Chapter 219: The Perfect Craftwork (Part 1)
Chapter 219: The Perfect Craftwork (Part 1)
“Boss, there’s a pretty girl looking for you outside.”
Siyuan’s new assistant walked into the office and shot him a strange look as he played on his phone. “She brought a kid with her.”
That look… seemed to suggest this woman had some unclear relationship with Siyuan, and that kid was probably his secret child or something.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Siyuan stood up, heading toward the door. Catching his assistant’s expression, he couldn’t help but feel amused and exasperated. “You must’ve watched too many dramas.”
“No, no,” the assistant quickly waved her hands. “I didn’t say anything…”
Just showed how women are such strange creatures. Their minds don’t work like men’s at all. They could link someone or something that had nothing to do with each other to the weirdest ideas. So… apart from work, there’s basically no pure friendship between men and women. Different species, after all…
Once downstairs, Siyuan spotted Wenran from afar. She stood anxiously, scanning around. Beside her was a boy who looked no more than ten years old. He was quite good-looking but his eyes had no spark, almost dead.
Without any heavy makeup, Zheng Wenran didn’t look like a girl who worked in nightclubs at all. She wore a long white shirt paired with jeans and sneakers, looking somewhat plain but refreshingly pure, like a girl who just arrived from the countryside.
Seeing Siyuan, she immediately waved. “Big Brother, over here!”
That “Big Brother” made Siyuan feel slightly embarrassed. Getting called “Big Brother” by a snake spirit over a hundred years old… it felt strange. He really didn’t know how to respond.
“You’re here so early?”
“Yeah…” The snake spirit nodded shyly. “I… I hope I didn’t disturb you?”
“Not at all.” Siyuan tucked his hands into his pockets and smiled at her, tilting his head. “This is part of my job. Come with me.”
After entering the Special Cases Division building, everyone passing by stared. It seemed like everyone was giving Siyuan weird looks everywhere he turned…
“What kind of place is this…? Why do I feel so anxious inside?”
Actually, her feeling anxious was perfectly natural. After all, a dragon lady sat on the third floor, an old zombie lurked on the second, and the first floor contained various magical instruments. Plus, protective formations shielded the whole building. So for a minor demon like her, it’d be weird not to feel her heart racing.
“It’s fine. Ignore them.” Siyuan hung his work ID card around Wenran’s neck. “This will protect you from the formation. Now, come with me.”
Looking rather silly, Wenran slowly followed Siyuan up to the third floor. Siyuan gently knocked on the door of Little Dragon Maiden’s room.
“Come in.”
Hearing her voice, Siyuan glanced back at the snake spirit before opening the door. Once they entered, the Little Dragon Maiden lifted her gaze, studied Siyuan for a moment, then went back to reading a book on her desk. “Have fun yesterday?”
“Alright… Alright…” Siyuan started sweating. He wiped his forehead and chuckled. “Sister Xue, can you take a look?”
With that, he moved aside, exposing Wenran—who had been too scared to come fully inside—to Little Dragon Maiden’s view. “Could you help her sibling issue?”
The Little Dragon Maiden paused thoughtfully before putting on her glasses from the side. “Hmm? Isn’t this the little snake spirit from that nightclub last time?”
“Yeah, that’s her,” Siyuan grinned brightly. “Give her a treatment?”
“Oh, alright.” The Little Dragon Maiden walked around Siyuan and approached Wenran. She sized her up thoughtfully before asking gently, “What’s the problem?”
“I… I’m poisonous.”
“Snakes are naturally poisonous.” Little Dragon Maiden took Wenran’s hand and examined it. “Well, a venomous snake indeed.”
“Snake spirits can be venomous or non-venomous?” Siyuan blinked. “Didn’t cultivation allow control over that?”
“Ever watch The Legend of Madame White Snake? Remember what happened after Xiaoqing slept with her boyfriend?”
“Her boyfriend almost died!” Wenran answered before Siyuan could. “That’s exactly my situation.”
