"Go ahead," Emperor Yan said.
"We split into two groups," Rowan turned around and said. "You draw the attention of the surveillance team. I'll investigate the Stellar Trade Group."
Emperor Yan frowned. "That's too dangerous. If I expose my strength…"
"This is exactly the key point," Rowan interrupted. "Senior, our biggest problem right now is not exposure. It's the lack of decisive evidence. If we keep investigating cautiously like this, we may never find Sak's weakness."
Emperor Yan looked at him seriously. "What do you suggest?"
"A gamble," Rowan said firmly. "You reveal a bit of your strength appropriately. Make Sak's people believe you are not an ordinary rchant. That will force them to focus all their attention on you. anwhile, I'll take the chance to investigate the Stellar Trade Group and obtain solid proof."
Emperor Yan walked slowly around the room in silence. After a long mont, he stopped.
"This plan is risky, but it is indeed our best option right now. However, Rowan, going alone is also dangerous."
"I have a way," Rowan said confidently. "I have so connections in the business field. I can access information about the Stellar Trade Group through legitimate channels. I won't directly contact them. I'll only review public corporate records."
Emperor Yan thought for a mont. "What do you need from ?"
"Ti," Rowan replied without hesitation. "Give six hours. I guarantee I can find sothing useful."
"Six hours…" Emperor Yan calculated. "I can buy you that ti. But you must ensure your safety."
"I will," Rowan clenched his fist. "Senior, we can't wait anymore. Since Sak already suspects us, he may act soon. Instead of waiting passively, we strike first."
Emperor Yan finally nodded. "Alright, we proceed with your plan. But be extrely careful. If anything goes wrong, retreat imdiately."
They quickly finalized the operational details.
At 10 a.m., Emperor Yan would leave the apartnt and head to the Great Axe Arena training zone. There, he would "accidentally" display abilities beyond an ordinary rchant's level. anwhile, Rowan would leave through another exit and head to the city center's comrcial information database.
At 9:50 a.m., Emperor Yan stepped out of Red Maple Apartnts according to plan.
He deliberately acted nervous, glancing back repeatedly, giving the impression of guilt or unease.
As expected, the man disguised as a maintenance worker imdiately followed him. The two observers downstairs also moved.
Emperor Yan sneered inwardly.
Their tracking skills were decent, but in front of an Immortal-level existence, they were still far too immature.
He arrived at the public training area of the Great Axe Arena. It contained basic equipnt used by staff and external contractors. He chose a relatively secluded corner and began "training."
At first, he only perford normal physical exercises, appearing no different from a middle-aged businessman focused on health.
But gradually, his performance began to change.
His punches beca faster. His strength increased. Soon, it exceeded human limits.
The training equipnt emitted dull, heavy sounds under his strikes. So even began to deform slightly.
"Who exactly is this Yan Huang?" one of the hidden observers thought in shock.
Emperor Yan sensed their reaction and knew the effect had been achieved.
He deliberately acted as if he had "realized he was exposed," quickly ended his training, and left the area in haste.
The observers imdiately followed, completely unaware that Rowan had already slipped out through another exit.
anwhile, Rowan was on a hover bus heading toward the city center.
He chose public transport to avoid detection. The bus was crowded, giving him excellent cover.
The Comrcial Information Center was a thirty-story modern building with a blue glass curtain wall that shimred under the sunlight. It was the largest comrcial database in the entire star region, containing records of almost every legally registered company.
Rowan entered the query hall filled with hundreds of terminals. He chose a corner seat and began searching for information on the Stellar Trade Group.
At first, everything looked normal.
Basic data: founding date, registered capital, business scope.
Nothing suspicious.
But Rowan did not stop. He knew the most important clues were hidden in details.
He dug deeper into ownership structures, board mbers, and historical changes.
"Founder information… founder information…"
Then he found it.
A shareholder registry page.
He scanned the nas carefully at first, seeing nothing unusual.
Until the third page.
A familiar na appeared.
Sak Redmond.
Rowan's heartbeat accelerated.
But what shocked him even more ca next.
He continued reading.
"Galactic Pirate Alliance representative: Bruce Hamilton."
"Void Hunters leader: Victor Stone."
"Blood Moon rcenary Corps commander: Aaliyah Shadow."
Rowan's hand began to tremble.
He had seen all these nas before in Emperor Yan's case files.
They were the very forces involved in the attack on Emperor Yan in the Blue Crystal Star Region.
He continued scrolling.
Sixteen founders in total.
Aside from Sak, the other fifteen represented fifteen different factions.
All of them had once clashed with the Great Axe Arena.
All of them had grievances against Emperor Yan.
"This can't be a coincidence…" Rowan's mind raced.
He dug further into each faction.
A pattern quickly erged.
