Chapter 946: Quit Smoking

Spectres’ Mansion, late night.

Wang Zikai was playing games with Fresh Snow in the living room, while Gao Yang, War Tiger, and Nine Frost gathered for a meeting.

War Tiger, who had taken over as HR head after White Rabbit's passing, listened intently before breaking into a grin. "Well done, Little Yang Yang. You're practically a prophet."

"Captain." Nine Frost leaned forward, barely containing his excitement. "As you predicted, we got the person who planted the hairpin. It was One Stone and Ting Ting. One Stone has acquired Tracking, and she found her way to us to join us."

Gao Yang nodded, his expression measured. "Go on."

"Hey, wait a moment!" War Tiger held up a hand. "Who is 'us'? The Nine Scions or the Twelve Zodiac Signs? We're making this clear upfront, or it'll be messy once the Nine Scions and the Zodiacs split once more."

"The Nine Scions," Nine Frost replied without hesitation. "One Stone came to us for Vermilion Bird, and she is one of ours."

"Alright." War Tiger settled back, unfazed.

Nine Frost continued, "I left them somewhere safe for further observation. There's still a chance that they are double agents or are under Qilin's manipulation without realizing it."

"Give me the address. I'll make sure of it personally." Gao Yang's tone was steady. Though he had Lie Detection, that wasn't a foolproof method. He planned to have Nainai give them the

Empress' baptism

after she returned.

"Okay." Nine Frost nodded. "There's another good news."

"Speak."

"Three more members acquired new Talents. Hong Xiaoxiao got Telekinesis, and Yanyan got Cleansing." His voice softened at the mention of the little girl.

"Ah." Gao Yang's response carried no surprise. If anything, he thought Cleansing had come a little too late.

"I had Yanyan use Cleansing on everyone. We don't have to worry about Blood Curse now."

"Good work. Just in case, cleanse Wang Zikai too."

Nine Frost produced an enchanted Black Gold bracelet. "Have him put this on for two days."

Gao Yang took the bracelet, examining it briefly.

"Adept Horse's recovery is progressing well after getting reset," Nine Frost continued. "He truly woke up last night, after acquiring his new Talent."

"Jump," Gao Yang said immediately.

Nine Frost nodded with a smile.

War Tiger grinned, an unlit cigarette dangling between his teeth. "That Rabbit. Adept Horse doesn't even have his legs. Should've given me the Talent."

"We'll just have to wait for Dr. Jia's return," Nine Frost said. "Cybernetic legs won't be as agile as his own, but they could prove more powerful overall."

"Haha, I was joking. I wouldn't care for the Talent." War Tiger's eyes narrowed. "Oh, right. I told Liao Liao to check out the Third Hospital. The Ocean River Union has already left."

"That's to be expected." Nine Frost's voice dropped lower as he analyzed the situation. "They wouldn't have stayed after One Stone and Ting Ting defected. Actually, they might have had Sunny use Blood Curse on us to slow us down. They probably thought One Stone and Ting Ting had contacted us immediately after leaving them."

"Yeah, let's not dwell on that." War Tiger shifted his focus. "When is Dr. Jia coming back?"

"Qing Ling said it should be soon," Nine Frost answered.

"That's slow." War Tiger's irritation showed in his voice. "Old Jia isn't up to something, is he?"

"Qing Ling said there was an accident," Nine Frost said.

Gao Yang's attention sharpened. "What accident?"

"She didn't say." Nine Frost's expression turned peculiar. "Judging by her tone, though, it should be alright."

Can anyone other than me tell her tone given the way she speaks?

Gao Yang kept his thoughts to himself.

"Contact Nainai and get a confirmation from her," he said quietly.

"Understood."

Then they talked about the Rune Circuits.

At the moment, Gao Yang had the Guard, Time-Space, and Element Rune Circuits, War Tiger had the Damage and Buff Rune Circuits, and Gregor had the Poison Rune Circuit.

The Support Rune Circuit had changed hands a few times before returning to Ke Yo—it had been easy for the others to reach level 4 with their Talents, but not her.

The Psyche Rune Circuit had gone through two owners before going to Zhang Wei. He was in a similar situation as Ke Yo; his Confidence would not reach level 4.

