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Chapter 7: The Prophet’s Threat (2)
Before he could even finish reading the email, Shen Si felt as though he had been hit by a paralyzing spell—every muscle in his body had gone rigid like stone.
He took a deep breath, clenched his fists so tightly that the veins bulged as if they might burst. With a heavy thud, he punched the bed. The force could have smashed through a wall, but the mattress only bounced slightly before returning to its original shape.
He collapsed onto the bed in despair. For a long time—
It seemed that if he didn’t follow the prophet’s instructions, he wouldn’t just die—he’d be utterly ruined before death!
“Tell me, what else do you want me to do to her—” Shen Si found himself once again under the control of this prophet he had never even met.
Ever since he received the first email from the prophet two months ago, his life had spiraled completely out of his control.
As the most influential Chinese singer in the world, Shen Si received more fan emails each day than could fit in an entire building, if printed. He never read them, never cared. Those girl-scented messages were nothing but emotional noise to him.
But the ones sent by the prophet—directly to his private inbox—were a different story. They posed a serious threat.
He even wished he had never opened them.
But the scariest part was that he couldn’t afford to doubt the prophet’s ability to foresee the future. The mysterious individual had repeatedly predicted events with stunning accuracy—from large-scale disasters like earthquakes, political upheavals, plane crashes, and stock market collapses, to trivial incidents like Lulu swallowing a key or the lighting technician getting hit by a falling rig. Every single prediction had come true.
He had gone from disbelief to awe, from thinking it absurd to feeling amazed, from curiosity to excitement—and now to sheer terror… The feeling of having your weakness tightly gripped in someone else’s hand made him feel like Sun Wukong trapped in Buddha’s palm—one wrong move, and he’d be crushed under the weight of Five Elements Mountain, never to escape.
He had no choice but to obey.
As a singer-songwriter who had been popular in the entertainment industry for 14 years, it had been two years since that incident—and he hadn’t been able to sing a single note since.
He knew all too well that the foundation of his career had crumbled. Over the past two years, he and Zhou Wen had done everything they could to keep the secret hidden, shifting his career focus to acting, trying to use intense media exposure to compensate for the massive losses caused by his inability to sing.
And the 36-city, 36-show tour—tickets for which had long sold out—was non-negotiable.
If the truth about his condition were exposed, he’d be a spent force. Everything he had worked for over more than a decade would vanish like a bubble.
The entertainment industry was even more ruthless than the stock market.
He couldn’t afford to lose!
Xu Zhiyi took off her thick protective suit. After enduring the long and complicated disinfection procedures, her day of work was finally over. She walked to the small garden outside the virology lab and stood silently for a while.
It was already 3 a.m., but she didn’t feel cold at all. Finally able to taste real air, she was reluctant to move. She could even pick up the faint dust in the air and the lingering scent of winter sweet flowers hiding somewhere in the shadows.
She took a deep breath, pulled a cigarette from her coat pocket, and took a long drag. She held the smoke in her lungs for several cycles before slowly exhaling.
Pale blue smoke curled and swirled in front of her, ring after ring.
“Professor Xu—” A gentle, friendly female voice called from behind her.
Xu Zhiyi turned to see Zhu Ling wrapped in a thick down jacket. Even in the middle of the night, her lips—painted a light rose color—were strikingly defined. No matter how busy the lab got, Zhu Ling was always impeccably dressed—just like her attitude toward science: precise and meticulous.
Even the dean used to joke that Zhu Ling was the most refined rose in the biology department, while Xu Zhiyi was the indomitable blade hanging in the lab.
Xu Zhiyi, thin as a blade, smiled at her. “Still here this late?”
“Yes, I was feeling a bit emotional today, so I stayed a little longer.” Zhu Ling’s smile wasn’t boastful, perhaps even slightly embarrassed.
“I haven’t had a chance to congratulate you on securing the 2 million yuan research grant,” Xu Zhiyi said with a polite smile that still felt distant. She had a knack for turning genuine words into something aloof and unapproachable.
“I heard you applied for the same grant. But I didn’t see your name on the list,” Zhu Ling said gently, though her words carried subtle implications.
“Yes! I failed. The cells didn’t grow in the expected patterns, and I couldn’t gather any valid data to support my hypothesis. Naturally, the Natural Science Foundation Committee deemed my proposal too bold.” Xu Zhiyi casually flicked the half-smoked cigarette with her fingers. The glowing ember traced an arc through the dark and vanished. The remaining stub landed precisely in a nearby trash can.
“But one day, they’ll regret their conservatism,” she said, lifting her small, pale face, her sharp features gleaming with a metallic sheen in the moonlight. Her jet-black eyes reflected a chilling light—sharp and defiant.
