Chapter 241

Chapter 241: About the Aftermath

Yu Sheng was very curious, but he knew his limits. Bai Li Xue could not have been born looking like that. There had to be a long, twisty story behind it, the kind a TV drama could stretch to eighty episodes across three seasons plus two specials. From his many talks with Bai Li Qing, and from Bai Li Xue’s attitude, he could tell they did not want to tell outsiders much about it.

At least for now, he was not close enough.

So he put away his curiosity, for now.

He had more important business to discuss with the director. When it came to the Dark Angels, his curiosity was even stronger.

He cleared his throat, looked serious, and asked, “About Anka Aila, what do you want to know?”

Bai Li Qing kept her expression steady as always and said, “Everything. From the moment you went through that wall until Angel Fall, I want to know what happened. Of course, there is no free lunch. The Special Affairs Bureau is willing to pay any reward for this intel, as long as it does not cross the line.”

Yu Sheng’s eyes lit up, and he leaned forward as he asked, “Then can you send the budgets to rebuild two orphanages, one to the Hotel and one to the Fairy Tale account?”

Bai Li Qing’s serious face seemed to freeze for about five seconds before she said, “…Why two?”

Yu Sheng answered calmly, “To ask for a bit more.”

The corner of Bai Li Qing’s mouth finally twitched as she said, “Your request is unexpected. I thought you would ask for privileges in the Borderland, like access to the Special Affairs Bureau’s classified database. Those things cannot be measured with money.”

Yu Sheng laughed and said, “For a newbie Spirit Realm Detective who only recently figured out what the Otherworld even is, that stuff is not very useful, especially to me. A database? If you moved the whole thing into my house, I would not know where to start. I do not even know what I do not know. And anyway, those are vague. If I really have questions, I can ask you or Song Cheng. If I am allowed to know, you will tell me. If I am not allowed from the start, you still have a thousand ways to keep it from me. Money is more practical. The Fairy Tale Cursed Children and I truly need it. You have no idea how expensive it is to feed a Nine Tailed Fox Demon who has been hungry for decades.”

Bai Li Qing listened in a daze, then a faint smile lifted at the edge of her lips as she said, “You are very clear headed.”

Yu Sheng spread his hands and said, “I am a pragmatist. My vision only goes this far.”

Bai Li Qing said simply, “All right. I can agree. It is within my influence. Compared to the shock an Angel Fall brings to the world, what you ask is not much.”

Yu Sheng smiled and said, “Then let us talk about Anka Aila.” He adjusted his posture on the sofa and added, “It is a long story. First, from when we entered the umbilical cord that rose from the orphanage into the sky…”

He spoke slowly and in detail. Bai Li Qing listened with full focus. For a long time, he recalled and told the whole thing. Only when something was too vague or too strange did she cut in with a question.

Much later, Bai Li Qing stood up and poured drinks for both of them.

There was a slightly dazed look in her eyes, and Yu Sheng noticed.

He let out a long breath and said, “Hard to believe, right? Especially after hearing the truth about Anka Aila.”

Bai Li Qing sat opposite him, for the first time looking lost and conflicted as she said, “…A ship from outside. There are countless guesses about the Dark Angels’ origin and true purpose. I thought at least one or two guesses might be close. I did not expect the truth to be stranger than the wildest guess. It was a ship?”

Yu Sheng reminded her, “It started as a ship. After it fell, it clearly changed. I do not know the principle. It is like even its nature changed. A soul grew inside steel.”

Bai Li Qing looked thoughtful. Then Yu Sheng spoke again and said, “There is one more question.”

She frowned and asked, “One more?”

Yu Sheng said seriously, “Is Anka Aila a special case, or are the other Dark Angels like it? Anka Aila is an Exiled Ark. What about the others? Tree Angel, the Beauty Goddess, Heka Youth Form. From what I know, every Dark Angel looks different. Not only are their shapes all kinds of strange, their abilities are very different too. Do you think they can all be the same? If not, how much do they share?”

Bai Li Qing thought for a long time, then said, “In my view, they should not be the same, at least they cannot all be Exiled Arks like Anka Aila. The differences are too great. But from another angle, your intel suggests a possibility: other Dark Angels may also have similar distortions.”

Yu Sheng nodded with a grave look.

Bai Li Qing went on and said, “They entered our world from beyond the universe. During the entry, they became unrecognizable, or, to put it another way, they became something we cannot identify or understand. At least with Anka Aila, this change was not something the Dark Angel could start and control.”

She took a breath and said, “We have always treated Dark Angels as active invaders. But Anka Aila looks more like an accident victim. It was thrown into our world by some huge disaster in its homeland.”

Yu Sheng reminded her, “But that does not mean all Dark Angels are like that.”

Bai Li Qing nodded and said, “Right. We can only confirm Anka Aila, and at most infer that some other Dark Angels might be similar. But even if there are many Anka Ailas, that does not change the fact that Dark Angels are a great threat to this world. They do not need malice to cause a disaster. Their existence is already a disaster.”

Yu Sheng did not speak. He remembered the giant umbilical cord rising from the orphanage and the Angel’s Fetus that was almost born from a nightmare into the real world. He knew she was right.

Bai Li Qing said, “Now I care more about whether there are other Dark Angels, like Anka Aila, with a mind we can talk to. If there are, how many, and how do we identify them?”

Yu Sheng thought, then looked at the serious director and asked, “You are not planning to launch me at the next Dark Angel the moment there is a Descent, are you?”

Bai Li Qing said with a straight face, “Of course not,” then turned her face away.

[Ma’am, that sounds very unconvincing.]

Yu Sheng’s expression grew very serious as he said, “Listen. This event had too many variables. Many steps cannot be repeated. That includes the Fairy Tale book used to Establish Link with the Dark Angel, the Cursed Children who served as the medium, that squirrel, and the path the Deep Dive Team left me seventy years ago. Miss any one of them, and it will not work.”

He added, “So it is not like I took two people through a wall, gave a Dark Angel some talk therapy, and it let go with an ‘ah’ and died. If you really send me to an Angel at a Descent, the only ‘ah’ will be me dying, maybe not even getting an ‘ah’ out.”

Bai Li Qing turned back and said, “We will not do anything so reckless.”

She took a sip of her drink and changed the subject as she asked, “You said you fused the Fairy Tale Otherworld with that Valley?”

Yu Sheng nodded and said, “Yes. Now my Valley is bigger, more than doubled. The people your Special Affairs Bureau sent there saw it themselves. You should get a full report soon. But you can also go see it. I think the scenery after the fusion is pretty good. There are clouds in the sky now, and the Fairy Tale area at the edge of the Valley even has day and night. It is not as plain as before. You can enjoy the primal look of the Black Forest, or look down at the mountains from the tall tower. By the way, the Door ticket for the tower is twenty. Not my fee. Rapunzel charges it.”

His tone sounded like a pushy tour guide selling bus seats. Bai Li Qing’s expression almost cracked, but as a director she quickly coughed twice and said, “So you mean the whole Fairy Tale Organization is basically under you now?”

Yu Sheng waved his hands quickly and said, “No. They just live with me. It looks like they may stay long term, but the Fairy Tale Organization is still independent. They do call me the biggest guardian of Fairy Tale now. That makes me happy, but it is more of an honorary title.”

As he spoke, a genuine smile spread across his face.

He was even happier than when Bai Li Qing agreed to send the orphanage budget to the Hotel.

Bai Li Qing smiled too.

She looked more relaxed than when she witnessed Angel Fall.