Chapter 47

This time, Yue Yin felt genuinely disheartened.

Thankfully, her colleagues were far off in the cosmic void and couldn’t witness this scene, or she’d surely be ruthlessly ridiculed. If word got out, could she still hold her ground among the Old Ones?

Gazing up at the moon, Yue Yin sighed in frustration, “Such shame, such disgrace. Tomorrow, I’ll study diligently and stop reading novels in class…”

The scent of freshly prepared food wafted through the air, interrupting her reverie. She quickly looked down and rubbed her hands together, saying, “Forget it. Let’s eat first.”

Overnight, new faces had appeared at the street food stalls outside the school. Several more stalls were now selling fried pancakes, including one manned by a handsome, inexperienced young man who struggled even to cook an egg properly.

This so-called “part-time student worker” now stood by his food cart, casually holding a spatula and chatting intermittently with the neighboring barbecue stall owner.

The barbecue vendor scoffed, “I never thought that science society would one day be reduced to exploiting male beauty. Chen Nan, you’re making us men look bad.”

With a frosty tone, Chen Nan retorted, “As if the Zhou family’s any better. The Metaphysical Society likes to call itself the top civilian abilities organization, but aren’t you doing the same thing?”

“You’re so concerned with the Science Society’s business. Maybe you should worry more about Zhou Xiaohai, who was so terrified by that S-rank ability user’s glance this morning that he couldn’t move, or about Zhou Huai’an, who got knocked out investigating the malevolent entity at the school and only woke up after a month.”

The occultist’s face darkened, but he sneered back, “Funny how you’re so aware of Huai’an’s condition. Seems the Science Society is awfully busy too.”

Nearby, other undercover ability users appeared occupied with their tasks but subtly perked up, eavesdropping with interest.

Chen Nan shrugged nonchalantly, “Well, we’re all in this together. And the Metaphysical Society has had plenty of embarrassments these past years—makes for good entertainment.”

Chen Nan’s every word seemed to stab at the heart of the occultist, who nearly overturned his stall in fury, growling, “You wanna fight, you son of a—”

“One grilled cold noodles, please,” a high school girl with long black hair said softly as she approached Chen Nan’s cart, her head lowered.

The barbecue vendor’s retort died in his throat, and every ability user within earshot immediately tuned in.

Chen Nan looked at the girl in front of him, surprised to see her return to his stall. But he quickly adjusted his expression and got to work on the grilled cold noodles, keeping his gaze down.

The fact that Yue Yin hadn’t paid for her meal that morning had been an eye-opener for everyone. After careful consideration, they concluded that as a legendary S-rank ability user, Yue Yin wouldn’t be dodging a mere seven-yuan pancake tab.

After all, just a bit of logic would reveal that money wouldn’t be an issue for an S-rank. For high-level ability users, wealth was but a number. Not to mention, due to their connections with influential people, many high-level users amassed unimaginable wealth and prestige.

Yue Yin’s refusal to pay was surely due to Chen Nan’s inadequate cooking skills! His pancakes were either burnt or overly oily, and he couldn’t even flip an egg properly, leaving Yue Yin, as the customer, to step in herself.

Since Yue Yin hadn’t spared him a glance today, it proved his looks were ineffective. The Science Society had no choice but to revise their strategy, intensively training Chen Nan in grilled noodles-making, hoping that culinary mastery might earn the favor of an S-rank.

Reluctantly, Chen Nan spent the entire day cooking griled cold noodles. By now, he must have cooked close to a thousand, leaving him feeling as numb as a fishmonger who’d gutted fish for ten years straight.

With deft movements, he spread out the pancake, applied oil, brushed on sauce, cracked an egg, and expertly cooked it. Throughout, he maintained a stoic expression while sneaking glances at Yue Yin’s reaction.

Unbelievable—his pancake skills had improved so much in just one day!

Determined to redeem himself, Chen Nan performed with near-showman flair, producing an almost-perfect fried pancake.

“All done. Here’s your pancake,” he said as he handed it to Yue Yin, thinking she’d surely be impressed this time.

Yue Yin took a bite and replied, “Oh, thanks.” Then, she turned and left.

Chen Nan stared after her in shock, too stunned to speak. When he finally snapped out of it, he was nearly dizzy with rage.

Yue Yin hadn’t paid again!

What kind of person was this? Such poor manners!

Chen Nan’s worldview was on the verge of collapse. When he’d been urgently transferred to City A upon hearing about an S-rank at the school, he’d been thrilled.

An S-rank ability user represented the pinnacle of power among ability users—a walking deity in human form. And this particular user had reportedly become S-rank after awakening during a sacrificial ceremony. She was only sixteen, still in high school, and strikingly beautiful, almost inhumanly so.

This was the stuff of comic book heroes, the kind of person that inspired a sense of awe.

Of course Chen Nan wanted to get close to Yue Yin, to glimpse the world of the S-rank he revered.

His fascination was only natural. Admiration for high-level ability users was instinctual among all ability users—back in the day, even Xiao Jun from the Paranormal Incident Management had tried to collect signatures from the top users.

But Chen Nan never could have guessed that the fabled S-rank would be like this.

