Starting from the folklore forum, making up town objects

Chapter 299 Walking in the Painting, A Gathering of Geniuses (Bonus Chapter 1331)

Upon entering Bai Hongtao's office, Chen Xin saw Bai Bowen and two other people.

One of them looked very much like Bai Bowen, and Chen Xin then realized who these two people were.

Unsurprisingly, the man who looks very much like Bai Bowen is Bai Bowen's father, Bai Yi.

Their gaze lingered on Bai Yi a little longer.

This middle-aged man, who has been stationed at the crack in Mubei City for many years, has two fluctuations of yin energy. One is very stable, but the other is not so restless.

Although he controlled it very well, it was still quite obvious to Chen Xin, who was at the sixth version of the strengthening exercise and the Zhenlong Gong·Yi stage.

Comparing the Yin energy fluctuations of Bai Hongtao and Bai Yi, Chen Xin felt that Bai Yi might be stronger than Bai Hongtao on the path of Yin cultivation.

Adding to what Bai Hongtao said earlier, that Bai Yi has a second ghost, it seems... Bai Yi will probably die before Bai Hongtao.

This is the fate of those who cultivate in the shadows: the stronger they are, the shorter their lives.

"Chen Xin, this is my father."

Bai Bowen introduced his father, his introduction brief, but Chen Xin could hear pride and confidence in his voice.

Just as Chen Xin had the "Complete Collection of Talismans," Bai Bowen also had his trump card: his father.

The coldness on Bai Yi's face dissipated somewhat, and he nodded to Chen Xin, saying, "Xiao Wen is not very mature in his actions, so I'll have to ask you to take good care of him, Chen Xin."

"Uncle, you're overthinking it. Bai Bowen has both ability and competence. We learn from each other."

Chen Xin's words made Bai Bowen's expression improve somewhat.

"Chen Xin, let me introduce you. This is Bai Yi, one of our top team leaders, and this is Tao Yu, a senior team leader. The four of you will be going to the General Administration to participate in the ranking competition. Regardless of the outcome, I have only one request."

Bai Hongtao looked at the group.

"Don't force what's not meant to be. You must come back intact! This is just a competition; you shouldn't be risking your life here, understand?"

Seeing Bai Hongtao's solemn expression, Chen Xin's preconceived notions about the bureau chief that Jin Chao had instilled in him over the past month were overturned.

According to Jin Chao, Director Bai Hongtao is a person who cares about his image, and for the branch of the Bureau of Investigation, the branch's ranking is definitely something to brag about.

After all, most of the people who were in the same cohort as Bai Hongtao were also directors or deputy directors of various branch bureaus.

If you find out that you are ranked the highest in your group at a party, wouldn't you have to raise your voice a few decibels?
Therefore, according to Jin Chao, Bai Hongtao cared a great deal about this ranking.

But at this moment, Chen Xin did not see any hypocrisy in the director's eyes.

Soon, the group of four arrived at the fourth basement level of the branch office, led by Bai Hongtao.

Chen Xin had assumed they would be traveling to the General Administration by plane or high-speed rail, but when he actually saw the mode of transportation, he realized the depth of the Bureau of Investigation.

He possessed a great deal of knowledge, much of which Chen Xin could not understand and envied.

For example, the 'door' that Bai Hongtao is introducing now.

"This is a 'gate' that we obtained after a senior member of our Mubei City Investigation Bureau solved a 'gate' incident."

"Under certain conditions, it can lead to any underworld region."

"Oh, I forgot, Chen Xin, you guys might not know what Yinming is yet. That's okay, I'll tell you after this is over."

"In a moment, all you need to remember is to hold the hand of the person in front of you and never let go, understand?"

Chen Xin and Bai Bowen nodded.

After giving his instructions, Bai Hongtao nodded to another senior Yin cultivator in the bureau. Seeing that the other person was holding the painting with both hands, he then stepped into the ink painting that depicted only one path.

Chen Xin watched as Bai Hongtao entered the ink painting and transformed into a human figure made of ink, and then a real arm extended from the painting.

"Xiaowen and Chen Xin, you two go first, Tao Yu and I will follow later."

Bai Bowen did not hesitate. Although he was shocked, he quickly recovered and reached out his hand to Chen Xin.

After Chen Xin pulled him up, Bai Bowen also grabbed Bai Hongtao's hand and stepped into the painting.

The feeling of stepping into the painting is magical.

Even though Chen Xin had three 'doors' in his hands, he still couldn't experience the same way as this painting.

Once his body entered the water-like painting, Chen Xin felt as if he had entered another world.

This world has only two colors: black and white.

Without those two extending black lines, Chen Xin would have no sense of direction or space at all in this area.

This 'door' itself, this transit space, is like an illusion. If one can control and hide this 'path,' it is no weaker than the illusions created by the Blood Calamity.

