Chapter 48 Part 2
Sui Sui’s smile was filled with malice. He seemed to be controlling Shi Xu with invisible strings. Shi Xu’s movements suddenly stopped. Gu Sui quickly retracted his tentacles, but a few brushed against Shi Xu’s arm.
Shi Xu’s expression remained unchanged, but Gu Sui knew he had hurt him.
“Sorry, did… I hurt you?” He instinctively apologized, reaching for Shi Xu’s arm.
Sui Sui’s fingers moved, and Shi Xu’s sword blocked his path.
Gu Sui’s eyes reddened, his gaze fixed on Sui Sui.
He wanted to attack Sui Sui, but Shi Xu was under his control. To reach Sui Sui, he would have to hurt Shi Xu.
Sui Sui’s laughter shook his small body, his cute face a mask of malice. “Now, make your choice.”
Gu Sui shuddered.
Him, or Shi Xu?
There was no hesitation. He would choose Shi Xu’s life.
Sui Sui continued, “If you don’t want to die, then Little Dad has to die. Can you bear it?”
He lifted his finger, and Shi Xu raised his sword, pointing it not at Gu Sui, but at himself.
The blade pressed against his own neck, forcing Gu Sui to make a choice.
Enraging an SSS-class pollutant was dangerous, and Sui Sui knew it, but he had Shi Xu, his control over Shi Xu giving him control over Gu Sui.
As long as Shi Xu was under his control, Gu Sui couldn’t harm him. He continued his taunts, pushing Gu Sui further.
“Everyone has weaknesses, even pollutants.” He sneered. “Thanks to your love for Shi Xu, I can control you. Now, what’s your decision?”
It was a rhetorical question. He had already made his decision. He controlled Shi Xu, forcing the blade towards Gu Sui’s heart.
A pollutant’s weakness, like a human’s, was its heart, but unlike humans, they had a protective barrier around it.
Shi Xu’s sword, specially made, could pierce even reinforced steel. Combined with Sui Sui’s power, it easily penetrated Gu Sui’s defenses, blood welling up from the wound.
Gu Sui looked at Shi Xu sadly, not feeling the physical pain, but a deeper ache in his heart.
As if uninjured, he raised his hand, gently caressing Shi Xu’s cheek, his voice soft. “Shi Xu, it… hurts…”
Shi Xu’s eyelashes fluttered, a flicker of awareness in his vacant eyes, quickly fading, returning to their lifeless stillness.
The sword was withdrawn, pulling a thread of blood, splattering Shi Xu’s face. He didn’t flinch, his body frozen, awaiting his next command.
Gu Sui collapsed at his feet, his human form dissolving, reverting to his original form, the golden pollutant fading, turning into water, mingling with the blood, his presence disappearing.
Sui Sui’s laughter stopped. He looked at the puddle of water coldly. “Is he dead?”
Shi Xu couldn’t answer, his silence making the question sound like a murmur.
Sui Sui sniffed the air, no longer sensing the pollutant’s aura, finally certain of Gu Sui’s demise.
“That was easy…” He grinned, his heart-shaped mouth and four tiny teeth still deceptively cute. If not for witnessing his earlier actions, anyone would think he was just a harmless child.
He beckoned Shi Xu with his finger. Shi Xu turned stiffly, walking towards the bed.
“I don’t like you looking at me like that. Kneel,” Sui Sui commanded.
Shi Xu obeyed, kneeling before him, looking up at the child on the bed.
His complete submission pleased Sui Sui. He observed him for a long moment, then sighed, his childish appearance belying his mature demeanor.
“I didn’t want to do this. But you were unlucky, taking what I wanted. If I could, I would let you live. After all, I watched you grow up…” His voice was filled with a strange sadness. He covered Shi Xu’s eyes with his hand.
“Shi Xu, this is my final command.” He paused, his voice soft, yet firm. “Kill yourself.”
