NHWSG chapter 29

Sheng Zhao was dumbfounded for two seconds, still not understanding where Xing Yingzhu got this card from.

He clearly remembered that he had said before that because he had limited scales last time, he wouldn’t reissue the access card if it was lost.

So where did this card come from?

Scratching his head, Sheng Zhao tentatively asked, “Boss, did you change your scales again?”

“No,” Xing Yingzhu said.

Sheng Zhao glanced at him, hesitated, and asked, “Then this access card—”

“Don’t ask so much,” Xing the boss’s patience usually lasted for only a few seconds. He frowned slightly, reaching out to grab the card impatiently, saying, “Forget it.”

“No, no, no!” Sheng Zhao quickly pounced on the coffee table, kneeling on the floor, frantically pressing the card against his chest, his whole body half leaning on the table, and assured in a twisted posture, “I’ll definitely keep it properly this time! Nothing unexpected will happen again!”

Xing Yingzhu snorted, a brief version of “Got it.”

Sheng Zhao laughed awkwardly, wiped the card, and put the exceptional “reissued” access card into his pocket.

With the card in his outer pocket, he patted it momentarily, feeling a familiar yet unfamiliar emotion rekindled in him at that moment.

Just as he felt when he saw the visual intercom screen light up downstairs on the night he left the commercial city, he once again felt a special sense of attention from his boss.

Xing Yingzhu didn’t notice Sheng Zhao’s strange expression—or if he did, he didn’t care too much, just thinking that he was once again staging those wild dramas in his mind. Sheng Zhao’s brain circuitry was a bit off, and Xing Yingzhu had almost gotten used to it.

However, the simple boss Xing had no idea that in just a few seconds, Sheng Zhao had completed quite a remarkable inner journey behind his back.

Whether he was a snake or a dragon, he was still his boss, Sheng Zhao thought in a very simple way.

The practical effect of this self-deprecating brainwashing method was immediately apparent to Sheng Zhao, who quickly revived with vigor. He felt that even losing bones wasn’t as frightening anymore.

Anyway, he had seen the appearance of that big snake with his own eyes. For him, as long as Xing Yingzhu was “alive,” there was nothing to fear. As for how many lifetimes he had lived, Sheng Zhao couldn’t care less.

With this in mind, he easily dispelled the gloom that had surrounded him for the past two days. He touched the key card in his pocket, feeling a surge of emotion, almost instantly understanding the feeling of “dying for a friend”.

“Actually, boss, that question you asked me before, I’ve been thinking about it,” Sheng Zhao wanted to contribute to his “friend” as well, so he asked eagerly, “You mentioned earlier that the bones you lost, what did they look like?”

Xing Yingzhu looked at him somewhat surprised. He thought that with Sheng Zhao’s courage, it would take some effort just to bring up this topic again, let alone to eat at the same table under the same roof. He didn’t expect Sheng Zhao to be so receptive.

Truly a materialistic pragmatist, Xing Yingzhu thought to himself: not a word of truth in his mouth.

Actually, Xing Yingzhu wasn’t too keen on bringing up this topic because it always reminded him of how he “lost” his bones. For him, it was not a pleasant memory, almost ranking as the most embarrassing moment in his life.

For Xing Yingzhu, everything else was fine, but losing face was intolerable.

But he couldn’t resist Sheng Zhao’s enthusiasm who was kneeling beside the coffee table, looking at him with an expression that said “I’m super useful” and “I have great ideas”, fearing that Xing Yingzhu would refuse.

Having roamed the human and demon worlds for many years, Xing Yingzhu, faced with the incessant provocation of this ordinary university student, had developed a conditioned reflex. Rarely seeing such a compliant side of Sheng Zhao, he actually felt quite satisfied.

It’s evident that one’s bottom line is meant to be trampled upon.

“I’ve told you, dragon body, with wings on its back,” Xing Yingzhu said reluctantly, “Since there’s only a pile of bones left, the appearance of the scales doesn’t matter.”

“How big?” Sheng Zhao began recording supplementary conditions.

“…not too big, I guess?” Xing Yingzhu said, “I’m not really sure.”

“It’s your bones, how can you not be sure,” Sheng Zhao asked in amazement, “Don’t you know how big your body is?”

“In theory, saying it blocks out the sun might be a bit exaggerated, but circling around Mount Huashan three times should be no problem,” Xing Yingzhu said, “I’m just not sure what it looks like after being taken away.”

