Once, I wanted to be a good person

Bai Zhi would have really felt like grabbing Bai Ling and leaving at this moment.

She felt that communicating with Fang Ze was simply too embarrassing.

Such obviously evasive talk, and he dared to say it so casually!

It was a direct insult to their intelligence!

Did he think she and Bai Ling were that easy to deceive?

Thinking this, she glanced at Bai Ling.

Bai Ling was biting her fingernails, eyes sparkling as she watched Fang Ze. Her hands seemed eager, as if she was mimicking the movements Fang Ze had made when he shouted his commands during the fight.

Bai Zhi: .....

Just as she was at a loss for words, Bai Ling snapped back to reality, then tugged at her sleeve and said in a low voice, "Bai. No matter if Fang Ze is joking or not... but based on the traces at the scene, it seems like he really did have a big battle with the ranger."

Upon hearing Bai Ling\'s words, Bai Zhi suddenly realized something. She couldn\'t help but carefully examine the images transmitted by the Windbreeze Flower.

Although the picture was somewhat coarse due to the transmission, those Giant Tree People indeed looked exactly the same as the Tree People summoned by the rangers in the Special Case Team\'s images.

Looking at the dead Tree People, the huge pit, and the "corpses" dressed in ranger\'s clothing, Bai Zhi found it hard to believe for a moment: Could it be... everything he said was true?

Could it be that he actually fought a huge battle with the ranger and emerged victorious in the end?

Could it be an act?

As soon as this thought occurred, Bai Zhi dismissed it as unlikely.

If there were only a few Tree People, a few pits, it could be an act.

But with so many Tree People, such a huge pit, and all the detailed displays, even down to the corpse...

The likelihood of this being an act was too low.

Using Awakening Abilities is indeed taxing on the body, and staging the scene also takes time and effort. To go through so much trouble just to put on a show for themselves? That cost is too high, isn\'t it?

What was he trying to achieve?

Unwillingly, a bit of belief in Fang Ze started to grow in her heart...

However, once she believed Fang Ze, it would mean that Fang Ze truly defeated the ranger and extracted intelligence from him...

This....

To be honest, Bai Zhi found that even harder to believe.

She couldn\'t imagine how Fang Ze could have possibly defeated the ranger.

Did he possess such strength within the Special Case Team already?

Or did he gain such strength during the two days he had been on the run?

But regardless of which possibility, it meant that the man before her... was extremely formidable.

With this in mind, Bai Zhi also put away her contempt.

She put on a jacket and then, looking at Fang Ze in the image, said solemnly, "Alright, I\'ll reluctantly believe you for now, Fang Ze. Let\'s talk."

Seeing that Bai Zhi finally had some belief in him and was willing to negotiate, a smile appeared on Fang Ze\'s face on the screen.

He said with a smile, "It should have been like this from the start, Officer Bai Zhi."

.......

With a basic foundation of trust established, the two parties began their formal negotiation.

However, the negotiations were clearly not progressing smoothly.

Fang Ze, at least on the surface, appeared confident and demanding, while Bai Zhi felt a lot of confidence inside due to the imminent reinforcements.

In the face of Fang Ze\'s exorbitant demands, not only did she directly reject most of his conditions, but she was only willing to "lift the warrant issued against Fang Ze, restore his identity," and "give Fang Ze 50,000 Lini as a reward."

According to her, Fang Ze was a criminal in the first place, and providing intelligence would be considered establishing merit with a crime. He shouldn\'t make so many demands.

Fang Ze was more direct: Well... then just continue to hunt me down.

I won\'t establish any merit and won\'t restore my identity. It\'s quite nice to be a criminal.

But... the things you owe me, whether it\'s money or Extraordinary Artifacts, can\'t be shortchanged.

These words infuriated Bai Zhi so much that she almost went through the Windbreeze Flower to hit Fang Ze!

But after calming down, Bai Zhi said seriously, "Fang Ze, the conditions you asked for are really too much. We can\'t accept them."

She paused and then said sincerely, "I\'m not afraid of leaking information."

"The day after tomorrow, reinforcements from the Security Bureau will arrive. Among them are Ability Users capable of lie detection."

"By then, we won\'t need your intelligence and clues. We can interrogate on our own."

"So the value of your information isn\'t as high as you think."

Fang Ze smiled and then confidently asked, "Is that so?"

"But if you call for reinforcements, won\'t your evaluation at the Bureau decrease? Won\'t you lose face?"

Hearing Fang Ze\'s words, Bai Zhi couldn\'t help but glance at Bai Ling.

Bai Ling quickly placed her hand on her chest and waved slightly, indicating it wasn\'t her who told Fang Ze.

Fang Ze saw her actions and smiled, "Officer Bai Zhi, you don\'t need to check on Chief Bai Ling anymore."

"This is just my guess."

"After all, if solving the case with reinforcements truly had no impact on you, you wouldn\'t have had to spend such a long time chatting with me late at night."

