Chapter 58: Luring the Snake Out of Its Hole

A detailed list of suspicious individuals and organizations associated with the "Emergence Cult" was submitted to Bai Yujing's internal affairs system account.

The Imperial Crime Investigation Bureau reviewed the case files from the administrative district police station where the incidents occurred, examining the original investigation results regarding the deaths of the wealthy merchants.

By cross-referencing this with the beneficiaries who gained the most from the aftermath, they ultimately narrowed their suspects down to five companies.

The murdered merchants had all been fierce competitors with these five companies in the business arena during their lifetimes.

Subsequently, the Imperial Crime Investigation Bureau conducted an in-depth investigation into the phone call logs and social networks of the five company bosses, discovering a common trait among them.

They were all extremely superstitious, deeply believing in so-called "masters."

These "masters" varied in identity; some were "enlightened eminent monks," some were "reclusive Taoist priests," and others claimed to be "psychic mediums."

Their only commonality was their secretive whereabouts.

They often appeared out of nowhere just as the bosses fell into difficulties, helping them resolve their supposed misfortunes.

To avoid startling the enemy, the Imperial Crime Investigation Bureau decided to draw the snakes out of their dens.

They planned to covertly have a conglomerate coordinate cross-district operations, launching various large-scale projects that would specifically target these bosses.

They would intentionally push these enterprises into fierce, neck-and-neck competition with others, forcing the opposing side to seek help from the "masters."

At that time, by closely monitoring the movements of these "masters," they could uncover the channels connecting them to the upper echelons of the Emergence Cult.

Bai Yujing carefully reviewed the report, moved his cursor, and clicked the "Approve" button.

Normally, the Imperial Crime Investigation Bureau had a standardized process for handling such major cases.

However, for cases under Bai Yujing's personal purview, any specific action plan had to be submitted for prior review and could only be executed after receiving approval.

Exiting the report, he glanced over the daily briefing on missing persons within the empire.

Given that demons needed to consume "vital breath" to sustain their existence, missing person cases were currently the empire's highest priority.

Any disappearance reported in any region had to be logged immediately, with full efforts dedicated to investigating the cause.

If local police departments failed to crack the case, it would be escalated to the National Police Headquarters, which would dispatch experts or pull elites directly from the legions to intervene.

The reasons behind population disappearances were complex and varied.

Some people ran away to hide from creditors, some left home after family disputes, some ventured into forests for "wilderness survival" and went off track, while others went into hiding after committing murder...

Bai Yujing scrolled down the list.

He paid little attention to those missing persons with obvious and explicable reasons.

His gaze focused heavily on cases of "inexplicable" disappearances, which were marked as under urgent search.

Finding no fault with the handling procedures, Bai Yujing closed the page.

He stood up and said to the silent clone of Nangong Lin standing nearby, "I leave the routine affairs to you."

"Mm."

The clone nodded slightly, her detached expression making her look like a precise yet emotionless administrative processing machine.

Then, he turned to Nangong Lin on the sofa and called out, "Processing official documents is a bit tiring. Let's go to the Jade Wave Pavilion for a while."

Nangong Lin closed the book in her hands and said calmly, "You only just approved the Emergence Cult's report. The entire process took less than five minutes."

"A sage only needs to grasp the macro-direction of major events. Don't underestimate these five minutes; that is the quintessential five minutes that determines the empire's trajectory, incomparable to ordinary time."

Lucia quickly chimed in from the side.

Staying in the imperial study had indeed made her feel somewhat stuffy, and she was eager to go out and get some fresh air.

Nangong Lin glanced at Lucia, her azure eyes as clear as spring water, a brilliant smile blooming across her face.

Judging solely by appearance, Lucia looked entirely like a loyal official.

Yet the words she spoke sounded precisely like the flattery of the sycophantic "treacherous officials" recorded in ancient books.

Of course, Nangong Lin herself could hardly be considered a "loyal official" in the traditional sense.

With a gentle wave of her right hand,

in an instant, all three vanished without a trace from the imperial study, leaving only the clone sitting steadily at the desk, meticulously managing the endless flow of state affairs.

She felt no resentment whatsoever.

Because at the moment of creation, Nangong Lin had embedded a unique core directive and goal into every clone, ensuring their energy remained unfailingly focused on their assigned tasks.

The Imperial Palace covered a vast expanse, encompassing every imaginable type of recreational facility in the modern world, and an aquarium was naturally no exception.

The Jade Wave Pavilion was the giant aquarium within the Imperial Palace dedicated to housing and displaying various marine life.

It housed sharks, whales, and a myriad of rare and exotic fish, totaling over one hundred thousand marine creatures of all sizes.

The entire facility extended five stories underground, utilizing massive, high-strength glass to carve out independent ecological zones within natural seawater, ensuring both the biological needs of the creatures and exceptional visibility for spectators.

To be honest, this was Lucia's first time visiting the Jade Wave Pavilion.

As the commander of the Imperial Guard, she did not need to patrol designated areas of the Imperial Palace at fixed times like regular guards.

Consequently, she had no idea how many buildings the Imperial Palace contained or what specific purpose each served.

Lucia gazed out at the seemingly endless expanse of azure water, shimmering with ripples across the surface.

The breeze blowing toward them carried the salty scent of the sea.

Groups of seagulls even circled and flew overhead.

"Awoo——"

A low and lingering call suddenly echoed from the distance.

Immediately afterward, ten thick columns of water burst violently into the air from the distant surface.

Looking closely, Lucia realized those were ten gigantic whales spouting water and playing together simultaneously.

"Does the Imperial Palace actually keep whales here?"

"The number is still a bit small; it's not as spectacular as the pods of whales I saw in the Omed Strait."

Bai Yujing's tone carried a hint of nostalgia.

Due to the lessons learned from the world he came from before, he had always enforced extremely strict environmental protection measures, preferring to delay technological progress rather than allow irreversible damage to the natural environment.

It was not that he valued the environment more than human lives.

Rather, he knew deeply that only by maintaining a healthy environment could humanity truly enjoy a high quality of life, prevent the breeding of all kinds of inexplicable viruses, and reduce the frequency of extreme climate attacks.

Although natural disasters still occurred from time to time within the empire, their frequency was consistently controlled within the normal limits of natural fluctuation, rather than catastrophic climate events striking once every century or millennium.

"The Omed Strait..."

Lucia blinked her large eyes blankly.

Nangong Lin explained softly from the side, "The Omed Strait is the marine area with the largest and most concentrated whale population in this world."

"Oh..."

Lucia nodded, a surge of embarrassment welling up in her heart.

As a native of this world, her geographical knowledge actually fell short of someone from another realm.

She quickly changed the subject to cover her awkwardness, saying, "What are we waiting for? Let's go inside!"

"No need to go in."

Bai Yujing shook his head, a playful smile appearing on his face as he looked at Nangong Lin. "Can you make this entire body of water and all the creatures inside it temporarily float into the air?"

"No problem."

Nangong Lin replied in a gentle tone, as if speaking of a trivial matter.

She casually waved her right hand toward the vast artificial ocean before them.