In fact, outside of Gao Yang’s Lucky, none of the bottom twelve Rune Circuits was known to reach level 4. That didn’t make sense, but no one had an explanation for it. They could only wait patiently.

After the meeting, Gao Yang accompanied the two men to the front yard. Nine Frost led the way while War Tiger strolled behind.

"Did you quit smoking, Uncle Tiger?" Gao Yang asked suddenly.

"Huh?" War Tiger's hands remained in his pockets, the unlit cigarette still between his lips. "Nah, I just forgot my lighter."

"And you forgot I have Fire, too?" Gao Yang's voice carried a hint of challenge. "The Killing Expert who can track an opponent's use of Talent to the second would forget that?"

War Tiger had no response.

"It's a good thing, or you can get lung cancer." Gao Yang's thoughts drifted to someone else. "Once she wakes up, she has to quit, too."

"Haha, you dare to get nosy with that woman? Looking for a beating from her?" War Tiger grinned and offered a lazy wave. "Bye."

...

On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Raven Shark traveled to the Ni Nation by sea, carrying Dr. Jia's laboratory in Dimensional Storage before returning the same way.

The next morning at six, Qing Ling, Nainai, and Dr. Jia arrived at Li City airport in disguise. Instead of heading straight to S Base, they took a car to an express hotel where Gao Yang, War Tiger, and Nine Frost waited in a double room.

The trio maintained their cover as a middle-aged man, a beautiful stepmother, and their college-age daughter. Suddenly, the beautiful woman with large platinum blonde curls split her constricting pencil skirt and kicked the hotel room door open with her heel.

Gao Yang, War Tiger, and Nine Frost took two seconds to recognize her.

"You're back." Gao Yang smiled at her.

"Yeah." Qing Ling set down her heavy duffle bag and unzipped it, producing two prosthetic legs. "For Adept Horse."

"Haha, no one will say no to a New Year gift." War Tiger strode forward cheerfully, throwing an arm around Dr. Jia as he entered. "The fifth day of New Year is the day to welcome the god of fortune. And you're that to us!"

Nainai was the last to enter. Despite her regular college student attire, she maintained her

chuuni

demeanor, kicking off her sneakers and bouncing onto the bed with outstretched arms. "My subjects, your empress has returned!"

She launched into a verbose speech that conveyed absolutely nothing.

Wait, why didn't you stop her, Qing Ling?

Gao Yang wondered, watching the scene unfold.

Nainai didn't push it too far, though. Once satisfied, she waved her hands to close all the curtains.

"Gao Yang." Qing Ling's eyes met his. "Dr. Jia wants a word with you."

"That's right! I have something major to show you!" Dr. Jia puffed up with pride. "Hah, it's going to shock all of you to death!"

Nine Frost leaned against the window, sipping an energy drink with an impassive face. War Tiger remained crouched, absorbed in examining the prosthetic legs, completely ignoring the doctor. Gao Yang, from his spot on the sofa, offered Dr. Jia only a perfunctory smile.

Their lackluster reactions visibly irritated Dr. Jia. He raised his voice. "I'll get to the conclusion first. I disperse the Mist!"

Swoosh.

Gao Yang teleported to his side instantly, guiding him to the sofa with one hand on his back and the other clasping Dr. Jia's hand. "Here, Doctor. Let's get into it."

As soon as Dr. Jia sat down, War Tiger had already come over and fished out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. “The travel must have tired you, Old Jia. Here, want one?”

Dr. Jia turned away with a huff. "No. It's been such a hurried trip that I didn't even have any water."

Nine Frost, now perched on the bed, was already dialing the front desk. "Deliver tea, drink, and coffee to the room. Quickly."

Dr. Jia rolled his eyes dramatically. "Ah, I haven't had a good sleep during the trip. My back aches."

Gao Yang created a double that positioned itself behind the sofa, massaging Dr. Jia's shoulders and back. "Is this okay? Do you want me to go harder?"

Once the drinks arrived and Dr. Jia had been sufficiently appeased, he placed his phone on the tea table. "It's the newest video in the album. See it for yourself."