Chapter 21: Peace – Part 3
Hiss.
A light slice with a paper cutter opens a seam on the cardboard box.
Li Chengyi, filled with anticipation, lifts the lid to reveal a red ceramic flowerpot fixed in place with white foam.
Inside the pot, amidst the soil, are scattered white wisteria flowers and their branches.
At the center of the pot, on a chestnut-colored branch as wide as half a palm, delicate white flowers bloom in clusters, starkly different from the purple usually associated with wisterias.
White wisteria has a white hue with touches of purple, whereas the more common variety is predominantly purple with white.
“Here it comes.” Li Chengyi takes a deep breath, faintly detecting the fragrance of the flowers.
He suppresses the excitement in his heart and reaches out, gently touching the somewhat wilted white flowers.
‘White Wisteria: A type of deciduous liana, a variant of the common wisteria, emits a strong fragrance, blooms from May to June.’
‘Floriography: The hand of intoxication.’
‘Flower Scale Armor: Begin absorption for evolution?’
Upon reading the last line, Li Chengyi feels a wave of relief wash over him.
‘Yes, this is it!’
There are many variants of wisteria, but he chose the white wisteria because this particular variant is seldom cultivated in large quantities by merchants.
This would make it easier for him to absorb and evolve, as well as to repair the Flower Scale Armor.
Right away, he confirms the inquiry from the Flower of Evil.
‘Yes.’
Instantly, a cool sensation, thin as a thread, flows from his fingertip that touched the white wisteria petals.
This sensation does not flow into the ring of the Flower of Evil as before but instead travels along his palm, arm, and into his chest.
And then, it spreads throughout his body.
A feeling of coolness, as if bathing in mint water, gradually emerges all over Li Chengyi, making him shiver slightly.
Luckily, there’s no one at home.
His parents are at work, and his sister Li Chengjiu is out for daily training to prepare for an upcoming assessment.
Li Chengyi looks at the back of his right hand, where the ring of the Flower of Evil is emitting a faint purple light.
A new set of information flows into his mind.
‘Flower Scale Armor is evolving.’
‘The evolution process is influenced by personality, values, physique, goals, etc. Different nutrients can be added midway to enhance the strength of the Flower Scale Armor.’
‘Different nutrients can cause variations in the final strength, shape, and even the abilities of the Flower Scale Armor. Please try with caution.’
“Nutrients?” Li Chengyi narrows his eyes, intrigued that the Flower Scale Armor can change according to the wearer. However, he quickly understands that ancient armors were always tailored to their wearers, so it’s reasonable for the Flower Scale Armor to have this feature.
This only increases his anticipation.
‘What exactly are these nutrients?’
As his curiosity emerges.
New feedback from the Flower of Evil swiftly enters his mind.
‘Nutrients: There are two types, needed for the Flower Scale Armor to evolve and take shape before completion, it needs to absorb flower essence.
After taking shape, besides repairs, it no longer requires flower essence but needs to absorb all kinds of malevolent thoughts from the surroundings.
Absorption of malevolent thoughts: Completely overpower an individual harboring evil thoughts, causing them to transform those thoughts into other emotions, thereby completing the absorption.
Current evolution progress: 1%, Malevolent thoughts: 0.’
Malevolent thoughts! Li Chengyi finally realizes.
‘No wonder this ability is named the Flower of Evil; cultivating a fruit from evil thoughts truly fits its name.’
‘It seems that depending on the wearer, the absorbed malevolent thoughts can lead to different evolved forms of the Flower Scale Armor.’
Thinking this, he carefully lifts the flowerpot out of its foam holder, takes it to the bathroom, wipes it clean with a damp cloth, and places it in his bedroom.
“The room is a bit too small. If only I had my own garden.”
Seeing the once-empty space now occupied by a pot of white wisteria, he feels it has become somewhat cramped.
The thought of renting a place outside grows stronger.
Sitting at his desk, Li Chengyi takes out his smartphone. Without concealing anything, he directly searches for the shipment details of the white wisteria.
He plans to visit the place himself, complete the evolution of the Flower Scale Armor in one go, and return.
Once the evolution is complete, he would only need to visit for repairs.
‘It looks like I’ll need a lot of different flowers for the development of the Flower of Evil. Maybe I should consider starting my own floral base.’
This thought gradually forms in his mind.
Because smartphones aren’t secure, he disguises his interest as that of an ordinary person extremely fond of flowers. The information he searches and the keywords used are all innocuous.
Before long, he finds the vendor that shipped the white wisteria.
He makes a call.
“Hello, is this Treasure Source Flower Shop?”
“Yes, how can I help?”
After a brief and swift conversation, Li Chengyi arranges a time to visit their floral base under the guise of wanting to wholesale some white wisteria.
Having set the time, he takes another look at the flowerpot in his bedroom, feeling much relieved.
‘Next, I need to figure out how to test the exact strength of the Flower Scale Armor.’
These past days, he hasn’t been idle nor devoid of thoughts. By repeatedly experimenting alone at night, he successfully managed to control the automatic wearing speed of the Flower Scale Armor.
