Chapter 665: Code Name [Emancipation]

Starlight spilled across the sea as three ships slowly docked at the pier.

Crews disembarked in orderly lines, beginning to load and unload cargo.

Hidden within massive wooden crates lay the three captives: the big guy, Da Dou, and Hong Zhu.

All three lay limp, utterly powerless to resist.

“We're here?” Hong Zhu frowned, desperately scheming an escape.

“Where exactly is this?” Da Dou grew tense.

“Snore... snore...” big guy slept soundly, his belly puffed high.

The Imperial Spy Chief oversaw the handover, while two concealed gold level fighters escorted the prisoners.

When the wooden crate opened, Da Dou and the others found themselves in a dungeon.

Each was thrown into separate cells; the sleeping big guy was carried inside.

In a secret chamber, the Imperial Spy Chief frowned. “Where is [Emancipator]?”

“Lord [Emancipator] is entertaining important guests and cannot leave at this moment,” the receptionist replied.

“Important person...” The Imperial Spy Chief's brow relaxed. “Has Tan Mo arrived?”

The attendant hesitated before nodding.

The Imperial Spy Chief drew a breath, sat down, and began waiting patiently.

Directly above his head loomed the city government palace.

Tan Mo was ushered into the city lord's study.

He strode unapologetically to the cabinet, selected a bottle of red wine, and poured himself a glass first.

Taking a deep, satisfying swig, he narrowed his eyes and smiled slyly like a weasel. “Your red wine here is quite good,” he remarked to the other person in the room.

“Any sorrow-dispelling red wine left?”

"I heard the 600 bottles of sorrow-dispelling red wine from the Intoxication Church were all snatched up. Now the Intoxication Church, pirates, and coastal factions are all scrambling for these treasures."

The other man shook his head, seated himself at the head of the table, and gestured toward the guest seat opposite the desk.

But Tan Mo deliberately refused to sit, instead leaning against the window. “Should I address you by your Imperial Secret Spy Agency codename, [Emancipator], or is it better to just call you Snow Bird Harbor City Lord?”

The Imperial Spy codenamed [Emancipator] was none other than Snow Bird Harbor City Lord!

Leveraging the pretext fabricated by “fake defeating Cong Mang,” Tan Mo had smoothly entered Snow Bird Harbor with Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's deliberate cooperation.

As the investigator dispatched by Imperial Secret Spy Agency, Tan Mo's targets extended beyond the dim-eyed inhabitants of Two Eyes Island. His scrutiny also fell upon figures like [Emancipator] (Snow Bird Harbor City Lord) and [Usurper] on Ice Sculpture Island.

Naturally, having achieved a resounding victory on Two Eyes Island, Tan Mo's appetite had grown considerably. In his eyes, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was a vast gold mine waiting to be mined!

From their private meeting onwards, Tan Mo began applying pressure.

Entering the study, he took the liberty of pouring his own wine and leaning against the window, all strong hints designed to exert psychological pressure on the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.

Extorting bribes was something Tan Mo had done countless times; he was highly skilled and cunning in his methods.

Sensing the hostility, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord fell silent for a moment before retrieving a small wooden box from a drawer.

The box was compact yet adorned with gold inlays, its design embodying the intricate, fairy-like artistry characteristic of the region.

He slid the box slowly across the desk toward the empty guest seat.

Tan Mo remained expressionless, holding his wine glass in one hand as he strolled slowly to the table. With the fingers of his other hand, he gently flicked the edge of the box.

The lid lifted, revealing the treasures within.

Dozens of gems lay scattered inside, varying in size.

Their hues were diverse, but the aura emanating from them was at least gold level. At least ten were saint level gems.

The multicolored brilliance of the gems reflected off Tan Mo's plump face.

Only then did a faint smile appear.

It was his first smile since meeting the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.

“Honorable Investigator, you've traveled far and endured much hardship. Please accept this token of welcome,” Snow Bird Harbor City Lord said.

Hearing it was merely a greeting gift; Tan Mo chuckled softly before slowly sitting down.

A battle of words, a test, a clash, a tug-of-war, unfolded immediately.

Much of their conversation revolved around idle pleasantries, yet beneath lay the true bargaining. Magic lights illuminated pretense; red wine rippled with greed.

Amidst this, Tan Mo asked about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps directly: “I hear this group passed through Snow Bird Harbor to reach Ice Sculpture Island? They've also worked with you, City Lord?”

The city lord looked surprised, his guard rising slightly. “Why would Lord Tan Mo take an interest in a mere mercenary corps?”

Tan Mo's lips curled into a grin, revealing stark white teeth. “These fellows aren't ordinary.”

“I've heard their name mentioned repeatedly on Snake Rat Island and Two Eyes Island.”

“Their leader, Long Fu, even slew a gold level opponent while only silver level himself. He's now a household name in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom.”

“I hear you used them to successfully eliminate the local Bayonet Gang in Snow Bird Harbor.”

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed: “It was merely mutual exploitation.”

“I shall detail this matter thoroughly during tomorrow's formal investigation.”

"I used them as a legitimate pretext to swiftly eliminate the Bayonet Gang. They, in turn, exploited me and the conflict with the Bayonet Gang to gain nationwide fame."

