Chapter 19: Chapter 19

The afternoon matches had also ended, and evening arrived.

After dinner, Mo Ying and Xiya each returned to their rooms.

Liushu stood alone by the window in the tenth-floor lobby, cigarette in hand, looking downstairs.

A whole day had passed, and there was still no sign of Shuang Yun.

Since even Wei had not found her, it could only mean that Shuang Yun was no longer in this area.

A person as big as she was had just vanished into thin air like that.

Someone appeared behind Liushu.

Liushu turned around and saw Xiya.

"This is the boys' floor, are you lost?"

Liushu exhaled a puff of smoke and said to Xiya.

"I knocked on Shuang Yun's room, but no one answered."

Xiya got straight to the point.

Liushu continued to smoke, saying nothing.

"Where did Shuang Yun go? Did something happen to her?"

Xiya wasn't as naïve as Mo Ying. She was perceptive. She had already sensed something unusual this morning when watching the match at the training hall.

Liushu placed his index finger by his lips in a silencing gesture and shook his head.

Seeing Liushu's gesture, Xiya knew this was something she could not be told, so she did not press further.

"I'll go back then..."

She had a rough guess—Shuang Yun most likely was in some trouble.

As she walked back, Xiya glanced over her shoulder. Liushu was still facing the window, lost in thought.

Was he worried about Shuang Yun?

"Teacher, Shuang Yun will be fine. You should take care of yourself, don't worry too much."

Even though Xiya did not know what had happened to Shuang Yun, she still tried to comfort Liushu.

Liushu turned around.

"No, no, you've got it wrong. I was just thinking which way I should escape out to drink tonight."

Xiya instantly felt her concern was wasted.

In another apartment, inside Luo Yushi's room.

Li Shihe held a book in one hand, leaning against the wall.

Hearing Luo Yushi's call, he put down the book for a moment and looked up.

"I still don't understand—are there really gods above the clouds in the sky?"

Luo Yushi gazed at the night sky through the window.

Li Shihe gave a definite answer.

"There's always been skepticism about the existence of gods. Although countless stories and books mention them, very few have truly seen a god. So your doubt is normal."

"But I can give you a definite answer: gods do exist," ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by NoveI-Fire.ɴet

"If you're interested in learning some things about the gods, I can tell you a bit. But I can't reveal too much."

Li Shihe shrugged, sat on the sofa in the room, and set the book on the coffee table.

"Please explain to me."

"Above us, there is another world called Geluo Celestial Domain where the gods dwell. You should know this."

"In the Celestial Domain, there is an organization called the Sanctum. They are responsible for balancing everything in Yggdonia. The envoys sent by the Sanctum are called Orderkeepers. They follow the god's instructions and maintain the world's order."

"If something abnormal happens in Yggdonia—say, a plague suddenly breaks out killing many and the residents cannot solve it themselves, then the Orderkeepers appear to resolve it."

"Or, if one day a meteor falls from the sky and threatens to exterminate the lives of a huge region, the Orderkeepers will also intervene. You can think of them as people who maintain global peace."

"The Orderkeepers are all followers of the Goddess of Judgment."

"Are they all Sovereign-level Hunters?"

"Hm? No, no. Sovereigns are those who stand at the gods' side, while Orderkeepers rank below the gods. The two are different."

"The Celestial Domain is made up of various organizations under different gods. Orderkeepers belong to the one called Sanctum, but there are others."

"Sanctum is overseen by the Goddess of Judgment. Another organization in the Celestial Domain is called Moon Azure, led by the Goddess of Time."

"Moon Azure doesn't have as many people as Sanctum, but they handle different kinds of affairs. That group deals with catastrophes enough to threaten the world."

"For example, if a disaster capable of destroying a civilization suddenly appeared, Moon Azure would dispatch Sovereign-level Hunters to resolve it."

"I'll leave it at that for now. It's not suitable to say more."

"One more question, teacher: How many gods are there in the world?"

"As the books say: the God of Underworld who rules death, the Goddess of Judgment who judges the world, the Goddess of Order who defines order, the Goddess of Time who weaves time, the God of Storm above the clouds, and the leader of the gods, the Supreme God."

"You really know a lot,"

Luo Yushi smiled at Li Shihe.

"Well, I'm an old monster myself,"

"I'll be going out for a bit,"

"Didn't I make plans to drink with someone tonight? If I don't go now, I'll be late."

Li Shihe opened the door and went out.

"So, has the BOSS gone off the rails recently?"

In a small bar, Li Shihe and Liushu clinked their glasses.

"Don't mention her. If she's not sleeping, she's lying down. If she can sit, she'll never stand; if she can lie down, she won't sit. Out of twenty-four hours, she sleeps for twenty, and the other four she spends lying down,"

"Spring drowsiness, autumn fatigue, summer dozing, and winter hibernation—that's her exactly."

Liushu tore open a cigarette pack and handed one to Li Shihe.

Li Shihe accepted it and snapped his fingers; the cigarette lit itself.

"Everyone's smoking e-cigarettes now, ever thought about switching?"

"I still prefer these,"

Liushu replied with a smile.

"Looks like you spend all your money on smokes and booze."

Li Shihe opened a beer for Liushu.

"Drinking and smoking are the meaning of my life... well, part of it."

Liushu downed a beer in one go.

"That's a pretty cheap purpose,"

Li Shihe said with a wry smile.

"With my monthly salary barely reaching two thousand Naye, am I supposed to have big ambitions? Forget it, I just care about smoking, drinking, and eating."

Liushu was rather carefree—or perhaps just frivolous.

"The salaries for Dreamscape Academy teachers are actually quite high. You're only making so little because you don't really work. I see Wei is living just fine."

"Can't help it—I'm just not cut out for teaching. Honestly, every day before work even starts, I'm thinking about getting off."

Liushu said, helplessly.

"Well, that's true enough. Anyway, let's drink. I've already finished a whole case and you're still on your first, can you speed up?"

Unnoticed, a pile of empty bottles had accumulated next to Li Shihe.

"Are you using the Crimson King to drink or what? You've been chatting with me the whole time, how did you drink this much?"

"Come on, cheers! Whoever goes home first tonight is a dog."

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

For those confused, it seem Li Shihe and Liushu are friends...

I checked the characters of their names and nothing's the same...

So Li Shihe is probably just teasing Liushu...