Chapter 138: Shen Baiwei’s Research
I should have noticed that this woman had issues, but why did I overlook it all this time?
I even sent her to assist Kuerban in completing the task of guiding the calamity…
Fang Ji silently sized up Shen Baiwei, quickly searching through all his memories of her in his mind.
The first time he met Shen Baiwei was when he returned to the Miracle Cult with Xiem Elder in his capacity as the Left Envoy, beginning to collect the sacred relics held by the elders to prepare for this operation.
When the five great sacred relics were not gathered together and appeared near Yumen Pass simultaneously, their effect was similar to that of a high-level spirit energy item. If the fragrance of the Miracle Flower could stimulate potential, the effect would be even better. Therefore, the actions of him and Xiem Elder were understandably greatly impeded.
However, Xu Elder was an exception; he was the only elder who actively offered Fang Ji the sacred relic.
Offering the sacred relic was, in itself, quite suspicious for Xu Elder.
As a born deaf-mute, even after becoming a high-level spiritual ability user, Xu Elder still needed the assistance of that eye sacred relic to communicate like a normal person.
Giving up the sacred relic was equivalent to relinquishing his own sight and ability to speak.
Although he could still miraculous communicate normally with others relying on the fragrance of the Miracle Flower, it was definitely not as effective as when assisted by the sacred relic.
Shen Baiwei was Xu Elder’s attendant who accompanied him when he presented the sacred relic. After Xu Elder lost control of the sacred relic, it was only natural for her to act as Xu Elder’s eyes and tongue.
After that, as the action to awaken the first-generation Holy Son unfolded, Fang Ji’s interactions with the elders of the Miracle Cult became increasingly close. Considering Xu Elder’s inconvenience, he often let Shen Baiwei substitute for him in various tasks.
From occasional instances to later almost full delegation, the frequency increased daily. Initially, the group of elders had some objections, but Shen Baiwei’s performance in every task was particularly outstanding, effectively silencing everyone.
Everything she displayed in front of the crowd seemed like that of a powerful capability and loyal follower of the Miracle Flower, a senior member of the cult.
If it weren’t for the fact that Shen Baiwei had never triggered a large-scale fragrance of the Miracle Flower, and the Left Envoy did not have the qualification or power to appoint an elder, she might have already replaced Xu Elder and become a rightful elder in the Miracle Cult.
Because of this, Fang Ji placed great trust in Shen Baiwei.
Logically speaking, for the entire plan, which had a decisive role, if Fang Ji couldn’t go himself, he should have let some elder from the Miracle Cult execute it. From a certain perspective, Shen Baiwei essentially replaced Xu Elder to assist Kuerban.
Now, upon sensing something unusual about Shen Baiwei, Fang Ji suddenly felt as if he had awakened from a dream.
In fact, he had used the convenience of the “Little Cangshu” account he had miraculously obtained through the Urban Legends Chat Group to investigate the backgrounds of most members of the Miracle Cult to determine who could be trusted and who could not, in order to avoid accidents during the execution of this plan.
But upon careful reflection, he realized that his knowledge of Shen Baiwei, apart from being Xu Elder’s confidant and a loyal follower of the Miracle Flower, was a complete blank.
Where did she come from, how did she join the Miracle Cult, what is her spirit pattern authority, and what kind of growth path she had… he knew none of this information.
To him, Shen Baiwei was like a person without a past.
What was even more frightening was that for a long time, he had actually ignored these very important matters.
It seemed she was under the influence of some kind of authority.
But does such authority truly exist in the world?
Although, from a certain perspective, such a thing could be considered a miracle, it was clearly not a “good” miracle.
If Shen Baiwei were not a loyal follower of the Miracle Flower, then Xu Elder might just be a puppet, and the one controlling the puppet from behind the scenes would be Shen Baiwei…
In that case, it could also perfectly explain Shen Baiwei’s actions from another perspective.
“…”
So what exactly is her background?
What is her purpose in infiltrating the Miracle Cult?
This is frightening to consider!
Fang Ji thought, and an uncontrollable heaviness appeared on his brow.
Just then, Shen Baiwei’s voice rang in his ear.
“Left Envoy, looking at you like this, you probably don’t want to listen, or rather, even if you listen, you won’t believe my explanation… However, I want to say that you actually don’t need to have so many concerns.”
“Although I joined the Miracle Cult with my own intentions, I can guarantee that my actions will not affect your plan. If you do not believe me, I can establish a friendship contract with you.”
The most basic restriction of a friendship contract is that one must not harm their ally; disrupting an ally’s important plans would also be a form of harm.
“And…” Shen Baiwei said, raising her gaze toward the large gray palace towering deep in the city, curling her lips and speaking seriously, “I also really want to witness the awakening of the first-generation Holy Son, bathing in his radiance and making a heartfelt wish!”
Seeing Shen Baiwei speaking in a manner that resembled a girl praying to a deity for love, Fang Ji was momentarily taken aback and subconsciously asked, “Is that so? What is your wish?”
If possible, I can help you… Fang Ji mentally added.
As a genuine Miracle Saint, he was well aware that aside from certain individuals born with extraordinarily high luck, the so-called “miracles” all come with a price.
