Facing an Ancient God for a Year
Chapter 1228 - 1226: The Beginning

Chapter 1228: Chapter 1226: The Beginning

It’s truly hard to imagine how Yuan Shan, who can’t even fry an egg, managed to raise a cat so sleek and glossy.

Fu Qian scrutinized the British Shorthair that seemed to weigh around ten jin, which remained indifferent to his gaze, constantly facing away with the back of its head.

Su Gao specifically mentioned this, clearly not to question Chief Yuan’s love, but to remind there is a fourth person here.

Indeed, to Fu Qian, the chances that this cat was named Henry seemed over ninety-nine percent.

The old man could actually turn into a cat!

The question is why did he turn into a cat?

Last night, after Henry stopped following him, Lie Wen seamlessly took over, theoretically deeming Henry of no value to the Prism of Radiant Transformation.

Once Lie Wen obstructed him, everything was under control and there was absolutely no need for him to send Henry to seek the Night Watchman to report anything.

Moreover, from Su Gao’s reaction, it was clear that the Night Watchman was indeed unaware of their exchanges.

It couldn’t just be a casual punishment, could it? It’s hard to imagine that during last night’s exchanges, the Prism of Radiant Transformation still had the mood for this.

As a Newly Advanced Second Order, Fu Qian could feel that this was not a simple change of form in front of him.

Aside from maintaining his ranking, the old man was clearly caught in a very special kind of distortion, casting doubt on whether he still had the ability to take action.

"Well raised."

Out of respect for the elderly and the wise, Fu Qian eventually refrained from directly calling out to Henry to look at him, nor did he question where Chief Yuan usually kept this cat.

"But it seems it doesn’t like me much."

"It’s not personal against you, it has been ignoring everyone today."

Yuan Shan was obviously closely watching Fu Qian’s reactions.

Yesterday, her teacher had reminded her that this guy was already a Second Order.

Since Su Gao recognized the anomaly, she had no expectations of him believing it was just a cat.

Fortunate for Yuan Shan, Fu Qian’s tone did not reveal any trace of dwelling on last night’s conflict, which made her secretly relieved and prompted her to explain.

"Last night it was a bit emotionally out of control, I forcibly brought it back."

Ah?

This revelation caused quite an emotional fluctuation for Fu Qian.

Does this mean... Yuan Shan was the one who harmed the old man?

With such a clear gap in strength, how did she manage it?

Could it be that the old man has a specific vulnerable spot, which he specifically entrusted to his student to control?

What was he aiming for—perhaps to prevent himself from losing control.

A thought flashed through Fu Qian’s mind.

Earlier, Henry had self-identified as tainted, and indeed later proved susceptible to influence by those he made vows with, to guard against this, did he entrust something to the person he trusted most?

"Of course, I only reminded it a bit, it still came back willingly."

Yuan Shan seemed to understand Fu Qian’s astonishment and added slowly another explanation.

The source of the distortive transformation originated from the old man himself; he simply handed the switch to her.

Fu Qian instantly understood her meaning.

Indeed, this explanation makes much more sense.

However... Pious patricides, pious teacher-slayers, what exactly is the situation with these people he’s acquainted with, has the social moral declined to this extent?

Fu Qian sighed deeply over the degradation of human hearts.

Of course, this was just a grumble, as he clearly understood the reason behind Yuan Shan’s actions.

"So that’s it, I misunderstood then; I thought it turning its back on me was out of disgust, but now it seems clear it considers me harmless, hence so bold and confident."

Chief Yuan truly trusts people; she said she ensured his safety, and despite nearly getting shot by him, she firmly acted to restrain her teacher whom she perceived as overzealous.

Her moment of worry now clearly makes sense, considering that Henry might be deprived of his fighting capabilities, while she and Su Gao unwittingly showed up.

Considering Henry’s previous actions, if Fu Qian had really wanted revenge, she probably couldn’t have protected him.

In fact, hiding here rather than joining the Night Watchman in action was probably also for this reason.

In this "unknown" hideout, she could maximize the protection of her teacher’s safety.

...

As soon as Fu Qian spoke out, Yuan Shan’s expression shifted, and she blinked at the cat on the ground.

The latter still wore a look of disdain, not sparing her a glance.

Chief Yuan, there’s a reason you’re disliked!

Seeing this, Fu Qian sighed internally.

