Inside a large warehouse, various construction materials were piled haphazardly, leaving only a dozen or so square meters of empty space by the door.

By a small table, Yang Zicang was forced to sit, listening to the complaints pouring from the aunties, grannies, old grandpas, and grimy men reeking of sweat around the table. Two or three mouths were spouting their own stories nearly all at once.

A Level 1 Memory Magic Rune slowly emerged within the sea of his spirit.

“Alright. Mrs. Norsy, I understand your situation. Ms. Dorothy, you’d better stick to the key points. The details about your aunt-in-law and her ex-husband can be skipped. “

“Oh dear, when they came twenty years ago… “

“The curved plot of land at the east end of the village—it was originally ours! My husband rented it out to our nephew, but now he’s fled to escape disaster, so it should rightfully be returned to us! “

“That’s right! And what about my second brother’s old house? On what grounds does the Land Claims Office claim it’s training grounds for the Security Department? Just because the yard’s big? Our great-grandfather was hauling paving stones from dozens of kilometers away long before the Security Department ever existed! “

Yang Zicang made a conscious effort to absorb everything around him.

Another half-hour passed. Blurring the boundaries of distinct voices, the chaotic babble began to coalesce into a murky, indistinct “scene. “

He had a vague sensation that this turbulent “scene ” might solidify into something permanent within his Mental Sea—the rudiments of a barely perceptible “Spiritual Imprint ” seem to be rising from beneath these overlapping faces and stories.

This sudden awareness made Yang Zicang jolt back to reality “with a start. “

Slap!Reality snapped back into focus, as if previously partitioned. The jarring noise crashed into his ears all at once, followed instantly by a stark wave of mental exhaustion.

“Alright, hold it—stop! “

Drenched in sweat, he raised his hand to call a halt.

Good god. If he listened for a moment longer, he was genuinely afraid he’d end up forging a “Basic Spiritual Pattern ” on the spot.

“Sigh, we really put this Master ‘Mist’ on the spot, ” someone apologized, setting a chipped cup of tea down in front of Yang Zicang, while a few others suddenly realized their collective enthusiasm had unmistakably crossed a polite boundary.

Jean Sandi came over holding a stack of paper. “Boy, I’ll help you write. You folks go door to door and pick out the important stuff—anything that can prove ownership of your land and houses in the past, but keep it brief. If you write too much, those big shots at the division headquarters won’t bother reading it. “

“Let me do it. “

Yang Zicang took the folded paper, flipped open the cap of the round-bellied fountain pen, and saw a unit designation engraved on the nib. It was a worn-out old pen from the army.

｛Thousand Arms Fist!｝

｛Coordinate, Rank Thousand!｝

Suddenly, Yang Zicang felt a flawless, inspired smoothness wash over him.

｛I am the Great Quadrilateral, the Trajectory Master.｝

The villagers watched in awe as this Fogfolk man began writing at breakneck speed. His hand would suddenly blur, leaving several afterimages, and the nib itself seemed to spring to life, flowing with an endless stream of ink. Despite the blinding pace, there wasn’t a single interruption in the ink flow!

“Fogfolk! Truly amazing, these Fogfolk! “

Exclamations filled the warehouse. In just a few minutes, a large sheet of paper was densely packed with writing. The content matched everything the crowd had said without the slightest discrepancy, only the phrasing was much more concise.

Just then, a boy of fourteen or fifteen stormed furiously into the warehouse.

“Stop writing! “

Everyone turned to look as two more boys, dripping with sweat, rushed in behind him.

“The army is coming! They’ve brought two big trucks, and they’re loaded with ropes and chains—are they here to take us away?! “

“How can this be! “

The people in the warehouse glanced at the few youths, then turned their eyes toward the Fogfolk behind the table.

“Fusi, you little brat, did you get a clear look? “

Yang Zicang looked up and saw a few young boys at the door, their faces flushed from running, staring back at him with eyes full of suspicion and distrust.

“I already told you, I’m here on a secret investigation on behalf of the division headquarters. Everything that happens here must be kept strictly confidential. If later on you see me among that group of people, remember—I’m on your side.“

“Our side…” The farmers felt a surge of relief, as if they finally had a reliable pillar to lean on.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Wumin. We’ll keep it a secret, for sure.” The trembling Jean Sandi turned and slammed his hand on the table edge as he shouted loudly, “Whoever dares to leak a single word, I’ll go down to the grave with them even if it costs me these old bones!“

“Pops Sandy, please sit down. Would we really be foolish enough to muddle things during the 47th Division’s investigation? But… is this Mr. Wumin really on our side?“

“Of course!” Yang Zicang straightened the papers against the table with a sharp smack. “But only if you all stay on the side of honesty. Come on, sign your names here.“

“Ah… every word out of our mouths has always been the truth.” With uneasy hearts, the crowd took the pen from him.

