AITAMITB Chapter 105

Since the introduction of cultivation methods like the “Tust Meditation Technique” and various books on transcendent civilization, Huaxia’s understanding of transcendent powers has noticeably shifted towards a more systematic and organized approach. It is no longer a scattered collection of knowledge but seems to be heading towards a more structured system, with speculations occupying a significant portion of the content.

A new consciousness appeared in Zhao Xiaokui’s mind, and without concealing it, she directly reported it.

Upon receiving the message, Shi Ning said, “The information you reported is crucial; we will take it seriously.”

Zhao Xiaokui suggested, “This is different from the parasitic entities of the evil gods; it’s very covert. I think you can use psychological testing methods to find hidden individuals, especially personality splitting and empathy tests.”

Recalling her previous experiences, Zhao Xiaokui realized that the thing she lost the most was empathy. When she was immersed in memories contaminated by the reshaping consciousness, she would completely lose the ability to empathize with emotions, unable to feel pain or joy. She could only make simple judgments and couldn’t determine the depth of emotions.

She suspected that the reshaping in her consciousness might be the presence of a consciousness left behind by some evil god. These ancient consciousnesses were extremely evil and cunning. By reincarnating in this way, they not only gained a new identity but also could escape interference from the madness. As someone who considered herself responsible for maintaining the world, Zhao Xiaokui would not allow these infiltrators to succeed.

Fortunately, unlike parasites, this reshaping process took a long time. Even after replacing the original owner, wanting to restore to the previous level of power required considerable effort. Before that, there was no need to worry too much about the damage they could cause.

Zhao Xiaokui knew the urgency of the matter, but after reporting the situation, she put it aside and didn’t dwell on it.

Finally back home, besides Shen Zhifei, there was also Luo Ziwei who missed her. Upon hearing her return, Luo Ziwei, personally came to her door, asking if she, as an artist, would continue her career.

Zhao Xiaokui then remembered she was a working individual.

However, sometimes she couldn’t distinguish being a singer or a Nightwalker. Which one was her main job after all?

“What is this?” Zhao Xiaokui asked, holding a golden invitation card between two fingers.

She singled out this invitation card because of its high value. The luxurious and intricate golden invitation looked thin but was surprisingly heavy, with genuine gold powder and intricate patterns on the surface.

Luo Ziwei explained, “Oh, this is an invitation to a charity auction. They hope you can be the guest of honor during the event.”

Opening the invitation, Zhao Xiaokui asked, “Why haven’t I heard of this?”

In the entertainment industry, charity auctions were limited, and the routines were similar. Every year, female stars would have fierce competition for red carpet positions. Zhao Xiaokui had some knowledge of it, but she had no impression of the name of this particular charity auction on hand.

Luo Ziwei clarified, “It’s a charity auction organized privately by wealthy individuals without media involvement.” She took the invitation, having gathered information in advance, “This auction is relatively niche, so not many people know about it. Those who can attend all have invitations.”

The surface of the invitation was a bit rough, and Zhao Xiaokui’s fingertips gently touched it, sensing a strange feeling.

She pointed at the invitation, saying, “I’ll take this one.”

Leaving the company, Zhao Xiaokui put the invitation in her bag and took it home. Luo Ziwei had no objections, only reminding her to keep it safe. Such a precious item might not be easily replaced if lost. If they didn’t have electronic ticketing at the event, getting stuck outside would be embarrassing.

Once at home, Zhao Xiaokui took out the invitation from her bag and photographed it from every angle. She sent the pictures to Lin Bai, asking him to check if there were any issues with this auction.

Lin Bai: “?”

Zhao Xiaokui: “I have a somewhat bad feeling about it.”

Zhao Xiaokui was not a Star Seer and did not possess the ability to predict the future. However, having absorbed the power of faith, she was naturally favored by this world. The so-called bad feeling could be considered a warning from the world because most of her not-so-good premonitions had come true. Lin Bai willingly helped her with the investigation without any hint of personal use.

Upon investigation, they did find something.

“This is indeed a charity auction. Twenty percent of the total auction proceeds will go to a charity foundation… The nature is fine, but there are issues with the attendees and auction items,” Lin Bai reported.

He sent over several photos, all typical Western appearances of about a hundred people, saying, “These individuals are members of the Dark Council that we identified based on the information you provided. They are either vampires or werewolves.”

He then forwarded several photos of auction items.

Zhao Xiaokui asked in confusion, “Why are they all paintings?”

“That’s the strange part. The auction items related to this auction are mostly paintings or artworks, in short, things with relatively inflated prices, you understand? Moreover, these items have a history of multiple auctions, changing hands between several buyers, and the prices keep getting higher each time. What does that make you think of?” Lin Bai inquired.

“Money laundering?” Zhao Xiaokui suggested.

“It’s quite likely,” Lin Bai confirmed.

Rubbing her chin, Zhao Xiaokui pondered. Money laundering, although intriguing and illegal, didn’t concern her much. After all, it was a matter for economic and anti-crime departments to handle. It wasn’t something Zhao Xiaokui needed to be involved in, even if there were vampires and werewolves involved.

