Chapter 47 Did I say yes?

At the main entrance of Dodo Pet Paradise.

Director Yan was dressed in a tailored suit with crisp, straight trouser creases, and his leather shoes gleamed faintly under the lights. Every gesture of his exuded an air of elegance and understated restraint.

A smile hung on the corners of his lips as he walked down the steps and waved toward the parking lot on the right side of the main entrance.

An ordinary commercial van popped its doors open, and a middle-aged man in his forties stepped out. The man had a square face, thick eyebrows, and large eyes, radiating an aura of upright righteousness.

Surnamed Zhou, this man was an official from the Judicial Litigation Department of the Southern Divine Anomaly Arbitration Tribunal. He usually maintained close ties with the Vigilants, though he was not particularly familiar with Yan Dodo, as the latter had only recently been transferred here.

When ordinary people commit crimes, there are relevant law enforcement units, litigation units, and courts to handle them.

Similarly, when Star Gate players commit crimes, specialized departments are required to process them. The Vigilants are responsible for capture and control, while the Divine Anomaly Arbitration Tribunal is the department that tries them.

However, the Divine Anomaly Arbitration Tribunal is not an organization entirely "led" by the official government; rather, it is a body jointly established by eighty-six player organizations.

The reason for this is quite simple: currently, official organizations cannot control all players. They can only maintain order and prevent real society from being affected by balancing various player factions and jointly establishing rules.

This somewhat resembles the global geopolitical landscape. When a certain power reaches a level where it can break the rules and harm others, everyone has no choice but to negotiate, regardless of whether that power is military or economic in nature...

Old Zhou got out of the car and waved merrily at Yan Dodo. "It's been quite a while. I heard you went to Kyoto?"

"Yeah, went to report on my work." Yan Dodo nodded at him. "Get in my car."

"Alright."

Old Zhou acknowledged, stepped right into Yan Dodo's car, and sat beside him in the back seat.

Aside from the two of them, the only other person in the car was the driver. Not even an assistant like Chen Hannian had followed along.

"Let's go." Sitting inside the spacious vehicle, Yan Dodo crossed his legs and gave instructions to the driver.

The vehicle slowly pulled away from the premises. Old Zhou rubbed his hands together and asked with a smile, "Where are you headed?"

"Just got off the high-speed rail, and a mountain of troublesome matters at the unit is waiting for me to handle. I'm going to check out the branch unit." Yan Dodo turned his head to look at him. "Say, what made you think of visiting me today?"

A reluctant smile appeared on Old Zhou's face. "I'm here to ask a favor."

"A favor? What for?"

"What else could it be? The Bell Guild case, of course." Old Zhou let out a sigh. "I've heard about what happened. You guys clashed with that bunch of scum at the suburban apartment building and ended up arresting two people."

"Correct." Yan Dodo did not deny it, simply asking in a soft voice, "Hehe, you didn't come here to ask me to release people for the Bell Guild, did you? Hehe."

"I'd be thrilled if every single one of them dropped dead." Old Zhou looked at Yan Dodo. "I'm here regarding what comes next."

"What is that?" A smile hung on Yan Dodo's face, though his eyes remained filled with puzzlement.

"Ah!"

Old Zhou slapped his thigh, as if making a hard decision. "Let's drop the beating around the bush and speak directly. Your people are fine, the criminals have been caught, and that whole nest at the All-In Mahjong Parlor on Tongren Road has been wiped out... Can the people behind this be put on hold for now and left alone temporarily?"

Yan Dodo rested his hands together and looked at him calmly. "You mean to say that in this incident, I shouldn't touch any of the organizations and individuals who aided the Bell Guild?!"

"Deal with the lower-level guys however you see fit, but the person in charge of Roadside Dogs... let's leave him alone for now." Old Zhou laid his cards on the table. "I'm talking about Cripple."

"Why protect him?" Yan Dodo still showed no emotional fluctuations, asking purely for the sake of discussion.

"Phew!"