Over the past few years, all of these factions had suffered heavy losses.
And every loss was caused by operations led by Emperor Yan's Great Axe Arena.
"I see now…" Rowan finally understood.
Sak was not acting alone.
He was the core of a revenge alliance.
These factions had united because of their hatred toward Emperor Yan.
The Stellar Trade Group was their financial hub, used to launder money and conceal transactions.
Rowan quickly captured all critical data and stored it in an encrypted device.
Although it did not directly prove Sak orchestrated the attack, it clearly showed deep connections between him and hostile forces.
Just as Rowan prepared to leave, he noticed another folder.
Curiosity made him open it.
What he saw next made his eyes widen.
Transaction records.
One week before Emperor Yan's attack, the Stellar Trade Group had transferred massive funds to multiple pirate organizations.
Including the Blood Crow Pirates.
"I found it."
Rowan nearly shouted.
This was the missing piece.
It confird everything.
Sak not only collaborated with these factions, he directly financed the pirates who attacked Emperor Yan.
Rowan quickly saved all data and left the center.
His mind was both excited and tense.
Excited because they finally had decisive evidence.
Tense because he did not know what was happening on Emperor Yan's side.
At that mont, Emperor Yan was still "performing."
He visited the library, pretending to show interest in restricted materials.
Then the archive room, asking about sensitive historical records.
The observers grew increasingly suspicious.
Why would a rchant be interested in internal secrets of the Great Axe Arena?
And his physical abilities were clearly beyond normal.
"We must report this to Elder Sak imdiately," one of them decided.
Emperor Yan sensed their movent and knew the timing was right.
He decided to go find Lei Ming.
Not only to buy Rowan more ti, but also to prepare for the next stage.
Lei Ming's office was on the 28th floor of the headquarters, reserved for elders.
Emperor Yan arrived under the identity of Yan Huang, the comrcial consultant.
"Yan Huang, why are you here?" Lei Ming looked surprised.
"I found so issues during my inspection of the comrcial departnt," Emperor Yan said.
Lei Ming imdiately noticed sothing odd.
The way he addressed him, "Elder Lei Ming," was too precise for a newcor.
"What issues?" Lei Ming asked.
Emperor Yan chose his words carefully.
"I discovered abnormal financial flows involving Elder Sak and external organizations."
Lei Ming's expression turned serious.
"Do you have evidence?"
"Not yet complete, but I felt it was necessary to report in advance."
Lei Ming studied him closely.
Then suddenly asked, "Yan Huang, let ask you sothing."
"Of course."
"Were you really just a rchant before?"
Emperor Yan knew things were getting dangerous.
He took a deep breath.
And made a decision.
"Elder Lei Ming, there are so things I should tell you," he said seriously. "But I need your assurance that you will not disclose anything until I finish."
Lei Ming felt the gravity of the situation.
"Go on."
Just as Emperor Yan was about to reveal more, Rowan returned to Red Maple Apartnts.
He noticed the surveillance team was gone.
He imdiately understood.
The diversion worked.
He rushed back to his room and began organizing all the evidence.
He sorted everything carefully by tiline and importance, then compiled a detailed report.
It included:
The structure of the Stellar Trade Group
The connections between all factions
Their historical conflicts with Emperor Yan
The financial ties to pirate organizations
"This ti, Sak has no way to deny it," Rowan said quietly.
But then he grew worried.
Even though the plan was working, Emperor Yan was still in danger.
He reached for his communicator.
But before he could contact him—
Knock. Knock. Knock.
The sound was light, but in the silent room it felt heavy.
Rowan imdiately tensed.
He approached the door carefully and looked through the peephole.
A woman in a black uniform stood outside.
Around her twenties, sharp gaze, calm expression.
Her hand rested near her waist.
A weapon was clearly concealed there.
"Mr. Rowan, I know you are inside," she said.
Rowan's heart sank.
"Sak wants to see you."
"I don't know any Sak," Rowan replied through the door.
"Mr. Rowan, don't make this difficult," her tone turned cold. "You have two choices. Co with us, or we break the door down."
Rowan knew there was no escape.
But he could not let the evidence fall into their hands.
He quickly hid the storage device in a concealed spot and activated the ergency communication signal.
A distress call sent to Emperor Yan.
"Alright. I'll open the door," Rowan said, taking a deep breath.
Just as he reached for the handle—
A sudden sound of combat erupted outside.
A sharp cry.
Then the sound of a heavy body hitting the ground.
"Rowan, it's ," a familiar voice said.
He opened the door imdiately.
Emperor Yan stood outside.
The black-clad woman was already unconscious on the floor.
"Senior! How did you get here?" Rowan asked in surprise.
"I received your distress signal," Emperor Yan said as he stepped inside.
"It looks like Sak has lost patience."
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