In a place where there is absolutely no concept of space, even if no ghosts appear, people trapped here would go insane.

While Chen Xin was pondering, the group had already walked more than a hundred meters forward.

It might be a hundred meters or so, according to Chen Xin's own calculations of the steps, but it would be impossible to tell with the naked eye.

Before long, the five of them reached the end of the road.

As Bai Hongtao leaped into the air, Chen Xin felt the force coming from Bai Bowen's hand.

Immediately afterwards, he was lightly dragged out.

From the extreme white to the deep black, even with Chen Xin's physical abilities, it took him half a second to adapt and recover.

Sensing the unique aura of the underworld and the omnipresent Yin energy around him, Chen Xin knew where he had come from.

Yin and Ming!

Just as Chen Xin was savoring the experience, three people walked out of the village not far away.

"From Mubei City?"

The newcomer's gaze swept over Chen Xin and his group before settling on Bai Hongtao, who had stepped forward.

"That's right, it's already been reported. This is my identification."

Bai Hongtao produced his Bureau of Public Opinion Investigations (BPI) credentials.

The visitor smiled after seeing it.

"Hehe, it's only because you people from Mubei City always have such a unique way of making your entrance during the ranking matches. In this respect, even the Thirty-Six Bureaus of the Heavenly Gang can't compare to you."

Upon hearing this, Bai Hongtao burst into laughter.

It has to be said, this guy really hit Bai Hongtao where it hurts.

Even poor students can be good at basketball; no one says that polling bureaus with lower rankings can't have things that other bureaus don't.

In this respect, Bai Hongtao had great respect for that senior from Mubei City.

As Bai Hongtao and the others walked forward, Bai Bowen finally couldn't help but tell Chen Xin about the 'door' of the Mubei Municipal Bureau of Investigation.

"Chen Xin, do you know that this treasure of our bureau was once offered a whole year's worth of resources by people from the Heavenly Gang Bureau, but they couldn't get it?"

"Oh, you don't know what a 'door' is, do you? Let me tell you..."

At this point, Bai Bowen suddenly turned to look at his father. Seeing Bai Yi nod, he then began to speak with great enthusiasm.

Chen Xin naturally knew what the 'door' was, but if he wanted to hear what came next, he had to listen to this first bit of nonsense.

Just like watching a martial arts movie in a theater, you can't skip the love scenes; you have to watch the whole thing before you can see the action scenes.

After chatting for five minutes, just as they were about to reach the exit of this dark and shadowy area, Bai Bowen finally got to what Chen Xin wanted to hear.

"...So, this door in our bureau is quite special."

"When using the 'door,' you only need to have a concept of the target location in your mind. The end of the path inside the 'door' will appear in the target's underworld area. The clearer and more detailed the target is, the more accurate the location will be."

"Of course, it's not that you can't go to unfamiliar underworld areas, but rather that nobody knows what kind of ghost awaits at the exit."

"The dark area we are in now is called Gray District 8, which is considered a relatively safe area under the control of the Bureau of Investigation."

"That crack in front is the exit of Gray District 8. The headquarters is just outside. In previous ranking competitions, our Mubei City always exited from here."

Chen Xin nodded upon hearing this and memorized what the Gray District 8 looked like.

Once the ranking matches are over, we can send in a few camera crows to familiarize themselves with the area. ...

Soon, the five left the Grey District 8 and entered the basement room of the Bureau of Investigation headquarters.

As Chen Xin walked out of the basement, looking at his surroundings, a thought suddenly popped into his mind.

Is Yunlongtian located here?
"I wonder how he is now."

Thinking of Yun Longtian, Chen Xin still felt somewhat embarrassed.

Yunlong Tian doesn't know how long he can bear the blame for the talisman.

I hope he won't be crushed by the pressure.

"We've arrived. Please stay here for now. There's some food prepared by the bureau inside. If you need to go out for some fresh air, remember to bring your identification."

The guide led Chen Xin and his group of five to a large hall and then left.

Looking towards the hall, groups of three or five people were talking.

"Come on, I'll take you to meet people from other bureaus."

After straightening his clothes, Bai Hongtao strode into the hall, with Chen Xin and the other three following behind, looking around at everything in the hall.

The entire hall resembled a university auditorium, but there were no seats, only tables evenly spaced throughout the hall, each laden with food and drinks.

Basically, each table would be surrounded by about ten people. Considering the setup of the Mubei City Investigation Bureau, if five people are in each precinct, then most of the time it would be two precincts talking to each other.

Occasionally, three of them will appear together, but this is rare.

There are also some branch offices that don't communicate at all.

But when Chen Xin counted the number of people, there were only three or four. He figured that the participants didn't want to talk, and the director had gone out to chat by himself.

"Chen Xin, I feel like people as young as us don't look that great. If the two of us team up in this rookie competition, do you think we have a chance to get into the top 36?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Xin looked at Bai Bowen with a strange expression.

