Old Eccentric, Young Monster
Su Yuan'er wished for nothing than to puke seeing the male saunter towards her and Su Zhen Zhen. On the contrary, Su Zhen Zhen embellished her pitiful expression, squeezing out tiny tears to drip down her alluring face. Rushing towards the male, she leapt into his arms like a bruised kitten, gently venting her 'suffering'. The male consoled her, before gazing at Su Yuan'er with a darkened and disdainful expression.
"Su Yuan'er, seems like you still haven't understood your previous lesson? Harming your pitiful elder sister like this, just because your father brought you back from who knows where, you think you are entitled to everything?"
Faced with the man's scorn, Su Yuan'er merely shrugged before picking up her discarded bag and heading towards the general studies library. Although she dearly wished for an opportunity to rest, a paper was due within a week, causing her to forcefully cram knowledge into her exhausted brain.
Reaffirming to herself that the traitorous pair before were merely illusionary existences, she shook her head as she quickened her pace. Merely three meters from the cobbled pathway that would lead towards the center of the university campus, Su Zhen Zhen released a muffled cry, before complaining to the male next to her.
"Ah Xing, my wallet! Where did my wallet go!? Little sister, I let you admire it just a moment ago, do you know where it went?"
Feng Xing patted Su Zhen Zhen on her cheek before striding over to Su Yuan'er, his hand outstretched. His magnetic and powerful voice, combined with an imposing aura, resounded throughout the courtyard, causing many of the onlookers to gaze at the commotion. Forced to turn around merely steps before the pathway leading to tranquility, Su Yuan'er failed to maintain a polite expression, her countenance stern.
"Feng Xing, don't even try to bully me with that trick. Since you like the role of saving the beauty as the hero, why don't you go to the Nalan Imperial Family and claim that they stole Su Zhen Zhen's purse as well? Besides, why haven't you first checked her handbag before accusing others?"
Calmly retorting, Su Yuan'er departed from the clearing, leaving behind an embarrassed Su Zhen Zhen. Faced with such a refutation, she had no choice but to check her handbag in front of so many witnesses, and her customary pink wallet was clearly visible, untouched.
With a pondering expression, Feng Xing gazed at Su Yuan'er previous position, his eyes flashing with a cold light. Angling his head, he lightly whispered into Su Zhen Zhen's ear, before both departed towards their respective destinations without a second remark.
-
"Hey, young Li! Pay up your favor now, this old man wants you to come with me for a little outing."
Tai Zi Hua's gleeful voice emitted from his terminal was the first thing to greet Li Mo Shang early in the morning. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, Li Mo Shang blearily answered the elderly man, wondering how a person at such an advanced age could possess such much energy this early in the morning. Early morning couldn't be an apt description, it was still nighttime!
"Old Tai, it's merely three hours past midnight, what are you even excited for?"
"Little brat, come over now! This old man pulled his face once more, we got permission to examine a genetically engineered mutant from the Western Holy Nation Alucia. And it's freshly engineered as well!"
Tai Zi Hua roared through the terminal, the contents instantly capturing Li Mo Shang's attention. Another genetically mutated human being was released by the Western Holy Nation? Telling the old man to pause his tirade for a short moment, Li Mo Shang swiftly showered and dressed before resuming the call.
"Old man, where was the mutant distributed to? Just how did you find out, anyway?"
"Hmph, that's where you youngsters lose out to this old man! Listening to the ranting of royalty is oftenmost the easiest channel of information. Just look at Nalan Xi, he's practically going insane from missing such a godsend, haha!"
Tai Zi Hua's prideful voice rang out from the terminal, with no attempt at appearing humble. Laughing uproariously between each sentence, he briefed Li Mo Shang on the territory where the mutant was known to be distributed to.
Racing out of the dormitory while listening to Tai Zi Hua rant, Li Mo Shang glanced briefly at the guards at the main gate, before engaging his
"Golden Tail Railway!"
Cursing at the old man for his addiction towards lavishness, Li Mo Shang utilized the public monorail services to arrive at the western sector of Blue Rose City. Standing before the previously demolished buildings undergoing reconstruction, he surveyed the environment before noticing an inconspicuous limousine parked near a wrecked restaurant.
Carefully approaching the car, Li Mo Shang tapped the window before the door opened to reveal an old man dressed in a faded grey scholar's robe. With the trademark long moustache and beard and shifty eyes, it was indeed the Tai Zi Hua Li Mo Shang was familiar with.
"Quick, little brat! Old man doesn't have much time before security comes here, we need to leave now."
"…Just what did you do this time?"
Hastily motioning for Li Mo Shang to enter, Tai Zi Hua rushed into the limousine before poking his wizened head out of the car window, surveying for any inclination of incoming security. Ensuring that there weren't any patrols nearby, he gestured for the driver to travel to their destination.
When Li Mo Shang entered the limousine, he gawked at the sight of the interior for a short moment. Seats decorated in luxury furs and leathers, a refrigerated pantry possessing iced wine, and an overwhelming quantity of lavish material piled in the corner, the car indeed reflected Tai Zi Hua's greed. Shaking his head as he sat in a nearby chair, Li Mo Shang closed his eyes to regain sleep, only to be interrupted by Tai Zi Hua's smiling expression.
