A Guide to Humanity’s Extinction

The vampire criminal Stroh had already been taken away by Rain Crow, but Lijing's Highway 0 remained blocked off, and the wail of police sirens echoed continuously from afar.

Two figures remained on the quiet overpass.

A stark white figure stood on the guardrail, while a second figure in a crimson metal coat hovered in midair.

They stared at each other in silence.

The moment she heard the name "Ke Mingwei" from White Jack's mouth, Red Lotus froze in midair, taking a long moment to recover.

Lowering her crimson eyes, she stared down at White Jack without moving.

Sparks flew from the Wind and Fire Wheels beneath her feet, illuminating White Jack's face and body. His features were uncanny, his frame so thin he swayed in the wind like a paper doll, threatening to drift off into the dark night at any moment.

"A pleasure to meet you. My name is White Jack."

White Jack shook his head, speaking at a leisurely pace. "Of course, you can call me daddy if you like. I could be Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li, or I could be Ke Mingwei. It entirely depends on your mood."

Red Lotus fell silent for a moment. "Why..."

"Why what? Why so quiet all of a sudden? Miss Nezha, are you the type who usually acts all bold and unrestrained, only to clam up the second someone strikes a nerve?" As he spoke, White Jack crouched on the guardrail and turned his head, gazing out at the brightly lit cityscape of Lijing with hollow eyes.

Red Lotus remained silent. The fingers of her right hand tightened around her Fire-Tipped Spear, and the Wind and Fire Wheels ground against the air with a piercing whine.

White Jack didn't even look up. "You wanted to ask, 'Why do you know that name?' Right?"

Red Lotus nodded.

"Listen to me, Miss Nezha... I know most things in this world." He tapped his temple with an index finger.

He paused. "Which means I also know exactly how many hidden fears—secrets—you've buried in your heart."

"Don't change the subject. I asked you... why do you know that name?" Red Lotus demanded coldly.

"You mean Ke Mingwei?" White Jack kept his head bowed, but his eyes drifted upward, his gaze chilling.

Red Lotus didn't answer. Her clean black hair swayed in the night wind, and a light like shrine candles burned in her eyes.

She could tolerate no more. The Huntian Ling slipped from her arms and flowed through the night, closing in on White Jack like a crimson tide.

Strips of crimson silk wrapped tightly around his limbs, binding him firmly before lifting him into the air.

With his arms held straight out, he looked as though he were bound to a cross. From start to finish, he showed no desire to resist and made no attempt to struggle.

White Jack simply looked up at Red Lotus and murmured, "He and I are old acquaintances. Perhaps you should ask him yourself."

"Is this some kind of joke?" Red Lotus laughed.

"Your father hides a lot more behind that stoic front of his than you think. Did you know? Down at the police station, his subordinates call him an old geezer who coasts on his seniority and does nothing. Every time a case pops up, he vanishes into thin air for a few hours, only reappearing once it's resolved." White Jack paused, letting the suspense hang.

"Care to guess why that is?"

Red Lotus paid it no mind, quietly watching him with her arms wrapped around her spear shaft.

"Do you think spouting a bunch of nonsense makes you seem more mysterious?" she asked after a while.

"All right, let's leave your father out of it." White Jack pivoted. "Aren't you curious about the magical girl you just sent fleeing in a panic? Don't you wonder if she bears a little resemblance to your younger sister?"

"My sister?"

Red Lotus tilted her head, playing dumb. "I didn't know I had a sister. There's a limit to acting mysterious. I've heard of you—I hear you love to lie."

"Oh, Miss Nezha, do you really not have a sister?" White Jack scratched his jaw. "Then here's a question... who is Xia Zili?"

Red Lotus froze, then slowly lifted her gaze.

Through her mask, her crimson eyes locked onto White Jack's face like a beast preparing to devour its prey.

"Magical Girl Ember. That's her identity." White Jack met her eyes. "Don't look at me like that. You really should pay more attention to the people around you, Miss Red Lotus."

