Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Unable to summon Lin Juan, the Holy Snake Cult had no choice but to send someone directly to the palace to confront him.

This time, it was the bishop who came.

The bishop was a middle-aged man in his fifties, with a stern, square-jawed face that exuded authority.

"Your Highness, the bishop requests an audience," a servant whispered as he entered.

Lin Juan glanced at the man seated upright. Truthfully, he wasn’t eager to meet the bishop, but he needed to understand his own connection to the Holy Snake Cult.

He stood and said to the man, "I’ll come back tonight."

Lin Juan met the bishop in a shade pavilion.

The weather was hot, and the palace was built with numerous pools of varying sizes. Larger ponds had gazebos constructed over them for shade and coolness.

"Your Highness, it has been a long time."

Lin Juan looked over the bishop. "Did you come here to clean up your followers’ mess?"

Lin Juan’s words were direct. Upon seeing him, the bishop clearly sensed that the Young Master was different from before.

"The Young Master has changed a great deal," the bishop said, staring intently at Lin Juan.

His appearance was the same, but the aura he exuded, both inside and out, was completely different. Could a person change so drastically overnight?

The bishop added meaningfully, "It’s as if the Young Master has become a different person."

In this world where divine and supernatural forces existed, the bishop’s words heavily implied that Lin Juan might have been replaced by someone else.

It wasn’t just the bishop who suspected; even Father Moxi, after calming down, had similar doubts. The Young Master had been chosen by them from a remote area as the most suitable vessel to house a deity.

In the past, even though the Young Master was obsessed with power, he always acted subordinate to them due to his background. Most importantly, he was obedient—following their orders, transforming himself into a half-human, half-snake monster by growing a "sacred" tail.

He had suffered greatly for that tail, enduring immense pain. After it grew, it took him a long time to adapt. Only after he had arranged everything externally did he reemerge in public with a new identity.

From then on, he became the revered Young Master, and his humble origins were buried in the torrent of history.

"I just don’t want to be your puppet anymore," Lin Juan brushed it off. "On the morning of the last prayer, the deity entered my dream. During the prayer that day, there were signs of divine appearance. I believe this was a revelation from the deity."

"A dream?" the bishop said, surprised. "You mean you dreamed of the deity on the morning of the prayer?"

Could it be that the strange occurrence with the giant snake statue was truly a divine manifestation? Not as a warning to the Young Master, but as the rumors suggested, an expression of favor toward him?

He stared intently at Lin Juan, searching for any trace of deception on his face.

"I did dream of it," Lin Juan said casually, toying with a cup on the table. "You know what I’m capable of. The rumors that day weren’t spread by me."

Lin Juan’s words were a mix of truth and falsehood. It was true that he had dreamed of the "deity," but not in the way the bishop assumed. In his dream, the "deity" had instructed him to deal with the "traitors."

There was no sign of deception on Lin Juan’s face.

After all, it was true that he had dreamed of the "deity," and the rumors indeed hadn’t been spread by him.

When the rumors emerged, the Holy Snake Cult had immediately investigated and found that the Young Master wasn’t behind them. The bishop looked down thoughtfully. Could it be that the Young Master’s changes were truly influenced by the deity?

If so, things would become complicated.

The "deity" was real and far too powerful for them to challenge.

Should they simply accept this?

The bishop couldn’t decide.

After this test, the bishop hadn’t obtained any information favorable to the cult.

Returning to the Holy Snake Cult, the bishop immediately summoned the high-ranking members for a meeting.

When he reported the results of the test, the meeting room fell into silence.

After a long pause, Father Moxi spoke resentfully, "Are we just going to watch him ruin our plans step by step?!"

They had schemed for so long, only for everything to benefit someone else???

No one could accept this outcome.

"I will first test the deity’s intentions. If it truly is as the Young Master says, we will stay put. Remember, the Young Master’s true purpose isn’t merely to become the nominal ruler of this land," the bishop reminded them.

"We understand."

After this, the Holy Snake Cult became much more subdued. Lin Juan dumped all sorts of matters onto Yan and found himself completely free.

Having found a workhorse who could perfectly handle various affairs, Lin Juan felt it was his duty to maintain this workhorse’s physical and mental health so he could work longer.

