearly, moving this odd artifact was still effortless for him.

“Good, very good.” Zhang Lei smiled. “You’ve done great work in this operation. Once we’ve handled the aftermath, the Investigation Bureau will reward you properly—no one will be shortchanged.”

Li Yi had secured a damaged odd artifact for the Investigation Bureau—the first such case since the Tianchang City Investigation Bureau was established.

And with this damaged artifact now in the Bureau’s hands, countless new experts will emerge in the future, drawing in many new recruits—it will greatly benefit the Bureau’s future prospects.

Far away, Yang Yilong’s heart finally settled as he saw Li Yi actually carrying away the artifact.

As Li Shaoqing had said, he had no chance at all.

“Zhang Lei, I withdraw from this struggle over the artifact.”

Yang Yilong spoke reluctantly, then added seriously: “But I hope we can cooperate in the future—perhaps apply to borrow the artifact.”

Zhang Lei laughed heartily: “Of course, of course.”

He neither accepted nor refused, for he had to consider the relationship between Li Yi and Yang Yilong—he couldn’t alienate his own men.

Hearing Zhang Lei’s reply, Yang Yilong’s face darkened further.

He glanced again at Li Yi and felt a surge of bitter frustration.

He never imagined he’d be defeated by Li Yi, who had only recently opened his spirit medium—was karma really coming this fast?

If he’d known this would happen, he never should have forcibly tried to learn the fist art on Li Yi’s body—it had ruined their relationship. If he’d maintained even a little goodwill with Li Yi, perhaps they could have teamed up with Li Shaoqing and taken the artifact from the Investigation Bureau together.

Indeed, what goes around comes around.

He just never expected the cost to be so high.

Yang Yilong took several deep breaths to calm himself, then said: “Since the matter is settled, I won’t disturb you further. Let’s meet again another time.”

Staying here any longer would be humiliating—he left quickly.

Li Shaoqing and Zhang Lei smiled silently, watching Yang Yilong depart.

Meanwhile, Li Yi, like an old ox, carried the artifact down the stairs—he only wanted to finish this mission, return to rest, collect his bonus, earn money to buy a new home, and purchase a new medical pod; his mind was entirely filled with money.

But outside the building,

the Investigation Bureau personnel who had been waiting all realized the fight was won.

First, Wei Bin had fled the building, severely wounded and vomiting blood; then the vagrants scattered; then Yang Yilong left in silence, face grim—clearly, the outcome was obvious.

“Commander didn’t let us down—we’ve secured the artifact.”

Wang Jian smiled as he saw many Cultivators Association members driving away.

“Naturally. The Cultivators Association lacks the courage to fight us. Wei Bin was defeated and fled without looking back—he probably feared Commander would detain him. But I never expected Yang Yilong to back down too. From my view, it must be that the Cultivators Association’s vice-chairman, Li Shaoqing, has allied with our Commander.”

Beside him, the Daoist priest Pete stroked his beard with a serene smile, appearing like a true enlightened master.

But the sniper rifle strapped to his back ruined the image.

“Priest Pete’s analysis makes sense,” Investigator Zhang Zhixiong thought for a moment and agreed.

“Zhang Zhixiong.”

Suddenly,

Commander Zhang Lei’s voice rang out from inside the building.

“Here, Commander!” Zhang Zhixiong shouted immediately.

“Prepare a pickup truck just for Li Yi,” Zhang Lei said, then added: “Pete, you’re in charge of the escort mission—ensure Li Yi reaches the Investigation Base safely.”

Both men immediately acted.

Soon, a pickup truck pulled up beneath the building, and Priest Pete quickly organized personnel to begin evacuation.

Not long after,

Li Yi emerged from the building, carrying the white marble slab on his shoulder.

“Fall back—don’t get closer than ten meters. Beware of being affected.”

Wang Jian and Zhang Zhixiong had moved to help, but Li Yi stopped them. They halted instantly and stepped back, realizing the danger, then warned their teammates not to approach.

After loading the artifact onto the pickup, Li Yi finally exhaled in relief.

“Li Yi, the keys are in the truck—you can start anytime,” Zhang Zhixiong said.

“Thanks.”

Li Yi didn’t hesitate—he got in, started the engine. He had to return the artifact as quickly as possible; every extra minute on the road meant extra risk.

As the sole carrier of the artifact, his risk was the greatest.

“Commander, we’re ready—can depart anytime,” Li Yi called out.

“Good. Wait one minute.”

Zhang Lei was still speaking with Li Shaoqing; after a while, the two walked out of the building. From their expressions, it was clear they had reached some kind of agreement.

“Pete, how’s your arrangement?”

“No problem. I always handle things carefully,” Priest Pete replied.

“Zhang Zhixiong, you and your team stay behind. There are still many dead beasts to process in this building. Everyone else, board the vehicles and return to the training base.” After giving these orders, Zhang Lei began moving.

Soon,

vehicles departed in orderly fashion, with Li Yi’s pickup, carrying the white marble slab, guarded in the center to prevent theft.

And Li Shaoqing, vice-chairman of the Cultivators Association, now followed the convoy, escorting them all the way.

Clearly, he didn’t want any mishaps.

Fortunately, the journey was safe—no incidents occurred, except for one beast, which Priest Pete killed with a single sniper shot; the corpse was taken along.

The training base had already prepared for their arrival.

All instructors had arrived, and even many trainee investigators and external combat personnel had gathered.

After entering the training base, Zhang Lei, having coordinated beforehand with base personnel, decided to store the damaged artifact temporarily in an underground warehouse for later handling.

Li Yi had to endure one more burden—move the artifact again.

But once that was done, his task was complete—he could return to his dormitory and rest.

Any aftermath from the bone mural was none of his concern—it was now a matter for the Investigation Bureau’s upper echelons.

Li Yi, as an external combat officer, was relieved; but other investigators were overwhelmed.

They had to transport the victims’ bodies, clean up the beasts, and write endless reports—no rest at all. Fortunately, they were all cultivators with strong stamina; otherwise, none could have endured it.

Only at dawn did the chaos finally subside.

During this time, Li Yi returned to his dormitory at the training base and resumed meditation.

But as soon as he entered meditation, he broke out in cold sweat.

For during meditation, Li Yi saw a person.

More precisely—he saw himself.

The Li Yi within his consciousness sat cross-legged on a lotus platform, hands forming a sacred seal, serene expression, smiling gently, like a Buddha incarnate.

“Is this… me?”

Li Yi awoke, his face filled with disbelief.