When the night study session ended around ten, the air carried a slight chill. Chen Nan looked at his fried pancake stall, feeling colder than the night breeze itself.

Taking off his apron, he muttered to himself, “Something’s wrong here.”

Once Yue Yin had left, others from the Science Society gathered around him, curious. “Well, how did it go?”

After a day of intense training, Chen Nan’s pancake-making skills had dramatically improved—he was now confident and capable.

Chen Nan’s face was conflicted. “It’s no use.”

The others exchanged uneasy looks, and then he continued, “She didn’t pay again.”

Ten minutes later, members of the Metaphysical Society, Stargazers, and other A-rank ability users sidled over, pretending to be passersby while eavesdropping.

They, too, had set up grilled cold noodles stands outside, but Yue Yin hadn’t chosen theirs. They’d watched her stop by Chen Nan’s cart and wanted to see if he’d managed to make a breakthrough.

As they approached, they overheard the Science Society members whispering gravely, “Why didn’t she pay this time?”

“Did she forget her wallet? Was it the flavor? Did you add cilantro?”

“Or… maybe she just has no manners? She even kicked a tree on her way out.”

The group of A-ranks gathered, deeply puzzled.

Meanwhile, Yue Yin, having finished her pancake, hopped onto a shared bike to find Jiang Suliu.

Several new pancake stalls had popped up outside the school, most with unfamiliar faces that practically screamed their origins…

After a moment’s thought, she still chose her familiar seller, Chen Nan, from that morning.

Not for any particular reason; she just wanted to see if he’d look as defeated as he had that morning if she didn’t pay him again.

As Yue Yin rode her bike, she tried calling Jiang Suliu but got no answer. She decided to head toward his house, intent on kindly delivering his homework herself.

When Yue Yin arrived at Jiang’s mansion, she found that Jiang Suliu was not at home.

The family’s butler welcomed her in politely, explaining that Jiang Suliu had gone abroad with his parents and wouldn’t be back anytime soon.

Yue Yin glanced at the impassive elderly butler, noting the dampness on his polished black leather shoes.

In the lavishly decorated hall hung a portrait of an old man sitting sternly on a wooden chair, holding a staff. Around the edge of the frame, several thick, writhing tentacles extended out, as though they were trying to catch fresh prey.

The butler, standing tall in his suit with his silver hair and a courteous smile, explained, “Young Master Jiang and the family are currently vacationing on an island. The time zones are different, and they might be out of contact for a while.”

Under his shoes, the floor became damp, and the ornate windows shivered as the moonlight seeped in through the trees, illuminating the grand mansion at the city’s edge.

Tentacles wriggled along the edges of the frame, and in the crystal-lit hall above, the body of a girl in a white dress dangled from the chandelier. A putrid smell wafted from the vast swimming pool nearby.

“Miss Yue Yin?” The butler, with a gentlemanly smile and gloved hands, offered, “If you have any urgent matter, I can pass a message to Young Master Jiang.”

Yue Yin nodded, deep in thought, “Alright.”

She felt thoroughly disappointed.

The shadow she’d summoned had been sent on other important business, her follower Shen Xioadi had been taken by Bai Xiulian, and Jiang Suliu… who knew if he was even alive.

As it stood, the Moon Cult had dwindled down to just her!

Yue Yin scratched her head in frustration, renewing her determination to recruit new followers. Jiang Suliu had been so remarkably capable that she almost forgot she only had a single disciple.

Just one follower was far from enough—any misstep and the Moon cult would have no one left.

Like now, she wasn’t even sure she’d make it back in time to collect Jiang Suliu’s remains.

With a sad sigh, Yue Yin turned to leave, downcast, as the butler’s polite smile lingered, only growing more genuine as he watched her go.

Satisfied that he’d deceived this human, the butler nodded approvingly, his smile widening as he gazed at the girl’s departing figure.

As Yue Yin walked away, she remained unaware that the tall butler behind her had turned deathly pale, like a lifeless shell. His grin slowly twisted, and his gaze grew increasingly predatory as he watched her go.

In the eerily quiet mansion, the cold felt unnatural, and even the moonlight seemed to carry a sinister chill.

The butler fixed his gaze on the girl’s silhouette as she left, oblivious to his strange transformation.

Tentacles slowly extended from the painting’s frame, while the butler’s arms stretched and contorted like putty.

His arms, hidden beneath his suit, grew longer and longer. His hands dissolved into a fleshy mass that drooped wetly at his sides.

From the mass, a mouth formed, revealing layers of razor-sharp teeth and dripping with foul-smelling saliva.

Just then, Yue Yin abruptly stopped, turning back curiously. “Oh, I just have one more question.”

The butler froze in surprise. As she began to turn, his elongated arms quickly retracted, returning to normal in the blink of an eye.

He raised an eyebrow with graceful composure, “And what would that be?”

Yue Yin tilted her head, staring at him, “No one’s here to do my homework. What should I do?”

The butler’s elegant smile slowly stiffened, repeating in confusion, “What?”

Yue Yin took a step back, casually unshouldering her backpack, and lowered her gaze, saying, “How bold, to go after my disciple.”

“He’s my only follower, after all.”