Chapter 95 Investigation 1

The three of us met up on the pedestrian street in the new city area.

Ma Zao and I currently live in the new urban area, which is less than a 20-minute walk from our homes. Zhu Shi's home, however, is located on the edge of the new urban area, requiring a taxi ride to get there. When we arrived, Zhu Shi had already arrived by taxi.

Asaha still wore the cat whisker mask for the time being. Although she said she didn't mind being discovered by the Extraordinary Ones, she was still guilty of stealing firearms and ammunition, so hiding her true face was probably to avoid trouble in that area, which would then hinder our joint operation.

Upon meeting, Zhu Shi looked at Ma Zao beside me, or more precisely, at Ma Zao's left wrist.

Then she gave me a speechless look.

Needless to say, Ma Zao hasn't taken off her GPS bracelet yet. It's not that I'm trying to persuade her to keep wearing it, it's just that she seems to really like the first gift she received after time travel, and I can't find a suitable reason to persuade her to take it off.

However, Zhu Shi might not see it that way. Perhaps in her eyes, my carrying Ma Zao with the GPS bracelet would be like a pervert falsely claiming the collar is an ornament and giving it to an innocent girl, then continuing to brazenly carry the girl with the collar around even after being exposed. How blatant, shameless, and morally depraved! But I swear I have absolutely no such dirty motives, and I hope Zhu Shi can understand my predicament.

This GPS bracelet is a ticking time bomb. As Asaho gains more insight into modern society, she'll eventually realize that this red bracelet is definitely not just an ordinary accessory. How am I supposed to explain myself then? My past folly is now reaping the consequences, which could befall me at any moment.

To avoid Zhu Shi rambling on, I got straight to the point: "How is Lu Youxun's divination progressing?"

“Lu Chan’s side is still completely unusable; we can only rely on the clues that Ma Zao has found.” Zhu Shi looked at Ma Zao.

The latter nodded and said, "I can take you to the place where the strange man frequents right now."

"Then let's set off." As she spoke, Zhu Shi once again showed concern for Ma Zao, "How is your physical condition now? The wounds to your soul shouldn't heal so easily, right?"

“I’ve been trying to use the power of blessing to heal it, but the injuries caused by the Great Demon are completely different from ordinary injuries. Physical damage is easy to heal, but damage to the soul is not so simple.” Asahi touched her chest. “However, at least I’m much stronger than I was a week ago, and I can barely fight.”

“Your restoration should be a restoration of time reversal, right? The power of the Doomsday Demon can even affect time…” Zhu Shi thought for a moment, “Speaking of which, I’ve been wondering about something before. Since your spatial transfer mechanism is to teleport you to places you’ve been before, why were you able to teleport yourself out of the hospital as soon as you arrived in this era? You hadn’t been outside the hospital yet, had you?”

“I don’t know. At the time, all I could think about was saving my friends and returning to the place where the Great Demon attacked me and my friends, but the power of blessing teleported me to the streets of this city…” Asahi recalled, “Perhaps my power was unable to teleport me to the future, and the failure resulted in a random teleportation; or perhaps the original owner of this body had been to the streets of this city, and the power of blessing judged it as the landing point for my teleportation.”

“Your body is indeed that of a resident of Xianshui City.” Zhu Shi deliberately followed her words, “The hospital she used to work at was the same one my mother worked at.”

"Your mother?" Mazao asked.

Zhu Shi hesitated for a moment, but still didn't immediately reveal that her mother also suffered from amnesia. What was she worried about? Did she feel that if she revealed it, it would seem like she was trying to morally blackmail Ma Zao?

After a brief pause, she changed the subject: "Ma Zao, the clothes you're wearing now look almost the same as what you wore last night. Doesn't Zhuang Cheng have any other clothes for you to change into?"

"I bought too few," I said. "But you didn't exchange them yourself, did you?"

Zhu Shi was wearing her usual white women's blouse and black skirt, carrying a large black guitar case. Actually, she probably did change clothes, just the styles were the same. She probably had many identical white blouses and black skirts in her closet.

She seemed to like her simple outfit, but based on my impression of women, unless it's an occasion where uniforms are required, many women, even if they're satisfied with their current attire, wouldn't wear the same clothes every day. This tendency to make the same choices simply because they're too lazy to think about what to wear is more common among many men.

My past impression of "Junior Sister Zhu" as someone full of feminine softness was clearly due to her acting skills; now she is closer to her true self. She is not a timid little girl who hides in the back and trembles when a crisis comes, but a warrior who will bravely cut off the enemy's head.

