MTLNOVEL Chapter 420 Church Level_2
Wang Tao finished speaking, and everyone exchanged glances, unsure of what to say, mainly because they were uncertain about Wang Tao's thoughts.
However, Zhu Fen decided to trust Wang Tao—she had to trust him. Believing might offer a chance, but disbelief would mean being unmasked, completely exposing her face to everyone, and that would truly be the end for her!
"I'll speak!"
Zhu Fen immediately spoke up.
Although she had not been involved in the assassination of Yao Guodong, both deputy mayors had reported to her afterward, so she was aware of the details.
Since she was not the murderer, even if she were really to be charged, it would not be her turn. Thus, speaking out did not burden her much.
But the two deputy mayors were cursing inwardly.
They were the masterminds! If they disclosed the event, even if Wang Tao was willing to release people, he would definitely not release them, and even if he did, they would still be caught later!
"A wise choice,"
Wang Tao said in a very satisfied tone.
"I know too!"
"I'll speak too!"
The Level 3 bodyguard and the Level 3 official also hurriedly spoke up.
If there was a chance to stay alive, who wouldn't want to live?
Now, the two deputy mayors felt even worse; everyone dared to speak except for them!
But Wang Tao knew that these two might be the killers, and the killers' testimony would definitely differ slightly from that of bystanders. So Wang Tao added:
"Since you all know, let's do this one by one! If I find inconsistencies in your stories… sorry, you might not get a chance for a trial."
Wang Tao glanced at them, his aura as a Fourth-order Awakener radiating for the first time, causing everyone to feel a chill down their spines.
"Let's start with you two."
Wang Tao pointed at one of the deputy mayors.
The two deputy mayors were flustered—they hadn't said they knew anything, so why was it starting with them? However, looking at Wang Tao's expression, they didn't doubt that he might indeed kill them! After all, to an Awakener, their Level 1 Strength Ability was no different from an ant...
They had no choice; speaking might lead to death later, but not speaking could mean death now!
Thus, the two could only honestly confess.
To prevent them from colluding, Wang Tao took special measures to have them speak in a room, ensuring they couldn't hear what the others said. In such a situation, in order to avoid inconsistencies with others, they could only tell the truth.
So, these men honestly retold the event of Yao Guodong being assassinated, including the instigators being the two deputy mayors. However, they were quite cunning; without their faces revealed by Wang Tao, they didn't directly tell Wang Tao that the two deacons were the deputy mayors. They still had a hope, just in case Wang Tao really released them, that being wanted as deputy mayors later was better than being captured now.
After hearing their stories, Wang Tao nodded immediately. The event was almost as he had speculated...
The two deputy mayors had killed Yao Guodong because he had become an Ability User!
Yao Guodong was very capable, but old, and was supposed to retire. With Yao Guodong's retirement, these deputy mayors were vying for his position. Both deputy mayors were from the Dusk Church, and they knew each other's identities, therefore, by partnering up, they would definitely be stronger than any other deputy mayor—thus securing the position for themselves.
But what they hadn't expected was Yao Guodong becoming an Ability User. That complicated matters. Because becoming an Ability User improved one's health, Yao Guodong could delay his retirement. Without Yao Guodong retiring, they would never have the chance to move up. Therefore, they chose to act, taking advantage of Yao Guodong's current weakness to kill him!
Thus, they contacted another deacon, the Level 3 Ability deacon who provided Qiu Rong and Xia Zhen with Holy Medicine.
After paying a price, this deacon agreed to help. However, he didn't participate directly; he planned to make Qiu Rong give Yao Guodong the Holy Medicine and then lure him out. What would happen to Yao Guodong after he went out, that wasn't his concern.
Then, the two deputy mayors found a hitman—yes, at Changhe Base, there was still such a profession, but it could only be found in the black market, very secretive.
They found a hitman who was said to possess not high, but very strong assassination skills. Upon paying some Crystal Coins, the hitman accepted the task and succeeded.
The events that followed were what Wang Tao had witnessed at the scene...
"So, you mean to say, you don't know who this hitman is?"
Wang Tao furrowed his brows.
"I don't know..."
Zhu Fen quickly shook her head.
She was the last one to be asked, she didn't dare to tell any lies, she really didn't know.
Wang Tao was somewhat speechless, although they could catch the mastermind behind the scenes, it was somewhat regrettable that they couldn't catch the actual murderer. But... it didn't matter, the rest was up to the police and City Hall to investigate, after all, being able to personally capture those two deputy mayors was already a big help to them.
"Fine, you barely passed. I have one last question. If you answer it to my satisfaction, I will let you go."
Wang Tao said with a smile.
"...You'll keep your word?"
Zhu Fen looked uneasy.
"You have no choice but to trust me. And like I said, I'm just working on someone's behalf, and now that the task is complete, I can leave at any time. I have no grudge against you, just a bit curious..."
Wang Tao said unhurriedly.
"Then go ahead and ask!"
Zhu Fen clenched her teeth, she didn't want to die, she had to take the chance if there was one.
"Good, tell me about this Holy Medicine and everything about your Dusk Church."
"You—"
Zhu Fen probably anticipated what Wang Tao was going to ask, but still hesitated to answer upon hearing it.
"You only have one chance, anyway, if you don't speak others will. If I find you're of no use, then the consequences... think about it yourself."
"..."
Zhu Fen struggled internally for a while and finally decided to speak. After all, her own life was what mattered most.
"The Dusk Church..."
In the other rooms, Jiang Shixue and the others were also interrogating.
Wang Tao's spiritual power could detect it, so he could also see the content of their interrogations. Several people conducting interrogations at the same time saved a lot of time. It just gave Wang Tao a bit of a headache, as it was relatively multitasking...
After some time, Zhu Fen and the others recounted everything about the Holy Medicine and the Dusk Church.
Wang Tao finally had some understanding of this Dusk Church.
The internal hierarchy of this Dusk Church was strict; currently, there were four levels.
The lowest were the "Ordinary Believers," like Qiu Rong and Xia Zhen, who were not considered real members of the church, so they did not have any rank.
Only if they recruited three believers could they officially join the church and become "Devout Believers."
Devout Believers were the lowest rank in the church, and if they performed well, they could be promoted to "Deacon." Those were the deputy mayors and such.
Above the Deacon was the "Master Sido," who, according to Zhu Fen, was the only Master Sido currently at Changhe Base.
But she was not very sure because there were rules within the Dusk Church that forbade inquiring about other people's identities.
Generally, only their superiors would know one's identity, for example, the deputy mayors were all Zhu Fen's superiors, she knew their real identities, but they did not know Zhu Fen's identity.
So if there really were other Master Sidos, Zhu Fen might not know unless it was someone above Master Sido, which was the highest rank—the Bishop.
She was certain there was no Bishop within Changhe Base because she always had to go out to contact the Bishop. But whether there were other Master Sidos, she did not know…
"Bishop, Master Sido, Deacon, Believers... "
Wang Tao felt this church was huge!
And even Zhu Fen, this committee member, was just a Master Sido... who exactly was this Bishop!