Chapter Ep
After returning to school, Feng Ping Lan immediately contacted Yin Su Shuang, reporting the results of the mission .
Sponsored Content
Not long after, a sum of six digits was credited to his bank account . High efficiency, how breathtaking .
After paying their debts in full, they had quite a sum of money remaining, their daily lives left with no worries .
They had been relieved of their financial crisis .
“Don’t be too happy . ” Byriel spoke smilingly, “Looking at their previous way of spending, such a small amount of money will be quickly finished in no time . ”
“Whatever . ” Conglong leaned against the sofa, taking a sip of his carton of milk as he looked at the laptop on his legs, leisurely feeding the fish, “We’ll earn more . ”
“I wonder when we’ll have the chance to visit the mortuary . ” Feng Ping Lan recalled the batty Shen Yang, who guarded the basement .
It seemed that they really liked Zong Yu . They’d bring Xiao Yu-er along with them next time .
Nightfall . The suburbs away from the city .
The black dwarfish building was enveloped in darkness, with only tiny light bulbs connected on a signboard flickering in the dark, letting out a chilly luster akin to a will-o’-the-wisp .
The night wind drifted past, a snow-white figure flashing through .
The doors opened .
When the snow-white figure came before the mirror in the room . He looked into the mirror, feeling the complicated and powerful incantation added behind the mirror .
The tight command spell would cause hesitation in a visitor, what secrets did the basement conceal, to need such a formidable spell to guard it?
Dongya spread out his most powerful defensive barrier, then, with fear and trepidation, reached out a hand to touch the surface of the mirror .
A ripple floated across the surface, silver waves leaping off the mirror, overflowing into Dongya’s hand .
This was not an attack, but an examination of his identity .
Dongya looked at his hand uneasily . The curse bangle around his wrist lit up a golden light, and when the silver waves touched it, rescinded backward, the surface of the mirror returning to its undisturbed state without ripples .
It seemed that he had passed the examination . Dongya smiled lightly, looking at his wrist . The Summoners of the Shadow Academy… were really thoughtful…
He pushed the door open, passing through layer after layer circuitous staircases, and arrived in the basement .
Shen Yang was sitting in their usual seat as before, hand propping up their head and boredly playing with a jigsaw puzzle .
When they saw Dongya, they immediately displayed a brilliant smile .
“Welcome, welcome!” Shen Yang waved at Dongya enthusiastically, “I heard all about it! Your group performed quite well, catching an Opposer right on your first mission! Amazing, amazing!” Saying this, they applauded with all their might .
“Are you here to receive another mission? Why are only the two of you here today?” Shen Yang asked, tilting their head .
Two of you?
Dongya turned his head, the shadows behind hind rising up slowly into a silhouette .
Sponsored Content
“Quetzal?” Dongya was astonished, then immediately smiled knowingly, “Looks like we had the same idea . ”
Quetzal did not speak .
“So, want to hear of any other missions?” Shen Yang smiled a foxy grin, “Or, are you here for some sort of intelligence?”
Quetzal coldly expressed his business here, “I want to know the whereabouts of a miemoshi . ”
“Wait wait, let’s take it one step at a time, I’ll question you first . ” Shen Yang propped their head up, saying smilingly, “How sure are you that I would have that information? I’m part of the Association?”
“You are not someone from the Association, you’re their convict . ” Quetzal pointed out bluntly, “The prohibition spell outside is to lock you in . ”
A convict couldn’t possibly comply completely to their captors, they would betray and resist the moment the opportunity arose .
Shen Yang was shut in here, controlled in all respects . Selling out information related to the Association, was one of their few ways of resisting .
“Just too intelligent! I love intelligent people the most!” Shen Yang clapped hard, then slumped entirely over the table, glancing up at Quetzal lazily, “Is just that enough?”
Quetzal did not answer, he did not understand the implication of Shen Yang’s question .
“I’m in a good mood today, so this is an especially big discount . You have one chance, as long as you ask, I will tell you the location of the thing you wish to find the most . ”
“The price?” Quetzal was not a fool .
