Chapter Sixty-Four: The Complexity of Humanity and Choice

After Chen Qing handed over the heritage artifact, Jie Hongbo had once desperately yearned to uncover the secrets Chen Qing possessed—like the eye at the center of his brow. Yet, faced with the obvious opposition from Jiang Wan and Jiang Hongyun, his suggestions eventually came to nothing.

But when it came to the scolding words from Jiang Wan and Jiang Hongyun, Jie Hongbo showed nothing but contempt.

“So what if we fall out with him? The world won’t stop spinning without him, will it? Wasn’t it said earlier that the file was dangerous? And what happened when it was opened? Nothing at all!

I don’t care what methods you use! Three days. In three days, I want to hear this incident has been resolved!”

He bellowed at the subordinates who weren’t even under his command, while the heritage artifact that had belonged to Chen Qing now sat on the table beside him.

He lifted his gaze to the blackboard behind him, covered with words like “urgency,” “seize the moment,” “implement,” and “advancement.” But what he failed to notice was that none of the officers behind him met his eyes.

Their gaze was fixed upon the heritage artifact on the desk, and for some reason, their pupils seemed to dilate.

…

Outside the police station, Chen Qing and Jiang Wan walked side by side down the street—one with a calm expression, the other with a look of shame.

“I’m sorry…” she sighed, tugging at her pocket.

“It’s not as if you offended me,” Chen Qing replied with a faint smile, appearing untroubled.

“It all started because of me… and you even… lost something so important because of me…” Jiang Wan’s voice trailed off, but Chen Qing shook his head and smiled, “Lost? I wouldn’t say that.

It was just to teach him a lesson.” He turned to glance at Jiang Wan. “In fact, the real problem now is that offspring.

Let me be clear with you… If that idiot is allowed to keep acting recklessly, things will get out of hand.”

“So you… deliberately left behind that artifact?”

Chen Qing nodded and continued, “Don’t forget, even those people at the Club have to handle heritage artifacts with the utmost care.

Do your colleagues at the station do the same? Wearing gloves is the utmost they manage, right? And they’re in contact with it for much longer.”

He sighed, a trace of regret in his voice. “Just don’t know who will pay the price. It’s a pity, that’s all.”

“This…” Jiang Wan bit her fingertip, her expression a mix of anxiety and anger. “Isn’t there a gentler way to handle this?”

“It’s not my choice.” Chen Qing clapped his hands. “He insisted I leave the artifact, told me not to concern myself. He’s an adult; he should take responsibility for his actions. I’m not his father.” He chuckled and walked into a small shop near the station, a place free from surveillance and prying eyes.

“As for your worries… If you can’t put your mind at ease, then keep an eye on them yourself. With your abilities…

You shouldn’t have any trouble.”

Jiang Wan looked worn out and a little embarrassed. “Won’t that mess up your plan?”

“Plan… There isn’t really one.” He shook his head, ordering a few dishes at random.

“It all depends on that offspring… I need to see how vicious that thing really is.”

Jiang Wan’s curiosity was piqued. “I wondered in the interrogation room—who were you talking to all that time?”

Hearing her question, Chen Qing broke apart a pair of chopsticks, set one aside, and then bowed respectfully to the empty air beside him. “Immortal, please go ahead. Dead souls and wild ghosts, stay out of the way!”

Jiang Wan’s fingers froze, her chopsticks halted mid-air.

Her face paled. “What do you mean?”

“What do I mean?”

“I can’t see…”

“She’s a ghost—of course you can’t.”

Jiang Wan’s face reddened awkwardly, and she greeted the empty space with a shy “hi.”

As Chen Qing ate his late-night snack, a thought suddenly occurred to him. “Now that I think of it, why did that man suddenly show concern for me back in the interrogation room?”

“Who?” Jiang Wan looked puzzled, then realization dawned. “Oh! You mean Jie Hongbo? He must have just finished watching the surveillance feed, probably worried you’d die, too.”

“No wonder…” Chen Qing shook his head, smiling knowingly. “So once he saw me open the file and come out fine, he felt he was in control again, and the bureaucrat in him resurfaced?”

“Exactly…” Jiang Wan’s smile was bitter. “Humans are always like this—never wholly good, never purely evil.

He’ll worry about others when he senses danger, but that doesn’t mean he won’t act foolishly when he thinks he’s safe, making things worse, nor does it mean he won’t oppress others or shirk his responsibilities.

That’s humanity—complex and contradictory.”

