Chapter 638: Chapter 5: Awakening Potion (2-in-1)
Hiss.
A soft scraping sound ca from the darkness. The dim yellow light of a fla flickered, illuminating the heavily made-up face of the girl as she carefully lit the oil lamp, chasing away the darkness in the room.
The girl fitted a delicate glass cover over the lamp and moved a solid wooden stool next to Shao Zifeng before speaking sowhat uneasily, “Um… sir, please take a seat.”
Shao Zifeng’s gaze swept around the room, taking in every detail with the help of the dim candlelight.
The room, about ten square ters, was cluttered with a large amount of household goods. It appeared sowhat cramped, but one could tell that the owner was diligent. Everything was neatly arranged, and a faint scent lingered in the air, not as pungent as cheap perfu.
Sitting on the stool, Shao Zifeng pulled down his hood. Qiuqiu held onto his hair with her tiny paws, her bright eyes curiously scanning the surroundings.
As Shao Zifeng assessed the furnishings, the girl was also carefully observing him. With his casually tied jet-black hair and refined features, he lacked an aggressive aura. Even with a neutral expression, he seed to carry a slight smile. Under the lampshade, the fla gently danced, and his delicate skin seed to reflect light.
Paired with his sowhat worn cloak, he looked like a down-on-his-luck foreign prince, directly striking her fancy. In a short mont, she had fantasized about tens of thousands of words of a torturous romance novel.
Shao Zifeng coughed softly, startling the girl whose heartbeat rapidly increased for a few monts, causing her face to heat up. Fortunately, she had applied a thick layer of foundation today; otherwise, it would have been embarrassing.
Holding Qiuqiu in his arms, Shao Zifeng looked at the girl, “Now, you may speak about your terms.”
Getting down to business, the girl quickly cald down, gathering her courage to speak, “I… I want to go to Daxia with you.”
Shao Zifeng blinked in slight surprise, his keen eyes noticing the girl’s fluttering gaze and the insincerity in her empathetic feedback. He quickly realized she was trying to use a sky-high asking strategy, albeit too obviously.
Since Daxia’s “Pioneers’ Stations” had spread globally, following a pioneer back to Daxia was a common desire among many local girls. However, anyone slightly familiar with Daxia knew that the current immigration policies were extrely strict. Only a few could actually return unless there was a marital relationship.
“Go to Daxia with , huh…” Shao Zifeng paused for a mont, a playful smile appearing on his lips, “Of course, you can.”
Upon hearing this, the girl continued as if reciting a script, “I know this request is excessive, and if you don’t agree… huh?”
She was taken aback, her blue eyes unblinkingly fixed on Shao Zifeng, filled with confusion, annoyance, and uncertainty.
Seeing her reaction, Shao Zifeng decided not to tease her further, “Actually, you don’t have to beat around the bush. In this negotiation, as long as your information is useful to , I will try to et your needs.
“Of course, this includes obtaining residence eligibility in Daxia.”
“Daxia’s… residence eligibility?” Seeing that Shao Zifeng’s expression was serious and not joking, the girl felt tempted, her gaze occasionally darting towards the wardrobe. Finally, she made up her mind, “I don’t want the Daxia residence permit; I want an ‘Awakening Potion.'”
“Awakening Potion, huh,” Shao Zifeng’s hand stroking Qiuqiu paused, and his eyebrows slightly furrowed, “You should know what could happen if soone other than Daxians uses the Awakening Potion and fails, right?”
“Comparatively speaking, I think the residence eligibility in Daxia suits you better.”
Shao Zifeng had so connection to the ‘Awakening Potion.’ After learning that Jiang Zhen had accidentally awakened ‘Divine Gifts’ following an infection, he had ntioned it in jest to Chen Yixing. Initially, Chen Yixing did not take it seriously until she later discovered that besides Jiang Zhen, several others had also awakened powers following an infection. This gradually made her take it more seriously,
After extensive research work, Chen Yixing submitted applications to the officials and quickly launched the ‘Awakening Potion.’ In early trials, they were surprised to find that the potion not only triggered supernatural abilities in humans but also had no side effects, a discovery that excited Daxia officials imnsely.
Unfortunately, this highly anticipated potion had an extrely low chance of success in awakening abilities, and many of the abilities were not combat-oriented. At that ti, it was proposed to provide the potion to the ‘Great Eastern Mutual Aid Alliance’ to enhance its combat capabilities, but little did they know, this was the beginning of another disaster.
