Chp 28: Mysterious Gifts, Unexpected Bonus

As would a pro, the team responsible arrived within an hour…

The whole inspection took around two hours, of which she opted to take a nap in the living room all the way. While she did, Manager Lee supervised the whole process personally. With advanced detection tools, the team searched every nook and cranny. It was a tedious process, but it had to be done. Soon, they even dived into the pool to check if there were any water cameras installed.

After they had triple check everything, Manager Lee heaved a sigh of relief. There was nothing out of ordinary. Coming close to the lady, he reported;

“Young lady, we’ve done as you instructed,”

“Hm? Ahh, excuse me… I’m too tired,”

“It’s us who should apologize. You couldn’t use the room immediately upon arrival…”

“It’s fine. I don’t mind, this sofa is really comfy… so, how did it go?”

“There was nothing out of ordinary. We have checked the whole area including the rooms.”

“The washrooms?”

“We paid special attention to them, and there was none, please be at ease,”

“I see. You’ve worked hard. Give my thanks to the team,”

“I shall do so. Thank you, young lady. Ah yes, the tent your ordered has arrived. I’ve put it near the pool. Is there anything else?”

“Thanks, but no. You may leave… I wish to rest,”

“Then, I pray for your good rest, young lady…”

Sending them out, she sat facing the pool, alone.

Her feet, enjoying the cool pool water, splashed some without care. She knew she had to wait. With the arrival and presence of all those sweaty men earlier, the air-conditioners had been blowing in with full blast. It took them a full ten minutes to enter silent mode, so she just enjoyed the time. With some fruits and dessert on the table by her side, she was feasting on them without a hint of worry…

Soon, she stood up.

Closing her eyes, she kept silent for about ten minutes.

Silent breath, silent mind…

Soon, she smiled;

‘Nothing out of the ordinary, huh? Truly a pro,’

Fingers going for her sleeve, she hurled something up, up into the high ceiling.

Crack!

A round thing pierced through, embedding itself into it.

It was a glass marble, the cheap kind you could buy anywhere. Still, it was strong enough to pierce through the ceiling… and something else inside it. A piece of it fell… and Yun Zhi grabbed it in mid-air, examining it.

‘Most likely thermal camera,’

It was the kind that could camouflage itself well.

The camera could see through light obstacles, so they could be well-hidden over a thin surface. As the marble pierced through, she could feel its hardness and how well-built it was. With such quality, she figured it must have been military-grade.

Walking into the living room, she again did the same…

Standing in silence.

Her hand raised.

Thaat!

The second marble pierced through. This time, between the small lines in the spherical light in the living room’s ceiling. Since the small lights up there were separated, her attack did not damage them, piercing cleanly into just the camera.

It seemed the team earlier couldn’t search the ceiling well enough. While she was snoozing, she could sense their work. They did it very well, not half-hearted. That was why she didn’t blame them.

It couldn’t be helped. The ceiling was too high, so either their scanning tools weren’t powerful enough, or these military-grade cameras were in a whole other league of their own.

She figured the rooms and washrooms would be alright, but she still needed to check.

‘Who… could it be the elder? How shameless…’

How troublesome.

The heat-based cameras might not show her being naked, but her whole movement could be recorded. Based on the elder’s identity, he could secure military-grade equipment on short notice. Still, she wondered if that was the case…

The notification, coming from that jerk uncle immortal… could it be mistaken? While he was irritating, it couldn’t be false. The elder was being designated as an ‘ally’. Could this not be his doing? What sort of a person, spied on his ally anyway?

‘He’s shameless alright, but…’

She didn’t believe he would spy on her, someone he considered his ‘grandniece’.

There might be a third force in play. Could it be the elder’s enemy? If that was the case, then what a shame. She might need to switch places asap.

Thinking about it, perhaps…

The last person? It was a month ago, so it couldn’t be her that was the target. Most likely, this place was often used as a residence for the clan or the elder’s guest of honor. The two cameras probably didn’t mean much. Perhaps they were abandoned…

Still, she did not like betting her security on probability.

She took out the phone the elder had given her.

It was a secure phone, one that was used by intelligence forces. It could only be used to call and receive other secure numbers. Other than getting closer physically, it was practically impossible to hack due for various reasons. She pressed the speed dial, number 1.

The call went through.

“Hello, grandpa?”

“Little Yun? How’s the residence? Is everything to your liking?”

Grr… this place was a bit of an overkill…

A luxury residence fit for a hundred people, and 7-Star amenities?

There are even military-grade thermal cameras as a bonus, nice!

She wanted to say that but decided against it. The elder probably had no idea as well. Knowing he was not an idiot, all she needed to do was to give some hints…

“Grandpa, do you know the last guest using the place?”

“Hm? Of course I know. I can’t say who though. Why?”

“Well… just guessing. There are some things I’m not comfortable with.”

