VESSEL - Extinction Countdown 934: Beauty’s Trace

Long-suppressed emotions broke free like a flood, Yi Qing wailed in despair, nearly stealing her breath, until someone yanked open the passenger door and sank into the seat beside her.

Ye Shisan!

Her tear-blurred gaze fixed on Ye Shisan, her mind suddenly going blank. She stumbled out, scoured the ground—no trace of blood or body—before climbing back inside.

With a fierce slam of the driver’s door, Yi Qing’s anguished grief ignited into blazing fury, propelling her to lunge atop Ye Shisan, straddling him as she glared with the ferocity of a vengeful deity.

Heedless of the tears streaming down her face, Yi Qing zeroed in on Ye Shisan’s lips, sinking her teeth into them with savage force.

“Ow—damn it, that hurts!”

Ye Shisan yelped, pounding the window in agony, while Hong Lin, the black cat, cackled with sly amusement from the sidelines.

After a prolonged, fierce bite, Yi Qing collapsed into Ye Shisan’s arms, her sobs erupting anew.

Moments later, awareness of her outburst jolted her, and she scrambled back to the driver’s seat, snarling with venom: “Ye Shisan, I hate you!”

His lips swollen, he gestured forward: “Drive—just drive for now…”

It turns out that all of this was done by Hong Lin—a crude Illusion Art, she claimed it’d be far more potent under the cover of night. The grim, overcast sky had preserved its potency, for sunlight would have unraveled it instantly.

Thus, Pang Hao’s reckless posse would cower in silence for a time, granting Ye Shisan and Yi Qing the freedom to pursue their investigation unmolested.

Yet Hong Lin had left Yi Qing in the dark, her terror nearly overwhelming her; only years of rigorous military training held her back from drawing her weapon and mowing down the mob in a blind panic.

Deep down, Yi Qing knew Hong Lin had orchestrated this deliberately, waiting until she stepped out to whisper to Ye Shisan alone.

That damn cat wanted to see me make a fool of myself!

Yet, in truth, Ye Shisan’s willingness to endure a brutal beating rather than let Pang Hao defile her stirred a tender, bittersweet warmth in Yi Qing’s heart.

Ye Shisan nursed a deep grievance, his shoulder aching from the bat’s blow, yet the searing pain of Yi Qing’s bite, tinged with a hauntingly delicate fragrance, stung far worse, leaving him lost in melancholy.

“My first kiss, stolen in such an outlandish way…”

“What?” Yi Qing shot him a scathing glance.

“Nothing—just, your lipstick smells intoxicating…”

Yi Qing flushed crimson. “Tch, you lecher, I don’t use lipstick!”

“No lipstick? Then why so fragrant…”

Hong Lin draped herself over Ye Shisan’s headrest, her voice a ghostly murmur: “That’s body scent—hormones, as you moderns call it. The more captivating the soul, the more irresistible the allure. If I wore a human form, Daddy, you’d be haunted by my scent forever…”

Ye Shisan cut her off. “Stop! I’m not into that!”

Yi Qing muttered, “Hmph, not into it, yet you’re sniffing like crazy. Creep!”

“Hey, you bit me!”

“So what? Biting you was already kind, be grateful I didn’t… ugh, never mind! Tell me your plans next time, or you’re done!”

Hong Lin slunk to Ye Shisan’s other ear, purring, “Daddy, if you like Yi Qing, when she’s asleep, I could possess her, and then…”

“Hong Lin, I'm warning you—don't you dare lay a finger on my family, or else...”

Before Ye Shisan could finish, Yi Qing slammed the brakes, jolting them all as she barked: “Ye Shisan! What filthy nonsense are you whispering with that damn cat?”

The black cat let out a chuckle, said with a grin, “See, Daddy? No good deed goes unpunished!”

Ye Shisan slumped, exasperated. Hong Lin, that uncanny Celestial-Void Deity hybrid, wielded a terrifying knack for piercing hearts like a predator. He had to keep her at arm’s length, or she’d trap him.

After nearly half an hour’s drive, Yi Qing, guided by Ye Shisan’s earlier clues, maneuvered the jeep into a sprawling construction site.

The deeper they ventured, the stranger it felt. “Ye Shisan, is this address even correct? Where’s the school?”

Ye Shisan studied the frenetic site, puzzled. “It should be right—unless the school was demolished. That spells trouble.”

Hong Lin piped up. “Two decades on, such changes aren’t surprising. Find the rough location, and I might aid Daddy in uncovering it.”

Yi Qing frowned. “It’s a wasteland of rubble—where do we even begin? Ye Shisan, say something!”

Scanning the chaotic terrain, he strained to summon memories of the past, desperate for a trace of familiarity.

“Got it!”

Ye Shisan thrust a finger forward, drawing their eyes to a hulking bunker from the Wa Occupation of Eastern Land.

Over half a century ago, the Wa invaders had erected these unyielding Hard Bones, fortresses impervious to tanks and explosives, left for last in demolitions until heavy machinery could be summoned.

By chance, this relic proved a boon to Ye Shisan, for he recalled the school’s grove lay roughly a hundred meters from the bunker. Emboldened by this anchor, Yi Qing’s resolve flared, and with a fierce press of the accelerator, the jeep surged forward.

Scarcely fifty meters in, an old man in a safety helmet and work clothes blocked their path, his weathered face marking him as the site’s safety warden.

“Hey! What’s your business here? This is a construction zone—turn back!”

Yi Qing, unruffled, flashed her badge: “Police. Was a case reported here?”

The old man faltered, startled: “Officer, this site’s secure—nothing’s ever happened…”

“That’s not up to you to decide. I need to take a look around and confirm it myself.”

He peered at her badge, muttering under his breath as he shuffled aside: “What's going on? Cops have arrived… No, I need to go ask!”

As he shuffled off, Yi Qing floored the accelerator, the jeep hurtling forward. Ye Shisan’s keen eyes flashed, his finger jabbing toward the distance: “There—the grove! It’s still standing!”

Yi Qing exhaled, tension easing: “No one dares clear greenery without permits—the clue’s likely intact!”

As they neared the grove’s edge, Ye Shisan leapt out before the jeep could halt, dashing into the trees with childlike fervor.

Hong Lin, swifter still, vanished into the foliage in a blur.

Yi Qing scrambled to kill the engine, yanking the keys: “Ye Shisan, hold on!”