Chapter 47: Never Boring
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
Greenhead had found an empty couch and sat down, ordering himself a drink. At that moment, the lights in the bar began to spin with blinding brightness, and the speakers blasted music at full volume. Xu You felt once again the difference between himself and the younger girls around him. They were genuinely having fun, while his raised, waving hands were nothing but a protective camouflage. He was tired—his heart ached a little. Maybe it was time to retire.
The cheers around him swelled in waves, the people on the dance floor growing increasingly frenzied. Despite the charm sticker on his face, Xu You still looked like a lively young man, so it was only natural he was quickly surrounded by girls. The DJ shouted at the top of his lungs for everyone to get hyped, and thanks to his relentless energy, even the seated guests were dragged into the chaos. Screams echoed from every direction, as a real-life “Neon-lit Dance Frenzy Regression to Primal Instincts” unfolded.
Xu You cursed under his breath and glanced toward Greenhead through the writhing crowd, spotting that he, too, had been surrounded by a different group. The disco ball flickered madly, throwing the dance floor into alternating moments of dazzle and gloom—like a surreal dreamscape where all secret dealings could be swallowed whole.
“What’s going on?” Shi Wenze’s voice came through the earpiece.
“This place was a perfect choice,” Xu You muttered in reply.
According to Bai Tianchi’s analysis, if Dou Yixuan had really been hiding the Phoenix Bone, she’d likely try to transfer it to a safer, undiscovered contact to avoid being traced by the police. That was why they had deliberately leaked a small rumor about Qiongqi waking up, while keeping the apartment under quiet surveillance for days. Sure enough, a suspicious guy with green hair had shown up—though they hadn’t expected the transaction spot to be this chaotic.
If Greenhead had really taken the Phoenix Bone from Dou Yixuan’s place, then anyone in this bar could be his contact. And with that wild masquerade just now, the handoff might’ve already gone down unnoticed.
“Should’ve skipped the fishing act altogether. Now it feels like we tried to steal a chicken and ended up losing the rice—no handoff lead, and no solid evidence on this guy either.” Xu You leaned on one hand, scanning the bar for any new clues.
“Should we coordinate with the police to shut this place down?” Shi Wenze asked. “We already checked—turns out a bunch of hotels were handing out party tickets for this bar last night. It might not link directly to Dou Yixuan on the surface, but odds are she’s pulling strings behind the scenes.”
“Let me look around more,” Xu You said, picking up his drink as he wandered the room. The light flashed across every face, some lit with pure joy. But one guy who had been beside Greenhead—a blonde—looked noticeably distracted.
Masquerade parties had one perk: the costumes made everyone easier to remember. If this had been a crowd of guys in plaid button-ups, Xu You doubted he’d have picked out anyone that fast.
After a moment, Xu You found the woman he had flirted with earlier. “Hey, beautiful, can I ask you a favor?”
“What kind of favor?”
“Can you get that guy’s WeChat for me?” He tilted his head toward the distant blond man, grinning. “Please. But don’t say it’s for me.”
She understood instantly—but sighed, a little disappointed. Hot guys really were never straight.
Still, she agreed. Phone in hand, she approached the blond. They chatted for a bit, but he never pulled out his phone. She returned, irritated. “You go ask him yourself. He wouldn’t add me—he’s definitely gay.”
Xu You ordered two drinks. “Don’t sweat it. He’s got crap taste anyway.”
While they spoke, the blond man had already stood up and started walking toward the door. Xu You turned toward the restroom and murmured into the mic, “Watch that blond guy. I’d bet anything it’s him. Keep me updated if anything happens.”
“Got it.” Sister Ya tapped her earpiece. Just then, a fruit vendor came tearing down the slope on a three-wheeled cart, yelling, “Move! Move! Brakes are busted!”
The alley was narrow. The blond man stumbled back a few steps. The vendor twisted the handlebars with effort, but still clipped the guy and knocked him over. He jumped off the cart apologizing profusely, reaching out to help—but the man coldly brushed him off, standing up and storming away.
“Hey! Hold on, man!” the vendor called, chasing after him and grabbing his arm. “You can’t just leave! Let’s settle this now—don’t go running off and claim I hit and ran!”
“I said I’m fine,” the man snapped, trying to shake him off. But the vendor refused to let go.
“You just said you were fine, right? There’s a police station right ahead—why don’t you go repeat that to the cops, say you don’t want me held responsible.”
“Are you insane? Let go!” the blond man barked, anger flaring.
“What, I hit you and took responsibility, and now I’m the crazy one?” the vendor said, still holding on. “You don’t want to go to the station, fine—record a statement, so you don’t come back to blackmail me—”
Before he could finish, the blond shoved him hard and bolted in the other direction.
“Go,” Sister Ya said through the radio.
“Stop right there!” the vendor shouted after him.
With that, the chase was on. A simple fruit vendor pursuing an angry young man—it was easy to tell who looked more suspicious. Civilians in the area jumped in to help. Undercover agents who’d been lying in wait nearby surged into motion, staging a small street pursuit. The blond ran like a man possessed—like he hadn’t been drinking at a bar, but chugging Red Bull instead. He turned into a side alley he clearly knew well, and just as the others were catching up, he leapt straight into the Fog Realm. But before he could land properly, a giant roc smacked him into a wall with one massive wing. WHAM! He stumbled, then collapsed to the ground.
