Apocalyptic Era: Starting from picking up a Bishoujo
Chapter 67 - 64 Mountains pile upon mountains and rivers double back, making one doubt there’s a way through

Chapter 67: 64 Mountains pile upon mountains and rivers double back, making one doubt there’s a way through

Changan looked at us as if his brain were overloaded.

Zhu Shi spoke in an even tone, "Strictly speaking, I’m not a supernatural power user, but a demon hunter from Luo Mountain."

"Luo Mountain? Demon hunter?" Changan asked blankly.

"Luo Mountain is the national organization specifically set up to deal with abnormal events, and demon hunters are the professionals within this organization," I explained briefly and to the point.

Changan stared at my face, "So... you’re also a demon hunter from Luo Mountain?"

"Yes," I shamelessly admitted, "I just joined recently."

Although I hadn’t officially become part of Outer Path Impermanence, and even if it were official, that didn’t mean I truly became a member of Luo Mountain.

But Zhu Shi didn’t call me out, instead continuing to Changan, "Zhuang Cheng has told me about what happened to you; it seemed you didn’t want to share the inside information you know with him. But as you see, we are professionals, and you should tell us all the clues you know."

Her attitude had a businesslike air, treating not a brother but rather like any individual involved in an abnormal event.

While logically sound, this forthright manner would only provoke Changan’s rebellious tendencies. Especially coming from his younger sister, it might make Changan feel he couldn’t save face. As expected, Changan fell silent. Yet he wasn’t a fool and likely understood very well that speaking to professionals about his troubles was the most sensible choice.

I tried to guess at Changan’s current state of mind as a friend. He was likely very conflicted; familiar friends and his sister suddenly transformed into so-called professionals in abnormal events. That being said, the impression of "professionals" probably didn’t outweigh that of "friends and sister," and his emotions might still be at "can’t let friends commit murder" or "can’t involve friends and sister in his own perilous situation," unable to come around just yet.

Convincing him now was not a matter of words but time. Probably in a little while, he would persuade himself.

It seemed Zhu Shi realized this too and she shifted the subject, "Let’s not stay here long, let’s head back."

"Back where?" I asked.

"My place," Zhu Shi answered.

-

Unlike Changan who lived alone, Zhu Shi had always lived with her family.

Only, with one of their parents being missing and the other in a military hospital, the only ones living with Zhu Shi were her grandparents.

Normally, grandparents refer to "the parents of one’s father," but the Zhu family’s situation was a bit different from normal families. Since her and Changan’s father was the one who had married into the family, her reference to grandparents automatically meant "the parents of her mother."

The Zhu’s mansion was located on the fringe of the city district. Their house was large, complete with a small garden, and I couldn’t help but use the term "mansion." At the entrance, I could see the perimeter wall and the iron grille gate.

We had taken a cab using a mobile app to get here, and there was a kindly-looking elderly woman waiting at the gate who must have been Zhu Shi and Changan’s grandmother. She didn’t seem at all surprised by Zhu Shi’s attire of a straw raincoat and a bamboo hat.

Changan couldn’t help but shrink his neck at the sight of the old lady, who then beckoned Changan to her side, glanced at me, and asked with a smile, "You must be Zhuang Cheng, whom Changan always mentions? Thank you for being friends with our Changan, please come in for a visit."

Zhu Shi spoke from the side, "Grandma, we have other matters to attend to later."

"Eh? Aren’t you all coming in?" Changan was stunned, "Then I also..."

I was also puzzled, while the old lady turned solemn, "Changan, you stay here."

"Okay... okay!"

Changan reflexively complied, and it was the first time I’d seen him so obedient.

"Then, you two go on with what you need to do," the old lady resumed her kindly voice and then said to me, "Once you’re done and if you have time, remember to come and visit."

I nodded in agreement, and the old lady then walked away with Changan. Changan kept looking back, as if he was reluctant to leave. Zhu Shi saw this too but chose to ignore it, leading me away from the Zhu’s mansion and slipped her martial attire into the guitar case she carried.

"Why separate from Changan? He clearly has more clues to reveal. And if we leave him alone, he might be attacked again."

I stopped by the side of the road and posed this question to Zhu Shi. At the same time, I stealthily released a "Firefly," instructing it to head towards the Zhu’s mansion.

"Don’t worry about the brother. I’ve already informed the family about his situation in advance. The Zhu family has a specialized barrier for alert and defense against external enemies, and my grandfather is there. Not just to speak of that level of Shadow Clone, even if several Fallen Demon Hunters attacked with their real bodies, they wouldn’t get any advantages at that position," Zhu Shi was clearly very confident in the Zhu’s mansion.

Seeing this, I also tentatively eased my mind, then asked, "Is your family really a family of demon hunters?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"Does everyone in your family know about this, except Changan himself?" I was curious, "Why?"

"Um..." She showed a moment of hesitation.

