A Guide to Humanity’s Extinction

At dusk, the alien mother's shocking words plunged the dining table into a dead silence.

Even more surprising was that this alien mother—who already had a screw loose and a painfully slow reaction time—seemed completely oblivious to the bizarre atmosphere.

Thus, Xia Wenna didn't stop talking. Instead, she added fuel to the fire, continuing to bombard everyone's brains with her verbal artistry.

"Then it's settled?"

She clapped her hands together and slowly proposed, "Darling, once A'Qing reaches the legal age, let's have him and Xiao Xue get married. That way, we can hold our grandchild sooner."

As her words hung in the air, the alien looked around, yet still received no response.

Ke Mingqing was dumbfounded.

Thoroughly shocked, he bit down on his chopsticks, not daring to speak. What was wrong with this alien? Did she want to study what kind of super-human species sample would result from crossbreeding a mythic vessel with an ordinary person?

Even when he first discovered his entire family belonged to the super-human species, Ke Mingqing hadn't felt this level of oppressive pressure.

The girl remained expressionless as she crunched the remnants of the lollipop in her mouth, only a hair away from biting straight through the plastic stick.

At this moment, Ke Mingqing finally met Xia Lingxue's gaze.

The young woman's eyes were like the freezing winds of Siberia scraping against his face.

The youth spread his hands, shrugged, and contorted his face. He tried his best to use every micro-expression and subtle gesture to signal to her, 'I swear I'm innocent! I'm a perfectly good, law-abiding citizen! I really don't know anything!'

"You wouldn't dare."

Xia Lingxue's icy gaze seemed to convey those exact words.

Ke Mingqing broke eye contact and slowly raised his head to scan his surroundings.

Ke Linye and Xia Zili were still frozen in a daze. One had his eyebrows raised, while the other sat with her head lowered in a stupor. Like two statues, they remained motionless.

Ke Mingqing then stole a glance at his old man out of the corner of his eye.

The cigarette dangling from Ke Mingwei's mouth was trembling, looking like it would fall at any second.

Staring at that quivering cigarette, Ke Mingqing felt as if his own lifeline was fluctuating right along with it. Sure enough, in the very next second, Ke Mingwei rested his broad palm on top of Ke Mingqing's head and asked in a deep voice, pausing between each word:

"A'Qing... what exactly is going on here?"

Ke Mingqing froze.

He felt as if a massive bronze bell was pressing down on his head. He could almost hear the cawing of crows outside the window.

Right at that moment, Ke Linye spoke up with absolute solemnity:

"It's pretty good, isn't it? We're all family, so there's no need for a bride price. Congratulations, A'Xue, A'Qing. As your older brother, I offer my blessings and respect your decision."

Xia Lingxue sucked in a breath, turned her head, and shot him a frigid glare.

Others in the family might actually believe this nonsense, but she and Ke Linye knew each other inside out. How could Ke Linye not know it was completely fake? But that was exactly the problem. With his personality, there was no way he would speak up in her defense—adding fuel to the fire was entirely his style.

Thinking of this, Xia Lingxue swallowed the crushed lollipop and lowered her voice.

"Just you wait..."

"Feeling guilty?" Ke Linye shook his head with a chuckle. "A'Xue, if you dare to do it, you should dare to own up to it. You just made a move on your younger brother, that's all. I won't laugh at you."

Xia Lingxue's eyes turned so cold they seemed to glaze over with ice. A moment later, she raised her head, her gaze like a carving knife slowly sweeping across everyone's faces.

Second Sister seemed determined to figure out exactly whose mouth this baffling farce had started from.

But all she saw in return were faces caught in various states of daze and bewilderment.

Seeing the quiet dining table where not a single person was willing to speak, Xia Wenna finally realized something was wrong.

The alien quickly raised her hand to cover her mouth.

"I'm sorry, was Mom a little too eager? It's my fault. I shouldn't have blurted it out so soon. I should have given you two more time to prepare yourselves mentally."

Ke Mingqing really couldn't take it anymore. He slammed a hand onto the table and shouted:

"Mom, Second Sister and I really aren't in that kind of relationship! Are you done yet?"

"Oh my, so you and Second Sister are no longer in a brother-sister relationship?" Xia Wenna nodded in gratification. "Mom understands. Mom already told you that I will definitely support you both. Don't be afraid."

Ke Mingqing's heart gave a slight jolt.

Looking at Xia Wenna's smiling face, he was suddenly struck with the absurd feeling of witnessing an AI rebellion. It was as if a clunky, empty-headed robot had just played a prank on him and was now flashing a cheeky grin in secret.

Was this alien truly an idiot, or was she just incredibly devious? This was too terrifying!

Too stunned to speak for a long moment, Ke Mingqing gave a slight shudder.