In some places, she actually acted more like a "man" than I did. She would take on as much responsibility as possible for dealing with strange events, and even suggested that I stay away from the mission and handle it alone. When we were trapped in the labyrinthine space, even though she knew that my power was far greater than hers, she would pay close attention to my emotions, try her best not to panic, and promise to lead me out of the predicament.

Just like the gender-ambiguous title "Witcher Zhu Shi," beneath her beautiful, ink-painting-like face lies an indescribable, hard edge. I cannot simply see her as a woman, yet on the other hand, I sense a strange allure in her.

We moved along while talking. Asaha walked in front of us, leading us toward the place where the strange man frequented.

"Zhuang Cheng, before you came here, did anyone from Luoshan come to your door or call to inform you?" Zhu Shi asked.

"No." I thought about why she asked that. "Have you already reported Mazao's matter?"

“Hmm. Logically speaking, the mountain I’m on should have sent someone over to talk to you about the Soul Loss Syndrome, such as when to send Mazao over to help research a cure for it…” She seemed a little confused, “It wouldn’t be surprising if they came before dawn, or at least they should have contacted you by phone first. Why hasn’t anyone come over?”

After she said that, I also felt something was strange. Could it be that her stronghold, like the Transcendentalist stronghold, was plagued by various infightings, preventing any concrete actions from being carried out?

Thinking of the extraordinary, I told Zhu Shi about Ma Zao's decision last night to act openly. After listening, she asked Ma Zao, who was walking ahead, if it was really true, and the latter nodded in affirmation. Zhu Shi frowned deeply, then relaxed after a moment.

“…Ma Zao’s analysis makes sense, and even if something goes wrong, we might as well try to take advantage of your reputation,” Zhu Shi said to me.

"My tiger skin?" I didn't expect this.

“Yes.” She nodded. “Perhaps you can’t understand what a strong person of your level means in Luoshan. Let me put it this way: as long as you are willing to show your true strength to the various forces in Luoshan, the only ones who can overpower you in terms of prestige are probably the Great Impermanence.”

Even if I'm all alone?

"In Luoshan, it's not the strong who depend on the powerful, but the powerful who depend on the strong," she said very seriously. "A true strongman can form an army on his own, and even alone, he is enough to become a force. So, Zhuang Cheng, don't think of yourself as someone who is lying low, but rather as a powerful force lying low."

“Originally, I didn’t want to tell you all this because I hoped you could stay away from the supernatural in the future, but the situation is different now. From now on, you need to build enough connections in the world of witchers, and I will do my best to help you. Letting Asa use your name might actually be a way to make a splash, and it can also protect Asa. You also need Asa by your side…”

Ma Zao, who was walking ahead, suddenly turned around and asked curiously, "Zhuang Cheng needs me to stay by his side? Why?"

Zhu Shi realized he had almost given himself away and quickly coughed twice, while I immediately patched it up: "Because you were out alone for the past few days, I was very worried about you and couldn't eat or sleep well. Now that I've found you, I can finally eat and sleep properly."

“That’s right, that’s exactly it!” Zhu Shijing also joined my side.

"You're actually worried about someone I've only known for a few days to this extent..." Ma Zao seemed a little embarrassed and turned her face back. "You're such a hopeless soft-hearted person."

She didn't suspect anything... but I wasn't lying either. I really couldn't eat or sleep when I couldn't find her.

“You don’t need to worry about me so much. If I cause you any trouble, I’ll leave on my own,” Mazao said.

"Let's not be so formal now. We're supposed to be partners investigating the apocalypse together, aren't we?" I said seriously. "Or do you still think I don't believe in the apocalypse? Or that I'm someone who'll remain indifferent even knowing the apocalypse is approaching, someone who just sits and waits to die?"

I possess a fragment of a divine seal closely related to the apocalypse, and I've had contact with Little Bowl Number Two, who lives in the post-apocalyptic era. From Asaho's perspective, besides herself, I'm probably the person who most believes in the existence of the apocalypse. She certainly can't possibly think I don't believe in the apocalypse anymore.

Sure enough, she was persuaded by my words: "This..."

"Let's save the world together," I said seriously.

She turned back again and observed my face very carefully.

After a moment, she nodded slightly: "...Mm."

Perhaps only at this moment did she finally stop seeing me as someone she had dragged into, and begin to regard me as a like-minded person.

Zhu Shi, confused and seemingly thinking I was lying again, whispered, "Senior Brother Zhuang, you're going to get your comeuppance sooner or later..."

Don't act like it's none of your business. Junior sister, you're getting a share of this now too.

I kept my eyes straight ahead.

After some time, we arrived at our destination.

(End of this chapter)