Free Web NovelChapter 42: Chapter 41: Cover of the Storm
"They’re here, they’re here! It’s Feiya!"
Jenny, with her sharp eyes, was the first to spot Su Su approaching in the distance, along with the Chinese man by her side.
Mark and Joey only noticed after she pointed them out.
No matter where she was, Su Su always stood out in a crowd. The Chinese man beside her also possessed an air that was impossible to ignore.
Based on appearances alone, Jenny and the others couldn’t really tell most Chinese people apart, but this man with his graying hair was instantly recognizable in any crowd.
The strange thing was, before they saw Feiya, they hadn’t noticed such a conspicuous person in the crowd at all. But after spotting Feiya and confirming that this man was with her...
...the feeling of him being impossible to ignore emerged, gradually even overshadowing Feiya, who was both a beauty and their friend.
But this wasn’t the time to dwell on such things. They started shouting in Su Su’s direction.
"Feiya! Over here, Feiya!"
The three of them waved to the approaching group.
Su Su smiled and waved back at them, then turned to speak to Qin Xiaoxia.
"Mr. Qin, these are my friends. My maternal grandmother’s old house is empty, but it hasn’t been cleaned in a long time. We’ll be staying with them during our time in Los Angeles."
Qin Xiaoxia smiled from behind her, trying to ease the nervousness of his first trip abroad. Doudou followed closely behind Qin Xiaoxia, not daring to stray far.
The moment he saw Mark and Joey, Qin Xiaoxia knew they were the ones involved.
Ordinary people may not have Magic Power, but the soul is a substance quite similar to it.
Right now, Mark and Joey were exuding an "aura of fear," which had weakened their minds and left their souls in a trembling, unstable state.
Of course, the most obvious thing was that trace of a "baleful aura."
There were surely positive invasive substances from the Otherworld—Doudou was one example—it’s just that no others had been discovered yet. For now, the majority of them were undoubtedly negative.
When ordinary people came into contact with such things, their relatively "weak" Soul Essences made them susceptible to being tainted, even if the contact wasn’t intentional.
From the looks of it, Mark and Joey had only been irradiated by the aura. It would likely only affect their mental state and sleep quality for a few days. At most, it would dissipate within a week thanks to their souls’ natural immunity.
Still, this confirmed that the Crystal Ore Su Su had mentioned was indeed abnormal.
His brief train of thought, lasting only a few seconds, was interrupted as the two groups met.
Su Su rushed forward to give the red-haired girl an enthusiastic hug, then high-fived Mark and Joey.
Afterward, she led them over to Qin Xiaoxia.
"Let me make the introductions. This is Qin Xiaoxia, Mr. Qin. And this is Doudou." freewёbnoνel.com
Only then did the three of them notice the young child following behind Mr. Qin.
Qin Xiaoxia’s spoken English might be poor, but for a being with Magic Power, once that power reached a certain level, they could "understand" any conventional language on a Soul Essence level.
Language itself is an expression of consciousness, containing emanations of spirit that are easily received and understood.
So, as Su Su introduced them, both he and Doudou nodded at the appropriate moments.
Su Su was no longer surprised by this. She then introduced her friends to Qin Xiaoxia.
"Mr. Qin, Doudou, this is Jenny, this is Mark, and this is Joey. They’re all my good friends!"
Qin Xiaoxia stepped forward proactively to shake hands with each of them.
His handshake with Jenny was brief and polite, but as Qin Xiaoxia approached Mark and Joey, they suddenly felt a warmth drawing near.
It was like feeling the warm sun on a cold day—exceptionally comfortable.
After they shook hands with Mr. Qin, the heart-palpitating anxiety that had plagued them for days vanished in an instant.
"Evil will always melt beneath the Dawn."
Qin Xiaoxia’s soft words, laced with a tremor of Magic Power, rang in their ears, causing their spirits to soar.
An intense feeling of Hope mixed with powerful excitement immediately followed! It was very similar to how Su Su had felt when she first met Qin Xiaoxia.
On the drive back from the airport, Jenny finally couldn’t stand Mark and Joey’s fawning any longer. They were taking turns fussing over "Mr. Qin this" and "Mr. Qin that."
