Free Web NovelChapter 111: Chapter 110: Flood Dragon Level
Outside Jigu Garden, Fu Juemin stood casually with his hands clasped behind his back. Big Cat, Kitty, and a group of Qinglian Gang men waited quietly by his side.
Before long, Gu Shouyu hurried out from the entrance.
"I’m... I’m ready."
The moment Gu Shouyu stepped outside, he was clearly startled by the scene at his own front door.
He was already socially anxious, and now, being stared at by dozens of pairs of fierce, menacing eyes, he could barely get his words out.
Fu Juemin sized him up. He was still wearing the same red sweater with the loose threads, but now had a dusty gray jacket over it. A faded, yellowish-green canvas bag was slung over his shoulder, and a familiar Oil Paper Umbrella was clutched tightly in the crook of his arm.
It was the same Oil Paper Umbrella he had been talking to in his room.
Fu Juemin’s gaze swept over the Oil Paper Umbrella, but he didn’t say anything. He just smiled and gestured for Gu Shouyu to get in the car.
"Wait." Gu Shouyu frantically rummaged through his bag. "I have to find my key and lock the door..."
Fu Juemin shook his head and couldn’t help but say, "Alright, don’t bother. I’ll have two men stay behind and watch your house for you."
With that, he casually pointed out two Qinglian Gang men to stay behind, then pulled Gu Shouyu into the car.
Fu Juemin specifically had Gu Shouyu ride in the same car as him.
After getting in the car, Gu Shouyu gave an address and then sat rigidly in his seat, not moving a muscle.
Fu Juemin could see he was nervous. He sat bolt upright, his knuckles turning white from clutching his canvas bag so tightly.
Fu Juemin thought for a moment, then pointed at the Oil Paper Umbrella resting on Gu Shouyu’s lap and tried to break the ice. "Can I take a look at that umbrella?"
"No!"
As if by reflex, Gu Shouyu snatched the umbrella and hugged it tightly to his chest.
Fu Juemin wasn’t bothered. He simply pretended to ask casually, "It’s a bright sunny day. Why bring an umbrella?"
Gu Shouyu turned to look at him and said with sudden calmness, "Don’t you already know?"
Fu Juemin didn’t speak. Gu Shouyu, however, gave a self-deprecating laugh and said softly, "Yinyin told me you’d already found her... Do you think I’m ridiculous? A man who specializes in studying this sort of thing, yet spends his days living with a ghost..."
"Not at all."
Fu Juemin shook his head. "Actually, I can understand."
He said this in all sincerity.
Stories of love between humans and foxes, humans and ghosts, or humans and snakes have been common since ancient times. In Fu Juemin’s eyes, Gu Shouyu’s current behavior was no different from the older otaku from his previous world who were obsessed with their 2D anime girls.
Gu Shouyu didn’t seem to care about Fu Juemin’s reaction. He just stroked the paper umbrella in his hands and said in a low voice, "Yinyin’s story is actually very pitiful.
She came from a good family, was beautiful, and had even studied abroad.
She just fell for the wrong person. Not only was she seduced and abandoned, but she was also murdered by that heartless man’s own hands. And to this day, that bastard is still out there, scott-free..."
As he spoke, his tone unknowingly became one of gritted-teeth anger.
"Tell me his name."
Fu Juemin said suddenly.
Gu Shouyu froze for a second, then immediately waved his hands in dismissal. "I... I didn’t mean it like that."
"I know."
Fu Juemin smiled and patted his shoulder, glancing at the Oil Paper Umbrella in his arms. "But this is a wrong that needs to be righted, don’t you think?"
Gu Shouyu hesitated for a moment, then quickly gave him a name.
Fu Juemin had expected it to be some rich, villainous young master, but after learning the details, he discovered it was just a retired minor policeman from the Viliduo Concession.
Oh, right. Back when the murder happened, the man wasn’t retired yet. He was still a young, handsome playboy...
"Later, I’ll find someone to fix the umbrella for you. Since you’ve decided to build a life with her, you shouldn’t let her suffer any indignities..."
Fu Juemin naturally held no prejudice against human-ghost romances, but Gu Shouyu’s cheeks flushed slightly as he whispered a "thank you."
