A Good-for-Nothing

285. The Truth Revealed by the Divinatory Symbols

Translator: Dragon Rider

Zhang Jingqiu, perplexed, went out. Tan Lubai and Old Master Zhu both appeared apprehensive. The latter, in particular, had a rather uncharacteristic expression on his face.

Zhen Daoyuan gave Tan Lubai a significant look, who immediately caught on and said to Old Master Zhu in a deep voice, “Mr. Zhu, you should go back and get some rest. You’ve been having some hectic days lately.”

Old Master Zhu jerked out of his trance and, smiling a watery smile, said, “It’s nothing that I can’t handle.”

The genial-looking old man’s eyes, clear and sparkling, with the air of someone who had seen it all, swept across the couple of people present before he said, “Director Zhen, Director Tan, may I ask you a question?”

“Of course,” said Zhen Daoyuan.

The old man smiled, “About that grandson of mine … if the Demonic Seed is indeed inside him, what are you going to do with him, Director Zhen?”

Zhen Daoyuan was wordless for quite some time. Sometimes silence could be the best reply.

Replace him with a son and destroy him, and there shall be peace again.

In that year Zhu Ning, following the instructions from the God of Divination, had gone to Mount Wushan, where she had found the Demonic Seed and had it merge into He Zheng, making him a vessel containing evil powers. Eventually, they would have to end He Zheng’s life to destroy the Demonic Seed for good.

However, He Zheng had grown up and lived to this age. Though previously he had been unable to practice magic, he had survived.

Old Master Zhu suddenly felt that something finally slid back into place in his brain. He and He Zheng had both believed that Qiao Peiyu had cast a spell on He Zheng with a piece of yin jade as the carrier, which had enabled her to harness the remaining energy from Zhu Ning’s soul and at the same time inhibit He Zheng’s talents, making it impossible for him to learn exorcism. And what had Qiao Peiyu said before her death? She had said that all of them fell prey to Zhu Ning’s trick, that they were all reduced to Zhu Ning’s pawns.

What if Zhu Ning had been the initiator of all this? Zhu Ning, in order to keep He Zheng alive, had used her own Soul Power, with the yin jade serving as the pivot of the enchantment, to inhibit He Zheng’s endowments, hoping that he would have a peaceful life instead of ending up becoming the one who had to die to destroy the Demon King.

It’s true what they say, ‘Women are vulnerable, but mothers are strong.’ Zhu Ning had spent so many years making such arrangements to make sure that her big plan worked and He Zheng survived. For that, she had even paid with her life.

But nobody could have foreseen that the wheel of fortune would still turn ruthlessly the way it was meant to do. All Zhu Ning’s efforts had come to nought. He Zheng had begun to learn magic, and his mother’s divinatory symbols, half of which had been burnt, had actually been copied by someone.

Who else had played a part in this?

As this thought crossed his mind, the old man let out a sigh and shook his head, his eyes reddish. “It never occurred to me someday I’d have to attend the funeral of one of my grandchildren.”

“Mr. Zhu … ” Tan Lubai felt a twitch of sympathy. She had met He Zheng before and liked him very much. She had never bargained on things coming to this.

Old Master Zhu waved his hand. “Xiao Tan, please guide me back. I’m tired. I could use some rest.”

Tan Lubai glanced at Zhen Daoyuan, who concealed the emotions in his eyes and nodded.

In a corridor.

Old Master Zhu was walking in front, followed by Tan Lubai. The old man, hunchbacked and grizzled, was holding a walking stick. Watching his back which had a somewhat lonesome air about it, Tan Lubai did not know what to say.

At this time, voices issued from the other end of the corridor. Old Master Zhu came to a halt, and then the speakers showed up.

It was Director Tan’s daughter, Yilan, along with Tao Wujiu, Chen Qianlin and Qiu Luo.

Yilan was pestering the other two to tell her more about their experiences during the exorcism championship.

“Yilan,” called Tan Lubai, pausing.

Yilan and Qiu Luo looked in this direction at the same time. At the sight of the old man, Chen Qianlin felt that he looked familiar, that they had met somewhere before.