"Little brat, take a look at what this old man found at a nearby pharmacy," he spoke, presenting a white pill case to Li Mo Shang.
"Isn't this amazing? A commercialized pharmacy actually obtained a Snow Lily Herb!"
Opening the pill case, Li Mo Shang found a small lily pad no bigger than his thumbnail. The leaves were white without any sign of infection or disease, and the veins and stems of the pad were golden, pulsing with an extensive vitality.
Odd enough, the lily pad displayed no signs of withering or death after extraction and isolation from water. Examining the underside and discovering no grey lines, Li Mo Shang confirmed the presented herb to be a Snow Lily past a year in age. Only, these pharmacists thought it to be a great idea to preserve the herb in a shoddy pill case without even decent insulation?
"Did you rob from pharmacies again?"
"This old man sequestered it, it's just that the owner doesn't know! Anyways, where do you think such a tiny pharmacy could obtain a Snow Lily Herb that's aged for a year and a half?"
"Budding once every decade, maturing in less than a week, and withering within three days, and that's in midwinter in isolated mountain ranges! That herb is usually snatched up by the Imperial Families and their Medicine Association, could it be that this Fang Fang Little Pharmacy has some other background?"
Tai Zi Hua snorted, snatching the Snow Lily Herb from Li Mo Shang. Tossing the pill case onto the pile of luxurious materials, the old man produced a rectangular jade container, before gingerly placing the lily pad within.
With a light huff, he pried open the refrigerated pantry, fiddling with the walls until a hidden cabinet was exposed. Storing the jade container in the cabinet alongside of numerous jade containers of various shapes and sizes, Tai Zi Hua meticulously hid the cabinet and closed the pantry, releasing a relieved sigh. Suddenly opening his eyes, he found Li Mo Shang staring at him with an incredulous gaze.
"What?" he snorted. "Haven't seen a secret container before?"
"I have, but why do you store medicine next to wine? Even if they're separated by insulated containers, you do realize that spoilage is more common with such a configuration?"
"Hmph, who said there's wine in this car!? When did you ever see this old man drink wine, have you forgotten that I'm allergic to alcohol? And you claim to have stayed alongside of this Father for years, tsk, tsk!"
Tai Zi Hua looked at Li Mo Shang in unreserved disdain. "
That's only for deceiving those Imperial Family geezers! Them and their routine treasure hunting in others' properties and calling it safety inspection, makes you think that us medicinal practitioners are actually psychopathic terrorists!"
"To be honest, your visit to Wan Shou Empire ended in a drastic failure."
Li Mo Shang coughed, causing Tai Zi Hua's face to burn with embarrassment. Glaring fiercely at Li Mo Shang, the old man refused to talk another moment, closing his eyes and murmuring incessantly.
The riotous atmosphere within the limousine finally calmed, the driver wiping away a thin line of sweat. He didn't get hired to hear comments dismissing the Imperial Families of Blue Flame World, he liked his head remaining where it was!
-
Immersed within a light sleep, Li Mo Shang suddenly found himself facing the mental projection of the
Pleased with the success and intrigued about what surprise awaited him when the deciphering was completed, Li Mo Shang was unaware that the spiritual core residing within his heart cavity was displaying unusual activity.
Although the orbiting clusters of spiritual qi were stable and unchanging from their original configurations, the spiritual core trembled in an unusual frequency, spiritual qi leaking from the engravings. As the spiritual qi neared the clusters orbiting the spiritual core, the clusters vibrated, the indistinct images displayed within distorting as formless, grey chains circled each cluster.
As the tendrils of spiritual qi permeated each of the three orbiting clusters of spiritual qi, the images portrayed within began to become more refined, their appearance no longer indistinct. The first cluster contained a tome, the second a grey pearl, and the third contained a utilitarian sword, all locked in place by the grey chains.
Once the images had stabilized, the spiritual core violently trembled before attracting worldly qi at an accelerated pace. Unknown to the driver, the sleeping Tai Zi Hua, or unaware Li Mo Shang, rays of light were streaming into the limousine, bombarding the car with numerous beams of concentrated worldly qi that were then snatched and devoured by the spiritual core.
As the devouring progressed, the orbiting clusters increased in size and their speed of revolution, and the images portrayed within grew even more distinct. The tome in the first cluster gained even gained a light brown coloration, the lettering glowing golden. If viewed from an omnidirectional perspective, it could be seen that within the previously empty tome were now white, pristine pages possessing an ancient and powerful knowledge.
As the projection of the brown tome increased in clarity, the attraction of the spiritual core magnified multiple times without limit, as if with the intention of completing the transmutation in a single attempt. From scattered streams of light, the worldly qi attracted by the spiritual core coalesced into a massive beam that shone onto the limousine, startling the driver by the sudden change in lighting from the darkness of the night.
Boom!
An earthshattering roar of thunder startled the occupants as lightning slammed onto the roof of the limousine less than a second later. As Tai Zi Hua and the driver gazed at the cloudless sky in horror and astonishment, Li Mo Shang furrowed his brows as he noticed the unusual activity of his spiritual core.
To his surprise, the lightning did not disperse into the ground after impacting the limousine and was instead devoured by the ever-hungry core…