Nightmare’s Call

At the port.

Large containers were picked up by cranes and loaded onto a docked cargo ship.

Near the port, at a small supermarket, a tall and thin man in a gray windbreaker, as well as a round hat, looked out at the ship’s long elongated body in the distance.

“Kailu, you’re late,” the tall and thin man suddenly said.

“Only two minutes late.” A strong man in a black jacket came up.

The man had two bloodstains on his wrists and a silver cross on his chest. It was the mysterious man who had just fought with Lin Sheng.

“You had a fight?” The thin and tall man gave the mysterious bloke a quick glance and noticed the bloodstains.

“Just one of my tasks. I met the man on the way. I thought this would be an easy task, but I didn’t expect him to be so tough.” Kailu smiled. “It’s nothing, just a little bruise on the wrist. It’ll heal in a few days.”

The tall and thin man nodded. “Don’t take those tasks for a while. But… is there anyone here who can hurt you?” He sounded surprised.

“It’s just a bruise. I didn’t use the gun.” Kailu smiled.

“No wonder.” The tall and thin man then understood why Kailu was injured. If Kailu had used his gun, no one in Huaisha could have escaped his assassination.

“Alright, is everyone here?” The smile on Kailu’s face disappeared.

“Yes.” The tall thin man nodded. “We can start now.”

…

How did you get the information needed to find the person who tried to kill you? Lin Sheng had thought about that for a long time.

If it involved the White Tarots, it would be very difficult for him to do that. Besides, he was just an ordinary high school senior student.

He had good swordsmanship, but none of his skills worked in front of guns. He could react faster than the shooter at close range, but what if he was a little farther?

…

Blackwater district, Ironfist Club.

“What? Someone tried to kill you?”

While Russell and Madillan were having dinner, Lin Sheng sat in a chair and told them what had happened to him. They were startled by the news and stopped eating immediately.

Russell looked serious. “And he nearly shot you? Are you sure he really wanted to kill you?”

Lin Sheng nodded slightly. “I’m sure. The man did it with intent. No mercy.”

“It shouldn’t be the White Tarots… They’ve promised my grandfather. Failing to keep a promise is a taboo in their world.” Russell frowned.

“I’m surprised too, so I want to ask you if you wanted to find out who’s behind this, how would you do it? Your family has a lot of connections. You know where to start, don’t you?” Lin Sheng calmed down and asked.

He was not afraid of a strong opponent, and he was afraid of not finding that man. His experience in the dream realm had given him infinite strength.

“The only way is to get the most well-informed person. Such people are often intermediaries in the gray area,” Russell explained.

“Any idea?”

“There’s a guy in Sleigh Bar named Red Baboon. He’s an arms dealer. I saw him once because of my former firearms coach. I heard that he also sells information. Maybe we can try to contact him,” Russell whispered.

“What about the price?” asked Lin Sheng.

“I don’t know. I’ve never dealt with him.” Russell looked puzzled.

“If it’s just simple information, it shouldn’t be too expensive…” Madillan whispered.

“I’ll check it out later,” Lin Sheng muttered to himself. Either way, he had to find a breakthrough. He could not live on tenterhooks every day for fear that someone would kill him.

Lin Sheng then went on to train a few young men who had just joined the club. At about 7 pm, he left the club with his sword case on his back and headed home.

On the way back, there was a large crowd of people in the street.

They looked solemn as they held banners and wore identical white armbands.

Holding a loudspeaker in her hand, the leading woman shouted as she marched, “Say no to the 96 Treaty! Oppose the betrayal of this country!!”

“Say no to the 96 Treaty! Oppose the betrayal of this country!” The rest of the group roared along.

At a glance, Lin Sheng guessed that there were at least hundreds of people shouting in the demonstration.

The white banner also read “Get out, Redwinians! Get out of Xilin!”.

Like the rest of the bystanders, Lin Sheng stopped and stood by the side of the road, quietly waiting for the demonstration to pass.

Witnessing the demonstration, he was glad that there were no Redwinians in Ironfist Club. The members consisted of Xilinians and other nationalities, or mixed-race people. He did not want to get involved in such trouble.

After the demonstrators passed them, Lin Sheng took the bus home.

Once he got off the bus, he walked into his neighborhood and quickly went upstairs.

As soon as Lin Sheng opened the burglar-proof door, he saw a pair of brown boots on the floor that he had never seen before.

Then, his mother called him.

“Come in quickly, Yueyue’s here!”

Who??

Lin Sheng wanted to put on his slippers but found that they were gone. Someone was probably wearing them. He stooped to open the shoe cabinet, then took a pair of plastic slippers and put them on.

As for that Yueyue, he had no recollection of meeting her before.

Lin Sheng put on the plastic slippers, closed the door, and walked into the living room.

A beautiful girl, about twenty years old, was sitting beside Gu Wanqiu.

The girl was wearing a pink ruffle dress with white short sleeves, which revealed her long legs. She had long black hair that fell on her shoulders, and she looked sad. The tea table in front of them was covered with used tissues.

“Hi, I-I’m gonna go wash up…” The girl saw Lin Sheng come in and stood up in a panic.

“Go ahead. Go to bed early. Your room’s over there, and the bed is ready,” Gu Wanqiu said softly.

“Ok, thank you, auntie.” The girl hurried into the bathroom with slightly swollen eyes and closed the door.

“Wang Yue is your distant cousin. Do you remember her? You used to play at their house when you were a child, and you tied the hair of one of her favorite dolls into a knot. She’s been cheated by a friend. She got a loan and ended up owing a lot of money,” Gu Wanqiu whispered.

“Yueyue just borrowed ¥3,000, and two months later, she has to pay back ¥6,000!” Gu Wanqiu sighed.

“…And, she’s here for?” Lin Sheng asked, frowning.

“She’ll stay with us for a few days. The men followed her to her school, Langang University. She’s now afraid to go back to school or contact her family. If I hadn’t seen her when I went grocery shopping today, the girl would have…” Gu Wanqiu sighed.

Lin Sheng understood. His mother saw his distant cousin in distress, so she took her home.

She normally avoided trouble, but she would always help when it came to relatives, just as she did this time. Was she not worried about the debt collectors following her home?

There was nothing Lin Sheng could say or do. Plus, he had not been in touch with this cousin for years, so he found it hard to sympathize with her.