Sister Xue held Wenran’s hand and guided her to sit on the sofa. Using a small flashlight and some simple tools, she did a quick check. Finally, pulling out a set of silver needles from her toolbox, she tested Wenran briefly and nodded. “There’s neurotoxin present in your bodily fluids.”
“Bodily fluids?” Wenran blinked innocently. “I think only my saliva and blood are poisonous?”
“Tear fluids, sweat, saliva, gastric fluids, blood, and vaginal secretions all contain toxins. The poison is strongest in saliva and blood.” Little Dragon Maiden gently pinched Wenran’s chin. “Open your mouth.”
Once Wenran obediently opened her mouth, Sister Xue quickly applied pressure. Instantly, the snake spirit thrashed on the sofa, clutching her bleeding mouth, tears streaming.
“Sister Xue… what’s happening?”
Slightly confused by the scene, Siyuan watched as Little Dragon Maiden turned and placed a jade-like tooth in his palm. “All done.”
“That fast?”
“What, expecting more? Removing the demon tooth takes care of the venom.” Sister Xue acted like this was standard procedure. She then pulled out a bit of powdery medicine from a special case and applied it to the snake spirit’s bleeding tooth socket. Standing up, she instructed, “Rest for a few days. No raw, cold, greasy, or irritating foods.”
The snake spirit had calmed down by now. She sat on the sofa hugging her mouth, still whimpering faintly. But the medicine was working; the pain lessened. Holding her demon tooth tightly in one hand, her eyes shone with pure excitement.
“Sister Xue, will removing her demon tooth have any bad effects?”
“None. In fact, if a spirit wants to advance to a higher state of being, removing the demon tooth is often necessary. It symbolizes shedding animal ferocity and embracing true nature. Though… if done poorly, it could be fatal.”
“How about hers?”
“Relax.” Little Dragon Maiden suddenly smiled. “I’ve removed at least two hundred demon teeth. Zero problems. By the way, what’s this girl’s name?”
“Zheng Wenran.” Siyuan glanced at Wenran before asking, “Is something wrong?”
“This demon tooth is the root of your life force. Keep it with you. It brings significant benefits.” Little Dragon Maiden gently stroked Wenran’s cheek. “You remind me very much of myself long ago.”
Siyuan’s curiosity spiked. “Back then? What happened back then?”
“As a mixed-blood dragon, I was, to be honest, just a big white snake.” Sister Xue also chuckled warmly. “When I first gained human form? Uglier than Wenran ever was! Nobody wanted me around. Got bullied wherever I went. So I truly understand her deepest wish. As monsters, we crave not power but acceptance and recognition. It’s our deep admiration for humans that drives us to take human form. Yet, in truth… we’re actually beings lesser than humans.”
“Huh? Monsters are inferior to humans?”
“Surprising? You must wonder who’s stronger – the mightiest monster or the mightiest human.”
“No idea… Monsters, right? Nüwa, the Three Great Saints, weren’t they all monsters?
Sister Xue shook her head slowly. “They hover between monster and pure god – entities beyond mere rules. Their kind is beyond comparison to ordinary monsters. True monsters rank far beneath the most powerful humans. We err by assuming monsters are inherently stronger. People pay extra attention simply because monsters are unusual.”
Taking a deep breath, Sister Xue explained further. “I once witnessed a human so terrifying even Fox might fall in a single move.”
“No way!”
Siyuan gasped in disbelief. Among all the beings he’d seen – a glimpse of Nüwa, a fading Qilin illusion – Fox stood as the pinnacle of power. Could some human truly defeat Fox instantly? What kind of creature would that be?
“I know it sounds beyond belief, but it’s true.” Sister Xue settled back onto the sofa and resumed checking Wenran while speaking to Siyuan. “Forget legendary beings. Three people closest to you fight Fox on roughly even footing.”
“Near me?”
“Exactly. Didn’t know? It seems you can’t believe it.” Siyuan stared, doubt written all over his face.
“Impossible!?”
“Second Master… you… and that elder left on Mount Shu.”
“Me?”
“You lack the awareness?”
“Simply impossible…”
Siyuan couldn’t believe his ears. He’d witnessed Fox’s power firsthand. The gap felt unbridgeable. Forget an even fight – Fox could likely flick him aside effortlessly even weakened. This must be Sister Xue exaggerating.