Back inside the bar, Xu You sipped his third glass of sour plum juice, lazily blowing on the money-drawing talisman hanging from his ear. Aside from the blond, he hadn’t spotted any other suspicious figures. Greenhead, meanwhile, seemed much livelier now—likely relieved that the mission was complete and ready to party. Not that he’d get to enjoy it for long.
“How’s it looking on your end?” Xu You tapped his glass. “He looked at his phone a second ago and got this weird expression—it seemed like he was about to dip. There are guards at the door. Should I follow or not?”
“Just got the word from Ya,” Shi Wenze replied. “Confirmed. Take him.”
Xu You yanked the talisman off and headed straight for the exit. One of the bouncers had just walked Greenhead out and nearly bumped into Xu You when he turned back around. The guy’s expression flickered with nervousness.
“Leaving already, handsome?” the bouncer asked.
“Yeah,” Xu You replied, reaching for the door.
“There’s another round of prize draws coming up,” the bouncer said, trying to block him. “You sure you don’t want to stay for that?”
Xu You yanked the man by the collar and threw him to the side. Outside the door, Greenhead had already vanished. A voice crackled in from above. “Fog Realm.”
Greenhead had tossed away his wig and rolled across the ground, transforming into a three-legged feral beast. He landed like the wind, bolting into the distance—but even so, he couldn’t outrun Xu You. Chiwen unleashed a tidal wave, sweeping the beast into the sea with a deafening crash.
The Monster Affairs Committee had a reason for favoring auspicious beasts in their hiring policy—because very few regular monsters could go toe-to-toe with a dragon.
Meanwhile, Lin Su and Cheng Facai were both back at the Committee office. One worried about his boyfriend, the other about his ex-girlfriend. Different concerns, but they’d found themselves at the same destination.
Greenhead, the blond man, and the bar’s security guard had all been arrested. The Phoenix Bone had also been recovered. All that remained was Dou Yixuan.
Shi Wenze had assumed it wouldn’t be a straightforward process—he’d been right. But the difficulty had come not from her, but from the sea of bodyguards who burst out once the apartment door was kicked in. Taking them down had taken real effort.
Dou Yixuan herself, however, hadn’t put up the slightest resistance. She hadn’t had the strength to. Her enhancement surgery had only just begun when Qiongqi and Silver Hound were taken down. She’d barely managed to stitch up the incision and hurriedly transfer the Phoenix Bone to avoid a police raid. Even so, they’d uncovered her faster than she expected. The surgical cuts on her back were still half-exposed, and she had no energy left to run.
Cheng Facai stared, incredulous. “The operation’s already over? That fast?”
“It’s over,” Lin Su replied, setting down his phone. “Your ex is being taken to the hospital.”
“She got hurt?”
“No. Word is she removed some of her own bones—wanted to replace them with the Phoenix’s. The doctors are putting hers back in.”
Cheng Facai’s face turned pale. He couldn’t understand that kind of pursuit, couldn’t even imagine it. Wouldn’t it have been enough to be a wealthy bird-person? Why the hell did she want to turn herself into a phoenix?
“Are you going to visit her?” Lin Su asked.
“Going now would just feel like rubbing it in,” Cheng Facai refused flatly.
“Fair. You haven’t even cleared your own mess yet,” Lin Su said. “Trafficking monster bones is still a crime, you know.”
At that, Cheng Facai could only sigh again. Regret came too late. The best he could do now was pass on his hard-earned wisdom to the poor kid in front of him: never let love blind you.
But Lin Su didn’t think they were alike at all. My boyfriend’s a public official, he thought proudly. He’s not tainted by the world. He’s a symbol of justice. At most, he’d admire a dinosaur fossil at the museum. University boys like him really did have the purest minds.
The mission had gone surprisingly smoothly. For once, Xu You’s report didn’t consist solely of “aggressive pursuit of cybernetic Silver Hound: unsuccessful.” As he typed up his draft, he asked, “Did director Zhou give us any extra vacation days?”
Shi Wenze replied, “Your flight’s at noon tomorrow. Back to Chengdu.”
Xu You peeked over the top of his screen, disappointed. “You didn’t fight for more time?”
“Noon was the best I could get. Director Zhou wanted us on a red-eye tonight because it’s cheaper.”
Xu You made a face. Figures. Our department’s reimbursement policies are practically stingy to the bone. But Lin Su didn’t complain. Sure, vacations were nice—but so was home renovation. Plus, his next exam was just around the corner, and he wanted to test his teaching results. Shi Wenze warned him, “If you fail, get ready to eat seaweed for a month.”
Xu You groaned. “What the hell, why?”
“Because I gave up so many vacation nights tutoring you through those damn legal codes,” Shi Wenze shot back.
“Bullshit. You didn’t teach me a single damn thing.”
Shi Wenze gave him a light smack on the head, as if trying to knock some common sense into him. But Xu You wasn’t fazed. “I asked Lin Su—he said you two are still just ‘pure friends.’ So you don’t even have any vacation nights to speak of.”
Shi Wenze didn’t get mad. Instead, he smiled with a hint of smugness. “But we have a card.”
Xu You blinked. “A what?”
“A daily rental card,” Shi Wenze said. “Our couple status renews per day. You get it?”
Xu You didn’t get it. But he was deeply shaken. The ways of love were far too complicated for a Chiwen to understand.
“Wait… if it works like that, doesn’t that mean Lin Su can just drop you whenever he gets bored?”
“Shut up!” Shi Wenze snapped, suddenly serious. “Like I’d ever be the one getting tossed.”
Xu You stared at him in silence. Bro, wake up… you’re not making yourself sound very valuable here.
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