Celestial Human Diagram-Chapter 79 - 69: Search

Cheng Zitong was delighted to hear Chen Chuan’s words. "Exactly!" he said. "That’s why I said you’re a natural-born member of the Intuition School!"

Chen Chuan smiled and continued to look through the documents in his hands.

Cheng Zitong seemed a bit thirsty then. He took a sip of water from his desk, then gestured toward the documents. "The client’s request is to capture a Well Doll. The pay is quite high, no one’s fighting over it, and it’s not very dangerous. Since you have some time, you should take this one to get your feet wet."

’It seems there’s more than one of these things,’ Chen Chuan thought. ’And I’m not sure if it’s really the creature from the legends. Well, I’ll know when I see it.’

He was, in fact, intensely interested in this sort of thing.

Although the operation could only be done at night, he still needed to scout the location during the day. The information, after all, was several years old. It was hard to say if things were still the same, so he had to go and confirm it for himself.

Since the next day was a day off, after making his decision, he spent the evening in his dorm considering what to prepare and mapping out a detailed plan. He did a bit of training, and when it got late, he went to bed.

The next day, he first went back to his aunt’s house. He borrowed Nian Fuli’s watch from her, picked up the bicycle he kept there, and then went out to buy some tools before riding off toward North City.

After about a forty-five-minute ride, he reached the old district of North City.

He wasn’t a complete stranger to this area. His predecessor’s parents had a house in the suburbs, just north of here. It was also where his predecessor had lost his life.

Not knowing the exact cause of his predecessor’s death, he had avoided the area ever since to steer clear of any unnecessary danger.

This area was full of old houses. Some were more than sixty years old, while others predated the founding of the Dashun Republic, making them nearly a century old. In fact, this whole district was the former Old Yangzhi Town. New Yangzhi City was only established as a logistics hub after the Great Expansion.

The territory from northwestern Yangzhi City to the suburbs, including villages and towns like Zhang Mountain to the north, was all controlled by the Iron Chain Gang. The Blood Mark Gang’s influence, on the other hand, was concentrated in the city’s more prosperous areas. North City was a sort of middle ground, home to dozens of gangs, both large and small. The people here were also more traditional and didn’t quite fit in with those from other districts.

Considering the complexity of the area and the fact he would be staying until nightfall, he brought his Patrol Bureau satchel. In a place like this, a connection to the Patrol Bureau could be far more useful than his status as a Wuyi Student.

He followed the map, cross-referencing landmarks with their corresponding dates. He soon located the well where the Well Doll had supposedly appeared the previous night, but upon arriving, he discovered it had run dry.

The Well Doll only appeared in old wells that still had water, so it couldn’t have been this one. That meant it must have appeared in a different well nearby last night, which shifted the entire sequence of locations. He got on his bike and left, deciding to check the next old well on the list.

Just moments after he left, three or four men dressed like gang members emerged from a nearby house. One of the underlings asked, "Brother Tian, that kid... he wasn’t sent by the Patrol Bureau, was he?"

Brother Tian snapped, "He was carrying that big satchel. You think I didn’t see it?"

"Then what do we do? Those Patrol Bureau hounds have a sharp sense of smell. Tonight’s deal..."

Brother Tian said impatiently, "What else can we do? It’s all set; we can’t cancel now. We’ll just have to change the location. Go spread the word. We’ll try to do it earlier to avoid any complications. And call for more of the boys. That way, we can handle whatever comes up."

"Got it, Brother Tian."

Chen Chuan continued his search. Luckily, according to the map, this well was very close to the last one. Sure enough, after traveling just over three hundred meters, he found another well, and this one was still in use. If this location was correct, then the next well in the sequence was likely where the Well Doll would appear tonight.

He then rode east for about another two hundred and fifty meters and found a well with a rather large stone curb.

It was situated in a sizable clearing that showed signs of constant use for washing. The area was surrounded by residential buildings and flanked by two small alleys for access. It was clearly a communal well, shared by many families. A windlass was mounted over the opening with a bucket still attached, a sign of frequent use. That would make it convenient for him to draw water.

