What makes a power

Meng Huai looked at Yun Zimo through bleary, drunken eyes, utterly puzzled. He hadn't heard of anything happening today, so why had she woken him so early?

Yun Zimo glanced at the sun, which was about to set, her eyes filled with resignation. Everything about Meng Huai was fine except his drinking. He had even lied to her before, claiming the alcohol was for his Life-Bound Gu. Now she realized he was simply a drunkard.

Seeing Yun Zimo's expression turn stormy, Meng Huai hurriedly activated his Life-Bound Golden Silkworm Gu. It sucked away every trace of alcohol, restoring him to complete sobriety.

He said with a beaming smile, "Don't be angry, my darling wife. Little Silkworm was too naughty last night. It didn't drink all the alcohol and left some in my body. I'll give it a proper scolding. I promise it won't happen again."

Yun Zimo sighed helplessly. "A man's mouth is full of lies. How many times have you promised me that? When have you ever kept your word?

"My luck really couldn't be worse. How did I end up with a drunkard like you? And yet I can't stop loving you. I must have owed you something in my past life."

Meng Huai quickly pulled Yun Zimo into his arms and launched into another round of solemn vows, finally coaxing a radiant smile out of her.

He grinned. "Honey, you've been so busy these past few days that your skin's looking a little dull. Put on a face mask and pamper yourself."

The moment Yun Zimo heard the words "face mask," she remembered the one Meng Huai had peeled off Ye Zifeng's face during their Gu battle a few days earlier. Goosebumps instantly rose all over her.

"Don't ever mention face masks to me again!" Yun Zimo snapped. "If you do, I'll lose my temper. That was absolutely disgusting."

Meng Huai's eyes shifted as he immediately realized what she meant. He had intended to tease her a little more, but one look at her fierce glare made him shut his mouth.

After calming down a little, Yun Zimo said, "It's been several days. Why hasn't either side made a move? Don't tell me they've given up!"

Meng Huai shook his head. "Absolutely not. They've already bound themselves together through cause and effect. Neither side will stop until that debt is settled.

"This is the calm before the storm. The quieter things are, the more it means both sides are preparing something big. The Night God Church is far too powerful. Even the Black-and-White Witch Cult has to steer clear of it for now, let alone Cockroach Man.

"So Cockroach Man must be waiting for an opportunity. When he finally acts, he'll strike like thunder. He won't get many chances, after all, so he has to seize the one he gets.

"Besides, Ye Zifeng admitted that night that he had killed the girl. Cockroach Man has stopped bothering with that fat bastard and focused all his attention on them.

"Just thinking about it gives me a headache. The Night God Church is utterly brazen, and it's recruited so many wealthy people. Wealth inevitably brings influence. With that influence behind it, dealing with it becomes even harder."

Yun Zimo asked curiously, "You Practitioners have such powerful abilities. Are you really afraid of worldly powers?"

Meng Huai shook his head. "Practitioners and Cultivators are different. Their names differ by only one character, but they're worlds apart. Before Liu Bowen wounded the Dragon Vein, there were actually no Practitioners. Everyone was a Cultivator.

"Those Cultivators possessed formidable abilities and pursued ascension, so they cared nothing for the mortal world. Even kings and their kingdoms were no better than dung in their eyes.

"But after the Dragon Vein was wounded, the entire Earth entered the Dharma-Ending Era. Cultivators degenerated into Practitioners. Instead of pursuing ascension to immortality, their final goal became to descend to the underworld as a ghost.

"In other words, Cultivators wanted to rise to heaven and become immortals. The best Practitioners can hope for is to enter the underworld as ghost officers, then keep cultivating in the hope of ascending to the immortal register. But that's harder than reaching heaven itself."

Yun Zimo listened with rapt interest. Somehow, she produced a bag of potato chips and urged him to continue as she ate.

Meng Huai continued with a smile. "Although Practitioners are stronger than ordinary people, we've lost the power to defy heaven. We have to follow heaven's will, and heaven's representative in the mortal world is our nation.

"So when Practitioners face worldly powers, we usually give them a wide berth. There are exceptions, though. The Reincarnation Sect and Kunlun, for example, don't indulge worldly powers.

"Neither side wants a conflict, however, so the authorities have the Special Affairs Bureau and the military's Special Operations Office. Both are staffed entirely by true experts."

Yun Zimo nodded repeatedly. "I know. Zhao Zhen, the man we met last time, was from the Special Affairs Bureau. That cold-faced fellow was from the Special Operations Office."

Meng Huai took a few potato chips and spoke as he ate. "That's why Practitioners and the mortal world generally leave each other alone. Even when something happens, it's resolved through those two departments.

"But when I talk about the influence of wealthy people, I don't mean worldly power. I mean an aura those wealthy people carry themselves. That's what the saying 'wealth brings influence' refers to.

"Every profession has its own aura. Take the scholars of the past, for example. Whether teachers or students, they all possessed a righteous aura, which was said to keep gods and ghosts at bay.

"Likewise, doctors and others who heal the sick and save lives carry an aura of their own. That aura is benevolence, and ghosts and monsters have to steer clear of it too.

"Since ancient times, ghosts and monsters have avoided provoking scholars and doctors unless they had no other choice. Of course, things are different now. For reasons everyone knows, those two professions don't have a damn bit of aura left.

"Now, back to wealthy people. Their aura is one of the strongest of all. In 'wealth, dharma, companions, and land,' wealth comes first. That tells you everything.

"But these days, plenty of rich people are cruel and heartless, and they carry a great deal of resentment as well. That makes them particularly likely to attract unclean things, which gives us an opportunity to establish connections with them."

Understanding dawned on Yun Zimo. "I see what you mean. The Night God Church is borrowing the influence of these wealthy people and combining it with its own strength to create a fully established power."

Meng Huai sighed. "Exactly. That's the biggest headache of all. This combination of influence and strength leaves us with nowhere to begin.

"I can already foresee Cockroach Man's best possible outcome: he and Wang Taiying die together. As for getting justice, that'll remain a joke for the rest of his life."

"Can't anything be done to change this?" Yun Zimo asked angrily.

Meng Huai took her hand. "You must have heard the expression 'the prevailing tide.' Unless that tide changes one day, there's absolutely no chance.

"All we can do is accomplish a few small things within that tide, restore a little justice to the world, and give the souls of the weak some measure of peace. Don't expect anything beyond that."

Clearly dissatisfied, Yun Zimo stormed toward the room, though there seemed to be a slight spring in her step.

Yun Zimo took out her tablet and placed it in front of Meng Huai. "I've found everything you asked me to look into a couple of days ago. This man is the little girl's father, Zheng Lin."

Meng Huai turned his gaze to the tablet, which displayed a clear photograph.