The Creatures that We Are

“Hey!” Zhang Wei slapped his thigh and then realized that he had been too loud. He quickly lowered his voice. “I didn’t have an out, you know?”

“And why would the Nine Scions trust me if I went to them on my own? For one, I’m not strong enough. For another, I don’t have anything to offer. The Nine Scions aren’t going to take a risk for a useless person like me.”

Chen Ying was surprised. Your confidence works differently from others, Zhang Wei.

“Hehe, but things are different now.” Zhang Wei’s eyes glinted with confidence. “You’re an old friend of Gao Yang’s, Sister Ying. He trusts you, and you trust me. With you vouching for me, I’ll be fine.”

Chen Ying smiled. Her hand was still submerged in the bubble bath in the tub, and it was holding a syringe of Medicine D. She slowly loosened her grip.

“Alright. I’m taking you with me.” Chen Ying made up her mind.

“How many of us are going?” Zhang Wei took a sip of his tea and spoke like he was already a mastermind of the plan.

“You, Little Tian, and me.”

“No, that’s too few,” Zhang Wei said seriously. “If we’re leaving, we should take more people with us.”

She hadn’t wanted to take even Little Tian with her, but it wouldn’t make sense for her to leave without him. Even the Nine Scions wouldn’t believe her like that, let alone the Qilin Guild.

Still, Little Tian was a kid. Even if he got captured later, he should be safe given his only mistake was falling for Chen Ying’s ploy.

Anyhow, whoever she took with her would be taking on a risk.

There was another reason for her hesitation. Although the third team was close, it would still be difficult to have everyone defect together. After all, they all had their stance. Taking the whole team would introduce too many variables and increase the risk of getting exposed.

Zhang Wei didn’t quite understand Chen Ying’s concern. He said bluntly, “Sister Ying, we all acknowledge you for your character and capability. Even if not everyone on the third team would go with you, you should be able to take half.”

“You’re a leader and may not have heard the voices of the regular members. To tell you the truth, everyone’s getting dissatisfied with Madam Li, considering her too weak-minded. And we all fear the Qilin Guild. The newly appointed Elder Yan Liang, especially, seems insidious. It’s like no dirty deed is below him.”

Chen Ying was surprised. You’ve got a clear perspective, Zhang Wei.

“Buzhou has asked me about the Twelve Zodiac Signs since I boasted that I was tight with the man. He actually bought it hahaha…”

“Ah, I digress.” Zhang Wei took another sip of his tea. “Buzhou and Shuang Shuang plan to have a kid together. They don’t feel safe at all staying in the Hundred Rivers Union. He wants to look for proper support for their future kid if not anything else.”

“And you think the Nine Scions are that?”

“Of course,” said Zhang Wei. “You want to go to the Nine Scions, Sister Ying. Don’t you see what’s good about them?”

Chen Ying paused before smiling at him. “Good. Let me test you then. What makes the Nine Scions a good choice?”

“Hehe.” Zhang Wei got even more invested. “Alright, I’ll go over everything.”

“Take your time.” Chen Ying twisted the tap to make the sound of the shower louder.

“First and foremost,” Zhang Wei’s eyes lit up, “Gao Yang’s got the protagonist aura.”

“Huh?”

“I mean it,” Zhang Wei said seriously. “Do you know that there was an emperor who might as well be the chosen one of the dimension[1]? I thought about it. Gao Yang seems to be playing a similar part. He’s got incredible luck.”

“It’s not all about luck,” said Chen Ying. “I worked with him before. He’s been growing quickly, and he’s bold but careful, sticking to his principles with a strong determination…”

“I know all that, Sister Ying. I know Gao Yang no lesser than you do. I and a few mates of mine are basically his fanboys in private.”

“Then let me ask you this, Sister Ying.” Zhang Wei licked his lips. “Is Qilin good? Is Dragon good? Madam Li can’t even kill a chicken but manages to establish the Hundred Rivers Union as the third major organization. Isn’t she good? And can’t the same be said about the mysterious Heavenly Godbearer?”

“They are all incredible.”

“Then do you know how much time they have spent laying down the groundwork and how many chances they have seized before the others?”

Chen Ying didn’t say anything to that.

“Dragon has led a long life through hibernation and possesses the most powerful Talent. That leads him to where he is today.”

“Qilin has the second best Talent and the Miracle Rune Circuit. He’s the only one who knows the secrets of the Gates of Closure, and he has a capable helper. How many years has it taken him to reach this height?”

“We don’t have to go into Madam Li’s story. We all know it well.”

“And there’s the Godbearer Cult. The Spectres, pride monsters, elite monster primes, half-humans, Tails, and the former Black Tortoise… So many bigshots have been working for the Heavenly Godbearer, and how many years has she been working to get to this point?”

“Then let’s look at Gao Yang. He’s only been awakened for nine months, during which he’s been unconscious for three months.”

“What does that mean? Well, the barely nineteen boy has no Talent among the top twelve and no opening for him to exploit. When the awakening world was already divided by three organizations, he managed to start his own group in six months and establish a foothold, even showing signs of surpassing the old players.”

Chen Ying fell silent.

“Moreover, let’s take a look at how much he’s achieved over the past six months. He’s discovered half of the Rune Circuits. And the other half had taken awakeners two decades to gather.”

“He’s acquired six or seven Talents, his power ranking jumping from the bottom to the top five.”

“He’s directly or indirectly killed countless powerful enemies. Some of their names we hadn’t even heard of.”

“And what’s the title he’s wearing now? The Divine Scion! The son of God Themself!”

“What incredible luck would it require for someone to achieve all that, Sister Ying? If he weren’t the chosen one of this dimension, no one else would be. That’s the first and most important reason I choose the Nine Scions.”

Chen Ying didn’t share her thoughts. “Keep going.”

“Second, the Nine Scions have the greatest potential.”

“I’m not being blindly optimistic. It’s the truth. Think about it. The Nine Scions are weaker than the Qilin Guild, but during their previous clashes, it was the Nine Scions that came out with an edge. They even helped us find Dust.”

Chen Ying thought carefully and gestured at Zhang Wei to continue.

“Third, it’s safer to go to the Nine Scions than stay at the Hundred Rivers Union.”

“Why?” Chen Ying couldn’t help but ask.

“Because the Nine Scions are in the dark, while the three organizations are out in the open.”

Zhang Wei smiled. “The Nine Scions are hitting and running now. Every member is elite, and they have cheat-like Talents such as Shapeshifter, Invisibility, Gamer, and Telepathy, allowing them to act discretely and unpredictably. If we join them, we can survive until the end by laying low.”

“If we join the Qilin Guild, though, we will be left with little choice. The Guild will use us as cannon fodder, and we’ll be the first to die.”

“Hm…great minds think alike.” Chen Ying maintained a cool attitude. “Any other reason?”

“There’s something else.” Zhang Wei smiled. “I like Nine Scions’ work culture.”

Zhang Wei’s earnest response almost made Chen Ying laugh. “Explain.”

1. A reference to Liu Xiu, Emperor Guangwu of Han. He was sometimes called the “son of the dimension” because of his streaks of good luck and success. ☜

Houseau3's Thoughts

As a certain man has said, protagonist aura means that those around him die quicker, Zhang Wei...😅

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