Author: 颜凉雨 / Yan Liang Yu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 136: The Black Shadow

“What did you say?” Chi Zhuolin stopped in his tracks and turned to ask.

Kuang Jinxin was startled and hurriedly replied honestly, “I smell the scent of oranges.”

Chi Zhuolin was stunned, then smiled. “Your nose is really sharp.”

Kuang Jinxin didn’t understand. “Huh?”

Wu Sheng and Xu Wang were also confused.

Chi Zhuolin lowered his eyes and said with affection and teasing, “My younger brother loves drinking orange soda. He doesn’t just drink it himself; he also shares it with his friends and ends up harming all his friends.”

The three companions: “……”

Didn’t he say his brother had no friends? Where did these good friends come from? And they must be quite fragile friends if they can’t even drink soda…

“It’s all the flowers and plants in this courtyard.” Chi Zhuolin turned his head, looking at the withered garden, holding back laughter. “He insisted on watering them with soda—even using his cherished soda that he was reluctant to drink—to water the garden, and you see the result now…”

The three listened, not sure whether to believe it or not.

How much soda would need to be stored to kill all the flowers in an entire courtyard?

But if this story is true, how sad must the young Chi Yingxue, who treated these plants as friends, have been?

“He’s just that kind of stubborn person, extremely obstinate, and no one can persuade him. When it’s too late to fix, he hides and cries by himself…”

Chi Zhuolin was still muttering, complaining about his younger brother, seeming quite adept at it.

But at this moment, his foolish sweetness finally included a bit of the down-to-earth nature typical of older brothers—spoiling and bullying his younger brother at the same time—that’s the main theme of brothers around the world.

Suddenly, dark clouds covered the last sliver of moonlight.

In an instant, the entire garden along with the veranda darkened, as if suddenly covered by a thick black cloth!

The three companions gasped for breath. Before they had time to prepare, they felt their bodies sway and lean to the side!

Staggering a few steps, Xu Wang bumped into the railing of the veranda. He immediately grabbed the railing tightly, only to find that the entire veranda was shaking!

The veranda beneath their feet was like a small boat in raging waves!

At this moment, a low, almost chilling voice came from somewhere—

“Chi—Zhuo—Lin—”

The voice was slow and authoritative, oppressively heavy, making it hard to breathe.

However, aside from calling out a name, no second sound was made.

As the last echo faded away, the moon reappeared slightly, and the outline of the veranda and garden slowly reemerged in the three’s view.

The veranda was tilted, as if the foundation had suddenly sunk. The originally level ground became uneven, causing their bodies to lean to one side.

But they were too preoccupied to care about this, as Chi Zhuolin looked apologetic, his eyes showing anxiety.

“Sorry, I can’t lead you anymore. My brother lives in the west wing. Go through the garden and into the inner courtyard, and you’ll see it.” He spoke very fast, as if in a hurry. “I have to go back to school now!”

Xu Wang: “Back to school?”

“I actually snuck back,” he said somewhat sheepishly, fixing his hair and putting his helmet back on. “My dad has found out, so I have to get back before he catches me, or I’ll get a beating again…”

Dad?

The three companions exchanged looks. Was the oppressive voice in the darkness just now the father of the Chi brothers?

“Oh right.” He suddenly paused, magically producing a pen and a piece of paper. “Please help me deliver this letter to my brother.”

He quickly wrote a few strokes. Before the three could see clearly, he finished the letter and handed it over.

Wu Sheng took it, and Xu Wang and Kuang Jinxin leaned over to look, finally realizing why he wrote so quickly.

There wasn’t a single word on the paper. It was just four sets of numbers—12077-34036-58009-80024

The moment Xu Wang saw the numbers, he almost reflexively grabbed Chi Zhuolin’s wrist. “Where’s the source copy?”

Chi Zhuolin, who was about to leave, was taken aback by this pull and question, looking surprised. “You know this is a code? My brother told you about this?!”

Xu Wang: “No, not all from Xiao Xue…”

Chi Yingxue did mention during the code-breaking that he and his brother used to play like this when they were kids, but the real reason for Xu Wang’s “seeing the code and immediately having to find the source copy” mental shadow…

Xu Wang narrowed his eyes at Wu Sheng.

Wu Sheng silently looked up at the moonlight—although it was barely visible.

“My brother memorized the source copy long ago. Just bring this letter to him, and he’ll understand.” After explaining quickly, Chi Zhuolin dared not delay any longer, leaped over the railing, and disappeared into the depths of the garden.

“Hey, wait a minute…”

Xu Wang wanted to chase, feeling a bit unwilling to let the clue break off like this. Although Chi Zhuolin said Chi Yingxue was in the west wing, in such a large house and long veranda, who knows where they might end up.

But before he could move, that feeling of being watched appeared again, right behind him, like a thin needle, pricking occasionally, not painful, but impossible to ignore.

He turned around again, only to find Wu Sheng also looking back.

Kuang Jinxin was clueless, also blankly turning back. Behind them, the long veranda they had just walked through was shrouded in mist, obscuring the way they came.

In this mix of night and fog, the three’s gaze slowly settled on a pillar.

The pillar was about ten meters away from them. It was bright red, and despite being shrouded in night and fog, it was intensely striking. And behind that pillar, a thin, small shadow was vaguely visible.

