Chapter 75: Descendants

As a professional mercenary with a strong work ethic, Li Cheng understood the importance of punctuality.

He slung his backpack over his shoulder, walked out of the residential complex with a calm expression, found a public restroom in the park, pulled out disguise gear from his pack, and began his routine as usual.

He altered his face with worm genes, fitted dental caps to reshape his teeth, wore contact lenses to conceal his irises, donned a wig and glasses, changed his shirt and pants, took medication to accelerate his heartbeat, applied silicone fingerprint films to his fingers to prevent fingerprint leakage, sprayed his entire body with odor-eliminating agent, and placed small stones under his shoe soles to alter his gait.

After this elaborate process, Li Cheng, now unrecognizable in appearance, left the restroom and switched between intercity buses, taxis, and his own motorcycle, arriving at Wudun Town by evening.

The address provided by the client was slightly outside town; as Li Cheng rode along, he had just exited the tree-lined road when he spotted a Chinese-style villa hidden among shadows of trees.

The villa's exterior featured traditional white walls and black tiles; inside, it contained gardens, courtyards, rockeries, and fish ponds—clearly the work of a designer who invested considerable thought.

A wrought-iron gate stood before the villa; Li Cheng folded his motorcycle and pressed the doorbell button beside it, identifying himself: "I'm here on the recommendation of Miss Changsun."

"Cough cough, come in quickly! Xinglang, go greet him."

A cough echoed through the intercom; the gate swung open automatically. A round-faced young man in a butler's uniform ran over to meet Li Cheng and led him to the main house.

Inside the main hall, three people sat on the sofa waiting.

One was a hooded girl with white hair and eyebrows, seemingly afflicted with albinism.

One was a muscular, dark-skinned giant with a stern expression.

One was a young man in a long robe, wearing a top hat and sunglasses, resembling Ah Bing—this was the World Nuclear Peace House's 【You Anjian】.

"Good evening."

Having met once before on Shou Street and knowing Li Cheng was recommended by Changsun Yao, You Anjian waved at him warmly, removed his top hat, and greeted him cheerfully.

The other two also revealed their IDs: the albino girl was 【Bai Zhi】, the dark-skinned giant was 【Wang Beipo】.

They were strangers who had not even been matched together for a mission; naturally, no one revealed their player level or claimed any abilities.

As the saying goes: guard against fire, guard against theft, guard against teammates. Li Cheng had read many forum threads recently, including one mentioning how someone secretly eavesdropped on teammates, collected their data, compiled it into a dossier, and quietly sold it to organizations or individuals in need.

Major guilds, including the Special Affairs Bureau, publicly condemned this betrayal of trust among Selectees, yet privately still bought such intelligence.

They instructed their agents to pay special attention to well-known players during team formations, particularly gathering information on them.

(This is also one reason Li Cheng changes his alias for every mission—not merely due to personal eccentricity.)

While Li Cheng observed the other three, the other three were observing him.

Since the mission took place in the real world and involved people he knew, Li Cheng wore no strange costumes or cosplay—only jeans and a plaid shirt.

His overall look was thoroughly programmer-like—perfectly blending into Zhongguancun subway station—and matched the theme of the Global Internet Conference scheduled for the next two days in town.

"Thank you all sincerely for lending your aid."

A tall figure slowly emerged from the corridor on the right side of the hall. He was nearly fifty, dressed in loose home attire, with a full midsection, the image of a successful businessman.

He was the client, Feng Youyun, forty-seven years old and founder of a renowned furniture company.

Behind Feng Youyun followed his son and daughter-in-law.

His son, Feng Chengwang, looked barely in his early twenties—the age when many peers were still in college. He inherited his father's handsomeness, but as a diamond heir, his features carried an air of frailty, and his physique was not robust.

Feng Chengwang's wife, Fu Jirong, was roughly the same age. She was not exceptionally beautiful, but rather of the delicate, modest type, cradling a baby under one year old—the son of Feng Chengwang and grandson of Feng Youyun.

All this information appeared in the mission briefing sent by Changsun Yao.

Feng Youyun's net worth approached one billion; his son and daughter-in-law had heard whispers of the supernatural and vaguely knew of the Special Affairs Bureau and the existence of the Other.

Thus, they were not overly startled by the sudden appearance of four strangers in their hall—only tense: the tension of encountering another world.

"Xinglang, return to rest."

Mr. Feng waved for the round-faced butler to withdraw, then gestured for his daughter-in-law to bring the baby over, exposing the infant's arm and back skin to the players.

On the baby's tender skin lay large, dark bruises, faintly forming a shape—resembling both a palm and a grotesque face.

You Anjian rose from the sofa and stepped forward, flipped his palm, and pulled out a device identical to those used by the Special Affairs Bureau, sweeping it over the baby's back: "No abnormal fluctuations detected."

The World Nuclear Peace House maintained good relations with the Yin City Special Affairs Bureau, allowing them to acquire equipment from its Mobile Task Force.

Bai Zhi also rose and approached, closed her eyes, and gently touched the bruises on the baby's skin. After a moment, she opened her eyes and shook her head: "I sense no traces of 'malevolent intent' or 'curse talismans.'"

Can she detect anomalies just by touch? Some kind of reconnaissance skill? What exactly are "malevolent intent" and "curse talismans"? Is she a medium or a witch?

Li Cheng thought for a moment, then stood up, walked beside Bai Zhi, took the baby from her arms, and suddenly widened his eyes—as if sensing something.

Then, under the startled and expectant gazes of the others, he looked up and said: "Nineteen jin and seven liang."

???

The others paused, then realized he meant the baby's weight; an impulse to roll their eyes rose unbidden.

Are you turning into a scale here? Seeing two teammates act professional, you feel you must show off too?

Li Cheng, utterly unaware, handed the baby back to its mother, returned to the sofa, and sat down with a serious, "I've done my part" expression.

After this interruption, Mr. Feng nearly forgot what he meant to say; after a long pause, he asked his son and daughter-in-law to return to their room, then remained in the hall to explain the situation to the four Selectees.

"The bruises on my grandson appeared a month ago—but the root of this calamity was planted ten years ago."

Mr. Feng took a deep breath and said gravely: "Ten years ago, someone cursed me with a spell to cut off my lineage. Now, the curse has come knocking."

(End of Chapter)