Ling Zhenfei continued to channel more Northern Spiritual Energy into the sphere, and to his surprise, the energy continued to gather within the sphere, showing no intention of escaping.

Ling Zhenfei had become determined to test the limits of this sphere, continuously infusing it with Northern Spiritual Energy to see just how much it could contain.

As the Northern Spiritual Energy was being channeled in, unaware of just how much he had transferred, he suddenly felt a Divine Thought approaching his Divine Sense, attempting to establish contact with Zhenfei's own Divine Sense.

Ling Zhenfei immediately understood that this Divine Thought was left by the cultivator who had created the sphere and now wanted to connect with him, signaling a wish to acknowledge a new master.

Without hesitation, Ling Zhenfei used his own Divine Sense to envelop this Divine Thought. A stream of cold memories entered his mind, and with them, all the information about the sphere became known to him.

It turned out that this sphere was called the Storm Mixed Yuan Pearl, forged from Ancient Fine Iron and fused with Divine Beast Essence Blood from Ancient Times. It was indeed a powerful artifact, one that could gather the Spiritual Power injected into it. The more Spiritual Power infused, the greater its might.

Upon mental stimulation, it could instantly shoot out tens of thousands of strands of Spiritual Power, killing invisibly.

The artifact did appear to be impressive with its great power, but its drawbacks were also quite evident. First of all, it required the prior accumulation of Spiritual Power, and its strength depended on how much energy was infused into it beforehand.

During his test, Zhenfei found that it took a tremendous amount of Spiritual Power, a serious drain of energy. In today's society, where Spiritual Energy was scarce, this was fatal. Who would pour their painstakingly cultivated energy into this one-use artifact? It would be madness.

This might explain why, when Zhenfei first broke into the Imperial Palace Club, Zhu Qiang did not use the Storm Mixed Yuan Pearl—likely because there was too little Spiritual Energy inside it to be effective.

Then there was the issue with the Cow Hair Fine Needles on the Storm Mixed Yuan Pearl. These needles did not require manual insertion; instead, they formed naturally after the Spiritual Energy accumulated over a period. However, the time it took for these needles to form also depended on the amount of energy within.

In other words, if one wanted the Storm Mixed Yuan Pearl to develop the power-enhancing Cow Hair Fine Needles, it wasn't enough to just fill the pearl with Spiritual Energy; one also had to wait for some time.

Though the Storm Mixed Yuan Pearl was indeed powerful, had Zhenfei not possessed that strange dagger capable of absorbing Spiritual Energy, he might have fallen victim to it. But the conditions for its use were quite harsh: not only did it consume a hefty amount of Spiritual Energy, but it also required a lengthy wait, making it somewhat of a white elephant.

Although it was somewhat useless, Zhenfei still treasured it. As far as he was concerned, Spiritual Energy was of no concern; the Heaven-Dropping Essence Marrow was abundant in it. By filling the pearl with Spiritual Energy in advance, it might just save his life at a critical moment.

Ling Zhenfei transferred the Spiritual Energy from his body into the Storm Mixed Yuan Pearl until he had nearly depleted his own reserves. Now the pearl was completely enveloped in mighty Spiritual Energy, which greatly pleased him.

After storing the pearl away, Ling Zhenfei lay down on the bed, pretending to sleep, but then someone gently tapped on the window. He opened his eyes to see Han Lian opening the car door and sitting inside.

"All done?" Ling Zhenfei asked Han Lian in surprise.

Tiredness was evident on Han Lian's face, "Yes, all done. All the suspects have been caught. I'm exhausted."

"What's next? Is there anything else to do?" Seeing Han Lian's weary look, Zhenfei felt a twinge of pity.

With a smile, Han Lian replied, "The next steps are much simpler: interrogate them and take statements. But I really didn't expect this — so many Binyang officials are involved. Anyway, a large number of departments in Binyang are going to need new people, and that's going to be interesting."

"Yes, this is no less than an earthquake in Binyang's personnel. Many officials will step down, but it also gives many newcomers a chance. Some truly capable people might rise to power, which may actually be a good thing for the common people of Binyang," Ling Zhenfei analyzed, stating his opinion.

Han Lian leaned close to Ling Zhenfei and said in a low voice, "Whether it's good for the common people depends on who takes the stage in Binyang. If an effective leader comes to power, it would be a good thing for the common people; otherwise, it would be a bad thing."

As she spoke, Han Lian started the car and drove off into the distance. Behind the car followed a line of police vehicles. The Imperial Palace Club had already been mostly cleared out, and the suspects were about to be escorted back for trial. A row of police cars racing down the street made for a very impressive sight.

Ling Zhenfei asked Han Lian, "Where are you taking me?"

Han Lian replied, "You saved me again, and I want to invite you for dinner."

"Really just dinner, what's the fun in that?" Ling Zhenfei asked, looking at Han Lian with a playful smile.

"What else do you want to do besides eating?" Han Lian asked, somewhat puzzled.

"Ugh, do you always chat with girls like this?"

Ling Zhenfei just smiled and didn't say a word; he was just teasing Han Lian, who wasn't the casual type of girl but more traditional and valued her purity.

"By the way, how many times have you saved me?" Seeing that Ling Zhenfei remained silent, Han Lian turned her head to ask him.

After thinking for a bit, Ling Zhenfei said, "I can't even remember now. What are you trying to say?"

"You've saved me so many times; I really don't know how I can ever thank you," Han Lian said with a grateful look.

"I didn't do it just for your gratitude. Take this time, for instance, arresting Zhu Qiang and the others was also very beneficial for me; I was looking out for myself."

"But when I was in danger, you shielded me by putting me behind you. I remember all these things you've done, and I must repay this favor," Han Lian said earnestly.

"Then consider inviting me to a meal sometime when you have the time; I can't think of anything else you could repay me with."

Han Lian fell silent, seemingly deep in thought and unsure of what she was pondering.

Soon, the car arrived at the departure point, which was the command center for the entire operation. Long Hai and other officers were inside, directing the operation. Han Lian and other leaders came here to discuss with Long Hai the next steps to be taken.

The future developments were no longer related to Ling Zhenfei, and he had no need to stay longer. As for when Han Lian would get done and invite him for a meal, who knew when that would be, so he got into his car and left.

It was now the middle of the night, and he didn't know where to go. Not wanting to disturb Liu Bingying in the middle of the night, he figured the only place to spend some time was his own bar.

Driving to the bar, Ling Zhenfei found that due to the time, there weren't many people inside, but there were still a few partiers dancing wildly.

Upon seeing Ling Zhenfei, a bartender came over and greeted, "Boss, what can I do for you?"

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