Kai finished helping Tang Mai and then went to check on Tang Zinxi the wife of Qingyu. He knocked on the door and heard a 'come in' sound. He entered, Qingyu is reading a book near his wife with glasses on.
"Why are you wearing glasses?" Kai asked him because he knows this guy is as strong as a horse so what's the deal?
"My wife prefers me with them and I never told her my eyes are fine now." He said in shame. His wife always gushed at his scholarly appearance he didn't want to lose that.
"Whatever floats your boat." Kai went to check the lady's pulse to confirm she is well and will wake up soon. "She will wake up in less than two days. I have to go out on an errand." Kai told Him.
"I heard there is chaos outside these days. Be safe out there Kai." Qingyu said looking at Kai with worry.
"I have a good bodyguard, you should instead worry about your daughter burning the house down." Kai laughed at Qingyu's expression.
Kai had created a program that will assist his robots with appearing more human. They all lack expressive abilities. It is okay if his nanny and manny are expressionless people but what happens if he takes out more of them in the future?
A genius like Huo Jun will notice the problem at first glance and the next thing will be the military asking him to contribute by giving up the production process.
After completing the program, Kai became sure of his choice to not gift the formless chip to his robots. When the time comes when each of his robots can assimilate the facial expression of various actors on tv into their expressions depending on the situation, it is better if they do not have the ultimate power that the formless chip will grant them.
But Kai is tempted to complete the robots he has built with his own hands. However, reason tells him that it is too risky if he can not control them it will become a new disaster for the world. In the end, Kai decided tp get humans and give them the formless chip.
Kai went out for the first time in a long time and headed straight for the soldier's retreat. They have left his home and now with the food and water shortages outside, no one will pay attention to the needs of people whose lives are no longer of any use.
When he got there, the place seems like it had recently went through a tsunami. The walls are practically falling off and the windows are without any glass so the remaining walls have cloths hanging on them to shield the people inside from the cold winds outside.
It is easy to guess that those living in such conditions will die soon. Kai is not overly sad for them, he had offered them a safe warm place to squat but they let their pride get in the way. He looked at the place and then knocked on the main door. No one came to answer so he let himself in.
There is a hall in this place and currently it is housing 43 people. Of all the people who were staying there before, only this amount is still alive. Those with chronic disease and other health sequels from war such as chest pains from bomb residue died except for Xiao Ming who is in the edge.
When he entered not many people turned to see him. They are sick, hungry and have no energy to entertain. The ones in charge of the retreat facility have resigned because of lack of resources. No volunteers would leave their homes in this weather and come here to see those suffering faces.
These people are all going to die. Even the relatively healthy ones are not able to go out to find food and stealing is out of the question for proud veterans like them, especially when they are hungry and slow. The police are trying to return order and they will arrest anyone they can get their hands on to serve as an example.
When Kai walked in he is attacked by a foul smell. The place is warm but filled with different smells, they haven't had water in weeks.
He put a fasting pill inside their mouths using his mental power like a Jedi. He went to search the entire place to check if there is anything of interest to him. He first sent out a spirit search to check the parameter. Before he can even move out of the room, a bed cricked as Beatrice woke up from a hunger induced coma and saw Kai.
"Is this hell?" Her voice hoarse because she hasn't had water in a long time.
"It is hell on earth. I am your warden." Kai said with a slight bow.
"Really?" Her eyes narrowed, she didn't feel the hunger pangs she had been feeling for days now. But that doesn't mean she believes his statement. Her expression morphed into a murderous angry face.
"I am joking. Gods you are scary. I gave you a fasting pill. You and everyone here." Kai said taking a step back.
"We were ready to face death. You are only prolonging our suffering." Xi Jun said from a distance away.
"Really? This is how you want to die? In your own filth forgotten by the world you once served? All those years working, breaking your bodies just to keep your country men safe, and this is it?" Kai asked solemn.
"What is your point?" Tan Bo asked, she was a commander in her best days.
"I can understand being helpless and struggling against the current. But I can not understand your willingness to give up. Are you not angry? You all literally gave everything to this country but this is the treatment you receive. Do you not want to scream in anger and roar to the heavens for the injustice?" Kai looked at the faces whose eyes seem to have no fight left in them.
"Hehe..it is not just the country that has forsaken us. Our families, our friends our own children are ashamed to have ANY association with us." One man Kai has never met before said in grief.
"I have an offer. You work for me and I promise to heal your broken bodies and mend back your spirits. But your lives will be mine to do with as I wish if you agree to this, there is no going back. I will leave you to think it over." He turned and wanted to go out.
"Wait! What do you mean heal our bodies?" Jake asked.
"Literally." Kai made a cool exit as the eyes of every soldier looked at him in amazement.
He waked around but the house kept falling on him. The roof is leaking, the cold breeze is coming inside and then there's the frozen floor. No wonder many people died here.
When he sent out his spirit power he had felt something in one of the rooms in second floor where bedrooms are. He looked through rubles and found a wooden box the wood is special he is sure this is a sacred wood but he opened it still.
He found a jade pin that seems to have been carefully made. The moment his spirit power touched the jade pin it got sucked it at a rapid pace. Kai has a steady stream of spirit power but he is not about to be sucked dry by some un known snake jade pin. He used his mental power to cut off the spirit power connection. He took a loser look at the jade pin.
