Chapter 53 – Cheng Li: Old.

Translator: Xena

“What…”

“This… this can’t be! Could it be that you already knew?!”

To the monster, that earlier, indifferent voice seemed to echo from the depths of an abyss amidst the excruciating pain.

After so many years, they had long since ceased to hear It’s familiar, languid tone. Now, upon suddenly hearing it again, they felt a chilling, heavy current surge through their limbs, causing them to tremble uncontrollably. It brought back the terror of being dominated.

That was the true essence of pure evil.

Qin Zhuo curled his lips into a smirk.

Through the thin layer of fabric, Jian Xie could feel the slight rise and fall of It’s body—not from breathing, but from the tremors of laughter.

Was it because It saw how scared these monsters were of It that It was laughing with disdain?

…Same old twisted tastes.

Even with It’s back turned to him, It remained close enough to touch yet barely out of reach, as if It was playing a game.

A tingling sensation ran up his spine.

It was itchy.

Unbearable.

Jian Xie whirled around abruptly just as Qin Zhuo lowered his head. Their gazes collided head-on.

The other party rested It’s face in his palm.

When he stood up, he realized the noticeable height difference between them.

Though It bowed It’s head meekly before Jian Xie like a caged beast and gently caressing It’s cheek with his fingers, It’s dark crimson eyes never left him, fixing him with an unnerving intensity that suggested It might devour him whole at any moment, just like those monsters that coveted him.

“You…” Jian Xie blurted out subconsciously.

Qin Zhuo, “Shh.” 

The other interrupted him.

It lowered It’s voice, leaning in closer and deliberately bending It’s knee so that Jian Xie could look down at It.

“Someone recognizes you.” Under It’s probing gaze, It pointed to It’s own eyes. “Do you care if people found out that you’re with me? You can become an accomplice.”  

Clearly, It had noticed the unease in Jian Xie’s heart just now and relinquished control.

This is really…

Jian Xie paused for a moment. “Now… it shouldn’t matter anymore.” 

Though the sound wasn’t particularly loud, it still stood out sharply in the dead silence.

He noticed most of the investigators present had turned their heads slightly in his direction, their expressions a mix of confusion, alarm, and relief… that it must be human.

A high-level investigator?

Not far away, Cheng Li had already quietly reached for his pistol, but upon hearing that voice, he froze in place.

He recognized Jian Xie’s voice.

Fu Huanyu, who had been barely maintaining his composure, now wore a look of utter shock on his face—proof that he too had recognized the identity of the person who appeared like a savior at that very moment.

But the one near him… that must be a human, right? Who is it?!

As Jian Xie said, not a single investigator present would consider It to be non-human.

No one saw the sacrificial statue dissolve into dust. Even if they opened their eyes now, they would only perceive It as a human with an unusually striking appearance, utterly unaware that what they beheld might be the most dangerous entity in the world.

Because in their minds, [it’s impossible for monsters to protect humans].

Jian Xie had tentatively asked Cheng Li about this a long time ago, and the other party obviously believed that statement… so there was no need to lie.

With that thought, he gently pushed Qin Zhuo aside and walked toward the monsters.

“From here on out, I’ll handle it myself.”

“……”

Even if the monsters didn’t know what this human was capable of, the sound of footsteps drawing near told them their doom was near.

From It’s intimate manner and familiar tone, this human’s identity was practically clear—

They just didn’t understand. They simply couldn’t fathom why It would show such favor to a mere human being! And wasn’t he just a sacrifice?!

“You! What gives you the right—”

Before the words had fully finished, some of the more alert monsters’ eyes had already widened.

With their vision sealed off, they were relying entirely on the compound eyes hidden within their body to capture images. Thus, the scenes perceived were rendered in lines, like intricate, dancing webs.

To put it more vividly, it was akin to the rough sketches of perspective drawings that art students would make while practicing human anatomy, which contained some bold, unrestrained strokes that bleed into other colors.

That was the color of the soul.

White represents humanity as food.

Red: Special A-level monsters; Green: A-level; Yellow: B-level and below.

As a deity of monster worship, It was unique—a dark crimson akin to dried blood, emanating an ominous aura.

But as the human figure drew nearer, the lines concealed beneath the white covering emerged, revealing an utterly horrifying color never seen before.

Pure black.

There was a saying that when all colors were mixed together, the result would be black, and when all light was blended, it would become white. So, the human before their eyes…

Why was his flesh and blood irresistibly sweet to the monsters, drawing them like moths to a flame? Could it be that… his soul was so filthy and corrupt, surpassing even theirs—those born in the abyss as top-tier monsters—that it became the finest nourishment from hell itself, right here on earth?

Like a rose in full bloom, vibrant and lush, yet beneath the soil lie roots long since decayed.

