BPIFC -Volume 1 – Chapter 44 The Mantis, the Oriole, and the Slingshot

In a private room at XXX Seafood Restaurant in Beijing, Sun Desheng and the white-haired Shen La sat before a table piled high with fresh seafood.

Fatty Sun filled his glass with baijiu and raised it toward Shen La.

“La Zi, cheers. Tsk… I really shouldn’t drink Moutai anymore. Every time I do, it feels like my throat is on fire. Eat as much as you want today. Old Huang will be picking up the bill later.”

Shen La put down his empty cup and said,

“Dasheng, you’ve got some nerve. Old Xiong and the big fellow were both in terrible shape, and you still wouldn’t let me show myself and save them. Luckily they both came out fine. What if something had gone wrong? Even if they didn’t die, what if they ended up with permanent injuries?”

Fatty Sun chuckled.

“Relax, I’ve got it all figured out. If things had really gotten out of control, I would’ve had you step in immediately. I calculated it all—at most those two would spend a few days in the hospital. Then I’d compensate them afterward. Isn’t Ma Xiaolin planning to build that absurdly expensive cemetery? First I’ll have Old Yang cause him some trouble, then I’ll let the big fellow and his people take on a little side job…”

Shen La smiled bitterly.

“Dasheng, isn’t it a bit shameless to profit from both sides? Aren’t you afraid Old Ma will notice?”

“I’d be worried if he didn’t notice.”

Lighting a cigarette, Sun Desheng took a drag and continued, “That Ma fellow only cares about money. Before Boss Gao passed away, he entrusted Che Qianzi and his master to him. But that money-grubber cut off their source of income. Still, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Otherwise, who knows when we’d have stumbled upon this treasure?”

At the mention of Che Qianzi, Shen La frowned.

“Dasheng, you’re really not worried about the kid at all? There’s still another one inside him…”

Before he could finish, Sun Desheng waved his hand dismissively.

“Another what? That one’s Che Qianzi too. When I first met him, I really thought he had some sort of guardian spirit. Later, Boss Gao’s video woke me up. I even consulted some psychiatrists. Che Qianzi suffered some kind of trauma when he was little and developed a second personality. Not exactly schizophrenia… though I suppose you could call it that if you really wanted.”

For once, Sun Desheng sighed.

“When Che Qianzi was only five or six, he already showed the ability to intimidate evil spirits. His master, Kong Dalong, discovered it and forced the kid to exorcise ghosts for money. Think about it, La Zi—a five- or six-year-old child facing shameless evil spirits. Besides being terrified and crying his eyes out, what else could he do? Yet his master forced him to grit his teeth and drive those things away. After several times, he didn’t get used to it. Instead, he became more and more afraid and resistant. In the end, at such a young age, he split off a second personality—that so-called guardian spirit. But as he grew older and became accustomed to dealing with evil things, that second personality appeared less and less.”

After listening, Shen La nodded.

“Let’s say you’re right and the kid really has multiple personalities. But the two personalities are strange enough. The crazy dog personality that usually runs around can’t control the power of the Seed inside his body, while the second personality can control it perfectly.”

Sun Desheng immediately interrupted.

“La Zi, let me ask you something. Are you certain the power inside that kid is really the power of a Seed? The same kind of power you possess?”

“At first, I wasn’t sure,” Shen La replied.

“But after what happened this time, I’m convinced.”

His thoughts returned to the scene in the tomb chamber where Che Qianzi had fought Cui Yuandao.

After a pause, he continued, “The power is incredibly weak—so weak that under normal circumstances I can’t even sense it. Che Qianzi himself doesn’t know how to control it. But once his second personality appears, it can gather that faint power together and release it.”

Shen La glanced at Sun Desheng and lowered his voice.

“The man who was fishing at sea back then gave the Seed to Director Wu. Later, Director Wu passed on the Seed he cultivated to me. Logically speaking, there shouldn’t be a fourth Seed. And yet the Seed power inside Che Qianzi is absurdly weak. I really can’t understand it.”

Fatty Sun nodded.

“If you can’t figure it out, don’t bother. That’s my job.”

He smiled.

“Things are complicated, but I need to ask you for a favor.”

“For now, keep this from Director Wu.”

Hearing that, Shen La shook his head without hesitation.

“Dasheng, have you lost your mind? That’s Director Wu we’re talking about. You want me to deliberately hide something from him? You really think he can’t bear to kill me? Want to test it?”

Just then, Sun Desheng’s phone rang.

After answering, he said, “Old Mo? Found something? Alright, go ahead…

The Alkin mineral layer was discovered and reported by Li Weiwei…

Mhm, mhm…

When the collapse happened, the rescue team she belonged to just happened to be conducting exercises nearby.

And she’s gone missing now, right?

Heh, just as I guessed…”

After hanging up, Fatty Sun turned to Shen La.

“La Zi, looks like someone may have been setting us up. From beginning to end, everything revolves around that little lady named Li Weiwei. And now she’s disappeared. Let’s wait and see what comes next. Come, another drink to calm our nerves.”

Shen La was slightly surprised.

“So this Li Weiwei is one of us? She deliberately lured us into the trap? No… I observed her. There wasn’t even the slightest trace of magical aura around her.”

“La Zi, even though I don’t know any magic, I do know three things.”

As he spoke, Sun Desheng held up two fingers.

“First, someone like me who truly knows no magic has no magical aura.

Second, if someone’s abilities far surpass yours, they can hide their aura completely. Just because you can’t sense it doesn’t mean they can’t use magic.

Third—”

Before he could finish, his phone rang again.

Seeing the number, Fatty Sun beamed and answered cheerfully.

“President Huang! La Zi and I have been waiting for you…

Of course, of course, you’re a busy man—

What? Something came up and you have to fly to Singapore immediately…”

At that exact moment, a waiter entered carrying a fruit platter.

After awkwardly hanging up, Sun Desheng swept his gaze over the lavish feast covering the table.

Then, with a mournful expression, he asked the waiter, “I didn’t touch this bowl of rice. Can I return it?”

While Fatty Sun was haggling with the waiter, the very Li Weiwei he had mentioned was walking into an ancestral hall in a southern village.

The moment she stepped over the threshold—

Her appearance underwent a dramatic transformation.

Li Weiwei became a man with red hair.

Inside the ancestral hall, two people were already waiting for him.

One of them was none other than Peng Hezai, the Left Judge who had suffered an accident at the Nine Rivers Ghost Market not long ago.

The other had white hair and an elegant, scholarly appearance, resembling an old-fashioned teacher from a bygone era.

Seeing the red-haired man arrive, the white-haired man nodded and asked,

“Huoshan, did you discover anything?”

The red-haired man, Huoshan, respectfully bowed and replied,

“Master, your prediction was correct.

That Taoist named Che Qianzi indeed has an unusual background.

He possesses the power of a Seed.

I followed the entire matter from beginning to end. Sun Desheng has already become suspicious of him. He had Shen La remain invisible nearby and used this incident to test Che Qianzi’s abilities.

However…”

Huoshan paused, confusion appearing on his face.

“This disciple cannot understand one thing. Where did the Seed power inside Che Qianzi come from?”