“Indeed, there is something,” Jiang Wang said. “I’ve been meaning to take a trip to the Near Sea Islands recently, and thought I’d drop by the Prefecture of Inspection to pick up a mission. But I’ve searched high and low and haven’t found anything suitable. I’m not sure if I’m looking in the wrong place or if my clearance isn’t high enough.”

He saw no reason to reject Zheng Shangming’s goodwill. Friendship is a matter of give and take, and relationships are built over time.

And his trip to the Capital Prefecture of Inspection for this report was indeed with the intention of picking up a mission here.

As the slayer of Hai Zongming, although it was a defensive counterattack and the battlefield was outside the sphere of influence of the Qi Kingdom and the Fishing Sea Pavilion, the Fishing Sea Pavilion couldn’t find any reason to openly hunt him down. However, if he went to the Near Sea Islands ostentatiously, he would inevitably run into trouble.

His status as Baron of Green Sheep Town naturally afforded him the protection of the Qi Kingdom.

A fourth-grade Blue Badge Constable on official duty added to his importance, and in some ways even represented the dignity of the Qi Kingdom.

Before, Hai Zongming’s attempt to kill Jiang Wang was a private act, and outside the borders of Qi. If Jiang Wang had died then, the Qi Kingdom would certainly have troubled the Fishing Sea Pavilion. Even if Hai Zongming was an elder with real power, he couldn’t have done it without paying a price. It was simply that Hai Zongming believed the value of the Rouge Mirror outweighed the price he would pay for killing Jiang Wang, so he acted so recklessly.

He might even have gotten away with it if he had silently killed Jiang Wang, and the Qi Kingdom couldn’t find the murderer.

The Qi Kingdom and the Fishing Sea Pavilion had already argued about the right and wrong of Jiang Wang’s counter-kill of Hai Zongming. The Fishing Sea Pavilion had no advantage in terms of reason, power, or influence, and their current silence was the result.

At this moment, on the Near Sea Islands, the Fishing Sea Pavilion would not easily harm a Qi Kingdom nobleman on official duty, unless they wanted to provoke a war.

This was the first advantage.

The second advantage was that if Jiang Wang accepted a mission to the Near Sea Islands, he would inevitably have to learn about the area first. Depending on the level of the mission, the Capital Prefecture of Inspection’s intelligence on the Near Sea Islands would be open to him.

Combined with the information collected by Chong Xuansheng, he could gain a better understanding of the Near Sea Islands, a strategy that killed two birds with one stone and offered many benefits.

Zheng Shangming thought for a moment. “There are actually quite a few things happening in the Near Sea Islands. If you want a suitable mission, why don’t you tell me your requirements?”

Jiang Wang didn’t hide anything and said directly, “The mission level shouldn’t be too low. Preferably above the Inner Mansion realm, but not exceeding the Outer Building realm.”

His strength had progressed to this level already… He was completely confident in handling cases at the Outer Building level?

Zheng Shangming gave Jiang Wang a deep look. “Wait here, I’ll go ask around.”

To obtain higher-level intelligence on the Near Sea Islands from the Capital Prefecture of Inspection, Jiang Wang could only try to raise the difficulty of the mission as much as possible. But he wasn’t seeking death, and missions above the Outer Building realm were beyond his capabilities.

As for simply taking on a mission to look at the intelligence without actually carrying it out, that wouldn’t work either. The Prefecture of Inspection had its own reward and punishment system. Like the mission Jiang Wang had previously accepted to pursue the Gate of Hell, it was only because Northern Barracks Commandant Zheng Shi had put in a word, and God Catcher Yue Leng had tacitly approved, that he was allowed to register and leave the territory, and it was assumed that he wouldn’t gain anything.

After all, no one would think that an Inner Mansion Constable could do anything to the Gate of Hell.

Therefore, the mission that Jiang Wang accepted for the Near Sea Islands had to be completed seriously. Protecting his Blue Badge would also benefit his future development in the Qi Kingdom.

The Capital Prefecture of Inspection wasn’t very high-level, but it was a large government office. The Blue Badge Constables coming in and out were all very good at staring at people and calling people, and the inexplicable pressure was very great.

Jiang Wang waited in the hall for a while, and unexpectedly ran into an acquaintance.

“Sir Jiang!” Lin Youxie, wearing a blue square scarf, bowed respectfully from afar.

From the perspective of the Blue Badge Constables, Jiang Wang, wearing a fourth-grade Blue Badge, was already one rank higher than her.

She behaved very dutifully, and her etiquette was impeccable, whether it was because of the fourth-grade Blue Badge or because of Jiang Wang’s warning last time.

“Long time no see, how have you been?”

“Thank you for your concern, I’m doing well.” Jiang Wang nodded. “Constable Lin’s demeanor is as impressive as ever.”

It had to be said that his skills in small talk were quite lacking. No matter who he spoke to, it was always the same line: “Demeanor is as impressive as ever.”

