Aftereffects

The bus headed toward downtown, with people getting on and off at stops along the way.

What alarmed Zhao Han was that the young man they had been watching got off at the same stop as them in the end—Meilong Mansion Station.

"Miss Zhao, I didn't look at my phone on the bus because it would hurt my eyes and keep me from finding the truth, not because my phone was out of battery."

The young man suddenly came up behind her and whispered those words, then turned and walked toward Meilong Building—the commercial tower where Tianxing Club was located.

Zhao Han froze when she heard that. He really did know who she was! "Let's go." Wu Shanshan patted her shoulder, snapping her out of it, then headed toward a nearby apartment building.

Zhao Han hurried after her and asked quietly, "Wu-jie, who exactly is that man?"

"That will require further investigation." Wu Shanshan looked at her. "But investigations often mean getting close to danger, so unless it's necessary, don't do that sort of thing."

Zhao Han shuddered.

She forced herself to put the matter aside and followed Wu Shanshan to move house.

What surprised her was that Wu Shanshan's apartment—the employee housing rented by the Club—contained very few things and was simply furnished. Even her cosmetics were sparse, though the brands were all high-end ones Zhao Han had only seen on social media...

She had assumed Wu Shanshan was the sort of polished career woman who took more than an hour just to put on makeup before going out.

Still, that made moving much easier. After sorting everything out, they only filled two boxes.

Finally, they called a moving truck. Zhao Han rode in Wu Shanshan's sports car, and they returned to the villa.

After all that fuss, it was nearly noon. Once they had the workers place the boxes at the courtyard gate, they each picked up a box and walked inside.

But they had barely entered the courtyard when they saw a terrifying sight...

Wenren De was standing on the stone railing of the second-floor balcony, his body swaying unsteadily.

"Uncle Wenren!" Zhao Han panicked, threw down her box, and hurried beneath him.

Wu Shanshan was not nearly as nervous. She set down her box before taking out her phone.

"You can't die from falling in a dream..." Wenren De had his eyes closed, seemingly talking in his sleep.

"But I can't take another step forward. After all, I might fall out of bed when I wake up..."

"Damn it, I need to run. Something's behind me. Why are my legs so tired? Why can't I run faster?"

Zhao Han was utterly confused. She could only look up at him, ready to catch him at any moment.

Fortunately, the second-floor balcony was not very high, just over five meters. Even with the railing, it was less than seven meters.

She believed she could catch him without getting hurt.

But at that moment, Wenren Sheng had already come out through the villa door.

He glanced at the second-floor balcony, bent his knees slightly, and leaped straight up. With one hand, he hauled Wenren De back from the railing onto the balcony, like an eagle snatching up a chick.

Only then did Zhao Han let out a long breath. "Is Uncle all right?"

"He's fine. He just didn't drink today, so his aftereffects acted up again." Wenren Sheng nodded down at her while holding the railing with one hand, then slung Wenren De over his shoulder and headed down the balcony stairs.

"Whew." Zhao Han patted her chest and turned to Wu Shanshan. "What just happened?"

Wu Shanshan picked up her box and said, "You know that after an anomalous species is stripped away, all kinds of aftereffects can occur, right?"

"Yes. Liu Jian's father, Liu Bo, lost both his legs because of aftereffects." Zhao Han recalled the previous incident.

"That was actually one of the better cases. It only affected the body. When it affects the mind and psyche, it's much more troublesome." Wu Shanshan shook her head.

"Isn't there any way to solve it? Teacher Wenren is an Expert Level figure. Can't even he solve it completely?" Zhao Han could not help asking.

"There is. He just needs to become one of the Black Shirts," Wu Shanshan said as she carried the box inside. "With rigorous mental and physical training, supplemented by medication, the aftereffects can be suppressed until he obtains another anomalous species."

Zhao Han did not fully understand, so she could only pick up her box and silently follow.

Wenren De's bedroom.

Wenren Sheng placed his father on the bed and pulled the blanket over him. Then he sat in a chair beside the bed, eyes closed.

Before long, someone knocked on the door.

"Come in." He did not open his eyes, because he knew who it was.

Zhao Han cautiously pressed her fingerprint and pushed open the door, then saw the scene before her.

She suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu. She remembered that after watching murder movies as a child, she would be too scared to sleep and would insist on having her father stay beside her bed. Even having her mother hold her would not help...

"Teacher, is Uncle all right?" She shook her head, casting aside the memory as she asked with concern.

"He's fine. Even if we ignored Brother De, he wouldn't be in danger now. He'd eventually make his way back to bed himself." Wenren Sheng opened his eyes.

"What kind of aftereffect is this, Uncle's?" she asked, gathering her courage.

"Oh, are you planning to use your ability to find a solution?" Wenren Sheng asked in return.

"Yes, though it may take a few days." Zhao Han did not deny it.

"Thank you." Wenren Sheng nodded. "It's actually quite simple. After Brother De was stripped of his anomalous species, he began sleepwalking frequently. But he still retains a certain degree of awareness. He knows what he's doing, yet he can't completely control himself."

"I see. So Uncle drinks himself into a stupor every day not because he's given up on himself or wants to disappoint Aunt. He just doesn't want to burden anyone else. As long as he's passed out drunk, he can't sleepwalk even if he wants to." Zhao Han suddenly understood.

"You can be pretty smart sometimes." Wenren Sheng smiled. "But you think too highly of him. He just doesn't want to take medicine. Taking medicine makes him feel like a patient, while drinking makes him feel like a poet..."

"Uh..." Zhao Han was left speechless.

Just as she was about to take her leave, she suddenly remembered what had happened that morning and brought it up. "When Wu-jie and I took the bus this morning, we ran into someone..."

She then told him about the young man they had met that morning.

"Oh, him. I know about this. He just went to the External Relations Center to request special relief." Wenren Sheng nodded, took out his phone, and opened the Key of Secrets app.

"The colleague on duty recorded his situation. A year and a half ago, his older brother was a worker at Five Colors Group. He fell into molten steel after drinking and left no remains behind. He kept telling everyone that his brother would never drink, but after his parents received three million in compensation, they forbade him from causing trouble at the group any further. Instead, they used the money to buy him a house in their hometown county town in preparation for his marriage..."

"How pitiful." Zhao Han was instantly impressed. "I didn't expect the two brothers to have been so close."

"Perhaps." Wenren Sheng did not correct her this time and merely continued, "He said he resold the house his parents had just bought and used the money to investigate everywhere."

"But reports from all kinds of organizations indicated that it was merely a cruel accident where there was no body, dead or alive. Only recently did he learn some information related to our Club, so he came here seeking a special relief channel."

"Will we help him?" Zhao Han could not help asking.

"The External Relations Center has already made a record of his case. The rest is following procedure and conducting an assessment... Ask Shan Shan about those matters." Wenren Sheng leaned back in his chair. "But your task right now is to pass the Qualification Exam first. Don't concern yourself with this. Since it has dragged on for so long, it won't be resolved in a day or two."

After all, this was an incident with Mystery Points as high as 91. There was one thing he did not say aloud.

"Thank you for the reminder, Teacher. I'll head back now. I'll help Uncle Wenren as soon as possible." Zhao Han turned and left the room.

"Brother De, you're actually luckier than I am." Wenren Sheng looked at Wenren De sleeping on the bed, then closed his eyes again.