To this end, Lin Juan often showed concern for the man.

To ensure the man ate properly, Lin Juan even joined him for all three meals daily. Later, feeling lazy, he complained softly, "Aren’t we living too far apart? Should we move in together?"

Lin Juan thought it was a great idea. Living closer would save him the daily trips for meals and allow him to closely make sure the man rested properly. According to the servants, the man often worked late into the night.

How could that be?

So, Lin Juan decided to move the man, relocating him to his own chambers. After all, his chambers were spacious, and accommodating one more person wouldn’t be an issue.

The man paused while trimming the plants.

The plants in the study had been brought back by Lin Juan. He had read somewhere that looking at green things was good for the eyes, so he picked some during his daily visits. The man found vases to arrange them in, placing them on the windowsill, where they became a unique decoration.

"Why bring this up so suddenly?"

Lin Juan sat by the window, propping his chin in his hand as he looked at the man. "I just thought of it, so I said it. Will you move or not?"

"Yes."

Lin Juan excitedly called the servants to help the man move.

Among the servants, a shadow guard glanced at his master, wanting to say something but holding back.

On the first night of living together, Lin Juan couldn’t sleep. He slipped on a robe and stepped outside, where he found the man also standing there.

The man turned around. "Why are you out here, Young Master?"

"Couldn’t sleep," Lin Juan said, slithering over with his tail. "What about you? Why aren’t you asleep either?"

The man didn't dare say that it was longing for someone that kept him awake.

Before living together, it was manageable, but living together, he could sense the youth’s presence everywhere. Every corner made him wonder what the youth had done there, and he couldn’t help but draw nearer almost unconsciously.

"Alright, it’s getting late. Whatever it is, we can talk tomorrow. Go to sleep now."

Staying up late himself was one thing, but he couldn’t allow the man to stay up late.

Lin Juan ushered him back to his room. After this unexpected outing, he returned to his own room and quickly fell asleep.

The man lay in bed, unable to sleep for a long time.

After what felt like an eternity, his thoughts grew fuzzy, and in his drowsiness, someone appeared in his arms.

Hair reaching his waist draped over his arm as the young man, dressed in loose clothing, rested partially against his chest.

The man’s first instinct was to push him away.

But when he looked down and saw the young man’s face, his pushing motion paused.

This face was all too familiar—its owner had pushed his way into his life, filling the emptiness in his heart.

The young man in his arms seemed uncomfortable, letting out a low, soft murmur.

The sound was gentler than usual, slow and lingering, rippling through the man’s heart like a pebble dropped into still water, sending ripples across the surface.

The young man burrowed against him, half-asleep and dazed, much like a cat acting spoiled.

"Young Master?" As the words left his mouth, the man realized his voice was hoarse.

It was the hoarseness of emotion surging yet suppressed. He wanted…

Unable to resist, as if bewitched, the man’s lips pressed against the corner of the young man’s mouth.

"Juanjuan…"

The name, deliberately buried in his memory, slipped out unconsciously. The man didn’t notice anything amiss; like a parched man tasting sweet rain for the first time, he eagerly kissed from the corner of the youth’s mouth upward.

The kiss deepened.

The young man let out a restless whimper, held even tighter.

In the dream's haze, reality-wise, mist, moonlight-pale, swiftly seeped into the man’s body. Power accumulated within him, and scales appeared and vanished on his skin.

Time passed, and the man on the bed was gone, replaced by a large black serpent.

The serpent opened its dim eyes and instinctively crawled outward.

"Hiss."

Lin Juan seemed to hear the hissing of a snake, but his eyelids were heavy. Deep, nearly black-purple mist enveloped him layer by layer. The young man slept within the dark fog, like a treasure guarded by some unnameable existence.

The black serpent was enormous yet moved with agility, without making a sound as it gradually replaced the dark mist, its entire body crawling onto the bed.

But its size was too great for the bed to contain, leaving a section of its tail resting on the floor.

Black scales interwoven with silver-white scales created an oddly grotesque yet beautiful sight.

As if uncomfortable, the young man murmured drowsily.

The black serpent froze.

Its movements grew even softer and slower as it pressed itself tightly against the youth, feeling the continuous warmth radiating from him.

Scale rubbed against scale.

