It’s A Monster Chapter 53: Double Layer

Chapter 53: Double Layer

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Maybe it was because Xu You’s gaze was too intense, or maybe the others noticed he had been quietly observing the view outside the car window, but during the latter half of the journey, a black cloth bag suddenly appeared over Xu You’s head.

“…” Hey bro, this really isn’t friendly behavior!

Xu You leaned back in the car seat, actively reviewing his kidnapping experience. He decided that from now on, he really needed to obey traffic rules. After all, if it weren’t for taking a shortcut at night, he wouldn’t have blindly flown through a thunderstorm cloud. And if he hadn’t blindly flown through that thunderstorm cloud, this group of criminals wouldn’t have caught him in an electric net. A Chiwen caught in an electric net—was there a more humiliating way to be kidnapped? No, absolutely not.

Since the burly man beside him was a foreign monster, Xu You’s desire to communicate in English was stronger than ever. But with his mouth covered, he could only rehearse vocabulary silently, just in case.

As a tracker, it wasn’t unusual for Xu You to be targeted by criminals. So, he wasn’t really surprised by the kidnapping. Still, Chengdu’s public safety was usually very good. The worst cases were usually just fights, not such grand-scale retaliation. The only possible culprit seemed to be phoenix spirit bones.

Last time during a night market patrol, that European king snake had been a guest at the Jiayong Auction’s banquet but didn’t attend due to an environmental incident. Now it seemed that missing the banquet probably saved that bastard’s life, or else the Monster Management Committee might have swept him up already, and Xu You wouldn’t be stuck here playing “bondage” hostage.

Xu You decided to try to rescue himself before his colleagues—especially Shi Wenze—arrived. He wanted to avoid having this humiliating bondage look recorded by the law enforcement camera and immortalized as an internal office classic. That would be unbearable. While he was thinking this, the car turned, went over a speed bump, then down a slope, and finally came to a steady stop.

“Get out!” The blonde monster beside him ordered stiffly and yanked Xu You out of the car. There seemed to be quite a few monsters nearby. Xu You tried to say, “Can I—” but all he got was “temporary.” The mix of dialect and English left him completely confused. He thought ruefully, This is what it means to regret not studying harder. Sorry, I’m a lousy student.

He staggered along and was finally pushed into a chair. The air smelled rotten, and a cold wind brushed his cheek. So much for luxury rides—it seemed this Bentley had been driven to an underground, dilapidated warehouse.

Lin Su must have never imagined that all those hostage rescue scenarios he’d pictured would end up happening to Xu You like this. Life really was unfair. A pure Chiwen, truly innocent.

Xu You sneezed a dozen times in a row, making all sorts of noises. After a while, someone finally ripped the bag off his head. The bright light stung his eyes, and he squinted for a long moment before adjusting.

A flickering incandescent bulb hung from the ceiling—this place looked like a garage. Besides the people from the car, there were several new unfamiliar faces—various nationalities and genders—and one very familiar king snake. See? Bro, I knew you’d be here.

The king snake seemed to hold a high status in the gang, as when he approached, someone immediately brought over a chair for him. The tape sealing Xu You’s mouth was torn off. He took a few deep breaths and said to the king snake, “Hello, sir. Why did you tie me up here?”

A woman nearby stiffened for a moment. “You don’t have to make it so hard on yourself.”

“So,” Xu You cleared his throat, “you kidnapped me because of the night market incident?”

“No.” The king snake sat across from him. The woman translated, “We want to get the phoenix spirit bones back.”

Xu You paused. You’re already spilling the beans? You’re so straightforward, it’s hard to keep pretending. He had no choice but to say, “The phoenix spirit bones aren’t with me. Those were handed over to the authorities long ago.”

The woman said, “We know. But we can’t get into Kunlun Tower, nor find out where the phoenix spirit bones are stored. Time is tight, so we have to use you as a bargaining chip.”

Xu You thought, You really know how to talk, sister. So to you criminals, the Monster Management Committee and the others are an iron fortress—unbreakable—but I’m the weakest link? Personal attacks like that—who can tolerate it? He asked, “When do you plan to contact my boss?”

“That’s none of your concern.” The woman ripped another strip of tape and resealed his mouth. “Don’t worry. As long as you cooperate and convince them to hand over the phoenix spirit bones quickly, we’ll release you immediately.”

Xu You looked at the king snake’s dejected, almost villainous glare and thought this promise wasn’t very convincing.

…

At the Hucheng Monster Management Committee guesthouse, Shi Wenze was video conferencing with Zhou Yuansong. They suspected Xu You’s disappearance was almost certainly related to the phoenix spirit bones, but since they hadn’t received any calls, they still didn’t know where he was.

