The stolen magic is a bit magical

"You said that the Shadow King entered the Great Xia with me as his target, but he didn't come to Fengcheng. Instead, he caused a commotion in Jiangcheng. Is he planning to lure me to Jiangcheng and then kill me?"

Lan Yao was shocked: "You know what, it's really possible! If that's the case, then... wouldn't I have indirectly become a pawn in their hands? After all, it was me who sent you into Jiangcheng overnight."

"Whether you're a pawn or not is unimportant, since things have already been settled satisfactorily!" Lin Xiaosu said, "My question is, if that's really the case, does it mean that the Shadow King also knew about the Crimson Flag's whereabouts? And where did he get his information?"

Lan Yao let out a soft sigh: "I know what you mean! You've always had a terrible idea that the higher-ups of Qianlong aren't clean... I don't deny that I have this concern too, but even if Shadow King knows about the existence of the Crimson Flag, it doesn't prove your point. After all, some time ago, Seven Steps sent three teams to Phoenix City, and they were all wiped out. In Hydra's high-level intelligence system, the existence of the Crimson Flag in Phoenix City isn't a big secret."

Three teams have already been sent out!
Lin Xiaosu was also slightly startled. Since he started getting involved in the various major events of Qianlong, he spent very little time in Fengcheng and was not at home most of the time. If the enemy really had a plan to target his family, it would be really dangerous. Even if the detective agency had two ancient martial arts practitioners and even if he had Xiaoye, a lifelike fighting robot at home, he could handle low-level genetically modified humans without any problem. But how could the enemy send someone to kill him be just a low-level one?

They've already taken action.

It failed because the red flag was present.

Although he had always suspected Qianlong.

Although Qianlong is indeed worthy of suspicion.

However, as the head of the highest-ranking dragons, he still devoted extraordinary effort to him...

"Okay, let's keep in touch!"

"Alright!" Lan Yao prepared to hang up, adding one last sentence: "Eat and drink as you please, don't be too nervous. The overall situation is still positive, and the Soul-Bearing Gu strategy has begun to show real results."

She hung up.

The only instructions left were to eat and drink as usual, but absolutely nothing about "sleeping or having fun"...

Is this yet another layer of meaning?

Seven more days passed.

On the eighth day...

Blue Fairy contacted him again through the Dragon Eye.

At that moment, Lin Xiaosu was chatting with two girls at the detective agency when he suddenly received a message from Longyan. He strode out of the detective agency and strolled along the Yishui Bund.

Blue Fairy's projection appeared inside the glasses, her expression showing a hint of excitement: "Is it convenient for us to talk?"

"convenient."

"Your prediction came true again!" Lan Yao said. "Hydra headquarters has made its move, targeting Seven Steps!"

Lin Xiaosu stepped onto the pavilion, his hair flying in the wind, and his heart, which hadn't been beating fiercely for a long time, began to pound.

Because this news is too explosive.

This is a huge gain.

Seven Steps is the mastermind behind the Hydra's scheme in Great Xia.

He is also the highest-ranking official in Great Xia for the evil organization Hydra.

Under normal circumstances, headquarters is the biggest support for Qibu.

However, in organizations like Hydra that rely on intimidation to establish their organizational framework and chains, many things become distorted.

He had predicted that if Hydra suffered too many losses in this incident, headquarters might target Seven Steps.

There are two underlying logics.

First, it's a warning to others. It's meant to show everyone in Hydra what happens when someone fails to perform their duties effectively.

Secondly, Seven Steps has already been exposed or is close to being exposed. Once he is captured, the Hydra Grand Xia Bureau that he personally set up will be uprooted. Therefore, Hydra, based on the basic guiding principle of "killing one person to preserve the whole team", will take action to kill him.

But regardless of the logic, it will only be based on one premise: things have reached a dead end.

Otherwise, how could they so easily cut off their own pillar?
"Qi Bu was killed?"

Lan Yao gently shook her head: "Qi Bu is no ordinary person! He foresaw his own fate and had a plan in place long ago. The Qi Bu in the Southeast Manor is not his real body, but a lifelike robot. His real body is nowhere to be found. Although Qi Bu did not die, he still gained something! Two gains."

"Talk about it!"

"Our first discovery is that we finally know who Qi Bu, the Grand Master of the Great Xia, has been planning all sorts of criminal operations for so long!"

"And the second benefit?"

"The second gain is that he faked his death in seven steps to escape, but we can treat it as if he were really dead! Bai Shui has already planned the next step: to spread the news of his death to every corner of the Great Xia!"

Lin Xiaosu laughed: "Seven steps to fake death, we'll just pretend it's real, and make the news of his real death and the details public, delivering a fatal blow to the Hydra team that's still stubbornly holding on! Senior Bai Shui, you're truly ruthless! A brilliant move!"

Blue Fairy smiled too...

This is the battle between the Hidden Dragon and the Hydra.

Every plan is designed to strike at the heart of the enemy's weaknesses.

Every victory must be used to its fullest potential.

Even if the current leader of this sect is currently missing, if you dare to fake your death, I dare to actually hold a funeral!

This is a funeral.

The Hydra team, already on the verge of collapse due to the Soul-Giving Gu case, will have their will to resist weakened to an unprecedented degree. With their supreme leader gone and their upper team gone, what's the point of all their efforts?

