Chapter 46: Mutian Chamber of Commerce, Far-Reaching Connections!

There is no reasoning with lawless thugs. Taking advantage of the chaos, the three of them carved a bloody path through the mob, leaving behind a trail of wailing wretches before strutting away in triumph.

"Drive. Let's head back to the club first," Geng Xiao said with a dark expression.

As night fell, all seven members of the Blazing Heaven Club gathered together.

Listening to Yu Le recount the events of the expedition, the three juniors—aside from Ling Xiao—were all wide-eyed with curiosity.

None of them had ever been to a lawless place like Cinder Stockade.

Whether it was the lawlessness of Cinder Stockade, the secret passwords and procedures, the process of purchasing intelligence, or the raging fire left in their wake, everything was an absolute eye-opener for the three juniors.

"Everyone, take a seat. Let's discuss the intelligence obtained from Living Pearl."

From the moment Geng Xiao picked up that intelligence report, his expression had been grim, which caused Yu Le's heart to sink as well.

The others obediently sat down, waiting for Geng Xiao to speak.

"This intelligence is neither entirely good nor entirely bad, but overall, it gives us a clear direction."

Yu Le let out a sigh of relief. Judging by Geng Xiao's words, there was still hope of finding Yu An'an.

"According to the tip provided by Living Pearl, over the past few months, a certain faction within the borders of Burn City has indeed been secretly abducting children in various ways, and moreover..."

Geng Xiao looked directly at Yu Le. "They only snatch girls under the age of five!"

Yu Le clenched his fists tightly, and Han Yuosu spoke up, "Is it an external faction or a local one?"

"A local faction, the Black Bear Society!"

The others didn't react much, completely unfamiliar with the name, but Han Yuosu's brows furrowed as if she had thought of something.

Su Rui scratched his head and said, "I think I've heard the name Black Bear Society before. Is it the one I'm thinking of?"

Geng Xiao nodded.

Han Yuosu turned to the others and explained, "It's the gang specifically used by the Mutian Chamber of Commerce to handle dirty work. Its leader is Xiong Xiong, a powerful cultivator at the sixth stage of the Steel Bone Realm!"

Before the others could speak, Han Yuosu stared at Geng Xiao and asked, "So, does this matter have any connection to the Mutian Chamber of Commerce?"

"What on earth is the Mutian Chamber of Commerce?" Among everyone present, only Yu Le had never heard the name, yet it somehow sounded vaguely familiar.

"Surely you've heard of Mutian Supermarkets," Su Rui reminded him.

Yu Le nodded repeatedly. Of course he had heard of them; Su Rui's reminder finally made him realize why the words "Mutian" sounded so familiar to him.

Because he and his fellow fishing enthusiasts bought all their fishing gear at Mutian Supermarkets. You could practically say that this supermarket chain covered all aspects of food, clothing, housing, and transportation for Burn City residents like Yu Le from birth to death.

At that moment, Han Yuosu turned back and said, "Mutian Supermarket is a subsidiary under the Mutian Chamber of Commerce. The Mutian Chamber of Commerce engages in all kinds of commercial activities, and its reach is vast, touching upon every single aspect of life for the residents of Burn City."

"If the Mutian Supermarket is the public-facing subsidiary of the Mutian Chamber of Commerce, then the Black Bear Society is the gang secretly cultivated by the Chamber. One operates in the light, the other in the shadow, and combined, they can handle countless tricky problems."

"However, none of this is the crucial point..." Han Yuosu's eyelids drooped slightly. "The most critical thing is that the Mutian Chamber of Commerce belongs to the Mu family."

Why was the Mu family suddenly dragged into this?

Knowing that Yu Le hadn't even heard of the Han family of Burn City earlier, everyone understood that Yu Le probably had zero concept of this so-called Mu family.

Su Rui added, "The two behemoth families of Burn City are the Han family and the Mu family. The Han family controls the military and political power of Burn City, while the Mu family controls its economic lifeline. The two families cooperate with each other, but they are also adversaries."

For someone from a prominent family like Su Rui, the familial relationships among the upper echelons of Burn City were naturally crystal clear.

"The Mu family is a native faction of Burn City, whereas the Han family is an outsider. Prior to that massive fire three years ago, the City Lord came from the Mu family. It was precisely because of the Mu family's inaction during that fire that the blaze spiraled out of control, and only thanks to reinforcements from the Han family was the crisis resolved. Afterward, the former City Lord was forced to resign to take the blame, and the Han family rose to power."

Although Yu Le knew nothing of Burn City's past history, after hearing the explanation, he finally understood the implications.

"In other words, the true mastermind behind all this is the Mu family?"

"We can't be certain yet," Geng Xiao shook his head. "The intelligence provided by Living Pearl only mentions that the Black Bear Society has been frantically abducting girls under five over the past few months, without explicitly mentioning the Mutian Chamber of Commerce or the Mu family. We can't rule out the suspicion, but if this is indeed the work of the Mu family, then things are about to get very complicated..."

