AITAMITB Chapter 80

Zhao Xiaokui recalled when she fell victim to the situation.

Since learning that using the theft ability would consume some energy from Wen Yuanjia, she had not consciously avoided physical contact with him. On several occasions, she felt a unique energy entering her body, but that energy was so weak that it was easily resisted by her, who was already a second-tier transcendent.

After careful consideration, she believed the issue should have arisen during their last contact—the moment she handed the bowl to Wen Yuanjia.

Since the attempts at stealing had failed, Wen Yuanjia had not wasted energy on her body. Although she found touching his hand a bit unpleasant, Zhao Xiaokui didn’t think much of it. However, when she was bumped by Bai Jingru and milk spilled all over her, she belatedly snapped out of her daze. The spiritual alarm in her brain went off like a malfunctioning siren, ringing incessantly, causing her forehead to ache and, at the same time, unprecedented clarity in her mind.

What did Warmen JWen Yuanjia steal? Zhao Xiaokui repeatedly questioned herself.

He must have stolen something, leading to such consequences. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have noticed his actions in the milk.

Yes, something had been added to the milk. While lifting the milk, she hadn’t sensed it, but when it spilled over her, how could she, a transcendent who could manipulate water elements, not know that something extra had been put inside?

However, due to her limited experience, she couldn’t figure out what exactly Wen Yuanjia had added.

But one thing she was certain of—Wen Yuanjia’s theft ability was more complex than what he had previously demonstrated.

Entering the room and shutting off the camera, she lowered her voice and said to Bai Jingru, “Jingru, thank you.”

Bai Jingru shook her head, “I didn’t do much. You just asked me to pay attention to Wen Yuanjia, so I kept an eye on him. When he handed you the milk, he stared at you nervously. I felt something might be wrong, so I knocked over your milk. Was there something inside?”

Zhao Xiaokui nodded, “There was something, but I still don’t know what it is. However, it’s definitely not something good.”

“He actually dared to do this—” Bai Jingru frowned, a hint of anger on her face.

Zhao Xiaokui took off her clothes and folded them, with the side splashed with milk facing up. She took out a transparent sealed bag from her luggage, stuffed the clothes into it, and said to Bai Jingru, “He must have felt pressured by me, or he wouldn’t make such obvious moves.”

Compared to using unknown abilities to steal wealth, appearance, voice, and other abilities from others, directly using drugs was easy to detect. If something happened to Zhao Xiaokui, upon closer inspection, there was a possibility he could be caught.

“Do you want to inform your people to arrest him?” Bai Jingru asked with concern.

Zhao Xiaokui shook her head, “Not yet. His abilities are even more mysterious than I thought. I’m afraid they might not catch him, and it could alert him, making it harder to capture him in the future.”

The reason she had her probe early was precisely for this reason. No one had ever had a straightforward and formal discussion with an evil god. No one could clearly explain what transcendent abilities could achieve. Meeting someone like Tao Zijin was fine. She could easily trap herself, making it easy to catch her. But for someone like Wen Yuanjia, before playing the final card, no one knew what he was hiding.

“It’s too dangerous. How can your people let you take the lead?” Bai Jingru expressed her deep concern.

She vaguely learned from her friends that Zhao Xiaokui was more formidable than she had imagined. However, when she watched Zhao Xiaokui face those conspiracies and tricks head-on, she couldn’t help but worry. She even had some complaints about Shen Zhifei, “How could she agree to let you participate in this kind of thing?”

Pretending to be angry, Zhao Xiaokui said, “Jingru, you underestimate me too much. It’s precisely because this kind of thing is dangerous that they asked me to take the lead. After all, I am the most formidable, okay!”

Seeing her proud little demeanor, Bai Jingru couldn’t say many words. She looked at Zhao Xiaokui for a while and helplessly said, “Since this is your choice, I respect it. If there’s any place where you need my help, you must tell me.”

Zhao Xiaokui held her arm, and the two sisters went downstairs intimately. “Of course, you’re my sister. If there’s anything, I’ll definitely come home to seek my sister’s help, right?”

Hearing this from the two women, Wen Nianzhen, who had been outside the door for a long time without coming in, laughed and continued, “Xiaokui is right. When you encounter any problems, you should always think that there are family members to rely on. Home is the warmest harbor for a person.”

Zhao Xiaokui liked this middle-aged actress with a gentle temperament. She used her other hand to hold her and said, “Mom is right.”

Wen Nianzhen asked, “Why did you stay upstairs for so long? The food is getting cold.”

Zhao Xiaokui casually fabricated a lie, “The milk seeped inside. I felt uncomfortable, so I wiped it with a wet towel.”

Back at their seats, everyone was already seated. Zhao Xiaokui raised the milk on the table and said, “Everyone, sorry for delaying your time. I’ll self-punish with a drink!” Saying that, she unscrewed the lid and poured herself a bottle, making gurgling sounds as she drank. After finishing, she wiped her mouth and let out a satisfied burp.

