The Creatures That We Are

For the next few days, nothing major happened. Gao Yang went to school during the day like any student and asked Old Shi for tutoring in his free time, catching up to his other classmates.

Midnight, once his roommates fell asleep, Gao Yang snuck out of his room, heading to an old auditorium of the school and asking Qing Ling for help in fighting.

Repetitive muscle training wouldn’t do much in increasing Gao Yang’s overall strength now. What he needed was sparring with real weapons.

And Qing Ling was the best trainer for melee fighting.

After getting a 200-jinwu ‘paycheck’ from Gao Yang, Qing Ling had War Tiger seek the Qilin Guild out and order a Black Gold single-edged sword. The material cost around 200 jinwu, and the manufacturing cost around 30 jinwu. Qing Ling was still a few coins short after using up her savings, so War Tiger paid the rest.

The weapon was modeled after Xiu Chun Dao[1], so it was named Xiu Dao.

The Xiu Dao was shaped like a bamboo leaf—light, slim, and narrow. With its incredibly sharp blade, it could be used for stabbing and cutting, perfect for close range fight.

Qing Ling handed her Tang Dao to Gao Yang while she fought with Xiu Dao. On one hand, it was a training for Gao Yang’s benefit; on the other hand, she was also getting used to her new weapon.

Gao Yang didn’t use any of his Talents but fought Qing Ling with the weapon alone as a student. Naturally, he ended up getting crushed by Qing Ling.

Qing Ling learned from War Tiger and was just as strict a teacher. Every night, she beat Gao Yang thoroughly and left him battered. Thanks to her tough love, though, Gao Yang had made much progress in improving his skills in fighting close range. Even without using Teleportation, he had become much more agile.

A week flew by. Gao Yang had gotten used to college life.

Five o’clock in the afternoon, Team Heavenbreaker held their second weekly meeting at the tabletop game cafe, Borderrunners. Everyone was in attendance.

The first to make his report was Gray Bear. He threw a black briefcase onto the meeting table and said proudly, “Captain, after days of working overtime, we finally finished what you asked for. The back office calls it Medicine M.”

Gray Bear opened the briefcase. Inside were three rows of small vials with light blue medicine. There were even straws on the side.

“Finish this, and you’ll effectively acquire Memory from Mischievous Monkey for the next three days. You’ll remember everything you see and hear without forgetting it. It’s best for cramming sessions.”

“The effect will fade in a week, however. And you’ll lose the knowledge you cram in the past few days.”

“Whoa!” Can quickly took a vial. “With this, I won’t have to worry about failing a class.”

“That’s cheating, Can.” Officer Huang smiled.

“Would you give me a few more vials?” Heavenly Dog was eyeing the medicine too. “CET-4 and CET-6 are so difficult.[2]”

Gray Bear scoffed. “Stop dreaming. Even this much exhausted Sir Monkey and those in the back office.” Gray Bear looked at them. “You’re each getting only one vial. Don’t waste it on nothing.”

“Keep it safe and only drink it before going on the mission,” Gao Yang added.

“Well, it seems we’re drinking it soon.” Chen Ying smiled.

Gao Yang chuckled. “You’ve made progress in the West Nation.”

“Indeed.” Chen Ying nodded. “I’ve already found where the Godbearer Cult is hiding in the West Nation.”

“Are you certain?”

“Not a hundred percent, but the place is very suspicious. On the surface, it seems like the storage of a beverage factory, but it’s safeguarded by armed mercenaries from the syndicates. There would be no need for such a level of defense if arms or drugs aren’t being smuggled. My people suspect that it can be a lab of the Cult.”

Chen Ying opened the briefcase she carried with her and took out some printed materials. “Everyone, this is the detailed report. What the factory used to be and its many connections are suspicious.”

Everyone took the documents and passed them around.

Chen Ying continued, “My people don’t dare to investigate further since it can be dangerous.”

“It is quite suspicious for a beverage factory to be defended by armed mercenaries. How mysterious.” Gray Bear stroked his stubbled chin. “It’s worth investigating no matter what.”

