It was 7:30 PM of a spring evening and the sky had just darkened.
Li Xianyu was stationed at a table by the door, at a cafe in his residential estate. Old Master Qin sipped at some stout beer as he smoked a cigarette, looking occasionally at the young man who looked pale and dazed.
Li Xianyu held a cigarette in between his fingers, but did not take any puffs. Two thirds of the cigarette b.u.t.t had burned away, as the cigarette ash dropped downwards.
He had left his coffee untouched as well. Evidently, he was not in the mood.
Three hours ago, Old Master Qin had rescued Li Xianyu from the clutches of the demon descendants, and saved him from a "pleasurable" death. Subsequently, Old Master Qin made a call. Not long after, a group of people in black uniforms entered the premises to take Qingqing and the man away. A short while after, the cops arrived.
The arrival times of the two groups were very close. It was almost as if the cops had waited for the people in black to leave before entering the crime scene. They extracted Xu Wei"s corpse from inside the wardrobe. She had been dead for three days, and her body had begun to decompose.
Li Xianyu did not manage to see her body as well. The cops placed her corpse in a bag, and left in their vehicles. He stood at the side, as he watched the police cars disappear into the distance.
Suddenly, he saw Xu Wei standing from afar, waving goodbye to him happily.
Her shadow was like the flickering lights in the wind, vanis.h.i.+ng after swaying for a bit.
He, despite being at death"s door, did not cry. However, a wave of sorrow suddenly hit him, as he bawled his eyes out.
"A toast to tomorrow, a toast to the past.
To stabilize my health and harden my shoulders,
Although I don"t believe in everlasting n.o.bility.
Life is short, why bear things in mind constantly?"
The hoa.r.s.e tune of "Sharpshooter" reverberated around the cafe.
"Life is short, why bear things in mind constantly?" Old Master Qin added a "hey" behind, as he continued to speak in an emotional manner. "The dead can"t be revived, why bear her in mind? That was her fate. Oh, right, how are you feeling now?"
"I"m okay, I"m not injured. I just can"t snap out of it now," Li Xianyu spoke in a low voice.
"I"m not asking you about that, I"m asking about your manhood," Old Master Qin gazed downwards at his pants.
Li Xianyu was speechless.
The Pleasure Pill was potent indeed, it was still...
The whole world"s against my private part.
If it did not become limp by nighttime, he could only turn to Great-Grandma for help.
"Do demon descendants kill so ruthlessly?" Li Xianyu spoke in a fatigued voice.
"They are different from us. They are aliens who have been awakened. They are not our race, we must be wary of them," Old Master Qin said.
"What are aliens?"
"Beings who have been awakened except for humans. You can refer to them as demons, as ordinary people understand."
"How will the two of them be dealt with?"
"They will be killed. Demon descendants are not allowed to disrupt the stability of society in any way, or have any motives to. This is the rule of the demon descendants community. Otherwise, the world would have been in chaos already. However, there are always a few black sheep like aliens or human demon descendants who are unaware of the rules. Xu Wei"s case will be cla.s.sified as a robbery and murder case. All traces a.s.sociated with demon descendants will be wiped away. Your encounter was a one-time thing, so don"t be overly afraid," Old Master Qin continued.
Li Xianyu nodded as he understood it now. If he was not able to see supernatural bodies, he wouldn"t have gone to find Xu Wei and got himself into such trouble. He smoked the last of his cigarette and puffed a big amount of smoke out of his mouth. "How did you know I was there?"
"Your Great-Grandma called to inform me. Two nights ago, I gave my contact to her." Old Master Qin continued, "In fact, I"ve been paying attention to you. In correct words, protecting you."
"Protecting me?"
"You might not know this, but ever since you were born, your movements have been continually monitored. Everyday, there are different people approaching your social circles, keeping tabs on you around the clock. Five years ago, the people who watched over you and protected you were no longer sent by the Buddhist society, but by our company, which means I"m watching you now."
Li Xianyu looked at him in a dazed manner, totally unable to comprehend what he had just said.
I"m just an ordinary civilian, yet you"re telling me that I was kept prisoner by people I didn"t even know?
He s.h.i.+vered as he thought about the fact that he had been watched for the past 20 years.
Old Master Qin explained, "It started from your father. He was an incredibly strong demon descendant who sent shockwaves through the demon descendants community. The people who wanted to kill him could line up from Hongqiao to Pudong, but each and every one who plotted to ambush him died. He was easily the demon descendant that carried the biggest threat ever since the Early Days. He instilled fear into everyone, but most of his power came from an unknown terrifying existence."
