The Tale Never Ends Chapter 144 Farce

I answered the call, "h.e.l.lo there. This is the Head Person of the De Chang Center for Paranormal Studies. How can I help you?" "We've met yesterday. You know who I am. Tomorrow at 9 am. The Nanjiao Park at the south of town. Let's see what you're made of!" "Very well. We'll be there!"

I ended the call brusquely and yelled to my friends who were still exploring upstairs, "Boys! Come here! We have a job!" They skipped down the stairs, asking about what was happening and I told them about the phone call. "Shouldn't we get some help? The officer we met the other day at the police station seems close to you. He calls you 'Brother', you're close, aren't you?" Edelweiss asked softly, tugging at my arm. "It's fine. The police can only intervene if the crime is taking place. There's nothing they can do now since nothing's happened yet. There's nothing to prove any wrongdoing yet. Moreover, the police do not believe in the paranormal."

Chongxi said, "Let's have Xiao Qi and the Sisters with us then! They might be able to be messengers at least if they cannot help! You can also have all your spirit familiars conjured beforehand; the wolves, the eagle, the cat, and the Forest Sprite!" I waved at him, motioning for patience. "Relax. We'll do nothing of that. I do not believe they are more powerful than us. Moreover, my sword is no ordinary sword; it is the bane of everything evil!"

In a display of his composed maturity, Lin Feng muttered in turn, shaking his head, "There's no need for so much fanfare. We only need to react to their offenses and counter them. My steel quarterstaff and throwing knives; all of these will all be hidden under the carpet in the boot. My iron whip should be enough. There might be onlookers during the fight, and somebody might contact the police. Having controlled weapons on us will only enc.u.mber Zheng Shuang from helping us!"

I sn.i.g.g.e.red in agreement. "Indeed. Zheng Shuang had admitted that the local station has considered us to be one of them. When the police intervene, we can have him arrested under charges of disrupting public order. We'll then inform Zheng Shuang that he is a part of the Creed of the Eight Trigrams as the final nail to the coffin!"

Little did we expect that everything was nothing but a farce. The second morning we went as early as we could to the park in the south of town. Edelweiss came along with us, out of concern for our safety. There were no parking s.p.a.ces at the park, so we had to park the car some distance away and walk to the park on foot. Our enemy was already waiting for us when we got there. A single man. There was no one else with him. "You there!" Chongxi yelled at him, his lips pouting irately, "Say your piece! Pick one of us! We'll take you on, one-on-one!"

The stranger sneered icily. "Heh heh heh. I won't be fighting against the likes of you. My help will be arriving soon and it'd do you well to go down on your knees and beg for my forgiveness before he arrives. Surrender now or suffer your regrets later!" Chongxi instead began teasing him, "Oh my! I must be scared! I'm shivering with fright!" His hilarious and comical behavior made everyone laugh.

Before long, a rickety van skidded to a halt by the road with its ramshackle brake screeching in protest. "Here he is! Man of the hour!" The stranger proclaimed triumphantly as if he had won the battle even before it began, "Surrender now and I'll show you leniency! There was once a powerful fox demon skilled in magic and witchcraft here in Wu Zhong, known as the Thirteenth Sister. But she was slain. By one person, him! And now, it's your turn to have a taste of his magical sword that vanquishes evil!" Lin Feng has had enough; he held up a hand to silence the pompous imbecile of an enemy and snapped, "All right! Enough with all the dramatics! I have never laid eyes on one so boastful and conceited such as you! We'll see how good this help of yours is!"

The stranger ran to the van, screaming with glee, "It's good that you've come, Master!" The driver of the van got off and walked towards us and the b.u.mbling fool scampered to meet him, offering him a cigarette. The man took the cigarette and deposited it between his lips. But there was something familiar about the man which I could not describe, although it was clear that he seemed reluctant to come. They talked as they got closer to us until I finally heard the newcomer said, "Really? Let's see who these people are then!"

Finally, when they got close, the newcomer froze in his tracks immediately when he saw us. His expression quickly changed and he ran to us, "Oh my G.o.d! It's you!" He reached for my hand and held it tightly, shaking it warmly. Then he dug through his pocket for his own pack of cigarettes and offered one to the each of us. The stranger who asked for this newcomer's help could not believe what he was seeing and collapsed into a sit on the gra.s.s! We were confused and shocked ourselves, especially when the newcomer went to the stranger and gave him two slaps on the face, leaving his cheeks flaming red. "How dare you trick me! This is the Great Master Shiyan! You are fortunate that Master Shiyan here is showing you mercy! Otherwise, you would already have long lost your head!"