Though it was a bit rude, she yelled back from the driver’s seat.
"Will you two ever stop?! Mr. Qin and Doudou just got off a flight that was over ten hours long. Can’t you let them rest?!"
Sitting in the passenger seat, Su Su could actually understand how Mark and Joey felt, but she was deeply resentful that the two of them had squeezed her out of the back seat and into the front.
Although Su Su really wanted Qin Xiaoxia and Doudou to stay with her at Jenny’s place, Mark and Joey’s over-the-top enthusiasm erupted into a fierce display of hospitality.
They even brought up how much Chinese people value propriety between men and women, arguing that the two men should stay at their house.
This made Qin Xiaoxia really want to punch both of them.
If he were staying with Su Su at Jenny’s place, he might have been interested in waiting a night. But staying at Mark’s House was just boring.
At Qin Xiaoxia’s request, they took a detour and drove a lap around Old Ode’s recycling yard.
In his line of sight, where the Crystal Mine was located, a vague, smoke-like substance was radiating an aura into the surroundings.
He could also sense a pulsation, similar to a heartbeat.
He exchanged a look with Doudou.
’There’s no mistake. It’s definitely a Demonized Crystal Ore, and it’s not in a high-growth stage yet!’
While the others were gazing into the distance, the previously silent Qin Xiaoxia suddenly spoke.
"I don’t know how fast this Crystal Ore digests things. Time is short. I will make my move tonight."
...
At nightfall, besides Qin Xiaoxia and Doudou, Su Su, Mark, and Joey had all shamelessly insisted on coming along. Even Jenny, unable to contain her curiosity, had joined them.
"Why do we need to bring this stuff?"
Jenny pointed at a bag Mark was carrying. Besides snacks, it was filled with umbrellas and raincoats.
The question was obviously for Qin Xiaoxia. The others, though curious themselves, all shot her a "shut up" glare.
The sky had grown completely dark, and the surrounding grove of trees, once still, began to sway gently.
In the distance, inside the guard post by the mine, a few police officers on shift were yawning nonstop.
Keeping watch here was always chilly at night, and it was especially tiring. Few people at the station were willing to take this shift.
But with pressure from Hercules, Old Ode, and police superiors regarding the case, plus the value of the Crystal Ore, the nightly watch was likely to continue for some time.
"Is the wind picking up?"
An officer holding a cup of coffee walked into the guard post and spoke to his two colleagues.
One of them looked out the window at the sky. The starlight had been blotted out by dark clouds at some point.
Qin Xiaoxia stood in the woods, separated from the mine by a chain-link fence.
The Magic Power around him ignited in resonance with the environment, dyeing his pupils a deep purple in the darkness.
Wild Magic Power radiated madly outwards. This was the first time since the river incident that Qin Xiaoxia had fully unleashed his Magic Power, which had grown countless times stronger.
With his body as the epicenter, the surrounding air and sky began to change dramatically.
’Two kilometers... is this my current limit?!’
This was the limit of his current Magic Power, combined with the world’s unique response to him.
A rhythmic, trembling chant of power issued from his lips.
"Hades, Gillian Doya~~~"
Intricately structured Magic Silk Threads flashed out of existence, and in the next instant, hundreds of sharp-angled, white symbols appeared across the sky.
"SPLASH~ SPLASH~ SPLASH~"
A torrential downpour crashed down, mixed with gale-force winds that made it impossible to see more than ten meters ahead.
At the same time, Qin Xiaoxia fixed his gaze on the guard post. With a "BANG," the ground beneath his feet erupted from the recoil, and he vanished from the spot in an instant.
...
Inside the guard post, the three officers stared dumbfounded at the sudden downpour. Before they could say a word, the post let out a loud "BANG," as if it had been struck by something heavy, and began to sway precariously.
"Run! We’ll take shelter at Old Ode’s Family! The post is collapsing~~"
PS: Thank you to book friend Tyrant Peng Peng for the 1000 coin donation, to book friend Liyuan’s Cute Loli for the 500 coin donation, and to book friends Disconnected from the Internet Navigation, Sleepwalking Little Wind, and 11th Dimension for the 100 coin donations~
The second Chapter will be up tomorrow!