“What? Then just call Manager Lee. That boy’s bright, he’ll know what to do,”

“…Already did, and he couldn’t detect them…”

Listening to her hint, he went silent for a good five seconds. Having deep experience in the field, he could not just ignore what she had said. After all, her senses could surpass even some masters.

“—Detect… I see. Where was it?”

“Two, in the living room and pool ceiling. I’ll check over other areas after this,”

“Are they still intact?”

“Annoyed me so I break them,”

“Already… Alright, listen, if you find any other, don’t break them. I’ll have a team investigate this… Since you’re young… I’ll send them over as ‘your friends’, is that alright?”

“But… do I need to show my face?”

“Don’t worry, they’re from a squad I picked personally. They know how to keep things quiet. Ah, you can wear a mask—”

“What good of it, my passport had my face for all to see,”

“Ah, forgot, forgot… Don’t worry too much. That place is secure, so it’s probably other elders’ doing, not our clan’s enemy.”

“Oh, nice. Family spying on each other… how harmonious,”

“Don’t be such a pessimist… It’s normal, normal!”

Normal? Normal my ass!

Is it normal to install a military-grade thermal camera to spy on guests?

Well, aren’t we off to a good start…

Sighing, she wondered if she should just find another place.

This place sure was nice, but what would the meaning be, if the security was compromised. As she walked through the whole residence, her senses couldn’t pick up any other irregularities. Was that all?

Scrutinizing the whole place, what the elder had mentioned made sense. With such security, she doubted outside forces could secure even one thermal camera inside the residence. Other elders, eh… And why did Elder Fang say it was normal, like it happened on a daily basis? What kind of inner fighting were they having?

The team assigned to her would only arrive after an hour, so she recalled something.

She had yet to redeem her rewards!

It was something to look forward to.

She took her new tent, the one Manager Lee had it delivered.

With it, she went to the master bedroom… now, her room. The room was just too big, with a wide window presenting the outside scenery for her to see. Overlooking the water-theme park and the back of the golden palace, it added to the feeling of grandeur of having a luxury room all for herself.

‘This place sure is nice… still,’

There was no need to be attached to any place.

As someone who had gotten used to luxury and yet also knew how to live as a homeless, she didn’t feel any attachment. It was better this way. If needed to, she would disappear without hesitation.

After taking a good shower, she checked the tent, making sure it was not tampered with. Satisfied, she opened it… As would be a high-quality self-deployable one, it deployed itself almost automatically. It was a medium-sized tent, more than enough. With thick covering and some kind of reflector, it was insurance… to ensure that no eyes were watching.

Again running a check on the tent, she was satisfied.

It was time to check the spoil of war… no, mission reward.

[You have 2 mysterious gifts and 1 bonus item. Redeem?]

“Redeem the first gift,”

[Redeemed first mysterious gift]

Within the tent, appearing out of thin air, was a golden talisman…

With some light as it emerged, it was as expected. Redeeming the gift outside could attract attention… but why did this talisman feel familiar? Grabbing it, she examined…

This inscription… this remaining Qi… so familiar…

Cleansing and Refreshing Talisman

Grade: None.

Special: Rechargeable

Description: A gift from a maid to her master

“…Jerk uncle immortal, are you kidding me?”

Isn’t this Lin Lin’s cleansing talisman?

What do you mean, mysterious gift?

You sound like you’re giving it to me!

Lin Lin gave it to me, so it’s already mine!

You took it from me!

“That uncle… Besides, I’m not with the homeless anymore, so…”

This would be perfect, if only she was still with the homeless camp. But now that she got a nice place all for herself, that jerk immortal gave her this? What sort of a joke was this?

Is he serious?

Is he mocking me?

“If you’re going to give this back to me, shouldn’t you do so on the first day?”

She wanted to shout but decided against it. A bit frustrated, she tried to think of good things… good people… or good immortal.

Yeah, let’s think of big sis Xue…

That ought to work like a charm, no?

Thinking that it might increase her luck a little bit, she said out loud;

“Oh, right… Big sis Xue ordered the esteemed uncle immortal to treat me a bit better… so the second gift can’t be a trashy one, right? Yeah, it can’t be… Can’t imagine how disappointed big sis would be, if a world guardian under her was stingy…”

Raising her voice on purpose, she waited for a bit. That jerk uncle might be listening? Even if he had prepared a bad gift, he wouldn’t be so shameless as to put her things as the second gift, right? She didn’t expect much, but… at least, something decent. Not that she’s complaining about the talisman, but it was hers in the first place. Considering the world’s law, a mission reward should not bring instability to the whole place. However, she had mentioned Xue Bai in the hope that the World Guardian would at least have her into consideration.

Feeling that the time was right, she said;

“If you’re ready, I’m redeeming the second gift,”

[Redeemed second mysterious gift]

Light emerged.

