Cangnan City, a certain high-rise building.
Squeak.
The door creaked open as Zhao Kongcheng walked in, looking worn-out, sighing from time to time.
"Old Zhao, what's up with you?"
Five people sitting in the room looked up, puzzled by Zhao Kongcheng's gloomy appearance.
"Did you get hurt last night?"
"Judging by that face, it looks more like a breakup."
"No way, Zhao, don't tell me… your wife wants a divorce?"
"Stop talking nonsense."
The five bantered and speculated, each tossing out guesses, until a silent Zhao Kongcheng finally sighed deeply.
"Am I really... that unattractive?"
"…"
The five of them rolled their eyes in unison, pretending not to hear him as they each returned to their tasks—sharpening knives, polishing guns, scrolling through their phones, or dozing off.
"Hey, I'm serious here!" Zhao Kongcheng protested, clearly growing frustrated.
Finally, Hong Ying, who had been polishing his gun, let out a sigh. "Kongcheng, did something happen?"
"Sort of," Zhao Kongcheng muttered after a pause. "Last night, I ran into the owner of that Golden Forbidden Relic."
At those words, everyone's heads shot up, eyes gleaming as they stopped what they were doing.
"The one who's rumored to be an angelic proxy?"
"Yes."
"Is he strong? Who is he?"
"You're overthinking it." Zhao Kongcheng shook his head. "He's just an ordinary high schooler. That 'Klein-level' power signature was likely just residual energy left by the Seraph. Right now, he's only a beginner who's barely stepped into the 'Lamp' stage."
Hearing this, a flicker of disappointment crossed everyone's faces.
"We thought Cangnan City might've gained a Klein-level powerhouse…"
"But it makes sense. If that extremely dangerous god really chose a proxy, and that person had already reached the Klein level, the higher-ups would've known."
The man sitting on the sofa narrowed his eyes slightly. "Regardless, the fact that a Seraph chose a proxy and bestowed a Divine Relic is huge. We need to report this to the higher-ups immediately."
"By the way, Old Zhao, since you ran into him, where is he? This is a high-priority individual. Didn't you bring him back?"
"He… ran away." Zhao Kongcheng replied, his tone a mix of helplessness and irritation. "He said he was going to grab his backpack, then bolted while I was distracted."
"…"
Everyone was speechless.
Just as they were preparing to roast Zhao Kongcheng for his blunder, the room's door opened once more.
A man wearing a dark red cloak stepped in, his face still marked with traces of blood, his steps heavy as if weighed down by lead.
The moment they saw this man, Zhao Kongcheng and the others immediately stood up.
"Captain!"
"Captain, are you alright?"
The captain waved his hand dismissively, removing his bloodstained cloak and sitting down on a small stool by the door. His face showed a weariness beyond words.
"I'm fine, but... the Ghostface King got away."
Everyone's expressions turned serious.
The captain continued, "Last night, I chased the Ghostface King all the way to the outskirts north of the city. We fought, and I wounded it badly, but in the end, it injured itself further to forcefully escape."
"So, does that mean the Ghostface King might have already escaped Cangnan City?"
"No, not necessarily," a man sitting on the sofa spoke up.
Everyone looked at him, and the captain raised an eyebrow. "Let's hear it, Xiangnan."
Wu Xiangnan slowly stood up, pulling out a map of Cangnan City's surroundings from under the sofa and spreading it on the ground.
"Cangnan City is relatively isolated, and it's quite a distance to the nearest other city. The captain fought the Ghostface King in the northern outskirts, and aside from Cangnan, the closest city is dozens of kilometers away," Wu Xiangnan explained, circling an area on the map.
"So what?" Hong Ying asked, her face filled with confusion.
The captain's eyes brightened. "The Ghostface King was severely injured. It won't be able to travel that far without recovering its strength first."
Wu Xiangnan picked up on the captain's thought. "And to regain its strength, it has to feed on humans. Which means..."
"It'll definitely return to Cangnan City?"
"Exactly."
Zhao Kongcheng frowned. "But Cangnan is huge. We have no idea where it might reappear."
"The sewers." Wu Xiangnan adjusted his glasses, drawing a line on the map with a red pen. "Ghostface creatures love hiding in sewers, and the Ghostface King used the sewers to escape before. There's only one sewer route connecting the northern outskirts to the city, which means it's likely to appear somewhere along this path."
"Deploy people along that sewer line. This time, we can't let it slip away!" The captain's eyes gleamed with cold determination, issuing orders immediately.
"Understood!"
"Oh, and one more thing," Wu Xiangnan turned to Zhao Kongcheng. "Make sure to bring the Seraph's proxy back. His potential is enormous, and we can't let him fall into the hands of the Ancient God Cult. In some ways, this is even more critical than capturing the Ghostface King!"
Zhao Kongcheng straightened. "Leave it to me. I'll bring that kid in personally!"
"Didn't he run off? Can you even find him?" Hong Ying muttered.
"He's wearing the uniform from No. 2 High School. I'll wait at the school gate today—no way he's slipping past me!"
A confident smile spread across Zhao Kongcheng's face.
…
"Bro, why aren't you going to school today?" Yang Jin asked, noticing Lin Qiye wasn't wearing his uniform or carrying his backpack.
"I've got something to take care of today," Lin Qiye said, slipping his shoes on as he opened the door. "Auntie's still asleep?"
"She came home just an hour ago."
"Got it. Head to school early, okay? Don't follow my example."
"Alright."
After closing the door, Lin Qiye quietly removed the black silk ribbon from his eyes and put it in his pocket.
His eyesight had returned, but he hadn't yet told his aunt or Yang Jin. First, because his aunt had just come off a night shift, and they hadn't seen each other yet.
Second, Lin Qiye was still learning to control the newfound power in his eyes. Sometimes a golden glow would unexpectedly flash in them. It wasn't too obvious, but if his aunt noticed, she'd likely drag him to get his eyes checked, which would be a waste of money.
He planned to wait until he could fully control his eyes before telling them.
With no need to attract attention, Lin Qiye took off the black ribbon and swapped it for a pair of sunglasses Yang Jin had bought him. With that, he strode toward the bus stop.
After over an hour of bumping along the city's winding roads, Lin Qiye finally arrived at his destination.
Sunshine Psychiatric Hospital.
The last time Lin Qiye had been here was ten years ago.
A lot had changed in that decade, both in himself and the hospital.
The old walls had been refurbished, the entrance was now twice as wide, and two modern high-rise buildings had replaced the former three-story building. Even the sign "Sunshine Psychiatric Hospital" now gleamed with gilded letters.
Standing at the entrance, Lin Qiye could hardly reconcile the sleek, modern hospital before him with the humble little clinic in his memories.
The only thing that hadn't changed, perhaps, was the elderly doorman.
He was more hunched over now, his hair a lot grayer.
The old man seemed to notice Lin Qiye and squinted his eyes, raising a finger to point at him.
Just as Lin Qiye was about to greet him, thinking the old man still remembered him, the doorman suddenly shouted:
"Hey, kid over there! You're blocking the car behind you!"