Chapter 152 - Police Chief Jintang Fang

The light from the lone flickering lamp cast long, uneven shadows across the tavern floor.

At the bar, Chief Fang sat calmly with his left arm resting behind him on the bartop and his right hand brushing the black metal nightstick at his waist.

On the other side of the room standing just inside the doorway, Chief Bear stood in his full slate grey uniform and long, grey trenchcoat.

Chief Fang had a calm expression as he looked into Chief Bear’s eyes. The massive chief returned the gaze with a determined glare.

Jintang Fang had no words to say. It wouldn’t make a difference, Bear was already under Gantt’s control. Chief Fang had confirmed it in the afternoon after Zwei reported it to him. After that, it was simply a matter of spreading the right secrets to ‘arrange’ their meeting here in the tavern.

Sitting across from the traitor who was responsible for Chief Yun’s death, Chief Fang only felt guilt.

He had failed the police force and the Order. He’d failed Chief Yun. He’d failed Chief Bear.

If he had acted sooner, or more directly, maybe this would have turned out better. He’d known for months that someone with Gantt’s description had been spotted. He’d sent out investigators but didn’t come up with any solid leads.

He’d decided against blowing the whistle off of such small rumours. After all, Gantt hadn’t been seen in six years. He’d succeeded in his mission but also taken serious injuries as well. He could have even died, and no one would ever know.

But then Chief Yun was killed.

Chief Fang had vetted the plan. He knew the officers involved. From various reports he knew that the cultists were scattered and not very capable. The mission should have been a success. For it to fail so devastatingly... it felt like Chief Fang had been transported back six years in time to the last time he and the Order had fought against Gantt.

Only this time, Gantt had the complete advantage.

How did Gantt infect Chief Bear? At his strength level any direct attempt to infect his psyche would set off his spiritual intuition. All of the Chiefs had sufficient strength and training against this kind of attack.

Therefore, it would have had to be done subtly, bit by bit. First by infecting someone only indirectly related to him, and then getting closer and closer. Each person wouldn’t even know they were under his control, but like carriers of a disease they unknowingly brought devastation upon those closest to them.

Gantt was patient and calculating. This plan could have been months in the making. Maybe even years.

“I’ve been a fool.” Jintang muttered with shaded eyes, “I never should have let him get away.”

“Surrender yourself.” Chief Bear said gruffly, stepping forward, raising his hand, “The bloodshed stops here.”

Without warning, the nightstick at Jintang’s waist suddenly expanded, bursting across the room in the blink of an eye toward Chief Bear.

The pocket of space that was about to pop out behind Jintang fizzled out of existence. Chief Bear’s surprise attack was canceled as the rapidly expanding metal pole blasted into his chest and launched him off his feet into the wall. An explosion of splinters and dust rocked the room.

The metal stools all over the room suddenly flew from their spots, their legs twisting in mid air at Chief Bear, who was pulling himself to his feet.

The stools broke apart into metal rods which rapidly twisted around each of Chief Bear’s limbs and smashed him against the wall. One rod wrapped around his neck and yanked up, as if to rip Bear’s head directly off his body.

Chief Bear couldn’t even breathe as metal bands wrapped around his torso and began to crush him.

The black nightstick shrunk back to its original length where it dangled at Chief Fang’s waist. The old, experienced Exalted remained in his casual position as he calmly watched his colleague get torn apart in five directions by the living metal.

Without even moving a finger, he’d orchestrated this devastating, overwhelming assault.

This was the power of the Domain of Body, Blacksmith Pathway.

This was the power of the Steel Executioner, Police Chief Jintang Fang!

“Rrraaghh!” Chief Bear groaned as the metal carved into his skin and flesh.

A number of portals opened up underneath and around him, but the metal bindings held him up, shunting him around and preventing his escape.

Chief Bear suddenly disappeared just as he was about to be completely torn apart. The metal bindings collapsed on the now empty space where Chief Bear had been, clanging together as they gathered into a ball.

