Chapter 203: Troublesome Case

Wei Chen was sitting on the sofa in Youqi’s office. In front of him sat little Ningning, wearing an adorable yet mischievous grin as she stared at his face.

Seeing this, Wei Chen could not help but sigh. “Ha… seriously… can you not act like a glutton every time you see me? My main job is not being a chef, you know?”

“Then change your job into a chef! I’ll ask Father to assign you as the head palace chef!” Little Ningning replied without hesitation.

“You… haa…” Wei Chen suddenly felt too tired to argue with this little girl.

“Ningning, didn’t you promise me you would not cause trouble? If you keep acting like this, I will not bring you to get ice cream anymore,” Youqi said with a tired sigh as she read the report Wei Chen had given her.

“But I did not cause trouble. I just offered Chenchen a position as our head chef!” the little one argued.

“Ningning.” Youqi’s voice became more stern.

“Yes, Mom…” Little Ningning replied, stopping her protest, though she still sent a pleading gaze toward Wei Chen.

“Ugh, fine… I will make it for you after this problem is dealt with, okay?” Wei Chen relented.

“Yay!” Little Ningning jumped up in delight, happy that she got what she wanted.

Leaving Ningning dancing in excitement, Wei Chen turned his attention to Youqi.

“Ms. Youqi, what do you think of the report on this regressor?” he asked. He needed guidance on how to handle it.

Yes, he could easily kill the man, but what about the regressor’s soul? Would it return to its original timeline or become trapped here? If the two souls came into contact, would something catastrophic happen?

He did not want to take any risks with this unknown mess.

Seriously, timelines and regressors were the kind of trouble he wanted nothing to do with. But if things escalated, he might have to seal the man inside something, like the eternal ice that Jian Heng’s beloved had once been trapped in.

Youqi checked the data on her screen. Her computer had the highest clearance, equal to the Underworld Lord, allowing her access to far more information than Wei Chen.

“The result of the preliminary check has just come in. The original Lian Cheng from our timeline, the one who died, did not feel anything unusual at the moment of death. He experienced everything normally, just like others who die and regain consciousness in the Underworld.”

“There are also no signs of any anomaly in his soul, despite the fact that the data center detected conflicting life status signals from Lian Cheng. They are unable to resolve it as well,” Youqi said as she read through the report.

Then she turned to Wei Chen. “My best guess is that this happened due to a flaw in the Wheel of Samsara. I can only report this to our lord and ask him to investigate further for confirmation.”

Youqi concluded with a sigh, rubbing her temple. This was the first time she had encountered such a problem as well.

“Any suggestions?” Wei Chen asked.

Youqi thought for a moment before replying. “My suggestion is to gather more information from him. Do not kill him, as that might create complications within the Underworld system. We do not know what will happen if the exact same soul enters the system again. In the worst case, it could worsen the damage to the Wheel of Samsara.”

“If things become too dangerous, imprison him. I will assign you some resources to assist with this. I will also see what I can do on my end. For now, you should return and keep an eye on that regressor.”

Hearing her conclusion, Wei Chen nodded. This was more or less what he had expected.

“Understood, Ms. Youqi. I will keep an eye on him,” Wei Chen said as he stood up.

But before he could leave, the little girl turned to her mother.

“Fourth Mama, can I go with Chenchen? I promise I will behave. I will stay with Sister Yaoyao and Sister Yuyu,” she asked.

“Ningning, we have already talked about this. You cannot go there without someone strong to protect you. This time, Mr. Wei may have to deal with an enemy stronger than him. He will not have time to protect you,” Youqi said sternly.

The little girl looked puzzled for a moment, then an idea suddenly appeared in her mind.

“Then… then… if I ask Second Mama to go with me, can I go to the mortal realm with Chenchen?”

The question made Youqi pause.

Yes… her second sister was exactly the type who would have free time, and no one in the lower realm would be her match.

“Ugh… fine. But you must not separate from Second Mama. Do you understand?” Youqi instructed.

“Yay!!” The little one cheered before running out of the office toward the nearest teleportation array to find her second mother.

Watching this, Wei Chen could not help but smile wryly. Little Ningning and Yan Rongjun, her second mother, were both gluttons.

If they came to the mortal realm, he might not have time to track that regressor. He might end up spending most of his time cooking for them.

Maybe he should ask Yaoyao to assign someone to monitor the regressor for him.

No… that would not be wise.

He must not underestimate a regressor. These people carried knowledge and secrets from their previous lives. The higher they had climbed before, the more troublesome they would be now.

He needed to rely on his own people.

After all, his forces already possessed cultivation levels far beyond those of the lower realm.

— Meanwhile – Thousand Treasure City —

At a quiet corner of the commercial street, hidden behind the façade of an old inn with a green, moss-covered roof.

Contrary to its aged wooden exterior, the path leading to the inn was made of neatly paved and carefully cut stone. Everything was clean, and the arrangement of trees and decorations followed proper feng shui.

The plaque above the main gate read “Sword Resting Inn.”

Lian Cheng, now disguised under an artifact skin mask he had crafted himself, wore the face of a middle-aged man with streaks of white at his sideburns. His eyes glinted with experience and the weight of past hardships.

He looked at the plaque and smiled. This inn was one of the properties of the Heavenly Sword Sect within Thousand Treasure City. Sword cultivators required a calm and quiet environment to rest and meditate, which was why this inn existed.

Its sole purpose was to accommodate disciples and experts of the sword path, especially those from the Heavenly Sword Sect.

Lian Cheng walked into the inn and went straight to the counter in the common room. He handed an envelope to the old man behind it, a retired disciple of the Heavenly Sword Sect.

On the front of the envelope was a short poem:

“The resting sword forgets the battle.

The blooming plum forgets the snow.

The traveler asks only for the road.

The inn remembers all who come.”

The old man looked at Lian Cheng, suspicion glinting in his eyes.

“The inn remembers… those who have left,” Lian Cheng said softly with a smile, as if greeting a long-cherished friend.

The old man let out a gentle smile. “Then you should sit by the plum tree. Its memory never fades.”

“Also… a pot of snow plum tea, stirred gently with a bamboo branch. Two cups,” Lian Cheng said before walking toward a private booth deeper in the common room, its screen engraved with plum blossoms.

The old man nodded and silently touched the white jade slip beneath the counter.

Lian Cheng sat down and waited patiently in the booth, looking at the tea without touching it.

After about three minutes, a man walked into the booth. He was middle-aged and wore the uniform of a Heavenly Sword Sect elder.

“May I ask who you are? And why do you know the highest code phrase to contact the broker?” the sect elder asked, his voice and eyes filled with suspicion.

“Does it matter? The fact that I know this code phrase does not change,” Lian Cheng replied, his haughty demeanor completely natural. It told the elder that whoever the man sitting before him was, he must be someone with considerable authority and strength.

“That is true, but it does not change the fact that I still do not know who you are. This phrase… it is not some lower-level code used to meet an information broker. It is a phrase that should not even exist. The only one who knows it is our Vice Sect Leader,” the elder said, his suspicion deepening.

At this moment, outside the booth and the inn, the swordsmen of the Heavenly Sword Sect and the array masters had already locked down the area.

“Are you sure that only that brat Jian Heng knows it?” Lian Cheng asked with a challenging smile.

“I am su…” The elder was about to say he was sure, but he paused. There was another person who knew this phrase.

Their sect leader, the Heavenly Sword Saint himself, who had already ascended to the Immortal Realm.

The elder narrowed his eyes. “It is impossible to travel from the Immortal Realm to the lower realm. The laws of Heaven and Earth would not allow it.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep