Apocalypse Forecast

Chapter 753 612 Chef Demon_1

This world no longer matters.

Yingzhou, the missions from the Jurisdiction Bureau... none of it matters. It's all meaningless.

When Yuan Zhao emerged from the restroom, he seemed like a different person. Hunched over, he dejectedly followed the group from the Ivory Tower.

Like a walking corpse.

When his senior classmates caught sight of him, their expressions turned sympathetic. Poor young man, he's probably been rejected... they likely thought. That's just how it is; one must suffer society's harsh beatings to grow.

Keep at it, Yuan Zhao! Don't be defeated by yourself!

But to Yuan Zhao, those encouraging words were already meaningless.

The outside world is too frightening, Sister Yuan, I want to go home...

At this moment, all he wanted was to return to the warmth of his own room, take a bath, sip hot tea, curl up under his thick blanket, hug his head, and cry his heart out until he was too exhausted to cry anymore, then fall into a deep sleep.

It'd be best not to dream, not to wake up again. The 3D world is too filthy; I want to return to my 2D world...

Just as he was rubbing his red-rimmed eyes, struggling to hold back his sorrow, he heard voices from ahead.

"Is it snowing?"

"It's only November, quite early."

"Does that mean we can find time to go skiing? I want to soak in a hot spring. I've heard there are even wild monkeys in the mountains to join us! Aimon, you'll come with me, won't you?"

"Sure, whatever you want, I'll be with you."

Gazing at the affectionate couple, Yuan Zhao numbly averted his gaze and scoffed disdainfully.

Foolish 3D world, do you think this can hurt me? My heart has already... already... Already...

He had been about to say his heart had already died.

But when he raised his head and looked into the distance, he saw snowflakes softly falling against the square's sky, the glow of neon lights, and, at the edge of the crowd, that delicate, slender figure.

She was just standing there, amid the pure white snowfall.

As if she were becoming part of that pure world, almost blending into it.

Only her long hair fluttered in the wind.

Her black eyes lifted, illuminated by the distant, ethereal lights.

She raised her hands in surprise to catch the falling snowflakes, her smile as innocent and pure as a child's.

Like an elf amidst the snow.

Not of this world.

"Miss Huaizhi..."

Yuan Zhao stood frozen.

THUMP. It was as if a powerful jolt had struck his chest. His shattered heart seemed to mend, thumping violently, reviving the dying hope within him.

He felt fine again.

That's right, Yuan Zhao, it's too early to give up now! I haven't asked anything yet, I don't know anything! I've only seen some unsettling things, and they might not even be the truth. Besides, even if... even if...

Just as he was agonizing over whether to approach her, he realized the figure had vanished into the crowd.

Gone.

Yuan Zhao's eyes widened. He glanced at the group beside him and was shocked to realize she wasn't part of the Ivory Tower's procession.

"Where did she go?"

"Miss Huaizhi... her itinerary is different from ours."

The vice-principal paused beside him for a moment, then glanced sideways. "Also, Mr. Yuan, as a member of the Ivory Tower, you may not feel a strong sense of belonging to the school, but please try not to cause trouble during your upcoming solo activities."

"Especially, do not invoke the name of the Ivory Tower!"

He warned solemnly, "Regarding the two secret police in the restroom, the MPD has just issued a serious warning to us. We hope such an incident does not happen again!"

Restroom? Secret police? That's what it was! I understand now, I understand! Nothing sordid happened like I imagined! Lady SuZi was merely harassed by those two secret police and chose to fight back! What a relief, such a great relief...

Silently, Isaac watched the expressions shift continuously on the young man's face.

First, there was astonishment, then an involuntary smile of relief and reassurance, and finally, he was moved to tears.

Seriously, kid, what's wrong with you?

He took a bewildered step back, his gaze full of disdain.

Another one's gone crazy.jpg

He was completely unaware of how this scene appeared to others.

Look at that! The vice-principal first bullied Miss Huaizhi, and now he's made the most innocent-looking boy in the group cry! He's utterly shameless, such a bully!

Feng Ping continued to suffer...

Eventually, when Yuan Zhao had finally calmed down a bit, Isaac raised his eyes to look at the car that had been waiting beside the square for a long time.

"Your ride is here, Mr. Yuan. It's time for you to go," he said. "Please remember, whatever you do, you must return when the academic exchange officially begins in half a month."

Yuan Zhao nodded, wiped away his tears, and turned to leave.

Isaac's lips parted as if to speak, but then he fell silent for a moment. Finally, he said coldly, "I truly hope our next meeting isn't at your funeral or in a jail cell at Deer's Sing Hall."

He averted his gaze, no longer watching.

And the car had already carried Yuan Zhao far away.

It sped straight for the Yingzhou Bridge—the grand entrance to his 2D world!

Nara? Who cares about Nara? Miss Huaizhi is gone! I'm not in the mood! We'll deal with it later!

***

Five minutes earlier, oblivious to a certain young man nearby whose hopes had just been reignited, Miss SuZi, the snow elf, gazed up at the falling snow, thinking,

Damn it, I'm freezing my ass off! I need to buy a down jacket!

He turned and walked into the mall.

Half an hour later, he emerged in a new outfit: a down jacket, jeans, a knitted hat, and a pair of oversized sunglasses.

