Strongest Soldier King

That night, at an outdoor café in Shanghai.

Young men and women were sipping fragrant coffee and whispering softly, occasionally bursting into gentle laughter. The breeze from the Huangpu River was refreshing, the bustling riverbanks were illuminated by neon lights, surrounded by towering buildings. A bright moon reflected in the river was quickly shattered by a passing cruise ship. Once the ship passed, the fragmented moonlight merged back together, forming a tranquil full moon.

Luo Zheng sat quietly alone in a corner, disguised with a silicone mask, contrasting with the stylish men and women around him. He ordered a pot of tea to drink alone. Both tea and coffee can help maintain alertness, but Luo Zheng found that tea not only refreshes but also keeps the body sharp, whereas coffee tends to make the body lazy, reluctant to move. How coffee affects others, Luo Zheng was unsure, but as a soldier, he would never allow his body to become sluggish.

Staring at the rising steam, inhaling the fresh tea aroma, Luo Zheng's inner peace was restored. His tranquil gaze casually swept over the surrounding men and women, none of whom appeared suspicious. Across from him was the Evergreen Martial Arts Hall, known for its skill in concealment. Luo Zheng was uncertain if any assassins were lurking nearby, keeping watch.

A couple opposite him looked like college students, appearing no older than their early twenties. Diagonally across was a group who seemed like successful social elites. Not far away sat a single woman, graceful in her demeanor, exuding an intellectual charm, around twenty-five or twenty-six, her brows furrowed, seemingly burdened with worries, likely not an assassin either. Behind him was a slightly non-mainstream looking couple, appearing very affectionate.

After observing for a while, Luo Zheng's gaze fell on the Evergreen Martial Arts Hall ahead. The ability to establish a hall here itself signifies some level of power. The hall was on the second floor, brightly lit, filled with various exercise equipment, and people working out. It looked sizable. Two young women dressed in Japanese Samurai Path attire stood welcoming guests at the entrance, leading from the first floor lobby to the second floor.

Half an hour of observation yielded no suspicious individuals entering the hall. After a while longer, Luo Zheng noticed the surrounding patrons had changed but found no suspicious characters, so he rose, settled his bill, and left. Strolling along the river, he crossed the bridge to a five-star hotel opposite, heading to the top floor.

Shi Tao opened the door; inside, there was a guard. Niu Gang was operating a telescope observing the martial arts hall opposite. Seeing Luo Zheng arrive, he straightened his posture and reported respectfully, "No anomalies detected."

"Keep watching," Luo Zheng casually remarked, sitting on the sofa in deep thought. Two hours ago, they secretly arrived in Shanghai, checking into this hotel for surveillance. Two hours without results, Luo Zheng wasn't discouraged, slouching on the sofa to ponder.

"Assassins are best at concealing identities. They could disguise as anyone and enter without us realizing. The martial arts hall sees a constant flow of students, employees, businessmen, among others. Do we have enough intelligence? Otherwise, we could analyze their cranial structures for identification," Shi Tao commented from the side.

"Just keep watching, everyone stay alert," Luo Zheng said, putting on his headset, continuing to inquire, "Can we infiltrate the internal network system of the martial arts hall and retrieve surveillance from the past week?"

"No, tried it, not connected to the network. There's only one way, have the local police request it under the guise of security, but I suspect they'd be prepared. Doing so might not only fail to retrieve surveillance footage but also alert them, so we're stuck with surveillance," Lan Xing's voice came through the headset.

Luo Zheng thought for a moment and agreed with Lan Xing's reasoning. Not making any moves that might alert the other side before deciding on action seemed wise. Noticing it was already late into the night, Luo Zheng yawned and went to find a place to sleep.

Early the next morning, Luo Zheng rose, washed up, and headed to the living room. Seeing everyone gathered around having breakfast, a heap of soy milk and fried dough sticks, Luo Zheng took a portion handed over by Niu Gang and sat down to eat, asking, "Any anomalies detected?"

"None so far," Niu Gang replied helplessly.

"No worries, don't lose heart, our opponents are incredibly cunning, it requires patience," Luo Zheng casually said before quickly finishing breakfast and moving to a computer, replaying surveillance footage while making a cup of tea and watching patiently. After a while, Luo Zheng's combat instincts sensed something unusual, prompting him to stand up suddenly, adjust the computer reply, and review again.

The situation was quite ordinary—a beautiful woman exiting the martial arts hall, glanced left and right, then continued forward, hailed a taxi and left. It couldn't appear more ordinary. The anomaly was spotted by Shi Tao, Niu Gang, and others who gathered around the screen, unsure of what Luo Zheng had discovered.

"Note that when she came out, her steps were slightly hurried, obviously rushing to handle something. Looking left and right upon exiting isn't unusual, many people do it to avoid vehicles, but she subconsciously slowed her pace, combining the two is unreasonable," Luo Zheng whispered while adjusting the footage for another review.

Everyone saw it clearly this time; the woman indeed subconsciously slowed her steps while surveying her surroundings, more like an instinctive caution or vigilance towards the environment. While ordinary people might look around or slow their steps upon exiting, they wouldn't subconsciously slow down upon hurriedly exiting to scan the surroundings and then hastily leave, uplifting everyone's spirits. Niu Gang said, "Let's track this clue immediately."

Everyone was filled with excitement and looked at Luo Zheng with admiration. The detail unnoticed by everyone else was caught by him, almost imperceptible detail requiring astute observational skills. Soon, they tracked the taxi to the pier, where the trail went cold.

Lan Xing hacked into nearby pier surveillance, sending over the footage. Everyone watched as the woman boarded a speedboat heading out to sea. Lan Xing called up satellite imagery, finding no trace of her. Luo Zheng pondered briefly before saying, "Judging by the surveillance footage, she left at seven in the morning, now it's eight. It takes half an hour to reach the pier from the martial arts hall, meaning she's been out at sea for half an hour. This isn't far enough for the satellite to lose sight unless she's disguised herself or met someone and hidden."

"I'll continue tracking," Lan Xing promptly responded.

"She might still be at sea or could have landed already. Shi Tao, you stay behind; Niu Gang, take your team and come with me," Luo Zheng's expression turned stern, decisively saying, "We're heading to the coast. Lan Xing, contact relevant figures in the Coast Guard to meet us at the pier, get someone to help monitor all piers in Shanghai, and find that woman."