He had no prejudice against Lin Youxie, and even quite respected these Blue Badge Constables who handled extraordinary cases and maintained law and order, but only if Lin Youxie didn’t keep testing and doubting him endlessly.

It was interesting to note that Lin Youxie only had the Tenglong Realm cultivation base, and should have worn a sixth-grade Blue Badge, but凭借着 her rich experience in handling cases and her ancestral methods, she had solved many cases and was now wearing a fifth-grade Blue Badge.

And Jiang Wang, with his Inner Mansion Realm cultivation base, wore a fourth-grade Blue Badge,憑借着 due to his extraordinary strength, Zheng Shi’s favor, and Yue Leng’s appreciation.

Both of them could be considered to be holding positions beyond their rank, and should have a lot in common.

But because of Lin Youxie’s inexplicable suspicion of Jiang Wang, the relationship between the two had once been very tense.

Perhaps it wasn’t inexplicable, perhaps… Lin Youxie suspected Zhang Yong. Every time she spoke to Jiang Wang, she would always bring the topic to Zhang Yong.

But the case of the Zhang family of Phoenix Immortal had already been closed, and Lin Youxie herself had personally participated in the case. Zhang Yong was now working for Jiang Wuqi in the Palace of Longevity, which was enough to prove that nothing could be found out about him.

Lin Youxie was still focusing on Zhang Yong, which seemed like she was slapping herself in the face, and was bound to be futile. What was the point?

Moreover, Jiang Wang was truly innocent in the matter of Zhang Yong. He had no involvement with Zhang Yong at all. They had only entered the Heavenly Mansion Secret Realm together once, and he had even forgotten the process. After hearing about the Zhang family of Phoenix Immortal being exterminated, he had visited once at Chong Xuansheng’s request, and had no contact since then.

Even if Zhang Yong really had a problem, he wouldn’t be able to find Jiang Wang.

The only problem was that Jiang Wang suspected Zhang Yong’s true identity because of their encounter in the Cloud Mist Mountain. But Jiang Wang had chosen to conceal it at the time, and no third person knew his suspicion.

Or perhaps, Zhang Yong was just a verbal smokescreen. Was Lin Youxie’s real purpose to investigate how the Gate of Hell had sneaked into Linzi City in the early stages? Or to investigate who ordered Xu Fang to apologize outside the Azure Stone Palace?

During his time in the Qi Kingdom, if there was anything that he absolutely couldn’t expose, it would be these two things.

Faced with Jiang Wang’s perfunctory greeting, Lin Youxie smiled lightly. “Sir Jiang separated from the main force of the Blue Badge team, but independently discovered the whereabouts of King Qin Guang. That’s what I call a brilliant demeanor!”

It was inevitable to feel uneasy when being around smart people, especially a smart person who specialized in handling cases, as if one’s secrets were constantly being exposed.

“You flatter me.” Jiang Wang decided not to suffer for no reason, and said politely, “I still have things to do here, Constable Lin, you see…”

Lin Youxie seemed to be completely oblivious to the unspoken meaning. “What is Sir Jiang busy with? I wonder if I can be of assistance?”

“You’re too kind!” Jiang Wang said helplessly. “It’s just a private matter, I won’t trouble you.”

“Oh.” Lin Youxie nodded, and then said, “Actually, it’s no trouble at all. We’re all colleagues. Speaking of which, I’d like to ask Sir Jiang for a favor.”

She was climbing up the pole after seeing the snake, her technique was too smooth.

Was this a skill that all Blue Badge Constables possessed?

Jiang Wang thought about some random things and said with a laugh, “I only recently returned to Linzi, what help can I offer? I’m afraid you’ll be disappointed.”

“It’s not a very troublesome matter.”

Lin Youxie said with a smile and sincere words, “Sir Jiang hasn’t worn the Blue Badge for long. First, he found King Qin Guang of the Gate of Hell within the Qi Kingdom, and after leaving Qi, he independently found the whereabouts of King Chujiang. It can be seen that Sir Jiang has studied tracking quite a bit. I have been obsessed with tracking techniques for many years, but I have encountered a bottleneck, and my progress is difficult and unbearable! I wonder if Sir Jiang can spare some time to discuss it with me?”

Looking at her intelligent eyes, Jiang Wang had the illusion that she had already unearthed all of his inner secrets.

He realized that casually mentioning King Chujiang’s appearance in Tuoshan to deal with the mission was too careless, and he had made a mistake!

It was very possible that Lin Youxie would connect this to his connection with the Gate of Hell.

The only thing worth rejoicing about was that he really didn’t have much contact with King Chujiang, he had only spoken a few words briefly, so it was impossible to find out any problems. Moreover, he could openly say that King Chujiang’s whereabouts, which, from another perspective, proved his candor.

But in any case, he still had to keep his distance from people like Lin Youxie.

But she was so troublesome that it would probably be difficult to achieve his goal by politely distancing himself.

With this in mind, Jiang Wang coldly shook his head and said with arrogance, “Your rank is too low, and your cultivation is even lower. This official has no time to discuss it with you.”