"Great-Grandma?" Li Xianyu uttered.
Old Master Qin nodded. "In recent 200 years, your Great-Grandma is openly recognised as one of the top five strongest demon descendants. The rarely seen Unparalleled War Spirit. This was what the history books recorded."
Although he had somewhat predicted this, he was taken aback.
Great-Grandma was that respected?
"After your father died, the Black Water Spirit Bead containing her spirit was handed over to the Buddhist society. People were a.s.signed to watch over it and protect you. Initially, you were forever unable to inherit Unparalleled War Spirit, because that group of stubborn fellows intended to hide your ident.i.ty forever. Because of the chaos your father caused back then, they feared your Great-Grandma. Hence, they controlled you and prevented Unparalleled War Spirit from re-entering the mortal world. Undoubtedly, it was the best choice."
"Wasn"t the best choice to get rid of me or Great-Grandma?" Li Xianyu asked.
"They didn"t have any ways to get rid of the Black Water Spirit Bead. Even if they had, they would not have dared to. There are historical reasons behind this. It"s not convenient for me to divulge your great-grandma"s origin now. It"s true that getting rid of you would have no repercussions. As to why you survived to 15 years old, you have to thank your great-grandma, otherwise gra.s.s would have covered your tombstone." Old Master Qin paused for a while, before he continued, "After you turned 15, which was five years ago, Baoze Group took over from the Buddhist society and became the police of the demon descendants community. When the transfer of authority took place, they handed you over. It was back then when I was ordered to protect you."
It was really Baoze Group. He had heard Qingqing mention the junior employees in Baoze Group, but not any well-known names.
Another thought flashed across Li Xianyu"s mind. The business card that the lawyer had pa.s.sed to him had the words "Baoze Group Law Firm" written on it.
"How did my dad die? Great-Grandma told me he was murdered. Also, why can"t you tell me her origin?" Li Xianyu spoke.
Old Master Qin frowned and shook his head.
"Okay, you"re going to tell me that I"m too weak, and knowing too much doesn"t do me good." Li Xianyu rolled his eyes.
"No." Old Master Qin scratched his head awkwardly, "I know nothing much regarding your great-grandma"s origin and your dad"s death. Don"t look at me like I"m old and experienced. I"ve only been awakened for a few years. I"m still a novice. Your dad died over 20 years ago. I only know that your dad committed a grave sin that caused both the orthodox and unorthodox sides to go after his life. As for your great-grandma, I only know these words: the one and only Unparalleled War Spirit. As for historical reasons, your great-grandma"s powers were harnessed towards the end of the Qing dynasty, when the capital was conquered. You can think about the rest of the reasons yourself. If you want to know the exact details, you can check the records at the company. However, you have to wait a few years."
"Why?"
"Stupid. You think you, a rookie, can just gain access to top secret records? You have to acc.u.mulate 5,000 points first, or get promoted to a senior position within the company. Only then can you access the records. Even I wouldn"t be able to read those things," Old Master Qin said.
Thus, I hated two things the most in my life: VIP members.h.i.+p and managers who imposed restrictions.
Digressing, Li Xianyu asked, "Why was I able to inherit my dad"s inheritance… Oh, you guys faked the will?"
He should have thought of that earlier. The year his dad died, Baoze Group was still not in existence.
"That was indeed left behind by your father, just that he entrusted it to his teacher. However, due to the internal pressure from the Buddhist society, the plan was not to let you inherit Unparalleled War Spirit. It was only after the Black Water Spirit Bead and the will were handed over to Baoze Group that the big boss decided to respect the deceased"s wishes."
"Your big boss… is a real Samaritan."
"Yes, Big Boss is compa.s.sionate. Baoze Group was built by him alone from scratch. In a short time, it has become the platform for law enforcement in the demon descendants community, carving out a legend for itself. I was discovered by Big Boss. In fact, before I was awakened, I knew him already. I was a security guard in the high school which his cousin studied in. One time, he visited his cousin in school. He was already a well-known figure, but talked to me without any att.i.tude. He even suggested that I should go to a university to be a security guard…" Old Master Qin sighed.
"Does Great-Grandma know all these?"
"When I saw her two nights ago, I told her my ident.i.ty, but before I could get to speak more to her, you were all over me." Old Master Qin chuckled and continued, "Of course, I understand. Such a pretty great-grandma, of course you have to keep her to yourself."
Li Xianyu cursed, "Scram, you old pervert."