Doesn't look that impressive?

Judging from the energy and blood emanating from the dozen or so young people I encountered along the way, they were all at the level of practicing the third version of the exercise.

Three of them have even reached the peak of the third edition, and one of them is directly the fourth edition.

If ranked by the progress of the physical exercise, Bai Bowen would only be in the middle among those dozen or so young people.

Not to mention the young people in other places whose perceptions are not so clear to Chen Xin due to distance.

Judging from this ratio, the number of people who have just entered the fourth version of the exercise routine is no less than twenty.

Isn't that impressive?

Chen Xin could only say, "Young man, you're lucky, but your judgment isn't very good!"

Snapped!
A hand gently slapped Bai Bowen on the back of the neck.

Chen Xin and Bai Bowen both turned to look at Bai Yi.

"You've already underestimated your opponent before the game even started. If you were truly capable, you could call it confidence, but what you're doing... can only be described as arrogance."

Bai Bowen felt somewhat embarrassed after his father said that to Chen Xin.

But he wasn't stupid; he gleaned some information from his father's words.

"Dad, do you mean these young people are all very strong?"

Seeing Bai Bowen's solemn expression, Bai Yi changed the subject.

"Strength is only in terms of realm. If the ranking competition is only based on realm, then there is no need for so much trouble."

"As long as you can make use of what you have learned during this period and fully demonstrate your strength, you will have a chance to enter the top forty. After all, not everyone can perfectly demonstrate their strength in supernatural events."

"Don't you have any confidence in the intensive training you've been doing for over a month?"

Bai Yi looked at his son.

"Of course!"

Reflecting on the past month's experiences, Bai Bowen's confidence returned.

"But why the top forty? Why not the top thirty-six?"

When Bai Bowen asked this question, Bai Yi simply patted him on the shoulder.

Some things cannot be achieved through effort alone.

The resources of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals Bureau are far superior to those of the Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends Bureau.

Even if two people have the same talent, if one is placed in the 36th round of the Heavenly Gang and the other in the 1st round of the Earthly Fiends, the results will be completely different.

Especially during the period when newcomers like Chen Xin and Bai Bowen made rapid progress.

Therefore, this ranking competition will mainly depend on the competition among the top teams.

If he can represent Mubei City into the top 36, then Mubei City's ranking as the 28th Earthly Fiend will improve by at least ten places.

Feeling the two cold, damp spots inside his body, Bai Yi smiled.

"Yes, we will make it into the top 36."

Before Bai Bowen could ask any more questions after Bai Yi finished speaking, Bai Hongtao ran into trouble ahead.

He was intercepted before he even reached his destination.

"Who is it? Isn't this old man?"

Chen Xin and the others looked over.

The person blocking the road was a lean man, followed by four others, one of whom was an extremely fat man.

Chen Xin is quite tall, but at 1.8 meters, he and Bai Bowen standing side by side behind that fat man would not necessarily be visible from the front.

"Heh, bamboo pole, huh? What's wrong? Judging from your situation, you've given all the flesh that you can't grow to the people in the bureau."

Upon hearing this, the other officials from the surrounding bureaus all smiled.

Those who didn't get along with him burst out laughing.

The laughter made the fat man behind the skinny man a little uncomfortable, but the skinny man himself was not affected at all.

"There's no way around it, the tenth-ranked Earthly Fiend has too many resources, and as the director, I can't use them all for myself... Oh, I remember now, the last time it was the twenty-eighth in Mubei City, right? Tsk, even if you wanted to fatten up everyone in your department, you wouldn't have that many resources, would you? Haha!"

The skinny man's cheerful voice carried on, causing the smiles on the faces of some people around him to fade.

The tenth Earthly Fiend still has some deterrent power.

Bai Hongtao gave a cold laugh.

"We've fed it so many resources, it would be embarrassing if we couldn't even hold onto the tenth place of the Earthly Fiends."

After Bai Hongtao finished speaking, he saw the skinny man nod seriously.

"You're right, it seems we really can't hold onto the tenth position of the Earthly Fiends..."

Bai Hongtao was taken aback, wondering what this guy was up to, when the other party suddenly grinned.

"Sigh, you never know what fate brings. Who would have thought that right after I found a gifted kid, the General Administration would add a new rookie competition zone? Tenth place in the Earthly Fiends, that's going to be incredible, haha..."

Upon hearing this, Bai Hongtao and the people around him all turned their attention to the skinny man's back.

In the end, everyone's attention was drawn to the somewhat shy, overweight young man.

If we're talking about innate talent, then this kind of fatness must be a kind of talent, right?
……

PS: A total of 31 bonus chapters have been added, 13 of which have been delivered, and 18 chapters are still owed.

Thank you everyone for the monthly votes. After a day of rest, my mind is much clearer.

(End of this chapter)