Chapter 925: Kowtow

Wang Zikai perked up. "Great timing, bro. Fresh Snow lost again. Come on, give me a rubber band..."

"Come here," Gao Yang said.

"Me?" Wang Zikai pointed at his nose.

"You."

"Alrighty!"

𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Wang Zikai bounded up to the second floor, perching on the railing at Gao Yang's eye level like an eager golden retriever.

"What is it?"

"Can you go easy on her, Wang Zikai?" Gao Yang murmured.

Wang Zikai's eyes widened. He grumbled under his breath, "But I practiced with this hero for so long just to get back at her. Don't you remember how she walked all over me?"

"How's it going to sound when others learn you've gotten so serious with a little girl like her?" Gao Yang injected deliberate disapproval into his tone.

"But..."

"But what? You're God! Beating her will only make others think you're bullying her. If you lose, though, everyone will know you're showing mercy. That's how a tolerant god should be. That's what makes You great. Understand?"

"Holy! You're right! I almost suffered a great loss for a little gain." Wang Zikai wiped his brow. "It's okay. Best three out of five. There's still room to turn the game around."

"Go." Satisfied, Gao Yang turned and headed back to the study room.

Inside, War Tiger leaned against a bookshelf, arms crossed and an unlit cigarette between his lips. Nine Frost stood opposite him, expression neutral, hands tucked in his pockets.

"What is it?"

Halfway through their meeting, Gao Yang had called an abrupt halt. Neither War Tiger nor Nine Frost understood why.

"Wang Zikai was being so noisy I couldn't think. I told him to lower his voice." Gao Yang's smile was faint. "Let's continue."

"Alright."

Gao Yang resumed his report on the Ocean River Union's move, detailing White Rabbit's body, the bomb trap, and the Black Gold hairpin.

At the mention of White Rabbit, War Tiger retreated into the shadows, his eyes gleaming with unreadable thoughts.

"I've checked the hairpin. There's nothing wrong with it, but its existence is strange. Just to be safe, I don't have it with me. I'll show you the picture."

Gao Yang displayed the photo on his phone. Nine Frost examined it before passing it to War Tiger.

"It is strange," Nine Frost observed solemnly. "Usually, post-mortem treatment is meant to restore the dead's dignity. There's no reason to use a Black Gold hairpin instead of a regular one."

"Dignity? Where's the dignity in having the body blown to ashes?!"

War Tiger knew the focus was the Black Gold hairpin, but he couldn't contain his bitter outburst before returning the phone.

Gao Yang waited for War Tiger to collect himself. "I have a guess that'll take time to confirm."

He touched his temple meaningfully. Nine Frost immediately connected War Tiger and Gao Yang in a telepathic conversation.

"That is very likely," War Tiger said aloud after their silent exchange.

Nine Frost nodded. "Leave it to me. I'll get right on it."

His Talents were uniquely suited for the task, so Gao Yang agreed. "Be careful."

Nine Frost departed, leaving War Tiger and Gao Yang alone in the room.

After a moment of silence, War Tiger put on a casual smile. "Little Yang Yang, what do you think about Ocean River Union's move?"

Gao Yang's eyes darkened. "I suspect they're laying low and avoiding conflict."

War Tiger stroked his chin thoughtfully. "You mean they realized we were trying to finish this as soon as possible?"

Gao Yang nodded. "Very likely. They know it's better for them to drag this on, so they've hidden, waiting for when their odds will be highest."

"But it doesn't make sense." War Tiger's brow furrowed. "Why would the fight suddenly make them conclude that buying time would benefit them more?"

"I've been wondering about that too. My only working theory is that they

saw

the future."

War Tiger hissed. "You mean Surnamed Li's Prophet has reached level 8, allowing her to see a clearer future? Like Qilin reaching level 8 Puppeteer soon, so they decided to hide and cultivate power?"

Gao Yang nodded. "I haven't found another explanation."

"Shit." War Tiger's smile turned bitter. "Things just keep developing in our most dreaded direction."

Gao Yang remained silent.

War Tiger raised an eyebrow. "We needn't be too pessimistic, though. If we drag things on, perhaps Dragon will wake, and that will change everything again."

Gao Yang chuckled after a pause. "That's true."

"We can't just sit around doing nothing, though. Spell it out. What's your plan?"

Gao Yang had made his decision. "Liao Liao will keep searching, try to find the Ocean River Union's new hiding place."

"Haha." War Tiger's amusement showed through. "The Nine Scions were the mice hiding in sewers, and now it's the Union's turn. Things really have changed."

Gao Yang shared the sentiment. "Then it'll be up to Dr. Jia."

War Tiger nodded. “Once Raven Shark’s Dimensional Storage reaches level 4, Old Jia should be done with what he’s doing. Then we’ll help him move his lab here.”

"Yes." Gao Yang needed to keep Dr. Jia under his personal watch.

"That's it then. How about the others?"

"They do have a mission," Gao Yang said.

War Tiger leaned forward. "What is it?"

A commotion erupted outside.

"Ahh! No, impossible! God Kai won't lose like this. The controller must be broken..."

"Haha, best three out of five! You lost. You're the stupid pig!"

Gao Yang's lips curved slightly. "Lunar New Year."

War Tiger slapped his thighs in realization. "Haha, I'd forgotten! It's in two days. Right, there will always be more work, but life continues. We should enjoy the new year."

"I won't be at the S Base," Gao Yang said. "I'll be here with Fresh Snow. She's spent all previous New Years with Master Spring."

War Tiger smiled ruefully. "That kid is a real patriarch. Seriously, outside of you, all of us should kowtow before his grave in gratitude..."

He stretched and moved toward the door. "Alright. I'm going now."

"Hey," Gao Yang called after him, his concern for Fat Jun surfacing. "How's Adept Horse?"

"Tsk!" War Tiger spat in frustration. "Both his body and heart are handicapped. He might as well be a pile of shit now."

After a few heavy seconds, Gao Yang looked up. "I'll swing by the base with you."