Chapter 159: Suspicions
As the spatial fissure slowly closed, Deng Feng made his way to the main seat, then sat down with a grim expression.
"We greet the divine envoy!"
All of the Night Watch rose from their seats, bowing in unison and paying their respects.
Deng Feng, however, only responded with a grunt, offering nothing more.
None of the Night Watch dared to make a sound, let alone speak. The atmosphere in the entire hall became extremely oppressive.
In such a situation, Yang Haoran certainly wouldn\'t be foolish enough to stand out. He remained in place, his head lowered in contemplation, pondering who knows what.
Yang Haoran wasn\'t foolish, and the other Night Watch were equally intelligent. None of them wanted to invite trouble at a time like this.
After a while, Deng Feng impatiently spoke up, "Do whatever needs to be done quickly, how long do you expect me to wait?"With these words, one of the Night Watch hesitated for a moment before reluctantly approaching Deng Feng with his soul gathering bead.
The soul inside the soul gathering bead was sparse, only about a dozen or so. Deng Feng glanced at it and impatiently waved his hand.
The Night Watch dared not say another word, hastily bowing before retreating, relieved to be free of the burden.
As he stepped back, another Night Watch immediately followed suit, presenting his own soul gathering bead with both hands. He didn\'t dare to make Deng Feng wait for even a second longer.
This one had a slightly better harvest than the previous one, with around twenty souls inside the soul gathering bead. However, this didn\'t change Deng Feng\'s expression at all. He remained grim and impatient, waving his hand dismissively.
This Night Watch, of course, didn\'t dare to express any dissatisfaction with Deng Feng\'s attitude. Like his predecessor, he breathed a sigh of relief and quickly retreated, unwilling to linger in Deng Feng\'s presence for even a second.
Following him, the third person, the fourth person, the fifth person, they all gradually approached Deng Feng with their soul gathering beads. Although the number of souls inside varied, Deng Feng\'s expression didn\'t improve; instead, it grew darker and darker.
The hall, already extremely oppressive, became even more so as time passed, the atmosphere growing increasingly heavy!
However, after a short while, it was Yang Haoran\'s turn!
Yang Haoran took a deep breath, then plastered a smile on his face, already prepared with his soul gathering bead. He briskly walked towards Deng Feng.
Deng Feng\'s unpleasant expression didn\'t change with Yang Haoran\'s arrival. He still wore a grim expression, as if the whole world owed him money.
However, when his gaze fell upon the soul gathering bead that Yang Haoran offered, his expression finally showed a hint of change.
The reason Deng Feng\'s expression changed was because the number of souls in Yang Haoran\'s soul gathering bead was simply too many, at least not less than eighty!
It was precisely because of this that Deng Feng\'s grim expression underwent a slight change.
Then, when Deng Feng noticed the skin ghost within the soul gathering bead, his expression changed again, becoming much softer.
Deng Feng, who had always been impatient with the other Night Watch, unexpectedly nodded at Yang Haoran at this moment, as if acknowledging Yang Haoran\'s achievements.
Seeing Deng Feng\'s softened expression, the other Night Watch couldn\'t help but breathe a sigh of relief. The sheer number of souls in Yang Haoran\'s soul gathering bead truly astonished them, especially the Half-Step Evil Spirit\'s skin ghost, which had a strong impact on their psyche.
Last month, Yang Haoran had submitted a Half-Step Evil Spirit, and now this month, he had subdued such a big fellow, along with a considerable number of undead. They found it hard to imagine how a newcomer managed to accomplish this.
The Night Watch were puzzled, and Deng Feng himself harbored some doubts.
In the past, Deng Feng wouldn\'t have bothered with such trivial matters because what he cared about most was the number of souls his Night Watch could deliver each month. The more, the better. As for how these souls were obtained, he usually didn\'t pay much attention.
But now things were different; he worried that someone among his subordinates might turn out to be another Xu Meijing.
As the Burial Master, discovering a powerful soul conjurer among his Night Watch, who then happened to ascend to the status of Burial Master like himself, shocked him and naturally stirred anger within him.
