Chapter 426 Demonstrating Power
Xiao Qiao, a junior student, nodded first, then shook her head, and said solemnly, "If you have a way to save me, I hope you can help me..."
"However, I didn't mean to drag you into this, senior. I just hoped you could give me some advice... Of course, if you could directly help me, I would definitely repay you with all my might..."
She seemed very conflicted. It was obvious that she was terrified of what she was going through and hoped that someone would do anything to save her; at the same time, she was worried that doing so would pass on her misfortune to me, making it impossible for me to escape unscathed as well.
This conflicted feeling is completely understandable, and I certainly had no intention of standing by and watching someone die. The other person was Zhu Shi's classmate, and also the "benefactor" who indirectly led me and Ma Zao to meet. Since the other person's life was in danger, I would definitely step in to save them.
Moreover, if it's just a supernatural tale causing trouble purely through strange phenomena, then let's leave that aside for now. This kind of man-made disaster, encountering a jinx like me, is practically a foregone conclusion. I also have a sense of déjà vu regarding the abilities displayed by the mysterious man described by my junior, Xiao Qiao, and I want to investigate further.
Manipulating shadows to create clones, and the ability to seemingly open portals... perhaps that mysterious man is a monster.
Speaking of eccentrics, that would be the Humanitarian Affairs Bureau.
Although the Humanitarian Bureau has been destroyed, its technology may not have been lost. The Seed of the Heart, its raw material, is likely still in the possession of Peach Blossom Village. Assuming the mysterious man's true identity is that of a freak, the mastermind behind it might be Peach Blossom Village. Or, to expand further, it's possible that the "new Humanitarian Bureau" mentioned by Fa Zheng is already sprouting, and the Tales of Worry-Free is its harbinger.
After careful consideration, I had already formed an inclination. Zhu Shi did not speak rashly, but waited quietly for my reply.
Meanwhile, Xiao Qiao's gaze darted back and forth between me and Zhu Shi, and she suddenly said, "Speaking of which... does Xiao Zhu know the senior?"
Zhu Shiqing cleared his throat and explained, "It's like this, my brother and Zhuang Cheng are friends. Over time, I also got to know Zhuang Cheng."
"Your brother... I remember he's Zhu Chang'an, a second-year student, the playboy who's rumored to frequent brothels... Oh right, I did hear he and Zhuang Cheng have a good relationship." Junior Qiao suddenly realized, "So, to Xiao Zhu, the senior is just 'a friend of her brother'?"
“That’s right, that’s right.” Zhu Shi nodded.
"It's not just that, is it?" Junior Qiao asked suspiciously. "I feel like your attitude in front of the senior is different from how you usually act around us. You usually seem more aloof and casual..."
Zhu Shi stiffly turned her gaze: "Is...is that so?"
Lately, I've often forgotten that Zhu Shi actually has a carefree "Junior Sister Zhu Mode." In that mode, Zhu Shi acts like a refined lady straight out of a traditional Chinese ink painting, completely detached from fighting and violence, and certainly wouldn't get excited and loudly criticize others for behaving inappropriately. I suddenly miss that Zhu Shi mode.
Xiao Qiao, a junior student, added insult to injury: "And you even sat down next to the senior student so naturally."
"—Uh!" Zhu Shi seemed to only just realize what was happening.
"So... who exactly are you guys..." Junior Sister Qiao scrutinized Zhu Shi.
Without hesitation, I answered, "Zhu Shi is my fiancée."
"Fiancée!?" Junior Sister Qiao's mouth dropped open.
"Wait, why did you have to say it out loud?!" Zhu Shi exclaimed in surprise.
“I think it would be irresponsible to be ambiguous at a time like this,” I said. “Or do you think that me being your fiancé would make you lose face?”
"That's not how it is... although that's not how it is..." Zhu Shi covered her face with both hands.
Xiao Qiao, my junior, revealed an excited, gossipy expression, and her gaze towards Zhu Shi became as if she had found an interesting toy. I suddenly felt that Xiao Qiao's true nature might not be as innocent and well-behaved as she had previously appeared, and at the same time, I vaguely realized why Zhu Shi was so reluctant to reveal her relationship with me to her.
However, that's a problem that Zhu Shi needs to worry about next. I decided to take it easy and steer the conversation back on track.
"That mysterious man asked you to go to the abandoned construction site later to undergo his trial with others, right?" I asked. "How many days later exactly?"
Xiao Qiao, the junior student, straightened her expression, and answered seriously with a hint of nervousness, "It's tomorrow night."
"So, do you have any clues about why you weren't brainwashed by those white books like others?"
I didn't expect Xiao Qiao to provide any decent clues, but to my surprise, she nodded and took out a wooden sculpture that was slightly larger than a thumb from her pocket.
It looks like an ordinary Buddha sculpture, but if you have to point out what's special about it, it's that you can see a deep crack in the middle of the sculpture, which almost split the whole sculpture in two.
