Welcome to the True World of Mist

At Zhao Kongcheng's shout, Lin Qiye turned to look. Wasn't that the older guy from last night? Without a moment's hesitation, he took off running.

But before he had taken two steps, Wang Quan blocked his path. Lin Qiye's eyes widened, though he wasn't all that surprised.

He distinctly remembered this guy standing across the street.

Did he just teleport?

After last night's encounter with the Ghost-Faced Man, he knew there was more to the world than met the eye.

"You little punk! Grandpa's been waiting for you all day!"

"Where do you think you're going?"

Wang Quan looked like a bitter wife left alone in an empty house, his right hand clamped around Lin Qiye's shoulder like a vise.

Lin Qiye gave a cold smile and said icily, "Who are you?"

"Keep this up and I'll call the police!"

"Don't do that. Our job's pretty much the same as theirs." Zhao Kongcheng's voice rang out as he strolled toward them. He had to admit, having a Forbidden Ruin sure was nice.

Lin Qiye sighed and turned toward him, continuing to play dumb. "Mister, who are you supposed to be?"

Had they never met, Zhao Kongcheng really might have fallen for that pitiful expression.

"Me?"

"An innocent victim whose feelings you toyed with and left out in the cold all night!"

"Forget it, kid. You couldn't escape even if you grew wings!" he added.

"Ugh!"

Realizing he couldn't break free of Wang Quan's large hand, not to mention that unbelievable teleportation ability, Lin Qiye let out a long sigh and resigned himself to his fate.

"Uncle Zhao, where are we going?" Wang Quan turned his head and asked.

"Come on. Somewhere nice where no one will bother us!"

Zhao Kongcheng waved a hand and set off toward a destination known only to him...

One older man and two young guys...

They actually headed into a couples hotel together. Was this a distortion of human nature, or the collapse of morality?

Feeling the strange looks from passersby, Lin Qiye put on a miserable expression and blurted out in panic, "What exactly are you two trying to do? I'm sick! I've got hemorrhoids, too! Let me go..."

Wang Quan kept a firm grip on Lin Qiye, even humming a leisurely tune as he let him shout. Playing along, he threatened, "You've got such a nice, clean-cut face. Not bad at all! Go on, scream. No one's coming to save you, even if you scream yourself hoarse!"

Zhao Kongcheng's mouth twitched at that. Speechless, he said, "Seriously, what do you young people have in your heads?"

"We're just going to talk!"

"Besides, I'm married."

With that, the three of them entered the hotel.

The moment she saw them, the receptionist dropped her phone. Her eyes widened, her face lighting up with incredulous excitement as her inner slash fangirl took over.

Three men. This setup was sim... simply... top-shelf stuff!

"One Sensual Passion King Bed Room, please!" Zhao Kongcheng took out his ID.

"O... o... okay!"

"I'll need those two handsome young gentlemen's IDs as well!"

Wang Quan didn't care in the slightest, while Lin Qiye wore a dark expression. Both handed over their IDs.

"Ahem, ahem..." The receptionist's breathing had grown a little rapid. After a few dry coughs, she returned their IDs and said with a smile, "Have fun, you three. Whatever you need, I guarantee we'll provide it."

Damn it! Damn it!

If he could have beaten them, Lin Qiye would absolutely have given them both a thrashing.

The three went upstairs to their room. After they swiped the key card and entered, Zhao Kongcheng immediately locked the door, while Wang Quan released his grip and leaned against the wall with a smile.

It was Lin Qiye's first time in a place like this. Looking at the room's bizarre fixtures and the lurid pink mood lighting, he couldn't help sinking into thought.

If Auntie found out I'd come to a place like this with two men, wouldn't she beat me to death?

"Kid!"

"We really are just here to talk. This young fellow came to Cangnan on vacation and just lent me a hand!"

Seeing Lin Qiye's expression as though the sky had fallen, Zhao Kongcheng didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He explained with an earnest look.

"Oh!"

Lin Qiye stretched a little and sat on the edge of the bed. Zhao Kongcheng pulled over a chair and sat down.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"You, of course!"

"Lin Qiye. Male. Seventeen years old..."

"Michael's agent. Moral alignment unknown!"

"You must have seen that god, right?"

"I imagine you've realized by now that this world isn't as simple as you thought."

At those words, Lin Qiye trembled slightly. After a long moment, he nodded.

Neither of the two men before him was ordinary. Some sort of organization stood behind them, especially the silver-haired one. He looked barely older than Lin Qiye, yet could subdue him with one hand.

"I know you have a lot of questions. I can answer them first."

Zhao Kongcheng looked at the contemplative Lin Qiye, his tone sincere.

"Uncle Zhao, let me handle it!"

"I'll show him what the real world looks like while I'm at it!"

Wang Quan, who had been silent all this time, stepped forward. At that same moment, the world stopped.

At least, that was how it appeared. Zhao Kongcheng stood motionless with his mouth half open, while Lin Qiye simply vanished.

Unbeknownst to him, Lin Qiye had already been pulled into Wang Quan's domain.

He stood upon a vast starry expanse. In the distance, an eye resembling a black hole slowly rose, brilliant stellar rings circling the mysterious orb.

In an instant, countless pieces of information flooded his mind.

In September 1922, humanity observed a mythological creature for the first time in history: No. 001, the Dragon of Chaos, Leviathan.

In 1928, humanity observed a god residing on the moon: No. 003, the King of Angels, Michael.

That same year, The Fallen Angel was discovered at a North American volcano: No. 004, Lucifer...

The mist that had ceased advancing, the vanished gods of Great Xia, the Night Watchers who protected all living beings from the shadows, mental realms, gods...

The other side of the world unfolded in Lin Qiye's mind. What shocked him most was the way he received this information: it was forcibly poured into his head.

Snap!

A crisp sound echoed through the room. Lin Qiye abruptly came to his senses. He stared at Wang Quan, at this young man who was about his own age, and couldn't help entertaining a hopeful fantasy.

"So? Do you like it?"

"Saving millions single-handedly, receiving a medal from the organization, wielding incredible power, exploring an unknown world!"

"Shouldn't a young man be full of spirit, ready to take on anything under the sun?"

"Don't you want to be a hero?"

Wang Quan's voice rang with enthusiasm. Every word conveyed one thing:

Confidence!

Uncle Zhao had come to recruit Lin Qiye into the Night Watchers, so Wang Quan had slipped a little extra material into the information he poured into Lin Qiye's mind.

It wasn't anything major.

Just a glimpse of his own dashing figure casually saving the world!

Of course, the domain had only been active for 0.001 seconds, so it wouldn't cause Lin Qiye the slightest harm.

"Holy shit!"

"What just happened?"

"Wang Quan, don't tell me you've already covered everything that would've taken hours to explain!" Zhao Kongcheng finally caught on, astonished.

"Uncle Zhao, I told you. When it comes to efficiency, even the commander applauds me!"

Lin Qiye remained silent for a long time, but Wang Quan suddenly leaned closer. His gentle words seemed to carry a certain magic as he extended an eager invitation:

"Young man, welcome to the true world of mist!"

"Come on. Make your choice!"

"Will you accomplish nothing?"

"Or will you stop at nothing?"