They were so stunned they lost their voices, completely forgetting the vile words they’d prepared, and just stared blankly at the human before them.

“……”

Jian Xie had already reached the center of the hall.

He looked around and saw many chunks of flesh still writhing. The squelching sound of blood dripping onto the floor was impossible to ignore.

On the walls and between the floors were hanging bloody intestines as these monsters ate each other as savagely as primitive people.

If someone wanted to clean this place up, they would have to pack everything up and take it with them.

He felt a little queasy when recalling the taste of the monsters below A-level that he had eaten during the last autumn recruitment. On the bright side, after several attempts, he had discovered that the [Eight Cold Hells] seemed to help alleviate some of the repulsive flavor while also offering ample storage capacity for the monsters.

To put it in gaming terms… it somehow felt like an inventory slot, but for food.

Moments later, Jian Xie made his decision.

To get his hands on the second dagger sooner, he would personally consume these few Special A-level ones himself, while the rest would be tossed directly into the [Eight Cold Hells] for cold storage.

Behind him, Qin Zhuo leaned against the now-empty glass display case with It’s arms crossed, It’s eyes reflecting the figure of It’s human.

Before unleashing hell, Jian Xie wore an expressionless face. “Wu Qinghe, come out immediately.” 

“……”

No sooner had the words left his lips that the door of the nearest private room clicked open. A figure darted out, wearing an awkward yet polite smile.

“I’m here, I’m here.”

It wisely skipped formalities, dashing straight over to grab Cheng Li’s sleeve. He had just barely gotten up from the ground, and this almost made him trip again.

“I’m ready,” Wu Qinghe immediately said. 

According to its observations, even if Jian Xie used ranged capture, a momentary lapse wouldn’t be enough to drag Cheng Li into it.

Therefore, it would be safe.

Cheng Li was taken aback: ?

Who the hell are you? Are we that close? Is this what “popping over at the drop of a hat” mean?? Don’t hold on so tight!!  

Jian Xie: “……”

……

Outside the auction house, a dense crowd of uniformed personnel had already circled around the area.

Numerous police officers clad in riot gear carried expressions of high alert, while nearby residents had already been evacuated under various pretexts.

Within the area cordoned off by yellow tape, several people dressed in corporate suits were engaged in conversation.

Only they could see it—a dense swarm of lowly monsters hovering above the opulent and magnificent auction house. Their thick limbs piled upon one another, creating a suffocating atmosphere.

They were completely captivated by the scent inside, their attention utterly consumed. Fortunately, their dull wits prevented them from focusing on two things at once, so they didn’t attack the ordinary people outside. Otherwise, neither these individuals nor the surrounding residents would have had a chance to escape.

“This is a real problem. We can’t reach any of our superiors,” Huo Lun said to his companions with deep concern. “We’ve shown them our credentials, but they claim they’ve never heard of this department and can’t verify the authenticity, so they can’t just let us leave on their own authority. We have to wait for instructions from higher up…”

There are three areas of pain for the [Logistics Department].

The first point was that the covert nature of the Bureau created significant obstacles to mission progress.

While this was precisely what the police should be doing, if it resulted in unnecessary casualties, that would be their mistake.

Someone in the auction house called the police, but stammered incoherently about what had actually happened. With so many people trapped, the situation escalated immediately to a whole new level.

“Should we force our way in?”

“…No.” Huo Lun shook his head, fiddling with the blue badge on his chest, a habit he’d developed to ease his anxiety. “We have to wait for Xu Yujin. Otherwise, if we accidentally let the monsters out, everyone outside would—” 

“BOOM—!

No sooner had he spoken than his feet suddenly lost their footing and the earth shook violently.

The entire world seemed to sway for a moment.

The crowd swayed like reeds in the wind, swept by a hurricane from some unknown place, all toppling in the same direction. They instantly fell to the ground in scattered heaps.

This is…

What’s going on?

“Is there an earthquake?”

“There shouldn’t be… the shaking only happened here.”

It wasn’t a bomb explosion either, because the auction house before them remained intact.

Otherwise, with such seismic intensity, buildings would have collapsed like dominoes long ago. It feels more like the aftershocks of another dimension have reached their reality.

Huo Lun narrowed his eyes, sensing something amiss. He lifted his head to look toward the ceiling of the auction house, which made his pupils instantly constrict.

——In the blink of an eye, the hundreds of monsters densely swarming the sky had vanished without a trace!

He was dumbfounded and couldn’t believe his eyes.

Ever since he last sent a new recruit named Jian Xie to the autumn recruitment event, he hadn’t witnessed such a jaw-dropping scene unfold again.

“I’m not hallucinating, am I…”

A colleague couldn’t help but mutter beside him.

This indirectly confirmed that everything Huo Lun had witnessed was real. Could someone truly wipe out so many monsters in one fell swoop?!

