The Law of Heaven

Chapter 14 Ruan Qi's Strength

The security guards at the entrance of the community hospital had already noticed something was wrong. They approached with walkie-talkies, wanting to find out what was going on. The creditor chuckled, put away his butterfly knife, and temporarily let the uncle and his family of three go. He then turned and walked to a black BMW parked on the side of the road, opened the door, and got in.

"Mr. Zhai."

The uncle was still unwilling to give up. He pulled his wife and children and asked tremblingly, "Is there any room for negotiation on the debt issue? Please give me another chance. Those two children are now helpless. Give me some time and I can get that shop back."

Mr. Zhai did not answer, but turned around and revealed a cruel smile. His teeth gleamed a chilling white under the light, like a shark spotting its prey.

The sight sent chills down the spines of the uncle's family.

After getting into the car, Mr. Zhai didn't rush to drive away. Instead, he first found Zhongfu Street on the map navigation, lit a cigarette, and started puffing away.

After a moment of silence, he made a phone call.

"Hey."

A somber voice came from the phone.

"This family is really useless. They only remember a general area, but not the specific house number, and they don't even remember the name of the shop!"

Mr. Zhai scratched his bald head, patted the steering wheel, and said, "If all else fails, I can go and ask those brother and sister myself. But that would be too much of a blunder, and besides, the police have been keeping an eye on the area, so I can't really take action."

The person on the phone thought for a moment and replied, "There's no need to risk contacting that brother and sister. We only suspect they might have a token of the Misty Tower, but we don't have concrete evidence. It's clearly not a wise choice to anger Yu Ge based on mere speculation. I'd appreciate it if you could go there first and look for clues."

Mr. Zhai nodded and said, "I can cut off the power to that neighborhood and disguise myself as a repairman to search every house. If I find anything, it's not too late to go back and look for the brother and sister. Anyway, they're students, they can't escape."

The person on the phone continued, "Yes, but you need to hurry. There are still many suspicious targets on the list, so you need to thoroughly investigate them in the next few days."

Mr. Zhai licked his lips: "Understood."

After hanging up the phone, Mr. Zhai suddenly sensed something and turned around sharply to look behind him. He saw the streetlights on the long street were dim and the shadows of the trees were swaying.

Mr. Zhai saw nothing, but he arched his body like a beast, his eyes, which seemed to be filled with a chill, staring at the empty street. He only lowered his guard when family members began to bring patients out of the hospital.

"illusion?"

He fiddled with the butterfly knife in his hand.

In the end, he put aside his suspicions and drove away.

Aihara breathed a sigh of relief in the shadow of the taxi.

The creditor's senses were incredibly sharp; he actually noticed someone was spying on him in the dark. If Aihara hadn't told the driver to turn off the engine and lights beforehand, he probably would have been discovered.

"It seems my senses aren't completely without leaving a trace; some people with particularly sharp intuition can still detect that someone is watching them. But as long as I'm unsure who the watcher is, I'm still safe..."

Aihara rubbed his temples to relax his tense nerves. After several attempts today, he had gained a preliminary grasp of his abilities. So far, his perception could cover a range of ten meters and could not exceed its limit.

His world is within ten meters.

“Mr. Zhai seems to have quite a background. On the surface, he’s a loan shark, but in reality, he’s an immortal being with powerful backers. The good news is that we’re just one of the suspected targets, and our priority isn’t very high. Even if Mr. Zhai dies, they might not necessarily go after me to the death.”

Aihara leaned back in his chair, recalling their conversation at the hot pot restaurant earlier that day. The police chief of Wanghai Road Police Station was a good friend of his second uncle and had been protecting them all along.

This is also good news.

At least basic security is now guaranteed.

As for my uncle's family, they are nothing but beasts.

It's already a miracle that Aihara didn't personally wipe out this family, but keeping them alive might lure out the loan shark company behind them, so it's not advisable to take action for now.

He closed his eyes to rest for a moment, then suddenly opened them.

"Master, go to Zhongfu Street."

·
·
Aihara grew up in Zhongfu Street and knows the road conditions there very well. Every night at 8 p.m., there are traffic police checking for drunk driving on that main road. If you don't avoid them, you will probably be delayed for a few minutes.

Especially during that time of day, there are usually a lot of buses parked on the roadside, and if there is a slight traffic jam, it will probably delay you by another ten minutes.

Therefore, Aihara got off the train early, turned into the alley at the corner of the intersection, and ran wildly along the quiet and dimly lit path. He climbed over the iron fence on the wall, and the howling night wind hit him in the face, causing his clothes to flow like water.

