“No…?”
Subconsciously, Yibei wanted to deny it, and she continued, “I’m not too familiar with her, no.”
“Okay, good,” the girl let out a long sigh of relief.
“Why? Is she not a suitable candidate?” Yibei decided to pry.
“Absolutely not!” the girl shouted. “She is the most unsuitable one, in fact! Just be careful of her! Fortunately, it seems that you haven’t had much contact with her, so make it stay that way.”
I’m afraid it’s a bit too late now, Yibei thought. ‘I already belong to her—uh, I mean, her work in the Night Division.’
“Is anything wrong with her?” Yibei asked.
“It’s not good to say this, but if you have a chance to see her naked body, you must pay attention to her chest, lower abdomen, and back—see if there are any special marks etched onto her body.”
“N-n-naked? You’re joking, right?”
‘What am I supposed to do? Infiltrate the women’s bathhouse. The moment she sees my female form, I’m afraid the bathhouse will turn into a bloodhouse!’
“No, why don’t you sleep with her?”
“…?”
‘If I do that, I’m better off dying.’
“Just kidding, just stay away from her. Anyways…”
“Wait a moment! C-can I ask a question this time?”
“Uh, sure, ask ahead.”
“Do you know of a place full of ethnic people in the southeast region? And there are some urban legends relating to scarlet lanterns in a village? I was wondering if…”
If the girl knew about the bamboo scrolls, maybe she could ask her if Gu Qianqian was still alive.
“Bamboo scrolls… I vaguely heard of them before; let me think about it.”
The girl rested her chin and thought for a while, then looked at Lu Yibei and said, “Do you have any other information? To help jog my memory.”
“Yes!”
Immediately afterwards, she briefly described to the girl what she knew through Jumeng’s translation, the content of the bamboo scrolls, and the illusion she saw when she first encountered the bamboo scrolls.
“I remember!” the girl shouted. The girl recalled that the kid, Su Yigan, mentioned the forbidden knowledge that he mastered from an illusion sourced from a bamboo scroll. Since Yibei was unable to control the power in her body, if she acquires that knowledge, she’ll be able to control it and be less likely to make mistakes!
However, since she doesn’t know who he is, it’s better to let her do it herself. It may be more reliable than relying on that kid.
“That’s a good place!” The girl grabbed Yibei’s shoulder and looked her in the eyes. “You have to find a way to enter that domain. It contains some useful knowledge for you.”
“What the hell?” Lu Yibei asked blankly.
“You’re worried about not being able to control the power in your body, correct?” the girl smiled. “That knowledge can help you keep it under control and harness the powers for yourself!”
For a while, at least. As for the future… the girl added to her heart.
“Sounds good, so do you know how to get in?”
“Ah, well,” the girl stuttered, and she secretly cursed Su Yigan under her breath. He refused to share his secrets, and they needed to be exchanged for something of equal or greater value.
Information like entering the bamboo scrolls’ domain was irrelevant to the girl, so paying for it was out of the question.
The girl was wondering how to fool Yibei, and in turn, Yibei frowned, thinking of exposing the girl when…
A storm started to brew above them.
At some point, miserable white fog had filled the air, and through the fog, a vortex of dark clouds was rolling violently above them.
Waves of psychic energy gathered above them as they washed over both of them, and through the vortex of clouds, a gap opened directly above both of them, and a spotlight seemed to highlight the girl.
The next moment, the sound of thunder came from the sea of clouds as if it were gathering insurmountable amounts of energy.
Countless roars and maddening murmurs flooded Yibei’s mind; she didn’t understand them, but she could feel the emotions they were trying to convey.
Anger.
Pure anger and rage shook his soul, making his legs feel a little weak.
Looking at the girl beside her, she couldn’t help but frown and whisper, “What did you do this time? It looks like God himself is trying to punish you and smite you down. Did you dig somebody’s ancestral grave? Kidnap a minor? Beat up a sage?”
The girl let out a wry smile and chuckled: “I did all of that and much worse.”
In fact, I’ve beaten people over the age of 5,300 years, but I had a clear conscience when doing so, the girl thought.
“What the…” Yibei was shocked upon hearing that. It didn’t seem like she was joking. “You… you really are a wicked person! Stay a little farther away from me!”
Yibei hurriedly stepped away from the balcony, immediately clasped her hands together, and yelled into the sky, “Hey! Aim it right! I don’t know her that well!”
Boom!
As soon as she shouted, a lightning bolt crashed down on the girl, leaving behind a huge crater where the girl was.
And the ends of the scorch marks were less than a palm away from Yibei.
For a moment, foul-smelling smoke filled the air, and the residual electricity dispersed from the roof.
“What the hell! I told you to aim it properly! You almost got me, too!”
At this moment, the girl’s voice was implanted into her head.
“It seems that our time is up, Lu Yibei. Remember: find a way to enter the bamboo scrolls’ domain, and stay away from Jiangli! Don’t trust her too much.”
As she spoke, it was as if a great sadness had overtaken her form, and Yibei swore she could hear the girl sobbing.
“And if Jiangli did do something against you… for my sake, I beg you, don’t kill Jiangli.”
A corporeal image of the girl appeared as she bent down to pick up her damaged cane. As soon as she picked it up, she vanished, and Yibei’s vision fell into an inextricable darkness.
She woke up in a jolt and was surprised to find herself in a taxi as if she had been taking a nap this entire time.
“You’re awake? Where do you want to go this time?”
“Zhang Shan? What the…” she said in a daze. “How did I get in here?”
“Oh no.”
It’s been more than an hour since she got in the car, and the metre has jumped by almost 100 yuan. She’s not going to ‘negotiate’ on the bill, right?
