Chapter 206: Thunderclap Talisman, Military-Grade Armaments
When the patrol team’s armed forces arrived, Zhang Yu, Bai Zhenzhen, and Yue Jincheng all ceased their actions. They even raised their hands to show they had no intention of continuing the fight.
All around the three of them, streaks of sword-light darted back and forth.
This sword-light resembled bolts of lightning crackling through the air, and the chilling sword intent it radiated made the skin on Zhang Yu’s hands and face tingle painfully.
Is that a military-grade flying sword? Zhang Yu wondered.
He knew that unlike the civilian-grade flying swords he had seen before, these military-grade ones, usable only by armed members of the patrol team, could transform their sword qi into a rainbow, forming a sword-light that could expand and contract at will.
If these military-grade flying swords were to strike, they would probably slice the three of us up like melons, Zhang Yu thought.
Meanwhile, four figures clad in patrol team armed combat uniforms hovered in the air above them.
Zhang Yu glanced up briefly and could feel waves of heat from their surging qi and blood pressing down on him, as if four great furnaces were floating above their heads.
Those must be military-grade combat techniques.
Military-grade flying swords plus military-grade combat techniques… even peak Qi Refinement cultivators who graduated decades ago, like our teachers Lei Jun and Wang Hai, would likely be defeated in an instant, killed in a single encounter.
And Zhang Yu knew that this was merely the armed force of the Patrol Department, one of the Heavenly Court’s Eight Great Divine Ministries, stationed in a suburb of Songyang City on the first layer of Kunxu.
He reflected, It’s precisely because the Ten Great Sects strictly control all cultivation techniques, bionics, and magical treasures of military-grade and above that they can make so many high school students, university students, corporate drones, and even the wealthy abide by the rules they’ve established.
Military might, in the end, is one of the most fundamental pillars supporting all societal order.
At the same time, Yue Jincheng was being completely cooperative, not daring to make the slightest move.
After becoming a security officer for his company, the very first lesson in his onboarding training was to never engage in armed conflict with any government or divine ministry.
This was especially true for their armed personnel. Their various military-grade powers were far beyond what company employees like him could hope to counter.
Furthermore, if one were to get injured or even killed in such an encounter, there would be no compensation, and the company would offer no benefits whatsoever.
Thus, Yue Jincheng was being extremely cautious, careful not to make any move that could be misinterpreted.
He had heard plenty of stories about people who were suspected of resisting after merely raising a hand or reaching into a pocket, only to be instantly cut down by a volley of flying swords.
The next moment, the three felt a silver light scan over them, emitted from the eyes of one of the armed personnel.
Then, that person looked at Zhang Yu and said, “Were you the one who used the Thunderclap Talisman?”
Zhang Yu quickly pointed at Yue Jincheng and started, “He stole my—”
The man waved his hand. “I’m not asking about that. We can discuss the details of the case later. I’m telling you to settle the service fee first.”
“Huh?”
What does he mean?
I have to pay before they enforce the law?
Even after living in Kunxu for a year, Zhang Yu was stunned.
The man, whose name was Gong Zhe, snorted. “What ‘huh’? If you can’t even afford the service fee, the four of us will turn around and leave immediately. You can call the constables yourself and wait for them.”
Ever since an incident where a person who reported a crime had insufficient funds and defaulted on the premium enforcement service fee for a Thunderclap Talisman, the patrol team had adopted a policy of requiring payment before providing service for all such calls.
Hearing this, Yue Jincheng on the side looked at Zhang Yu with a flicker of hope, silently praying that the boy couldn’t afford it.
This Zhang Yu is a poor kid, Yue Jincheng thought. What if he really can’t pay?
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Zhang Yu took out his phone and said, “I’ll pay.”
The minimum charge for dispatching a team via a Thunderclap Talisman was ten thousand. Zhang Yu had naturally come prepared and obediently settled the bill on his phone.
Seeing the ten thousand credit fee arrive, Gong Zhe nodded in satisfaction. His gaze toward Zhang Yu immediately filled with goodwill.
And, though Zhang Yu couldn’t be sure if it was just his imagination, he felt that after he had paid, the four patrol team members in the sky seemed more spirited, more imposing.
Gong Zhe puffed out his chest and looked at Zhang Yu. “Greetings, esteemed premium client of the Thunderclap Talisman service. Officer Gong Zhe of the Songyang City Seventh District Patrol Team, at your service.”
“Please describe the details of the incident.”
At that moment, Gong Zhe and the other three officers were looking at Zhang Yu with expressions of eager anticipation. A kidnapping! A murder! A commercial dispute? A tax evasion case would be best!
It’s been so long since we guys got a real case!
This had better be something big, worth tens of millions at least.
It was no wonder Gong Zhe’s team looked so famished and eager. As armed patrol officers, their income had been steadily declining for years.
Gong Zhe often sighed to himself. Sigh, public order keeps getting better, and everyone prefers to use dirty tricks instead of resorting to violence. How are combat personnel like us supposed to meet our quotas? We clock out on the dot after eight hours every day. Damn it, we can’t even get overtime if we want it. All we can do is help other departments with logistics and paperwork to make some extra cash, just to get by…
Right now, all four of them were looking at Zhang Yu, hoping he would give them a major case.
