Zhu Shi was clearly still wary of Patrol Lu possibly trying to recruit me.

In reality, if Patrol Lu truly wanted to speak with me privately, there was no way Zhu Shi could stop him.

This was more about her explicitly expressing her stance.

Patrol Lu chuckled and raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright, I understand. You’ve done a great job this time, so I’ll listen to you."

"What about Zhuang Cheng's contribution?" Zhu Shi pressed.

"Of course, not only will I approve Zhuang Cheng’s status as an External Wuchang, but Mount Luo will also provide him with ample compensation afterward," Patrol Lu promised while removing a ring from his right middle finger—a piece seemingly woven from iron wires.

Earlier, he had used this ring to phase his right hand, clutch the Oddities heart, and ensure it couldn’t resist interrogation.

If Mount Luo were to reward me later, I’d honestly prefer receiving a supernatural artifact like that.

Whether I’d actually use it or not was irrelevant—just having something like it would make me happy for an entire day.

After bidding farewell, I walked out of the field first.

Patrol Lu kept his word and didn’t follow.

But as I walked, other thoughts surfaced in my mind.

At the beginning, he mentioned that my involvement in this incident was also a test.

While he might have gauged my power level when he attempted to transfer information into my consciousness earlier, I couldn’t believe he’d stop there.

Without joining us on the front lines, how else could he have evaluated my actual combat performance?

Was he relying on the surveillance cameras?

After picking up Ma Zao, I had become quite sensitive to monitoring equipment and had checked the field’s surveillance system.

Most people might not realize this, but surveillance cameras need regular cleaning; otherwise, their lenses become too dirty to function properly.

This football field was barely maintained, and while I couldn’t confirm whether the cameras were broken, they certainly weren’t operating effectively.

Perhaps Patrol Lu planned to use divination magic to read the memory of the land.

He had used the same magic to obtain photos of Ma Zao.

If he managed to glimpse my combat actions, my elemental transformation ability would undoubtedly be exposed.

Although Zhu Shi had gone through a lot of trouble to keep my power a secret, I no longer cared if it was revealed.

The reason I had hidden my abilities in the past was to avoid excessive scrutiny from Mount Luo, which might have put Ma Zao at risk.

But now, I had no choice but to rely on Zhu Shi and Patrol Lu’s strength to find Ma Zao.

The primary reason for hiding my powers was long gone.

So if Patrol Lu wanted to discover the truth, let him.

I found a secluded corner where no passersby could see me, then activated Flame Teleportation.

Out of some lingering hope, I had set up a Firefly Beacon at home, thinking that if Ma Zao ever returned secretly, I would know immediately.

Now, it also conveniently allowed me to teleport home anytime I wanted.

After returning home, I continued using my elemental form to control the “Fireflies” scattered across Xianshui City, searching for any trace of Ma Zao.

The Oddities had mentioned that Ma Zao had appeared in the New District, even providing a specific location—a neglected vegetable market.

That area was now the focus of my search.

Unfortunately, Ma Zao had been there last night, and it was unlikely she had stayed in one place for long.

As expected, despite searching for hours, I found nothing.

But just knowing she had passed through this place, leaving traces of her presence, made me feel one step closer to her.

Compared to the utterly directionless search of the past two days, this faint clue brought a certain sense of calm.

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After searching for hours, the clock had already passed midnight.

I finally exited my elemental form, left home, and went for a walk outside the residential complex.

Walking helped soften my rigid thoughts—it was like a massage for the mind.

This was a recent realization I’d come to appreciate.

I strolled along the grassy bank by the river.

To my left, the water flowed gently, while to my right was a road lined with shops.

Most of them were closed at this hour.

Yet, a few stores remained open—barbecue stalls, for example.

Surprisingly, they still had customers.

With the indoor seating full, people gathered around plastic tables and chairs set up outside, chatting and enjoying their skewers.

It was hard to say whether this street was lively or quiet, but it was undeniably an ordinary scene of everyday life.

Strangely enough, after experiencing such a surreal and magical battle earlier, this mundane scene felt almost like a glimpse into an entirely different world.

What exactly is an adventure beyond reality? I couldn’t help but reflect on myself again.

At that moment, someone approached from the opposite direction.

He seemed to be strolling along the riverside, just like me.

Initially, I thought he was just another passerby.

But as he drew closer, I recognized him.

He saw me too and greeted me with a smile, "Still not home yet, Zhuang Cheng?"

"Patrol Lu? Weren’t you investigating that head?" I asked.

"I’ve been at it for hours, but haven’t made much progress. My brain’s fried, so I decided to take a break," he replied. "What about you?"

"Just clearing my head," I said.

"Well, since fate brought us together, how about sharing some skewers?"

