Chapter 158: White Wolf, Form a Contract With Me! |
Row upon row of fluorescent tubes radiated a brilliant glow, their incandescent white light draping over the Confinement Room like an insect net.
Three children were gathered around the television, chatting idly. The red-haired one lay on her side atop a rolling cloud, resting her head in her hand as she let out a languid yawn.
Without a sound, the heavy metal doors at the entrance slid open once again.
They all turned their heads in unison. Filio stood frozen in place, his wolf ears slightly pricked up. The tail dragging behind him wagged back and forth, sweeping across the floor like a mop.
After a long moment, he scratched his black hair and said rather bashfully,
"I am back."
Sun Changkong sat cross-legged on the Somersault Cloud. She glanced at Ji Minghuan curiously and asked in a casual tone, "Who is this?"
"His name is Filio. I mentioned him to you before," Ji Minghuan explained.
Sun Changkong thought for a moment before exclaiming, "Oh, right! I remember! You said he was a little werewolf."
It looked as natural as picking up a little golden retriever from a pet store.
Filio slowly walked over. His pitch-black eyes fixed on Sun Changkong before he asked in a soft voice,
"Are you Sun Changkong?"
"Yep, nice to meet you." Sun Changkong was still sizing him up with great curiosity. She had never seen a human who looked quite like this before.
"I am Filio."
"Did you eat your dad?" Sun Changkong whispered.
"I ate my mom," Filio corrected her.
Sun Changkong froze. Seeing his desolate expression, she finally realized she had misspoken and should not have been so blunt. She quickly covered her mouth, suddenly at a loss for what to do.
Just then, she had a flash of inspiration. She remembered how Ji Minghuan had comforted him the other day by saying, 'I am going to destroy the world anyway.'
So, mimicking that approach, she stated flatly, "I wiped out my adoptive parents and everyone in my village."
Filio blinked in surprise, seemingly unsure of what to say. He simply murmured, "You are amazing."
"You are amazing too." Sun Changkong nodded. 'I truly am Ji Minghuan's top disciple,' she thought to herself. 'Look at that, I managed to comfort him perfectly.'
Listening from the sidelines, Ji Minghuan felt his scalp tingle. 'What kind of unhinged conversation is this?' he thought. 'There is no way they learned this from me, right? I am not taking the blame for this. It has to be a Salvation Society problem. Open your eyes and look at the problematic children you have raised!'
With that in mind, he chewed on a White Rabbit candy to calm his nerves and went back to watching television.
"Is this the Somersault Cloud?" Filio asked. He had heard the Tutor mention Sun Changkong before.
"Do you want to come up and give it a try? They have all sat on it," Sun Changkong said, flashing him a grin.
"No thanks," Filio muttered softly.
"Really?" Sun Changkong arched a fiery red eyebrow. She never expected someone to actually be uninterested in her prized possession.
Filio shook his head.
Without tearing his eyes away from the screen, Ji Minghuan told Sun Changkong, "He is just really shy around new people."
Then he addressed Filio, "Do not be scared, big puppy. Just sit down and chat for a bit. We will get to know each other."
The four children all sat down in silence, staring blankly at the television. None of them said a word.
Ji Minghuan cracked a sunflower seed between his teeth and suddenly spoke up, "By the way, did you guys know the Tutor said we are heading out on a mission soon?"
Filio nodded. "He said we need to capture an Exorcist."
"Have either of you gone out on a mission before?" Ji Minghuan inquired.
"No." "Never."
Sun Changkong and Filio answered in unison. The two exchanged a glance before quickly looking away.
Ji Minghuan cleared his throat and spoke with a serious tone, "First of all, I need to make something clear. The members of our team all have different strengths. Some excel in brains, others in brawn, so we need a clear division of labor. When the time comes, I will provide the brains, and you two will provide the muscle. If it comes down to hand-to-hand combat, it is all on you. Watch each other's backs and work as a team, okay?"
"What about her?" Sun Changkong shot a glance at Kong Youling.
Ji Minghuan shrugged exasperatedly and stated flatly, "You do not seriously think this dopey penguin has any combat ability, do you?" As he spoke, he patted the top of Kong Youling's head.
Kong Youling shook her head, her white hair getting a bit tousled from the rubbing, making her look like a puffed-up kitten.
She lowered her head to write something down, then lifted her notebook with an earnest expression. "I will do my best too."
Sun Changkong and Filio clicked their tongues. They genuinely could not picture Kong Youling punching or kicking anyone.
