With the Power of Help

The next day.

The summer heat was relentless, and the waves of heat rising from the road seemed capable of distorting the air itself.

Ye Shuang drove toward Yinshan Academy, gradually pressing down on the accelerator. The engine of the Bull Demon King roared as well, adding another measure of restlessness to the sweltering summer.

“……”

Before long, Ye Shuang arrived at Yinshan Academy’s parking lot. After squeezing his car between two others, he shut the door and quickly headed toward the chairman’s office. Along the way, he thought about many things—including the fact that he had barely slept the night before.

Ye Shuang felt that a single person’s strength was ultimately limited. He had no idea how he was supposed to fight the figure hiding in the shadows. There was simply too little information. Even so, connections were a very useful means of dealing with the situation. Whether it was the An family or Chen Family, they all had the same goal.

As he continued thinking, Ye Shuang realized that he had already reached the chairman’s office. He raised his hand and knocked once.

“Come in.”

After hearing the voice from inside, Ye Shuang pushed open the door and saw Anshi Yilang.

The curtains in the chairman’s office had been drawn, leaving only a narrow slit through which a shaft of light entered. As a result, the entire room was somewhat dim. At the far end, Anshi Yilang sat behind his desk. Though his frame was small and thin, he exuded an indescribable solemnity.

Ye Shuang closed the door behind him, his gaze falling on the pot of hot tea on the desk.

“You’re here.” The old man’s tone was unusually calm when he saw Ye Shuang. He picked up the steaming teapot beside him and poured Ye Shuang a cup.

“Mm.”

After sitting down, Ye Shuang thought for a moment before speaking slowly.

“Old man, do you know the truth about Little Yu’s parents’ deaths?”

“It was an accident,” Anshi Yilang replied. He raised his eyes and seemed to scan Ye Shuang before asking, “Could it be that you know something? That’s impossible.”

After all, Little Yu had only known Ye Shuang for a little over a year, while Anshi’s parents had died many years ago—so long ago that Anshi Yilang was unwilling even to recall what had happened.

“That is indeed impossible. After all, I haven’t known you for very long. How could I know about something that happened so long ago?” Ye Shuang said.

“Then what exactly are you trying to say?”

“I’m referring to the general situation.” Ye Shuang continued.

“……”

Anshi Yilang fell into thought.

“I possess a special supernatural ability. My soul can travel through the timeline, allowing me to uncover certain so-called ‘truths,’” Ye Shuang said slowly.

“Are you joking with me, boy?”

“I’m serious, old man.”

Ye Shuang’s calm yet earnest tone left Anshi Yilang stunned for several seconds. Then he slightly furrowed his brow.

“I’ll assume, for the moment, that this is true. If so, was the medicine that treated Little Yu also something you found by traveling into the future?”

“No. I spent twenty years developing it on my own in the past.”

“……Ah.”

The words had been spoken lightly, yet they carried tremendous weight. Even Anshi Yilang found them unbelievable. Though it sounded utterly absurd, if Ye Shuang was telling the truth, then many things suddenly made sense. After all, he had always believed that something beyond ordinary human understanding must have happened for his granddaughter to survive and recover.

But why could Ye Shuang speak of such a thing so casually? He did not even seem willing to bring it up.

“Why are you telling me this? Do you trust me that much?” Anshi Yilang asked.

“Trust? I suppose you could say that. The main reason is that we have a common enemy.” Ye Shuang suddenly smiled. “I saved both of your precious granddaughters. Surely you’re not really going to do anything to me?”

“Heh heh heh. That remains to be seen.” Anshi Yilang merely chuckled, but what concerned him more was the identity of this so-called common enemy. “Boy, go on.”

Ye Shuang then gave him a general account of what had happened. Although he left out much of the detail, Anshi Yilang grew more and more shocked as he listened.

Many of the details could not possibly have been fabricated, while some of the more secret information was not something an outsider could have known. At that moment, he finally became completely convinced that Ye Shuang was telling the truth. Without having personally experienced those events, no one could have described them with such accuracy and detail.

“You’re saying my son’s death was not an accident?!”

“That’s right. The woman’s name is Jin Sha. I don’t know her real name either, but she is Alice’s biological mother,” Ye Shuang said. “Since she once worked with the experimental base, perhaps we can use that connection to uncover more information about her.”

“Good. Very good.”

Anshi Yilang closed his eyes, his fingers lightly tapping the desktop as he seemed to ponder everything Ye Shuang had told him.

Of course, he had already ruled out the possibility that Ye Shuang was lying—or that he was trying to manipulate him into killing someone else. There would have been no reason for that, and Anshi Yilang knew Ye Shuang’s character very well.

That was also why he had tried so hard to bring his granddaughter and Ye Shuang together. Ye Shuang was indeed someone to whom a person could entrust their life.

“That year, the laboratory caught fire by accident, and then exploded. My son, my daughter-in-law, and a large number of researchers all died in that fire. Fortunately, my granddaughter survived,” Anshi Yilang continued.

“At the time, I did send people to investigate the cause of the fire, but in the end, all we learned was that it had been an accident. Even the autopsies revealed nothing unusual. The fire had simply been too intense—it burned for a full three days, and much of everything inside was reduced to carbon.”

As Anshi Yilang recounted those memories, even his beard trembled slightly. Though they were painful memories, his voice remained restrained and composed.

“I always believed that this was heaven’s punishment for us. After all, we had been researching ‘taboo’ subjects. Trying to extend life and alter predetermined fate was an act that defied heaven itself.”

“But I never imagined that Yang Qi and the others’ deaths had been caused by someone.”

“And that they would die so easily. It was nothing short of a disgrace to the An family.”

Anshi Yilang took a deep breath.

“Boy, I will investigate this matter. Even if I have to turn the entire world upside down, I will drag that woman out into the open.”

“I have a few more leads.” Ye Shuang then told Anshi Yilang about the Zhou Family, as well as the information about encountering that woman at the hotel during his previous trip to Sakura.

“Understood. I’ll arrange for people to investigate,” Anshi Yilang said.

Even if it cost him everything, he was determined to find that woman.

“By the way, there’s one more thing.” Anshi Yilang’s gaze fell on Ye Shuang.

“What is it?” Ye Shuang asked.

“When are you going to have a child with my Little Yu?” Anshi Yilang asked. “She’s healthy now, and she’s reached a suitable age for marriage. Even if circumstances aren’t ideal, it shouldn’t be difficult to make a Little Little Yu, right?”

“……”