```
"As you desire,"
Faust danced excitedly, savoring that sweet agony and rage. He opened his mouth, chanting loudly with words akin to a poem:
"A ritual, ten binges, bones of a hundred men, and eyes of a thousand flying birds with ten thousand venomous snakes!
Die in a spirit coffin, and thus weep, metamorphose from a cell in Hell, and therefore perish.
The reborn shadow clings to its wings, the dormant flying bird shall ascend to the sky!"
Snap!
The sound of the armrest breaking under a grip tight with anger.
Ai Qing bit her teeth, silent.
Her most precious treasure, all for a useless prophetic verse?
Having indulged in his poetic euphoria, Faust smoothed his hair, raised his head, and looked down into her eyes. It was as if he could see the molten lava of rage underneath a layer of ice, and he smiled a twisted smile.
"You have one more question left."
Ai Qing remained silent.
Faust waited leisurely.
Until at last, she calmed down and voiced her final doubt.
"...Will anyone from the Astronomical Society lose their life because of this?"
Faust raised his eyebrows.
He leaned on his cane, moved closer, and studied Ai Qing's face intently. He enjoyed her calm demeanor, silently watching until he could see the eager desire for an answer in her eyes, then revealed a malicious grin.
"Do you want to know?"
He cackled and stared at her with widened eyes: "Do you want to know? Do you really, really want to know?"
Ai Qing didn't speak.
"You should have had better questions, what made you weak, little girl?" Faust admired her face with a surprised delight, proudly saying, "I know who you want to ask about, so there's no need to beat around the bush, I can give you the answer."
"But—"
He paused for a moment, then stated the nearly jest-like price:
"—I want your tears."
"Impossible."
In the silence, Ai Qing looked at him dispassionately: "I don't have such a thing."
"Then you are doomed never to get an answer. Ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha-ha…"
Faust laughed heartily, the devil who sees into people's hearts mocking his own master: "Why would you still care about others than yourself, little girl, aren't you hating everything? You hate the Sublimators, and those powerless, you hate the strong and the weak alike.
You hate those who have happiness, yet those who have lost everything also cannot attain your pity.
Is your hatred really necessary?"
"Enough!"
He sneered, revealing the last wound: "The one you hate the most, isn't it yourself?"
Ai Qing did not speak.
As if she heard nothing.
"You will suffer eternally, with no reprieve."
Faust's mouth twisted, his forked tongue like a snake's flicking through poisonous saliva: "No one can save you, little girl, your heart has long been in Hell, left in a place so lonely that even demons cannot survive!"
"—You will suffer eternally, just as you are eternally alone!"
"If it's just loneliness and suffering, are they really things to be afraid of?"
At last, Ai Qing lifted her eyes and said softly, "Now that you've had your fun, it's my turn—"
That instant, Faust's eyes widened.
He bent over.
Staring bewilderedly at his abdomen, where the handle-less dagger had entered.
The dagger was pulled out.
Radiant holy light emanated from the spine of the dagger, evaporating drop by drop the black blood with a sizzle.
This was the farewell gift she had carefully prepared.
Boom!
His body convulsed, collapsing bit by bit into ink-like flies, pulled back into the furiously flipping book.
"Go back to your Hell, Faust." Ai Qing looked at him indifferently, "Enjoy that slave-pitiable eternal life and omniscience."
"No, I will look forward—"
In his pain, the demon cast a final mocking glance at the mortal world: "The next time we meet, the price you pay…"
His figure vanished.
The Man in Armor clenched and unclenched the hand holding the sword, ultimately remaining motionless.
Although suspected of damaging a Border Relic, Ai Qing had not breached any precepts.
Thus, the pages of the book closed, and the shackles returned.
His eyes, as if sealed, seemed to look towards Ai Qing. After a long while, he withdrew his gaze, turned, and became a phantom departing.
The study fell back into silence.
For a long time.
Then suddenly, a phone rang.
Caller ID—Unknown.
Persistently the phone rang, as if it waited for her response, until she reached out and pressed the answer button.
"Who is this?"
"Little Qing, is that you? It's me, Qi Wen, Uncle Qi—do you remember?"
A warm laugh came over the phone, an aged voice following, "Sorry, sorry for calling out of the blue. I, this idle man, haven't disturbed you, have I?
I heard from the old man you're in Xinhai; I got quite a scare. Why after so long haven't you come to visit me? Your cousin just got back from America recently, and you youngsters surely have a lot to talk about. You should see each other more... How about I send him to pick you up tomorrow for a meal at my place?"
```
"..."
Ai Qing listened in silence, struggling to suppress the discomfort and gloom that welled up within her chest, utterly fed up with that old man who thought age gave him impunity.
"Mr. Qi, no need for dinner, I've been quite busy with work recently."
"We're family; let's not be so estranged. Are you still upset with the family? Blood is thicker than water—what grudge can't be resolved?" Uncle Qi sighed sorrowfully, "If you really can't get over it, how about I apologize on their behalf?