……

The head of the conscription office and a deputy chief from the Police Affairs division had finally, after exhausting countless efforts, managed to scrape together two teams of men. Using training as an excuse, they drove their vehicle out of White Violet City, made a wide loop, and only then headed toward the Stone Mill.

Then, behind the dug-up dirt road, they saw the wooden fence and dozens of villagers, fully armed as well, standing their ground.

The head of the Conscription Office raised his tin-plated loudspeaker. “Lay down your resistance and return to your homes. We can pretend this never happened. Compensation can be raised by another twelve. “

“Take one more step forward, and we’ll blow up the upstream dammed lake! And we’ve been raising fish fry in there! “

Hearing this, the oddly-fashioned squad of guardsmen on the vehicle, all decked out in training gear, immediately fell into a state of disarray.

“What? You muddy-heeled bastards? You dare to privately mass-breed livestock! “

“And what do you think we are doing? They’ve already spawned a lot of fish, and we’ve prepared them right for you today! “

“You’ve got some nerve! ” On the first vehicle, Nuonuoke could not mask the tremors seizing his very legs, then forced himself to calm. “You dare to break the constitution, founding a massive, privately-run livestock farm! And you think to blow up the lake—that’s a heinous crime! Ha, no, I don’t believe you devil curs would have the balls to pull it off! “

Raving mad now, Nuonuoke stuck his head out the window and howled, his whole being congealed with pent-up rage after an afternoon of ribbing.

“Go ahead, blunderheads! Just try to blow!“

The baying stopped short—back onto his seat, slammed violently by a whitely-faced driver.

Thud, crack! A few stones whistled in, splitting the car’s window into a spiderweb of fractures.

“Try me then! Drive in one more step—I swear, I’ll show you round twos on your own command! Whipsound is all these red-hearted herding bastards are worth!“

A wiry man from the crowd raised an ancient knight’s lance, shouting, “I’m the descendant of a Knight of Honor! My ancestors gave their lives for you, and today I can risk mine for the folks! “

The villagers all wore expressions that showed they reveled in stirring up trouble.

The driver in the rear car leaned quietly to the terrified Audit Department head in the passenger seat. “Things are getting out of hand. If that fish-filled lake dam actually gets blown, it might make national news. “

“Ethese… wretched fools. They’re really pushing this mess to a point of no return! “

……

Yang Zicang, who had been trying to stall for time, discovered that these villagers had actually managed to block the convoy composed of the Police Reserve and Reserve Army troops, even causing several surveillance officers in the cars to jump out and flee.

The news of the impending lake explosion quickly reached the Land Authorities’ Office.

The terrified director nearly slid off his chair in panic.

……

At the same time, a startled Anxi reached out through the Mental Link to Yang Zicang all on his own initiative.

Minutes earlier, the thread had flashed once, carrying the message “Find a place with no one around. ” So, posing as a staffer at the ready-made clothing shop near the newspaper office, Anxi excused himself and slipped into a narrow alley.

“What’s up, Boss? For you to suddenly call on me at a time like this. ” He slid off the black vest embroidered with the insignia of “Hurst·Lorenzo Tailoring Studio. “

{There’s an urgent matter I need your help with. Can you see what’s happening on my end? }

Yang Zicang stood up in the small grove, with the two factions confronting each other in the distance behind him. The once-aggressive security team members had now shifted their focus to calming and pacifying the villagers.

“Whoa, what’s going on over there on your end? Anything else we need to handle? “

-｛Distributor February. Di’an, with rich experience, indicates that I am gestating a glorious prelude.｝

-｛Distributor February. Di’an raises the price for the glorious prelude I am gestating by 10%.｝

A radiant smile of excitement broke out on Anxi’s face.

{Set up an investigation company immediately. Put up the sign first, we’ll handle the formalities later. The division headquarters has promised me a job opportunity anyway. }

“Huh? Immediately? How urgent is it? ” the man asked incredulously, pinching his vest. “Does such a company even exist? “

{The sooner, the better. Save the bullshit. }