Old Zhou loosened his collar. "The Arbitration Tribunal's Risk Committee has held an emergency review. You know very well what kind of influence Cripple holds on Tongren Road, and he is the person in charge of Roadside Dogs in Shanghai. Pressuring him too hard... the probability of a social incident breaking out is extremely high. To be even more blunt, if you touch him, and Roadside Dogs organizes retaliation against ordinary society, it won't just be a matter of a few deaths; it could very well trigger regional turmoil."

"Mm, I understand your point." Yan Dodo slowly nodded. "I also understand the Risk Committee's concerns. So, what is your suggestion on how we should handle this to make it appropriate?"

"If we don't touch Cripple, we can make up for it elsewhere." After careful consideration, Old Zhou replied very seriously, "Have Cripple figure out a way on his own to hand over Mr. He. That way, you can close the case perfectly, and our grudge will be settled. Most importantly, it maintains stability... and avoids sparking friction."

"Can this promise of yours be put in writing?" Yan Dodo seemed to be weighing the pros and cons, yet the question he posed appeared remarkably naive—so naive that it completely mismatched his status.

"Hehe!"

Old Zhou smiled helplessly. "How could something like this be put in writing? However, I can personally keep an eye on it. I guarantee that within a month at most, Mr. He will definitely be sent back to Shanghai to stand trial."

"Jingle bell!"

Before Yan Dodo could respond, the phone in his pocket rang.

...

No. 88, Lianhu Road.

Ren Ye quickly left the dormitory building, walked into the case-handling area of the front hall, and asked the busy Old Huang, "What is it now?"

"There's a mission. You're coming too." Huang Wei raised his head to glance at him. "Get ready for battle."

Hearing this, Ren Ye turned his head to look both inside and outside the hall, noticing that the surroundings were filled with Vigilants walking back and forth, many of whom had already donned formal uniforms. "What kind of mission is this? It looks like quite a grand scale..."

"Revenge! Getting revenge for you!!" Huang Wei never missed any opportunity for brainwashing. He looked at Ren Ye very solemnly. "Even though you aren't an official member of the organization yet, once you've stepped through this door, no one can easily harm you without paying a price..."

"Ha."

Ren Ye let out a mocking laugh. "Mr. He almost crushed my balls right out at the apartment building. You're telling me this now—do you really think that's going to get my blood boiling?"

"Even if they were truly crushed, the organization would find a way to glue them back on for you." Huang Wei smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I don't know if your blood will boil... but tonight, Shanghai's Star Gate will illuminate for you alone."

Ren Ye felt an inexplicable sense of awe. Although he knew he was being brainwashed, he still nodded. "Let's go then. I want to see just how it illuminates."

"Assemble, quickly!"

Huang Wei turned his head and shouted, "The ones from Huangjiang are getting in the vehicles too, no grouping needed. Everyone moves out in three minutes."

...

On a brightly lit street, an ordinary commercial sedan moved at a slow pace.

Inside the car, Yan Dodo played incessantly with his smartphone, replying to messages.

"... Xiao Yan, what do you think of our proposal?" After waiting for a moment, Old Zhou asked softly.

"Since you've put it that way, what else can I do?" Yan Dodo turned his head to look at him. "If I disagreed, wouldn't that mean I lack a macro perspective, and that I'm hell-bent on disrupting stability?!"

"Swish!"

Hearing this, Old Zhou immediately gave a thumbs-up. "That is the perspective of Shanghai's top Star Official. I'll say it again: that fellow surnamed He definitely won't get away. Within a month at most... I guarantee he'll be brought to court for trial."

"Mm."

Yan Dodo nodded slightly and continued playing with his phone.

Old Zhou glanced at him and spoke somewhat for the sake of making conversation, "Sigh, your position dictates your mindset. At our level, many matters are quite difficult to handle. Take me, for example. Just last month, I reviewed a case where a player, on a whim driven by lust, raped a pair of mother and daughter—the child was only twelve years old, and this player was fucking from our Order Faction... He was directly sentenced to death upon trial. On the day of execution, one of his friends from the Chaotic Faction on the outside killed twelve people in the suburbs in retaliation. The local Vigilants were just about to catch him when he fled straight into the Star Gate and hasn't been heard from since."