Seeing that they understood the situation, Ji Minghuan nodded in satisfaction. "Anyway, even though I have not seen you guys fight at full strength yet, we will be relying on you when the time comes."
"No problem," Filio muttered. "I might not look it, but I am really strong when I transform."
"As long as the Tutor unlocks my higher-tier powers, I can easily wipe the floor with those minnows," Sun Changkong boasted, rubbing her nose and lifting her chin proudly.
Ji Minghuan forced a dry laugh. 'The last person who went around calling people minnows ended up wetting her pants,' he retorted inwardly. 'But you are a prodigy with a Mythic-tier Anomaly. Even if you cannot beat them, you can always unleash some hidden power. At the very least, you would not embarrass yourself as much as the Refrigerator Demon...'
After pondering for a moment, he added, "But neither of you has ever actually fought another superhuman in a real battle, have you?"
Both of them shook their heads without hesitation. They had been locked up in the Salvation Society since they were children. They never even had the chance to interact with outsiders, much less fight them—let alone other superhumans.
Ji Minghuan coughed twice. "Imagining a fight and actually being in one are two entirely different things. The battlefield can change in the blink of an eye. If your mental fortitude is lacking, you might end up wetting your pants in terror, no matter how much of a peerless genius you are."
"You know so much," Filio sighed in admiration.
"That is just what the mentors in shounen manga always say. Fighting on a real battlefield is completely different from armchair strategies."
Ji Minghuan paused, then added, "But it does not really matter anyway. The Tutor will send someone to watch over us. If you guys cannot handle it, someone will step in to save us."
With that said, he rolled his eyes and looked up at the penguin-shaped broadcasting device on the ceiling.
"Isn't that right, you old fart?"
After a brief silence, the Tutor's reply echoed from the speaker. "That is correct. I will dispatch one or two agents to protect you from the shadows."
"Hear that? We are basically just going out for a stroll to relax. There is no need to risk our lives, otherwise it defeats the whole purpose."
As he spoke, Ji Minghuan casually tossed a White Rabbit candy to Filio.
"Do not worry. No matter what happens, I will protect you guys," Sun Changkong declared, puffing out her chest as she sat on the Somersault Cloud.
"My expectations for you are not that high. Just do not suddenly go berserk and kill us all," Ji Minghuan remarked while chewing on his candy. 'I am seriously terrified you might accidentally take out my little sister...' he thought. The three of them then focused their attention on the film.
Meanwhile, Kong Youling sat quietly off to the side, sketching with a pencil. A moment later, she set the pencil down and turned her notebook toward the group.
They turned to look, only to see a drawing of a television.
On the screen of the drawn television were three little animals. One was a small monkey lying on its side atop the Somersault Cloud with a playful grin. The second was a little fox wearing a hospital gown, sporting a sly expression. The third was a black-haired, black-eyed puppy with droopy eyebrows.
"Ah... why am I a monkey?" Sun Changkong furrowed her fiery red eyebrows. "Well, fine, a monkey is fine. At least you drew it pretty cute."
"I am a wolf, not a big puppy," Filio protested softly, scratching his wolf ears, though a faint smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.
Ji Minghuan stared blankly at this crazy zoo group portrait for a moment before looking up at Kong Youling in confusion.
"Why didn't you draw yourself in it, you silly penguin?"
Kong Youling pondered for a second. "I will draw it next time." She shook her head, her white hair swaying. "And I am not a penguin."
Ji Minghuan looked disapproving. "Then what are you?"
"A little white rabbit," Sun Changkong supplied.
"A little snowman," Filio chimed in.
"Ah, did you read my mind, big puppy?" Ji Minghuan turned his head toward Filio. "That is what I used to call her. A little snowman. Soft, squishy, and ready to fall apart if you poke it."
Kong Youling puffed out her cheeks, hiding the lower half of her face behind her notebook as she shot a glare at Ji Minghuan with her crimson eyes.
Ji Minghuan quickly changed the subject. "Alright, let us just watch the film. It is almost over anyway."
After the four of them finished watching the film, the Tutor's voice rang out from the broadcast device right on cue.
"It is time to rest, children. Get yourselves ready, and return to your respective bedrooms."
As his voice faded, the metal doors of the Confinement Room slowly opened. A group of personnel clad in white lab coats stood quietly outside, waiting for them.
Ji Minghuan let out a sigh. "You guys should go. Next time we chat, it will be in London."
