Chapter 74: Trap
"Never thought we’d figure out Gu Wenyu’s identity before even meeting him…" Ke Qirui said with a sigh, "Aren’t you ashamed for selling out your partner’s secret?"
Black Cocoon shook his head in denial: "You’re both decent people. Sooner or later, you’d come into contact with Blue Arc. And one of you is even his sister. Now, if I sold his identity to someone in the Brigade, that would be called ‘selling out.’"
Ke Qirui let out a small sigh and asked, "Then how do I contact you from now on?"
"I’ll get in touch when needed. Maybe I’ll call, maybe I’ll text, or maybe… I’ll just pop up in front of you out of nowhere. Though of course, never when you’re showering—I’m a gentleman."
As Black Cocoon spoke, he slid his phone back into the Binding Restraint, clearly getting ready to make his exit.
"Thanks, now I’m guaranteed to have nightmares tonight," Ke Qirui quipped, then asked, "So… if I want to reach you, my only way is through Gu Wenyu?"
"Exactly. That’s one way to look at it," Black Cocoon said vaguely.
"Good, then. I just happen to have his contact info."
As Ke Qirui said that, she turned her head to glance at Su Zimai, who hadn’t spoken a word since earlier. She looked exhausted, pale as a paper-cut figure clipped from a textbook, teetering in the wind that carried fallen ginkgo leaves.
Black Cocoon scratched his chin beneath the Binding Restraint, silently watching his dazed sister, thinking: Did I break this kid? "Mai Mai, what do you think?" Ke Qirui raised a finger and poked her cheek to test for any reaction.
Su Zimai expressionlessly muttered, "I don’t want to think about anything anymore. Let’s just cooperate."
"A wise choice."
Black Cocoon said slowly, while in his pupils appeared a task-completion panel.
[Main Quest 3 (Phase Two) Completed: Established cooperation with Exorcist 'Su Zimai' of the Ghost Train Brigade, thereby expanding social connections within the Exorcist Association.]
[Quest Reward Obtained: 1 Split Point, 1 Skill Point, 1 Attribute Point.]
[Current Split Points: 7. 2 more needed to create the next game character.]
[Main Quest 3 Updated: Cooperate with Exorcists 'Ke Qirui' and 'Su Zimai', and ensure their survival during the Auction Operation.]
Raising his sunglasses and reading the panel text through Binding Restraint Sensory, Ji Minghuan’s eye twitched slightly.
He thought, You two really are a pair of conjoined twins—first time I’ve seen a main quest that binds two people together like this.
From the bottom of his heart, he believed that he and Ke Qirui were cosmically incompatible. Best to stay away from her in the future—thank goodness he’d come prepared today, or he’d be in deep trouble.
"Well then, I take my leave, ladies."
With that, Black Cocoon’s body was lifted upward by the Binding Restraint.
Like a professional diver, he stood tall and straight on a tree branch, gently leaning back, and plunged into a sea of ginkgo leaves. A breeze blew through, scattering leaves around, and his figure vanished into the twilight.
Tokyo’s Shiba Park remained as breathtaking as ever, but the mood of its visitors had changed.
Ke Qirui was just about to comfort Su Zimai when she suddenly turned and saw a Japanese child frozen in place.
The boy had apparently glimpsed Black Cocoon in the last second and was now sitting on the ground in shock. The wet patch under him said it all—and seconds later, he burst into tears.
Ke Qirui silently watched the scene, suddenly recalling what Black Cocoon had done to a hostage child back in Lijing Plaza.
"Child killer, huh…" she muttered, shaking her head.
........
........
Ji Minghuan controlled Black Cocoon as he drifted through Minato City’s skies in Tokyo. Transparent Binding Restraints crawled across billboard signs covered in Japanese text. The evening breeze carried the salty, moist scent of the harbor.
Seagulls lost in the city floated past him, white feathers drifting to the streets below—if Black Cocoon shed like they did, his Binding Restraints would litter every alley.
Truth be told, without that tailcoat, he felt much more nimble.
Whenever he used to appear in the tailcoat, hanging upside down always required one extra Restraint to keep the coat’s hem from flopping over his face.
But now, wrapped entirely in Binding Restraints, that was no longer an issue—the Restraints clung to his body like a second skin, fusing with him. Breathing, moving—it was all perfectly seamless.
Before long, Black Cocoon reached the hotel where Xia Pingzhou was staying.
He retrieved his phone from Xia’s hands with a Restraint, then set off toward Roppongi. On the way, he returned the borrowed phone and book to the shop, giving the shocked shopkeeper a little wave with his Restraint.
Scared another person into peeing himself.
Soon, Ji Minghuan slipped through the open glass window and reentered the hotel room.
He walked toward the bed and, without looking back, extended his right arm. The jet-black Binding Restraint slithered along the floor like a snake, closed the window, and drew the curtains.
With a soft shhhh, he flopped onto the bed and opened Black Cocoon’s Skill Tree Panel.
[Branch One (Stealth): Binding Restraint Sensory (Acquired) → Binding Restraint Verity (Acquired) → Binding Restraint Camouflage (Acquired) → Binding Restraint Trap (Leaves a trap that inherits the effects of 'Sensory', 'Camouflage', and 'Detection')…]
[Branch Two (Frenzy): Binding Restraint Extension (Acquired) → Binding Restraint Blades (Attaches sharp edges to your Binding Restraint when the skill is active) → Unknown → Unknown…]
[Branch Three (Malice): Binding Restraint Detection (Acquired) → Binding Restraint Suppression (Acquired) → Esper Theft (Acquired) → Capacity Boost (Allows you to store two stolen powers in your Binding Restraint at once, and extends max storage time to 48 hours)…]
Ji Minghuan’s chin rested on the pillow as his eyes scanned the three branches, pausing at the description for “Binding Restraint Trap.”
He had tested it before: once a Restraint was severed and lost its connection to the body, it became useless—a worthless strip of cloth.
But the “Binding Restraint Trap” skill was made to fix that flaw—it let Black Cocoon leave behind a living trap. Once an enemy approached, it would spring to life and ensnare them.
Even better, the trap would inherit the effects of Sensory, Camouflage, Detection, and Suppression. That meant it could scout, stay hidden, and suppress enemy Esper powers.
Theoretically, it was a highly valuable skill—like an upgraded version of a “vision ward” in a MOBA game. Who plays without wards?
But Ji Minghuan’s attention wasn’t on that. He was thinking: Normally, skills get stronger the deeper you go in a single branch. If Branch One’s already developed this far, maybe I can dig up some really high-level abilities next.
With that in mind, he pressed and held on the text for “Binding Restraint Trap.”
As it lit up from dim to bright, it finally burst into a vivid, dark vitality.
[Consumed 1 Skill Point. Successfully learned ‘Binding Restraint Trap’ from Branch One (Stealth).]
[Next skill in Branch One (Stealth) is now unlocked for learning.]
He looked up at the Skill Tree and saw that a new skill had appeared under the “Stealth” branch—Binding Restraint Clone.
And its description made Ji Minghuan raise an eyebrow.