Tan Mo inquired, “How formidable is their leader, Long Fu?”

He intended to extort the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, and Long Fu's strength was a key factor in his calculations.

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord frowned slightly: "I happen to possess the latest magic footage of Long Fu in combat. It shows his duel with Bing Yang, where he held absolute dominance. His opponent, once a gold level fighter, couldn't land a single blow."

“Do not underestimate this group!”

“Long Fu once single-handedly eliminated three gold level fighters at once: the Axe Gang leader, Jia Bing, and Lin.”

“Truthfully, my reason for collaborating with them was to lure out the arms dealer behind them.”

Tan Mo smiled: "With the Empire's full-scale invasion of the Wilderness Continent, the beastmen's equipment generally lags behind ours. Yet numerous arms dealers smuggle in and sell cutting-edge weaponry to those beastmen at exorbitant prices."

“Eradicating such arms dealers would indeed be a major achievement.”

“It seems Lord Tan Mo is quite interested in this merit as well?” The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord smiled, “We could collaborate.”

Tan Mo shook his head slightly, casually deflecting, “Traces of necromancers have appeared on Two Eyes Island. I suspect the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps may be involved in this matter.”

This casual deflection was merely to conceal his true purpose.

Compared to merit, he was far more interested in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' money!

From Yan Yi on Two Eyes Island, he'd obtained intelligence suggesting the island's entire wealth likely ended up in the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps' hands.

This detail, however, remained unknown to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.

Tan Mo had no intention of revealing his true motives to Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.

The Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes flickered slightly. "Speaking of Two Eyes Island's Lord Hun Tong, he was quite a talent in business matters. What a pity he fell to pirates."

Tan Mo took a sip of red wine, his expression turning heavy with sorrow, “It was my fault.”

“I was ambushed by pirates and wounded by Cong Mang.”

"During that time, the pirates brutally murdered Hun Tong!"

“I have already submitted my report, apologizing to the Empire for my failure.”

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's eyes flickered again, his words offering Tan Mo solace, the real culprit was the pirates, not him.

"That damned dog! I'd cut off his head right now if I could!!" Beside him, Hun Tong clenched his fists in rage, grinding his teeth.

Beside him stood Dao Hen.

Both had cast the deception divine spell, following Tan Mo all the way and witnessing everything.

After about ten minutes, Tan Mo left the study, escorted by Snow Bird Harbor City Lord.

The steward led him to his lodgings.

"Tan Mo... he really is a tough nut to crack. His appetite is far too big..." Snow Bird Harbor City Lord sighed inwardly.

He pushed aside his distracting thoughts and turned to his duties.

"Oh? Sleeping Man, Da Dou, and Hong Zhu have all been brought in?" Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's expression brightened slightly.

After a moment's consideration, he made his decision: "Da Dou hails from Eruption Island. Though his master is dead, he was a founding elder of the island. Eruption Island is a legend level power; he must not be harmed."

"Hong Zhu once fought alongside the necromancer. This time, when Tu Ji died on the Magnet Archipelago, she emerged unscathed. We must keep her alive to handle future investigations and interrogations from the Blood Light Punishment Institution."

“As for the Sleeping Man...”

Observing the big guy's exemplary conduct during captivity, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord let out a peculiar chuckle.

"What a clumsy oaf... yet he might possess saint level potential. Just keep feeding him well!"

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord's speculation was quite natural.

Primarily, the big guy had already shown astonishing feats in the eating contest, and Da Dou's act of taking away the big guy had exposed many secrets.

Snow Bird Harbor City Lord: “If he truly has saint level potential, my contribution will be immense!”

“Did Tan Mo just inquire about the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps because he's interested in this big oaf too?”

“This matter must be kept from him.”

Dao Hen and Hun Tong split their forces: one followed Tan Mo until he fell asleep, while the other shadowed Snow Bird Harbor City Lord until he concluded his affairs. They then followed him through a secret passage into the dungeon.

There, Snow Bird Harbor City Lord met with the Imperial Spy Chief and conversed at length.

After the surveillance concluded, Dao Hen knelt on the ground, silently praying to the Fish God Mist to report his recent findings.

There was no response.

The fishman youngster was still absorbing divinity, utterly unable to spare any attention.

Dao Hen had no choice but to decide, following previous orders, to continue monitoring Tan Mo and the Snow Bird Harbor City Lord alongside Hun Tong.

The night grew ever deeper.

Zong Ge and Zi Di had returned to the inn.

Zong Ge was now bedridden.

Zi Di stood by his side, casting spells with all her might, but the effect was negligible.

Zong Ge's eyes remained tightly shut, his brow furrowed. His condition was dire!

Exposed to the Frost Aura, he had been affected by the potion effect of [Beautiful Future], causing his physical and mental processes to occasionally surge at accelerated speeds.

Zong Ge bore three latent threats: Blood Vengeance, Flower Willow, and a deadly poison, all now amplified within the accelerated timeframe.

During their return journey, these latent threats had erupted multiple times.

He had fought them off with great difficulty and was now severely wounded!