Gao Yang finished reading the documents and held the same opinions as Gray Bear.

After some thinking, he decided, “Lithe Snake, Nainai, Green Snake, Yellow Ox, and Chen Ying. Get ready. We’re heading to the West Nation in three days.”

“What about us, Captain?” Can pointed at herself with disappointment. Why didn’t Captain bring her? She wasn’t a dead weight anymore. Her Invisibility had reached level 4, enough to be useful in a real fight.

“Yeah, what about us?” Gray Bear was surprised. Forget Can. Why would the vice captain be left behind as well?

The other vice captain, Nine Frost, didn’t have much to say. He was the type to do things by the book. Once he approved of Gao Yang as the captain, he would listen to him unconditionally.

“It’ll be unwise to bring too many people,” said Gao Yang. “I have my reasons. You should stay and keep looking into the Cult in secret.”

Too many people would attract too much attention, which would risk alerting the enemies. Thus, Gao Yang took only half the team.

Lithe Snake had been a mercenary. He was an expert in tracking, interrogation, and reconnaissance.

Nainai’s Scale and Shapeshifter were useful for stealth and disguise.

Chen Ying was needed since she was their connection to the intelligence agents in the West Nation, and her Psychometry could be of use. Moreover, she had comprehended a new Talent last month, Skeleton Key.

Skeleton Key, serial number 83, Support-type.

It allowed one to open any regular locks, as well as break down regular energy barriers.

In terms of combatants, Gao Yang, Qing Ling, Officer Huang, and Lithe Snake would be enough. Even when facing enemies as strong as pride monsters, Gao Yang wouldn’t be too worried as long as there weren’t more than three coming at them at once.

There was another reason he asked Qing Ling and Officer Huang to come with him, of course.

He had to start thinking about creating his own organization. Qing Ling and Officer Huang were his most trusted companions. He wanted to use this opportunity to talk to them.

...

At night, Gao Yang went back to his bedroom and took Medicine M, granting him photographic memory that would allow him to remember everything once seen or heard. He had more than enough time to spend three days studying the language of the West Nation and keep it in his head for a week.

For the next three days, Gao Yang went to school during the day, and after midnight, instead of sparring with Qing Ling, he dragged her to Nainai’s Witch’s Club and watched TV shows from the West Nation.

Gao Yang believed that three days were too short to learn the language systematically, and it wasn’t necessary anyway. Better to watch TV shows and memorize the phrases that could be used in conversations.

The next three nights were the most painful time for Nainai.

The Witch’s Club had been forcefully claimed by Gao Yang and Qing Ling. The heavy curtains were drawn. On the prayer table etched with a pentagram, the chuuni tribute items were put aside, replaced by a laptop and a few bottles of energy drinks.

The laptop was turned on, playing Friends, a sitcom from the West Nation.

Nainai didn’t dare to move, stuck between Gao Yang and Qing Ling, the two bigshots.

Canned laughter came from the television. Nainai would like to laugh too, but she had to maintain her cold, mysterious, and classy image of an empress. And she was dreading the terrifying woman beside her, worried that Qing Ling would press a blade to her neck without warning. She could only smother her laughter throughout no matter how difficult it was.

Gao Yang would like to laugh too, but since he was their leader, and the two girls weren’t laughing, it would be strange for him to be the only one losing it. He thus swallowed the laughter.

Late at night, the three of them crammed into the small dark room of the club and watched the hilarious sitcom together while keeping a straight face. The picture they painted couldn’t be stranger.

At the end of the day, they got good results. With Medicine M enhancing their memories, they were able to learn to speak the language of the West Nation to a high level. Now, they could talk in the language properly.

Three days later, Gao Yang took half his team to catch a plane to the West Nation.

Before their departure, Gao Yang asked for a one-week leave from his counselor with the excuse of going back to the hospital for checkup and physical therapy. Due to his past of being in a vegetative state for three months, the counselor didn’t suspect him and immediately granted him the leave.

1. A single-edged, slim, and slightly curved sword from ancient China. It was the weapon of choice for imperial guards in the Ming Dynasty. ☜

2. The national College English Tests in China. ☜