The Demon Lord's Successor

Pushing open the door, Zhang Yuanqing saw Yuan Ting sitting beside the conference table, a cigarette between his fingers. He leaned back in his chair with a relaxed air and smiled at him.

Beside the Night Wanderer was a pen holder with a command flag stuck inside. It had a pointed iron tip and a silk-cloth body. The flag was solid black, embroidered with cloud patterns in silver thread and a single character, "Command," in the center.

At a glance, it looked no different from the command flags used in ancient armies.

Zhang Yuanqing took a seat and sat up straight. "Captain Yuan, what did you want to see me about? Just so we're clear, I'm happy on the Second Team and have no plans to transfer."

He was teasing Yuan Ting to test his intentions.

"You cleared the Sheling Tunnel, and Centurion Fu thinks highly of you. I couldn't poach you even if I tried. You might not know this, but when Centurion Fu asked for that guide on your behalf, Elder Sun of our Taiyi Sect thought you wouldn't be able to clear it, so he didn't recruit you. Now it's too late for regrets. Quite a few people in the sect have been voicing their complaints. They think you have a lot of potential and might even become a Saint one day. Oh, I'm rambling." Yuan Ting explained, "I'm a bit of a chatterbox. I hope you don't mind."

So that was what he meant by Elder Sun being muddleheaded? Zhang Yuanqing nodded.

"Do you smoke?"

"Not really."

"When I was your age, I didn't smoke either. Then I became a Night Wanderer and got so scared during a trial that it left me with psychological scars. That's how I picked up the habit. It's not good for you, but it does relieve stress. Every Night Wanderer has a quirk or two.

"I have a friend named Jian Ji. When he first became a Night Wanderer, he got so scared that he needed to watch an hour of Teletubbies every day to calm down and ease his fear. He still hasn't kicked the habit. Hahaha!"

Captain Yuan, you really are a chatterbox. But why go around telling everyone your friend's embarrassing stories? Zhang Yuanqing grumbled inwardly, while outwardly listening attentively.

After chatting for a while, Yuan Ting finally remembered the reason for their meeting. He cleared his throat and said seriously, "We're looking for a lucky person—the one who inherited the Demon Lord's legacy. Every Night Wanderer who joined this year is under scrutiny, including you. 'Demon Lord' is the ID of a high-rank Spirit Realm Walker."

The Demon Lord's legacy? Zhang Yuanqing asked blankly, "I don't understand."

"Let me put it more clearly. According to our official theory, the Spirit Realm doesn't issue an unlimited number of Role Cards. There's a limit. So when a Spirit Realm Walker dies, the Spirit Realm takes everything back, including their Role Card."

Yuan Ting lit another cigarette. "When a high-rank Spirit Realm Walker dies, the Spirit Realm doesn't completely wipe their Role Card. It preserves certain special features, then issues the card to a newcomer. We call that phenomenon an inheritance."

There was such a thing? Zhang Yuanqing understood. After a moment's thought, he asked, "Can I ask who the Demon Lord was, and why you're looking for his successor? This concerns me personally, so I hope you understand."

Yuan Ting was surprisingly forthright. "I don't know why our superiors are looking for the Demon Lord's successor. For middle-ranking officers like us, we just follow orders. As for the Demon Lord..."

His face filled with hatred and fear. He said gravely, "He was a fallen Night Wanderer and the mortal enemy of our Taiyi Sect. He killed many official Spirit Realm Walkers, some from the Five Elements Alliance and some from the Taiyi Sect. Even the elders in our sect feared him. For a time, he threw the entire official community into a panic.

"The Sect Master once said he was the most promising and most terrifying Night Wanderer of the past thirty years."

I don't know if he was terrifying, but he must've been a huge edgelord. Zhang Yuanqing hurriedly asked, "How do you identify the Demon Lord's successor? Or rather, how can I help?"

It didn't sound like the successor had anything to do with the Demon Lord himself. The Taiyi Sect was a righteous organization; surely they wouldn't take their anger out on an innocent person.

Yuan Ting was candid once more. "The Demon Lord's successor has two distinguishing features. First, the Role Card bears a full moon instead of a crescent. Second, when clearing a dungeon, they receive an additional Role Card-exclusive reward beyond what ordinary Night Wanderers get."

!!! Zhang Yuanqing kept his expression neutral, but inside, a storm raged. His mind was filled with one thought: Holy shit.

That was his Role Card.

The Role Card Brother Bing sent me... belonged to the Demon Lord?

Why did Brother Bing have the Demon Lord's Role Card? What was his connection to the Demon Lord?

I'd always thought the Red Dancing Shoes' Role Card-exclusive reward was normal. Now it seems the Demon Lord's legacy is what made me special. Good thing the scarcity of rule-type items gave me an excuse to keep quiet about my exclusive reward.

Squad Leader and Old Driver only knew I had a rule-type item. They didn't know about the Role Card-exclusive reward.

All sorts of thoughts flashed through Zhang Yuanqing's mind.

He didn't let his thoughts spiral out of control. Quickly steadying himself, he smiled ruefully. "Looks like I'm not the Demon Lord's successor. I always thought I was special, since I even managed to clear the Sheling Tunnel.