The dark fog obscured the view, but a glimpse of a white snake tail could be seen swaying faintly before being covered by black.

Just being pressed close like this filled the black serpent with great satisfaction.

His…

It was his…

Strange murmurs plunged the young man into an even deeper dream.

Waking from the dream and sensing the abnormality of his body, the man stiffened.

Was this really how he felt about the young man?

Oddly, he felt no resistance—instead, a sense that this was how it should be washed over him.

He and the young man should have this kind of intimate bond.

Besides the kiss, something else seemed to have happened in the dream, but the man couldn’t remember.

Lin Juan felt like he must have had a dream, though he couldn’t remember the details. He only felt a sense of restraint, and the scales on his tail hurt a bit.

When the man entered, Lin Juan was looking at his tail.

"What’s wrong?"

"My tail feels uncomfortable." Lin Juan pressed on his tail, and a numb, tingling sensation spread. He quickly withdrew his hand.

"Let me see." The man’s expression turned serious as he strode to the bedside, crouching down to carefully inspect the young man’s tail.

The touch of warm skin made the tail shrink back reflexively.

Lin Juan found his own reaction strange—his tail wasn’t normally this touch-sensitive.

After examining the entire tail, the man’s face grew solemn. "Some areas are red, as if rubbed by something. Do you remember anything, Young Master?"

Lin Juan shook his head.

The man got some ointment and applied it carefully to Lin Juan’s tail.

"Maybe we don’t need ointment? It’s not that bad." Lin Juan’s tail instinctively shrank back.

"Putting on a little will help it heal faster."

Lin Juan noticed that after the man moved in, their roles seemed reversed.

Before, he had been the one looking after the man, but now it was the opposite. Amid handling various matters, the man paid extra attention to his daily life.

It wasn’t an annoying kind of attention but considerate, measured care that never caused annoyance.

Life continued as usual. Aside from occasionally waking up with a painful, red tail, Lin Juan’s days were quite comfortable.

The man took care of everything, caring for Lin Juan with great attentiveness.

Their unabashed attitude caused the news to quickly spread beyond the palace.

Upon hearing that the Young Master was rumored to be involved with the King, Deng Wenruo's expression changed drastically.

"But Mr. Lin has a partner back home!"

Deng Wenruo wanted Lin Juan to regain his memories—this place was clearly abnormal. It might be manageable for a short while, but over time, he feared being assimilated by the supernatural domain.

If even someone as powerful as Mr. Lin were to succumb and become a supernatural entity...

Deng Wenruo hardly dared to imagine the scale of disaster it would spell for humanity.

While trying to find a way to contact Lin Juan and restore his memories, Deng Wenruo also had to search for his missing companions who had entered alongside him and deal with matters related to the Bishop. He was so busy that he wished he could split himself into three people.

Working harder than a beast of burden.

*Sometimes he wished he could lose his memories too.*

Dragging his exhausted body back to his residence, a centaur in armor brushed past him.

Deng Wenruo suddenly halted.

"Ping..."

The centaur gestured to him, and Deng Wenruo closed his mouth, leaving with a calm expression.

*That was Ping-ge!*

Back in his room, Deng Wenruo was astonished. *How did Ping-ge turn into a centaur?*

He couldn’t have mistaken him—besides, the gesture Ping-ge made was one Deng Wenruo had learned from him after joining the Paranormal Special Affairs Office.

That night, Deng Wenruo lay awake, tossing and turning.

*What is Ping Yunhan’s status now? Why hadn’t he been able to find him after searching for so long, yet now he shows up out of nowhere? And what about their other companion? Did Ping-ge know where he was? How can he contact Ping-ge?*

One question after another surfaced. Though physically exhausted to the extreme, Deng Wenruo couldn’t fall asleep.

He got up and slowly went out.

After wandering aimlessly for a while, he heard a faint sound.

*Who would be out here...?*

Deeply embarrassed, Deng Wenruo was about to turn away when he saw the shadow of a large snake rising against the wall ahead.

Its tongue flickered, and as if sensing someone nearby, the snake turned its head.

Deng Wenruo hurriedly hid.

A few minutes later, he heard the sound of the snake swallowing.

After that, the noise grew softer until it faded entirely.