This time, it was brighter than the first one, by a whole lot. Seeing the gifts, they seemed to come in as a pair… Something about a meter plus long… Slender, metallic…

“Huh? Swords?”

This time, it was equipment.

Double swords in fact. However, it was not identical. Their sheaths were black, but that was it. One was a katana, its red handle had a hole with a long golden strap. Unsheathing it a bit, she saw the blade. It was as expected, having only one sharp edge, yet its sharpness…

Sent some chills down her spine.

‘This one’s eerily sharp…’

She had seen sharp swords before, but among the swords in Qi Refinement level, this one takes the cake. Of course, it couldn’t compare with swords of higher level, but in terms of this world’s level… This one could be ranked quite high.

Meanwhile, the other sword had an entirely different nature.

It had a green handle, a thin yet wide design, and symmetrical… It had emerald jades decorating it, with traces of Qi within. Holding and examining its blade, it didn’t give her that eerie feeling of sharpness, but… a feeling of proper control, light, and easy to move around. It was double-edged, tough but light. The tip was sharp and heavier than the rest of the blade…

flying sword.

With a thought, the system showed her each of their descriptions;

Blood Katana (Locked, Level 0)

Real Name: ----

Grade: Superior.

Special: ?

Description: Specialized in cutting, slicing, devouring. Sharper than an ordinary blade.

Definitely not OP for this world.

Jade Flying Sword (Locked, Level 0)

Real Name: ----

Grade: Superior.

Special: ?

Description: Specialized in flying, piercing, breaking. Lighter than an ordinary blade.

Definitely not OP for this world.

“This kind of description,”

Devouring?

Breaking?

What the heck?

It was simple, but vague.

Thus it begged many questions. Who wrote these? The ‘definitely not OP for this world’ was a little sus. These weapons were also tagged as Locked, Level 0.

Level 0? There are other levels?

And what’s with the deal with question marks on the special?

Do I need to unlock it?

And what’s the deal with real name having those dashes?

Having nothing better to do, she played around with them… Thinking she might have to use them later, she thought of a proper place for her to practice. Since this world was designated as Murim world, there ought to be several good places for her to practice, even in the city. Well, if there weren’t any…

She figured it might be worth it to take a trip to the mountains.

But, it’s too troublesome.

That takes too much time and effort.

Still, the determining factor was…

“Don’t really want to use swords…”

For some reason, she had an inclination to reject swords.

It was a conflicting feeling. As if looking at lovely creampuffs, yet denied herself the luxury since they were not good for her health. These swords… she knew they were top-tier, considering this world’s level. The designs too, were beautiful to her, to say the least. They made her wanting to familiarize herself with them. However, her heart didn’t quite like unsheathing a sword for the purpose of taking lives… As for the reason, eh, she couldn’t quite remember…

Once the blade is out, never hesitate!

Cut!

Cut all enemies!

Cut, all the way!

A voice rang within.

It was her father, correcting her on the way of the sword.

“I… hate you, dad…”

From as far as she could remember, all she did was study, train, cultivate…

Her childhood… those were all she did before her cursed state. Even when she didn’t want to remember, the exact teaching would appear when there was a trigger. Be it during matches, alchemy, creating talisman, or formation… all she needed to remember, was the necessary trigger. But, it wasn’t like this at first…

During childhood, she had always liked swords, training with them for fun.

To her eyes, they were beautiful, unique treasures. Cutting through wood and rocks clean, seemed a bit magical to this young child. The sheer sound of one piercing the air, was nothing short of a pleasant song in her ears.

Still, she didn’t want to unsheathe her sword to kill anything…

Not even a tree, nor a beast! When forced to, she cried terribly, rebelling. She even dared go against her teacher, a sect elder. When her father knew, he subjected her to a thorough ‘education’. After several months of undergoing such a powerful ‘teaching’ under the mental oppression of a Soul Formation cultivator, her body remembered everything just through outside triggers.

Holding the swords, was a trigger to her father’s teaching.

Her eyes turned sharp as if she was about to kill…

Kill.

No mercy!

Hands a bit shaky, she let them go.

Her heart pounded, and her breathing got disturbed. She felt all her blood and remnant Qi went straight to her muscles. Her eyes turned bloodshot as if anticipating movement.

She took a deeper breath, regulating her breathing back to normal.

Soon, her heart calmed down.

“I better not touch these… not directly at least,”

Outside the tent, she took a thick blanket on her bed, then return, wrapping them up as if wrapping babies. Leaving them inside the tent, she wondered why that uncle immortal gave her gifts she wouldn’t use. What a waste… At the thought, she remembered one more thing to redeem;

“Redeem the bonus item,”

[Bonus item redeemed]

Light emerged.

This time, it was not golden… but green. Surprisingly, the light was refreshing, bringing in a cool breeze filled with life. It was as if, the world’s whole forest had descended upon her.

“…A, choker?”

It was a bit unexpected.

A green cloth choker, landed gently on her hand.