The old man's hundredth birthday is just a few months away; stop holding a grudge against him. At every holiday, the old man always asks, 'Has Little Qing come back? Has she?' And every time we call you, you never answer—no matter how important work is, can it be more important than family?
Besides, didn't the old man do everything for your own good back then? Look, in the end, your dad succeeded in sublimating, and even you are showing signs of Source Substance awakening…"
Click.
A crack appeared along Ai Qing's pen.
In the silence, Ai Qing's gaze dropped, and she could no longer hide the gloom and anger that seeped into her bones.
She allowed the person on the phone to prattle on until he finally fell silent.
"Mr. Qi, that's enough of the trivial family talk. I've got work to do, so let's leave it at that," she said.
"And for the last time, make sure you remember my name—it's Ai Qing."
"—The Ai from 艾叶 and the Qing from sunny weather."
"...Since you think that way, I have nothing more to say."
In the ensuing silence, Qi Wen said nothing further, just sighed: "The old man often tells us—children who don't come home will suffer out there."
A dial tone followed.
The call was disconnected.
Ai Qing put down her phone calmly, expressionless.
If good news is like a pigeon, always arriving late, then bad news is like a raven, invariably arriving in crowds and continually dropping foul-smelling dung, leaving a nauseating aftermath.
It will erupt at one spot.
At your least desired time, in your least desired place.
Now, it wasn't just the problems at work with The Purified People or Faust's malicious parable—it was also the family pressure blocking her path at the worst possible time.
Even though she had long anticipated this pressure.
She was well aware of her value as a puppet.
Neither from the standpoint of the Yin Family nor from her own judgment would she allow herself to remain on the fringes of the Yin's.
After almost a century of decline, the Yin Family was finally on the rise, but their former glory was far from within reach. Who knew how long it would take to restore their past honor.
Compared to those long-established noble families overseas, several decades might as well be brief, and there were many examples of bearing humiliations to reclaim their peak of power after a century;
Of course, there were even more cases of complete obliteration.
This was a long, all-consuming gamble, where every chip was crucial. Meaning to accomplish this goal, every member of the clan, whether from the main house or a branch, was an invaluable expendable.
Moreover, now that Ai Qing had become an inspector for the Astronomical Society, even if she was still a newbie, the hidden Power behind her could be astonishing when necessary.
One could foresee, the Yin Family was ready to engage in the fight between the Sovereignty Faction that represented the Five Constants and the Border Faction representing the Border within the Astronomical Society.
They might have already placed their bets.
And what role would she play in their plans?
Forcing her weary brain to work, in the prolonged silence, Ai Qing found herself enviously thinking of the Professor, that dead fatty.
At least, when he needed it, he could always find ample calories at any time and place.
Unlike herself, who could only repeatedly add sickeningly sweet sugar cubes to her coffee.
It wasn't the family that made her vigilant, at least not the family for now.
It was this phone call.
What did it signify?
A warning? A warm notice to bring back family affection? Or something else?
It probably wasn't just that simple.
Unreasonably, she had a premonition: Qi Wen likely represented more than just the Yin's.
Even though the Yin's had supported him for so many years, upon reflection, why would Qi Wen, an old devil with many potential energies in his grasp, be so obedient as to flatter the Yin's to such an extent?
Was his goal truly that simple?
Despite his earnest words, she could still feel some other implication in Qi Wen's demeanor, as if hiding something.
Even those seemingly sincere persuasions seemed like probing for something.
Though she had never had any contact with them, she knew the Qi Family had significant influence in this steadily declining small city.
Almost like the Huai Family of old.
On the surface, the Qi Family had primarily been engaged in shipping and logistics over the years, but in the darkness, they likely dabbled in smuggling.
But is such activity rare?
It's commonplace, hardly worth mentioning; relying on the many coastal routes to engage in smuggling is only natural.
Such matters can't be stopped, and as cunning as Qi Wen was, he definitely wouldn't personally get involved to leave any tangible evidence.
So what exactly was he probing for?
What was he trying to get from her, who was nearly a figurehead as an inspector?
She pondered in silence, and after a long while, she exhaled deeply. It seemed, regardless, she needed to scrutinize all potential dangers once more…
Beyond that, necessary precautions had to be prioritized.
After her reflection, she picked up the phone again.
"Hello, City Library Archives, who is speaking?"
"The Professor?"
Ai Qing asked, "Besides the investigation for the Savior Association, help me figure out all the movements of the Qi Family over the past few years, urgently."
From the other end of the phone came the sound of writing, soon followed by a deep voice: "Got it, it's been recorded. The price is the usual, but an urgent request comes with a thirty percent markup, is that okay?"
"Whatever, I only care about the results."
"One day's time."
So the Professor responded, and the call was ended.
Ai Qing put down the phone expressionlessly, but the unrest in her heart grew ever stronger.
After a long while, she closed her eyes and sighed wearily.