Under Sui Sui’s sorrowful gaze, Shi Xu raised his sword, then, just as the blade was about to strike his neck, he turned it, slashing at the child on the bed.
Sui Sui barely managed to dodge, the bed splitting under the force of the blow. He fell to the floor, splinters of wood piercing his skin, unfazed, dodging another attack.
The puppet had cut its own strings. Sui Sui wasn’t surprised. He knew Shi Xu was capable of this, which was why he was the captain, his authority unquestioned.
He had anticipated Shi Xu’s awakening after Gu Sui’s death.
Dodging another attack, he stood by the wardrobe, chuckling softly. “How does it feel, killing your beloved?”
Shi Xu’s expression was cold, his eyes icy. “Who are you?”
‘Sui Sui’: “Can’t you guess?”
“There’s only one esper I know with the ability to control others…” He paused, as if struggling internally, then forced out the name. “Director Shen.”
The child’s face twisted, its body shifting, transforming into Shen Qiao.
Shi Xu wasn’t surprised, his demeanor calm. “Where’s Sui Sui? What did you do with him?”
Shen Qiao: “Forget about him. You won’t see him again.”
Shi Xu didn’t ask about his motives. The answer was obvious. He wanted the golden egg, just like Shi Yan.
What he didn’t understand was, “You already have ultimate power and authority. Why do you need the egg?”
“Power? Authority?” Shen Qiao scoffed. “What good are they? Humans don’t have the long lifespans of pollutants. No matter how hard I try, I can’t stop aging. The realization of my own mortality… is terrifying…”
The thought of his impending death scared him.
Even with power and authority, he couldn’t control his own fate.
Having reached the pinnacle, having tasted the sweetness of power, how could he accept death?
He wanted to live, to continue wielding his power.
Shen Qiao: “You might not understand. It doesn’t matter. Only Shi Yan understood me, our minds connected. We were truly close. Unfortunately, we shared the same ambition, and there could only be one victor. He lost. I can’t let his death be in vain. I have to live.”
Although they had a falling out long ago, he and Shi Yan were alike.
They both craved power, both feared aging.
That’s why they meticulously maintained their physical health, but they couldn’t stop the natural process of aging.
Shi Xu found them pathetic. “Because of your selfish desires, so many young lives were sacrificed.”
Shi Yan trained his own children into weapons, using them to achieve his goals.
Shen Qiao, for the same reason, used his subordinates.
Shi Xu didn’t believe Shen Qiao hadn’t used them before.
All those expeditions into the rifts, under the guise of eliminating pollutants, were actually for his own selfish gain.
He and Shi Yan were the same, Shen Qiao simply better at hiding his true nature.
Shen Qiao: “What does that have to do with me? They volunteered to join the Anomaly Management Bureau, volunteered to fight. Were they truly selfless? No, they also had their own desires, for fame, for glory, for the treasures in the rifts.”
He wore the familiar face, but he seemed like a stranger to Shi Xu.
Shi Xu knew he and Shi Yan had a falling out, but their personal conflict hadn’t affected Shen Qiao’s treatment of him. He was impartial, even supportive of Shi Xu after he joined the bureau.
In his eyes, Shen Qiao was kinder and gentler than his own father. He had genuinely respected him, been loyal to him.
Seeing his true face now evoked complex emotions, a feeling he hadn’t experienced with Shi Yan.
“You’re disappointed in me, aren’t you?” Shen Qiao’s wrinkled face creased further when he smiled, only his eyes retaining their youthful sharpness.
“I didn’t want to do this to you. But you had something I needed. I know you wouldn’t give it to me willingly. I could have easily taken it by force, but you have an SSS-class pollutant protecting you. I had no choice.”
“Uncle Zhou’s warning didn’t make you realize that child was dangerous, didn’t make you abandon him, so I had to take him. I considered replacing him with a fake, but you’re too clever, you would have noticed. You’re too persistent, you would have searched for him, for the truth. We would have ended up like this anyway.”
