Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 246 - 230 people outside Dong Che

Chapter 246: 230 people outside Dong Che

"Senior Fu Feng."

Dong Che approached us, greeting Fu Feng, the highest administrator of the base, with very polite manners. Given his youthful appearance, perhaps the word ’docile’ would be more apt.

Although I was unsure what specifically Mazao was on guard against, I took the opportunity to scrutinize the other party closely.

Fu Feng had not directly told me whether Dong Che’s master, Gua Tianshi, was the great Impermanence behind the Divine Spear, but after careful consideration, I thought this possibility to be quite low. In the past, the forces behind Lu Youxun had engaged in confrontations over Divination focused around Mazao’s exact location with other powers. It’s hard to imagine that a great Impermanence specialized in Divination would become entangled in such a quagmire.

However, this did not mean I let down my guard. Since Dong Che appeared here so coincidentally, I had to treat it as "some kind of signal." Perhaps driven by this mentality, the boy in my eyes gradually became mysterious and enigmatic, seemingly exuding an unusual and suspicious aura.

Meanwhile, after greeting Fu Feng, Dong Che also turned his attention to Mazao and me.

"Who might these two be...?"

"They are my guests," Fu Feng said with a distant attitude. "More to the point, Dong Che, I heard you caught a researcher from the Human Bureau and brought him all the way here?"

Dong Che obediently answered, "Yes, I was in the vicinity when I captured the target."

"In the vicinity?" Fu Feng pressed further, intentionally digging deeper. "You just happened to be near our base, dealing with a matter related to the Human Bureau? I’ve heard nothing of this sort."

Dong Che evidently caught on to Fu Feng’s suspicion and hastily explained: "It was really just coincidence, but it wasn’t for the express purpose of capturing Human Bureau members. I was on a mission to investigate strange occurrences in a place called Hu Family Village, then inadvertently captured that person on the train and disembarked midway to deliver him to the nearest branch base."

"Is that so. Well, thank you for your hard work. You may return to your original mission," stated Fu Feng coldly.

"Uh, but regarding that researcher we caught, there are still some suspicious points..."

Pressured by the adult’s imposing tone, Dong Che, still naive in appearance, showed a bewildered expression, his voice growing fainter.

Fu Feng couldn’t be blamed for being so inhospitable. It was a critical time, and he had to provide cover for Mazao and me. Dong Che’s position was too dubious. Fu Feng had not mentioned one detail I could however infer. Gua Tianshi, capable of predicting the future, had said he would welcome Dong Che back to his fold anytime; from a Governance Realist’s perspective, it was as if he was prophesying that Dong Che would inevitably betray Governance Ideology someday.

Dong Che appeared to be looking for assistance, pitifully glancing around, when his gaze crossed with mine again.

Suddenly, as if he had noticed something, his stare fixed on me and his eyes gradually widened. Fu Feng’s expression subtly changed, seemingly reflexively positioning himself in front of Mazao and me. But it was already too late. Dong Che revealed a mixed expression of epiphany and excitement, peeking at my face from beside Fu Feng.

"Could you be the rumored Zhuang Cheng? And this is Mazao?" he asked excitedly.

"...Fu Feng?" I turned towards Fu Feng, "Didn’t you say that unless someone was of Great Success Rank or particularly adept with spiritual magic at an achieved level, we wouldn’t be recognised?"

Fu Feng revealed an embarrassed emotion and explained, "Dong Che is after all a distinguished disciple of Gua Tianshi. He possesses a soul perception, or rather, an intuition, Perception, awareness... far superior to that of ordinary demon hunters. The Spirit misdirection effect provided by the Nameless pendant is easily invalidated in front of him."

"That... are you concealing your identities?" Dong Che seemed to have realized his indiscretion as well.

"That’s the idea, and now you understand why you’re being watched, right? Sorry, but now that you’ve discovered my true identity, I’ll have to deal with you," I said as I grabbed Dong Che’s wrist.

With respect to this unclear ally or foe, I was not going to eliminate him right away. Prematurely snuffing someone out just because they could potentially become an enemy was not in line with my character — even after the incident with Lu Yu, I had not changed this thought.

That said, it was not possible to let him move freely after this. I decided to place my own thermal energy marker on him and monitor him for a while. If he tried to pass on information about us, I would immediately interfere and depending on the situation, would not hesitate to treat him as an enemy for direct elimination.

Children of his age usually place great importance on their privacy rights and might struggle in every way possible. I understand that sentiment well, but now I had to prioritize the safety of Mazao and myself above all else. Reluctant or not, I would force it if necessary.