“Conservatism? Professor Xu, you wanted to concentrate all these highly infectious and deadly influenza viruses—without inactivating them—for research. The Spanish Flu of 1918 that killed 50 million, the 1957 global pandemic, MERS, H5N1, H7N9… Just one of them could wipe out entire countries. Who would dare approve such madness? If they mutate and create a new, unnatural bio-virus, it would be a catastrophe for humanity,” Zhu Ling, usually so gentle, raised her voice with rare severity.
“We scientists should be the last people following the rules,” Xu Zhiyi said. “Flu viruses are mutating more and more frequently. If humanity doesn’t outpace them, we’ll be destroyed by them. Unfortunately, most people lack the spirit of risk-taking. Every researcher should have a rebellious heart. If we’re not doing the most dangerous work, why build high-security virus labs in the first place?”
“Scientists are not rebellious gamblers,” Zhu Ling sighed, trying to reason with her like an elder.
“Professor Zhu, if you were a bit more rebellious, maybe you’d be a full professor by now,” Xu Zhiyi replied with a sweet smile. But deep in her dark eyes, that smile was icy—more like mockery.
She never accepted subtle persuasion—she preferred a direct slap in the face. She didn’t believe in beating around the bush.
In just two years since returning to China, she had offended countless people. Tonight, she had even dragged the normally mild-mannered Zhu Ling into the fray.
After a moment of silence, Xu Zhiyi was the first to leave.
Zhu Ling quietly watched her slim figure wrapped in a thin cashmere coat and let out a soft sigh. Did that girl not understand that rigidity breaks easily?
Good thing she didn’t get the funding!
In the dark, Zhu Ling finally allowed herself a small, satisfied smile—one hidden beneath her usual modest exterior.
Top floor of Yixin Entertainment Company.
Zhou Wen looked at the distracted Shen Si. “So on the night of the premiere, cooperate. Don’t let the fans see that attitude of yours.”
“Would I dare?” Shen Si lounged on the couch, legs stretched out comfortably, blocking the path without a care.
He snapped the A4 paper in his hand with a loud flick and yawned tiredly. After all those nights filming, he could fall asleep on the floor—but right now, he had to stay awake and discuss every detail of the movie’s promotional tour with the team.
The thought of the prophet made him feel as if a bomb was hanging over his head—restless and anxious. On top of that, he’d just spent over ten hours on set, being scolded and retaken by the director. His patience was hanging by a thread.
With a sudden “hmph,” he stood up and tossed the papers aside. “I don’t care anymore. Just tell me the schedule and I’ll do whatever.”
Xiao Gu quickly got up, poured a cup of hot coffee, and placed it beside Shen Si. The rich aroma slightly eased the tense atmosphere.
But Shen Si was triggered by the smell. He shoved Xiao Gu’s hand away, splashing the hot coffee all over the floor—startling Xiao Gu.
Black liquid splattered across the white carpet. Shen Si’s mood calmed slightly. He looked down, giving Xiao Gu a discreet signal only visible from his crouched position, indicating he should go take care of the task he’d been assigned.
Xiao Gu calmly picked up some tissues and said to Zhou Wen, “I’ll go get a rag.”
He stepped onto the outer balcony, pulled out his phone, and dialed a number: “Hello, Officer Chen? This is Xiao Gu.”
A tired male voice answered. Upon hearing Xiao Gu’s name, the tone perked up. “Oh, Xiao Gu! I’ve got some news for you about that thing you asked me to investigate.”
“Thank you so much!” Xiao Gu said with exaggerated relief. “You’ve saved my life! If I didn’t find something soon, Brother Si would’ve fired me!”
“Uh—well, Xiao Gu, I asked a friend from the Provincial Public Security Cyber Division to look into it. They traced the IP, but it led to an abandoned textile factory. Based on their analysis, the sender used an advanced hacking method we’ve never seen before to mask the real location. It’s untraceable,” Officer Chen apologized. “I’ll keep an eye on it and get my team to keep digging. If anything happens with Shen Si, let me know immediately—I’ll do everything I can.”
“Oh, Officer Chen, you’re the best—” Xiao Gu, clearly disappointed by the news, couldn’t keep up the act as well anymore.
“Xiao Gu—remember those fan meeting tickets for Shen Si last time? Our chief’s daughter was over the moon! She’s a super fan—no, a diamond-level fan. I heard the premiere’s coming up…”
“Hey, Officer Chen, we go way back! I already got your tickets ready. I’ll have someone send them to you right away,” Xiao Gu said smoothly. “But please, keep Shen Si’s situation on top of your list, okay?”
“You got it!” Xiao Gu could almost hear Officer Chen pounding his chest in assurance.
After hearing Xiao Gu’s whispered report, Shen Si’s face darkened like the sky outside.
For now, they couldn’t track down the prophet.
So they’d have to start with that woman named Xu.
He fell into deep thought.