For the next few days, Jiang Chen didn't make any major moves.
He knew the Star Plucking Society had people tailing him, but he didn't let on — each day he simply wandered around Pill Fire City. Occasionally he'd even make a show of visiting the slave market, projecting the air of a man desperate for talent.
This behavior left the watchers on his tail with a nagging sense that they couldn't quite pin down what he was really after.
Since the Star Plucking Society was following him, Jiang Chen switched to communicating with Lin Yanyu through spiritual consciousness instead. It posed no real difficulties.
Lin Yanyu had gathered quite a bit of intelligence through various channels.
Most of the information related to the Star Plucking Society, but genuinely useful leads were pitifully scarce.
Jiang Chen had considered using the Gold-Munching Mouse to stir up some underground trouble, but a place like the Star Plucking Society's headquarters was sure to be blanketed in countless restrictions.
The Gold-Munching Mouse could tunnel beneath the earth, but it couldn't break through their layered barriers.
A power as formidable as the Star Plucking Society would have restrictions running from head to toe — underground included.
So Jiang Chen shelved the idea.
Last time, he'd managed to meet the Star Plucking Society's leader Gai Zonglin, which was a good start. But his request to see Mu Gaoqi still hadn't been fulfilled.
This frustrated Jiang Chen and drove home just how cautious the Star Plucking Society was on this matter.
"Looks like getting Gaoqi out of the Star Plucking Society won't be easy at all. First, I need to see him and figure out what condition he's in."
Right now, Jiang Chen's biggest hurdle was getting to see Mu Gaoqi.
The Star Plucking Society was impervious to every approach — no matter what, they simply refused to let Mu Gaoqi show his face. The situation left Jiang Chen feeling like a dog trying to bite a hedgehog, with nowhere to start.
Back in Liuli Royal City, he'd been able to snatch people directly from the Myriad Puppet Hall because they hadn't been on guard against him. Besides, those slaves didn't hold any irreplaceable value, and the Myriad Puppet Hall never imagined anyone would dare rob them right in the Yulong District.
But the Star Plucking Society was a different beast — they'd long since marked Mu Gaoqi as a treasure. Naturally, their defenses were airtight.
"Master, I think we need to approach this from inside the Star Plucking Society," Lin Yanyu offered his personal suggestion.
"What do you have in mind?" Jiang Chen placed considerable value on Lin Yanyu's intelligence, especially given that Lin Yanyu was a well-connected local in Pill Fire City.
"I think we should focus our investigation on a few specific people — people who have access to the Star Plucking Society's leader. Ideally, people who can come and go freely from their headquarters," Lin Yanyu proposed.
"Yanyu, does the Star Plucking Society's leader Gai Zonglin have anyone he's particularly close to? Children, personal disciples, anything like that?" Jiang Chen asked.
"Master, Gai Zonglin is still in his prime and hasn't taken on any personal disciples yet. As for biological children — the Star Plucking Society keeps that very tightly under wraps. I've investigated, but I've never found anything concrete."
No personal disciples, and as for biological children — even Lin Yanyu couldn't dig up a thing.
It was clear the Star Plucking Society's secrecy was iron-tight. But Jiang Chen could understand. A gang was fundamentally different from a sect or a noble clan.
Between gangs, survival was more primitive and competition far more cutthroat. So gang members generally wouldn't let their private affairs become exposed.
Once personal ties were known, they became targets for enemies to strike at.
So for a gang leader like Gai Zonglin, whether he had a family or children — unless you had extremely close connections, there was simply no way to find out.
That such a large organization ran this tightly only elevated Jiang Chen's regard for the Star Plucking Society. Placed in Liuli Royal City, this gang could absolutely rival some of the more powerful great noble families. Ordinary aristocratic houses wouldn't even qualify to be mentioned in the same breath.
While Jiang Chen was turning these thoughts over, he suddenly heard footsteps in the corridor — and they were the familiar light, quick steps he recognized.
"How'd she get here?" Without even looking, Jiang Chen identified the visitor by her footsteps alone — it was the somewhat temperamental Miss Keke from the Star Pavilion.
Knock, knock, knock!
A series of raps sounded at his door.
"Come in." Jiang Chen's voice drifted out, calm and unhurried.
The door swung open, and there stood Miss Keke, looking delicate and pretty in the doorway. Her gaze landed on Jiang Chen, then flitted away, her cheeks flushed red — as though she were a lover sneaking off for a secret tryst.