Chapter 66: Demonkin
After using the bathroom, Ji Minghuan came back to find his phone still vibrating non-stop in the dark. The “ding ding dong dong” of message alerts hadn’t let up for even a second. If this weren’t the middle of the night, it’d sound like a haunting.
Helplessly scratching his ear, Ji Minghuan ignored the barrage of messages from Su Zimai.
With a flick of his finger, a Binding Restraint extended to grab the phone from beside his pillow. After a few quick swipes, he enabled Do Not Disturb mode—if it were Blue Arc, he might’ve blocked her straight away; but this was his sister, and he had no idea what she’d do if she got mad—she was not someone to provoke.
He lay back on the bed, speechless. He really didn’t get what was up with her tonight.
Normally Su Zimai either wouldn’t say a word or would disappear for months like she was dead. But now, it was like someone stamped “Family Must Love Each Other” onto her brain, afraid she wouldn’t bother him enough—like she’d suddenly developed bipolar disorder overnight.
Ji Minghuan closed his eyes and shifted his consciousness into Xia Pingzhou’s body.
At that moment, No. 2 body “Xia Pingzhou” was also lying down in a hotel near Shiba Park in the port district.
He remembered he’d just sold the Event Card “Twin Stars on Stage” to the system in exchange for one Skill Point.
He opened Xia Pingzhou’s Character Skill Tree and looked over the three skill branches.
【Branch 1 (Troop): Recruit Pawns (learned) → Pawn Training (requires 1 Skill Point) → Unknown…】 【Branch 2 (Valor): Chess Piece Evolution (Condition: Can only be learned after spending 3 total Skill Points on other branches) (Learning this skill requires 1 Skill Point) → Unknown → Unknown…】
【Branch 3 (Soul): Demon Hunter (requires 1 Skill Point to learn) → Unknown → Unknown…】
The second branch needed conditions met to learn. It’d definitely be his first choice—but he hadn’t unlocked the permissions yet.
The third branch felt underwhelming. Demon chess pieces were one-time use and didn’t seem very practical, plus he probably wouldn’t have time to hunt demons in the near future.
So, if he wanted to boost combat power quickly, focusing on the first branch was the safest short-term path. With that in mind, Ji Minghuan raised his hand and long-pressed on the text for “Pawn Training.”
The text shifted from dark to light, emitting black-and-white light that lit up his pupils.
【Spent 1 Skill Point, successfully learned Branch "Troop" skill—"Pawn Training" (Your pawns now equip shields and gain the command “Shield Guard” during combat.)】
【Notice: The next skill in Branch "Troop" is now available to learn.】
Ji Minghuan really wanted to test the pawns right there in the hotel, but the Iron Pawns were bulky—nothing like the nimble Queen—and frankly clumsy. Summoning them might cause a racket, so better to try them out in live combat in a couple days.
He closed the series of panels floating before him and minimized the options bar into a Gear Icon. Then he thought: “Dad is officially rated as ‘Quasi-Calamity-level’… I remember when I used Binding Restraints to scan him, his attributes came out as Strength A++, Speed A, and Mentality A.”
“My bestie’s in the Royal Court Squad, which is basically the strongest group among Anecdote Envoys. But even his stats are similar to Dad’s—so if that’s the standard for ‘Quasi-Calamity-level,’ then the next tier, ‘Calamity-level,’ must be insane, with every attribute nearing S rank or even surpassing it.”
“So putting aside China’s strongest Exorcists—the four Lake Hunters—‘Rainbow Wing’ really is the strongest known organization globally, seeing as they have twelve Calamity-level powerhouses.”
“Each of my game character bodies has a built-in Skill Tree System. The skill mechanics can make up for stat gaps... but even so, getting each body up to Calamity-level would take at least one or two months.”
“Sigh... If I hadn’t been hit with the Esper Suppressant, I could’ve just created a Calamity-level character with maxed base stats. But that’s exactly why they hit me with it—no way they’d let me do that.”
Ji Minghuan tucked his arms behind his head and stared blankly at the ceiling.