“I know your doubts. Yet I speak with reason. He passed down the arcane arts meaning you possess his potential. He gifted you the Shaluo Vine Armor meaning you share his ultimate defense. Where you truly lack? Experience and understanding. Like playing cards. Both hold equal hands. Losing doesn’t mean poor cards, but poor strategy.”
“And Second Master… he’s really that powerful?”
“Ever wonder why that shadow entity sought the Earth Vein core recently? Why partner with Zuo Mingxuan?”
“You mean…” Siyuan’s eyes widened as realization dawned. “He feared Second Master?”
“Bingo. Exactly. Recall reading about that remarkable foreign magery – the Grand Prophecy Spell?”
Siyuan vaguely remembered this spell mentioned somewhere, but precise details escaped him now. He responded with an uncertain shrug.
“Grand Prophecy doesn’t foretell events. It shapes them to occur later using sheer will. Master Chen already wields little sparks of this power. Ever notice why Jin Ming’s group fears fortune-telling by him? Because should his anger truly ignite… if he gambles everything releasing Celestial Calculation… fated accidents become unavoidable.”
“Altering karma?”
“Precisely. But the price stands terrifyingly high. Mr. Chen used it once. The cost: the woman he cherished utterly destroyed – soul scattered forever, bones lost. Not even Master Li reclaimed more than a mere wisp. Paying with love itself. Yet who dares provoke his limits?”
Thinking deeply, Siyuan understood. Faced with powers demanding mutual destruction, rational individuals avoided tangling with Second Master. Harassing him without being battle-ready was suicide. Crossing the Special Cases Division’s core – especially threatening Second Master directly – risked outcomes impossible to manage. Thus, Second Master himself formed a deadly minefield.
“As for the third… that sole elder remaining atop Mount Shu, clinging on since the Heaven’s Selection Revolution. Likely the sole individual living whose sword merged with heaven itself. Legend claims one slash splits the sky; three strikes anchor creation. Fox fought him a thousand years ago. Barely won. Guess his prowess after another millennium.”
Finishing her words, Sister Xue gently let go of Wenran’s hand. “Alright, fixed. For the next few weeks… best avoid intimate contact.” A soft chuckle escaped her. “Though perhaps starting soon won’t hurt.”
“I… I don’t have…” Wenran stammered, her face flushing crimson. “…a boyfriend!”
“Essentially identical. Snake spirits seeking cure almost exclusively pursue relations.” Sister Xue patted the flustered girl’s head with affection. “Believe: love between monsters and mortals can absolutely blossom. I firmly know it.”
“Yes! Thank you!” Eyes brimming with tears, Wenran pulled the vacant boy trembling slightly beside her. Nervously she expressed, “My brother… What about him…?”
“I already examined him. Sadly… I apologize,” Sister Xue softly shook her head. “His soul holds only a fragmented husk. A condition beyond any remedy.”
“But…”
“Except…” Sister Xue’s expression darkened oddly as an idea struck. “Unless someone voluntarily surrendered their living soul… consciously sacrificing every shred of self without reluctance. Even forcing a transfer… completely useless.”
Failing to heal her brother disappointed Wenran bitterly. Still, solving her deadly poison brought significant relief. To test it in the restroom privately, she ran her tongue across wooden paneling. Astonishingly… no wood dissolved. Joy overwhelmed her, compelling Wenran to insist on treating Siyuan and Sister Xue to a meal.
Certainly, Sister Xue declined the kind notion. Siyuan, equally unwilling to burden a struggling survivor, politely refused. He simply instructed: if encountering hostile priest or mage hunters targeting her… do NOT fight! Instantly report seeking sanctuary at the Special Cases Division. For here monsters found shelter alongside human protection.
“You really are kind… a proper person… truly… grateful.”
At parting, Wenran bowed deeply, her thanks choked with tears…
Siyuan watched her retreat, muttered finally: “Another ‘good person medal’… Honestly… I’d prefer hearing I’m boringly plain…”