Lin Xiao spoke lightly, but trouble arose when Jane was about to leave with her team. Jane's team consisted of four people. One young researcher was willing to go with her, while the other three stayed. Erik was older and said that New York was cold in winter and noisy in summer, not as peaceful as the desert; the other two were Mexico natives with young children, one just starting elementary school and the other only three years old, so moving to New York would be like uprooting their entire families. Jane didn't insist, only saying that she would go to New York first to set up the lab, and they were welcome to come anytime.
But the troubles didn't stop there. Two sets of unarchived observation data hadn't been retrieved yet, and Jane needed to stay to wait for the handover procedures; the research vehicle she rented still had a six-month lease left, and whether to sublet or cancel it needed to be done in person; the removal of the temporary power supply to the laboratory also required her signature in person. With all these trivial matters piled up, Jane calculated that it would take at least a week to get away.
When Lin Xiao heard this, he was squatting at the door of the RV, helping Jian load the last box of data hard drives onto the vehicle. He didn't stop what he was doing, he just grunted in response.
Jane stood behind him, her hands clasped together like a student who had done something wrong. Lin Xiao finished stacking the suitcases, turned around, and saw her expression. He chuckled, "What are you doing? It's not like you dumped me. It's just a few days later. Do you think I, Lin Xiao, am that petty?"
Jane's lips moved slightly, her voice very soft. "I thought it could be faster. But Erik and the others aren't leaving, and there are still a few procedures I need to handle personally. Lin Xiao, don't you think I'm being too slow?"
Lin Xiao walked over and pulled Jian into his arms. Jian didn't struggle, burying her face in his chest. After a while, she said in a muffled voice, "Was I too selfish? Letting you go back alone first."
"This isn't selfishness, it's responsibility." Lin Xiao rested his chin on her head, his tone unusually serious. "You're different from those scientists who just make decisions on a whim and leave. You see things through to the end with your team. I respect you, it's just... it's just a little hard to let you go."
Jane looked up, her eyes red, but a smile had already appeared on her lips, "Just one week. I promise, I'll definitely come to New York to see you in a week."
Lin Xiao looked down at her and suddenly sighed, "I'm a stubborn person; I cherish my own woman and don't want you to suffer. Here in New Mexico, the sun is blazing, the water is scarce, and the car you're working on keeps breaking down. If I leave, who will help you carry your things? Who will take you to that roasted corn place in town?"
Jane chuckled, tiptoed, and kissed him on the chin. "What's yours won't escape you. Besides, what do you take me for? Before I met you, I was thriving in this desert."
"How can that be the same?" Lin Xiao muttered, pulling Jian closer to him. "The past is the past. Now you have me."
The two lingered affectionately at the RV door for a while longer, until Erik coughed in the distance. Jane blushed and pulled away from his embrace, whispering, "You should go. It'll get dark soon."
Lin Xiao nodded, turned around, took his coat from the car seat, shook it out, and draped it over his shoulders. He took a couple of steps, then turned back to look at Jane. Jane stood at the RV door, the warm yellow light behind her casting a long shadow. She waved to him, smiling, and said, "See you in New York."
Lin Xiao didn't speak, but waved to her, then leaped into the air. The wind whipped his coat, and he flew higher and higher, the New Mexico desert shrinking beneath him until only a blurry golden horizon remained. He glanced down; the RV had become a tiny dot, and a person stood at its entrance, gazing up at the sky.
Lin Xiao withdrew his gaze, quickened his pace, and flew eastward, unable to suppress the smile on his face.
"One week," he said softly, "Just one week."
New York, Queens.
In the living room of Ned Leeds' house, a bald, burly man in a dark yellow monk's robe was being made to drink tea by Ned's mother on the sofa. The sofa wasn't large, and when Wang sat down, he took up three-quarters of it. He was holding a pink mug filled with Ned's mother's special cinnamon apple tea, the mug still steaming.
"Mr. Wang, would you like another cup? This is homemade, especially suitable for autumn." Ned's mother smiled kindly and poured Wang another half pot of tea without further ado.
Wang held the cup with both hands, forcing a stiff smile, "Thank you, actually, one cup is just..."
"Oh, don't be so polite! You're Ned's friend, so you're family. Come, come, here are some freshly baked cookies, have a taste. I learned this recipe from my grandma."
Wang looked at the plate of cookies in front of him, then at Ned's mother's irresistibly warm smile, his lips moved, and after a long pause, he finally managed to squeeze out, "... Okay, I'll have one."
Ned peeked half his head out from under the bathroom door and froze at the sight. Just minutes before, he'd seen his mother chasing Wang Man around the living room with a broom; how could things have turned out like this in less than half an hour?