“Grandpa Zhu!” The Tan family and the Zhu family had always been on friendly terms. Yilan had visited Shen City several times during her childhood and was well acquainted with Old Master Zhu.

Chen Qianlin nudged Tao Wujiu and whispered, “Who’s this old man?”

“Old Master Zhu, He Zheng’s grandfather.”

Looking at the old man’s amiable face, Chen Qianlin sighed, “It strikes me that He Zheng is different from any other member of the He family and the Zhu family.”

Tao Wujiu dissolved into chuckle and said, “Make sure these words never reach He Zheng’s ears, or else your life will be in danger.”

“What are you doing here, Yilan?”

Yilan replied, “Supt. Li took them to attend the exorcism championship not long ago. I was curious about it and asked them some questions.”

“Where’s Jin Qianlai?”

“Don’t get me started. Jin Qianlai’s probably considering settling down outside Shanhaiguan Pass. He’s been very close to Hu Jiu of late!” said Yilan disapprovingly, curling her lip.

Smiling, Old Master Zhu asked, “Who are these two?”

“This is Tao Wujiu, a disciple of Hezao Sect. And this gentleman here is Chen Qianlin, grandson of the patriarch of the Chen family in Lin City.”

“Oh, all of you were once on a mission with my grandson He Zheng, right?”

“Yeah.” Chen Qianlin comported himself with politeness in the presence of elders and did not look patronizing at all. “He Zheng’s our fellow trainee.”

“So my grandson attended the exorcism championship? Did he do well? He didn’t disgrace the family name, I suppose?”

Tao Wujiu beamed, “He Zheng’s our captain. Under his leadership, we defeated all the rival teams, won the championship and shot to fame. He’s insanely badass! Don’t worry, Old Master Zhu. He Zheng was a star in the event!”

Old Master Zhu burst into laughter at these words, twisted his head around and said to Tan Lubai, “See? This kiddo’s so sweet! His words are so pleasant to the ear.”

The look in Chen Qianlin’s eyes turned faintly apprehensive at the thought of He Zheng. He wondered whether or not Li Zong and that good-for-nothing had found the lost soul.

Still laughing, Old Master Zhu clapped Tao Wujiu on the shoulder and said, “You’re of sturdy build, just like my grandson. Xiao Chen, Xiao Tao, if you get in touch with He Zheng, tell him to give me a call. Her mother, on her deathbed, told him to give me at least one phone call on a monthly basis. He must’ve forgotten about it.”

Chen Qianlin nodded and, for fear of the old man getting suspicious, hastened to say, “I’ll call him in a few moments.”

Old Master Zhu said implicatively, “If he can’t call me, sending me a text message would be fine.”

Chen Qianlin nodded. “Okay. I’ll tell him.”

Tan Lubai said, “Let’s get back, Mr. Zhu.”

“All right. Let’s go. Are you coming with us, Yilan?”

Yilan answered in the affirmative and followed them off, scampering along.

Chen Qianlin and Tao Wujiu resumed progressing.

Suddenly, Chen Qianlin stopped and said, “Something’s not quite right.”

“What do you mean?”

With a crease between his brows, Chen Qianlin ruminated for quite a while before he abruptly turned his head to look at Tao Wujiu and asked, “Hasn’t Old Master Zhu been in SMB all along? He’s not in custody, and everybody in SMB knows about the exorcism championship. How was it possible he didn’t know that He Zheng captained us to championship?”

Tao Wujiu was astonished at these words. “Now that you mention it, it’s indeed a little weird.”

“Wait. What is this on your shoulder?” Chen Qianlin narrowed his eyes. The two of them happened to be standing beside a window, through which whistling wind was blowing in. Tao Wujiu turned to look where Chen Qianlin was staring and saw that a small piece of material attached to the shoulder of his coat was fluttering.

“What is this? When did I tear my coat?” Tao Wujiu appeared frustrated.