“Hahaha, I just knew I wouldn’t be able to fool you!” Shen Yang was paralyzed on the table, languidly flipping over to face Quetzal, “Hand your contractor over to me . ”
“Don’t be absurd!” Dongya rebuked, looking anxiously at Quetzal at the same time, worried he would agree to this deal .
“I can tell, you don’t like that human very much, your revered master is someone else . ” Shen Yang reached out a hand, lightly touching Quetzal’s waist, “This is quite a rare chance, because I’m in a good mood today…”
Quetzal was very surprised that Shen Yang actually knew he was searching for Prince Shuekan, but did not express it on his face .
He was now certain that this guy truly had a knack for obtaining a reliable source of information .
Quetzal refused sternly, “No…” He acknowledged that Shen Yang had some capabilities, but as for Prince Shuekan’s whereabouts, he did not think they would know, it was probably just a bluff .
Was it just because of that?
A voice at the bottom of his heart asked quietly .
Was it not, because he was reluctant to hand Feng Ping Lan over?
Was it also not, because he had already acknowledged Feng Ping Lan’s existence?
…Definitely not!
“What a shame . ” Shen Yang sighed, flipping over, “But that’s fine too, I’d like to watch the show go on a little longer, hahaha . ” They sat upright, verifying it once again smilingly, “Which miemoshi’s whereabouts do you want to know? Pftt! Of course I know, I’m just asking . Hahaha!”
Quetzal ignored the other’s horsing around, speaking coldly, “The miemoshi related to Phantom Symbol 5775 . What’s the price?”
“Oh, let me think . ” Shen Yang’s heterochromatic eyes glanced at Dongya, scrutinizing him up and down, “You’re part of the Wind Velvet Clan?”
Sponsored Content
“Yes . ” Dongya was astonished they would know the exact name of his clan . In the human world, the Summoners would address them as the ferret demons due to their outer appearance .
“I want your hair . ” Shen Yang pointed at Dongya, eyes bending smilingly, “Relax, I won’t let you go bald, I just want that ponytail . ”
The Wind Velvet Clan had the outer appearance of a ferret, and snow-white hair . Their hair carried a powerful spiritual force, where even if its owner was dead, their spiritual power would remain . This was the reason why, the Wind Velvet Clan had been hunted down by the Royal Clan all those years ago in the netherworld .
Quetzal looked at Dongya, who returned a gentle smile, “It’s fine . ” Then, with one hand grabbing onto his ponytail, another finger summoning a short wind blade, he cut it off .
Shen Yang happily received the ponytail, overjoyed . They stuck their face tenderly before the hair, softly bumping their cheek against it .
“It’s so soft…” Shen Yang closed their eyes, feeling the gentle sensation, then opened their eyes, “The miemoshi with the number 5775 is a male, aged around twenty-eight to thirty . Code name, Crucifixion Nail . Why was he sent out for a mission twelve years ago, that’s because he was coincidentally the closest . ” Their lips cracked into a smile, “It’s his hometown . ”
“Just that?” Dongya asked . “Aren’t there any pictures?” The miemoshi who had sealed them off had worn a pair of black goggles, covering the majority of his face, they hadn’t been able to see his appearance .
“Information on the miemoshi are highly classified, revealing this much is plenty . ” Shen Yang glanced at Dongya, “Then, I’d like to ask you, about the miemoshi, how much do you know?”
“They have the powerful capabilities to seal off demons, subordinate to the Phantom Department, his symbol is a palm-shaped pattern . ”
“What else?”
Dongya and Quetzal were wordless .
“Is that all?” Shen Yang burst out laughing, “Wow! Then you guys are really complete amateurs!”
They laughed wildly for a moment, stopping at last .
“You guys are really fortunate, I’m in a good mood, so here’s another especially big discount . ” Shen Yang propped their head up, lifting a single finger, “Here’s a hint, when you were sealed off, did you see any of his Contracts?”
Quetzal and Dongya exchanged glances .
No . During their battle, as well as their sealing process, only the miemoshi had been present from start to finish .
“Am I right?” Shen Yang’s raised finger whirled a few times, “I’ll tell you guys, the miemoshi don’t establish contracts with the demons, they are always operating alone . Why don’t you thank me!”
Quetzal bore this information in his heart .
At the same time, a person surfaced in his mind .