It has a beautiful long snake coiling around the clip on top. It is a beautiful design, but what Kai is most attracted by is the two pair of eyes on the face of that snake.
He took back the box and went to the hall. As soon as he entered, the room became silent.
"Kai, what did you mean by 'your lives are mine to do with as I please'? Are we going to be your slaves?" Tan Bo asked sharply.
"Yes." Kai answered and the room became deathly silent before they all started talking at the same time.
"Alright, SILENT!" Kai shouted with a voice imbued with power.
"I have many secrets, the kind that can be taken and used against me if someone found out and If I have workers I need to have absolute trust in them. I can not accept anything less than that." Kai said.
"I am having a hard time understanding how you will turn us into slaves Kai? Will we be walk around with collars around our necks all day or...?" Another woman asked.
"Our deal will be private and I won't be treating you like slaves. I just need to make sure my secrets stay secrets It has nothing to do with other things. You will be living as employees and getting paid as employees." Kai offered.
"That doesn't answer my question, how will you turn us into slaves?" Her sharp eyes daring him to evade this question again.
"I can use my soul power to imprint on your soul. It's called a slave mark." Kai answered the lady.
"I need to think about this." One said and more people echoed his words.
"I don't. I would make a deal with the devil himself if they offered me my legs back. Do it." Xiao Ming said to Kai sitting up straight.
The place became silent again. Kai walked towards Ming. "If you do this, there is no going back."
"I understand. I am trusting you." Ming said but it is obvious he is nervous.
"Alright open up."
Kai put a crystal clear pill in his mouth. The pill shines and has a mysterious energy arround it, making everyone who smells it crave for it.
As soon as he swallows it, his entire body became covered in a white light that blinded everyone. When the others could look in that direction Xiao Ming is covered by a cocoon. It white and to be honest, it's an unusual sight.
Everyone is gawking at it like its novelty. Kai took out the small recording devices and allowed them to capture this moment.
"I will meditate in the other room. I wouldn't want you guys unable to discuss me thoroughly." He left them stunned. Others laughed awkwardly.
Kai waited for Xiao Ming to get his new body. This is the path he will choose. For some reason he really can not trust others, not even a little bit so the mark is the only way.
He received a call from Wang Yan. "Kai can I speak with you in person?" He asked him as soon as the call connected. Kai didn't accept a face time chat because he doesn't want to advertise where he is.
"I am not home at the moment and I don't know when I'll be back. I will call you at that time." He hang up the phone because he knows what they want.
They probably want him to cure Mrs. Wang. Kai felt a movement in the cocoon and entered the hall. Cracks started appearing on the round cocoon and then a white hand busted out looking delicate and smooth like that of a teenager who has never worked a day in his life.
The others are watching with batted breath. Can Kai really bring back their severed limbs and fix their bodies? If this is possible then it will change everything for them.
Kai didn't help and watches as the opening became larger and larger until Xiao Ming came out covered in black filth.
The most amazing thing is the obvious pair of legs he is standing on. Kai laughed. "I have warm water prepared for you this way." He took out a bucket of water and warmed the water with a fire spell before pouring it into a bathtub.
He put out warm set of clothes and came out. The place is dark because one of the old staff took the Payne battery Kai had donated with them when they left.
Xiao Ming took a bath quickly because it is cold and came out after dressing up warmly. He is 1.89 meters tall, sharp pair of deep grey eyes and raven colored hair. Very handsome. He looks younger by at least 5 years.
"Are you ready to receive the mark?" Kai aske him solemnly.
"Yes." Xiao Ming said without any hesitation looking at Kai in the eyes. Kai made the hand seal and pushed it into Ming's body. The process didn't take long and it is done. Kai looked at Xiao Ming "How do you feel?"
"The same except for something that I think is too early for me to understand master." Ming is surprised by that natural way that phrase came out of his mouth.
"You don't have to call me master." Kai said.
"It's weird but I really feel good when I call you master. I would like to call you like that."
"Alright."
"Thank you master." Xiao Ming said.
"Lets go back in, you don't have to convince anyone to join us. I want them to only come of their own volition." Kai warned.
"I understand."
They walked in and the gang became stunned. "You look almost like how you looked 7 years ago. What is in that pill?" someone said.
After talking and debating, the most useless ended up joining. Those without hands or legs or movement ability. They are 29 and a few more who were interested in getting a better place to stay like the human wall. Xi Jun.
In the end Kai was able to recruit 35 people. The rest are mostly women who think male slaves are safer than women slaves with a magical collar they can not shake off. The others are the people who don't feel desperate enough to sell their lives to some rich kid.
Kai took the 35 people into his space after taking them away from the rest of the group. He first gave them each a mark before he gave them the healing pill. Exiting the space just as they were engulfed into cocoons, he stood in the same place and erased the memories of today's matter in each and everyone of those remaining minds.
They will know they chose to go work for someone who was kind enough to give a bunch of cripples a place to stay. He turned around and left. In the pace, Xiao Ming saw everything and became enlightened on why Kai doesn't trust anyone with this secret.
.....