Beside him, Ke Mingwei knitted his brows tightly and pinched his cigarette hard. A scatter of sparks flicked off and fell to the floor.

"Since when did you two start dating?" he asked.

"Dad, we really aren't..." Ke Mingqing said weakly.

Ke Mingwei cut him off. "Wenna isn't the type to lie. Did your Second Sister start it, or did you?"

A brief silence enveloped the kitchen.

Xia Lingxue spoke up in a tepid tone, "Since Mom didn't lie, could it be that someone else is lying? For example..." But before she could finish, another person at the table interrupted her.

"Sis... Big Sister and Big Brother are getting married?"

Everyone followed the hoarse voice and looked over.

Sitting at the corner of the dining table, Xia Zili finally raised her head.

"Why is this happening..." Looking at Xia Wenna, her face was deathly pale. Her lips trembled slightly, and her voice was incredibly soft. "You've never said anything about this before."

Xia Wenna paused, tilting her head.

"Oh, did little Li not know about this either? It's Mom's fault. I thought everyone else already knew, except for your dad." Xia Zili opened her mouth, but couldn't form a single word.

Her brain was buzzing, feeling as if a red-hot branding iron was searing it. The girl sat in a daze for a moment before looking around the room, eventually resting her gaze on Ke Mingqing's face.

"Is what they're saying true?" she asked rapidly. "Have you really been together with Second Sister for a long time?"

Xia Zili half-rose from her chair, leaning in so close she almost pressed her entire face against his.

Ke Mingqing leaned the back of his head against his chair. He didn't know what to say for a moment, deciding he might as well let his short-circuiting brain take a rest.

"Oh, so you're admitting it by default," Ke Linye fanned the flames while casually cutting his pork chop. "My, my, my... How could this happen? What exactly is our family going to turn into?"

Xia Zili lowered her head, her gaze shifting.

She stared down in thought for a moment before looking up at the silent Xia Lingxue, asking tentatively, "...Second Sister?"

Xia Lingxue kept her arms crossed, trying her best not to let the others disturb her as she quietly sorted out her thoughts.

Seeing that neither of the involved parties was willing to speak, Xia Zili could only look toward their alien mother for help.

She sat motionless, unable to speak a full sentence. It took a long time before she could squeeze out a hoarse word:

"...Mom?"

"That's right, A'Qing and your Second Sister are secretly dating," Xia Wenna said at a leisurely pace. "After Mom heard about it, I figured since we're all family, there's nothing to hide. What do you think, little Li?"

Xia Zili was stunned.

Like a kite with a snapped string, she slowly slumped back into her chair.

"Why don't we all talk it out at the table? That way, as your parents, we can also provide some supervision..." Saying this, Xia Wenna put down her spoon and turned to Ke Mingwei. "Isn't that right, darling?"

Ke Mingwei remained silent for a moment before turning his head to stare deeply at Xia Lingxue.

He hesitated before speaking, "A'Xue, are you and A'Qing really dat..."

Xia Lingxue didn't speak. She took another deep breath, her chest rising and falling slightly.

She was genuinely worried that she would lose control for a second and turn the entire house into a giant ice cave.

"Heh..." Ke Linye rested his chin on his hand and turned his head to look out the window. He was trying so hard to hold back his laughter, tapping his fingers gently on the table as his pitch-black earring swayed slightly. Xia Lingxue completely ignored the bastard amusing himself at their expense, looking up at Xia Wenna instead.

"Mom, what exactly did A'Zhi tell you?" she asked in a heavy voice.

Xia Wenna thought about it. "While she was taking a bath, she asked me what Mom would think if you and A'Qing got married... I didn't misunderstand her, did I?"

Xia Zili sat motionless at the table like an unblinking doll, having completely frozen up.

She turned to stare blankly out the window as a single maple leaf drifted in over the sill.

The moonlight tonight seemed especially desolate.

'Oh... so that's how it is. I'm such an idiot. Second Sister actually has that kind of relationship with him. No wonder she was so harsh to Kuroki Hitomi at the Hero Company that day...'

'Yeah. Time to run away from home.'

Xia Zili secretly made up her mind; she couldn't stay in this house for even a second longer.

Only at this moment did Xia Lingxue finally understand the root cause of this whole mess. Crossing her arms, she asked coldly, "What is A'Zhi doing?"

"Taking an afternoon nap," Ke Linye shrugged.

"You. Go call her down here right now."

Xia Lingxue turned to Ke Linye and ordered, enunciating every word.

Ke Linye thought to himself that if Xia Ningzhi came down right now, the focus of the battle would shift entirely to her. That would ruin all the fun. It was a rare treat to see this particular sister making a fool of herself.

So he just shook his head and smirked.

"No, I'm way too curious about what's going on between you two. If I miss even a single second, I'll feel like I've missed out on a hundred million... As your older brother, I have to be fully present to listen in on such a monumental event."