Upon reflection, Sheng Zhao realized that it might be true. Xing Yingzhu, being such a powerful demon, might have been taken away by someone who wasn’t human, perhaps using some method of preservation, like proportionally shrinking the entire large skeleton.

So he temporarily set aside this topic and changed direction to conduct a second interview.

“So, where have you looked?” Sheng Zhao asked.

“Nowhere,” Xing Yingzhu said, “I’ve been in the human realm all along, but I’ve never felt the whereabouts of the bones.”

“…So you haven’t looked?” Sheng Zhao asked, dumbfounded.

Xing Yingzhu furrowed his brow, as if he thought Sheng Zhao’s question was pointless.

“Otherwise?” Xing Yingzhu said, “This world changes so much, should I flip every blade of grass and every tree?”

After some thought, Sheng Zhao realized that Xing Yingzhu was right. The world was so vast, with land and water, it was unrealistic to search slowly.

But then again, Sheng Zhao couldn’t help but find Xing Yingzhu’s passive method of searching somewhat speechless. He even suspected that the reason he hadn’t found anything in so many years wasn’t because the bones were hidden so well, but because Xing Yingzhu himself couldn’t be bothered to go out.

With this in mind, Sheng Zhao turned off his phone screen and turned to Xing Yingzhu, saying seriously, “In that case, I think we might be able to utilize some external high-end power to focus on finding similar items.”

Xing Yingzhu remained silent for a moment before calmly saying, “Speak in plain language.”

Sheng Zhao hesitated for a moment, and when he spoke again, his expression became somewhat strange. He cautiously glanced at Xing Yingzhu’s expression, then cleared his throat, and after a while, stuttered, “Perhaps… have you been to a museum?”

Xing Yingzhu: “…”

He retracted his previous opinion of Sheng Zhao. He shouldn’t have expected anything from him.

However, after a full thirteen hours, when the plane landed at Jinling International Airport, Xing Yingzhu got off the shuttle and faced the desolate road with no one in sight, he remained unusually silent for a long time.

“What’s wrong?” Sheng Zhao dragged the luggage for two people, looking at him inexplicably, and asked, “Boss, aren’t we going? The car isn’t here, it’s parked in the underground parking lot below.”

“Sheng Zhao,” after a while, Xing Yingzhu looked straight ahead at the distant street lamp and slowly said, “Did you put a spell on me?”

Otherwise, how could he have truly accepted Sheng Zhao’s downright stupid suggestion and followed him to Jinling overnight?

Xing Yingzhu couldn’t make head or tail of it. What had come over him? He actually agreed without much thought, and even thought Sheng Zhao might have a point.

Sheng Zhao: “…”

Sheng Zhao swallowed hard. Carefully, he placed the suitcase between them, trying hard to reason with Xing Yingzhu, “Boss, you can’t say that. I’m just an ordinary person. How could I possibly put a spell on you? If anything, it’s the other way around.”

Thanks to Sheng Zhao’s interruption, Xing Yingzhu’s momentary self-doubt seamlessly transitioned into disdain towards Sheng Zhao. He turned his head, giving Sheng Zhao a once-over.

Sheng Zhao swore that even though Xing Yingzhu hadn’t said a word, he could clearly discern the complex undertone of “what do you have that’s worth my scheming” from his expression.

Sure enough, Xing Yingzhu’s next words were, “Did I put a spell on you? Is that worth the cost?”

Sheng Zhao: “…”

With these two digressive sentences, Xing Yingzhu’s brief moment of self-doubt quickly disappeared without a trace. He turned around, surveyed the surroundings, then strode purposefully towards the underground parking lot as directed by Sheng Zhao.

Sheng Zhao quickly caught up with him, pulling the suitcase and jogging. He didn’t seem to think that his idea was bad at all. On the contrary, he felt extremely pleased with himself, unable to suppress his sense of accomplishment. Despite the risk of being mocked by Boss Xing, he insisted on boasting a few words in front of him.

“Actually, I think my speculation has practical scientific reasoning behind it,” Sheng Zhao said. “Professional experts and engineering projects are definitely more efficient than us. And you see, they put everything they find together. So, when you go there, it’s as easy as browsing through a world directory.”

Sheng Zhao became more enthusiastic as he spoke, even boldly patting Xing Yingzhu on the back as he passionately encouraged him, “So, even if we can’t find it in the Jinling Paleontology Museum, don’t lose hope. We can still go to the Yancheng Museum to search.”

Xing Yingzhu: “…”