"I know about that incident too." Yan Dodo nodded.

"That single case infuriated the ordinary judicial authorities and led them to hold us accountable; and over at the Divine Anomaly Arbitration Tribunal's Risk Committee, some people were dissatisfied, claiming the crime of rape didn't warrant the death penalty and that our overzealous judgment caused the deaths of twelve ordinary people... In any case, no one was quite satisfied." Old Zhou looked slightly weary. "Sigh, some things can only be said between us in private. Before becoming players, these ordinary people were likely at the very bottom of society. Their past lives were unsatisfactory and repressed, and upon suddenly acquiring supernatural abilities... their behaviors and mindsets undergo drastic changes. They feel they have the ability to break rules and subvert the rule of law..."

Yan Dodo fiddled with his phone and replied indifferently, "I agree with parts of your view; abruptly acquired supernatural abilities do indeed generate numerous problems. However, I believe that constantly evading problems is not the solution. Besides, it doesn't mean that players born from the bottom of society are necessarily bad bastards. My family background is very ordinary, but I am neither corrupt nor greedy. I cherish the three words 'Vigilant,' and I have always been proud of them."

Old Zhou was slightly taken aback. "You're a young cadre cultivated as a key priority by the Vigilants, so naturally, you're upright."

"Screech!"

At that moment, the car suddenly stopped by the roadside. Old Zhou turned his head to look, only to discover that they had arrived at the intersection leading into Tongren Road.

Looking somewhat puzzled, he smiled and asked Yan Dodo, "Since we happen to be right here, shall we head down for a drink?"

Holding his phone, Yan Dodo looked at him quietly. "I came here not to drink, but to make arrests. If things don't go smoothly, I'll also be killing people..."

Those words were already blunt enough to leave Old Zhou stunned on the spot.

"You can wait here. Once it's all over, I'll treat you to a drink." Yan Dodo smiled, reaching out to push open the car door.

Coming back to his senses, Old Zhou furrowed his brow and demanded, "What do you mean by this?!"

"I'm here to arrest Cripple." Yan Dodo replied straightforwardly.

"Hold on, didn't we finish discussing this just now?!" Old Zhou asked in disbelief. "What is the meaning of this stunt you're pulling? Are you slapping me in the face?!"

Yan Dodo still looked at him calmly. "Think carefully: did I agree to any of your proposals just now?"

Old Zhou was dumbfounded.

"I brought you along just to let you know that the profession of a Vigilant is not an easy one. Entering the Star Gate might mean death; capturing criminals might also mean death. If you accidentally suffer some cryptic supernatural attack, you might not even find a way to be saved." Yan Dodo slowly pushed the door open. There was neither agitation nor grandiloquence in his voice as he softly stated, "Stability is not something negotiated or balanced into existence; it is something bought with the lives of us Vigilants. I have only one principle: any player or organization that dares to display supernatural powers and violently resist the law in front of the Vigilants—I will definitely deal with them."

With that, he stepped carefully past a puddle beneath the door, walked elegantly out of the car, and slowly gazed down Tongren Road.

"Swish!"

Old Zhou poked his upper body out of the car and shouted with intense agitation, "Do you know how many Chaotic Faction players are on Tongren Road? How many friends Cripple has?! If you forcefully deal with him tonight, have you thought of the consequences? The entire city could plunge into chaos because of your momentary impulse... They are complete lunatics, do you understand?!"

With his back to the bright moon and to Old Zhou, Yan Dodo stretched lazily and asked in a flat tone, "Have you ever heard a quote from our great leader?"

"Soar up the three million dragons of jade, suppressing all evil spirits across the heavens."

"If anyone dares to plunge into chaos tonight, I will ensure that there are no more Roadside Dogs left on the streets of Shanghai!"

Having said that, Yan Dodo fished the earphones out of his trouser pocket, slowly inserted them into his ears, and said in a low voice, "All Vigilants on duty across the city tonight, assemble at both the entrance and exit of Tongren Road. Tell that reckless Ren Ye to come find me—right now!"