“Lu Zui is now temporarily locked in the underground fortress in parliament,” Professor Mo Xuan said. “Due to the recent events, the Secret Sword Bureau is now a mess. Parliament has passed Speaker Jiang’s proposal that Supervisor Guo of the first division of the Secret Sword Bureau be the acting director of the Secret Sword Bureau. Also, he was asked to establish a special investigation group to interrogate Lu Zui and find out the scheme of the Patriots Partnership.

　　Li Yao beamed with joy and almost exclaimed, “Supervisor Guo is still alive?”

　　Li Yao was very clear that, although it was himself and the veterans who had caused great trouble and revealed Lu Zui’s real face in the end, the key to his endeavor had always been Guo Chunfeng.

　　If Guo Chunfeng had not taken action in advance and protected Professor Mo Xuan and Ding Lingdang under the name of the arrest, they would have been taken away by the Patriots Partnership.

　　Later, it was also Guo Chunfeng who had reached out to him. The two of them had been able to exchange tremendous information and set up their trap that even fooled the cunning Lu Zui!

　　It was still Guo Chunfeng who had informed him of the basic structure and defense system of the headquarters of the Secret Sword Bureau and guided him to sneak in.

　　Otherwise, how could Li Yao have broken through the defense network of the largest intelligence agency of the federation in only a few hours, considering that he was a human being after all?

　　Without Guo Chunfeng, it would not have been impossible for him to communication with Professor Mo Xuan and retrieve the evidence of paramount importance from the Jade Crystal Disc!

　　At the last moment, Guo Chunfeng even sacrificed himself resolutely and boarded ‘Hidden Star’, where he stalled his boss, Lu Zui, earning the previous half hour for them!

　　Without the half hour, they definitely would not have been able to reach the central district, where the parliament building was located. The Patriots Partnership would have stopped them halfway.

　　At that time, Li Yao had still been under the adverse effects of the Five Disintegrations of Heavens and Human. His capability had plunged, and he was certainly no match for the assassins of the Patriots Partnership!

　　Therefore, even though everybody considered him a great hero who saved the day at the most critical moment, Li Yao believed that Guo Chunfeng was the most important person for the war.

　　Guo Chunfeng was definitely the well-deserved greatest contributor!

　　“Where is Supervisor Guo?” Li Yao asked excitedly. “I would like to meet him!”

　　Professor Mo Xuan’s crystal cameras glittered. He smiled. “As it happens, Supervisor Guo wants to meet you, too. He also asked whether or not you are willing to join the investigation group to look into the Patriots Partnership. He seems to have run into some trouble and would like to study it with you.”

　　Li Yao nodded quickly. “Of course!”

　　…

　　Below the parliament building was an underground fortress designed to resist the beast tide outbreak.

　　The entire fortress consumed more than five million tons of super alloys. There was a sentry post every few steps. The attack and defense rune arrays were all of the highest level.

　　Deep inside the underground fortress, Li Yao and Guo Chunfeng hugged each other warmly.

　　“Fellow Cultivator Guo!”

　　“Fellow Cultivator Li!”

　　‘Fellow Cultivator’ could mean a lot or nothing. When two Cultivators who had not seen each other before met, they could address each other by ‘fellow Cultivator’ for politeness.

　　However, for Li Yao and Guo Chunfeng, the meaning of ‘fellow Cultivator’ was much deeper, intense and unchangeable.

　　Even when there was still a misunderstanding between them and Li Yao regarded Guo Chunfeng as Abyss, he had admired the keenness and resolution of the ‘demon hunter’.

　　Many times, the traps and the false identities that Li Yao had made after all the trouble were seen through by Guo Chunfeng immediately. He had nearly been caught quite a number of times.

　　Such a worthy opponent truly deserved his appreciation.

　　Guo Chunfeng was a friend, not a foe. It was really the biggest surprise in the war.

　　“Brother Guo, how did you escape from Lu Zui?”

　　Li Yao used a more intimate form of address. He eyed Guo Chunfeng up and down and discovered, although the guy appeared feeble, there was nothing serious about him. He took a long breath in relief but was caught in confusion.

　　At that time, Guo Chunfeng had gone to buy more time for him at the cost of his own life. He had been determined to sacrifice himself.

　　How did Lu Zui allow him to survive?

　　Guo Chunfeng smiled and replied casually, “It’s simple. After I delayed Lu Zui for half an hour according to our deal, Lu Zui indeed realized what was going on and burst into fury!

　　“At that time, I was surrounded by Lu Zui and four tough warriors, who were all infuriated and had made up their minds to kill me. When I was about to die, at the critical moment—”

　　“What did you do?” Li Yao held his breath, sweating.

　　“I cried and kneeled on the ground,” Guo Chunfeng said solemnly. “I begged Lu Zui to be lenient and spare my worthless life.”

　　Li Yao was dumbfounded. “Huh?”

　　“I kneeled on the ground and crawled over like a dog. Clinging to Lu Zui’s thigh, I cried to Lu Zui. I told him that, for his information, everything that had happened had happened. I’d already delayed him long enough. Killing me wouldn’t help him, right?

　　“Moreover, although I was heavily wounded, I still had a bit of strength to counterattack. When a rabbit is angry, it can bite, too! If they were determined to kill me, it would cost them another several minutes as well as the physical strength and ammunition of the great heroes of the Patriots Partnership, which would certainly not be very good, right?”