Deng Wenruo waited a while longer, ensuring no further sounds could be heard, then cautiously emerged and crept toward the scene.

Aside from a puddle of blood on the ground, there was nothing else.

*Where had that giant snake come from?*

Since realizing this place was likely a supernatural domain, Deng Wenruo hadn’t let his guard down. He had been gathering clues and was absolutely certain—he had never heard of a giant man-eating snake appearing here.

Returning to his residence, his head swimming with questions, Deng Wenruo found himself completely unable to sleep.

Elsewhere.

A sinister bell chimed, and the giant snake, as if controlled, slithered toward a bubbling blood pool.

It slid in with a slither.

The harsh sizzling of corrosion followed, and a man in black robes emerged from the shadows.

The man in black robes gazed fervently at the blood pool, muttering, "Great God, the offering is ready. Please partake."

Gurgle.

Gurgle.

The bubbles in the blood pool grew bigger and bigger, and a snake’s head, almost as large as the pool itself, emerged from the bloody depths.

It was the God.

The God had descended.

The man in black robes trembled with excitement, shaking as he kowtowed, pressing his forehead to the ground.

The snake’s glowing green eyes fixed on the prostrate figure, its mouth opening and closing as its long tongue flicked, "Hiss, hiss."

The man in black robes trembled even more violently.

They stood in awe of the God’s power and craved His abilities. They went to great lengths to become His followers, gaining supernatural abilities and obeying the God’s will to turn this world into His personal feast.

Everything was food for the God.

Their minds and their flesh.

Under the influence of the Holy Snake Cult, ignorant people consumed pills that caused physical transformation, transforming themselves into more and more delicious forms, awaiting the day the God would descend and feast on this carefully prepared delicacy.

The Festival of the God was approaching.

Lin Juan only learned about this festival when reminded by an attendant.

"Festival of the God—is it the God’s funeral?" Lin Juan rested his chin in his hand, his tone casual.

"Young Master," the attendant exclaimed, "you can’t say that! It’s a ceremony for the God, not the God’s..."

He hesitated, too afraid to outright say "the God’s funeral," wary of some unseen presence.

"Understood. What do I need to do?"

"The entire process is arranged by the Holy Snake Cult. The Young Master only needs to follow the procedure."

The Festival of the God was half a month away.

Lin Juan asked Yan if he knew about the Festival of the God. The man shook his head: "There’s never been a festival like this before."

"It seems it was made up by the Holy Snake Cult," Lin Juan mused. "Could it be that the Holy Snake Cult truly intends to summon their God?"

“They’ve been making a lot of moves lately.” At some point, the man had stopped concealing things from Lin Juan—intentionally or unintentionally revealing his influence and access to insider information.

“I was waiting for them to act against me, but after that incident, they suddenly went silent. That’s fine—I’m curious to see what they’re really up to.”

The Holy Snake Cult publicly announced that the church had received divine instructions to hold a grand and solemn Divine Sacrifice Ceremony half a month later.

Devout followers eagerly anticipated the event.

Due to preparations for the ceremony, Deng Wenruo found himself with significantly more free time than usual.

He finally managed to contact Ping Yunhan.

“Brother Ping,” Deng Wenruo’s eyes welled up at the sight of the strangely familiar centaur. “What happened to you? Are you alright?”

“Why cry? I’m perfectly fine,” Ping Yunhan replied helplessly. “I’ve grown fond of this form. I was injured at the time and couldn’t move for a long while. Once I recovered enough, I set out to find you all. I located Xiao Feng, but I haven’t yet found Mr. Lin and the others. Do you have any news about them?”

Ping Yunhan didn’t mention how severe his injuries had been. The moment he entered the mist, he was ambushed by a monster. Caught off guard, he nearly died.

In a desperate struggle, he defeated the creature—but was left gravely injured and immobile. It wasn’t until two days ago, when he unexpectedly transformed into a centaur, that he regained mobility.

Xiao Feng’s situation was no better. When Ping Yunhan found him, Xiao Feng had already fully embraced his new identity—forgetting his past as a superpowered individual, his origins from the outside world, and the critical mission he carried.

“Has Xiao Feng regained his memories now?” Deng Wenruo asked anxiously after hearing Ping Yunhan’s brief summary.