Just like when he traveled from Qiuchun Town to Zhenwu Mountain, everyone who had come into contact with him along the way encountered misfortunes.
Oh, right, except for calamity.
Encountering calamity was his misfortune.
Even the smallest degree of “miracle” requires a price, let alone fulfilling any wish with a “miracle.”
If a madman, whose origin is unknown, made some crazy wish, it would likely lead to great suffering for living beings.
So even if the radiance of the first-generation Holy Son could fulfill everyone’s wishes, Fang Ji would not allow anyone to make a wish.
The thought of wanting to help Shen Baiwei realize her wish arose entirely due to the emotional impact of her words, a momentary impulse.
Of course, another important factor was that he did not expect Shen Baiwei to be so frank.
It was almost like saying, “Sorry, I’m an undercover agent, but this time I want to be a good person.”
“…” Shen Baiwei opened her mouth, hesitating to speak.
For a moment, Fang Ji felt a strong desire in her to confide, but in the end, all he heard was her say, “Sorry, that question is too personal; I cannot answer.”
Pausing for a moment, as if eager to gain Fang Ji’s trust, she shook the notebook in her hand, “If you still don’t believe me, I can tell you about some things I discovered after entering Yumen Pass. Didn’t you show a lot of interest in my notebook earlier?”
Fang Ji hesitated for a moment, his gaze falling on Shen Baiwei’s notebook, and said nothing, as if tacitly accepting her proposal.
“Hmm, where should I start?” Shen Baiwei thought for a moment and said, “Let’s start with those shadows that were chasing you earlier, shall we? Through my investigation, I discovered that those entities are all half-urban legends…”
“What?” Fang Ji showed a look of surprise.
“Or rather, they used to be half-urban legends,” Shen Baiwei explained. “Previously, when those shadows attacked others, I took advantage of the chaos to collect information on their organizations, analyzing their spirit energy fluctuations and the powers they controlled, and I found that their bodies actually possessed multiple powers.”
“And among those powers, some were highly consistent with the hidden powers in the half-urban legend organizations I had collected.”
“You also collected the half-urban legend organizations?” Fang Ji asked.
“Of course! While waiting for our dear Holy Son’s return, it would be boring to do nothing, right?” Shen Baiwei explained, waving her hand. “But that’s not important; what’s important is the connection between the shadows and the half-urban legends’ powers.”
Fang Ji, “…” Actually, that’s still quite important.
Learning that Shen Baiwei had collected a large number of half-urban legend organizations while waiting for the calamity to reach the Yumen Pass region made her image in his mind collapse a second time.
That feeling was like realizing that a colleague, who he thought was serious and hard-working, was actually a corporate spy sent from another company. Just when he thought this colleague was merely a cunning corporate spy, he suddenly found out that this colleague was a serial killer collecting organs.
Shen Baiwei did not notice Fang Ji’s thoughts and continued speaking on her own.
“I heard that those half-urban legends have a cruel custom of sacrificing the flesh and bl**d and souls of sinners to the Shaman Queen, and when tribal members grow stronger to a certain degree, they will receive summons from the Shaman Queen to return to her embrace…”
“From my analysis, the birth of those shadows is greatly related to that custom and that legend. Even if only a small part of the half-urban legends’ sacrifices could enter Yumen Pass, and even if their numbers aren’t large, the probability of legends giving birth to urban legends is low…”
“However, after hundreds of years of accumulation, it can develop to a terrifying extent, and it may even influence the legendary Shaman Queen, who in turn influences those shadows, forming a kind of vicious cycle.”
“Oh, right!” The more Shen Baiwei spoke, the more excited she became, like a niche enthusiast who couldn’t wait to share her interests with others. She eagerly opened her notebook in front of Fang Ji, “I’ve even named them! Look…”
Following Shen Baiwei’s point, Fang Ji glanced at her notebook and saw the words “Yumen Half Urban Legends Faith Sediment (Tentative)” written along with content similar to her earlier explanation.
In the bottom right corner of that page was a drawing of a shadow with a pair of watery big eyes, outlined with messy black lines, looking both quirky and cute.
It was simply like a monster illustration from some Q-version RPG game.
“Logically speaking, this situation should be my first discovery, and I should enjoy the naming rights, right?”
After speaking, Shen Baiwei examined Fang Ji and asked, “So, how about it? I’ve told you my biggest research finding since entering Yumen Pass; now can you trust me?”
This behavior was like a researcher who had made a new discovery but hadn’t had a chance to apply for a patent or publish a paper yet, sharing it with others.
It was definitely an expression of trust.
Fang Ji, “…”
I don’t believe it!
But given the current situation, temporarily cooperating isn’t out of the question.
After all, in the face of the calamity’s misfortunes, causing a conflict with a mysterious yet seemingly friendly high-level spiritual ability user is not a wise move.
With this thought, Fang Ji slowly nodded.
————
At the same time that Shen Baiwei was communicating her research findings to Fang Ji to gain his trust.
Luxianbei, who was sleeping in the Hook Column, suddenly woke up.
She was startled awake.
Awake from the sound of a waltz coming from downstairs…
She opened her eyes and looked down, seemingly catching sight of figures dancing on the stage, and couldn’t help but frown.