　　“Brother Guo, you—you must be kidding, right?” Li Yao stammered.

　　“I am not. It was exactly what happened.” Guo Chunfeng opened his hands and said casually, “I kneeled, I begged, and I cried. Touching my chest, I told Lu Zui that I knew I was wrong and that I was willing to correct my wrongdoing and join the Patriots Partnership! I still had a lot of secret resources at my disposal, and I could contribute all of them to his organization and help him to complete his patriotic plan. As long as he could give us another opportunity and spare my worthless life, I was willing to do anything.”

　　Li Yao was astounded. “And Lu Zui believed it?”

　　Guo Chunfeng shook his head. “Of course he didn’t, but I said something else.

　　“Director, you claim that you are not swallowed by hatred and that everything you did was out of rationality for the future of the federation. That is the belief of the ‘patriots’.

　　“Then, it will be wrong for you to kill me.

　　“I am already kneeling on the ground begging for mercy. Killing me at such a moment is utterly meaningless. It’s just a way to vent your anger.

　　“Killing me will prove that the ‘patriots’, including Lu Zui, cannot control their hatred and fury. Then, the ideology and the ‘belief’ you persist with will be pure garbage. How will you be able to maintain your current level?

　　“The four Core Formation Stage Cultivators will be chasing after you later. If their belief wavers after they kill me, how can they fight the battle next?

　　“Just like that, I cried and rolled on the ground. Even Lu Zui was shocked. Then, the news that you’d been found came over. That was how I luckily survived.”

　　Li Yao was rendered speechless for a long time.

　　Guo Chunfeng patted his shoulder. “Young brother, are you very disappointed?”

　　“Not exactly.” Li Yao tried to adjust his facial muscles. “I’m just a bit surprised. Brother Guo doesn’t seem like someone who is scared of death.”

　　“I was not scared of death.” Guo Chunfeng’s eyes pierced through the underground and landed somewhere far, far away. “However, I was scared that I wouldn’t see my wife and my daughter again. Very scared.

　　“Now that I’ve earned enough time and fulfilled my responsibility as a Cultivator to my country and my compatriots, should I fulfil my responsibility for my wife and my daughter next?

　　“Young brother, when you are my age and have your own wife and children, you will understand me.

　　“On the ground that my principles are not violated, as long as there is a slim chance that I can reunite with my family… not just kneeling down and begging for mercy, I guarantee that I will lick the bottom of Lu Zui’s shoes if he asks me to.”

　　Li Yao was dazed for a long time, but then he suddenly smiled.

　　Perhaps it was not an answer that he expected, but at the very least, Guo Chunfeng was still alive. He could still go back home on his own feet and meet his wife and daughter. His wife and daughter needed to neither attend to his funeral nor cry on the countless cold nights in the future.

　　Could there have been a better outcome?

　　“Brother Guo, if I ever have the chance, I would love to visit your home and see what the place that attracts you so much really looks like!” Li Yao said sincerely.

　　“Hahahaha. It’s just a regular house.” Guo Chunfeng laughed in delight. “My daughter will be exultant if you are there—the legendary Ultra-Level Federal Hero, Vulture Li Yao! She won’t be able to fall asleep again for the next three days!”

　　“Brother Guo, we both know that it is not true.” Li Yao was more or less embarrassed. “You are the greatest contributor in the battle. If we’re talking about heroes, you are certainly the real hero here.”

　　“Alright.” Guo Chunfeng changed the topic. “If we don’t stop, we’ll spend the next three days adulating each other. Let’s talk later at my place when this thing is over. Now, let’s watch the footage of Lu Zui’s interrogation. I feel that something is wrong, but I can’t tell exactly what it is. Take a look at it.”

　　“No problem!”

　　Li Yao walked to the analysis center next to the interrogation room, where hundreds of light beams were displaying the picture of Lu Zui being interrogated ever since he was captured.

　　Almost all of the interrogation was a one-on-one competition between Guo Chunfeng and Lu Zui. Even the tiniest muscle reactions when Lu Zui was speaking were monitored and analyzed carefully.

　　In the picture, Guo Chunfeng said calmly, “Director, your scheme has been exposed. It is a doomed cause now! If you do not give up, the interests of the federation will be harmed, and more blood will be shed for nothing! If you are a real patriot as you claim to be, just confess everything now for the federation and for everything you want to protect!”

　　After a long silence, Lu Zui replied in a bitter smile, “If you win, you are a king; but if you fail, you are a rebel.”

　　He began his confession. His speed was low, but his words were very clear. The information was unambiguous, too.

　　In a few hours, he gave up dozens of secret bases of the Patriots Partnership and a complicated connection network as well as several production centers of the Demon God Virus in the East Ocean and the southern rainforest.

　　According to the information, the Core Formation Stage Cultivators and the Nascent Soul Stage Cultivators in the capital city took action immediately and marched to the places all over the country, trying to demolish the Patriots Partnership before they reacted.

　　Up to now, the dense of the Patriots Partnership in the capital city and the few cities nearby had been discovered. Hundreds of ‘patriots’, as well as tremendous files and even virus samples, had been captured.

　　Generally speaking, Lu Zui was quite cooperative, with barely any resistance.

　　However, after watching the interrogation videos, Li Yao frowned as hard as Guo Chunfeng did.