The Creatures That We Are

Chapter 961: Fate Slides

Activate Willful Power.

[Constitution: 1 Endurance: 1]

[Strength: 1 Agility: 13246]

[Willpower: 1 Charisma: 1]

[Luck: 2020]

Willful Power could be used for 15 seconds, and Fly’s use time would last 15 more seconds. The two aligned.

Whump—whump—whump.

Gao Yang broke the sound barriers at supersonic speed. If not for him giving himself an energy armor with Absolute Defense, his body would’ve torn apart.

Too slow!

Quicker! Much quicker!

Gao Yang's mind screamed, clinging to the naive hope that speed could prevent disaster. He—like all the others racing back—didn't realize that no speed would suffice if it couldn't outpace light itself.

Because no one could catch what had already happened.

...

Twenty minutes earlier, Qilin, Surnamed Li, and Puppet Yellow Lotus stood before the enclosed S Base while Colorless led her team to strike at Dr. Jia.

Qilin leaned on his cane while Yellow Lotus carried Surnamed Li—fifteen minutes of puppet control would suffice for their mission.

Studying the secret door disguised as a damp, dirty wall, Qilin asked softly, "Is this it?"

"I saw it clearly," Surnamed Li whispered. "This is it."

“So this is what you can do with level 7.5 Prophet.” Qilin’s lips curled into a thoughtful half-smile. "Had your Talent reached level 8 earlier, the civil war might have ended long ago."

Surnamed Li's smile held only bitterness. If she'd reached level 8 Prophet, perhaps she could have seen all of fate clearly, preventing every misfortune.

Though she couldn't merge with the Knowledge Rune Circuit, she'd gained a new skill. Qilin called it level 7.5 Prophet for simplicity's sake.

Fate Slides, the new skill, let her form contracts with targets, entering their river of fate to glimpse their near future, anywhere from one to ten days ahead.

The target's future appeared in her dreams like projected slides, soundless but crystal clear.

She didn't even need the target themselves; parts of tissues of their body would suffice for a one-time contract, though it shortened her vision's reach.

That was Qilin and Surnamed Li’s real hidden ace.

That was why Qilin had ordered Sunny to use Blood Curse with the blood and tissues left on the battlefield, with only Adept Horse, Dead Pig, and Wang Zikai being the targets.

It would be ideal if the move worked, but it didn’t matter if it didn’t. The curse was only a smokescreen to lower the enemies’ guard. They would think that Zhang Wei had been cursed, too, only the curse hadn’t taken effect.

In reality, Zhang Wei’s three teeth hadn’t been wasted on Blood Curse, but saved for an opportune time for Surnamed Li to form a contract for Fate Slides, entering his flow of fate and getting a glimpse of his future.

Qilin and Surnamed Li couldn’t decide when they should use it.

If they got unlucky, Surnamed Li might catch only a slice of his fate for a couple of days when Zhang Wei happened to be staying indoors entirely; then Surnamed Li would have gotten little information and wasted the chance.

So they waited.

Soon, Rewind found that Dr. Jia had built a laboratory near the Yuan Yang River, near the edge of the Mist. Through Clairvoyance, Rewind monitored Dr. Jia intermittently for ten hours and determined that the doctor was the real deal, and he seemed to be studying the Mist.

The news shocked Qilin and Surnamed Li. Beyond Dragon and Gao Yang, Dr. Jia represented the greatest unknown variable.

It didn’t take long for them to calm down and figure out that it was an open scheme for Gao Yang to test the water. Qilin and Surnamed Li decided to respond in kind—but on their own terms.

Qilin sent Colorless to assassinate Dr. Jia. She would decide the method and the people she brought. His only demand was for her to make a move within the next forty-eight hours.

Qilin believed that in a clash, both factions would see increased activities, and Zhang Wei’s Fate Slides would contain much more information.

That night, Surnamed Li used Zhang Wei's teeth to form the contract, successfully glimpsing three days of his future.

During that span, Zhang Wei left the base just once – to provide vital energy for Heavenly Dog and Hong Xiaoxiao to deliver to Dr. Jia. That single excursion revealed both the sewage system and its entrance to Surnamed Li's sight.

Beyond the base's location, the Fate Slides showed three crucial details:

First, the base's current occupants posed minimal threats.

Second, Zhang Wei possessed the Psyche Rune Circuit. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Third, Qilin easily made Zhang Wei submit.

Even Qilin shuddered at these revelations.

Without moving, he'd already won.

The power to see the future chilled him.

Of course, Qilin didn’t trust Surnamed Li fully. That was why he took her with him.

Analyzing the Fate Slides, Surnamed Li identified their optimal moment: 11:16 p.m. on the Lunar New Year's eighth day.

Colorless's attack on Dr. Jia's laboratory would draw away the Nine Scions and Twelve Zodiac Signs, preventing their timely return.

Qilin could claim the Psyche Rune Circuit unopposed, becoming truly invincible.

Now, standing before the wall, Qilin scanned for ambushes. His green eyes flashed as he activated Puppeteer.

Yellow Lotus’ eyes flickered green as she received his command. She took a few steps back with Surnamed Li and caught the cane Qilin threw her.

Qilin stepped forward and struck.

The underground space trembled. Stone fragments exploded outward as his fist punched through fifty centimeters of wall.

He'd combined Amon's Arm Strength with Jing Ke's Bone Growth for that single devastating blow.

Colorless's acquisition of Arm Strength hadn't affected Qilin's access. Instead of true possession, Puppeteer merely borrowed Talents temporarily, similar to Replicate. Once Qilin contracted a corpse, he retained access to its Talents until the puppet expired—whether stored in the corpse or his body.

Qilin wiped his fist with a silk handkerchief. “Did you see this too, Madam Li?”

"Enter," Surnamed Li replied evenly. "The one you most wish to see awaits."

Qilin adjusted his glasses and caught the cane the puppet threw back to him. He stepped over piles of rubles and walked through the dust rising in the aftermath of the wall’s collapse.