In my perception, this Buddha sculpture is merely an ordinary wooden sculpture, or more precisely, "now just an ordinary wooden sculpture." It once possessed protective power in a mystical sense, but due to damage, it lost that unique power.
"This was a birthday gift from Xiaozhu when we were in high school. She said she bought it from a temple we passed by during an autumn outing," said Xiaoqiao, a junior student. "It's said that this miniature Buddha sculpture has been blessed by the temple's incense and can protect it from bad luck. I've always kept it in my bag for peace of mind."
"After I escaped from the incident a few days ago, I discovered that the miniature Buddha statue had inexplicably developed cracks. So I wondered if the miniature Buddha statue had taken the disaster for me?"
“I took the train to a temple I’ve passed by before the day before yesterday, and it seems they no longer sell miniature Buddha sculptures there. I asked the monks there, and they all said they weren’t sure.”
Do temples sell wooden Buddha sculptures? I didn't recall anything like that, and I glanced at Zhu Shi out of the corner of my eye. Zhu Shi nodded almost imperceptibly.
It seems that the claim that "the Buddha sculpture was bought from a temple" was false. In fact, it was a talisman that Zhu Shi specially gave to his good friend, and it may have protected Xiao Qiao from disaster more than once.
The reason why Xiao Qiao was able to escape from the evil spirits in the strange tales of the abandoned construction site a few months ago might not have been because the evil spirits were weak, but because this miniature Buddha statue was secretly exerting its power.
In the Worry-Free Ghost Story incident a few days ago, the miniature Buddha statue finally succumbed to the strain and was damaged.
Junior Sister Xiao Qiao didn't seem to connect her power with Zhu Shi, after all, she wasn't even sure if the destruction of the Buddha sculpture was actually related to the strange tales. Or perhaps she wasn't entirely oblivious to it?
"--I see."
After roughly organizing the information I had gathered, I said, "First of all, I must tell you that I cannot offer any useful advice regarding the strange events you have encountered."
Upon hearing my reply, Xiao Qiao initially showed disappointment, but then seemed to sense something from my tone: "Senior, you..."
“So starting tomorrow, I will protect you closely,” I said.
"Close-fitting protection!?"
Xiao Qiao, the junior student, was taken aback and turned to look at Zhu Shi, who showed an expression of approval and relief.
"No..." Xiao Qiao, a junior student, said, "Does that mean that when I go to the abandoned construction site, my senior will also protect me closely?"
“Of course,” I said.
"But senior wasn't invited by that mysterious man, right? If he had shown up at that location at that time, wouldn't he have been in danger? No, he definitely would have been in danger, right? If he was lucky, he might just have been brainwashed like everyone else, but if he was unlucky..."
Xiao Qiao, the junior, paused for a moment before continuing, "Although I'm very grateful that you intend to protect me, doing so would put you in danger..."
"I do hope that we will encounter danger later, but unfortunately, it is unlikely that we will encounter any real danger this time."
As I spoke, I spread my palm out on the table.
A fireball the size of a basketball suddenly appeared above their palms, igniting a gust of hot air and illuminating the faces of Xiao Qiao and Zhu Shi. Xiao Qiao instinctively closed her eyes, shielding her eyes from the blinding light with her palm.
Soon, she seemed to realize what was happening in front of her, and then slowly lowered her palm, looking in shock at the huge fireball that had suddenly burst into flames.
“As you can see, I am a superhuman,” I said. “And, just as you guessed before, the reason I’ve been missing lately is because I’ve encountered strange events, one after another.”
"And as you can see, I have now overcome it all and returned to you unharmed. I am an expert when it comes to dealing with strange things, and you can trust me completely."
“You are Zhu Shi’s friend, so you are my friend too. No matter what happens, I will protect you until it’s all over.”
Junior Sister Qiao swallowed hard, then said, "But, but the other side also has supernatural powers... and there might be more than one of them..."
"Don't misunderstand, I'm not acting entirely for your sake. It's also for my own benefit," I said. "Have you forgotten? I'm Zhuang Cheng, and I'll stop at nothing to get involved in strange events. So even if you refuse here, I'll still follow you the whole way and go with you to the location where the event will take place."
"Anyway, the outcome is the same. Don't you think that obeying me is the best thing for you? That way, it will also make it easier for me to protect you."
Xiao Qiao, the junior student, was stunned, as if she had just escaped one wolf's den only to fall into another: "Huh?"
Zhu Shi couldn't help but loudly complain: "What 'following'?! Is this a word that someone who just said 'I'll protect you no matter what' should be saying?' And since when has protecting my friends become something that's just a side thing?!"
"That's the sales pitch. As long as I say that, she has no reason to refuse me," I said seriously.
"Is it really just rhetoric? At the beginning, you sounded like some kind of awkward, arrogant character, but I feel like it's all your true feelings..." Zhu Shi said.
Xiao Qiao, a junior student, looked at Zhu Shi, who had suddenly started complaining, with a surprised expression, as if she had realized a side of her friend that no one else knew. Then, for the first time, she laughed in front of me.
(End of this chapter)
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