"Magical Girl Ember?" Red Lotus mused. It was impossible for her not to know the name; the internet had been flooded with talk about Ember lately.

"Exactly. A magical girl who kills will fall and become a witch. Your sister knows this very well, which is why she's been so depressed lately."

Drooping his head, White Jack let out a soft sigh.

"What a pitiful girl. She just turned sixteen this year. The world should be wide open to her, her life just beginning. Instead, holding such a heavy secret is like knowing you have a terminal illness, yet having to pretend everything is normal in front of everyone else."

"Impossible... impossible," Red Lotus muttered, shaking her head.

The sparks from the Wind and Fire Wheels flickered, and the light in her eyes wavered like a dying candle in the wind.

"Stop worrying about others and worry about yourself first, Miss Nezha." White Jack grinned. "Once a mythic vessel advances to a certain stage, they inevitably spiral out of control. It's the same principle as a magical girl turning into a witch. Except, a magical girl might not turn into a witch, but a mythic vessel will absolutely march toward self-destruction."

He lowered his face slightly, his eyes drifting down to Lijing's bustling central business district. "In that regard, you two sisters really are in the same boat."

He paused. "Yes, maybe after one big lunatic and one little lunatic kick the bucket, you can reunite in a psychiatric ward in heaven. Miss Ember will be in room one, and you'll be in room two. Family and fellow patients—double the bonds, double the joy."

Riding her Wind and Fire Wheels, Red Lotus slowly approached the stark white doll strung up in midair.

They drew close and stared at each other in silence.

"I am very angry," she said.

"Being angry is fine, but don't ruin your health over it. After all, you have the college entrance exam tomorrow." White Jack thought for a moment and lifted his head. "Need me to dress up as a proctor and slip you a cheat sheet?"

He paused. "That way, you might just exceed expectations and get into a much better university than you thought."

"If you do that, I will burn you," Red Lotus said calmly.

"That is exactly what I want." White Jack smiled.

"I mean... I am going to burn you right now." Red Lotus raised her Fire-Tipped Spear, touching the small flame at its tip to White Jack's chest.

Instantly, the fire spread from his chest, expanding like a wildfire until it engulfed his entire body.

"Oh, hot, hot, hot, hot, hot, hot! It's too fucking hot!" White Jack howled at the top of his lungs, only to revert to his usual nonchalant tone a second later. "Did you really think I'd say that?"

"No. I've seen the news about Ember. I know you're just a Theater Puppet. Even if you die, you can probably revive," Red Lotus said. "So it doesn't matter if I kill you to vent my anger, does it?"

The Theater Puppet's body was gradually reduced to ash in the flames, turning bit by bit into snow-white smoke that drifted into the night sky.

Looking at the mask so close to him, he met her eyes directly.

"I'll allow you to vent your anger on me. But I advise you to remain rational, and treat the advice I gave you, as well as the secrets I revealed, with just a tiny bit of awe and respect."

"Of course I will," Red Lotus said. "But if I look into this and find out you were lying, I will only be angrier."

"You know, when you get angry, it's like a little kitten acting spoiled. I don't feel any aggression at all," White Jack remarked. "To be honest... from a bystander's perspective, it looks like we're into some weird bondage play right now."

Red Lotus stopped talking.

She flourished the dark gold Fire-Tipped Spear. The puppet's body was instantly torn apart as the roaring flames ruthlessly devoured every last piece of his remains.

A moment later, the lingering smoke was blown away by a wave of heat, and the overpass grew completely quiet.

Red Lotus hovered in the air, resting on the Wind and Fire Wheels.

"Little Li..."

She lingered in silence for a long time, a myriad of thoughts swirling in her head. I'll find time to confirm if what he said is true, the girl told herself. Eventually, the Wind and Fire Wheels spun at high speed, violently shooting sparks as they ground against the air.

Then, riding a wave of heat, she shot into the night sky, vanishing without a trace a moment later.

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