"Captain Yuan, how can I show you my mark? I can't control it."

The mark represented the Spirit Realm. Other than the night his Role Card restarted, and when his brow had revealed the Black Moon Mark as he leveled up in the Spirit Realm, it seemed not to exist at all.

Yuan Ting glanced at the command flag in the pen holder. "Low-rank Spirit Realm Walkers can't affect their marks. That stylish 'outfit' is a perk reserved for high-rank Walkers. I don't need to see your mark. I just need to detect whether you're lying."

He looked at the pen holder beside him and explained, "I borrowed this flag from Centurion Fu. It can make people obey and prevent them from lying. The price is that I can't lie either."

Zhang Yuanqing did his best to maintain his smile.

At that moment, no words could describe how he felt.

Yuan Ting stopped wasting time. He pulled out the command flag, pointed it at Zhang Yuanqing from across the table, and asked gravely, "Now tell me: is your Night Wanderer mark a crescent or a full moon?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhang Yuanqing felt an immense, solemn force descend upon him. It filled him with awe and compelled him to obey. He couldn't bring himself to hide anything; he wanted to spill every secret he had.

His mind tensed against his will, and his scalp prickled.

Why was the Taiyi Sect looking for the Demon Lord's successor? If they wanted to recruit someone, they wouldn't be so vague and evasive. After all, that would be perfectly normal.

There had to be a deeper reason.

Brother Bing gave me the Role Card. Maybe this involves him too.

His tense unease gradually turned to anxiety. Suddenly, Zhang Yuanqing remembered the Infant Spirit inside him. A master could transfer damage and negative effects to their Spirit Servant and make it share the burden.

The command flag's power was vast and imposing, but it didn't inflict any actual harm. Little Doubi should be fine. I can try it.

He immediately steadied his emotions and reached out to the Infant Spirit inside him, briefly linking their souls.

In an instant, the immense, solemn force flowed along his spiritual body and into the Infant Spirit.

The sleeping Infant Spirit kicked its legs, as if it were having a nightmare.

Zhang Yuanqing's mind relaxed, and his fear and awe vanished.

"A crescent!"

Zhang Yuanqing gave his answer in a low voice.

Yuan Ting fell silent for a few seconds, keeping the command flag pointed at him. "Do you have a Role Card-exclusive reward?"

"No."

Yuan Ting fell silent again. After more than ten seconds, he sighed and lowered the flag. "You've passed the screening. I'll report the results to the organization. The Taiyi Sect takes the Demon Lord's successor very seriously, so there may be more checks like this. Also, if you find a Night Wanderer with either of those two features, you must tell me. The Taiyi Sect will reward you generously."

No amount of money would make me turn myself in. Zhang Yuanqing silently breathed a sigh of relief and patted his chest. "If I find anyone, I'll let you know right away."

Yuan Ting nodded in satisfaction. "Being the Demon Lord's successor isn't necessarily a good thing. The Spirit Realm has a balancing mechanism. Spirit Realm Walkers with special abilities like that are often assigned high-difficulty missions. Remember, rewards and risks are always proportional."

Zhang Yuanqing smiled. "The Demon Lord's successor has it rough."

He meant it.

Yuan Ting put the pen holder and command flag away in his briefcase, then held out his phone. "If you don't mind, let's exchange contact details. There are too few Night Wanderers in the Five Elements Alliance, so there's no one to teach you the ins and outs of your profession. If you have any questions, you can ask me."

You really are a good person. Zhang Yuanqing happily scanned the code and added him.

After putting his phone away, Yuan Ting added with a smile, "I charge for consultations, by the way."

He charges? Zhang Yuanqing's face went blank.

"By the way, you've been a Night Wanderer for almost a week now, right?" Yuan Ting said. "Based on what we've learned, newly initiated Night Wanderers enter the Spirit Realm again within the following one to two weeks. Most likely, it'll be a multiplayer confrontation dungeon."

So I'll get a mission in a week at most? I think I remember who this guy is. He made two hundred yuan off me last night! Zhang Yuanqing felt both tense and excited. "How much does this information cost?"

Yuan Ting smiled. "This one's free."

Free? Oh, you really are a good person. Zhang Yuanqing immediately said, "Then I have another question, Captain Yuan. Can I ask you for free?"

"Depends on whether your question is worth anything," Yuan Ting said.

"Is Solar Power one of the Night Wanderer's later skills?"

"Yes, but I'm not sure what level you get it at."

That's enough. Now I have a fairly clear idea of where my profession is headed. Yin and yang, sun and moon, all in one. Pretty cool! Zhang Yuanqing said, "I don't have any more questions."

After watching the Night Wanderer from the Taiyi Sect leave the conference room and head down the steel stairs, Zhang Yuanqing made his way to the Squad Leader's office.

He still needed to report what was going on at his aunt's hospital, but he'd have to change his story. He couldn't reveal anything related to Little Doubi or let anyone know he had a Spirit Servant—not at this stage.

Inside the office, Li Dongze heard a howl from the doorway:

"I stand at the eye of the storm, gripping the turning sun and moon. May all under heaven be orderly!"

The singing stopped, followed by a knock.

Li Dongze replied, "Come in."