Chapter 140: Is the dark web so desperate for relevance that they’ve resorted to a lite version?

Not to mention these university students preparing for the martial arts exams, even Huang Wenzhan nearly collapsed to the ground.

The name "God-Fallen Alliance" was a taboo throughout the entire martial arts world of the Spiritual Qi Continent. Since the Great War fifty years ago, the local Martial Arts Administration Bureaus had collectively passed a resolution to establish the Martial Suppression Division. The Martial Suppression Division explicitly stipulated that anyone who became a member or an accomplice of the God-Fallen Alliance would have their martial arts exam eligibility revoked. If they were already practitioners, they would face trial, resulting in either the crippling of their cultivation or execution. As the president of Binzhou University, if students connected to the God-Fallen Alliance appeared in his school, his tenure as president would effectively be over.

"Speak! What is going on!" The usually mild-tempered Huang Wenzhan kicked Wang Xiaochuan away. The students from other schools fled in a panic. No one dared to be associated with the God-Fallen Alliance; that was essentially seeking death.

"Hey, don't leave! What are we supposed to do if you go?" Wang Cuihua kept shouting as she watched the college students scatter.

"President, we really didn't know! We just followed Wang Xiaochuan to seek justice; I truly know nothing about the God-Fallen Alliance!"

"That's right, how could we have the guts? That’s a capital offense!" The students from Binzhou University were terrified, wishing they could tear Wang Xiaochuan to pieces. They were members of the University Student League, and Wang Xiaochuan was the vice president. Who the hell would have thought that Wang Xiaochuan had accepted money from the God-Fallen Alliance?

"Wang Xiaochuan, you had better explain everything clearly, or not only will your martial arts exam eligibility be revoked, but your parents and three generations of your family will be imprisoned for investigation!" This was no laughing matter. If things went wrong, the entire Binzhou University could be shut down. The methods of the Martial Suppression Division were far more ruthless than those of the local Martial Arts Administration Bureau.

"Old Zhang, have we stirred up trouble? I heard that this God-Fallen Alliance is an evil organization." Wang Cuihua was becoming fearful.

"Let's go, let's go!" Zhang Erhe was no fool, and the two began to sneak away.

"You two, where are you going?" Just as they turned, they saw Wang Peng blocking their path. The next second, the couple felt a buzz in their heads and collapsed, unconscious.

"Chu, you've really caused quite a stir. People just try to claim kinship with you and it lands you on the hot search, and they even manage to mobilize college students. The 'Pride of Binzhou' title is truly well-deserved."

"Grandpa, they were framing Brother Zhang Chu." Huang Lili rushed out at this moment.

"Chu, I will take him back immediately and request the Martial Arts Administration Bureau's assistance in the investigation. I can give you a satisfactory answer within two hours at most." Huang Wenzhan said, "You are the honorary president of Binzhou University; your honor is our honor, and it must never be infringed upon!"

Huang Wenzhan was a Level 6 martial artist, and he lifted Wang Xiaochuan as easily as if he were a chick. The other students from Binzhou University followed behind, not daring to breathe. They had caused a catastrophic mess.

"Director Fan, you’ve come at the right time. Tell your father that I just sensed the presence of an Orc," Zhang Chu said. After throwing the unconscious couple into the back seat of a car, he took Wang Peng and sped away.

An Orc! Upon hearing this, Fan Dayong’s face turned pale. He rushed into the Martial Arts Administration Bureau. An Orc infiltrating Binzhou City was a matter of grave importance.

...

In the basement of the Xishayuan villa, Wang Peng stared at the unconscious Zhang Erhe and Wang Cuihua, his pupils trembling. "So, you were abandoned by them when you were a child?"

"To be precise, I was sold, and through a twist of fate, I ended up in an orphanage." Zhang Chu had inherited all the host's memories, including his tragic childhood. His parents died early, and his uncle and aunt sold him for money. He only ended up in the Binzhou Orphanage after the human trafficker died in an accident. The host had never told anyone about this, not even Wang Peng or Su Mingyi.

"Then why bring them back? Are you really going to support them because of public opinion? I’ve seen this type before; they have a huge appetite. Give them an inch, and they'll take a mile!" Wang Peng said indignantly.