Kiyohara Kengyou…
“Is there anything else you’d like to ask?” Shen Yang spoke, “Or, would you like to stay behind and have some fun with me?”
“No . ” Quetzal stood, “We will meet again . ”
“Then, remember to bring gifts!” Shen Yang waved at the two of them, sending the two silhouettes, one bright, another dark, as they left .
“So many visiting guests today, how lively . ” Shen Yang muttered lowly into the empty room, “It’d be much more interesting if you had arrived a few hours earlier, haha… But, that would end things too quickly . I would like to spectate a while longer…”
A few hours ago, sometime around evening .
A figure dressed in black, wearing black goggles quietly appeared .
Shen Yang looked at the person, lips lifting in a smile that was meant for an old friend .
“What gifts have you brought me today?”
The person lifted a bag, placing it on the desk . Tied on the wrist of the hand carrying the bag was a bracelet suffixed with a golden hand print .
Shen Yang tore the leather bag open in great delight, as if opening a present .
“It’s the Phase Devouring Clan’s head!” They happily lifted that bluish-black fleshed head, then pried the mouth apart, “Where’s the tongue?”
“In the bag . ” The masked man pointed at the bag, saying with a smile, “It’s a specialty I brought from Kyoto . ”
“How did you obtain it?”
“When I passed through the headquarters of the Kyoto branch’s protection team, I wandered about a little . ” The man smiled, “In any case, they were all things that would be eventually dealt with, no one would look into it even if they were damaged . ”
“Thanks!” Shen Yang played happily with the head in their hands .
“Satisfied?”
“Mm!”
“Now, it’s your turn to satisfy me . ” The man said softly, “Let me see what I want to see…”
“Fine . ” Shen Yang said jokingly, “Don’t hurt me!”
With that, they took up the man’s hand, leading him into another room deep within .
Just as Quetzal and Dongya left the mortuary, the raven resting among the tree leaves in the distance flapped its wings to leave .
The raven’s silhouette assimilated into the darkness, but its pair of black and red heterochromatic eyes was exceptionally evident in the night .
It crossed the village, returning to the city, at last arriving at the school compound .
The school compound was still, with the highest level of the building with the white cross lit up .
The windows were open .
As the black bird flew in, it stopped over the ground, following which it transformed into human form .
A slim figure wore a white shirt and black trousers, glossy head completely free of any hairs . He lifted his hand, taking out a pair of sunglasses from the chest pocket of his shirt and placing it on .
It was the dormitory administrator .
“How’s the situation?” The person within the room asked softly .
“The Contracts have started to interact with Shen Yang in private . Dongya’s ponytail is gone, it seems to have been exchanged for information . ” The administrator finished reporting, and after hesitating for a moment, spoke, “Is it really okay… to do this?”
“This is what I received, I inquired, I beseeched, the revelation obtained indicated this . ” The brown-haired man sitting at the office desk answered definitely, green eyes displaying a calm and resolute determination .
“Then… What do we do next?”
“I do not know . ” The man looked at the bible written in Latin before him, muttering, “Only the Sovereign God knows . ”
A brush of wind blew past, the thin pages turning over, flipping rapidly to the back .
When the wind stopped, the man looked at the page .
—We have become a spectacle to the world, to angels and to men .
St . Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians 4:9
He pressed his address book in his phone with fear and trepidation, scrolling through the groups, looking at the phone number he had long since burned into his memory .
After a long hesitant moment, he pressed down on the call button .
Beep… beep…
The phone rang a few times before it connected .
“Hello?” He spoke anxiously and expectantly .
“…What is it?” What came over was an unsympathetic reply .
“Oh, it’s nothing, just—”
“Not enough money?”
“No, it’s enough . I—”
“You got into trouble again?”
“No!”
“So, why did you call me?”
“We haven’t contacted in so long, so I wanted to ask how you guys were doing . Are mom and dad alright? What about you? Are you still busy with work?”
“Everything’s fine . ”
“I’m doing fine too! I met a few friends in school, and—”
“Is there something else? I’m busy . ”
“…Then, when are you returning to the country? I’m working part-time to save up money, if I save enough money, can I visit you guys?”
“…We’ll see . ”
Click .
The call ended .