Chapter 48

In the midnight drizzle, the bus stopped near Jinmen Baodi, then drove away, leaving Zhou Shuo and Liu Yanyan in raincoats, plus several figures wearing hoods, their bluish faces hidden beneath masks, dressed in utter mystery as zombie brothers, and, of course, the most important Zhang Xilin.

"How do we go now?" Zhou Shuo watched the departing bus, somewhat pondering. Along the way, he and that driver uncle had talked plenty, but the other's lips were tighter than imagined, and he kept to himself, not inquiring about him and Liu Yanyan at all, yet he always felt something was off.

The Radiant Star Society's status in the world of the extraordinary is roughly equivalent to a chain of Pleasant Arrival inns in martial arts novels, except it is not an inn but a news agency that gathers some extraordinary-world news and also responds to some pleas from the extraordinary; of course, they also charge fees for this, outwardly called donations. This organization is clearly an intelligence outfit at a glance, but what role it will play remains to be seen.

Unlike Zhou Shuo, who stared at the departing bus in thought, Liu Yanyan lowered her head to look at her phone, used the phone map to search a bit, then led the zombie and Zhou Shuo forward. Fortunately it was midnight and there was still a bit of rain, so no one was on the streets; otherwise seeing this group would surely frighten them sick.

"Right here." Liu Yanyan led Zhou Shuo around two streets to an abandoned old house, then turned her head toward him and said.

"Why talk? Just go in!" Zhou Shuo glanced at the light drizzle overhead and the girl probing him, and couldn't help rolling his eyes.

"Hmph!" Liu Yanyan gave a soft snort, then pulled down the hood of her raincoat to cover half her face, and marched inside headfirst. Zhou Shuo naturally followed suit, restraining his breath, blending among the corpses, and proceeded into the abandoned house in the night.

The abandoned old house's original purpose was unknown; its concrete walls were extremely thick, the floor slightly damp, and someone had already been waiting inside—somewhat unexpectedly, a boy about thirteen or fourteen, wearing a green long-sleeve T-shirt, with a watermelon-head hairstyle, round glasses, looking thin and small. He was the Human Resources Manager of Complete Nature that Liu Yanyan knew, Lü Liang.

"Welcome, you're a reserve member of Complete Nature, huh, and you brought a new guest." The boy gazed at the crowd of figures pouring into the house, his face full of smiles, but before he could finish his welcome, his eyes suddenly locked onto Zhou Shuo among the corpses.

"This guy says he also wants to join Complete Nature." A hoarse voice came from a zombie who had voluntarily removed his mask, revealing a bluish face; as for Liu Yanyan herself, she hid behind another tall zombie.

"You haven't even successfully joined Complete Nature yourself, yet you're thinking of bringing others in…" The boy's face looked a bit strange; Zhou Shuo looked at him, lifted the raincoat's hood, and then turned his gaze to the darkness behind him.

"It's none of my business; I just brought him here. Besides, I've already completed the mission you mentioned." In the hoarse voice, a zombie carried the laden Zhang Xilin forward and laid him flat on the ground; Lü Liang, without further hesitation, stepped forward to examine the corpse.

"Hmm, this yang qi is genuine; no wonder you're from the Xiangxi corpse‑driving Liu family." The boy circled the desiccated, dehydrated corpse, showing no fear—on the contrary, he was intensely interested.

"How interesting; I never knew Complete Nature had such allure." In the house's darkness, a pair of watery eyes gleamed from beneath the bangs, a woman's fragrant scent wafted to his nose, and Zhou Shuo felt a warm current rise from his dantian, provoking a somewhat shameful impulse; meanwhile, Liu Yanyan, hidden behind the zombie, also peeked out to watch the slender figure emerging from the darkness.

"Hehe, let me introduce you—this is Elder Xia He of Complete Nature, one of the Four Madmen." Under Lü Liang's introduction, the slender shadow in the darkness revealed her full form: a woman wearing a white sleeveless spaghetti‑strap top, her pert buttocks snug in denim shorts, her pale long legs rubbing together, a charmingly alluring figure.

Zhou Shuo had seen many beauties—Hewusheng, Zinu, Honglian, Nongyu, the Sister Flowers—all top‑tier women, yet none could compare to the woman before him, whose allure seeped into the bone; merely seeing her made one's gaze inevitably linger on her chest, waist, hips, and long legs, hormones unavoidably secreted, even prompting a slight loss of reason.

"Impressive." Zhou Shuo controlled his heightened breathing, then activated the heart method of the Taiyin Innate Divine Chapter to suppress the agitation; though he had previously cultivated the Eighteen Great Strength Golden Spirit and already gained some mastery over his mind, seeing this woman instantly gave him an urge to break through his inner demon's restraint.

"He really does have considerable self‑control." The woman dubbed one of the Four Madmen, her disheveled bangs framing eyes that fixed on Zhou Shuo, poked out a pink tongue from the corner of her mouth.

"Then, sir, what's your name, and why do you want to join Complete Nature?" Lü Liang looked at his own companion's demeanor, his expression slightly grim, but he dared not show it, instead asking Zhou Shuo.