The doorbell rang, Ned quickly opened the door to welcome Peter in. He had just called Lin Xiao and also contacted Peter.
Peter stood next to Ned, swallowed hard, and whispered, "This guy's the weirdo you were talking about? He seems to be getting along well with Auntie."
"I don't know," Ned's voice trailed off. "That bald guy said he came from a place called Kamar-Taj and that he could do magic. My mom said, 'Then conjure something up for me.' And he conjured a flower. My mom said... 'Someone this strong and capable of conjuring flowers, he must be a decent person.'"
Peter opened his mouth, unsure how to respond.
Ned's mother noticed the two heads peeking through the crack in the door. Her eyes lit up, and she waved to them, " Peter's here too! Come in, come in! Mr. Wang isn't a bad person. He's telling us about his childhood feeding sheep in the Himalayas!"
Wang's smile froze a bit more. He really couldn't remember how he had gone from being a "strange person who broke into people's homes" to a "sheep-feeding boy in the Himalayas." This woman's thought process was too terrifying, more difficult to deal with than any magical restriction he had ever learned.
Ned finally entered the house. He walked up to Wang, his expression a mixture of guilt and gratitude. "Mr. Wang, I'm so sorry, my mother..."
"It's alright." Wang put down his cup, stood up, and straightened his monk's robes, trying to regain some of the dignity befitting a sorcerer. " Ned, I've come to see you on the orders of the Sorcerer Supreme. The artifact you possess does not belong to this world. We need to take it back to Kamar-Taj, and you must come with me; the High Priest wishes to see you."
Ned's face fell instantly. "I... I want to go too? To that place that comes out of that door? Can't I not go? I have to go to school, my mom won't allow it!"
Your mother has agreed.
Ned turned sharply to look at his mother. Ned was holding a teapot, smiling broadly, "Go, go, go with Mr. Wang and broaden your horizons. Mr. Wang said the scenery there is beautiful, the air is fresh, and you can even learn some skills. Ned, don't let Mr. Wang's fierce face fool you, he's a very gentle person."
The king's face twitched.
Ned looked at his mother, then at Wang, then at Peter at the door who was barely holding back his laughter, and finally sighed resignedly.
Just then, a car horn sounded at the door. Peter peeked out and saw Happy arriving in his black Chevrolet. Happy rolled down the window and honked twice. "Mr. Lin Xiao asked me to pick you up and take you to Manhattan. Get in."
Wang nodded and walked towards the door first. Ned and Peter exchanged a glance, grabbed their backpacks, and followed. Ned's mother stood at the door, waving goodbye. "Mr. Wang, come again next time! Bring your so-called Sorcerer Supreme with you! I'll make you some tea!"
Wang's back stiffened noticeably. He quickened his pace and jumped into the car as if fleeing. Ned and Peter followed closely behind. Happy stepped on the gas, and the car headed towards Manhattan.
In the car, Wang sat ramrod straight, his eyes slightly closed, as if in meditation. Peter whispered to Ned, "How did you get that ring? How did you open the portal?"
Ned pulled the Sling Ring from his pocket; the runes on it were still faintly glowing. He lowered his voice. "Well... I just randomly drew a circle based on a rune chart I found online. I just wanted to test it out, but suddenly the circle caught fire, and then a hole appeared in my wall. I was terrified, and then this bald guy walked out of the hole. The first thing he said to me was, 'You've got talent, kid.'"
Peter almost burst out laughing and quickly covered his mouth. Wang, who was standing in front with his eyes closed, had a very subtle twitch at the corner of his mouth.
The car stopped in front of Lin Xiao's seven-story mansion in Manhattan. The three got out of the car, Happy waved to them, saying that Mr. Lin Xiao would be there soon. He asked Peter to take them to the rooftop, Peter nodded, opened the door, and led the two upstairs to the rooftop.
Not long after, a strong gust of wind swept across the rooftop. A red figure descended from the sky, crashing down in front of the three like a cannonball.
Lin Xiao paused slightly as he landed, dispelling his Flight Technique and straightening up. He turned to look at Wang with a curious expression. Wang stood there, hands behind his back, staring intently at him.
Lin Xiao glanced at Ned, then at Peter, and finally at Wang. A smile played on his lips, and he was about to say something polite.
The king suddenly moved.
He grabbed at the air with his left hand, and a golden ripple spread through the air. Two golden magical Whiplash emerged from the void, like two living snakes, lashing towards Lin Xiao with a whooshing sound.
Lin Xiao's pupils contracted, and he leaned back as two Whiplash grazed his nose. Before he could speak, the king moved again, the magic Whiplash lashing out from both sides simultaneously, one above and one below, at tricky angles. A flash of blue light appeared beneath Lin Xiao's feet, activating the teleportation ability of the Blink Dagger. He vanished from his spot and reappeared on the other side of the rooftop the next second.
