Chapter 91

Probably to add persuasiveness, Aqiang even flailed his arms and legs while demonstrating.

"At first I gave him a few of the currently popular color palettes, but he didn't even look at them and just brushed them off; then, growing impatient, I asked him if he wanted to dye his hair green?"

"He responded instantly, and after looking at the palettes he insisted on mixing the color himself!"

The barber Aqiang's expression grew a bit strange as he recalled that incomprehensible scene.

"He was holding the Church's Special Ability Practitioner certification at the time; how could I dare stop him?"

"Strangely enough, the kid's technique was so clumsy it was like someone who'd never handled hair dye before—adding a bit here, a dash there, with no method at all..."

"Yet he mixed it so casually that the resulting color was a pure green; he pointed at the bowl of dye and told me to use that color."

"I tried to advise him, saying the color was too eye‑catching and would get him beaten up on the streets... but he wouldn't listen! I thought, since he's paying the most, I'd just dye it for him..."

Aqiang spread his hands in an innocent "I'm just respecting the customer's choice" pose, speaking while quietly watching Su Jingchuan's expression.

"Are you saying the hair dye was mixed by him himself? What ingredients did he use?"

Su Jingchuan furrowed his brows tightly and kept pressing.

Aqiang swallowed, then finally stammered out the most crucial part, which he had been trying to conceal.

"Later—actually later, I thought I'd study it myself to see if I could replicate that fluorescent color, and only when I was carefully inventorying the remaining materials did I notice..."

Aqiang's eyes flickered, but under Su Jingchuan's cold stare he forced himself to continue.

"The material box had a rather odd stone missing! It must have been ground into powder and added in!"

He only found some residual powder at the time and could only roughly describe the stone's appearance.

"The stone emitted a faint green glow; its texture resembled agate, yet feeling completely different to the touch."

In this world plagued by Mutation, bizarre minerals and plants appear endlessly; Aqiang wasn't surprised by it.

People living in the Slum have never been particular, and they use even items containing traces of Mutation without hesitation.

"This shouldn't be too rare; I just used my portable Detection Device, which showed the emitted Mutation energy was very weak, so I didn't mind and tossed it into the material box."

"I originally thought I'd study it carefully when I had time, to see if it could serve as a special flash powder..."

Who knew that before he could figure it out, that night the stone was mixed into the hair dye by that odd kid.

"And then he ended up with this… a self‑illuminating fluorescent green."

Aqiang looked at Ying Duo's head, his tone full of dread, "That really has nothing to do with me!"

【5】 "Did he tell you to dye it, or is this something that looks off from the start?"

"He lets you get infected and you just get infected? Or is it this kind of thing that looks off at a glance?"

Su Jingchuan tightened his brows, his complexion growing colder.

The barber Aqiang could only add, his face looking mournful.

"At that time he had come in the middle of the night, still holding the Church's Special Ability Practitioner certificate; I didn't dare ask for more money, just thought I should quickly get this big Buddha out of here!"

Finally, he didn't forget to clear himself of the strange stone's origin.

"Oh, right, that stone wasn't mine either; a regular client found it while scavenging in the wasteland, thought it looked nice and gave it to me! It has little to do with me!"

The clue ultimately points to that stone emitting a faint green glow.

"Knock, knock, knock."

A clear knocking sound suddenly rang out, interrupting Su Jingchuan's intention to ask for more details.

Immediately after, a clear, gentle voice came from outside the door, its politeness bordering on excess.

"Excuse me, may I ask… is anyone inside?"

The voice paused briefly, as if listening to the shop's sounds, then continued the polite inquiry.

"I see the door seems to have… a problem? Need any help?"

The three inside reacted differently.

Su Jingchuan instantly fell silent, his gaze swiftly sweeping over the cracked door barely leaning on the frame.

At this moment, in a place like this, a voice that sounds harmless to both people and animals is itself very suspicious.

And that voice… why does it sound somehow familiar to him?

Su Jingchuan furrowed his brows, quickly scanning his mind for who might have made that voice.

At that moment, his peripheral vision caught an eye peeking through the door crack, trying to spy inside.

Su Jingchuan no longer hesitated, strode forward and pulled open the already ajar door, fully exposing what lay beyond.

Seeing the boy standing outside, Su Jingchuan was taken aback.

"Min Tianyou?"

The boy before him wore a slightly shy smile; he was the well‑known intern from the Supervision Bureau.

Although an intern, Min Tianyou had awakened the extremely rare "Prophecy" Aberrant Arts, granting him status and authority in the Supervision Bureau that even surpassed many senior agents.

He seemed a bit surprised, looking at the two inside as if he had truly just happened to pass by.

"Teacher Su? I didn't expect to meet you here."

His gaze tried to look past Su Jingchuan, scanning the shop, but was blocked solidly by the other's body, so he could only keep a gentle, harmless smile.

Su Jingchuan sized up Min Tianyou; Min Tianyou is quite a famous figure in Tianmian City, with a genuinely good reputation.

"I recall you're only an intern of the Supervision Bureau; according to regulations, important members like you should have someone accompany you when out. Why are you here alone?"

Facing Su Jingchuan's obvious questioning, Min Tianyou merely tilted his head slightly, his expression unruffled, tone still calm.

"Teacher Su, what you care about is that I'm not acting alone; colleagues from the Supervision Bureau are conducting duties in the nearby area, and my presence here is naturally guided by 'Fate'."

"Prophecy?" Su Jingchuan involuntarily furrowed his brows, not expecting the situation to become increasingly complicated; what began as an investigation of Ying Duo's hair now involved the Supervision Bureau.

"What prophecy requires you to come to a place like this yourself?"

Min Tianyou simply shook his head, his tone sincere yet unwilling to reveal more details.

"Sorry, Teacher Su, this concerns a case the Supervision Bureau is currently investigating; I cannot disclose it. If you wish to know more, you may submit a request to the Supervision Bureau."

He deftly evaded answering, then quickly shifted the conversation to explain his purpose.