She shook her head, helpless.

Chen Qing sighed and asked, “When those people died, besides the surveillance footage, was anything else left behind?”

Jiang Wan frowned, thinking for a moment before shaking her head. “The first two only left text messages. The third… by the time we found him, his phone had been wiped.

We checked with the carrier and found he hadn’t sent any messages. No idea why.

It’s like…”

“He did it on purpose?”

“Mm.” Jiang Wan nodded. But Chen Qing, still eating, turned to Bu Zhaozhao and asked, “Would his professional abilities be affected by the offspring’s influence?”

“No, the offspring only alter a certain part of their cognition. Their memories and past experiences remain unchanged.”

“So… the victim used his professional skills and counter-surveillance experience, believing this would help him achieve his goal.”

Chen Qing thought for a moment, then suddenly laughed.

“What is it?” Jiang Wan looked puzzled from across the table.

“Nothing, just thinking his criminal skills are pretty poor. If it were me, I’d have routed things through two relay points, so you’d have a much harder time tracking it down.”

He stretched and didn’t elaborate, but Jiang Wan understood.

Those so-called text messages were just a diversion—there was more to it.

But what exactly…?

She frowned, perplexed.

Still, seeing Chen Qing tilt his head back and eat dumplings, she knew he wouldn’t say more.

Just as he’d said before, though perhaps not as exaggerated as his words implied…

In the end, the dead were all strangers. What did it matter to him?

She sighed, settled the bill, and returned to the station. Chen Qing remained outside, legs crossed, gazing inside as Bu Zhaozhao’s voice questioned him: “You really won’t intervene? If the offspring spreads in the main world, the consequences will be dire.

For now, I wouldn’t advise stirring up such a storm.”

Chen Qing nodded, indicating he understood. He was curious, so he asked in return, “How did that thing escape in the first place?”

“I don’t know,” Bu Zhaozhao replied calmly. “In theory, after you wiped her memory, the offspring shouldn’t have had an anchor to descend…”

“Sigh…” Chen Qing pinched his brow, a headache brewing. “You never realize how little you’ve learned until it’s too late. Sister Bu, are there any heritage artifacts that grant you a wealth of knowledge upon acquisition?”

“There are. When the chance comes, we need to pull off something big.”

“And about my artifact’s advancement?”

She paused, considering. “Do you know if there’s a church nearby?”

“A church?” Chen Qing was surprised, but after a moment’s thought, nodded. “There is.”

“Once you’ve settled on a place to live, we’ll proceed with the advancement.”

“Is an independent residence absolutely necessary?” He frowned, worry etched on his face.

“Of course. With so many extraordinary materials, do you plan to carry them all around like a walking containment chamber?” Bu Zhaozhao shot him a look, her tone tinged with exasperation. “Honestly… you’re the only one in the whole extraordinary circle who runs around with four or five heritage artifacts on your person.”

Chen Qing frowned slightly. “Is that something I wasn’t aware of?”

She sighed before explaining, “Heritage artifacts have containment and usage conditions—just like the Peace of the Sacred Fungus you recently acquired.”

He listened and touched the small water pouch he kept at his chest.

“Generally, investigators choose which artifacts to bring based on the back room they’re about to enter—less is more.

It’s not just because the back room absorbs the powers of used artifacts.

It’s also because of the strict containment conditions and the mental strain they impose.

You might not feel it now, but you’ve seen it at the Club—those people go mad just by being near these things.

So imagine one day, the mental strain from the accumulated artifacts you carry equals that of a single artifact for an ordinary person.

Then, in the back room, you’ll suffer a mental breakdown, lose your reason, and die there.”

Bu Zhaozhao fell silent for a while, then continued with an odd look, “Besides, don’t you think you’re carrying too much stuff?”

Chen Qing almost instinctively replied that it was fine, but before the words left his mouth, reason stopped him short.

“A ring of keys, tissues, phone, four heritage artifacts… two materials. Maybe it is a bit much…”

Bu Zhaozhao was silent for a long time, then spoke in a faint tone, “Calling you a walking nuclear warhead is being modest. And you dare to go to a school like this?

If I were one of those students’ parents, I’d be the first to stab you.”

“Hey, you’d have to wait till I left campus—otherwise, if I died there, the pollution would spread everywhere.”

As they spoke, night slowly descended.

Across the street, inside the police station, the evening lights flickered on.

A sign that no one rested yet; they were still hard at work, poring over the events of the day, striving to understand the object Chen Qing had left behind.