BPIFC -Volume 1 – Chapter 172 Background

Seeing that even the Great Masters had spoken, Kong Dalong could only let out a bitter smile and said, “Looks like we have no choice but to let it go. I didn’t expect he actually has such a powerful backer… Is my disciple alright?”

The last sentence was directed at the noodle-eating man. When Che Qianzi had charged earlier, although he wasn’t injured by the chopsticks, he had still fallen victim to the man’s technique and was now unconscious just like Sun Desheng.

“He’s fine…” the noodle shop owner spoke on behalf of the man. He then walked out from behind the counter, personally checked on the unconscious Che Qianzi, and said to Kong Dalong, “Don’t worry, no matter what happens, he’ll be safe. Let me give you some reassurance—there is no underworld officer in the entire Netherworld who can take his life.”

Hearing this, the noodle-eating man’s expression turned strange. He couldn’t understand why Zuo Pan would treat such an insignificant young man differently. Those words were not really meant for Kong Dalong—they were clearly a warning to him not to touch Che Qianzi.

As expected, Zuo Pan then turned to the noodle-eating man and said, “Whatever grudges you had before, let it end here. This child’s background is not someone you can afford to provoke. Your life or death doesn’t matter much, but you still serve before the King of Hell. We cannot allow your death to disrupt affairs in the Underworld. Do you understand?”

The man could no longer speak. He could only nod mechanically, indicating that he understood.

After hearing this, Kong Dalong’s smile became strange. He leaned forward slightly and whispered into Zuo Pan’s ear, “So the Netherworld doesn’t just have one Book of Life and Death, does it? You’ve already checked his background, haven’t you?”

“I’ve also seen your Book of Life and Death, Kong Dalong. Your time is running out,” Zuo Pan replied without engaging his question. He glanced down at him and continued, “When the time comes, I’ll do you a favor and personally come up to escort you down… Your record in the Book of Life and Death is quite interesting as well.”

After saying this, Zuo Pan turned to Guang Ren and nodded slightly. “The King of Hell is still waiting for him. We’ll take our leave first. When I have time, I’ll invite you master and disciple for tea.”

With that, Zuo Pan rolled his eyes back and collapsed to the ground. At the same time, the noodle-eating man vanished without a trace.

Watching them disappear, Guang Ren nodded at Huo Shan. After thousands of years as master and disciple, their coordination was already flawless. The red-haired man immediately understood, took out a long incense stick from his robe, broke off a tiny piece the size of a fingernail, lit it, and quickly carried Sun Desheng and Che Qianzi out.

Guang Ren had already set up a formation in advance—ordinary passersby would not approach the noodle shop. Even though chaos had erupted inside earlier, no one outside had noticed anything.

“After the ‘Turbid Mind’ is lit, no one inside will remember what happened here,” Guang Ren said, glancing at Kong Dalong. Then he pointed at the unconscious Che Qianzi and continued, “Now everyone knows he has a connection with the Great Masters. You were careless… I thought you would have erased all traces.”

Kong Dalong knew Guang Ren had misunderstood Zuo Pan’s words. At this point, he had already convinced himself that Che Qianzi was Xu Fu’s illegitimate son. He didn’t bother explaining and instead gave a bitter smile.

“In this world, there is no method that can erase evidence completely. To achieve this much already wasn’t easy. Great Masters, why don’t you think of a solution yourselves?”

“That’s your problem. It has nothing to do with me or Huo Shan,” Guang Ren replied after a glance. “Still, there is one good thing—at least now no one in the Netherworld dares to touch Che Qianzi. That won’t interfere with your reunion as master and disciple. Huo Shan and I will take our leave. We’ll discuss our matters another time.”

With that, Guang Ren and Huo Shan turned and left the noodle shop. Once they were gone, the formation dissipated. The people inside slowly woke up, all forgetting what had just happened. They were simply eating noodles normally—how had they suddenly fainted? The shop looked like it had just been through a fight, completely in disarray.

“Sorry about that,” Kong Dalong said. “The two kids got drunk and started fighting in your shop… I’ll cover all damages.”

As he spoke, he took out Sun Desheng’s wallet. But inside were only seven or eight bank cards—no cash at all.

Just as Kong Dalong was hesitating and about to search his disciple again, Sun Desheng, still lying with his eyes closed, suddenly spoke up.

“The password is xxxxxx. Take the black card from Bank XX. It doesn’t have spending limits—more than enough to cover this small amount…”

It turned out Sun Desheng had been faking unconsciousness all along. But Kong Dalong showed no surprise at all. He chuckled and said, “I knew a beer bottle couldn’t knock out the bureau chief of the Investigation Bureau. So? You heard everything you needed to hear, right?”

Since there was no point in pretending anymore, Sun Desheng laughed and stood up from the ground.

“Old sir, I’m not flattering you,” he said. “I’ve faked unconsciousness plenty of times. Fewer than five people have ever seen through it—you’re one of them. Honestly, my brother almost died just now. You’re not going to just let that slide, are you?”

“You talk tough, Bureau Chief Sun,” Kong Dalong replied with a smile as he patted his cheek. “Anyone hearing you would think you didn’t accept those fifty gold bars and were worried I’d silence you instead.”

He then continued, “Hurry up and pay. Your drunken friends caused trouble—you can’t make the shop owner pay for it.”

Sun Desheng pulled out a black card and handed it to the confused shop owner. “Swipe twenty thousand. Consider it compensation. Not gonna lie, your cold noodles are still the same old flavor, but the pollack is too dry—not great.”

After settling the bill, Sun Desheng called a car. While waiting, he said to Kong Dalong, “Old sir, who exactly was that guy trying to kill my brother? What’s his background? He didn’t even manage to scratch him this time, but next time he might come again. We should strike first.”

“Bureau Chief Sun, wasn’t he actually targeting you?” Kong Dalong replied with a smile. “My son just got dragged into your mess. Didn’t you hear him earlier? That man won’t dare touch my son again—but you’re another story. He’ll eventually direct his anger at you.”

He leaned in closer, smiling even more. “How about this, Bureau Chief Sun? Lend me a little money. I’ll help you settle him. Paying to avoid disaster is something only smart people do. I don’t need much—just a card will do. I’m very frugal, won’t spend much…”

Hearing this, Sun Desheng also laughed. He stuffed his entire wallet into the old man’s hands.

“Just one card? There are eight in here—five domestic, three international. Same password as before. Come with me back to the bureau. I’ll also give you full benefits—five insurances and a housing fund. Be a director at the Investigation Bureau.”

“I’m too old for that life,” Kong Dalong said with a smile as he opened the wallet and took out another black card. He then returned the wallet to Sun Desheng. “It’s not that I don’t want to go—there are still things I haven’t finished. I can’t leave yet. But this kid Che Qianzi… he’ll be far more useful in the bureau than I ever could. Bureau Chief Sun, you already know his background—you don’t need me to explain it.”

Seeing that he couldn’t persuade the old man, Sun Desheng finally took out the black jade button and handed it over.

“Then take a look for me, old sir. Have you ever seen this little thing before?”