How could I harbour such thoughts towards Great-Grandma? I"d be cursed by my ancestors forever.
"I"ve said all that I"m supposed to. Can you sign now?" Old Master Qin pushed the contract on the table towards Li Xianyu.
Li Xianyu looked at the interns.h.i.+p labor contract. Once he signed it, he would become a demon descendant under Baoze Group.
"Don"t you want to know how your dad died? Who exactly your great-grandma is?" Old Master Qin pointed at the contract. "From the moment she was awakened, you were no longer in control of your destiny. The peace you see now won"t last for much longer. Although your great-grandma has protected you once, war spirits are ultimately confined by the pearl and not your body. She can only protect you temporarily, not forever."
"How has she protected me? She only knows how to spend my money."
"Although I"m not sure what your dad did that year, but it must have been a big deal to grab the attention of the orthodox and unorthodox. Although he"s dead, you"re still alive. Why are you still alive? If someone was bent on killing you, no one would be able to save you even if he protected you around the clock. I only know that this is because of your great-grandma. As to what she did or said that year, I don"t know," Old Master Qin blabbered on.
Great-Grandma had said that she was sealed. Was it connected to him?
His grandfather had died early. Hence, Great-grandma had raised his father from a very young age. By logical deduction, Great-grandma had sapped the essence out of Li Xianyu"s dad, so he died early. However, this was not the case.
He was raised by his foster father, while Great-Grandma was sealed away.
"I want to ask for Great-Grandma"s opinion." Li Xianyu did not agree immediately.
"No problem, I"ll take you to the company tomorrow."
The two of them walked back to Li Xianyu"s house where they parted ways. Great-Grandma was still gaming on the computer to pa.s.s time. Her attire today was a white dress that covered her knees and a tight pink T-s.h.i.+rt which flaunted her curves, her thin waist and just about any girl"s desirable traits.
"You look pale." Great-Grandma looked him in the eye and then back at the computer.
She was playing a game known as CrossFire, a game which had been ruined by cheaters and pay-to-win people. Li Xianyu used to play this game daily with his cla.s.smates.
Great-Grandma carried an M4 in her hand and infiltrated the enemy base, getting one headshot after another.
"My cla.s.smate is dead," Li Xianyu said, depressed.
"You said it before," Great-Grandma replied crisply.
"It"s another good female friend. She was killed by two alien demon descendants not long ago. I nearly died too." Li Xianyu looked at Great-grandma and continued, "I"ve never seen demon descendants before. Before I was 20, my life was smooth, but after you appeared…"
He did not speak any further.
"I"m not taking the blame for this." Great-Grandma pouted. "Just because you can"t feel it doesn"t mean that demon descendants don"t exist. When I was living with your dad, I encountered these cases often. It was just that the supernatural elements were wiped off when the cases were handled. That is why ordinary humans do not know of the demon descendants" existence. Even if they did, no one believed them. Naturally, by word of mouth, it became a myth or an absurd tale."
Li Xianyu kept quiet for a while as he reluctantly accepted her explanation. He looked towards the computer and remarked, "This gun is so cool."
Great-Grandma panicked. "I… I picked it up…"
Li Xianyu acknowledged her without any suspicion. He continued to talk about Baoze Group and enquired about her opinion.
"It"s not a bad idea to join them," she spoke as she used her hand to control the computer mouse. After a few seconds, the shooting noises resumed.
"Your dad lacked a source of backing, so he ended up in this state. Since Baoze Group was able to replace the Buddhist society, protecting you was not an issue for them. Comparing religious organizations and court organizations based on violence, I prefer the latter. Back then, the new dynasty had just been established. It was still young. They had no choice but to let the Buddhist society a.s.sume control of demonic law enforcements. Those people were not suited to be cold-blooded killers because it conflicted with their religious beliefs, which advocated benevolence and discouraged bloodshed or conflict. It has indeed been hard on them. Your dad told me before that maybe the next time I was awakened, the law enforcement personnel might be different. It came true."
Li Xianyu listened silently. At this instant, Great-Grandma finally appeared like a real great-grandma.
As he sorted out his thoughts, Great-Grandma tapped on his head and demanded, "Have you bought the yoghurt?"
Li Xianyu froze. "I forgot."
Great-Grandma"s face sank. She slammed and threw the mouse aside, as she shook her body and shouted hysterically, "I want my yoghurt, I want my yoghurt!"
Li Xianyu"s mouth twitched. The aura of a great-grandma? Non-existent.