“The Instructor said he’d let me meet the other kids in the Research Facility sometime soon... not sure if he’s bluffing, but what kind of freaks are these kids they’re keeping locked up? This damn place better not turn into a final boss farm later.”
With that thought, he slowly closed his eyes. The low hum of the air conditioner lulled him into deep sleep.
...
...
"Restricted-level Esper, ID No. 1002—‘Ji Minghuan,’ Instructor is here. Prepare for immediate questioning." Yet another identical voice called him out from the darkness.
Ji Minghuan opened his eyes and slowly turned his head to see a figure in a white lab coat entering through the open metal door. He asked the Instructor, “Didn’t you say I’d get to meet the other kids? Haven’t seen a single one.”
“They’re still being prepared,” the Instructor said as he walked.
Ji Minghuan sat up on the bed, rubbing his groggy head, and mocked, “Makes sense… the kids you’ve got locked up here must be real pieces of work. If one of them slips out, we might be looking at several countries disappearing from the map.”
The Instructor sat down at the table, placed a thermos on it, clasped his fingers together, and smiled, “You’re underselling it—it wouldn’t just be a few countries. Half of humanity could vanish.”
“You’re surprisingly honest,” Ji Minghuan raised an eyebrow and pressed on, “Actually, I’m a bit curious… if you guys say Kong Youling is also an Esper, then in your system, what level is her ability?”
The Instructor replied, “She’s currently the most promising psychic-type Esper we know of. If she matures normally, she’ll be at least Quasi-Calamity-level.”
“And what’s Quasi-Calamity-level supposed to mean?”
Ji Minghuan asked knowingly, got out of bed, and sat in the chair opposite the Instructor.
The Instructor patiently explained, “‘Restricted-level’ is the top. Below that is ‘Calamity-level,’ followed by ‘Quasi-Calamity-level.’ Then come ‘Dragon-level,’ ‘Kui-level,’ ‘Quasi-level,’ and finally ‘Harmless-level.’ This ranking system was established by the United Nations.”
“You guys with the UN?”
“No… no need to guess. When the time is right, we’ll tell you who we are.”
Ji Minghuan didn’t mind. He knew exactly why the Instructor was hiding the organization’s name—he was a “Reality-altering” type Esper. If he ever broke through his limits, he might literally erase the entire organization from existence. They might not even realize what was happening before they were wiped out like a name secretly erased from the pages of history.
In fact, he’d already figured out who they were through his own digging—Salvation Society was, in all likelihood, the name of the group running this Research Facility.
The Instructor smiled. “Normally, we wouldn’t take in someone like Kong Youling. But her ability type is so rare, she’s an exception here.”
“There’s another reason too… You wanted to use her to control me, so that’s why she’s an ‘exception.’” Ji Minghuan tapped his fingers casually on the table.
“More like protect you than control. The outside world is dangerous for people like you. Not only that, your own powers are dangerous to yourself. Giving a kid too much power leads to self-destruction. So we protect you, guide you. That’s what adults should do.”
“Sure, sure, you’re always right.” Ji Minghuan couldn’t be bothered to argue. “What about the other kids here?”
“Anyone brought here must at least have the potential to grow into a Calamity-level Esper.”
“Then I’m the strongest one here?” Ji Minghuan asked, tone like a kid fishing for praise.
“You absolutely are.”
“Oh…” Ji Minghuan glanced up at the Instructor and took the chance to fire off a string of questions: “Then why is my designation Restricted-level Esper 1002? Who’s 1001? Are there other Restricted-levels locked up in this place? How many of us have ever existed?”
“Only two,” the Instructor sipped his tea. “The last Restricted-level appeared a hundred years ago. He also came to us for help.”
“Wow, your organization’s got some serious history,” Ji Minghuan said, realizing any further probing was pointless, so he changed the subject: “Tomorrow... which kid are you planning to let me meet?”
“The first one we want you to interact with is called ‘Filio.’ He’s quite special… born with a half-demon, half-human constitution.”
Ji Minghuan blinked. “Half-demon, half-human?”
“That’s right. A child born from the union of a human and a demon,” the Instructor said slowly. “We call them—Demonkin.”