After obtaining the potion in the Eastern Alliance, the official responsible for health personally tested the drug and successfully awakened a combat-related talent, which thrilled the alliance. They started administering it extensively to soldiers. However, not long after, many soldiers experienced rejection reactions. Eventually, those soldiers who had rejected the potion lost control and turned into monstrous creatures.
Subsequent investigations revealed that the health official who tested the drug was from the Sumr Descendants, and all soldiers of the Sumr Descendants who failed to awaken but kept control had similar backgrounds. Although there were successful cases in other races, the cost of failure was too high. The Sumr Descendants’ authorities later recalled the potion and shut down its production lines extensively, restricting the injections to adult citizens of the Sumr Descendants only.
Latterly, the news of the “Awakening Potion” spread globally through the “Pioneers.” Despite its severe side effects on other races, the “Awakening Potion” possessed a strong allure for many people, for whom infection was inevitable sooner or later. They reasoned it was worth taking the chance to perhaps awaken supernatural abilities and thus “strike it big.”
In the quiet room, candle flas flickered, and the girl stood not far from Shao Zifeng, her lips tightly pursed.
Shao Zifeng didn’t rush her, his head bowed as he playfully teased Qiuqiu with his finger, a ga akin to teasing a cat that the little animal found utterly absorbing.
After a long silence, the girl made up her mind, “I want the ‘Awakening Potion’.”
“I understand,” Shao Zifeng nodded slightly, no longer trying to dissuade the girl.
Withdrawing his wet fingers from Qiuqiu’s bite, Shao Zifeng wiped them on its little belly and looked at the girl, “As a condition of the trade, please now tell everything you know about Lady Silver Fern.”
The girl nodded her head, “The last ti I saw Lady Silver Fern was three months ago, she…”
“Thank you for the information.”
A mont later, Shao Zifeng stood up to leave. As he was about to grasp the doorknob, he suddenly turned and asked, “If I rember correctly, wasn’t Lady Silver Fern once a pride of you folks from West Clans?”
“Pride?” The girl slightly bowed her head, a mocking smile appearing at her lips, then spoke in an extrely cold tone after a mont, “She betrayed our West Clans people, she, deserves to die…”
“I understand,” Shao Zifeng opened the door, “If the information is accurate, you can pick up what you want from the ‘Pioneer Station’ in two days.”
The soft sound of the door closing echoed, and the room fell quiet once again.
Click.
After an undetermined amount of ti, the wardrobe made a slight noise. The girl seed to rember sothing, wiped her face hurriedly, and walked quickly to the wardrobe placed against the wall.
In the half-open wardrobe, a small figure crouched, her little hands clutching the clothes on the hanger, attempting to hide deeper; between the clothes glimpsed eyes as blue as sapphires, like a startled little deer.
The girl lovingly embraced the little girl, “Diana, it’s your sister.”
With her comforting, the little girl’s emotions gradually steadied. She clutched her sister tightly, looking up with a worried face and asked, “Sister, are you leaving Diana behind?”
Seeing Diana’s pale face from the lack of sunlight and her cautious expression, her heart trembled, “How could sister ever leave Diana? Sister is going to beco very strong, and then Diana can go wherever she wants, okay?”
Diana’s eyes brightened, “Really!?”
“Of course, it’s true.” The girl smiled sweetly, lowering her head to nuzzle Diana’s little nose, “I am Diana’s angel sister, after all~”
“Sister will never leave you.”
Giggles~
Under the soft glow of the glass lampshade, the flickering fla cast gentle light on the sisters, filling the room with the girl’s joyful laughter.
Shao Zifeng left the girl’s house as night had already fallen, and the slightly chilly drizzle showed no signs of stopping, shrouding the small town in darkness where not a single light was visible.
He turned to look at the sowhat worn apartnt building, pulled up his hood, and headed into the night.
Qiuqiu crouched on Shao Zifeng’s shoulder, its eyes burning with a weak fla as it looked at Zifeng’s profile: “Ying ying?”
Shao Zifeng said softly, “Yes, I know there were other people in the room.”
He had known from the mont he entered that there were others in the room and could roughly guess why the girl chose the ‘Awakening Potion’. If she had offered two Marina residency slots as a condition, he probably would have agreed, but unfortunately, she didn’t ntion it.
This wasn’t because Shao Zifeng was cold-hearted, but over these years, he had seen too many similar cases, many of whom were far worse off than that girl.