I drew a breath through the cigarette, trying to remember who this is until the answer came to me! This was the scaredy-cat whom we saved from the Thirteenth Apostle of the Creed! It was with the first magical sword that Father had given me that he had killed the Thirteenth Apostle! The Thirteenth Apostle who was a demoness who loved seducing men, and this man had almost become her final prey.

People began crowding around us due to the commotion. Most of them were regular park-goers here to use the facilities, exercising in the morning, or fishing. A few of them knew the "wimp" and peppered him with questions about what was going on, and I heard him telling them, "This man"—he pointed at the fool still sitting dazedly on the ground—"He enlisted my help to defeat his enemies. As it turns out, his enemies are my benefactors! He's just trying to set me up! How dare he try to make me attack those who saved me before! Take this!" He began beating the stranger up in a fit of rage! The four of us were holding onto our stomachs as we laughed. "So much about trying to teach us a lesson!" Chongxi scoffed. Lin Feng waved for us to leave, and we walked away.

We would later find out that the scaredy-cat has achieved some sort of fame for slaying the Thirteenth Apostle. No one knew what really happened and no one knew that the sword belonged to me. Everyone only knew that the Thirteen Apostles of the Creed of the Eight Trigrams were mighty foes that only fools would dare hastily trifle with and anyone who could defeat any of them was surely a powerful person in his own right. Hence, many came to revere the scaredy-cat as a master of vanquishing evil.

We were still guffawing in the car on the way back. "It's lucky that we've been able to evade a fight today. The fool would surely plan another revenge. We must be ready and what's more, I'm thinking we should regain the initiative. Heaven forfend that the fool might have an ambush set for us next time!" "Yeah, that's what I have been trying to tell you!" Edelweiss quipped, "It's better to inform your police friend so that he can be ready to help in case you need his a.s.sistance!" I peered at Edelweiss briefly; it was clear that what happened to Aunt Ulan had deeply unsettled her.

"But the park is an open area! He'd never dare set ambushes in such a public place!" I nodded. "Yeah. So we'd need to be especially careful if the next encounter is not at a public area. And yes, it's time we keep Zheng Shuang in the loop. We'll need his help to contain any news of this lest our next street brawl erodes the reputation of the Center."

Once we had returned to the Center, I called Zheng Shuang. "h.e.l.lo there, Shiyan! How are you?" "Hi. I'm fine. It's been some time since we last met at your station. I have not spoken to you about my fiancée yet. Well, seeing as we'd be free tonight, how bout dinner together?" "Fine! But I should be the one buying! Consider it a show of courtesy for your wife too after the fiasco last time!" I giggled into the mouthpiece. "Nah. Both of us should not be buying. Let my fiancée handle the bill. She's getting married to me!" There was a brief beat of silence. "All right then. Where to?" But before I could answer, Chongxi roared into the phone, "The Fishing Village Restaurant!" To my surprise, Zheng Shuang heard him. "Which Fishing Village Restaurant?" he asked and Chongxi whisked my phone from my hand and replied, "The one just next to the Majestic Hotel in town!" "All right then!" Edelweiss stifled a burst of laughter while Lin Feng scowled at Chongxi, jabbing a finger at his head, "Eating is all you do best!"

I hung up the call and said to Edelweiss, "Remember, speak to Zheng Shuang nicely and apologize to him for what happened at his office then. It was fortunate we know him; otherwise, it would have been impossible for us to get off the hook cleanly..." She nodded obediently; even though she was once a notorious horse bandit, Edelweiss was hardly unreasonable, especially as far as I was concerned.

I slipped my phone back into my pocket, but it rang again. I looked at the screen and there was yet another stranger's number! Who could it be this time, I almost asked out loud. Annoyed by the recent frequency of strange phone numbers, I barked into the mouthpiece after tapping the "Answer" b.u.t.ton, "This is the De Chang Center for Paranormal Studies! Who's this!"

My voice seemed to have frightened the caller. A meek, girlish voice came from the other end, "Err... Is this Senior Shiyan speaking?"