Given her swift reaction and adept handling of the sudden appearance, including the determined posture in defending her teacher, her performance was commendable.

The only issue was poor reading comprehension, failing to grasp her teacher’s intentions.

Henry hadn’t looked back at himself since appearing; wasn’t this attitude clear enough?

Once Henry regained his senses later, he would surely realize something was off last night, knowing he was the target for the Prism of Radiant Transformation, an undoubted good citizen.

And a good citizen who willingly walks into the Night Watchman’s trap to prove his innocence, who would be bored enough to seek revenge at this time, at this place?

The posture maintained until now had already sufficiently indicated his unconcern about the scenario.

Of course, that probably added a layer of disdain for his disciple in the end.

Luckily, after the reminder, Chief Yuan obviously realized this.

"Would you like some more?"

The next moment, smiling radiantly and in high spirits, he greeted Su Gao.

Although uncertain about how much the other party knew, the behavior of proactively reminding about the cat had already fully displayed Su Gao’s stance, clearly siding with the employer.

For Yuan Shan, any temporary concerns had already been dispelled.

"Yes, thank you."

Su Gao didn’t refuse the kindness and even thanked him earnestly.

"Has it been tough recently?"

As Chief Yuan went back to being busy, Fu Qian continued the casual conversation with Su Gao.

"Troublesome, but not tough."

Su Gao smiled and shook his head.

"Some targets are quite cunning, and also quite lucky."

So, he was still on the task of chasing criminals, huh?

The illegal Transcendents also had a hard time, having such a dedicated Demigod officer on their trail.

Fu Qian thought for a moment and pulled out a die to hand over.

"It is said to bring a bit of good luck when carried on one’s person."

Um...

Su Gao looked down at the Bone of the Gambler.

Whether it was the rough design or the almost imperceptible Extraordinary Aura, it was indeed hard to see it as valuable.

From the look on Yuan Shan’s face when she came back, she seemed to feel the same.

However, he did not refuse or hesitate due to the unique material and picked it up directly from Fu Qian’s palm with his amber-like eyes.

"Thank you."

...

"Although the incident from yesterday seems resolved on the surface, the investigation into it has not been stopped."

Not quite understanding Su Gao’s reaction, Yuan Shan still waited a few seconds before breaking the silence.

"You’d better leave here quickly."

And her advice to Fu Qian was very direct.

"I will."

Raising his head for a glance, the expression on Su Gao’s face clearly supported this.

And as his gaze passed over her shoulder and looked out at the vast night sky through the window, Fu Qian accepted the advice.

...

He had already left.

A moment later, after saying goodbye to two people and one cat, Fu Qian chose the quickest way to leave.

And the moment he took off the mask and returned to the warehouse, he went straight to a deep part of the shelves.

And after searching, the item numbered 1-015 from the last Abyss job, had indeed disappeared.

Not sure what method the warehouse used, but clearly the latest espionage device from the Prism of Radiant Transformation was once again written off.

In the moments that followed, Fu Qian didn’t move; he just sat there, listening to the complete silence.

Until the blood-colored tint on the Emissary’s Mask began to deepen.

At that moment, he picked up and stored the equipment he had just removed, and then put on the Emissary.

...

"The sun has risen."

Today, the small shop in Shangjing didn’t open as usual.

Because the recently returned proprietor was standing on the second floor admiring the sunrise.

Like a giant fireball, the Sun was slowly rising on the horizon.

The warm and comforting brilliance on him heralded the start of a beautiful day.

And Fu Qian, now free from the Discoloration State, admired as he raised a transparent long bow.

"Let us begin."

Seconds later, a blasphemous rust color exploded on the surface of the warm sun, plunging the dawn into darkness.

And Fu Qian, whose skin turned translucent again, silently regarded the most prominent Dark Moon now appearing in the entire sky.

[SAN Points reduced by 10]

Five seconds later, a Pseudo-Divine Being flashed in his hand, and his Rank rose again...

Another five seconds, he put on a second mask...

The cold ring he had just put aside...

Apart from the commotion caused by the celestial phenomena, there was still silence around him.

The expression unchanging, his chest writhed, tearing open a mouth covered with sharp teeth.

Fu Qian picked up a cloudy eyeball from a pile of stuff in front of him and casually threw it in.

(End of Volume 5, Transformation [Part II])