Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 303 An unexpected gain
When Li Wei returned to the hotel, it was already past midnight.

Ultimately, Li Wei decided to leave temporarily. Although the best course of action would be to go undercover and investigate within the three major families as invited, Li Wei knew they wouldn't be that foolish. Modern narcotics officers, when going undercover, must gain the trust of drug dealers by taking drugs. Given his identity, even if he expressed willingness to join the three families, they wouldn't easily believe him.

They might test themselves in various ways.

Li Wei dislikes being tested, especially by gangsters, those lowlifes. What right do they have to test him?

He didn't want to be wronged, so he decided to leave. As for what would happen next, he figured he could just come back and make a comeback. How difficult could it be?

"I'm back, little one."

Li Wei walked into the bathroom and greeted the little mermaid. Upon hearing Li Wei's voice, the mermaid poked her head out of the bathtub, her tail slapping against the water like a puppy wagging its tail upon seeing its owner.

"By the way, you can hear me even underwater."

Looking at the little mermaid, Li Wei sighed. After all, every time he came back, he would see the little mermaid submerged in the bathtub, but she quickly realized what he meant when she heard him speak.

"…………!"

Hearing Li Wei's remark, the little mermaid chuckled. Then, she stretched out her hand, and with her movement, a stream of water shot out from the faucet, forming a device resembling a trumpet. Li Wei then heard various sounds emanating from it.

"...Damn it, my luck is terrible today..."

"Ugh... I drank too much, I feel like throwing up..."

"Welcome, sir/madam!!"

???

Hearing the voice coming from the loudspeaker, Li Wei paused for a moment, then looked at the little mermaid again.

"Is this your ability?"

When Li Wei asked the question, the little mermaid nodded smugly.

Right, Li Wei suddenly remembered that although this mermaid did look like a mermaid, in this world, she wasn't called a mermaid, but a water fairy. She only had the appearance of a mermaid; she wasn't a real mermaid. In an RPG game, strictly speaking, she would be considered a water elemental spirit.

In other words, this little mermaid can not only manipulate water flow, but also hear people talking in other places through the water flow.
Li Wei remembered reading somewhere that sound waves travel faster in water than in air, but he never expected that the little mermaid would have this ability.
Good guy, this is really good guy!
Looking at the water pipe in front of him, Li Wei could even roughly guess what was going on. Obviously, the little mermaid was extending through the water in this faucet, and this faucet was naturally connected to the hotel's sink, which in turn was connected to the city's pipelines... Goodness, that means that as long as there is a water pipe, the little mermaid can use it to eavesdrop on every corner of the city.

That's awesome!

Li Wei looked at the little mermaid with some surprise. Originally, he just thought the little mermaid was cute and innocent, and a victim, so he thought of helping her.

I never expected this person to have such skills! This is truly amazing!

Although it only applies to areas with water, how many places in the city have water networks? Which household doesn't have a tap? Of course, villages may still rely mainly on wells, but in a place like Caizablanca, universal access to water has long been achieved.

No wonder he was having so much fun entertaining himself by himself; he was actually eavesdropping on other people's conversations.

However, it's likely that the little mermaid wouldn't even be aware of the concept of eavesdropping on others' privacy.

However, if that's really the case...

Thinking of this, Li Wei's eyes flickered.

"Little guy, can you do me a favor?"

"?"

The little mermaid tilted her head curiously as she heard Li Wei speak.

"Can you choose where you listen?"

nod.

"So now I want you to drive the whole city around, and you'll stop when I tell you to, okay?"

nod.

"Then, let's begin!"

Upon hearing Li Wei shout "Start!", the little mermaid flicked her tail, then pressed her hands together and slowly rotated. A series of noisy sounds then emerged from the movement.

It was somewhat similar to tuning into a radio station, except without electronic noise. Li Wei simply heard the voices of men, women, old people, and little people, rising and falling in volume. Occasionally, he could also hear some indescribable sounds, but the little mermaid seemed oblivious to them and paid them no heed.

Li Wei listened and pondered at the same time. He mainly wanted to see the little mermaid's abilities. Now it seemed that the little mermaid's abilities were even more powerful than he had imagined. At least in places with water, she was almost like a living sonar, able to hear any sound clearly.