He had thought he had a rough idea of the strength of his Night Watch, but now he realized he might have been wrong.
So, when he saw Yang Haoran subduing yet another Half-Step Evil Spirit, he felt a moment of satisfaction, followed by a lingering doubt.
"Although these undead vary in strength, they\'re still just undead kings. They can\'t cause much trouble, and with your strength, even the strongest undead wouldn\'t pose a threat to you. I wouldn\'t be surprised if you subdued them."
Deng Feng glanced at the soul gathering bead, paused, then pointed to the soul of the skin ghost inside the bead, his tone becoming markedly somber as he continued, "However, how could you, with your strength, subdue a Half-Step Evil Spirit? Did you seek help again this time?"
Yang Haoran was wary internally, but he didn\'t show any sign of nervousness on his face.
"I did indeed ask for help from a friend. Otherwise, as a newcomer, I wouldn\'t have the ability to deal with a Half-Step Evil Spirit. Faced with such a ghost, I\'m lucky to have escaped with my life," Yang Haoran admitted somewhat sheepishly.
"Oh? Is that so? You found help again. You\'re quite lucky."
Deng Feng\'s tone carried a hint of sarcasm, and anyone could tell what he meant. From his reaction, it seemed he didn\'t fully believe Yang Haoran\'s words.
Yang Haoran could certainly sense the undertones in Deng Feng\'s words. He pretended to be shy and continued, "This Half-Step Evil Spirit was the same skin ghost that caused a stir at Tianhe Hospital not long ago. When I discovered it, the Spirit Police were already on its tail. So, I teamed up with them, and only then could we successfully subdue this skin ghost. Without their help, I wouldn\'t have been able to handle this ghost alone."
After hearing Yang Haoran\'s explanation, Deng Feng\'s expression softened slightly. He wasn\'t worried that Yang Haoran might be lying to him because he believed Yang Haoran wouldn\'t dare. If this matter involved the Spirit Police, Deng Feng could easily verify it with a phone call. If Yang Haoran dared to lie to him, it would be tantamount to seeking death.
However, this time Yang Haoran was indeed telling the truth. Even if Deng Feng contacted the Spirit Police, the result would be consistent with what Yang Haoran said. So, Deng Feng wasn\'t worried.
Actually, Yang Haoran wasn\'t planning to hand over this skin ghost, a Half-Step Evil Spirit. If he successfully crafted the soul-refining cauldron in the future, such evil spirits would be excellent materials for refining soul crystals. Since the soul-refining cauldron hadn\'t been crafted yet, it was necessary to prepare materials in advance.
But he had the intention without the courage. Subduing a skin ghost wasn\'t a secret, and if he didn\'t hand over the soul to Deng Feng, once Deng Feng found out, the consequences could be severe for him. It might even anger Deng Feng!
So, Yang Haoran had no choice but to hand over the skin ghost. This way, not only could he exchange for some Soul Qi to improve himself, but he could also ensure his safety. It was the most rational choice.
"You\'ve done well. You may leave now."
Deng Feng didn\'t inquire further. After taking back the soul gathering bead, he directly dismissed Yang Haoran.
Yang Haoran bowed respectfully and then withdrew. In the past, he might have expressed his grievances in a very tactful way, trying to tell his boss how much he suffered and risked to subdue this Half-Step Evil Spirit. But this time, he didn\'t. He knew Deng Feng wasn\'t in a good mood, and if he complained foolishly now, it wouldn\'t be much different from seeking death.
Deng Feng at the moment was like a powder keg, ready to explode at any moment. So, no matter how he expressed his grievances, it would only make things worse.
After Yang Haoran, several other Night Watch handed over their soul gathering beads. However, when they presented their soul gathering beads, Deng Feng\'s initially improved expression instantly darkened again!
After all the Night Watch successfully handed over their soul gathering beads, Deng Feng took out a wooden box and poured Soul Qi into each person\'s body according to their performance.
However, to the surprise of Yang Haoran and the other Night Watch, the amount of Soul Qi they received this time was pitifully small!
[Heartfelt thankyou for the support! BokuBoku]