Zhang Yu pointed at Yue Jincheng and said, “He tried to steal my phone. When I caught him, he tried to run. My classmate and I tried to stop him, but he attacked us instead.”
Gong Zhe was silent for a moment before asking again, “Is that all?”
You used a Thunderclap Talisman to call all of us here for something this trivial?
In that instant, the soaring spirits of the four officers plummeted back to earth.
Gong Zhe said flatly, “Settle the bill first.”
Zhang Yu looked at the eight thousand credit fee on the bill and couldn’t help but ask, “Why is it eight thousand? Didn’t you just fly over? There wasn’t even a fight.”
Gong Zhe shot him a look and said blandly, “This is a protected preserve. You think the four of us don’t have to pay for entry, for breathing, for cultivation?”
“And later, when we take you back to process the case, take statements, investigate evidence… do you think that doesn’t require man-hours? Isn’t that part of the workload?”
Resigned, Zhang Yu paid five thousand and then turned to Bai Zhenzhen beside him. “Zhen, I’m out of money. Can you cover the other three thousand for me?”
Watching this scene, Gong Zhe and his team grew even more disappointed. So poor and you’re still using a Thunderclap Talisman? Couldn’t you have just called the constables?
After collecting the money, Gong Zhe said, “Alright, the three of you are coming with us.”
A short while later, Zhang Yu and the others arrived at a patrol bureau in the far suburbs of Songyang City.
As the ones who had reported the crime, Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen were taken to an office in the case-handling area.
Gong Zhe said flatly, “Wait here. Someone will come to get your statements later.”
Zhang Yu said, “Right, that man had an accomplice who ran off before you arrived. Maybe you can check the nearby surveillance cameras and ticket purchase records…”
Gong Zhe frowned and cut him off. “Alright, we have our own methods for investigating cases. We don’t need you to teach us.”
Gong Zhe had no real interest in a petty phone-snatching case. He would rather be working a side job to earn some extra money in that time.
After Gong Zhe left, Bai Zhenzhen glanced at the camera in the office and remained silent.
Zhang Yu, meanwhile, opened his phone and informed the World Roaming God, Deng Bingding, of the situation.
Of course, unlike the simple phone theft story he told Gong Zhe and the others, Zhang Yu added some of his own suspicions in his message to Deng Bingding.
For example, he suspected that the other party had been following him recently, secretly filming his cultivation sessions, perhaps investigating his participation in the Foundation Establishment exam.
After all, Zhang Yu couldn’t disclose information related to the Foundation Establishment exam to the patrol team.
In response to Zhang Yu’s message, Deng Bingding simply sent back three thumbs-up emojis.
Zhang Yu was puzzled. What does that mean? Is she going to help or not?
Fu Ji chuckled and said in both Zhang Yu’s and Bai Zhenzhen’s minds, “Based on my understanding of righteous gods, three thumbs-up is a rather high appraisal. The next level up from this would be three party poppers.”
“This is all righteous god slang. You’ll get the hang of it the more you see it.”
Next, Zhang Yu sent a message to Yun Ni, explaining how someone had tried to steal his phone and how he had been brought to the patrol bureau.
Yun Ni replied: Which patrol bureau?
Yun Ni: I’ll find an acquaintance to help you out.
Yun Ni: By the way, have you had your injuries checked?
Yun Ni: If it comes to mediation, what’s your bottom line for a settlement?
Looking at the series of messages from Yun Ni, Zhang Yu knew that she was treating this as a common case of theft and assault, and was teaching him how to get more compensation from the other party.
About ten minutes later, while Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen were waiting and cultivating, Gong Zhe returned to the office.
This time, however, Gong Zhe wore a slight smile. “If your Captain Yun hadn’t contacted me, I wouldn’t have known you two were also with the patrol team. Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
“Your Captain Yun Ni and I go way back. We just had dinner together last month.”
After receiving the call from Yun Ni, Gong Zhe’s gaze towards Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen seemed to soften with a touch of camaraderie.
He said, “Rest assured, you two are completely the victims in this matter.”
“I’ll have someone come in to take your statements in a bit, and then you’ll be free to go.”
“As for that fellow, he’s got some nerve, daring to attack a Divine Assistant in broad daylight. He’s going to pay dearly for this.”
With that, Gong Zhe left again.
His change in demeanor was somewhat surprising to Zhang Yu, who thought to himself, It seems Yun Ni has quite a bit of influence in Songyang City.
But this time, Gong Zhe was gone for over half an hour and did not return.
Zhang Yu was growing impatient and was about to step out to ask about the situation when he found that the office door had been locked at some point.
At that moment, Bai Zhenzhen exclaimed, “Yu-boy! Quick, look!”
Zhang Yu followed Bai Zhenzhen’s pointed finger and looked through the office’s glass window. He could see Yue Jincheng swaggering out of the case-handling area, escorted by several patrol officers.
Bai Zhenzhen was shocked. “He’s being released already?”
And as if he had noticed Bai Zhenzhen and Zhang Yu watching from behind the window, Yue Jincheng gave them a faint smile before turning and walking away.