He gestured towards one of the barbecue stalls across the street.

I couldn’t tell if this was truly fate or if he had deliberately sought me out.

I had a feeling he was trying to convince me to join his faction.

While I wasn’t particularly interested in political maneuvering, I still needed his divination abilities to help locate Ma Zao.

So, for now, I had no choice but to humor him.

We ordered a few skewers and some drinks and took a seat at one of the plastic tables set up in a corner outside the stall.

The skewers and drinks arrived one after another.

"First of all, congratulations. You’re no longer just an ordinary freelance demon hunter. You’ve now been officially recognized by Mount Luo as an External Wuchang,” Patrol Lu said with a smile.

"The official documents and credentials will arrive in a couple of days, and the specific rewards will also be finalized then. But for now, you can have this."

He reached into his coat and pulled out the iron-wire-like ring I had been eyeing earlier, placing it on the table in front of me.

At first, I was still thinking about how I wasn’t particularly impressed by political gestures, but in this moment, I couldn’t resist the charm of a gift.

My gaze was immediately drawn to it, and I couldn’t help but ask, “What’s this?”

"The Black Rope Heart-Locking Ring. Once worn on your finger, it allows your hand to phase through someone’s body and grasp their heart," he explained the ring’s function.

"During that time, the person cannot lie or remain silent. If they try to resist and force themselves to lie or stay quiet, their heart will stop beating. Of course, the wearer can also crush the person’s heart directly if they wish.

"Additionally, if the target’s magical power is too strong, the ring’s effects will be nullified. Even if the target willingly cooperates, the ring will become unusable after being activated. You’ll need to keep that in mind."

"What I mean is… why are you giving this to me?" I asked.

"This is your personal item, right? Are you giving this to me as a reward on behalf of Mount Luo?"

"This is my personal thank-you gift. I’ve been investigating the Humanitarian Division for a long time. Part of the reason I got involved in the Oddities case was that I suspected there might be some connection between them and the Humanitarian Division," he said.

"You’ve had your eye on this ring for a while, haven’t you? Since you like it, it’s yours now."

Hearing this, I didn’t hold back.

I immediately took the Black Rope Heart-Locking Ring and tucked it away.

Then I asked, "You said you joined the investigation because of your pursuit of the Humanitarian Division. But earlier, you advised Zhu Shi and me not to capture the Oddities alive. If you hate the Humanitarian Division so much, shouldn’t you have encouraged us to try every means possible to take a live prisoner?"

He gave a self-deprecating smile and didn’t answer my question directly.

Instead, he said, "If I had known earlier that you were capable of something as extraordinary as elementalization, I certainly wouldn’t have thought that Oddities could pose a threat to you two. Maybe I would’ve told you to try capturing it alive, just like you said."

"So you really did find out about my elemental form." I wasn’t surprised by this revelation.

"Did you use some kind of divination magic, like reading the memory of the land in that Soccer Field?"

"Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t. Do you know why Zhu Shi stayed behind in that place?" He chuckled.

"She anticipated that I might attempt to use divination to read the land and uncover your secrets. So she stayed there and set up barriers specifically to obstruct any divination magic."

"She’s clearly doing something beneficial for you, but for no reason hides it from you. Maybe she feels a little guilty about taking credit, she really is a clumsy girl who doesn’t understand how to navigate social situations."

No wonder Zhu Shi stayed in the Soccer Field—she did it for me…

Since childhood, aside from Chang'an, I rarely felt such heartfelt concern from others.

For a moment, I didn’t know how to express my emotions.

But, if that’s the case, how did Patrol Lu know about my elementalization?

"By the way, about that head…" I suddenly remembered.

"The Oddities must have seen my elemental form. Did you use the head to divine this information?"

"Not exactly. Zhu Shi also infused some counter-divination magic into that head. Although it doesn’t affect my ability to divine other things, it specifically obstructs me from divining the details of the battle between you and the Oddities." Lu Youxun shook his head.

"When did she do that?" I asked in surprise.

"She did it when sealing the residual power inside the head," he replied.

"She’s socially awkward, but when it comes to other matters, she’s airtight. Aside from the mentioned aspects, she probably also took several precautions against my power. If I had tried to use my power to probe you, I would have definitely been thwarted."

"I guess my previous attempt to temporarily resurrect the head exceeded her expectations, so she was watching me closely. I don’t know if you noticed. If I had tried to inquire about the details of your battle, she would have certainly interfered. It’s quite frightening."

"Then what kind of strange spell did you use to bypass her tight defenses?" I asked.

Patrol Lu glanced at me, then took something black out from behind him and placed it on the table.

I looked at it with strong curiosity.

It was an ordinary electronic telescope.