The locator was found in Jiangcheng, but Shi Wenze had checked the weather forecast there—it had been clear all along.

In clear and calm airspace, very few monsters could intercept a Chiwen. The most likely way to kidnap him was to ambush him in a place with poor visibility—like a thunderstorm or thick clouds.

Lin Su said, “Our flight was delayed because of stormy weather on landing. Could they be in Hucheng?”

“Based on meteorological data, Hucheng is the most likely.” Zhou Yuansong said. “About Xu You’s whereabouts, I’ll coordinate with all the Monster Management Committees along the route to search as soon as possible. There’s also a new development: colleagues heading to the Xishan village found clues about the stolen masterpiece from Cang’s studio. The ‘Yaochi Night Banquet’ painting that Cang Dai stole might actually be a diptych.”

Shi Wenze glanced at Lin Su. “What’s a diptych?”

“A double-layered painting,” Lin Su explained. “If you peel off the top layer, there’s another painting hidden underneath.”

On the other end of the video call, Zhou Yuansong said, “Old Li didn’t really care about this family heirloom painting. At most, he’d take it out to sun it now and then, just to keep the bugs away.”

One year, shortly after the painting was hung up, Old Li’s four-year-old grandson pointed at it and shouted “Phoenix!” The Yaochi Night Banquet painting only showed immortals—where would a phoenix come from? No one in the family took it seriously; it was quickly forgotten. It was only after repeated questioning from the Monster Committee staff that they recalled the incident.

Lin Su said, “From a child’s height, if you look through the lower parts with backlighting, it’s easier to see the hidden painting.”

Zhou Yuansong added, “That little grandson has grown up now, but he still remembers. He said it was a very strange phoenix, flattened like a sheet of paper, with visible translucent ribs.”

“A phoenix completely spread out flat, showing its bones?” Shi Wenze asked Lin Su. “Does that have any special meaning?”

“No,” Lin Su shook his head. “These days, it’s common to see paintings showing half the creature in its original form and half as its skeleton—it’s everywhere. But Yaochi Night Banquet is an ancient painting, so I guess that’s an anatomical diagram of a phoenix.”

“If that’s true, then it makes sense why Cang Dai went to so much trouble stealing this huge, worthless painting,” Shi Wenze said. “All of this ties back to the group trying to reconstruct the phoenix. If we find them, we might find Xu You.”

Zhou Yuansong agreed, “So the priority is to convince Xie Ding to cooperate with us in locating the Shandu Map.”

Finding the Shandu Map would lead them to the stolen paintings, then to Cang Dai, then to the criminal gang behind him—and ultimately to Xu You, kidnapped by that gang.

Outside, dawn was just breaking. Shi Wenze glanced at the time. “I’ll set off at eight.”

After ending the video call, Lin Su said, “If they want to use Xu You as a bargaining chip, at least for now, he shouldn’t be in danger.”

“I know. I’m not too worried about him getting hurt.” Shi Wenze closed his laptop, squeezed Lin Su’s hand. “We have two hours. Let’s get some rest. I’ll make a few more calls.”

“I’m not tired,” Lin Su said, sitting on the bed. “I’ll stay with you.”

…

In the dark, damp underground warehouse, Xu You judged from the faint light outside that dawn had come again.

The woman—judging from the conversations between the king snake and her, and Xu You’s third-grade English level—he guessed her name might be Sakia, or something close. Sakia had multiple roles in the group: translator, caretaker for the hostage, and timely meal delivery.

The food was blackened bread and cold milk. Xu You took a bite and was left speechless by how rough it was. “Can I have steamed buns instead?” he asked.

Sakia said coldly, “No.”

Xu You tried again, “I need to pee.”

Sakia called over two burly men and motioned for them to accompany Xu You.

“Wait, wait!” Xu You stood still. “Why are my hands tied again? How am I supposed to pee like this? At least leave one hand free.”

Sakia said, “No need. They’ll help you.”

Xu You gasped inwardly. Help me? Is that the kind of ‘help’ you mean, sister? Not so appropriate!

Without a word, the burly men dragged him toward the bathroom.

Xu You protested loudly, “No no no, I don’t need to pee anymore! I can hold it a little longer, really!”

They threw him back in the chair.

Sakia glanced over, “Eat your food quietly. If you don’t, I’ll take it away immediately. Don’t try any tricks.”

Xu You silently nibbled on the black sour bread, thinking he had to get out of this hellhole soon—or his kidneys might start having problems. He stole another glance at the towering men standing nearby. Honestly, risking so much to join a criminal gang—are these guys really doing it for ‘helping others’? Don’t they think something’s off here? Even the security guard at the closed-down leather factory in Wenzhou had better prospects than this job.

 

 

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