He walked out of the interrogation room.
Old Fox closed the door and cast a meaningful glance towards the glass coated with red silver on one side.
Chen Mei, shackled by the vine wood, sat in the chair, still silently not uttering a word, but it was evident... his expression was no longer as composed as before. If one looked closely enough, they could see faint beads of sweat forming at the forehead and slipping down his cheeks.
"What we need to do now is wait,"
Zhou Jiren leaned against the door of the interrogation room, smoking a pipe.
The bet was that Xiao would take action.
"If, as we predicted earlier, Xiao has some way of obtaining news from inside the council... the moment Chen Mei was arrested, he should have become restless," Gu Shen said. "The night of disturbance on the river bank had caused the news of Chen Mei’s arrest to spread wildly throughout Da Du."
Zhou Jiren spoke gravely, "But what I’m worried about... is the ’trust relationship’ they’ve built."
This was the classic "prisoner’s dilemma."
As long as Xiao maintained absolute trust in Chen Mei, and Chen Mei indeed kept their secrets,
then detention, interrogation, all means... would ultimately fail to achieve their purpose.
"I will upload the video to the council..." Lu Nanjin spoke calmly, "How strong their trust is, we will soon find out. However, I think, given Xiao’s usual method of detonating ’Spiritual Lead’... he wouldn’t cherish anyone’s life other than his own, not even Chen Mei’s."
Gu Shen also nodded silently.
From the consistent behavior of the Changjiu Foundation, once exposed, the foundation’s believers, being mere pawns, only had the option to die by self-detonation.
Gu Shen cautiously reminded, "You mentioned ’Spiritual Link’ earlier. If they can establish a ’Spiritual Link,’ then they might be able to communicate on some mental level."
"Hmm... you’re quite observant. Don’t worry about that."
Zhou Jiren spoke indifferently, "This interrogation room is fully coated with red silver, and I have also applied a ’Wood Origin Barrier.’ If any Transcendent’s spirit attempts to intrude, I will feel it immediately."
Is there such a method?
Upon hearing this, Gu Shen became a bit nervous. Currently, it seemed that red silver couldn’t stop his and Chu Ling’s mental communication, but he was unclear about this so-called "Wood Origin Barrier."
The difference in strength was huge.
He didn’t know if their link could be detected... but since the beginning, Chu Ling had not gone online, probably sensing the danger.
"Chen Mei is still biting down and not speaking; we have no other choice but to wait," Nan Jin said, holding a knife, slowly adding, "However, his reaction when he saw the photo of Zhou Yu... is worth pondering."
Upon seeing the past misdeeds committed by the Changjiu Foundation, Chen showed no moment of faltering.
The very "photo of Zhou Yu," originally intended as the final pursuit, became the reason he firmly chose to remain silent—
"The only explanation is that he knows Zhou Yu."
Gu Shen said, "But it doesn’t make sense. The time of Zhou Yu’s death and the time he began practicing body techniques don’t match... Back then, he was just a child with absolutely no means to know Zhou Yu."
"Alright, don’t fuss over it too much, nor make needless speculations."
Zhou Jiren looked composed, "The net has been cast; now we wait for Chen Mei’s response. Don’t worry about him keeping secrets, I... have my ways to make him talk."
Gu Shen was curious, "What method?"
"I got a hundred pounds of high explosives," Zhou Jiren said indifferently, "It’s the same stuff they used to bomb you on Lipu Street, trinitrotoluene, old-style explosives from ancient times. Its only advantage is its tremendous power."
Gu Shen and Nan Jin were both startled.
Gu Shen looked at Zhou Jiren, who remained calm and collected, thinking to himself that this old man casually mentioned such a huge amount.
It was no wonder he was the Grand Judge of the Judgement Institute.
Indeed, his methods were masterful.
An explosion of a hundred kilos of high explosives—what kind of scene would that be? The interrogation site for Chen Mei was quite secluded, in the suburbs of Da Du, in an old building empty of inhabitants. If the explosives were to detonate, surely the entire building would be blasted sky-high.
Was this meant to send Chen Mei to the heavens?
"If possible, I would have liked to get more...but unfortunately, this stuff is limited in purchase; it’s not available through regular channels, and getting too much at once would expose us. I managed to get some through connections," Mr. Shu said with a smile, looking towards Chen Mei in the interrogation room. "A hundred kilos, I wonder if he can withstand it?"
Gu Shen and Nan Jin exchanged glances.
They understood simultaneously why their mentor was doing this—
If Chen Mei had developed a trust relationship with Xiao... then what they needed to do was to destroy this relationship of trust.
Releasing the news of Chen Mei joining the special operations was a test of Xiao’s patience.
And this explosion would make Chen Mei believe that Xiao had already taken action.
"Rest well these next few days, conserve your energy."
Zhou Jiren put his hands on the shoulders of his two students, "That’s all for today’s mission."
Suddenly, Nan Jin asked, "Do you really plan to use a hundred kilos of high explosives? Transcendents are not gods...especially when restrained. What if Chen Mei died?"
Mr. Shu spoke indifferently, not answering directly but saying something that seemed off-topic.
"Da Du has not been peaceful lately, the pressure to enact legislation is imminent...and the nomination of alternate council members is just around the corner. Everyone is tense, the air is thick with the smell of gunpowder, a spark could set it off."
He slowly said, "If Chen Mei died, then Da Du would truly explode."
Gu Shen shuddered at the thought.
Chen San’s only son dead...how furious would the councilman be?
"The killer would need to pay the price."
Zhou Jiren spoke calmly, "The special operations team would express the highest condolences and assist Councilman Chen in finding the killer... As for how the search will be conducted at that time, surely someone will be more eager than us."
After all, those who knew Da Du best were the two Chen men.
To pick a louse off their heads, they had to do it themselves.
"Of course...I am not such a cold-blooded and ruthless person," Mr. Shu said with a chuckle. "Don’t underestimate the survival ability of the eleventh layer of Deep Sea, a mere hundred kilos of high explosives is nothing to Chen Mei."
"In any case... the real action will start soon, so wait and see. The transportation of the explosives takes time, and so does the spread of the news."
Mr. Shu raised his hands, mimicking the scene of the building being flipped over by a massive blast and soaring into the air.
The old man laughed, "With a massive explosion, the real show begins."