"Actually, there was something I wanted to say..."
Fu Juemin steered the conversation back on topic. He thought for a moment, looked at the Oil Paper Umbrella in Gu Shouyu’s hands, and said, "Since you plan to show me the three types of fiends one by one, for the first type, the Ghost Race... aren’t you overlooking the obvious and searching for something far away?"
"Yinyin is different. At best, she can only be considered a Fly Level ghost."
"Fly... Level?"
Fu Juemin raised an eyebrow slightly.
Gu Shouyu didn’t explain. Instead, he quickly opened his canvas bag, pulled out a notebook, and began scribbling rapidly on a blank page with a pen. SCRIBBLE SCRIBBLE.
But after writing just a couple of words, he realized with embarrassment that his pen was out of ink. Seeing this, Fu Juemin handed over the fountain pen he always carried.
Gu Shouyu took the pen, said thanks, and continued writing with his head down.
"Remember the rabbit, wolf, and lion analogy I gave you? That analogy was actually very crude. This is the real, complete version."
Gu Shouyu pushed up the glasses on his nose and handed the finished page and the fountain pen to Fu Juemin.
"This is a classification standard I developed myself, based on the numerous case files on aberrations from Jigu Garden."
Fu Juemin casually tossed the Golden Hat Pen back to Gu Shouyu, saying, "It’s yours." Then he picked up what Gu Shouyu had written to examine it.
Written on the paper was a line of small words: "Grass, Fly, Feather, Fox, Wolf, Tiger, Elephant, Flood Dragon, Dragon."
Fu Juemin’s eyes glinted. He couldn’t help but ask, "Isn’t the gap between Feather and Fox Level too big?"
"It is very big, but that’s just how it is."
Gu Shouyu said, "This classification standard is based on the degree of threat each creature poses to ordinary people."
He continued to explain, "Aberrations at the Grass, Fly, and Feather levels can cause little to no harm or have any effect on ordinary people.
But once they possess a dangerous nature, they are classified as ’Fox Level’ at a minimum..."
"Like that Painted Hide I encountered in Fuxi Village?"
"Exactly."
Gu Shouyu nodded. "Generally, the threat level of a member of the Ghost Race won’t exceed Wolf Level. As for Demon Species, most fall between Wolf Level and Tiger Level. Those that can reach an Elephant Level threat are, in all likelihood, only the third category: Alien Species Demon Fiends..."
"Then what about Flood Dragon Level and Dragon Level?"
Fu Juemin found this fascinating and couldn’t resist asking.
Gu Shouyu shook his head with a wry smile. "To be honest, I’ve never seen one either. However..."
He pondered for a moment before saying, "There is a place in Shenghai that might house a Demon Fiend of Elephant Level or higher."
Fu Juemin’s eyes lit up, and he slowly leaned forward. "Where?"
"The Friend Mountain Mine in the Snake Bay District of Fugu County.
Five years ago, there was a major incident in Fugu County, the ’Dasheng Trading Company Heist.’ A group of over a dozen ruthless, armed bandits robbed the Dasheng Trading Company of more than three million silver coins. Pursued by the Patrol Police, they fled and hid in the Friend Mountain Mine.
In the end, the City Public Security Bureau sent in several teams, but none of them returned. Eventually, they had to deploy troops from the Security Command Headquarter. They used an untold amount of ammunition and gunpowder—nearly half of Friend Mountain was blown apart—but they still couldn’t retrieve the money or the men. The whole matter was eventually just dropped.
Everyone said it was because the bandits were incredibly fierce, but actually..."
Gu Shouyu paused, then continued, "It’s because a Centipede Spirit has been living in that mine. It was recorded in the official registers as far back as the previous dynasty.
Those bandits were probably eaten not long after they went in. The army that came later was likely sent to suppress the creature..."
’A Centipede Spirit that can fight a small contingent of soldiers...’
Fu Juemin’s eyes flickered, and it was hard to say whether he was more surprised or excited. He tapped his fingers rhythmically on his knee and murmured to himself, "So this is the power of a creature above Elephant Level... a Flood Dragon Level Alien Species?"