After Lan Yao smiled, she said, "Currently, Seven Steps has become the most delicate piece of the game. Hydra headquarters wants to get rid of him, while we, on the contrary, want to protect him."

This transformation is so incredible.

However, from the perspective of espionage, it is entirely reasonable.

In seven steps, he personally built the framework of Hydra's Great Xia District, and he knew almost all the key points.

If they could capture him alive, the framework he had built would surely crumble. Theoretically, Hydra's higher-ups at his level wouldn't be so cooperative, but now, isn't there a reason? The Hydra leadership wants to get rid of him!

Hydra headquarters wanted to kill him, so what reason did he have to keep the secret? From a human perspective, anyone would turn against him!

This gave him a reason to cooperate with Qianlong!

"I think I understand what you mean. You want me to use my detective skills to find the Seven Steps!" Lin Xiaosu said.

Blue Demon's eyes lit up: "You can do it?"

"I dare not say that I can definitely do it, but if anyone in the world can find him, the most likely candidate is probably me!" Lin Xiaosu did not make a definitive statement, but her indomitable spirit of "who else in the world can do this but me" still moved Lan Yao, the Hidden Dragon King.

"I'm coming right away!" Lan Yao said, leaving behind five words.

Longyan Communications has been shut down.

Half an hour later, a speeding car appeared on the roof of the detective agency.

Lin Xiaosu stepped into the flying car, where only Lan Yao was inside.

"Is everything alright in Jiangcheng?" Lin Xiaosu asked.

"Don't worry, I guarantee that the little sister you brought from Miao territory won't be missing a single hair," Lan Yao said. "Someone has taken my place and is now in charge of Jiangcheng."

"Who?"

"Wonderful sound!"

"Didn't she go to Nanmo Prefecture?"

"Operation Heavenly King requires a swift and decisive victory, with no prolonged stays overseas. This has been the rule of Qianlong for many years."

Lin Xiaosu had a general understanding of the situation and could accept it.

The battle between the dragon and the hydra is all-encompassing.

The greatest achievement was the hunting down of the Heavenly King.

Hunting down the Hydra King with the Hidden Dragon will earn you the Hidden Dragon Medal. Conversely, hunting down the Hidden Dragon King is also the most prestigious achievement for Hydra.

Whenever the Heavenly King goes out to sea, the other side will follow up with all sorts of actions in quick succession.

The longer you stay overseas, the more opportunities they have if their movements are tracked.

Therefore, the Hidden Dragon King's operation has an unwritten rule: it must be short in time, intense in intensity, and once it succeeds, it must leave; if it fails, it must not be delayed.

"I have retrieved all the remaining data from that manor in Qibu, and it's right here..." Lan Yao tapped her finger lightly, and the entire area around the flying car turned into a display screen.

There was a vast amount of information on the screen.

For Lin Xiaosu's reference.

Qi Bu, whose real name is Wang Zhongze.

The owner of a company called "Haotian Technology".

The company was not large, and its output value was not high. In the Southeast business circle, it was just a drop in the ocean and not conspicuous at all. Therefore, no one put it under close surveillance.

It was during this special operation, through various on-site materials, that it was determined that this person was actually Seven Steps, the highest-ranking leader of Hydra in the Great Xia District.

The basis for the judgment...

Photos left at the scene...

Various supplementary materials...

Lin Xiaosu spent two hours, at an astonishing speed, flipping through the entire book...

“I have a question!” Lin Xiaosu said.

"you say!"

“We have indeed analyzed that when Hydra suffers heavy losses, headquarters might hold Seven Steps accountable. However, to truly reach the point of eliminating him, the situation needs to reach a dead end. However, I haven’t seen the situation reach that point. Why would headquarters be in such a hurry to eliminate him? Is there a more direct incentive?”

"Yes!" Lan Yao said, "Qianlong received a secret document. Someone told us Qibu's real name and exact location. We already had a plan to take action, but Hydra headquarters beat us to it and massacred the entire manor."

"Is it essentially murder to silence witnesses?"

"Yes!"

“That makes perfect sense! The headquarters killed him seven times, firstly to establish their authority, and secondly to sacrifice the king to protect the game. He had already been exposed, so the headquarters had no choice but to kill him.” Lin Xiaosu nodded gently.

"That confidential document is a bit strange."

"Oh? What's strange?"

"The secret document is signed, but not with a name; instead, it's a drawing of this strange beast," Lan Yao said. "You have some knowledge of the strange and unusual things in the world. I wonder if you can glean any clues from this beast?"

A strange beast appeared above the car window.

It has six rabbit ears, a wolf's body, and a lifelike expression.

Lin Xiaosu immediately identified it: "The ancient beast 'Zuo Zhi'! According to the Classic of Mountains and Rivers, it lives to the left of the Yin River, at the foot of the Cang Mountain. It is good at listening and singing, and has a fatal attraction to water beasts. It can make water beasts leap out of the water with its songs and become its food. But ordinary Zuo Zhi has two ears, but this Zuo Zhi has six ears."

“Yes! This is what Bai Shui also couldn’t understand,” Lan Yao said.

"This also hit a blind spot in my knowledge."

"Alright, let's leave this matter aside... What's next?"

"Naturally, we'll go to this manor!" (End of Chapter)