“He remembers—but only briefly. To avoid danger, I didn’t bring him along and left him in a safe place,” Ping Yunhan replied.

“If there’s a way to restore memories, there’s hope,” Deng Wenruo said, feeling immense relief. “I’ve found Mr. Lin. Brother Ping—have you heard of the Young Master?”

“I have.” The Young Master’s story was widely known, and Ping Yunhan had heard plenty. Deng Wenruo wouldn’t bring him up without reason. Connecting the dots, Ping Yunhan felt a sudden unease.

Ping Yunhan voiced his suspicion: “Is Mr. Lin connected to the Young Master?”

“The Young Master *is* Mr. Lin,” Deng Wenruo said gravely. “I’ve interacted with the Young Master several times and confirmed it’s him. But Mr. Lin appears to have forgotten everything about the outside world. Recently, rumors have surfaced that he’s grown close to the King here.”

No matter where one was, gossip and rumors always spread quickly.

Ping Yunhan’s expression turned serious: “So Mr. Lin has been affected by this anomaly too?”

It seemed this incident was especially treacherous.

“Brother Ping, I’ll try to arrange a meeting between Mr. Lin and you. Do you have any method to jog his memory?”

“I can only try,” Ping Yunhan replied, uncertain.

Outside.

After days of searching, the Chengdu Branch of the Paranormal Special Affairs Office still hadn’t located anyone—and had even lost the head of the Lu family. They urgently reported the situation.

Director Liu’s expression darkened upon hearing the report: “How could Mr. Lu vanish in Chengdu?”

“Mr. Lu was in Chengdu for an inspection. He entered a club and never emerged. We investigated the club thoroughly—but found nothing.”

Lu Yanzhou’s disappearance was reported by Qi Ruilin.

They’d scheduled a meeting for the next day, but when the time came, Qi Ruilin waited in vain. Calls went unanswered, so he went to the hotel—where the front desk informed him Lu Yanzhou had checked out and hadn’t returned. With no other options, Qi Ruilin filed a missing-person report.

“Keep investigating. People don’t just vanish without a trace,” Director Liu ordered.

The other end acknowledged with a firm “Yes.”

“Bad news,” said the staff monitoring regional pollution data, their faces pale. “Pollution levels in the dense forest 50 kilometers west of Chengdu have spiked dramatically—already surpassing Class A thresholds and nearing Class S!”

Director Liu shot upright: “Sound a Level One alert. Dispatch reinforcements from headquarters immediately.”

News of a possible Class S Anomaly in Chengdu spread rapidly among supers. Top-tier supers were urgently recalled to assist in Chengdu.

Lu Mingxuan saw the report on the Revelation Forum and gripped his phone tightly. His uncle—and his husband—were still in Chengdu!

After careful maneuvering, Deng Wenruo finally secured an opportunity to bring Ping Yunhan—disguised as a palace guard—to meet Lin Juan.

It was during a preliminary inspection before the official commencement of the Divine Sacrifice Ceremony.

Lin Juan escorted the King—who had remained sequestered in the palace for days—outside for some fresh air.

Deng Wenruo discreetly cleared the guards from the route Lin Juan was certain to take, then waited with Ping Yunhan along the path.

Deng Wenruo held little confidence in Ping Yunhan’s ability to restore Lin Juan’s memories. He’d visited Xiao Feng—yet instead of full lucidity, Xiao Feng experienced only fleeting moments of external memory each day. Most of the time, he was simply a cheerful, carefree golden retriever.

Just like the one Lin Juan was leading now.

The sound of wheels drew closer.

“Young Master, your subordinate requests an audience.”

Hearing the voice, Lin Juan lifted the carriage curtain: “It’s you?”

He remembered this attendant—the one who had warned him.

“Does the Young Master have visitors?”

A calm male voice emanated from inside the carriage.

Could it be the King?

Lin Juan stepped down, closely followed by the man.

Upon seeing the man’s face, Deng Wenruo exhaled in quiet relief.

Wasn’t this Mr. Lu?

What a narrow escape. He’d almost feared they’d have to help their boss’s human partner compete for affection with his new otherworldly crush once they got out.

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Author’s note: Month-end—begging for a wave of support [pitiful][pitiful][pitiful]