12. The Gatekeeper-Eternal Starry Sky(Half a Jar of Sake)

I have to admit, Wang Hao’s assessment of Lin Dou Dou was indeed objective.

All afternoon, Lu Feng was led by Lin Dou Dou on a tour of the Ninth Bureau of Time. Throughout the visit, Lin Dou Dou explained every location in meticulous detail, even recounting the historical origins and events that had transpired there. Watching her so earnest and responsible, Lu Feng put aside his urge to tease and retaliate against her. Who could bear to disturb someone so dedicated to their work?

As night fell, Lu Feng returned to the small courtyard. Remembering that he still had many questions for the monk, he closed his eyes and entered meditation. Outside, darkness had settled, but within the realm of meditation, Lu Feng found it was still daylight. With prior experience, he refrained from wandering further upon entering, instead standing amidst the vast expanse and calling out loudly.

“Monk.”

After the echoes faded, the monk did not appear as expected. Damn it, could that bastard be up to his tricks again… Seeing the monk absent, Lu Feng felt an ominous premonition.

“Monk, your grandpa’s here, get out!”
“If you dare mess with me again, I swear I’ll kill you!”
“Monk, get out here right now!”

Lu Feng stood alone, muttering to himself, but no matter how he cursed, the monk’s figure never appeared in the vast emptiness. Only his own echo answered him.

“Counting down from three.”

“Three.”

“Two.”

“One.”

Even after counting down, the monk still did not show. Damn, he must have fallen asleep again…

Lu Feng plopped down on the ground. When it came to the monk, not only did he find him utterly unreliable, but he also felt a deep sense of helplessness. After sitting alone for a while, shouting to no avail, he finally exited the meditation.

That damned monk—next time Lu Feng saw him, he swore he’d destroy him.

Just as Lu Feng opened his eyes, he heard someone knocking at the door.

“Lu Feng, are you asleep?”
Lin Dou Dou?
Knocking at his door so late at night—what could she want? Could it be…
“Is something the matter?” Lu Feng asked calmly from his bed.

Joking aside, he never seriously considered any romantic entanglement between himself and Lin Dou Dou. All his teasing was merely retaliation for her own jibes; he was clear on that. More importantly, he sensed Lin Dou Dou did not wish to get too close to him.

“Could you open the door and talk?” Lin Dou Dou spoke from outside.

“I’m already asleep.”

“Oh, then rest well.” Lin Dou Dou replied and turned to leave.

Lu Feng lay in bed, unable to see Lin Dou Dou depart, though strangely, in his mind’s eye he seemed to catch a hazy glimpse of her departing figure.

“Wait.”

Just as before, when Lu Feng said this, Lin Dou Dou stopped in her tracks.

“What is it?” Lu Feng asked, opening the door.

“I just received a distress signal from a special operations team. The director asked me to invite you to join us.” Lin Dou Dou turned and explained.

“A special operations team?” Though she had mentioned their existence before, Lu Feng couldn’t help but ask.

“This team is responsible for the southern district of the Fifth Ring. They must have encountered an emergency; otherwise, they wouldn’t have sent a distress call. The team is quite strong overall.”

The southern district of the Fifth Ring?

Those words thundered in Lu Feng’s mind.

Wasn’t that the area where his sister’s house was?

“Let’s go.”

With that single word, Lu Feng strode quickly outside, picking up speed until he broke into a run. Lin Dou Dou followed, puzzled by Lu Feng’s sudden change in demeanor.

His sister’s neighborhood—could she be in danger? No, no, she wasn’t a time traveler; she should already be resting. Yes, she had school tomorrow.

Running and thinking at once, though Lu Feng tried to reassure himself, anxiety gnawed at his heart.

Soon, they reached the waiting SUV. Lu Feng climbed in without hesitation.

The SUV sped toward their destination.

“Faster.”
“Faster still.”

Along the way, Lu Feng urged the driver repeatedly, making even Lin Dou Dou nervous.

In an alley of City Seventeen’s Fifth Ring, Liu Da Zhuang ran heavily, panting for breath, his corpulent body steaming in the cold night air. By the time he reached his teammates, who were surrounding a beggar, he was utterly out of breath.

“Captain, captain, wait—don’t do anything yet,” Liu Da Zhuang gasped, addressing the leader.

“What are you doing here? Get lost!” the captain snapped, not even sparing him a glance, his tone harsh and contemptuous.

“Captain, please, don’t hurt him—I know this man,” Liu Da Zhuang hurriedly replied.

“You know him?”
A hint of suspicion flickered across the captain’s face. He shot Liu Da Zhuang a sidelong glance, pondering.

“Oh, I just saw him at the entrance to the alley earlier,” Liu Da Zhuang explained.

“What did you say? You saw him at the alley entrance?” Now the captain’s voice was tinged with anger.

“Well, well, Liu Da Zhuang, you traitor! Always so meek, who’d have thought you were a mole? You filthy dog—tell us, when did you conspire with this damned beggar to murder Jia Ping?” A sharp voice pierced the group.

Hearing this, Liu Da Zhuang reflexively glanced at Jia Ping, who lay motionless in a corner, blood mixed with slush flowing from his mouth.

“Captain, no, I—I…” Liu Da Zhuang suddenly understood: the beggar had killed Jia Ping. He hurried to explain.

“Enough! Get out of my sight; I’ll deal with you later,” the captain snarled, glaring at Liu Da Zhuang, already convinced he was a traitor.

“Captain…”

Liu Da Zhuang panicked. The word “traitor”—so foul, never had he imagined it could be applied to him. But he was innocent.

Now, faced with everyone’s accusations, he felt his world collapse.

“Out! You’re not fit to be my teammate.”

With a wave of his hand, the captain unleashed a powerful gust straight at Liu Da Zhuang. The overweight Liu Da Zhuang was instantly swept up, flung like a broken kite into the distance, crashing hard against a wall, blood gushing from his mouth as he lost consciousness.

Seeing Liu Da Zhuang lying in the corner, the beggar’s lips tightened, a glint of murderous intent flashing in his eyes.

“Captain, let’s kill this stinking beggar first, then deal with the traitor,” the same sharp-voiced teammate urged.

“Attack!” the captain commanded, and everyone surged at the beggar.

Yet before anyone could approach, the beggar lifted his right foot and stomped fiercely on the ground.

In an instant, the earth trembled and shook. The tall residential buildings lining the alley began to collapse, sand and stones whirled into a violent storm, trapping the group at its center.

Everyone was swept up by the storm, tumbling through the air, while only the beggar stood unmoving, expressionless.

On the wall of swirling sand and stone, countless earthen whips formed, lashing at each person caught in the storm, each strike crackling with thunder.

One lash pierced flesh, two drew blood, three shattered souls.

“Help…”

The cries for help echoed, growing fainter, until they faded away.

“No…” A weak voice came from the corner.

The beggar turned, walked through the storm, and gently picked up the unconscious Liu Da Zhuang.

As he departed, more than a dozen bodies plummeted from the sky…