Death marks the end of all things. And secrets? They rest safest in the mouths of the dead.
But if one could chase even into the afterlife… well, that changed everything.
Yu Sheng had one of the Angel Cultists by the collar. The zealot needed a few seconds just to confirm it—yes, he had successfully executed Self Sacrifice under the Special Affairs Bureau’s layers of surveillance. His soul had indeed been torn free from the flesh. Yet it took him another half-minute to confirm the more horrifying truth—
So kind of cursed Door had followed him through. The heretical artifact… had crossed over!
Perhaps the turn of events was simply too mind-bending. Even the Angel Cultist, who had already cast life and death aside, stood frozen in disbelief. The bald man locked eyes with Yu Sheng, but words failed him.
This ti, Yu Sheng didn’t do what he’d done before—he wasn’t here to play. He knew this Heretic Cultist’s ntal defenses had already crumbled, so he didn’t need to resort to interrogation theatrics. Especially not now, during a Conversation With The Dead. Sooner or later, chaos would flood the mind of this newly deceased soul. And when that happened, no amount of pious secrecy could stand against it.
So Yu Sheng simply sat down before the corpse, composed and patient, watching this “freshly dead” like a fisherman waiting for the first twitch on the line.
“You’ll tell everything,” he said, calm and asured. “Death is a one-way road. And I am the Door you cannot bypass. I don’t know how you managed to hide a suicide ritual from the eyes of the Special Affairs Bureau, but let’s be clear—your decision was a terrible one. And now? I have all the ti in the world for you to confess.”
The Angel Cultist’s eyes stared into Yu Sheng’s, body tense—but then that inexorable sensation of descent began. He felt his will slipping, mories dissolving into a swirl of haze. And at the center of that vortex…
A gaping death void, absolute and silent, stared back at him.
Now, that void floated directly before him—quivering, grinning, greeting him with endless patience.
Yu Sheng’s voice ca from within that nothingness:
“Ti’s almost up… The ‘vessel’ you ntioned—were you referring to one of the children in the Orphanage?”
The words echoed, hollow and sharp, gouging deep into the zealot’s buried mories.
But suddenly—a baby’s phantom cry tore through the death shroud, wrapping itself around the cultist’s fading mind.
Yu Sheng’s brow furrowed. At that sa instant, he saw a strange peace settle over the cultist’s face. A calm, even joyous smile surfaced. And then, with deliberate effort, the corpse raised its right hand.
The man flipped Yu Sheng the middle finger.
“The Eternal Lord has co to greet …”
Yu Sheng shot to his feet. Color and shape of the reality dinsion surged back into view. The Angel Cultist was gone—lifeless, a hollow husk. Nothing left to unearth.
Then ca the heavy footsteps from beyond the cell. The alloy gate slamd open. Song Cheng entered with backup.
The mont in which Conversation With The Dead occurred had been no more than an instant in the living world. Song Cheng had rushed over the mont the Angel Cultist died. Now he glanced at the body on the ground, then at Yu Sheng’s shifting expression, unsure what had just unfolded.
“He got away,” Yu Sheng finally exhaled. He gestured at the corpse. “This bastard really did ‘feed’ himself to his so-called Lord. But… I still managed to get so useful intel.”
—
Minutes later, Yu Sheng sat with Irene and Foxy in Song Cheng’s office, sharing what he’d extracted from the zealot’s final monts.
“The vessel… a vessel for the Angel’s Descent…” Song Cheng’s brows were knotted tight. “If he was talking about a child from the Fairy Tale Organization, that’s a serious problem. The fact they’re enacting Self Sacrifice now ans a certain ‘mont’ really is approaching. But we don’t even know what traits this ‘vessel’ is supposed to have. Who could it be… out of those dozens of children…”
What surprised Song Cheng, however, was Yu Sheng’s subtle shift in deanor.
“If it really is soone from the Fairy Tale Organization… then maybe the problem is still within control.”
Song Cheng frowned. “Why would you say that?”
Yu Sheng spread his hands. “Because I’ve already placed a ‘soul ergency sanctuary’ on every mber of the Fairy Tale Organization. Just today—every single one, from the five- or six-year-olds to the nearly grown ones—I’ve shielded them all.”
Song Cheng blinked. “…?”
“It’s a bit complicated to explain the chanism,” Yu Sheng continued at a asured pace. “You can think of it as a kind of spiritual escape function I’ve embedded into them. If any of the Fairy Tale Organization’s subsets co under severe stress—say, ntal corruption or threats capable of killing their consciousness—their minds will imdiately be transferred to a safe haven.”