Tears welled up in his eyes, his words sounding sincere, as if he truly regretted his actions.
“Shi Xu, I had no choice. If you can pretend this never happened, we can go back to how things were. I truly admire you. When I learned about your relationship with a pollutant, I didn’t expose you. I tried to convince you to stay. No one can replace you as captain. Come back. Don’t be with that pollutant. I can restore your position, give you power and authority. Don’t you want that?”
Shi Xu: “I don’t.”
Many would be tempted by his offer, but Shi Xu wasn’t.
Shen Qiao didn’t understand what he truly wanted. They were different.
“You said it yourself, you and Shi Yan are the same. Returning to your side would be a betrayal of myself.”
Shen Qiao shook his head regretfully. “I don’t understand. You hate pollutants so much, why be with one?”
Why?
Because he found in a pollutant something no human could offer him.
Because he found this pollutant more human than most humans.
Because…
He liked this pollutant.
But there was no need to explain this to Shen Qiao.
“Sui Sui is half-human. For your wish to be fulfilled, he has to die!” Shi Xu’s voice deepened. “Director Shen, stop this. As the director of the Anomaly Management Bureau, you shouldn’t disregard a life.”
Even if Sui Sui hadn’t hatched, he wouldn’t have given him up.
The method of fulfilling wishes was cruel. He wouldn’t let Shen Qiao succeed.
“It’s its fault, for having the ability to grant wishes, for creating our greed… You wouldn’t understand.” Shen Qiao sighed, no longer bothering with explanations.
He produced his cane, slamming it on the floor. The space around Shi Xu twisted and distorted, like a kaleidoscope, several A-class pollutants emerging from the rifts, surrounding him, attacking simultaneously.
Seeing them, Shi Xu realized: Not only Shi Yan, but Shen Qiao as well, had been keeping pollutants.
Compared to Shen Qiao, Shi Yan seemed almost… cautious.
Shi Yan only kept low-level pollutants, while Shen Qiao, overly confident in his abilities, kept numerous high-level ones.
Like last night, the pollutants emerged endlessly from the distorted space, all at least B-class. Shi Xu fought them relentlessly, wave after wave, seemingly endless.
Shen Qiao stood outside the distorted space, observing him with a detached pity.
“I didn’t want to do this, Xiao Xu. I truly admire you, especially your composure.”
Which was also what he hated the most, because it meant he could never truly control Shi Xu.
Even if he controlled him temporarily, Shi Xu would always find a way to fight back.
His escape was proof of that.
“If you had obeyed me, I would have spared you. Unfortunately…”
Shi Xu severed the head of an A-class pollutant, breaking free from the distorted space, his sword aimed at Shen Qiao’s heart, but a powerful force pulled him back, forcing him to continue fighting.
Shen Qiao remained unfazed by his sudden outburst, confident in his victory, this being a death trap designed for Shi Xu, his own survival guaranteed.
His wish would soon be fulfilled.
He closed his eyes, seemingly unwilling to witness Shi Xu’s death.
His voice echoed, a final farewell.
“I’ll give you a grand funeral. I’ll tell everyone your death was meaningful. Everyone will mourn you. Are you satisfied with this ending?”
“A funeral?” A deep voice echoed behind him.
Shen Qiao opened his eyes just as a golden tentacle pierced his heart.
An eye for an eye, a heart for a heart. He had controlled Shi Xu to stab Gu Sui’s heart, and now, his own heart was pierced by Gu Sui.
Confusion, then disbelief. He stared at Gu Sui, stunned.
The supposedly dead Gu Sui stood before him, looking down at him, a slow smile curving his lips. “He doesn’t need one yet.”
And he never would.
He would give half of his life force to Shi Xu. They still had a long life ahead of them.
Before death claimed him, he would take Shi Xu back to where he was born, holding him close as they entered eternal slumber together.