Ren Hua looked at her, unable to laugh or cry, and said, “Look at your sister. Clearly, she wanted to drink milk, but she had to find an excuse. She really takes up all the reasons.”

The eldest brother picked up a chopstickful of vegetables for Zhao Xiaokui and said, “Milk is for drinking in the evening. Eat the vegetables first.”

The atmosphere at the dinner table quickly became harmonious amidst laughter and conversation. Zhao Xiaokui was much more alert this time, becoming quite cautious about the food on the table. She chatted throughout the entire meal and hardly ate anything. Bai Jingru was also afraid that someone might tamper with the dishes on the table, so she didn’t actively pick up food for Zhao Xiaokui when she noticed she wasn’t eating.

Others glanced at Zhao Xiaokui’s slender arms and elbows, understanding the situation. Nowadays, female celebrities compete fiercely to lose weight. Not eating dinner is a common thing, and everyone didn’t forget to run in the other direction¹everyone made a collective decision or instinctive choice to not inquire further about the reason why..

Only from the side of Wen Yuanjia came the sound of frustration, “Didn’t you say you could help me steal the destined hostile fate between Zhao Xiaokui and me? Why could she avoid it just now!”

The voice inside him responded, “I can help you steal the fate that is hostile to you and her, but just now, someone else’s fate intervened. I can only say that you are a bit unlucky today, encountering even such a low-probability event.”

Wen Yuanjia asked, “Can you steal it again?”

“You know, my energy is limited. Fate is often in one’s hands. Instead of letting me interfere, why don’t you take action directly? As long as your subjective will is strong enough, you can change the current situation.”

“Xiaojia, try this. Your big brother made the noodles; they’re delicious.”

Wen Nianzhen invited Wen Yuanjia to try the noodles. Wen Yuanjia smiled and agreed, picking up a bite for himself. His expression showed no signs of trouble, but the voice in his mind was filled with annoyance, “Don’t think I don’t know that you still have surplus energy. Otherwise, you would have fallen into a dormant state already. You must find a way to help me, or we’ll all be finished together.”

“What are you afraid of?” the tempting voice whispered, “Even if you personally take action and are discovered, so what? I can help you steal someone else’s identity again when the time comes. How about considering Bai Jingru? Although she’s a woman, she’s the president of the Bai family, rich, powerful, and influential. Wouldn’t that be better than your current identity?”

“You can steal her identity directly?” Wen Yuanjia sneered in his mind, “It seems your energy is quite abundant.”

“…As long as you can get rid of Zhao Xiaokui, energy is not a problem.”

Wen Yuanjia is not a fool. He sneered, exposing the other’s intentions, and said, “Who exactly is Zhao Xiaokui, and why are you so concerned about her? Why are you so eager for me to kill her? What benefits do you get from killing her?”

The voice remained silent.

Zhao Xiaokui was also anxious. Why don’t you speak up? What benefits do you gain from killing me? Why is everyone targeting me one by one?

She felt like she looked like Tang Seng²The character’s name is Tang Sanzang. But he is also known as Tang Seng or Tang Monk. from “The Journey to the West”, attracting attention whenever a demon appeared.

However, the voice remained silent, unwilling to reveal more information to Wen Yuanjia.

“If you don’t want to talk, then let’s drag it out.” Wen Yuanjia gave a thumbs up to Nie Fu, exaggeratedly praising the taste of the food. But in his mind, a voice echoed in contrast to his expression. “If I stop absorbing energy, we’ll both suffer. In this deep mountain and old forest, I don’t believe you can find a more suitable host than me.”

“Don’t think I can’t live without you.”

“I certainly don’t think I can’t live without you, but you should know that not everyone is as obedient and sensible as I am. We’ve been working together for so many years. You know how many benefits I’ve brought you. If it were someone else, would you be willing?” After the threat, Wen Yuanjia began to use a softer tone. “Mutual benefit. We’ve been together for so long. You kept this from me. Is it interesting? Although Bai Jingru has money and power and is beautiful, am I worse than her now? You want me to sacrifice my current life and identity to deal with Zhao Xiaokui for you. You have to show me where the benefits are, right?”

Zhao Xiaokui: Yes, yes, quickly say it!

She almost wished to strangle Wen Yuanjia to force the voice in his head to explain everything.

The previous evil god extracted from Tao Zijin’s mind was not a very intelligent system inside Tao Zijin’s mind. After coming out, it went crazy, babbling all day long. It provided no useful information except contaminating others. Now, finally encountering someone with a clear mind and seemingly communicative, Zhao Xiaokui wished she could read minds to extract all the information from his head.

The voice hesitated for a moment, as if weighing its options, and then said, “Actually, I’m not sure, but I suspect that there is a part of the authority of this world on Zhao Xiaokui.”

Zhao Xiaokui: “…What?”

• 1
  everyone made a collective decision or instinctive choice to not inquire further about the reason why.
• 2
  The character’s name is Tang Sanzang. But he is also known as Tang Seng or Tang Monk.