He paused, then added, “You could call it a kind of ‘survival-based ntal Teleportation.’”
Song Cheng stared into Yu Sheng’s eyes, as if trying to confirm whether this “man” before him was telling the truth. But before he could probe for more details, the computer on the table suddenly flickered to life.
The ever-cold visage of Bai Li Qing appeared onscreen, staring straight at Yu Sheng.
“I won’t pry into your secrets. I only want to know: how effective is this ‘shelter’ you speak of?”
Clearly, nothing that happened within the Special Affairs Bureau Headquarters Building escaped the eyes of the Madam Director.
Yu Sheng wasn’t surprised by Bai Li Qing’s appearance. He rely lowered his head in brief thought before raising it again, his tone earnest. “If we’re just talking about protecting the mind—its effectiveness should be one hundred percent. I’ve tested it.”
“But you’re still not entirely confident, are you?” Bai Li Qing’s faded eyes gazed through the screen like x-rays piercing straight into the soul. “You seem to be worried about sothing else.”
“…Yes.” Yu Sheng nodded, knowing full well there was no use hiding anything from her. “I’m confident in the ‘shelters’ I gave those children. But what we don’t know is how the Dark Angels’ Descent actually works. What if it’s not just ntal corruption? What if it’s sothing worse—sothing even higher-level?”
“And then there’s that Angel Cultist’s strange reaction before death—during the Conversation With The Dead ritual. I asked him whether the ‘vessel’ referred to the Cursed Children from the Orphanage. He didn’t answer… but his final smile carried not just relief, but a hint of mockery. That smirk unsettled .”
Yu Sheng spilled all his worries in one breath and then exhaled heavily, his eyes locked on Bai Li Qing’s image, awaiting her verdict.
For a mont, she didn’t move. Her face remained perfectly still, like a frozen mask. It even seed like the signal had cut out.
Just as Yu Sheng began to doubt the feed, the Madam Director finally spoke.
“No matter what, our top priority must be preventing a Dark Angel from descending into the physical world. We need to consider isolating and protecting every mber of the Fairy Tale Organization—and if you fear your shelters aren’t enough, then we’ll layer additional protections.”
Song Cheng frowned deeply, thinking aloud. “Move the Cursed Children to a Containnt Facility under the Special Affairs Bureau? Or maybe house them temporarily in a special floor… Quiet Town could be an option…”
“Quiet Town is fundantally an Otherworld. Prolonged exposure will affect their minds,” Bai Li Qing shook her head solemnly. “The Cursed Children are still young. Living there long-term would be harmful. And since we don’t know when or how long the Descent might happen, we need multiple fallback plans.”
“…Then what about the Sixth Containnt Zone?” Song Cheng offered. “It’s got a decent environnt. The Entity ‘Caretaker’ can even teach the kids so lessons. Plus, no need to worry about the Caretaker going rogue—those Guardians from Fairy Tale are pretty tough.”
“That’s a plan worth considering…”
Yu Sheng listened to Bai Li Qing and Song Cheng begin plotting the large-scale relocation of the Cursed Children from the Orphanage to various Containnt Facilities. Halfway through, he couldn’t help but interrupt.
“Wait, hold up—don’t go making decisions without consulting the people involved first. What if the Guardians—like Little Red Riding Hood—don’t agree? And let’s not forget… the Special Affairs Bureau has tried the whole ‘centralized protection’ thing before. That did not end well.”
Song Cheng winced, teeth gritted in stress. “Of course I rember. But we’re backed into a corner here. A Dark Angel could descend at any mont, and the vessel is almost certainly one of the Fairy Tale kids. You yourself said your ‘shelter’ might not stop an actual Descent. Plus, that Heretic Cultist went down with such a creepy grin…”
Before he could finish mumbling, Irene muttered under her breath, “Look at all the red flags. This is textbook ‘disaster incoming’ setup. If this were a movie, the dramatic BGM would start playing right about now.”
Yu Sheng flicked her forehead and then turned serious again, addressing Song Cheng and Bai Li Qing on the screen.
“First of all, this decision needs to involve Little Red Riding Hood and the other Guardians. They know their own situation best—who’s acting strange lately, who might be the ‘vessel’—all of that needs to be clarified. Blind relocation won’t solve anything. And secondly… if we do decide to relocate the Cursed Children, your team isn’t the only one with a plan.”
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