"But now... it seems I\'ve guessed correctly."

Bai Zhi bit her lip.

Fang Ze continued, "Additionally, you just mentioned \'Lie Detection\'. But \'Lie Detection\' only means that you can find out who the traitor is."

"It doesn\'t mean the traitor won\'t commit suicide, keep silent, or be rescued or let go by someone else, right?"

He paused and then said, "If I\'m not mistaken, this time the reinforcements should not include an Ability User with mind-related abilities, unable to directly probe minds and gather intelligence."

Bai Zhi\'s gaze sharpened slightly.

It wasn\'t just this time that reinforcements lacked such Ability Users... even the Security Bureau internally did not possess such individuals.

Awakeners are protected by the World\'s Laws, and normally, unless one\'s level of Law is far superior to the other\'s, it is impossible to peer into someone else\'s mind.

Seeing Bai Zhi\'s expression, Fang Ze knew he had guessed right again.

So he gave a faint smile and said, "So... you actually don\'t have a choice."

"My information is extremely important to you."

Bai Zhi closed her eyes in a bit of despair.

She felt that the letter Fang Ze had left behind was correct: she really wasn\'t cut out for playing conspiracies.

How could she have anticipated that a casual remark she made would allow Fang Ze to spot a blind spot and then directly take an absolute advantage?

So, in the end, she sighed and said a bit dejectedly, "Alright. You win."

After speaking, she added, "But... we really can\'t meet such conditions."

"Whether it\'s 1 million Lini or 9 Extraordinary Artifacts, the value is too high..."

As she said this, she paused, then involuntarily looked at Fang Ze and said, "Right, how about... you join the Security Bureau instead?"

"Your own crimes aren\'t severe, and now you\'ve also established merit while wearing them. Plus, you\'re so intelligent. Your strength is strong as well. Joining the Security Bureau, you would definitely have a promising development."

"Not only are the benefits of the Security Bureau generous, the status esteemed, and the authority extensive, but we also have a full set of training plans for members. Whether it\'s Martial Skills or Awakening Ability, guidance and assistance are available."

"And having established merit, you\'ll receive various stages of resources for member development..."

"When your strength or merits are enough, we could even recommend you for a position within the Eastern Administrative Region."

"Becoming a noble, managing a city, all are entirely possible!"

After listening to Bai Zhi\'s lengthy introduction, Fang Ze was stunned for a whole two seconds.

After a moment, he slowly let out five words, "You want a free ride, huh?"

Bai Zhi: ???

Bai Ling, "Pfft."

Fang Ze said, "Since you have so many resources and training plans, let\'s add that to the conditions."

Bai Zhi: ...

Bai Ling covered her mouth, her shoulders shaking as she desperately tried to suppress her laughter.

Bai Zhi was convinced.

Next, the two began a sincere negotiation. Bai Zhi asked in detail about the approximate value of Fang Ze\'s information.

Then, she temporarily set the conditions to four.

1. The Security Bureau would lift the wanted notice and manhunt for Fang Ze and restore his identity.

2. According to the value of Fang Ze\'s information and the fact that he helped Bai Zhi catch the traitor in advance, the Security Bureau would provide Fang Ze with a reward of 10-50 thousand Lini.

3. Bai Zhi would personally gift Fang Ze with four defensive Extraordinary Artifacts.Nôv(el)B\\\\jnn

4. Until the case was resolved, Bai Ling would use the Windbreeze Flower to be responsible for explaining some basic knowledge about Awakeners to Fang Ze and guide some of his training.

These were only preliminary intention conditions; whether they could actually be implemented still depended on subsequent cooperation between the two parties.

The overall conditions were almost precisely on Fang Ze\'s bottom line. Although not lavish, Fang Ze actually only had the most basic intel on the organization. He didn\'t even know how many members or who the leader was, so he didn\'t dare to quote too aggressively.

Moreover... most importantly, he couldn\'t delay any longer: After all... his goal tonight wasn\'t really to make a big profit, but to catch Golden Fox! Your journey continues at empire

That was his true purpose hidden behind all these negotiations!

After the negotiations concluded, the two sides remotely high-fived to swear their agreement. Then Bai Zhi took the lead and said, "So now, can you tell us the information related to the organization?"

Hearing her words, Fang Ze smiled and said, "Not in a hurry. To show my sincerity, I\'ll help you catch the traitor first."

Bai Zhi: ??

Fang Ze said with a legitimate reason, "As for the information, I can tell you at any time."

"But don\'t forget about the traitor, the reinforcements from the Security Bureau are about to arrive."

"If they arrive and then the traitor is caught, you\'ll receive a lot less credit and lose a lot of face."

"So, let\'s catch the traitor first. Then I\'ll tell you the information. Wouldn\'t that be better?"

After hearing Fang Ze\'s words, Bai Zhi pondered for a while, then looked at Fang Ze suspiciously...