It seemed like a child hiding behind the pillar. Because the veranda had tilted, the faint moonlight finally outlined his slender side profile, but his whole body was still hidden by the pillar, like a ghost lurking in the shadows.

The scent of oranges came again, this time even Xu Wang and Wu Sheng smelled it.

It was cooler and sweeter than the ordinary scent of oranges.

Chi Zhuolin said that Chi Yingxue liked to drink orange soda.

If the scent they were smelling now wasn’t the remnant of the soil watered with soda but meant something else…

In an instant, the three companions’ hearts lifted, hoping the person behind the pillar was who they were looking for, yet afraid to approach recklessly and scare him away.

“Chi Yingxue?” Xu Wang called out gently, with unprecedented tenderness.

The shadow behind the pillar didn’t move.

Xu Wang tried to take a small step forward, very lightly.

The shadow suddenly shrank back.

“We won’t move anymore.” Kuang Jinxin held Xu Wang back, promising calmly and gently, coaxing, “Xiao Xue, we won’t move. We won’t hurt you…”

The shadow slightly shook, seemingly hesitant.

The veranda suddenly became very quiet. The three companions unconsciously held their breath, silently and attentively watching.

The shadow cautiously moved a small step to the side, revealing a shoulder and an arm. The light was too dim to see what clothes he was wearing, but it was clear that it was a child’s figure that looked very thin.

The three remained still, as if frozen in place.

The black shadow seemed to gain a bit of trust and tentatively moved another small step to the side, about to reveal half of his body, when suddenly, a very faint sound came from the withered bushes outside the railing, like someone lurking in the dark accidentally breaking a dry branch.

The three instinctively turned their heads, then widened their eyes.

There was another person in the bushes! Not a child, but an adult dressed in black, wearing a black mask, almost blending into the night!

This startled the shadow behind the pillar, who suddenly turned and ran away!

The person in the bushes, realizing they had been exposed, also fled into the depths of the garden!

“Split up!” Wu Sheng immediately said. Either could be a clue to the puzzle, so they couldn’t afford to miss it!

“I’ll chase the child.” Kuang Jinxin volunteered.

“Okay!” There was no time for hesitation; Wu Sheng made a quick decision.

In an instant, the three companions dispersed, with Wu Sheng and Xu Wang leaping over the railing into the garden, while Kuang Jinxin chased the shadow along the veranda!

……

In the depths of the garden.

Xu Wang and Wu Sheng were lost. They chased the black-clothed person, plunging into the garden of wild grass and dead branches, and then, they lost direction.

It was as if the moment the garden enveloped them, it started to grow wildly, boundlessly, blocking out the sun and sky.

They pushed aside one dry branch after another, passed through cluster after cluster of withered flowers, but never saw the end. The road seemed never-ending.

Snap.

Another flower stem broke under Xu Wang’s foot. He knew they were already dead, regardless of whether he stepped on them. But at the moment of the breaking sound, an incredible scene appeared before his eyes—the sea of withered yellow gained color, flowers became red, grass turned green, trees were as colorful and splendid as rainbows, like a fantasy forest from a fairy tale.

He blinked hard in disbelief.

The illusion disappeared.

The withered garden remained, with only lifeless yellow prevailing.

Snap.

The same sound of crushing plants came from the left side of Xu Wang.

But Wu Sheng was on the right.

Almost simultaneously, both turned their heads to the left, alert and swift!

There was a figure hidden behind a withered tree not far away.

They rushed over in a flash. With his [Light as a Feather] Wu Sheng reached the tree in an instant!

The person behind the tree didn’t even have a chance to move.

Without a word, Wu Sheng grabbed the person’s arm!

The expected resistance didn’t come. The person just stood there, motionless, allowing Wu Sheng to hold them.

Xu Wang, following up, first saw Wu Sheng’s astonished face, then the person he was holding…

It wasn’t the masked man in black.

Standing behind the tree… was Chi Zhuolin.

Xu Wang was so surprised that he opened his mouth wide, momentarily at a loss for words.

It was Wu Sheng who spoke first. “Are you following us?”

Chi Zhuolin didn’t respond.

There was no response, not in words, nor in gaze or expression.

Xu Wang and Wu Sheng finally sensed something was off.

Chi Zhuolin stood rigid, his gaze fixed on the void, as if under a paralysis spell.

Wu Sheng let go of his hand.

Chi Zhuolin’s arm dropped limply.

He was still wearing his equestrian clothes from before. His skin was soft, and his body was warm. Even when Xu Wang brought his hand close to Chi Zhuolin’s nose, he could feel his breath.

But he had no reaction to the outside world.

Xu Wang felt a chill seeping into every pore.

Suddenly, a cold light shone from Chi Zhuolin’s collar.

Xu Wang and Wu Sheng’s eyes had become accustomed to the dark, so when they suddenly saw light, they were very sensitive.

Wu Sheng gave Xu Wang a look that meant “adapt as needed”, and then slowly raised his hand to cautiously unbutton Chi Zhuolin’s shirt.

One button.

Two buttons.

Three buttons…

Until the top buttons of the outer garment and shirt were undone, revealing the boy’s not-so-broad chest.

Xu Wang widened his eyes and covered his mouth to stifle a scream.

On Young Chi Zhuolin’s chest, there was a cold light screen embedded in his flesh as if it were a part of his body.

And now, the screen was flashing with red warning letters—low battery.

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