I Am Your Natural Enemy

Cai Qidong got busy again. Ever since he'd arrived in Nanwu County, there hadn't been a single moment of leisure.

Wen Yan provided new intel, and basically they could now confirm exactly which Dragon God resided in the West River. With the name confirmed, a lot of things could finally move forward.

Even if things really came down to an all-out confrontation, at least they now knew exactly who needed a beating.

If the other party didn't show up in person—even if the Old Celestial Master was willing to go to all the trouble and help with every little thing in Nanwu County—without knowing the name, they'd have no clue where to strike if they wanted to call down heavenly lightning and kill the opponent.

Of course, as for the Dragon God matter, there wasn't a big problem for now.

Ever since the Calamity Protector Goddess ascended last time, everyone knew that after her ascension, there's been chaos and unrest over what the new talisman is, but truthfully the West River Water System has gotten a lot more obedient.

Even back in the day, even if things got a little out of hand, the river creatures all knew: no matter how badass the Scorching Sun Department got, there was no way they'd drain the West River dry.

If they messed up, they'd just hide out in the water and hunker down for a few decades, and that was that.

But now, with the Calamity Protector Goddess Talisman, you might not even need any diving gear or oxygen tanks to go underwater.

Granted, it really does restrict your abilities while in the water.

But even if powers took an eighty percent nosedive from land levels, there were quite a few people in Nanwu County who could still beat the hell out of pretty much anything in the West River.

Take that Tuoba Martial God—so long as he doesn't drown, even if his power drops ninety percent, he could probably steamroll the entire West River Water System.

Any creature smart enough to develop Spiritual Intelligence—well, to put it nicely, they're pretty talented at seeking fortune and avoiding disaster.

To put it bluntly, knowing when to bend, bullying the weak and fearing the strong—that stuff comes naturally.

If they didn't have at least that much sense, they'd have died out long ago.

Cai Qidong wasn't especially worried about the West River Water System's issues; he was more concerned about something else.

After hearing Wen Yan out, he, like Wen Yan, started to notice that other figure—the one who could command ghosts, and even put a chain around a ghost's neck.

In a way, it could even provide some protection, so the ghost wouldn't dissipate so easily.

Cai Qidong looked at the photo Wen Yan sent over and guessed that if the chain hadn't broken, this ghost might not have even dissipated at all.

Once the chain snapped, the soul flew apart—and it immediately affected the already brain-dead body, sending the body itself into actual death.

From that angle, that Dragon God really was a dragon among dragons—way stronger than expected.

With so many obstacles and entanglements, yet still able to cut through and sever other restraints—not something your average Water God could hope to achieve.

He took the photo and found the experts in the Nanwu County branch, asking them to take a look and see if they could tell anything.

But after staring at it for ages, looking at the chain's shape and the rather fuzzy, distinctive markings on it, the local experts of Nanwu County still couldn't make heads or tails of it.

They all said that, as far as the local water system went, there didn't seem to be anything like this.

Finally, one expert pointed out that concrete objects like chains rarely appeared locally—maybe only in coastal regions.

But since ancient times, whether iron or copper, metals suitable for making chains had always been extremely valuable in Nanwu County.

Plus, Nanwu County's mining and metallurgy hadn't been very advanced in ancient times, and the climate was way too wet and warm. Anytime something was needed for a rope-like function, people would just make hemp ropes out of local plant fibers—much more convenient and a whole lot cheaper.

Only up north would you regularly see iron chains and the like.

All these artifacts and physical representations are directly tied to the specific historical and regional environment of their eras.

At least around here, a thousand or so years ago, there was no way they'd waste iron like that—giving every criminal a set of iron shackles and another seven or eight pounds of iron chains on their legs.

So, the local experts suggested Cai Qidong consult some northern specialists instead.

Some of the faint designs on the chains did indeed look more like northern style.

The finer details weren't clear at all—the ghost in the photo was practically faded to nothing, so transparent it was nearly gone.

In the end, after a round of questioning, Cai Qidong came up with nothing. He could only archive the photo, make a copy, hand it off to the tech department's young guys, and have them enhance the image—highlighting the ghost, making it as clear as possible.

Both the processed version and the original photo were sent to HQ, asking the experts there to take a look.

Meanwhile, local experts would keep working on the enhanced photo.

That night, Cai Qidong got a call from a friend over at HQ.

"Old Cai, I had your photo looked at."

"Any results?"

"A little, not much—the picture's just too blurry. All we could really confirm was the chain's basic look and style.

Also, those faint patterns on it really are more northern.

Details beyond that—even my expert couldn't say for sure.

He did recommend someone though, said this guy will likely spot something."

"Who?"

"A guy with the last name Meng, from the Northeast. But I heard he's not easy to get hold of, and if you want his opinion, it could be a hassle. He gave me a phone number—the rest is up to you."

"Got it. Thanks a ton."

Cai Qidong took the number, glanced at it, and knew he hadn't guessed wrong.

Turned out, it really was that wandering merchant.

He held the phone, feeling a bit conflicted.