“No…?”
Subconsciously, Yibei wanted to deny it, and she continued, “I’m not too familiar with her, no.”
“Okay, good,” the girl let out a long sigh of relief.
“Why? Is she not a suitable candidate?” Yibei decided to pry.
“Absolutely not!” the girl shouted. “She is the most unsuitable one, in fact! Just be careful of her! Fortunately, it seems that you haven’t had much contact with her, so make it stay that way.”
I’m afraid it’s a bit too late now, Yibei thought. ‘I already belong to her—uh, I mean, her work in the Night Division.’
“Is anything wrong with her?” Yibei asked.
“It’s not good to say this, but if you have a chance to see her naked body, you must pay attention to her chest, lower abdomen, and back—see if there are any special marks etched onto her body.”
“N-n-naked? You’re joking, right?”
‘What am I supposed to do? Infiltrate the women’s bathhouse. The moment she sees my female form, I’m afraid the bathhouse will turn into a bloodhouse!’
“No, why don’t you sleep with her?”
“…?”
‘If I do that, I’m better off dying.’
“Just kidding, just stay away from her. Anyways…”
“Wait a moment! C-can I ask a question this time?”
“Uh, sure, ask ahead.”
“Do you know of a place full of ethnic people in the southeast region? And there are some urban legends relating to scarlet lanterns in a village? I was wondering if…”
If the girl knew about the bamboo scrolls, maybe she could ask her if Gu Qianqian was still alive.
“Bamboo scrolls… I vaguely heard of them before; let me think about it.”
The girl rested her chin and thought for a while, then looked at Lu Yibei and said, “Do you have any other information? To help jog my memory.”
“Yes!”
Immediately afterwards, she briefly described to the girl what she knew through Jumeng’s translation, the content of the bamboo scrolls, and the illusion she saw when she first encountered the bamboo scrolls.
“I remember!” the girl shouted. The girl recalled that the kid, Su Yigan, mentioned the forbidden knowledge that he mastered from an illusion sourced from a bamboo scroll. Since Yibei was unable to control the power in her body, if she acquires that knowledge, she’ll be able to control it and be less likely to make mistakes!
However, since she doesn’t know who he is, it’s better to let her do it herself. It may be more reliable than relying on that kid.
“That’s a good place!” The girl grabbed Yibei’s shoulder and looked her in the eyes. “You have to find a way to enter that domain. It contains some useful knowledge for you.”
“What the hell?” Lu Yibei asked blankly.
“You’re worried about not being able to control the power in your body, correct?” the girl smiled. “That knowledge can help you keep it under control and harness the powers for yourself!”
For a while, at least. As for the future… the girl added to her heart.
“Sounds good, so do you know how to get in?”
“Ah, well,” the girl stuttered, and she secretly cursed Su Yigan under her breath. He refused to share his secrets, and they needed to be exchanged for something of equal or greater value.
Information like entering the bamboo scrolls’ domain was irrelevant to the girl, so paying for it was out of the question.
The girl was wondering how to fool Yibei, and in turn, Yibei frowned, thinking of exposing the girl when…
A storm started to brew above them.
At some point, miserable white fog had filled the air, and through the fog, a vortex of dark clouds was rolling violently above them.
Waves of psychic energy gathered above them as they washed over both of them, and through the vortex of clouds, a gap opened directly above both of them, and a spotlight seemed to highlight the girl.
The next moment, the sound of thunder came from the sea of clouds as if it were gathering insurmountable amounts of energy.
Countless roars and maddening murmurs flooded Yibei’s mind; she didn’t understand them, but she could feel the emotions they were trying to convey.
Anger.
Pure anger and rage shook his soul, making his legs feel a little weak.
Looking at the girl beside her, she couldn’t help but frown and whisper, “What did you do this time? It looks like God himself is trying to punish you and smite you down. Did you dig somebody’s ancestral grave? Kidnap a minor? Beat up a sage?”
The girl let out a wry smile and chuckled: “I did all of that and much worse.”
In fact, I’ve beaten people over the age of 5,300 years, but I had a clear conscience when doing so, the girl thought.
“What the…” Yibei was shocked upon hearing that. It didn’t seem like she was joking. “You… you really are a wicked person! Stay a little farther away from me!”
Yibei hurriedly stepped away from the balcony, immediately clasped her hands together, and yelled into the sky, “Hey! Aim it right! I don’t know her that well!”
Boom!
As soon as she shouted, a lightning bolt crashed down on the girl, leaving behind a huge crater where the girl was.
And the ends of the scorch marks were less than a palm away from Yibei.
For a moment, foul-smelling smoke filled the air, and the residual electricity dispersed from the roof.
“What the hell! I told you to aim it properly! You almost got me, too!”
At this moment, the girl’s voice was implanted into her head.
“It seems that our time is up, Lu Yibei. Remember: find a way to enter the bamboo scrolls’ domain, and stay away from Jiangli! Don’t trust her too much.”
As she spoke, it was as if a great sadness had overtaken her form, and Yibei swore she could hear the girl sobbing.
“And if Jiangli did do something against you… for my sake, I beg you, don’t kill Jiangli.”
A corporeal image of the girl appeared as she bent down to pick up her damaged cane. As soon as she picked it up, she vanished, and Yibei’s vision fell into an inextricable darkness.
She woke up in a jolt and was surprised to find herself in a taxi as if she had been taking a nap this entire time.
“You’re awake? Where do you want to go this time?”
“Zhang Shan? What the…” she said in a daze. “How did I get in here?”
“Oh no.”
It’s been more than an hour since she got in the car, and the metre has jumped by almost 100 yuan. She’s not going to ‘negotiate’ on the bill, right?