After surveying the terrain and mulling it over, he decided to give it a try tonight. If he was wrong, he would have to come up with a new plan tomorrow. With his mind made up, he rode off and found a nearby martial arts gym where he could train and kill time.

The biggest problem in this area at night was the gangs. Most shops closed early, but the martial arts gyms stayed open, hosting fighting tournaments that gang members would attend, either openly or in secret. It was a good enough place for him to wait until the time was right.

He waited there until around eight-thirty in the evening. Seeing that the time was right, he left the gym. The moment he stepped outside, the boisterous atmosphere of the gym vanished completely. The streets were quiet. Only the branches of the trees, still holding their withered leaves, stretched out over the road and swayed in the wind. The streetlights below were still on, but there were almost no pedestrians to be seen.

He adjusted the brim of his hat, retrieved his bike, and rode toward the well’s location.

Five or six minutes later, he approached the entrance of the alley where the well was located. There was only a single, lonely streetlight nearby. At that moment, he suddenly saw a man on the opposite side of the street walking in his direction.

The man looked strong. He wore a face mask and a flat cap. He had been walking quickly, but upon seeing Chen Chuan approach from across the street, he seemed to notice the satchel. His pace faltered for a moment. He pulled his cap down lower, then hurriedly walked off down a different fork in the road.

Just from the man’s gait and build, Chen Chuan could tell he was trained, perhaps a gang member. But that had nothing to do with him. He got off his bike and pushed it into the narrow alley. Because the light was dim inside, he took out a flashlight to light the way.

He had only gone a short distance when he began to slow his pace. He could already see them. Standing at the entrance to the clearing around the well were seven or eight menacing brutes. Each had a cigarette dangling from his lips and was holding a weapon, like a club or a dagger. Someone shone a flashlight directly at him, and he narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Brother Tian, it’s the same kid from this afternoon!"

Brother Tian said, annoyed, "Kid, I knew you were trouble this afternoon. I even tried to hide out here, and I still couldn’t shake you. I didn’t want things to get physical, but since you’re so persistent, you can only blame your own bad luck!"

Chen Chuan let out a soft sigh. "It’s hard to say who’s really the unlucky one here."

Brother Tian roared, "Get him!"

Chen Chuan gently leaned his bicycle against the wall, took off his hat, and tossed it into the basket. He then strode forward, rolling his shoulders and flexing his wrists as he went.

A man in front swung a club at him. Chen Chuan tilted his head slightly to the side and met the attack with an open palm to the man’s chest. Without any apparent effort, the man was sent flying backward, crashing into several others behind him.

By then, he had reached the mouth of the alley. A man hiding to the side lunged, stabbing at his waist with a dagger. Chen Chuan simply turned, raised his foot, and stomped on the man’s shin. CRACK! The man screamed, clutching his shattered leg as he fell to the ground, writhing in pain.

Another man attacked from behind, bringing a club down on him. Chen Chuan turned, raised a hand, and deftly caught the weapon. He then forced it downward, driving the end into the man’s sternum. With a loud SNAP, the wooden club broke. The man clutched his chest and collapsed sideways, his face a mask of agony, unable to even cry out.

The remaining gang members froze, shrinking back. ’Are you kidding me?’ they thought. ’This guy is clearly an expert. Are we just supposed to go up there and get our asses kicked?’

Seeing that no one dared to move, Brother Tian found himself in an impossible position. He finally gritted his teeth, raised the machete in his hand, and charged, swinging it down at Chen Chuan’s head.

But before his blade could land, his vision went black, and he knew no more.

All the gang underlings saw was their boss charge forward, only to be kicked in the head by Chen Chuan. His entire body was sent flying sideways, landing in a motionless heap on the ground.

At this point, none of them dared to stay. They threw down their weapons, abandoned their boss, and fled down one of the alleys.

Chen Chuan paid them no mind. He had already wasted enough time and couldn’t afford any more delays.

He walked to the edge of the well and took hold of the windlass handle. As he began to turn it, he realized something felt wrong. The weight on the line seemed too light. He thought for a moment, then continued to crank the handle. When the bucket reached the top, he found it was stuffed with several sealed plastic bags. He touched them; they seemed to contain box-shaped objects.

He thought for a moment. ’Are these... drugs?’

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