People couldn’t be saved indefinitely, but the Holy Origin Society…
Shao Zifeng’s eyes under the hood were cold and sharp, but the Holy Origin Society would eventually be eradicated by him.
Qiuqiu stretched out its little paw and scratched Shao Zifeng’s ear, snuggling up softly and humming; Zifeng’s expression softened slightly: “I’m fine, let’s go check out that cathedral she ntioned later, feels like this trip has been a waste again.”
Qiuqiu clenched its little paws, full of fighting spirit: “Ying ying!”
“Yes, yes, our Qiuqiu is the most powerful, definitely can make it cry.”
“Ying~”
“Hey hey, stop licking my ear, who did you learn this from?!”
…
Creak—
The grating sound of friction arose as the cathedral’s large doors were slowly pushed open, and a musty sll assaulted the senses. The holy gate within was pitch black, resembling a gaping maw ready to devour soone.
Shao Zifeng whispered: “Qiuqiu, it’s up to you now.”
“Ying!”
With a flutter of the hood, Qiuqiu’s little head popped out, its eyes glowing with a golden-red sheen. It then spread its small wings, transford into a red light, circled around the church walls, and landed back on Shao Zifeng’s shoulder.
Puff puff puff.
The candlesticks on the cathedral walls were successively lit, and the long-ti sealed Christstadt Cathedral was illuminated once again. The spacious interior of the church, with its stained glass windows, created a tableau of religious paintings, casting a strong religious atmosphere around the church.
Yet it seed as if sothing had occurred here; not far behind the holy gate lay a collapsed marble column, its statue shattered into pieces on the ground, covered in thick dust.
Shao Zifeng looked at the tables and chairs along the aisle, gently swiping the dust off them, revealing clear claw marks and dried bloodstains, and even so human remains lay beneath the chairs, leaving only bone.
Moving further inside, Shao Zifeng’s steps paused slightly as he squinted ahead.
At the end of the cathedral stood a lavish altar, with more than a thousand candles sprawling ssily across it. The disorderly candles were crushing already withered flowers, black-red bloodstains retained their original shapes, and atop the altar were three vertical lines engraved with a statue of the Virgin Mary holding the Holy Infant, with a corpse hanging upside-down in place of the Virgin’s face.
If it were just this, it wouldn’t have caught Shao Zifeng’s attention, but at that mont, beneath the altar kneeled a figure robed in nun’s attire, looking exceptionally eerie under the flickering candlelight.
Shao Zifeng walked slowly towards the kneeling figure, while Qiuqiu hid under his hood, its small paws tightly grasping his collar, appearing sowhat nervous.
Standing behind the kneeling nun, Shao Zifeng slowly extended his hand, with Qiuqiu watching his movents unblinkingly.
Swipe!
The nun’s robe was violently pulled off by Shao Zifeng, who then turned his head and shouted loudly at the focused Qiuqiu: “Ah!!”
“Ying!!!!!!”
Startled, Qiuqiu’s scale armor stood on end as it let out a sharp shriek and expertly curled itself into a quivering ball.
“Hahahaha!”
Shao Zifeng couldn’t stop laughing upon seeing this, surprised that he had actually managed to scare Qiuqiu.
Hearing the sinister laugh, Qiuqiu covertly peeked out one eye, its eyes brimming with tears as it glared at Shao Zifeng, seemingly accusing him of his misdeed.
Shao Zifeng said cheerfully, “Alright, alright, it was just a joke.”
“Ying!”
Qiuqiu sat on his shoulder with its arms crossed, turning its head away in a show of ignoring him.
Shao Zifeng waved the nun’s robe appeasingly: “My fault, Qiuqiu you’re magnanimous, it’s nothing really…”
Before he could finish speaking, Shao Zifeng’s hands suddenly stiffened, he looked at the age-worn nun’s robe in his hand, then at the empty stairs in front of him.
It’s nothing…
How did this nun’s robe present a kneeling shape?
Suddenly, a chill surged in Shao Zifeng’s heart.
Seeing he was silent, Qiuqiu pretended to glance casually at him, only to see that Shao Zifeng’s expression was sowhat rigid.
That rotten egg is surely trying to scare again! With that thought, Qiuqiu huffed and turned its head away.
Then it saw a ghastly pale face clinging close to it, its dark hollow eyes oozing black-red tears.
With the candlelight flickering, Qiuqiu slowly widened its eyes.
“Ying!!!”
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