"Is it inconvenient to talk about?" I pondered whether to investigate on my own if she really didn’t want to share.

"It really is inconvenient..." She shook her head, "Never mind, I’ll tell you anyway. Otherwise, you might end up investigating on your own."

I had been seen through.

"Firstly, you should know that my brother is a child our father had with another woman outside, what you might call an illegitimate son." She seemed to be carefully choosing her words, "In fact, there’s a secret not even my brother knows about, and that is his mother isn’t human, but a Demon."

"—Ah?" I was stunned, "A Demon? Did I hear that wrong? You’re saying Changan’s mother isn’t human?"

Having known him for so long at university, clueless about the abnormal world and seeming like just an ordinary friend—he was actually the child of a Demon and a human?

"You heard me correctly. That’s what I said." Zhu Shi spoke very seriously, "My brother is half non-human; he was born with the blood and powers of a Demon. So at first, our grandfather intended to make him the successor to the Zhu family."

"Wait... now I’m even more confused." I tried to sort out my thoughts and emotions, "Changan’s father married into the family, and his mother is a Demon. In other words, Changan not only lacks the Zhu family bloodline, but he isn’t even fully human.

"Under such circumstances, your grandfather initially planned to make Changan the successor, rather than you... Why is that? Did your grandfather hold extremely traditional views about favoring males over females?"

"That’s not it." She shook her head, "Our grandfather hoped that the Zhu family would spend a long time, gradually distancing from the dangerous abnormal world. And during this transition period, we would need at least one family demon hunter to fend off the danger. Grandfather wanted my brother to take on this responsibility.

"However, during his training, the Demon side of my brother went out of control. To save his life, our grandfather had no choice but to seal his Demon Blood, turning him into an ordinary person.

"Afterward, the responsibility of successor fell onto me."

I slowly digested her words and then asked, "So... why doesn’t Changan know about any of this? Did he lose his memory?"

"Yes." She nodded, "The abnormal attracts the abnormal. It’s not just people like my brother, who has Demon Blood; even just getting involved in abnormal events, or knowing about abnormalities, is like tying a fate with the abnormal.

"Therefore, if we only sealed the power, it would leave my brother defenseless when faced with the abnormal in the future. My grandfather had researched many secrets about staying far from the abnormal. One of which involved sealing all memories and powers related to abnormalities.

"With that as a price, not only would the person sever ties with the abnormal, but they would also be less likely to encounter abnormalities in their future life."

I suddenly understood, "So you all avoid mentioning information about the abnormal world to Changan because you fear he might recall it?"

"That’s right. We just didn’t expect him to encounter abnormal events on his own. Once might have been fine, with the seal in place, it wouldn’t result in an immediate connection with the abnormal. But for it to happen twice in a row..." She sighed, "Perhaps it’s related to the increased frequency of abnormal events over the past two years. Besides, the seal only makes it less likely for one to encounter abnormalities, not completely immune."

That’s what she said, but I still felt it was my involvement that had affected Changan.

This incident was no different, perhaps because I had placed "Firefly" near Changan, he ended up getting entangled in the Fallen Demon Hunter event. Although according to Mazao’s statement, just placing "Firefly" wouldn’t cause this result, Mazao’s experience with the Broom Star Physique was gained in the chaotic apocalypse and might not be entirely reliable.

It was my mistake.

I had to end this matter quickly and kill the threat lurking behind the scenes.

And yet, I needed to find Mazao as soon as possible—it never rains but it pours!

"Zhu Shi, there’s one thing you haven’t answered me, why did you want to separate from Changan just now? We haven’t gotten any clues from him," I asked.

"The reason is simple. The clues from my brother’s side are irrelevant; we don’t need to waste time convincing him. If it’s clues you want, I have them right here." As Zhu Shi spoke, she took out several photographs from her embrace, "Zhuang Cheng, do you remember who the Fallen Demon Hunters target for their hunts?"

"The rich and influential members of the upper class, right?" I replied.

"That’s right. I originally thought Agent Kong was the culprit, but in recent days, new victims have surfaced. Still, local dignitaries, and the crime scenes are identical to before." She handed me the photographs, "There are other Fallen Demon Hunters, lurking in the night of Saltwater City."

I took the photographs from her, looking down.

The majority were pictures of the crime scenes, with shocking bodies either inside houses or out in the bushes, as though mauled open by large carnivores, their methods extremely brutal.

There were a few photographs that appeared to be street surveillance video screenshots, blurry shadows flitting across the late-night streets, their true faces unclear.

And when I flipped to the last photograph, I nearly fumbled it, nearly dropping all the photographs to the ground.

The last photograph also appeared to be a street surveillance screenshot.

But appearing in the center of the frame was neither a body nor a shadow, but a thirteen or fourteen-year-old girl.

The girl wore a black cat whisker mask, a black printed hoodie, a short skirt, cotton tights, black short Martin boots, and had a red GPS bracelet on her left wrist.

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