Metaphysics Master (11) Ling Jing pressed her lips together. With her intact hand gripping the spirit stone, she gestured behind Qin Jingzhou. “Go calm your daughter first.”
She’d interacted with the big boss for a while now and knew he favored girls—but it had always been a surface-level preference, not something heartfelt. This time, though, Jin Ziyun was actually able to sit on his shoulder. At the very least, that meant she’d truly caught his eye.
Qin Jingzhou followed Ling Jing’s gesture and turned around. Sure enough, his daughter—still in her hospital gown—was looking at him with longing eyes, her face plainly screaming “Dad, please explain.” At her side, little Gu Chen, his precious grandson, had his mouth pursed, looking like he might burst into tears at any second.
From the perspective of a three-and-a-half-year-old, Dad and Uncle had suddenly collapsed unconscious, a strange grandpa was chatting with a scary big-sister whose arms and legs were bones, and Mom had only just woken up not long ago… The fact that the kid hadn’t cried or started trembling already meant he had excellent potential.
What else could Qin Jingzhou do?
He already doted on his daughter; naturally, he could… more or less dote on his grandson too. He mobilized a bit of spiritual energy, circling Jin Yuansheng and Gu Yu several times—paying special attention to their heads. Very soon, both showed signs of waking up. He then told his daughter to go kick them a couple of times.
If Dad told her to kick, Jin Ziyun wouldn’t hold back—except she refused to kick her husband, and insisted on taking off her shoes before kicking her brother. That was all.
After taking a few light kicks, Jin Yuansheng and Gu Yu woke up one after the other. Both sat up abruptly, staring straight at Qin Jingzhou.
Qin Jingzhou instructed, “Go clean yourselves up. Shower if you need to, change clothes if you need to. We’ll eat together in a bit. I have something to say after.”
Once Jin Ziyun and the others left, Ling Jing tried to advise him, “If you’ve got a plan, you might as well explain everything at once. Half-hiding things is really boring.”
Qin Jingzhou replied, “I don’t like being cryptic either. If I don’t say everything, it’s either because saying it all would be too unpleasant—or because I’m not fully certain myself.” As he spoke, he helped Ling Jing set up an additional spirit-gathering formation so she could recover her human appearance faster.
Ling Jing narrowed her eyes. “Thanks, big boss! If it weren’t for you, I’d probably be starting out as a fierce ghost, constantly losing control…”
Qin Jingzhou smiled. “This world’s difficulty isn’t low. Even though I’ve revealed a Core Formation realm, enough to look down on most others, in reality this world can’t truly support Core Formation–level power. Once or twice is fine, but if it happens too often, the world itself may reject me.”
Ling Jing reacted quickly. “Taixu Sect is already plotting to use demon cores as external cores… If they dare take on work like that, they must have the means to back it up.” Taixu Sect might not have a true Core Formation cultivator, but they definitely had ways to deal with one. After thinking a bit, she added, “The authorities definitely aren’t clueless about Taixu Sect’s ambitions. Chairman Xie being this courteous to you feels a bit like seeking talent—or killing a chicken to warn the monkeys.”
Qin Jingzhou only smiled without replying.
After dinner, the whole family gathered in the living room. Qin Jingzhou spoke plainly first. “Chao Lan is a disciple of Taixu Sect. He stole part of you siblings’ luck. Ziyun, you were hit especially hard, which is why you ran into that car accident and fell unconscious.” He then looked at Gu Yu. “Your luck was also leaking abnormally. At first, I thought it was because of Ziyun, until I saw traces of ghostly qi on you.”
Gu Yu didn’t need to ask—he knew that ghostly qi came from the ghost lady beside his father-in-law.
Ling Jing smiled faintly and introduced herself. “I’m Ji Qing’s cousin. Ji Qing invited me to the Gu household, then she and her son joined forces to kill me. Before that, I had no grudge with them whatsoever.”
