Speaking of which, last night...

Recalling the events of last night in his mind, a look of understanding flashed in Lin Guang's eyes.

"Officer Peng."

Lin Guang stepped forward and greeted the other party. The middle-aged police officer obviously hesitated, glanced at Vishdair next to him, and finally showed a sudden realization on his face: "Oh, it's you. You..."

Before he could finish speaking, Lin Guang replied, "Last night while I was meditating, I did sense someone using spiritual skills to scan."

Officer Peng hesitated again, then asked, "I remember you have a Blue Talent. What level are you now?"

"Level 14."

"?!"

Officer Peng was stunned, taking a few seconds to react: "Young man, don't joke around."

Lin Guang shook his head: "It's true."

"You're saying you leveled up six times in a month and a half?!"

"Peng, haven't you been online lately?" The young officer next to him couldn't hold back his surprise and explained, "His photo was trending on the hot search yesterday and the day before. The ace of Experimental Middle School this year, he faced off against the Molten Dragon Lizard with an eight-level disadvantage."

"Ah? Ah?! That's truly impressive!"

Officer Peng sighed, thinking about searching the matter online when he went back.

Then, he glanced at the young officer with a slightly cold expression, "Seems like you've been quite idle these days. The bureau's been busy recently, and those rascals from the Divine Heart Association have been causing trouble again. Come by to help this weekend."

The young officer immediately looked as if he had swallowed a fly, slapping his own mouth.

"Speaking of which, you were able to detect its scan... This narrows down the suspect's profile, it should be a Green Excellent or Blue Elite Level Spiritual Spirit Beast, between levels 14 and 25."

This time it was Lin Guang's turn to be stunned. He asked, "The same person from last time?"

Spiritual investigation using skills is merely illegal, not considered a crime. Occasionally, people do use it to find lost items or missing Spirit Beasts, so Lin Guang hadn't connected the two events last night.

"Yes." Officer Peng nodded slightly, "We compared the Ether traces left at the scene and confirmed it was the same person. Have you noticed anything else unusual recently?"

"No."

"That's good, but you should stay vigilant. It's likely someone from the Divine Heart Association."

Lin Guang was a bit curious: "Are there related clues?"

"Yes."

After observing Lin Guang, Officer Peng continued with more details: "I uploaded the data to the database later and found out that this isn't the first time he's illegally used spiritual skills for investigation. Approximately eight or nine weeks ago, there were reports in other locations, initially starting in the northeastern suburbs and gradually moving towards the city center. Based on the trajectory, it's highly likely that he's tracking a fleeing Spirit Beast, and the most active illegal Spirit Beast hunter group in Zhen Sheng City is the Divine Heart Association."

"It's strange though. After investigating this area a month and a half ago, he became inactive. I thought he had succeeded already. When the report came in early this morning, I didn't think it was him."

Officer Peng seemed to regard Lin Guang as someone who could help, sharing quite a lot of information that wasn't necessary—after all, in a world of Guardian Beasts, passionate citizens often possessed special skills, potentially aiding in solving cases quite naturally.

"Well... At the moment, I don't have any ideas."

"It's okay, just thought I'd mention it. But given how meticulously that person is going about things, he must have his reasons. You still need to be careful. Let's exchange contact information, and please reach out immediately if you discover anything."

After exchanging contact information, Officer Peng hurriedly left with the young officer, getting into the police car.

"What's up?"

Seeing Vishdair looking curious, Lin Guang briefly explained what had happened, also mentioning the Divine Heart Association.

She raised her eyebrows and asked, "An evil spirit beast hunting group, could their target be me?"

"Probably not."

"Why not? I'm valuable, rare, strong, and powerful!"

"..."

Lin Guang resisted the urge to tell her the truth, opting instead to make a remark: "Even if they were specifically after you, why start searching from the suburbs? You come and go to school with me every day, even a blind person can see that. Why bother scanning at midnight."

"Seems about right."

Moreover, most hunters from the Divine Heart Association catch Spirit Beasts to sell for money, since even interrupting an enslavement contract can cause significant damage to the spirit beast. Only face-conscious tycoons or beast collectors would be willing to pay for them, and as for Vishdair's worth…

It's better left unsaid.

They returned to the doorstep, where a white plastic bag hung — inside were some little snacks favored by Fox Spirit Beasts and a pet bowl Lin Guang had bought.

A familiar scent seemed to catch, and from the gap beneath the sofa, a small golden head popped out, looking left and right. Upon seeing Lin Guang and Vishdair, it instantly became excited, leaping into Lin Guang's arms, making cute whimpering sounds, its face showing an expression of pure affection.

"Alright, alright."

After petting the little fox for a while, Lin Guang placed it on the ground, taking out the snacks he bought and pouring them into the bowl.

Even the usually nonchalant Vishdair couldn't resist the temptation to pet the fox, sidling over to pet it while casually asking, "Speaking of which, why does it resist going out so much?"

Originally, Lin Guang planned to take the little fox to school today and let Dr. Kaiwen examine it, but he didn't expect it to refuse to take a single step out the door.

"It's probably scared from the spiritual investigation early this morning."

Though he said that, Lin Guang found it somewhat odd. While wild Spirit Beasts usually have heightened perception abilities, this one was just a cub, and Desert Ear Foxes don't possess the Spiritual Attribute. Vishdair hadn't sensed the investigation, so it logically shouldn't have either. But the truth was it woke up abruptly while sleeping, took a good few minutes for Lin Guang to calm it down as it whimpered in his embrace.

Perhaps, it has something to do with the spiritual materials it consumed?

Watching the little fox munch on snacks adorably, Lin Guang sighed softly.

With the personality and status it displays now, it might be challenging to achieve anything meaningful in battles.

We'll see.

Even if it doesn't pan out, having it as a pet isn't a bad idea.

...

Nightfall, outside Haiyue District.

The man halted, gazing at the tall buildings within the district, a glimmer of uncertainty flickering in his eyes.

"That fox... It truly has learned concealment skills."

"Damn it," he gritted his teeth, "If it weren't for you, I wouldn't have been extorted by that bastard, nor would I have sold those good wares cheaply."

After taking several deep breaths, the man calmed down, beginning to mutter to himself:

"Calm down, even though I need to capture it back quickly, lately the cops have been on alert. It's likely there's a High-Level Spirit Master or Spiritual Spirit Beast in the district, so it's better not to search recklessly."

"No rush, since it's concealed itself here twice, it means it found its 'keeper' here and won't leave in a short period."

"Over to you, Arka, act cautiously."

The spirit pattern on the man's left arm glowed softly, yet no spirit beast appeared, only the branches of the Golden Birch Tree began to sway without wind.

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