He no longer resembled the pure, innocent, and pitiful figure from moments before.

He was so fed up with that persona, where a crowd would 'ooh' and 'aah' if he so much as picked his nose.

Thinking back on those utterly revolting, prying gazes, Huai Shi shivered. His hands and feet felt ice-cold. Will this world ever get better? He finally understood how difficult things could be for women.

Now, at least, he could throw punches openly without shame.

From this perspective, it might, perhaps, possibly be regarded as an advantage?

Unlike that boy, who was as wild as an unleashed hound, Huai Shi, who took money for his services, at least had some sense of responsibility. He straightaway purchased a JR express ticket to Nara. After a makeshift meal, he planned to head to Nara for the day. His aim was to figure out the current circumstances there before seeing Amber.

At the very least, I should avoid jumping headfirst into a quagmire. If the situation is worse than expected, I'll turn tail and leave without hesitation... Then I'll find a way to muddy the waters and pull off a job at the Byodo-in Temple! After all, Huaizhi will be the thief—what's that got to do with me, Huai Shi?

Unwittingly, Huai Shi's moral compass was spinning, and his conscience was steadily diminishing.

On the JR platform, Huai Shi leaned against a bench, his gaze behind the sunglasses involuntarily drifting to a distant spot—the other end of the platform.

It was as if a bear were standing there, impossible to miss.

In fact, it wasn't just him; other people nearby also couldn't help but frequently glance over, murmuring to each other.

There was no other reason for it; Gai's silhouette was simply too imposing.

The man stood over two meters tall. A muscular, middle-aged Caucasian, he was covered in layers of tattoos; even his face bore a skull. His messy hair tumbled down his back. He wore sunglasses even larger than Huai Shi's, had headphones on, and was chewing gum. His stubbled face and layers of gold chains around his wrists and neck completed the look.

He looked incredibly punk.

Beside him stood a suitcase almost his height, emitting a faint, sharp aura that drew one's attention.

Sensing the surrounding gazes, the man wasn't annoyed. Instead, he seemed rather pleased with himself, leaning on his suitcase and looking back at his observers.

Spotting the distant figure, his eyes lit up, and he called out loudly in awkward Latin,

"Lady, care to join me over here? I think we'll have a wonderful journey," he said, flexing his biceps. His oversized black T-shirt strained as if it would burst.

Fuck your mother's leg!

Huai Shi rolled his eyes, not bothering with him, and flipped him the bird.

The bulky man laughed heartily and withdrew his gaze, surprisingly not pressing the issue. He returned to his rap music, swaying his body lightly as if no one else were around.

But a familiar scent emanating from the man allowed Huai Shi to instantly recognize his identity.

Another Hell Kitchen Demon, just like me! And heading to Nara, too. A Chef Demon showdown? Don't tell me they're really planning some kind of Kyoto Chef Demon tournament?

Huai Shi's temples began to throb. I'm starting to lose hair over this!

They didn't have to wait long; the train arrived punctually.

Shunned by the local gangs, Huai Shi naturally couldn't use the Astronomical Society's network for information. But this was where the 'Collection of Ten Thousand Evils' came in handy.

As a megaplatform for 'DIDI beatings,' this explicitly illegal app encompassed all types of shady dealings that shouldn't exist in the open. These included, but were not limited to, murder, arson, kidnapping, extortion, perjury, Border Relic auctions, and every conceivable illegal activity humans could imagine.

Back in the day, someone from the Qi Family had even put a bounty on his legs on this platform... Ah, the nostalgia, he thought.

Of course, Huai Shi was a member of the Astronomical Society and an Inspector committed to protecting Current Circumstances. So, it was quite normal for him to have such an app installed on his phone. He even shared a high-level VIP 9 account with Tong Ji.

In fact, the Jurisdiction Bureau often used it for entrapment operations.

He had posted countless messages, such as, "Great sister, I'm eager to keep going! I urgently need some Border poison to kill the rich old lady I married—can you help me?" He would attach a photo of himself to boost credibility and then wait for fools to fall right into the trap.

Group of Thousands of Evils didn't care about this in the least.

'Dog eat dog' is an integral part of the underworld. If you can't stand it, don't play.

As a result, at least in the Dongxia section of the platform, Huai Shi's photo had become infamous, making him a thorn in the side of countless individuals. It was just a shame that criminals learned so quickly these days; otherwise, Huai Shi's track record could have been even more impressive.

Just as the train began to move, the passenger who would sit opposite Huai Shi finally hurried on board.

Still on the phone.

"Be careful on your way, Zhenxi."

"Okay, Mom, it's just a formality... I'm on the train now. Uncle Yan Jing will pick me up when I arrive. I'll hang up now."

After hanging up, the girl, who looked to be about high school age, gave Huai Shi an embarrassed smile. She caught a glimpse of his eyes behind the sunglasses, paused for a moment, then, perhaps realizing she had been staring, quickly averted her gaze, her cheeks feeling a bit warm.

Huai Shi, however, paid her no mind.

Hmph, these common types couldn't possibly compare to my beauty!

His gaze swept past the JK sitting opposite him, then moved upwards, his head tilting back slightly to look at the train car's ceiling.

One of his eyebrows shot up.

Someone's up there...