Xia Lingxue stomped down viciously on his foot under the table, but Ke Linye was on high alert and dodged lightning-fast.

Ke Mingwei glanced up at the calendar. It wasn't April Fools' Day, so why on earth were these kids making this kind of joke?

He took a deep drag of his cigarette, his brows furrowed tightly. "A'Qing, you're a young man. You need to take responsibility for your actions."

The alien, in a rare display, actually put on the air of a mother and said in a stern tone, "That's right, A'Qing. Since your sister isn't willing to admit it, you should speak up."

Like a broken robot, Xia Zili trembled as she turned her head to stare at Ke Mingqing with hollow eyes.

Ke Mingqing's vision went dark. He didn't even bother to respond, figuring it was better than making the situation even messier.

Xia Lingxue finally found an angle. "A'Qing already has a girlfriend. You all know this. Even jokes need to have a limit."

Suddenly, Ke Linye put on a look of dawning realization. "Oh, now I get it. A couple of days ago at the plaza, A'Xue was giving A'Qing's girlfriend such a hard time. Turns out there was a reason behind it."

He paused for a second before turning back to Xia Lingxue, asking with a grin, "No way, A'Xue. Don't tell me you actually treated that poor little girl as a love rival?"

Veins bulged on the back of Xia Lingxue's hand. Ke Mingqing was also utterly appalled by Ke Linye's earth-shatteringly underhanded move. He turned his head, thinking to himself: 'Big Brother, there's a damn good reason why you're ostracized in this house.'

"You... just you wait," she threw out the threat once again.

But Ke Linye paid it no mind. He simply shook his head and said with a deadpan expression, "A'Xue, if you love him, you must be brave... Actually, as your brother, I don't see anything wrong with you making things difficult for that little girl. After all, she's going to head back to Japan to inherit her family business sooner or later. She and A'Qing aren't a good match anyway."

Ke Mingwei snuffed out his cigarette butt. "A'Xue, is what Linye just said true? Did you actually do something like that?"

Xia Lingxue kept her head lowered, her falling bangs hiding her eyes.

She had already envisioned a hundred different ways to murder Ke Linye in her head.

Even though he was one of the parties involved, Ke Mingqing had completely resigned himself to watching the show unfold.

He thought, 'Good, good, good. You just had to make me miserable that day, Second Sister, didn't you? Now you're finally getting your karma!'

Xia Wenna hesitated for a moment before shaking her head. "A'Xue, even though Mom supports you and A'Qing more, you shouldn't forcibly insert yourself into his relationship with that Japanese girl. That's not nice!"

Resting her elbow in one hand, she tapped her chin with her other index finger, musing aloud, "But... if it makes A'Qing realize who he truly likes, then I suppose it's not a big deal."

Pausing there, she looked up at Xia Lingxue. "I'll tell you what, A'Xue. In a few days, you should go apologize to that Japanese girl. It'll be fine." Hearing this, Ke Mingqing's pupils contracted. He couldn't sit still any longer.

He absolutely didn't dare let Kuroki Hitomi come into contact with his family again, so he hurriedly tried to smooth things over.

"Mom, there is absolutely no way I would ever date someone in my own family! We grew up together. Everyone knows exactly what everyone else is like. It's a miracle we don't despise each other, let alone date!"

Xia Zili blinked.

It was as if her soul had finally flown back into her body, and the light returned to her eyes.

She slowly turned her head back. She looked somewhat happy, yet also somewhat upset.

Xia Lingxue remained silent for a moment. "Mom, who exactly told you that A'Qing and I were dating?"

"Ningzhi."

Xia Lingxue pondered for a second before asking, "Qing, did you make Ningzhi think we were dating?"

"Huh?" Ke Mingqing dragged out the syllable. "How is that even possible?"

"So neither of us knew anything about this, and A'Zhi just made the whole thing up herself. Is that it?" Xia Lingxue asked coldly.

Ke Linye smiled. He had originally wanted to stir up a little more trouble for his sister, but figuring Ke Mingqing was already pitiful enough, he decided to let it drop.

"What else could it be?" Finally cleared of all false charges, Ke Mingqing breathed a sigh of relief.

Right at that moment, the sound of a yawn drifted down from the staircase, shattering the silence that enshrouded the dining table.

Everyone turned to look. Xia Ningzhi, having just woken up from her afternoon nap, was sleepily shuffling down the stairs.

She smacked her lips, her eyes watering from sleepiness as she mumbled softly, "Mom, what's for dinner? It smells so good."

A second later, picking up on the murderous intent radiating from the kitchen, Xia Ningzhi seemed to realize something. She jerked to a halt, lightly gripping the banister.

Reacting as if she were facing a deadly enemy, the girl slowly and fearfully raised her head, murmuring, "No way..." Cold sweat slowly trickled down her forehead.

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