Like a nimble cheetah, a cat dozing on the wall only saw a dark shadow whizz past and was so frightened that it wet itself on the spot.

After awakening, Aihara's physique became extremely strong. Even a middle-distance running champion would not be his match, and he could run 800 meters without even stopping to catch his breath.

Aihara leaped down from the wall and landed in the courtyard of the Mirage Tower. He looked around at the old buildings, each one brightly lit, the air filled with the aroma of stir-fried dishes, and he could faintly hear the cries of children.

The wall was covered with dark green ivy, and in the corner there were two puppies mating.

"Wang Wang."

Aihara was so frightened that the two dogs ran away.

"Is this the legendary alternate dimension?"

Aihara couldn't understand it. This was the place where he grew up, an old, dilapidated community that many people looked down on. There was nothing unusual about it; it was just an ordinary place.

"Are all alternate dimensions this ordinary?"

Aihara shook his head, feeling that this shouldn't be the case.

He speculated that this place must be protected by some kind of rule, a kind of ability to modify cognition. Even his uncle's family couldn't remember the exact address of the Mirage Tower. Only those who possessed the token could find the shop.

Aihara took out his phone and sent a WeChat message.

"Xiaosi, are you asleep? Hurry up and reply to my message. Can you remember our store's address?"

Ding dong.

Xiangsi replied to the message instantly.

"Isn't it just on Zhongfu Street?"

"more specific."

"How could I possibly remember?"

What's the name of the shop?

"The Treasure Pavilion? The Scripture Repository? I forgot."

Aihara was certain of his idea, but he didn't expect that Kosuke couldn't remember it at all. It seems that his perception had been modified.

He recalled that when he was a child, he helped his second uncle run the shop. Over the years, he had never seen anyone other than customers visit the shop, and the shop was often empty.

At the time, Aihara thought the shop was just having a bad day.

"According to Jianmo, people without an invitation can't find the Mirage. Even if someone walks in, they might not be able to see the shop. I'm a little curious, what does this shop look like in the eyes of the neighbors?"

Aihara turned around, took out his keys, and prepared to open the door.

Damn it.

He suddenly remembered that he had left his keys at home.

He changed his clothes, but he hadn't taken his keys out of his school uniform pocket. A lot had happened today, and he had overlooked it.

But when he touched his pocket, he was stunned.

He slowly took his hand out of his pocket, revealing an antique gold key in his palm.

The key to the mirage.

Aihara remembers very clearly that the key was definitely in her school uniform pocket and not on her person.

But when he needed it, the key reappeared on him, which was like a ghost story.

Aihara suddenly threw the key into the bushes.

As he reached into his pocket, the key appeared once again.

It was as if I'd seen a ghost. "Sure enough, this key can't be lost."

Aihara fiddled with the key, confirming his guess: "It's not an ordinary key. Interesting."

He opened the door and went into the store, turning on the lights as he went.

Aihara sat down at the counter, picked up the landline, and prepared to make a call to the customer surnamed Ruan.

This time he became more cautious, silently refining his words in his mind to avoid saying anything wrong that might reveal a flaw.

About five minutes later, the landline rang.

Good evening, boss.

Ruan Qi's greeting came through the phone. She was probably in a good mood, as her voice was like the strings of a zither being plucked, with a pleasant and melodious quality.

Xiang originally intended to call her under the guise of offering condolences to talk about something, but unexpectedly she called first.

What a coincidence.

"good evening."

Aihara replied reservedly, "Is there something you need?"

Ruan Qi was no longer as reserved as when they first met. You could tell she was in a good mood, and her voice had a touch of girlish charm: "I'd like to talk to you tonight. Are you at the shop now? If it's convenient, I'll come over right away."

Aihara heard car horns honking over the phone.

"Are you on your way now?"

He hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "Of course it's convenient for me, but I'm afraid it might not be convenient for you. Some uninvited guests came to the vicinity of the Mirage Tower tonight, and I'm worried it might cause you some trouble. How about... we reschedule?"

Judging by the time, Mr. Zhai should have already arrived in the alley of Zhongfu Street, and the two sides might run into each other.

It turns out the store was there to notify people about this.

If Ruan Qi is strong enough, then there is naturally nothing to worry about. She can even be persuaded to help deal with Mr. Zhai through a transaction.

Conversely, if Ruan Qi's strength is insufficient, this reminder can also help her avoid some risks.

"Oh? An uninvited guest?"