She always felt that this auction was not as simple as just money laundering.

Shen Zhifei prepared a cup of hot milk and came out, finding her sitting cross-legged on the sofa chatting. When she saw the invitation on the table, Shen Zhifei asked, “Did you receive this invitation too?”

“Too?” Zhao Xiaokui asked, “You got one too?”

Shen Zhifei nodded, “Both Bai Jingru and I received it. We were wondering if you were going.”

“Have you been there before?” Zhao Xiaokui asked.

“It’s the first time we’ve received an invitation, but I’ve been with Uncle and Aunt before,” Shen Zhifei said. “It’s just an auction of some artworks, not very interesting… Is there something wrong?”

“I can’t say for sure,” Zhao Xiaokui couldn’t put her finger on it. “Anyway, since they invited me, I’ll go and take a look. I have a feeling something might happen.”

The auction was scheduled to take place on a luxury cruise ship anchored in the port of S City, half a month later. On the day before the auction, Zhao Xiaokui, along with Shen Zhifei and Bai Jingru, boarded the cruise ship.

Each person boarding the cruise was allowed to bring two companions. Shen Zhifei and Bai Jingru each brought an assistant and a bodyguard, while Zhao Xiaokui brought Gou Rixin and Lin Bai.

Wearing sharp suits and sunglasses and carrying Zhao Xiaokui’s suitcase, Gou Rixin and Lin Bai looked no different from the bodyguards hired by Shen Zhifei and Bai Jingru. In fact, they seemed even more robust. They had done some simple disguises on their faces and figures. Unless it was someone very familiar with them, like Zhang Hongyi, few would recognize them.

These two individuals were the people that Shi Ning instructed Zhao Xiaokui to bring along after hearing about her uneasy premonition. After all, before the auction started, the cruise ship would head out to sea. If any accidents occurred, although Zhao Xiaokui was a formidable Tier 3 Transcendent, she might not be able to take care of so many people on the cruise ship. Having two familiar individuals by her side might come in handy at any moment.

Moreover, they needed to know why members of the Dark Council’s Transcendents would appear on a cruise ship in Huaxia.

When boarding the cruise, Zhao Xiaokui gently handed the invitation to the gloved inspector. Her gaze, seemingly curious, swept over the cruise ship and exclaimed, holding Shen Zhifei’s arm, “Wow, this cruise ship is huge.”

Bai Jingru chuckled, “Is it your first time on such a cruise ship, Xiaokui?”

Zhao Xiaokui nodded.

Someone nearby sneered, “Country bumpkin.”

Bai Jingru’s face instantly changed. She was ready to retort but was pulled back by Zhao Xiaokui, who shook her head.

What was there to argue about? She hadn’t been on this type of cruise ship before, but she had been on an aircraft carrier. If they wanted to talk about being uncultured, she wondered who was more uncultured.

Passing a long staircase, when they were a bit distant from others, Zhao Xiaokui whispered, “Ignore them.”

Lin Bai glanced at his watch and then shook his head at Gou Rixin. He had a simple detection device on his hand, and it didn’t detect any traces of Transcendent powers. When Zhao Xiaokui mentioned “them,” it referred to the inspectors waiting outside who were also Transcendents.

What kind of auction required such a grand setup?

Moreover, going on a cruise meant heading out to sea. If it were officially registered Transcendents, they would need to report to the Night Walkers in advance. However, their system didn’t have any reports related to this trip. In other words, the Transcendents who just stood there for inspection were not registered individuals. Having several unregistered Transcendents suddenly appear raised suspicions.

What’s even stranger is that, with so many unregistered Transcendents, there wasn’t a single registered Transcendent among them.

The cruise ship’s stewardess smiled as she guided them to their respective rooms. Surprisingly, the three of them and their three invitations were all assigned to three-person cabins. This cabin type was considered the best on the cruise, and it was not unusual for Shen Zhifei and Bai Jingru to receive invitations corresponding to this type of room. However, what was surprising was that Zhao Xiaokui also got the same type of room.

“Let’s go and put our things away. See you later,” Shen Zhifei suggested proactively, knowing that Zhao Xiaokui and Lin Bai had something to discuss. Bai Jingru agreed and added, “Tonight is a buffet that lasts for three hours; don’t miss it.”

Waving to Zhao Xiaokui, the two of them left the room. Zhao Xiaokui and Lin Bai began their conversation once the door was closed.

Lin Bai took various instruments from the suitcase and started checking. After confirming that there were no listening or monitoring devices, he relaxed and said, “The room is secure.”

“I believe they wouldn’t dare to tamper with anything in the room. With so many Transcendents hired for security, and likely many Transcendents among the attendees, whether it’s surveillance or listening devices, it’s easy for Transcendents to detect them. The organizers aren’t that foolish,” Zhao Xiaokui said casually.

Zhao Xiaokui touched her chin and said, “Later, let’s go to dinner together. Lin Bai, find a way to test how many Transcendents can be detected. I’ll also use my senses to check the list of attendees later.”

“No problem,” Lin Bai replied.

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