Ji Qing was Old Master Gu’s third wife—and Gu Yu’s step-grandmother. This step-grandmother was younger than Gu Yu’s biological mother, and the son she bore—Gu Yu’s so-called uncle—was even younger than Gu Yu himself.
Gu Yu subconsciously glanced at his wife, then asked seriously, “If there was no prior grudge… was it because your fate or birth chart was special, making you likely to become a fierce ghost after death?”
Qin Jingzhou answered for Ling Jing. “Correct.”
Gu Yu took a deep breath and said frankly, “Grandpa just contacted me. That mother and son have already gone missing. Grandpa had people thoroughly search the villa they lived in—there wasn’t even a single strand of hair left. Dad, that ‘uncle’ of mine… he’s probably not my grandfather’s biological son, is he?”
Qin Jingzhou said, “Ask for the birth charts.”
Gu Yu immediately contacted his grandfather and quickly got a response. Qin Jingzhou’s skill in divination might only be elementary-school level, but checking blood relations was no problem. “He’s indeed not your grandfather’s son.”
Gu Yu let out a genuine sigh of relief. Not worried about Old Master Gu’s blood pressure spiking from the truth, he told him directly.
Once Gu Yu put his phone away, Qin Jingzhou solemnly warned his son, daughter, and son-in-law. “Taixu Sect won’t let me go—and they won’t let you go either. Be careful during this period. Try not to stray too far from me. When Chairman Xie introduces work later, I’ll bring all of you along.”
Jin Yuansheng, Jin Ziyun, and Gu Yu answered in unison. Taixu Sect? What’s there to be afraid of?
…
Elsewhere, Su Weiwei had finally been approved for discharge after undergoing at least five rounds of detailed examinations at the Ancient Martial Research Institute.
Even though the process had been exhausting, she felt it had been… worth it.
She’d known from a young age that she was different. For instance, she could easily gain others’ favor. As long as she was willing, the other party would grow more and more infatuated, unable to stop themselves from wanting to treat her well and consider everything for her sake.
Her talent was basically that of a born Sea Queen.”
However, Su Weiwei had always been cautious. Before fully probing the limits of her ability, she kept only one fish in her pond—named Chao Lan.
Now, through the institute’s researchers, she learned that she had spiritual roots, though of poor quality. She also learned that Chao Lan had long been valued by a Taixu Sect Grand Elder and accepted as a disciple…
The reason she and Chao Lan had been kept under observation was because they’d both been contaminated by demonic qi released by Jin Yuansheng.
After being briefed on demonic qi’s effects, she learned that this batch was both low in quantity and quality. As a cultivator, Chao Lan was affected somewhat but would be fine. As for herself—because of her special constitution, repeated confirmation by researchers showed demonic qi had no effect on her at all.
In front of the leaders and researchers, she naturally wore an expression of immense relief. Yet the voice in her heart—never wrong—told her that her talent was far from that simple.
Walking out of the institute, Su Weiwei took out her phone to call a car. While waiting, she pondered: so Chao Lan actually had such a background… Her intuition really was excellent.
But Jin Yuansheng had a powerful father too. She needed to think about whether—and how—she could also draw Jin Yuansheng into her fish pond.
As that thought crossed her mind, a low-key business van slowly pulled up in front of her.
She hurriedly glanced at her phone—her ride was still at least a kilometer away!
The van window rolled down, revealing an exquisitely beautiful face.
Su Weiwei froze. Even with heavy makeup, the woman still resembled her by sixty to seventy percent!
The woman smiled and spoke first. “My name is Ji Qing. Child, I’ve come to take you home.”
Su Weiwei felt dazed. Struggling slightly, she managed to ask, “My parents…”
“They believe you’re their biological daughter,” the woman continued. “My child, you resemble me greatly, so I’m giving you a task. Complete it, and I’ll take you home—to meet your biological father, the greatest man under heaven.” Her tone gradually turned eerie. “Go seduce Zuo Jingzhou.”
Su Weiwei’s eyes went blank. She slowly nodded. “Okay.”
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