Li Chengyi discovered that if, within the short time frame of deciding to wear the Flower Scale Armor, he consistently commands it to slow down.
He could make the Flower Scale Armor only partially envelop his body.
For instance, only covering his hands, legs, or just his torso.
This way, it would be much easier for him to test the strength of the Flower Scale Armor. After completing the basic physical training, he would start firearm training. Finding a suitable opportunity then would be feasible.
*
*
*
Suoyang City, XC District.
On the old street lined with five-story residential buildings, the ground floors are filled with small storefronts.
The yellowing walls of the shops, each fitted with buzzing air conditioning units on the side.
In front of one of the shops, with the blue rolling door firmly closed, a slightly overweight man wearing a silver jacket squats in the corner, smoking a cigarette. He looks around occasionally as if waiting for someone.
“Xiao Ding.” A bald man slowly approaches from the sidewalk, carrying a bag and greets the squatting overweight man.
“Hey, Zeng Brother, you’re here?” The chubby man, Xiao Ding, quickly stands up and greets with a wide smile.
“Whatever you need, the boys are waiting.” He approaches with a flattering smile, taking out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offering one.
“Thanks. The boss wants to find two people; isn’t your sister great with computers? Have her help us look them up, and you’ll be rewarded handsomely,” says the bald man in a low voice.
“What kind of people? We can’t handle anything too sensitive,” Xiao Ding hesitates.
“Nothing sensitive, just help us out. It’s five grand a pop,” the bald man whispers, “It’s what your sister makes in a month, and it’s all legal. Just a screenshot or even blotting out identifiers is fine. It’s easy, and as long as nobody talks, who would know it was your sister?”
Xiao Ding ponders for a moment then nods.
“Alright, I’ll ask her.”
“This is the side profile of the two people. No need for screenshots, handwritten notes or even a transcription will do,” says the bald man, understanding Xiao Ding’s concerns and smiles.
“I understand.” Xiao Ding takes the composite sketches from him and looks down.
In the photo, one closely resembles Li Chengyi, and the other is the gun-wielding man from the Dead End.
Xiao Ding pulls out his phone, snaps a couple of photos, then steps aside to make a call.
Shortly, he returns with a smile on his face and ends the call.
“Done. I’ll send you the details later. These two aren’t problematic.”
“That’s good to hear.” Zeng Brother smiles too. “If possible, it’d be best to get as much information on their family members as well, usually available in public records, right?”
In modern society, direct violence is always the last resort. If threats or pressure can be applied through family members to ensure Li Chengyi’s cooperation in protecting the lady in Dead End, it would be ideal.
“No problem, registration details include names. Tracking is easy, and my sister said she could even direct the phone. When do you need it?” Xiao Ding says.
“As soon as possible,” Zeng Brother quickly replies.
“Right, my sister said it’ll be done within an hour. Just the money…” Xiao Ding smiles.
“The usual place, half upfront. Go and get it yourself in a bit,” Zeng Brother nods.
“Boss is generous!” Xiao Ding beams with joy.
*
*
*
New Century Building, Hongjin Company.
Sindra stands with arms crossed in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the sunny streets of Suoyang District, silent.
His eyes are deep, pondering something, his right thumb unconsciously rubbing the outer side of his arm.
Knock, knock, knock.
There’s a knock on the door.
“Sir, we’ve found them.” A nasally male voice calls from outside.
“Aran? Come in,” Sindra turns and looks towards the door.
The door gently opens, and a stocky man with a buzzcut walks in.
His complexion is sallow as if he’s ill, his eyes are turbid, and his towering presence feels almost like a moving wall as he enters.
Stopping three meters away from Sindra, he slightly bows his head.
“Based on the side profile of Mr. Li Chengyi, we’ve found the other survivor. Here are the details for your review.”
The man hands over a set of documents.
Sindra takes them and browses through.
“Only one premonition?” His brow furrows slightly, obviously displeased.
“Yes, this Meng Dongdong apparently has a weaker psyche. She only had one premonition before entering Dead End directly. According to Li Chengyi, she was just lucky to survive temporarily,” explains Aran, the burly man.
“Too little potential. Li Chengyi had three premonitions, the most among all contractors we’ve encountered. The more premonitions, the more likely to survive. Meng Dongdong holds no value,” Sindra closes the documents with a slight shake of his head.
“And given her affluent background, it’s unlikely she’d cooperate with us,” Aran adds.
“Yes, let her go. Focus on Li Chengyi,” Sindra decides.
As they speak, hurried footsteps approach from outside and stop at the door.
“Boss, Mr. Chengyi’s phone is currently being tracked by a hacker, attempting to retrieve his and his family members’ information from the telecommunications operator’s database.”
“Cut them off, give them a warning,” Sindra says calmly.
“Additionally, about Meng Dongdong. Since there’s no chance of her becoming a contractor, she’s of no value to us. Remove her from the pool of potential candidates.”
“Should we…” Aran makes a throat-slitting gesture.
To ensure the safety of contractors, extending their survival time, and exploring the secrets of Dead End to the fullest, they’ve taken such measures before.
(End of Chapter)