"Even though the Mu family lost the position of City Lord, just like the Han family, they are aristocratic giants backed by powerful cultivators at the Flawless Jade Realm. They are not forces to be trifled with lightly!"

Yu Le frowned deeply, a persistent feeling telling him that an unspeakable conspiracy lurked beneath the surface.

"Didn't Xiao Yuan find records in the Demon-Hunting Association's database mentioning beast abduction incidents earlier? Could this matter also be related to the Black Bear Society?" Yu Le seized upon this crucial point.

Geng Xiao nodded. "Living Pearl's intelligence didn't mention whether the Black Bear Society has any cooperation with magical beasts, or rather, with the Myriad Beast Cult which can control magical beasts. However..."

"The infiltration of the Myriad Beast Cult is pervasive. It wouldn't be surprising if they maintain close ties with local underworld factions like this."

This made the situation even more headache-inducing. The mere fact that the Black Bear Society was backed by the Mutian Chamber of Commerce was already enough to make people quail, let alone any potential collusion with the Myriad Beast Cult.

Han Yuosu abruptly stood up. "I'm heading back to the Han family right now. What the Black Bear Society is doing goes far beyond a personal family matter. If it is verified to be connected to the Myriad Beast Cult, then regardless of whether there is instigation from the Mu family behind the scenes, the Black Bear Society will become the public enemy of Burn City."

"If it is purely instigated by the Mu family, then this matter must still be resolved at its root. The Mu family must give an explanation to the people of Burn City!"

"The best-case scenario is that this is simply the work of the Black Bear Society, in which case we only need to focus on sweeping away the underworld and punishing the wicked. But given that the target demographic consists of girls under five, I have a feeling things won't be that simple!"

With that, Han Yuosu looked at Geng Xiao.

Geng Xiao nodded at her. "Then I'll have to trouble Yuosu to make this trip. We will conduct an in-depth investigation into the specific movements of the Black Bear Society here. Let's keep in touch."

Han Yuosu never dragged her feet when doing things. As she reached the door, she turned back with a worried look at Yu Le. "Don't be rash. This matter is no longer just about your daughter alone; it requires careful and deliberate planning."

Hearing this, warmth flooded Yu Le's heart. "Thank you."

After Han Yuosu left, Geng Xiao proceeded to further analyze the limited intelligence.

The direct target could be locked onto the Black Bear Society. The pressing priority was to investigate the recent activities of the Black Bear Society and locate the place where they were holding the kidnapped girls captive.

However, the crux of the issue did not lie in a mere gang like the Black Bear Society, but rather in all the complex facets lurking behind them.

In the best-case scenario, the Black Bear Society was merely engaging in human trafficking, meaning their strike target would be solely the Black Bear Society.

In the second-best scenario, based on the photos and videos Gu Xiaoyuan had retrieved from the Demon-Hunting Association's database involving magical beast abductions, the recent actions of the Black Bear Society might be tied to the Myriad Beast Cult.

In the worst-case scenario, the Black Bear Society not only maintained ties with the Myriad Beast Cult, but the Mu family behind them was also stoking the flames—or perhaps it wasn't the Black Bear Society colluding with the Myriad Beast Cult, but the Mu family itself...

If that were the case, the skies of Burn City would truly collapse.

Therefore, Han Yuosu instantly grasped how deeply interconnected everything was. This was something beyond the capability of the Blazing Heaven Squad alone to resolve; she had to report the matter to the Han family so they could make advance preparations.

Meanwhile, the old crone who had killed Living Pearl's twin brother also reported the intelligence she had gathered to Feng Jiujiao.

"The Black Bear Society working for the Mu family, and it even involves the Myriad Beast Cult?" Feng Jiujiao's voice was calm, yet carried an unangered majesty.

"No matter who they are, if they dare to kidnap my daughter, I will uproot them completely."

The old crone lowered her head. "My lord, among the Black Bear Society, only Xiong Xiong is somewhat formidable, but the Mu family behind them has experts at the Flawless Jade Realm guarding them. This lowly servant has meager strength, I'm afraid..."

Feng Jiujiao glanced at her indifferently. "Mere ants. You just need to do as you're told."

"Understood, my lord." The old crone respectfully withdrew.

Once everyone had left, a hint of worry finally crept into Feng Jiujiao's brows.

"I originally thought that if our daughter went missing, you would remain indifferent. I never expected you to find helpers so quickly."

When reporting the intelligence provided by Living Pearl's brother, the old crone had also informed Feng Jiujiao that Yu Le's trio had beaten them to finding Living Pearl. Outwardly serene, Feng Jiujiao couldn't help but feel ripples stir within her heart.

Yet those ripples quickly subsided.

Flames danced in the palm of her hand as she murmured, "The Flawless Jade Realm... truly impressive for a backwater frontier city. But you had best not provoke me. Even if it exposes my location, I will never let anyone lay a finger on An'an."