"Damn it!" Lin Xiao cursed, "You start attacking right away? Is this how you people from Kamar-Taj greet each other?"
Wang didn't answer. He withdrew his left hand and drew a semicircle in front of him with his right. A golden crack appeared in the air, and a magical blade of light shot out from it, at an even more tricky angle than before, aiming straight for Lin Xiao's lower body. Lin Xiao dodged again, his toes touching the railing of the fire ladder, and he floated back three meters.
Lin Xiao narrowed his eyes, his tone shifting from initial surprise to understanding, and his face returned to that provocative and irritating smile. "Testing me, huh? Fine, greeting me with magic, then take this."
He raised his right hand, and a very thin arc of purple electricity shot out from his fingertip. The arc exploded in the air, splitting into three bolts of lightning that struck towards King, Peter, Ned respectively.
Peter and Ned had no chance to dodge. Two bolts of lightning struck them precisely, and the two boys jumped up, their bodies crackling with tiny sparks of electricity, their hair instantly standing on end in two perfect afros.
Wang formed hand seals to block the lightning from the front. However, he underestimated the penetrating power of Lin Xiao's lightning. A hole was torn in the golden shield, and several arcs of electricity drilled in, scorching a patch of his robe and leaving two black marks on his face. He opened his mouth and exhaled a puff of black smoke, his face turning ashen.
Ned was trembling all over from the electric shock, his voice shaking as he stammered, " Uncle Lin... we... are here too..."
Lin Xiao withdrew his hand, dusted off his sleeve, glanced at Ned, and said indifferently, "I know. I'm sorry for causing you trouble."
Ned: "..."
Peter a head of smoldering curly hair, looked at Lin Xiao with a resentful gaze. "Wait a minute, what about me?"
Lin Xiao didn't even turn his head, his tone even more indifferent. "Mei told me yesterday that you didn't tell her about your date with Michelle, which worried her."
Peter's eyes widened, and his voice trembled. " Aunt May has already reported to you? Yes, I didn't report it, you just want to shock me, don't you!"
"I'm teaching you a lesson on behalf of your Aunt May," Lin Xiao said matter-of-factly.
"And what about you, Uncle Lin? Are you planning to bring back another auntie? I saw Mei and Betty go to Chinatown early this morning. Do you know what they went there for?"
A crack finally appeared in Lin Xiao's expression. He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Peter added, "There are two shops in Chinatown, one that sells casseroles and the other that sells washboards. Aunt May and Aunt Betty went to the casserole shop first, and the washboard shop second."
Lin Xiao's face turned green. He turned his head and glared at Peter: "None of your business."
At this moment, Wang finally wiped the soot off his face. He coughed twice, blew the cigarette smoke from his chest, straightened up, and looked at Lin Xiao with an extremely complicated expression.
"What you said is different from what the mage said," Wang said, his voice still hoarse from being struck by lightning.
Lin Xiao turned around and gestured with his chin towards Wang: "You call this 'not quite the same'? What did your mages tell you?"
Wang paused for two seconds, as if recalling the words of the Ancient One. Then he slowly said, " The Sorcerer Supreme said that Lin Xiao is quick-witted, has a special destiny, and is a rare talent. However, he has an unconventional personality and acts unpredictably. He told me to test you after I met you, to see your character."
After listening, Lin Xiao's expression slowly became subtle. He stared at Wang for a while, then suddenly smiled.
"So it's working now?"
Wang nodded, then shook his head. "I've figured some things out. You're even more difficult to deal with than the mage said."
Lin Xiao's smile widened. He stepped forward, patted Wang on the shoulder, and spoke in a completely different tone than when he had used the Electro: "Mr. Wang, you truly are worthy of being a disciple of the Ancient One. This initial meeting ceremony is indeed special; I quite like it. From now on, we're friends, and it's normal for friends to joke around a bit."
Wang looked at his flawless smiling face, then at the two children beside him who were still smoking, and remained silent for a long time before finally squeezing out two words through gritted teeth.
Who is your friend?
Lin Xiao pretended not to hear and turned to Peter and Ned: "Alright, stop standing there. Come downstairs. Mei will make you some soup tonight to calm your nerves and nourish yourselves. Look at your hair, it looks like two bird nests."
Peter and Ned both looked at Lin Xiao with resentment, their eyes no different from those of two elementary school students who had been bullied by their parents but dared not fight back. Wang, watching all this, suddenly began to doubt the words that the Ancient One had said before they came.
This is no promising talent. This is clearly a tough nut to crack, someone you absolutely cannot mess with.