"Bye-bye." Sun Changkong hopped off the Somersault Cloud and stored it away before waving reluctantly at the other three.
With that, before anyone else could bid her farewell, she turned and sprinted toward the entrance without looking back.
"Goodbye, Ji Minghuan. Goodbye, Kong Youling," Filio whispered.
"See you in London," Ji Minghuan said. "Make sure you brush your teeth well when you get back. You are going to be busy chasing people down and biting them."
"Okay." Filio nodded with a light chuckle before hurrying out of the Confinement Room.
The researchers escorted Sun Changkong and Filio away, leaving only Kong Youling behind.
Kong Youling thought for a moment before writing in her notebook: "Going to London..." She paused the tip of her pencil slightly. "Will we be okay?"
"We will be perfectly fine..." Ji Minghuan curled the corners of his lips and patted her head. He mouthed silently, "If they let anything happen to you, I will slaughter them all."
After saying that, he lifted his head and stared blankly at the surveillance camera. "Isn't that right?"
There was no response from the Tutor. The Confinement Room fell into a dead silence.
The researchers outside issued a warning, prompting Kong Youling to quickly stand up and leave. The heavy doors closed, and the lights inside the room slowly dimmed, leaving Ji Minghuan sitting on the floor alone, lost in thought.
The television continued to emit a noisy static, its fluorescent glow illuminating his apathetic face.
Not long after, Ji Minghuan stood up and collapsed onto the plain white bed, curling up on his side like a fish.
He then closed his eyes, synchronizing his consciousness with Host Body Two.
July 24th, midnight. Room 3015 of a hotel in Venice.
Xia Pingzhou opened his eyes on the soft bed.
He stared blankly at the clock on the wall for a moment before turning his head toward the adjacent bed.
He could see Ayase Origami fast asleep. She rested her head on the sleeve of her kimono. The moonlight stretched the shadows of the curtains, casting mottled, swaying patterns over her pale face.
It seemed she had not slept well the night before. After waking up today, the young miss had played a few rounds of Gobang with Xia Pingzhou before collapsing back onto the bed to catch up on her sleep. She really was quite the sleeper.
She had tried on some new clothes earlier today, but when it came time to sleep, she had changed back into her familiar ochre-red kimono, treating it as if it were a pair of pajamas.
Xia Pingzhou averted his gaze and opened the character panel for Host Body Two. Having completed the Cultivation Mission for the "Winter of the Wild Hunt" system yesterday afternoon, he had earned one attribute point.
He flipped to the attributes panel and quickly allocated the point.
[The "Spirit" attribute of your Host Body Two, "Xia Pingzhou", has changed: Grade B++ to Grade A (The power of your "Chess Pieces" will also increase accordingly)]
[Current attributes for Host Body Two: Strength: Grade D; Speed: Grade B+; Spirit: Grade A]
He then glanced at the newly added description column.
[Currently held single-use "Demon Chess Pieces": 1. Blue Electric Mouse Demon (1 piece)]
"I should find a chance to test out the power of this demon chess piece. If we get to London and my little sister attacks me without a word, I will have the Blue Arc Demon greet her properly," he murmured to himself.
With that in mind, Xia Pingzhou closed the panel. He left the hotel and headed toward a nearby tavern.
Pushing open the wooden doors of the tavern, he was greeted by a lively scene of clinking glasses. Guests drank merrily under the warm orange lights. Some had even gotten drunk enough to start dancing the tango, while the crowd around them clapped to the beat. Not only did the owner refrain from having the staff stop them, but he also started playing the famous tango piece, "Por Una Cabeza", over the speakers.
Xia Pingzhou waded through the crowd with an impassive expression. He found Private Room 3, turned the doorknob, and pushed his way inside.
What met his eyes were four members of the White Raven Brigade: Andrew, Bernardo, White Wolf, and the Blood Progenitor.
"Yo, rookie," Andrew greeted him while taking a swig of his drink. "Still haven't found your contract demon?"
"Not yet." Xia Pingzhou shook his head. "Actually, I have a rather subversive idea, but it is not really convenient to say out loud."
"What kind of idea?"
The Blood Progenitor took a sip of red wine, turning her crimson eyes toward him.
Xia Pingzhou remained silent for a moment before suddenly turning his head, fixing a meaningful gaze on White Wolf, who was sitting in the corner.
"One plus one equals more than two, and we could also free up a spot for a new Brigade member," he stated with utmost seriousness.