“No, you didn’t.” Chen Qianlin removed that piece of cloth, which turned out to be a simple smokescreen. The moment Chen Qianlin held the cloth, it turned into a slip of paper, on which there was only a short message.

Tell He Zheng not to come back to SMB. He must flee!

Chen Qianlin and Tao Wujiu exchanged a glance, both on the alert. “What’s going on?!”

“I don’t know,” said Chen Qianlin, his lips pressed tightly together. Why did Old Master Zhu warn He Zheng not to return to SMB? Hadn’t He Zheng left with Supt. Li? What on earth had happened?

If it were not Chen Qianlin and Tao Wujiu but Qiu Luo and Han Zhuo or any of the others that Old Master Zhu had chanced upon in the corridor, things might not have become so complicated.

Chen Qianlin held that slip of paper tight, a serious look on his face. “Old Master Zhu was the only one who touched you just now, which means it’s him who wants us to tell He Zheng about this.”

Tao Wujiu also had a grave face.

“Old Master Zhu is He Zheng’s grandfather, Zhu Ning’s father. He would never mean He Zheng any harm.”

A piercing look crossed Chen Qianlin’s eyes and with that he said to Tao Wujiu, “Screw it. Let’s inform He Zheng of it first!”

“All right.”

Meanwhile. In the Nalingrad Gorge. The base of the detachment of the Kunlun Xu Special Action Group.

He Zheng, whose whole world had been enlarged, found it a pretty interesting experience, though there was a downside to it: staring at the yellowed ceiling made him feel somewhat uncomfortable. Using Li Zong’s arm as a slide, he slid from Li Zong’s shoulder to his hand and, after a couple of rolls, came to a halt and said, “Li Zong, can we wait outside?”

“Okay,” said Li Zong, putting him onto his shoulder again. He Zheng held Li Zong’s neck. His little hips twitched with Li Zong’s every step. They had heard someone say that inseparable lovers treated each other like strings of keys hanging from their belts. Li Zong was doing something similar.

Before he walked out of the room, Li Zong’s cellphone suddenly rang. It was an anonymous text message, which read “Supt. Li, please tell the good-for-nothing that Old Master Zhu warns him not to return to SMB.”

The look in Li Zong’s eyes went cold. The only one who would call He Zheng that was Chen Qianlin.

Li Zong’s heart sank slightly.

It seemed that the divinatory symbols had been deciphered.

“What is it?” asked He Zheng, standing beside Li Zong’s ear. For him, the phone screen was now huge, and surprisingly, the words were so large that he failed to discern them.

“Nothing.” Li Zong transferred He Zheng from his shoulder to his pocket and cautioned him in a low voice, “Remember, when we’re in the gorge, do not come out, no matter what happens. Understand?”

Though his face was very serious, He Zheng was not afraid. He just felt that there was something queer going on, but he still obediently bobbed his head.

To be on the safe side, Li Zong cast a restraint enchantment on He Zheng, then incanted some kind of spell and with that another figurine of He Zheng was conjured out of thin air on his shoulder.

He returned to the chair and sat down. Before long, Chen Weiguo was back.

Li Zong observed Chen Weiguo pocket his cellphone when coming in.

But he pretended not to notice.

“Are we good to go, Uncle Chen?”

Chen Weiguo shook his head. “We need to wait another few moments. A couple of others are joining us. That’s a weird place. I know what you’re capable of, but the more men we have, the safer we’ll be.”

Li Zong shook his head as well. “I’m afraid we don’t have that much time. Apart from finding He Zheng’s lost soul, I’ll also have to reinforce the enchantments restraining the former body of the Demon King. A few days ago, when the Demon King escaped, the Circle was damaged.”

Chen Weiguo was momentarily surprised. Knitting his brows, he said, “That’s impossible. I’ve been standing guard in this place all along. There’s nothing unusual about the Circle whatsoever!”

Li Zong said, “The Demon King has got himself a new body some time ago. I need to go in there and check whether his former body is still there.”

If it were someone else telling him this, Chen Weiguo would not believe a word of it, but since it was Li Zong who was informing him of this, he was swayed.