"I heard from Uncle Li that your Heaven-Sent Gift has reached 2 stars?" Zhang Chu hadn't brought these two old things back to support them. Since he had just captured the scent of an Orc, and they had managed to stir up public opinion and hire college students to surround the bureau, the people behind them must be from the God-Fallen Alliance. The Alliance was in the shadows while he was in the light. If this continued, he would never have peace. Since that was the case, he would follow the vine to find the roots and pull them out.

Upon learning of Zhang Chu’s intent, Wang Peng patted his chest. "If it were three days ago, I couldn't do it. But since awakening to 2 stars, my Hypnotic Divine Art has gained an ability: it can extract short-term memories."

"Come, it’s your time to shine." Zhang Chu was pleasantly surprised to hear that Wang Peng had such an incredible ability. As long as he searched Zhang Erhe's memory, he could find information about that person. With the bureau's big data and the cameras everywhere, finding their identity and address would be a piece of cake.

Soon, Wang Peng invaded the memories of Zhang Erhe and Wang Cuihua. It went well at first, but later, Wang Peng’s expression turned grim, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

"What's the situation?" Zhang Chu knew nothing about hypnotic arts, but Wang Peng's expression was telling.

Less than five minutes later, Wang Peng slumped to the ground, panting heavily. "There's a mental barrier preventing prying!"

What? Zhang Chu was stunned. The God-Fallen Alliance actually had such powerful masters who could set barriers within a person's memories. Aside from Heaven-Sent individuals, only Spirit Realm experts could likely do this.

"So, what did you see?" Zhang Chu asked.

"Through their memories, it's clear someone was guiding them and took them to a certain place, but everything was covered by a barrier—it’s like a mosaic; I can't see anything. But I can guarantee it’s within Binzhou City."

Could it be a new stronghold for the God-Fallen Alliance in Binzhou? They had destroyed one last time, and now there was another. The fact that an Orc had appeared in Binzhou and was desperately trying to take revenge on him made Zhang Chu feel a chill down his spine.

"I can't help you find the person, but I can help you clarify things." Wang Peng drank a bottle of physical supplement fluid and used his hypnotic power to make the couple stand up straight, log into their forum accounts, and record an apology video.

After the video was uploaded, Zhang Chu called security. The guards arrived quickly and, upon seeing the couple, apologized profusely before carrying them out of Xishayuan. Because of the video, the public perception on the forum reversed that same night, with everyone cursing the couple for being heartless and inhuman. Soon, the Inspection Team officially announced that they had taken Zhang Erhe and his wife into custody. While human trafficking was usually a matter for the police, since it involved martial artists, the Inspection Team took over. One by one, the college students also publicly apologized to Zhang Chu on short-video platforms, terrified of being sued and losing their eligibility for the martial arts exams.

At the same time, the presidents of various Binzhou universities personally called the Martial Arts Research Institute to apologize to Zhang Chu on behalf of their schools. However, Zhang Chu was unaware of what was happening outside. He spent the night in the basement cultivating greenery. After sleeping for two hours, he rose early, intending to go to the Armaments Division to continue his studies. "Within a month, I must break through to the Spirit Realm!"

Just as he arrived at the entrance of Xishayuan, he saw Huang Wenzhan and Huang Lili waiting. Huang Wenzhan was not a Dual-Force Warrior and thus lacked the clearance to enter Xishayuan.

"Brother Zhang Chu, Grandpa helped you investigate at school last night." Seeing Zhang Chu get out of the car, Huang Lili greeted him excitedly.

"Thank you for your hard work, Old Huang." Huang Wenzhan was a decent man, and he was Huang Lili's grandfather, so he had to show some respect.

"Chu, take a look at this." Huang Wenzhan handed over Wang Xiaochuan's spare phone. "I've already reported the download address of this app to the Martial Arts Administration Bureau. Director Fan initially speculated that this should be a mini-program on the Dark Web."

He demonstrated the phone's "dual-space" function; inside, there was an app with a black icon that looked quite sinister. Zhang Chu opened the app and scanned it quickly, his eyes widening in shock. The content was 80% similar to the web version of the Dark Web they had discovered in Qingcheng Town, but it had added a "gig" section. Helping Zhang Erhe and surrounding the bureau was a task in the gig section. Completing the task earned one Blood-Qi Pill. Wang Xiaochuan had mobilized the Binzhou University Student League precisely because he had accepted this task.

What the hell? A "Dark Web Express" version? Had the God-Fallen Alliance really stooped to playing with such shady things these days?