"Unrestricted Domain?"
"It's a Forbidden Ruin that can create a barrier between what's inside and outside the domain. It keeps our fights from spilling out and harming regular people. Every city's Night Watchers are equipped with three Notice Boards capable of activating the 'Unrestricted Domain', each handled by a designated person. Since we usually don't participate directly in combat, people like me are called 'Watchers'."
Lin Qiye raised an eyebrow. "So, basically, you're the guard dog."
"…If you don't have anything nice to say, just keep it to yourself," Zhao Kongcheng snapped, rolling his eyes.
"You mentioned there are three ways to obtain a Forbidden Ruin. What's the last one?"
"The last way is being chosen by a god — just like your case." Zhao Kongcheng's expression grew serious. "Some deities may bestow a portion of their power to a chosen human, making that person their agent in the mortal world. This kind of Forbidden Ruin is also known as a 'Divine Ruin'.
However, in return for gaining power, the agent will also receive instructions from the gods. Some are ordered to destroy human civilization, some to protect it, others are dispatched to find a particular object for their deity… In general, a god only appoints one agent at a time, and that person acts as the embodiment of the deity's will.
So far, most of the dozen or so Divine Agents that have appeared serve dark gods bent on tearing down the new order of humanity and plunging the world back into chaos. These agents founded an organization known as the Ancient Gods Church.
There are agents for benevolent gods too, but they're rare—and nobody really knows how many serve neutral deities."
Zhao Kongcheng stood up and walked over to Lin Qiye, locking eyes with him before speaking, word by deliberate word:
"Lin Qiye, what command did Michael give you? Whose side… are you on?"
All Lin Qiye could offer was confusion. "I don't know — he didn't say."
And that was the honest truth. When Michael looked at him from the Moon, he'd just shot Lin Qiye a distant glance and then Lin Qiye had blacked out. Not a single word was spoken!
Zhao Kongcheng's brow furrowed. "He didn't say anything at all? You've never heard his voice in your mind, either?"
"Nothing! Really, nothing!"
Zhao Kongcheng eyed Lin Qiye for a long time, searching his face for any sign of a lie. Only after a while did he finally look away and slowly sit down.
"Our best guess is, Michael belongs to the neutral or benevolent side—otherwise, we'd have taken you out long ago. Still… if He gave you a Divine Ruin, why didn't He say a word?"
"What does he actually want?"
Lin Qiye's brow furrowed slightly. "I honestly don't know what he wants — but even if he did give me orders, I wouldn't follow them. I'm not interested in getting tangled up in this mess. Worst case, I'll just give these eyes back to him."
As he spoke, he stood up. "If there's nothing else, I'm leaving."
Without waiting for Zhao Kongcheng to respond, he turned and headed straight for the door.
"Wait—not so fast!" Zhao Kongcheng shot to his feet and blocked the doorway, staring Lin Qiye in the eyes. "You're just going to leave after grilling me with all your questions? What about me?"
"You? You can enjoy… uh… some passionate time alone in here," Lin Qiye replied seriously.
"That's not what I meant… Aren't you even the least bit curious? Don't you want to know who I am?"
"What does who you are have to do with me?" Lin Qiye said as he continued opening the door.
Zhao Kongcheng slapped his hand on the doorknob. "Why do I know all this stuff? Who's backing me? What kind of organization am I with? What are we actually doing… Aren't you curious about any of it?"
"Nope, not intersted."
"Why?"
"According to movie and novel logic, once I know you exist, I've only got two options," Lin Qiye said, holding up two fingers. "Either I join you, or I make sure I can never spill your secrets — meaning I get killed, locked up, or brainwashed…"
"…Maybe lay off the TV dramas, will you?" Zhao Kongcheng groaned. "Besides, you don't know anything about us. How do you know joining up wouldn't actually be great?"
Lin Qiye raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying, even if I know about you but choose not to join, nothing bad happens to me?"
"Of course not! We're basically like the military—at worst, you'd sign a nondisclosure agreement. All that other stuff is just nonsense."
"Well, in that case, maybe I'll hear you out." Lin Qiye sat back down the moment he heard that.
Zhao Kongcheng let out a long sigh — talking with this kid for a few minutes felt more exhausting than a whole day on stakeout!
"In 1922, right after our exploration team discovered the first mythical creature — the dragon of chaos Leviathan — the Daxia government urgently set up a military unit dedicated to fending off mythical threats. It was called the 139th Special Biological Response Squad.
Back then, our technology was pretty primitive, and the world in front of us was a complete mystery — so honestly, that squad was all for show and didn't accomplish much.
But as time went by, we observed more and more mythical creatures. We tried to make contact with a few and gradually uncovered the secrets of Forbidden Ruins, so we started training elite combat personnel.
When more and more Forbidden Ruin users began popping up — completely at random — we realized we couldn't fit everyone under the usual military umbrella. That's when the 139th Squad shifted from a purely military group to a hybrid between official and civilian special forces.
And now, we call this unique organization… the Night Watchers."
Lin Qiye nodded thoughtfully. "So, you guys exist to protect Daxia — from those evil gods?"
"To be precise, from all mythical creatures."
"What's the difference?"
"Plenty. Like I said before, the appearance of mythical beings is totally random; it's not just the well-known, powerful gods who show up. Sometimes, weak creatures from old legends and local tales manifest too. The Ghost Face you ran into last night's one of those — straight out of rural horror stories.
Creatures that don't have world-ending power, but can still impact human society, we call them 'Mysteries'."
"I see." Lin Qiye nodded. No wonder that thing last night seemed so familiar—it was born from a folk tale, after all.
"So you see, we're soldiers too — soldiers fighting to protect our homeland! Our entire existence is about keeping the people of Daxia safe from suffering. Isn't that noble? Isn't that heroic?" Zhao Kongcheng was genuinely trying to persuade him.
"Very noble, very heroic. I have real respect for you all, honestly." Lin Qiye's expression grew serious. He wasn't joking — his eyes held nothing but respect.
A smile slowly spread across Zhao Kongcheng's face. "Then, are you…"
"I'm not joining."
"…" Zhao Kongcheng's smile immediately froze. "Why not?!"
"I can't leave," Lin Qiye replied with full seriousness. "I have too much I still need to do…"
"What's more important than defending the country?!"
"I have an aunt, and a younger cousin," Lin Qiye said, gazing out the window, calm and clear-eyed. "My aunt's not that old, but to take care of Ajin and a deadweight like me, she works day and night in the factory, ten years straight, and now her health is close to breaking.
She is… quite stubborn. She'd be rubbing her neck sitting on the living room stool until tears were streaming down her face, yet insists she's just doing yoga, calling it healthy…
Even when I'm sitting right across from her she thinks I can't notice her.
She is so cautious, and always so tired.
My cousin is smart and devoted, but… he's still a child. He can't carry this family yet.
I've got a lot I need to do.
I have to earn money for them. I need to buy my aunt and cousin a big house, make sure she never has to suffer in that awful factory again!
I'll pay for my cousin's college — make sure both of them get to live a good life.
They've never once given up on me, even when I was nothing but a burden. Now that I'm finally better, how could I ever abandon them?
You and your people are noble, truly. If things were different, maybe I would join you…
But right now, all I want is to stay quietly by their side…
And protect my family."