Dawn, Hongqiao Airport.
The gigantic airplane approached the runway, like a big eagle gunning for its prey.
Shen Meng, dressed in a suit, walked along the floored tiles in the waiting room. His leather shoes, which were made in Italy, made crisp sounds as it clattered against the floor.
As the Third Prince of the demon descendants" family, he gave off an entirely different aura. It was composed of elegance and arrogance, acc.u.mulated for over a hundred years.
Behind him was a white-haired old man. He had a battle scar across his left eye, while his eyeball was missing. He was old, but fit. He wore a martial arts outfit, with a pair of cloth shoes.
"Looks like there are lots of people in Shanghai. They have more resources as well. It"s practically limitless." Shen Meng looked across the hall and took out a wallet. Emotionally, he remarked, "It"s a weapon. Baoze"s technology is convenient. It"s a pity that it"s tightly controlled. Looks like we can"t covet after it."
As he spoke, he took out a small bronze tripod from the wallet, about the size of a palm. He blew lightly onto it, causing a layer of green smoke to emanate from within and spread across the entire hall.
Near Starbucks, a young mother and her son was sitting by the tables, eating their desserts. She had a cup of coffee in front of her, while her kid had a piece of chocolate cake to himself.
When Shen Meng and the old man pa.s.sed by, she looked them in the eye. The small young boy suddenly s.h.i.+vered, looked up and remarked, "Mum, I"m so cold."
The young mother looked towards her son and was taken aback. It was in the middle of summer, but the child"s face was pale. His teeth were chattering while his limbs were cold.
The aircon in the hall could never have caused this.
Shen Meng held the tripod in one hand and his phone in the other. He looked at the scene in front of him and remarked, "The present descendants of the Li family are so weak."
His phone screen showed Li Xianyu"s personal particulars to great detail, including his current address.
"Uncle Yuan, do you think that the war spirit from the Li family knows where the Great Deities Palace is?" Shen Meng closed his phone and frowned. "We made a trip from afar. It"d better not be in vain."
The one-eyed man squinted and replied, "If anyone knew where it was, it must be her. Precisely, because she"s here, Li Wuxiang had the guts to monopolise the treasures. However, there"s always a nemesis to a certain thing. That war spirit is not invincible. The deities can fight with her."
"What about the Elder?" Shen Meng frowned.
"He"s still slightly lacking. Eighty years ago, the demon descendants caused chaos throughout the world. His sect was at the frontline. Then, many of his followers suffered in the hands of the demon descendants. He"s still not fully recovered yet."
"In that tragedy 80 years ago, the Buddhist society suffered heavy losses. Twenty years ago, in Li Wuxiang"s case, it was only solved with the gargantuan efforts of many people. Ever since the end of the Qing Dynasty, our world has been rocked with occasional turbulence. Many heroes died because they were inexperienced. It"s regrettable. Compared to the western demon descendants, since the early days, they have had all the talents. It"s not a good omen. My grandfather used to lament like this." Shen Meng shrugged and continued, "However, I feel that there are rare talents from every generation. For example, that sword wielding guy from Baoze. How would you compare him to the deities?"
The old man thought long and hard about this question. "A few years ago, this person suddenly appeared. He suppressed the talents from the big families, as well as the disciples of the Buddhist society. Then, he challenged the revered experts and did not suffer a single loss. It was terrifying. The last time he struck, he was still a long way from perfection. However, that was a year ago. I think he has one foot in there already. In the worst case scenario, he would be on the same level as the Elder."
"True experts are still very rare. It"s not worthy of attention. That war spirit was powerful back then, but not anymore. However, Uncle Yuan, can you deal with that G.o.dly killer?"
"S-grade experts from Baoze are known for different reasons. Although I dare not say that I will win, I can definitely stall them for a while. Third Master, your target this time is not the war spirit, but the descendant from the Li family. As long as he"s captured, the war spirit will be controlled by us. However, I have one thing to tell you. Don"t harm him."
Shen Meng pouted in disdain and replied, "What"s the big deal? He"s just a n.o.body who is ruining his family"s reputation. This time, when the doors of the palace open, the war spirit will be doomed, much less him. All these years, it"s not just the Buddhist society that"s been paying attention to him."
The one-eyed man stopped in his tracks, looking stern and speaking seriously. "Third Master, you have to promise me this."
Shen Meng was visibly frustrated as he replied, "I know. How bothersome."
He had been the centre of attention since young, being showered with love by his elders, siblings, as well as the Third Young Master of the Shen family. He was the envy of people wherever he went.
He naturally hated Li Xianyu, who had similar tendencies.
The two of them walked to the entrance of the hall and stopped there. Shen Meng turned around and looked back at the hall, detecting the presence of supernatural beings. Countless aggrieved spirits were sucking away at the essences of the pa.s.sers-by.
An aggrieved spirit positioned itself beside the employee at the information counter. It had concave eyelids and looked fierce. It was a lecher who desired women even after death. He sucked the employee"s essence as he fondled her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
Hence, whenever the employee felt cold, she felt a tightness in her chest. Her face was pale as she struggled to do her job.
In the case of the mother and child at the Starbucks outlet, the young mother rubbed her child"s hands continuously and exhaled warm air onto his palms. She was on the phone and sounded frantic.
She was unable to see what was behind her son. A small spirit was extracting her child"s essence.
There were hundreds of spirits in the hall. They followed behind some pa.s.sers-by, as well as perching themselves on their shoulders and extracting their essences.
"Third Master, that"s enough. If you don"t keep it, people from Baoze will notice," the one-eyed man said. "Let"s do this less often in the future."
"These people are basically food. I"m just borrowing their essences. It"s not endangering their lives either. What can Baoze do with me?" Shen Meng was nonchalant.
"This is not our territory, but Baoze"s. We mustn"t offend them," the one-eyed man said.
Shanghai was not a small city. It was the financial hub of the country. The number of people flowing through it was terrifying. Furthermore, this was the airport. There were bound to be one of two vicious people.
Manipulating the spirits to extract people"s essences was an offensive and arrogant act.
Shen Meng sighed and said, "I don"t know when I can gain full control of this tripod. It"s a good weapon, but it drains my energy every time. By the way, will the war spirit listen to us if we capture Li Xianyu?"
The one-eyed man nodded. "He"s their only descendant, or at least according to her. She will definitely comply."