Chapter 250 – The Perverse Pleasures of the Rich
As he walked up the stairs, Stefano glanced at Tu Ran, who stood with her back to him, keeping watch, and then entered the lounge.
After a while, a waiter brought in a set of spare formal clothes.
Tu Ran heard the commotion behind her but didn’t pay much attention to it until she heard the sound of the door opening. The waiter, who had accidentally spilled wine on Stefano, walked over quietly and said to her, “Mr. Wells is asking for you inside.”
Tu Ran had a rough idea of what Stefano intended to do. She informed Ye Qingcai through her earpiece, telling him to arrange for someone to temporarily cover the area she was responsible for. Then, she pushed open the door and entered the lounge where Stefano was waiting.
Stefano was sitting casually on the sofa, having already changed his clothes. His legs were crossed, and one hand rested on the back of the sofa in a relaxed posture.
“How much did you see?” he asked bluntly.
Tu Ran glanced down at her communicator and, as expected, the signal had been blocked.
Looking up, Tu Ran calmly replied, “I saw some of the people. Due to the energy limit of my ability, I haven’t seen the rest.”
“Energy limit?” Stefano frowned, eyeing her with suspicion. “You didn’t mention anything about an energy limit before.”
“That’s because I’ve never encountered so many people with abilities all at once. I didn’t realize there was a limit until now,” Tu Ran responded sincerely, her gaze reflecting honesty.
Stefano thought it over and found it reasonable. There was no benefit in Tu Ran lying to him, and she wouldn’t be able to obtain these people’s inner cores herself anyway.
“Then tell me, who has abilities and what are they?” Stefano said, turning on a projector next to him.
“A blonde woman with big, wavy curls, looks to be in her thirties, wearing a red bodycon dress…”
As Tu Ran described the individuals, the projector displayed images of people matching her descriptions. Four figures appeared, all fitting the characteristics she mentioned.
Tu Ran raised her hand and pointed to the one in the bottom right corner. “Her ability is called ‘Eternal Youth,’ and her lifespan can be double that of a normal human.”
Stefano stared at the image of the woman for over a minute, his expression unreadable and dark.
Tu Ran silently speculated about the secret relationship between the Song family and the Wells family, wondering why Stefano Wells looked as if he had been betrayed.
“Next,” Stefano’s voice had taken on a deeper tone.
“Male, around 1.9 meters tall, black hair, slightly curly, with a mole on his chin. Darker skin, in his twenties. His female companion is wearing a pink chiffon dress.”
The projected image displayed a man that closely matched Tu Ran’s description.
“Yes, that’s him. His ability is called ‘Limb Regeneration,’ which allows him to regrow lost limbs in a short time.”
“Next,” Stefano said after only glancing at the image briefly.
Tu Ran continued pointing them out and introducing their abilities one by one.
She left out about half, introducing seven abilities in total.
“Is that all?” Stefano wasn’t too pleased with the result.
None of the abilities Tu Ran had introduced stood out as particularly impressive.
“Yes,” Tu Ran nodded, rubbing her nose. “Just seeing these abilities has caused me to have a nosebleed. Using my ability comes at a high cost.”
Stefano frowned deeply, contemplating for a moment before saying, “I’ll have to transfer you to work more closely with me.”
With large events like today happening only once or twice a year, if Tu Ran could only see a few abilities each time, there was no point in her attending these big gatherings. It would be better to have her accompany him during regular negotiations or other activities.
Tu Ran remained noncommittal, acting entirely compliant, as if ready to follow any of Stefano’s orders.
“Go back to your post,” Stefano said.
Tu Ran nodded and quietly exited the room.
Back at her original position, Qi Tongda’s voice came through her earpiece, “What did Stefano want with you?”
“He suspected there were hidden cameras in the room, so he asked me to check,” Tu Ran replied, her expression neutral.
“Oh,” Young Master Qi believed her.
…
The banquet below had already reached its halfway point when the head of the Pang family, Pang Shixi, suddenly stepped onto a raised platform beneath the grand God lamp, microphone in hand.
Everyone instinctively stopped talking and turned to look at him.
“Every time, these banquets follow the same format. Don’t you all find it dull?” Pang Shixi asked with a smile.
Someone played along, saying, “What surprise has Master Pang prepared for us this time?”
“Haha, Brother Zhao knows me well,” Pang Shixi raised his arm, motioning toward the side door of the Wanle Temple, which suddenly swung open. A massive, black-clothed box was pushed in by seven or eight people, requiring all their strength.
The box was brought right next to Pang Shixi, standing nearly as tall as the grand God lamp itself.
“What is that?” Many people asked curiously, and a young boy, no older than ten, eagerly ran forward to pull at the black cloth.
The moment his hand touched the cloth, the sound of chains clinking and a low, warning growl echoed from within. A gust of air blew the cloth outward, momentarily revealing a glimpse of what was inside.
A massive, clawed paw rested on a thick chain, the chain stained with blood.
“Ah!” The boy was startled and fell backward, landing on the ground with a thud, immediately bursting into tears.
Pang Shixi kindly helped the little boy to his feet, gently patting his head, his eyes smiling with a warmth that contrasted with the deep wrinkles around them. “Don’t be scared, Xiao You. Uncle will make sure it’s taken care of soon, and you’ll have your revenge,” he said, handing the boy over to his parents, who had rushed over.
“Master Pang, isn’t it a bit dangerous to bring an alien in here? There are so many unarmed people,” Xie Xie’ao said with a friendly tone, as if two middle-aged friends were chatting casually.
Pang Shixi smiled and shook his head. “I knew you’d say that,” he replied, stepping back onto the platform. “Besides us unarmed folks, aren’t there plenty of fully-armed guards from the Executive Department?”
Tu Ran, standing among the crowd, suddenly felt a sense of foreboding.
Looking out at the crowd, Pang Shixi continued, “Aliens have been causing trouble for us for so many years, yet many of you here have never seen one up close. A few days ago, I had a fresh alien transported all the way from Reigaken State, just to give you all a firsthand look.”
With that, he made a gesture, and the black cloth covering the massive cage was yanked away, revealing the creature inside in its entirety.
Tu Ran only needed a glance to recognize it.
It was the same type of creature she had seen when she first escaped from the Threshold. Back then, before she crashed into the wall while following Xie Xu, she had turned around and glimpsed these terrifying beings.
The creature was covered in long hair, its muscular frame as powerful as a tiger’s. The lower half of its face resembled that of a wild boar, with fierce tusks, while the upper half was disturbingly human-like, complete with distinct eyes, pupils, and even eyelashes.
The ones she had seen before were about ten meters tall, but the creature now confined in the cage was only six meters high. It was likely a juvenile alien.