"Easy to say—surname Zhou, given name Shuo. I have some interest in Complete Nature; I want to learn about it and find like‑minded fellows to study with." Zhou Shuo looked at the thin, weak boy who seemed never to have practiced any martial arts, and did not underestimate him, for qi cultivators are best at concealment, just as Dao practitioners hide their spirits when they have not opened their apertures, unlike martial artists who are easy to read.

"Then you've truly come to the right place; I'll tell you, Complete Nature boasts abundant talent and is one of the oldest sects, its patriarch being the pre‑Qin Daoist sage Yang Zhu—you know that, right?" Lü Liang flashed a self‑satisfied smile.

"Not taking a single hair, not seizing a bit—is that for my precious life?" Zhou Shuo glanced at the smug boy, slightly surprised; seeing the woman whose allure went to the bone, he could tell Complete Nature was linked to a cult, yet he hadn't expected the organization's origins to be so substantial.

Speaking of the Daoist Yang Zhu, if it were earlier, Zhou Shuo might have been a bit careless, but now he knows, because in the Qin‑era world he read the Hundred Schools texts, Liezi and Zhuangzi mentioned him repeatedly, and even Han Fei's writings cite him several times; although they did not launch the kind of condemnation against Confucianism and Mohism that "using chaotic laws to violate prohibitions" does, they merely praised his wisdom and elevated his conduct, not advocating the spread of his teachings, and even in the essay "Six Reversals" they listed those who cherish life as harmful, deceitful villains of no benefit to the state.

"Not bad, not bad, that's him." The boy's glasses flashed light, his face breaking into a very happy grin.

"Then could you tell me what rules Complete Nature has?" Zhou Shuo looked at the glasses' reflection, the boy utterly villain‑like, and couldn't help asking.

"Complete Nature's rules, Complete Nature's rules—there are no rules at all. How about it? Do you still want to join?" The boy laughed ever more wantonly.

"I'll join, but don't think you can order me around." Zhou Shuo glanced at Liu Yanyan, while the boy naturally agreed, spreading his arms.

"No problem, welcome." Facing the boy's reply, Zhou Shuo raised an eyebrow at Liu Yanyan, now able to preliminarily confirm that this girl was being used as a pawn.

"And what about me?" Liu Yanyan watched Zhou Shuo join Complete Nature with ease, feeling a bit anxious, her clear voice uttering a question.

"You? Uh, I need to see the results of your mission." As expected, the boy didn't immediately agree; instead he walked to the corpse, palms facing each other, drawing out some specks of golden light from Zhang Xilin's corpse, making Zhou Shuo's brow jump—this qi‑refining technique had completely surpassed martial arts and weird arts, belonging to the realm of Dao arts.

"Indeed, no wonder you're a senior—even after death for so many years, your body still preserves so many soul fragments." The boy held aloft a golden light mass with both hands, a flash glinting on his lenses, as he watched Liu Yanyan peek out from behind the zombie and laughed, shaking his head.

"The information on this corpse isn't enough as we imagined; we can't locate Zhang Xilin's inheritance from it, so your task isn't complete, and we can't accept you."

"Then why did you accept him?" Liu Yanyan pointed at Zhou Shuo, her tone displeased.

"Because of strength!" The boy pointed at Zhou Shuo, offering a catch‑all excuse; among the extraordinary, strength is what matters.

"But you promised me earlier." Liu Yanyan grew a bit anxious.

"That's right, I promised you, but you didn't complete the mission smoothly; however, don't worry—I've already let you in on some of Complete Nature's secrets, so you'll eventually be able to join." The boy laughed in a thoroughly wicked way, the opposite of his name.

"How can I trust you?" Liu Yanyan was extremely angry, having realized she was being used as a gun, yet could she retort? No—because she had run away from home, and if she couldn't join Complete Nature, she would have nowhere to go.

"You can also not believe me!" The boy, fearless, pointed at the door of the abandoned factory behind her, making a gesture to leave.

"But what about the secret you mentioned?" Liu Yanyan's face flushed red.

"Zhang Xilin." Zhou Shuo looked at the red‑faced girl and deliberately reminded her; the so‑called secret was the corpse she had dug up.

"Look, the difference shows now. Alright, I'll tell you: Zhang Xilin's body hides a great secret; years ago, Complete Nature sent over a dozen experts to pursue him, but they were all slain. From the sole survivor who clung to life, we learned that Zhang Xilin possesses a technique called Qi Body Source Flow." The boy spoke in a restrained tone, making Zhou Shuo keep twitching his mouth—could such a casual revelation really be called a secret?

"So you want to obtain that technique, right?" Liu Yanyan followed the boy's train of thought, instantly imagining many things, automatically filling in the blanks.

"That's right; you can only join us if you help us finish this mission." Though only thirteen or fourteen, the boy's laugh gave off a wildly unhinged vibe.

"But I…" Liu Yanyan furrowed her brows; she had dug up Zhang Xilin's grave, and now wondered where to go next for clues.

"Zhang Chulan." Zhou Shuo looked at the clueless girl and gave another hint; everything was unfolding as he had anticipated—although the mission had succeeded, Zhang Xilin's grandson would inevitably have to be faced, though it remained unknown what role he would play!