Chapter 140: Changing The Topic

Wilde jumped to his feet and stared at the shadow on the table that seemed to come alive for a moment.

Ordinary people wouldn't have noticed this minute change. The shadow seemed to shift slightly when the splash droplets hit it, but it quickly vanished.

And even if they did, most people, including transcendent beings, wouldn't understand what it was.

However, as a very resourceful black magician, Wilde knew a thing or two about the rarest of mysteries of the shadow world.

With his current strength level, there were only very few transcendent creatures that could appear under his nose without being detected, even if they were of Supreme-rank.

Shadow creatures just so happened to be one of them.

Someone used a shadow creature to poison this glass of water. It was fortunate that Boss Lin came to visit today, or I would have fallen for it.

No, no, no. Boss Lin must have known beforehand and came specially to save me. In the process, he even showed me the right way to do this sacrificial ritual and even reminded me...

Wilde's gratitude towards Lin Jie was beyond measure. Considering that he had been saved twice, Wilde's desire to repay Lin Jie was even greater.

But then, he wondered. The shadow and the real world are supposed to be apart. How can a shadow creature be affected by the poison in the water?

Then he recalled that in that moment, there was a slight whiff of blood from that shadow. That was something impossible for shadow creatures made of shadows and not constructed of flesh and blood. 

Where did the smell of blood come from? This doesn't make sense!

Wilde's eyes grew darker as he stared at the glass shards.

This means that this isn't a shadow creature being controlled, but someone has done synthetic experiments to it.

As a black magician well-versed with the art of creationology himself, Wilde knew how dangerous and crude this synthesis could be. There was no regard to rationality in such an experiment and the resultant products were expected to be expendables with a short lifespan.

But it's quite a good idea indeed, especially for assassinations... If these things can be mass produced, the efficiency would be terrifying. Could it be that the unexplained assassinations of high-ranking transcendent beings have been victims of these synthetic shadow creatures?

Is this the true identity of those so-called 'shadow assassins'?

Wilde was staring so intensely at those shattered glass fragments that Lin Jie felt even more embarrassed.

Ahem... It's not my fault that this accident happened!

He had merely flipped the coin and it just so happened to hit the glass. And who would have expected this glass to be so weak that it shattered to pieces just like that. Was the coin too hard, or the glass too brittle? 

Now, look at what you've done... thought Lin Jie to himself. 

He had originally wanted to control his strength and flip a 'misfortune' to advise Old Wil not to go. However, this unexpected situation had occurred. A 'misfortune' had shown up, but it had hit the glass and hence could not be counted.

Moreover, Lin Jie seldom went out. He had tried flipping a coin for divination on a visit to a customer's house and that resulted in a shattered glass. This situation was just too awkward!

Old Wil doesn't seem very pleased. He wouldn't be going to ask me to compensate... Would he?

"Cough, cough... Hey Old Wil, it was purely an accident, coincidence, random.... I also never imagined this to happen. You never expected that too, right?

"Looks like this coin is rather accurate. I really feel unlucky... Heh, forget it. The result this time round is annulled. Let's try again."

The embarrassed Lin Jie walked over to pick up the coin that had rolled to the side. As he patted away the dust on it, he tried to change the subject. "By the way, your old friend Joseph's found clues of your stay on 52nd Avenue and is currently looking for you. Are you still going to continue hiding from him?"

I believe he will find stuff about an old friend more interesting... at least more interesting than a broken glass!

Wilde now extended his hand, revealing a ceremonial knife that peeked out from his black robes. The sharp knife tip came into contact with the water and shadow on the table, causing its intricate patterns to glow red as it absorbed the traces of poison within the water.

Ceremonial knives were an essential sorcery tool for black magicians, be it for sacrificial rites, offense, enchantment, or any other type of magic.

He used the ceremonial knife as a medium to analyze the toxin within the water and quickly understood that this was every spellcaster's nightmare, the 'Voice of Doom'.

Spellcasters often used aether to enhance their intellect, and their minds were multiple times more active and sensitive than most transcendent beings. If touched by the 'Voice of Doom', spellcasters would almost certainly die, and in the most excruciating fashion.

How vicious...

Wilde had certainly become a thorn in someone's side for such an assassination attempt to be launched on him. He had been silent for so long, and the only possible fuse had been his actions to guide Heris, White Wolf, and Scarlet Cult to ruin.

This matter was definitely more complicated than it seemed and there was surely someone behind it.

It was just unfortunate that the shadow assassin was thwarted by Boss Lin's Coin of Destiny and got afflicted by the 'Voice of Doom'. 

That assassin has probably lost its mind, if not, I would at least be able to do some questioning...

Wilde’s eyes narrowed, like dark green beads reflecting a cold light.

Hearing what Lin Jie said, the corner of Wilde’s lips curled up into a slight smile. “Joseph... That’s a name I haven’t heard in quite some time. I haven’t been hiding from him. He’s indeed an old friend and we would often encounter each other. It’s just that I haven’t been very free...

“When I have the time, I will have to make him pay for all these years...”

Alas, Old Wil is indeed still upset with Joseph.

Even though I don’t know what happened between them, it seems rather serious for Old Wil to remain brooding for so long.

But more importantly... The topic has been changed!

Lin Jie heaved a sigh of relief and went back to his seat. Looking around, he found a cloth placed beneath the tea cup and used it to carefully pick up the glass shards and threw them into the trash bin. 

“It’s been so many years. And there are some things that are meant to be forgotten. After all, the most important thing is to be happy.”

Wilde kept away his ceremonial knife and nodded. “I understand. You are right. I won’t take the initiative to seek him out as long as he doesn’t look for me. But if he is coming, then I can’t just sit around and wait.”

Boss Lin doesn’t hope to lose a customer indeed. After all, the spirit of Candela that was summoned back then was probably from Joseph’s demon sword, but the trigger probably wasn’t him. Secret Rite Tower has already discovered my tracks and perhaps it wouldn’t be long before I cross paths with my old friend again.

Lin Jie also understood that the misunderstanding between these two old friends couldn’t be resolved just by a few words. But... Everything was alright as long as the topic was changed.

He still had a doubt and thus asked, “Oh right, what exactly were you doing… When you were at 52nd Avenue?”

Before Lin Jie even finished. Wilde blurted out excitedly, "I'll show you the results right away, you won't be disappointed!"

From behind the wall came a hair-raising noise, followed by what sounded like the gasping and biting of a wild animal.

Grrr... Crunch!