Of course, this is mainly for my own ears. If it's for the little mermaid to hear, there's no need to play it out at all; she can just listen to it while submerged in the water.

Of course, there are also quite a few oddballs among them.

"...My husband isn't home today, so we..."

"What are you going to do? I'm yours...!" "That's right, so you have to make it up to me in place of your father...!"

To be honest, Li Wei really wanted the little mermaid to slow down so he could hear the conversation, even just a few words would ignite his gossip-loving fire. However, he felt it wouldn't be good to corrupt children, so Li Wei had to skip it... Alas, it's a pity he doesn't have such a skill, otherwise he could listen to so much gossip every day just by clinging to the water pipe.

"…I really didn't expect this…"

"stop!"

Just then, Li Wei's keen ears caught a familiar voice, so he quickly called for a stop, and the little mermaid obediently stopped what she was doing.

Then, Li Wei heard a voice coming from the trumpet formed by the flowing water.

"...Is this really alright, sir?"

"That's all we can do now. Tomorrow morning, we'll personally see that detective off to his car. Once he's gone, the matter will be settled."

"But what it means is..."

Li Wei could tell that two people were talking. One was the white-collar man he had met in the park before, while the other's voice was unfamiliar. Clearly, the two were discussing his affairs. He didn't know where they were, but the occasional clinking of glass suggested they were drinking somewhere.

Soon, the white-collar man's voice rang out again.

"The higher-ups' intention is to ensure that this auction can be held smoothly. Actually, I have always disagreed with the boss's idea. That guy is too dangerous. Leaving him here will only cause trouble for us."

"But the boss also said that as long as the detective receives the favor, he'll obediently listen to you, right?"

really.

Hearing this, Li Wei narrowed his eyes. He knew these guys would definitely test him, and now it seemed this blessing probably wasn't anything good. This reminded Li Wei of when he was chatting with them in the square earlier. Li Wei had used [Soul Vision] to look at that white-collar man—the latter's soul was white, but mixed with red.

So, did he also accept that so-called blessing?
It seems this thing isn't just something like the Life and Death Talisman from martial arts novels; it's at least morally questionable.

"That's true, but I was still a little uneasy. Now that he's gone, the matter is resolved. Let's focus our energy on this auction."

"Brother, are we really going to go this far this time?"

"of course."

The white-collar man smiled smugly.

"The first time all the gang leaders in the empire have gathered together! This auction will be crucial in establishing Caesarblanca's future status in the underworld!"

Good guy, this is really good guy!
Hearing this, Li Wei was also shocked. Although he had considered that the other party wanted to send him away because of the auction, he hadn't expected that this auction would attract so many… experience packs!

If they caught them all at once, wow...

Um?and many more!

As Li Wei thought about this, another idea suddenly flashed through his mind.

The white-collar man said the conference was to solidify Caizablanca's position in the underworld, but in Li Wei's view, that was basically impossible. After all, in the underworld, no one is ever truly subservient to another. The three major families controlling Caizablanca is powerful, but that doesn't mean they can make other local gang leaders bow down to them.

But what if the other side has a way to control these gang leaders?

Li Wei thought again of the "gift" the white-collar man had mentioned, and the soul tainted by red. He'd seen this kind of thing a lot in martial arts novels: gather people from various sects, poison them, then give them an antidote once a year—either obey or die.

Since the other party is so certain that they will submit to the three major families, it means that the "blessing" must have been coercive.

If one can even submit to oneself, then it means... others should be able to as well.

So this auction might just be for…

Just then, the white-collar man's voice rang out again.

"The guest list must be double-checked to ensure no one sneaks in. This is something the boss instructed us to do a long time ago."

"Yes!"

Hearing this, Li Wei suddenly had an idea. His original plan was to pretend to leave, board the train in front of everyone, and then use a teleportation technique to return and launch a surprise attack. However, if he worked overtime tonight and could obtain some detailed information, he could take the opportunity to slip away and return to Chongqing to meticulously plan his next move. After all, Caesarblanca was their territory, and Li Wei couldn't perform well there, not to mention the little mermaid was also present…

Li Wei snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the little mermaid.

"Little guy, can you pinpoint the exact location here?"

"!"

In response to Li Wei's question, the little mermaid nodded excitedly.

(End of this chapter)