Ruan Qi's voice became hoarse, and her tone became dangerous, filled with a strong sense of bloodlust.

When Aihara had told this girl's fortune earlier, he could tell that this customer's personality was quite unusual.

Ruan Qi may seem like an innocent and harmless girl, but she is actually a grumpy older sister inside.

He seems to have a bad temper.

"It's nothing. I think I saw a suspicious fellow. Please wait a moment while I go and twist his head off. I'll come back to see you in a bit."

beep.

The phone hangs up.

Aihara stared in disbelief at the dial tone.

"Huh? Is he that irritable?"

·
·
In the alley of Zhongfu Street, Mr. Zhai walked under the shadow of the plane trees. Looking up, he could see the windows lit up in the old buildings. Through the semi-transparent curtains, he could vaguely see shadowy figures moving about, and in the distance, he could hear people arguing.

On his way there, he saw some antique shops that had gone out of business and felt for a moment that he had come to the right place. But as he went deeper into the alley, he felt a little lost because the place was too ordinary.

“The Mirage Tower is on the other side; this is clearly not it.”

He muttered to himself, "Unless it's because I don't have the pass to the other side and am stuck in the present world."

Mr. Zhai walked around several times but made no valuable discoveries. He only saw a low building with a courtyard at the end of the alley.

That low building looked like it hadn't been lived in for a long time, like an illegal structure from the last century. It was dilapidated and unremarkable, and it might be demolished at any time.

Occasionally, an old man walking his dog would pass by, and he would politely ask him, but he didn't get any information.

The old man only said that there used to be a few antique shops here, but they had all closed down many years ago, and he didn't know which one the old man was looking for.

"Should we search house to house?"

Mr. Zhai abandoned this plan, thinking it would be better to set up surveillance around the street to see if the brother and sister would come here and catch them red-handed.

This can save a lot of time and effort.

Mr. Zhai felt that he was truly exceptionally intelligent. He considered that the brother and sister might also become immortal beings, and perhaps he would have to use some means to force them to tell him.

"Tsk tsk, if you really have secrets, how should I torture you then?"

He fiddled with the butterfly knife, then turned and walked into the shadows of the alley, intending to leave.

Mr. Zhai seemed to merge into the shadows, about to melt away.

At that moment, Mr. Zhai was stunned.

Because he saw someone walking towards him.

No, that's not who I'm talking about.

That was clearly a monster!

The dim streetlights couldn't illuminate the quiet alley, and on the old stone brick road, one could vaguely see ancient and rugged shadows winding and moving, like a dragon about to take flight.

The jagged footprints trampled into the mud, the grating sound of scales scraping against the wall, the thunderous, violent breath, and the molten gold vertical pupils that shone in the darkness.

A powerful dragon roar echoed in the silence, its aura expanding rapidly, whipping up a fierce wind and sending sand and stones flying.

The sycamore tree swayed in the wind, its withered branches breaking as it trembled, and the sound of its leaves scraping against each other was like the sound of ocean waves.

Mr. Zhai stared wide-eyed in fear as he felt a surge of spiritual energy, like a tsunami, emanating from a mythical creature. The immense pressure was overwhelming.

He really wanted to escape, but he couldn't.

Those molten gold vertical pupils looked down from above, as if a god were gazing at ants, revealing cruelty and pity.

Mr. Zhai's ability is to manipulate shadows, allowing him to move freely within them. This makes him an outstanding assassin, responsible for countless deaths over the years, while he himself remains elusive and untraceable.

I'm about to advance to the next level, from the Creation Rank to the Reincarnation Rank. My abilities will increase further, and I can even turn myself into a shadow to avoid most attacks.

But now, faced with the dragon's might in those eyes, his abilities were rendered useless, and his soul trembled.

They couldn't even move.

That monster was from a completely different dimension than him.

"God..."

Those were Mr. Zhai's last words in this world, words filled with despair and terror.

His neck was snapped on the spot.

In his final moment, Mr. Zhai seemed to see an ancient and majestic dragon floating in the darkness, its molten gold vertical pupils faintly reflecting a slender shadow.

A girl wearing a baseball cap appeared in the alley, dressed in a loose white shirt with tight jeans and black sneakers, looking youthful and beautiful.

Her skin was snow-white and delicate, like mutton fat, but it was covered with iron-gray scales, which was shocking to the eye.

"Mirage Dragon..."

Mr. Zhai's face was contorted with blood flowing from his seven orifices, and he stopped breathing completely, dying a very clear death.

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(End of this chapter)