In the dead silence, the arched doorway of the auction house was pulled open from within.

“Swhoosh—”

Everyone’s attention snapped back instantly. The police immediately raised their guns, aiming them at the glass door, while the investigators remained on high alert.

In full view of everyone, a man in a rumpled suit staggered out.

The sight of so many guns made him freeze in his tracks. He immediately raised his hands and assumed a posture of surrender.

“…It’s me.” Cheng Li sighed deeply. “It’s safe inside now. The others are inside calming the people and cleaning up the mess.” 

As soon as he recognized the figure, Huo Lun breathed a sigh of relief, withdrawing his hand from inside his suit jacket. His shoulders, which had been tense, slumped downward.

“It’s one of us!” He said, motioning for the other investigators not to worry. “The matter has likely been resolved.” 

I just don’t know how they managed to do it…

As he thought this, Huo Lun walked toward the other person.

However, before he had taken more than a few steps, the revolving glass door swung open once more and another familiar figure emerged, following closely behind Cheng Li.

It was this figure that made him involuntarily halt in his tracks and stand rooted to the spot, his mouth agape in astonishment.

“Jian Xie?”

Wait, this meant everything that had just happened now made sense. All the confusion that had previously filled Huo Lun’s mind vanished instantly.

To this extent…

Only the star Investigator No. 7 who could handle Special A-level energy could do it in a blink of an eye!

His breathing quickened.

……Wait, hold up.

The investigators around Huo Lun paled at the mention of that name, turning their gaze toward the person who had recently been the cause of the abundance of posts in the casual chat section.

Jian Xie himself probably wouldn’t know how they were gossiping and speculating about his identity and looks while he was busy studying and not scrolling through forums.

He definitely held the first place in the list of the most mysterious newcomers.

No one knew his identity, nor was there a single photograph of him available.

Therefore, upon discovering that the person standing before them was the real deal, they couldn’t help but feel an inner urge to explore further.

This was the one they mentioned to be Cheng Li’s recommendee, that… being beyond even the Special A-level?!

The police captain beside him was even more astonished than the investigators. He immediately holstered his gun with a look of confusion.

“Cheng Li…?”

He obviously knew Cheng Li.

He never imagined a former detective colleague of his would show up here after suffering a fatal wound from criminals. Not only was he acquainted with members of some bizarre organization, but he also appeared in such a dangerous situation wearing an ill-fitting suit covered in blood.

After calling out the name, his puzzled gaze fell upon the youth beside him and he froze in place.

He…

“It’s you…” Surprise instantly flashed across the captain’s face, accompanied by a fleeting, deeply concealed pang of guilt that made him forget he was currently in uniform. His mind raced back to the events preceding that car accident. “A-are you okay?”

Although he had handled countless cases, that particular one still left a deep impression on him.

No wonder Cheng Li took the documentation from him regarding the other party’s accident, claiming it needed to be reviewed by higher-ups. The two of them clearly had some kind of connection.

“……”

Jian Xie instinctively took a step back when he saw the familiar face.

But he unexpectedly collided with a cool, solid body. The other person grasped his shoulders. Though it was merely a simple touch, it conveyed an irresistible sense of security.

In the eyes of the crowd, the young man who appeared possessed an overly privileged face barely in his early twenties. Though an indescribable sense of pressure emanated from his entire being, his gaze held a hint of disdain, and his languid demeanor conveyed an inexpressible air of superiority, he was undeniably unforgettable.

The young man effortlessly cradled Jian Xie in his arms. With a slight shift, he was already in front of everyone, blocking gazes from all directions.

Cheng Li’s mouth twitched.

Weird, feels like I’m being shown off to.

“If I hadn’t been rushing to notify my colleagues right away, I would have asked you this earlier.” He held back again and again, but couldn’t suppress his fatherly instincts any longer. He asked bluntly, “Who are you? Why are you by Jian Xie’s side?” 

Jian Xie felt a sudden sense of foreboding. He tried to lift his head from the other’s embrace, but was forcefully pressed back down.

Qin Zhuo didn’t get angry.

He merely raised an eyebrow and said nothing. He pulled Jian Xie’s hand and lifted it up so that Cheng Li could clearly see the same ring on their hands.

“……”

Cheng Li, who wasn’t blind, was immediately speechless.

“We’re not a couple, and we’re not married.” Jian Xie said, “Please don’t read too much into it.” 

For some reason, he suddenly felt a little guilty in front of Cheng Li.

Qin Zhuo nodded lazily and said, “That’s right, for now it’s just a simple guardian relationship.” 

Cheng Li: “……”

I-is this the new way young people talk about dating?

Author’s Note:

Cheng Li: I don’t understand, but I’m deeply shocked.jpg