Jintang was not surprised, in fact he had expected this. He was familiar with Chief Bear’s methods.

This one was a high level Chronicler Path skill called Time Displacement. It involved forming a rift in time, resulting in an alternate copy of Chief Bear that could be maintained for a short period of time.

Chroniclers were fond of using this as a method of reconnaissance and eliminating the risk of a dangerous operation. Chief Bear himself was an Astromancer, a specialist at manipulating space, but he had several Chroniclers on his team.

Its weak point was that the power of the target was split between the real body and the displaced copy.

The wounds that Jintang had inflicted were not trivial. Somewhere nearby, Chief Bear was alive, but suffering.

Jintang stood up, casually brushed some dust off his shoulder and left the room.

~

Across the street the real time body of Chief Bear was in the shadows peeking out of a second storey window when he suddenly grasped at his neck and fell to his knee.

The time clone had perished, taking the injuries with him, but the aftereffects were unpleasant. Chief Bear’s teeth gnashed together as he recovered his posture. The memories of the encounter in the basement appeared fresh in his mind as he barked an order, “Negotiations failed. The target refused to surrender peacefully. All units prepare to engage.”

His instructions were relayed to the commanding officers of each squad through spatial manipulation.

Hidden in the shadows, three squads of officers prepared for Chief Fang’s emergence from the tavern.

“I just can’t believe it... Chief Fang...” The officer next to Bear mumbled.

Bear’s eyes darkened as he replied, “Remember, this isn’t the Chief Fang that we know. He’s been compromised by enemy forces.”

“Yes, sir.”

“If he was innocent, he would have come quietly with us. Even now, he should have realized what he was up against. He’s just one man against two dozen elite officers.” Chief Bear’s eyes lit up dangerously as his mouth tilted up in a grin, “Cocky bastard.”

He stopped talking as a light bloomed to life down below. Out of the tavern a lone lantern drifted out of one of the windows. It flew by its own will out to the street, quietly rising up to an unlit lamp post. The lantern’s window opened with a rusty creak, and an ember from the flame inside hopped into the lamppost, lighting it aflame.

The second lamp’s connection to the post silently liquified as it rose into the air and flew down to the next lamppost.

“What is he up to...?” Chief Bear’s eyebrows furrowed in thought as he tried to discern the meaning of the action.

Unlike Chief Fang, Chief Bear had no experience with the former’s battle tactics. This old, experienced Chief had been part of the highly secretive Special Ops Department for almost as long as he’d been in the police force. After he’d retired from the department and became head of Triple-P, he’d never been called into action.

Body Domain pathways were rare in Nian Xing. Where had Jintang Fang obtained his powers from? How had they been nurtured? What were the true extent of his abilities?

Chief Bear’s ‘execution’ in the tavern’s basement had been quick and merciless. He’d only confirmed what he already knew from the rumours.

Chief Jintang Fang was a monster around metal.

A twinge of nervousness crept up in the back of Chief Bear’s mind. Despite his confidence, and the advantage they had in numbers, they had one distinct disadvantage in this fight - they could not use or carry any metal on them, lest it be turned against them. This meant no swords, no metal nightsticks, and no guns.

The street was brightened by the wandering lanterns. Almost a dozen lanterns had been lit. They floated through the street aimlessly, staying mostly around the tavern, which stood dark and still at the center of the block.

“What is he planning...?” Chief Bear frowned.

“Could he be thinking about running?” An officer whispered to Chief Bear.

“He won’t run. He knew were were coming.” Chief Bear grimaced as he rubbed his neck again, “He’s got something up his sleeve.”

The lanterns formed a loose perimeter around the tavern, hovering at varying heights. The headless lampposts were like stakes jutting out of the ground, casting long lines across the cobblestone street.

“Come on, Jintang...” Bear mumbled. “Make your move.”

The spiritual intuitions of all the officers in the area suddenly went into alarm as all the lanterns took off in all directions down the street.

“Here he comes!”