However, the following development didn’t quite match my expectations.

The moment I imprinted my thermal energy marker on him, I felt something extraordinary. Perhaps because I had directly attached my own spirit to the target’s surface, my perception gained a deeper grasp of his existence. I sensed an indescribable, suspicious scent from him since earlier on, initially dismissing it as mere paranoia. It’s only now that I realize it’s not that simple.

This Dong Che... He somewhat resembles Yinyue.

To put it bluntly, he doesn’t seem human.

If you ask me precisely what about him isn’t human, I can’t say. The feeling came about as if by some supernatural force. It’s like seeing an image that looks exactly like a real person, but there’s a caption below saying "this is an AI-generated image," and you’re convinced to look for unhuman details, yet no matter how long you look, you can’t find anything. I even started to doubt whether my perception was wrong.

Unlike Yinyue, whose beauty is so terrifying it instils fear in the beholder, Dong Che could be described as a pretty boy, but certainly not beyond human bounds. He’s like a doll crafted so exquisitely it’s indistinguishable from a real person, not eliciting what’s called the "uncanny valley effect," and in his words and deeds, there’s nothing to hint at him being a demon or Demon. However, I trust my extraordinary intuition far more than my own intelligence and eyesight.

Even though I had just done something so impolite, he didn’t show any signs of irritation; instead, his eyes lit up with energy.

"Indeed, just like the rumors, you act swiftly!"

He actually grasped with both hands the hand I had extended and cheerfully said like an excited fan: "You really exterminated Divine Spear and defeated the Human Bureau’s Chen Long and repelled Great Demon Silver Moon, right?

"That overbearing Divine Spear... I had always thought, once I achieved Great Success Rank, I would represent Governance Ideology and take him down myself. Yet, not even I imagined he could be so thoroughly vanquished. You did well! You’ve truly vented our resentments from Governance Ideology!

"By the way, I’ve also heard you’re a candidate for Impermanence, able to resist Evil Resistance, and even reach the state of Fatian Xiangdi, is that true?

"Why has your fame been hidden up till now, is that also related to Evil Resistance? Did you already possess these traits before you stepped into your role? In the records I’ve come across before, even most Impermanence candidates did not have such high aptitude. I believe you definitely could become..."

His enthusiasm was practically igniting into flames, making me, a Fire Element life-form, feel like backing away.

"Um... could you possibly let go of my hand now? ...Why did you start touching it?"

His hand brushing against mine sent shivers down my spine. What’s his deal? Is it really okay to leave a thermal energy marker, a manifestation of my spirit, in his body? I’m starting to have second thoughts about it.

"Oh, my apologies!" he said.

Regretfully releasing my hand, he then explained: "I heard that your body might be a mimicry of flames, so I wanted to see if there is any difference in the touch compared to an ordinary human body... Perhaps we can talk privately later? There are many things I’d like to know, please do tell me..."

Suddenly, Mazao expressionlessly squeezed between us and took a step back while hugging my arm.

"Zhuang Cheng will be with me next; please leave," she stated very earnestly.

I wasn’t sure if Mazao had noticed my awkwardness or also perceived something off about Dong Che, but her intervention was a relief to me.

Fu Feng glanced curiously at Dong Che and then at Mazao, a mysteriously knowing smile spreading across his face.

"...What are you laughing at?" I asked, puzzled.

"Nothing, nothing... Hahaha, I feel like I’ve grown twenty years younger just looking at you," he laughed in a somewhat impolite manner.

You’re at least a few hundred years old; even twenty years younger wouldn’t make much of a difference.

Then, Fu Feng composed himself and said to Dong Che: "Now that you’ve recognized Mr. Zhuang Cheng’s true identity, I can’t allow you to leave this base for the time being. Your mission is hereby on hold, or better yet, consider abandoning it altogether. You are to stay in the base until they leave. I will arrange a room for you soon."

"Okay... sure..."

Dong Che gave an absent-minded nod, his gaze lingering on my face. Then, as he glanced at Mazao, a slightly puzzled expression appeared.

Fu Feng led us three towards the residential area of the base and arranged a room for Dong Che. Throughout, Dong Che’s gaze kept following me, occasionally casting a glance at Mazao. After parting ways with Dong Che, Fu Feng continued to move with Mazao and me, seemingly intent on arranging rooms for us far from Dong Che’s.

Mazao looked back in the direction of Dong Che’s room and then whispered: "Zhuang Cheng, there’s something off about that guy."

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