"Jade, is this an angel?"
"It looks like an angel, but it isn't! It's definitely a devil!" Jade replied with absolute certainty, clenching her fists tight.
"Jade's parents were the most famous Devil Hunters in China, but during a mission, they were instantly killed by a devil with six wings," Jackie added.
"Instantly killed?"
"Yeah. Just from making eye contact, their bodies instantly turned to ash."
"You saw it too, Jackie?"
"I told Uncle Jackie. I was there when it happened, but that guy didn't kill me."
"Did you get a look at the devil's face?"
"I only caught a quick glimpse before I passed out. I vaguely remember it having six wings. Big brother Arata, do you know what kind of devil this is?"
"I'm not sure either, but if we run into him again, I'll avenge them for you."
"Mhm!!" Jade was a little disappointed but nodded anyway.
She thought Arata would be able to figure something out, but with just a blurry drawing, he had absolutely nothing to go on.
"Where did Liu go? Why isn't he back yet?" Jackie hurriedly changed the subject.
"He's still back there soaking it in."
"Call him over, let's go eat. I already made a reservation at a hotel restaurant."
"I just ate steamed buns, Jackie. I'm not hungry," Arata said.
"How can steamed buns fill you up? I'm taking you out for a proper feast."
"Food is food, no need to waste money. Why don't we just go eat at your place?"
"If you're not afraid of Uncle's nagging, we can do that."
"I'm not afraid of anything. Also, I already took care of the Voyeur Devil, so you guys don't have to waste time looking for it."
"You just got here and already wiped out two devils for us. Quanxi bringing you back was definitely a smart move."
After talking it over, they finally decided to go to Jackie's house, while the other three Devil Hunters headed off somewhere else. After driving for nearly half an hour, the Jeep pulled into an underground parking garage. The group took the elevator up to the 38th floor.
Even though he was a massive celebrity, Jackie only lived in a 200-square-meter luxury apartment, and this was just his home in City S. He had other properties elsewhere.
"It's just Uncle at home. He loves to nag, so don't take it personally." Jackie said this as he walked through the door first, calling out, "Uncle, we're back!"
Thwack!!
Suddenly, a sharp hand chop landed squarely on top of Jackie's head.
"Uncle!" Jackie yelped, clutching the spot on his head where he was hit.
"Jackie, didn't you forget something before you left the house?"
"Forget what?"
"You forgot to take out the trash!"
"Uncle, there's no rush for that."
"Flies are already buzzing around the garbage bag, and you say there's no rush?! Take it out right now."
"Uncle, we have a guest," Jackie quickly said, hoping to save some face.
"Who?" Uncle glanced out the door. "Since when does Hak Foo count as a guest? Go take out the garbage."
"Hello, Uncle," Arata stepped up from behind Hak Foo and greeted him.
Uncle was a 78-year-old man who also happened to be Jackie's uncle and Jade's great-uncle. Since he always referred to himself as "Uncle", everyone who knew him got used to it and just called him that.
"Aiya!!!!" Uncle's mouth instantly fell wide open. "This is that Arata kid, isn't it? What is he doing here? Jackie, what is the meaning of this?!" Uncle fired off a string of questions.
"Uncle, Quanxi invited Arata over to help with the Terracotta Army situation."
"Oh, I see." Uncle's expression went flat as he walked over to Jackie, then suddenly delivered another hand chop to his head. "Then why aren't you making tea?!"
"Okay, okay, I got it." The chop didn't actually hurt that much, but Jackie deliberately acted like it did just to humor him.
"Hello, come on in," Uncle smiled at Arata. But then he suddenly delivered a hand chop to Hak Foo's muscular arm. "Jackie has to make tea, you go take out the trash."
The massive, hulking Hak Foo had no choice but to obey the order. He turned around, grabbed the garbage bag sitting by the door, and walked out along with the flies.
"Uncle, I showed big brother Arata the drawing."
"Is that so?" Uncle turned slightly more serious, asking Arata, "Well? Do you recognize it?"
"I can't tell what kind of devil it is, but since it's shown up before, it's bound to appear again sooner or later."
Arata sat down at the tea table with Uncle. He casually pulled a mirror out of his pocket and handed it to Jade. "If you ever see that devil again, smash this mirror. I'll rush over immediately."
"Thank you, big brother Arata." Jade carefully took the palm-sized makeup mirror, examined it for a moment, and then quickly tucked it into her pocket.
"I'll leave it in your hands then. I don't want Jade's parents to have died in vain," Uncle said, wiping his reading glasses with a tissue.
"Don't worry. No matter what happens, I'll help Jade."
"Jackie! Is that tea ready yet?!" Uncle suddenly yelled.
"Coming, coming!" Jackie hurried over to the table carrying the tea.
"Let me do it, Jackie."
"No, no, you're a guest. Try Uncle's favorite hot tea." Jackie poured a cup for Uncle first, then filled Arata's teacup.
"Have a taste of my favorite tea," Uncle said, picking up his cup.
"I'll give it a try." Arata took a sip, deciding it wasn't nearly as good as cola.
"I'm going to start cooking. Let me know if you need anything." Jackie set the teapot down and turned toward the kitchen.
Suddenly, Jade stood mysteriously close to Arata and whispered in his ear, "Big brother Arata, come to my room for a second. I have something important to tell you."
Before Arata could even react, Jade changed her tune out loud, "Big brother Arata, the bathroom is over there. I'll show you."
With that, she dragged Arata toward the bathroom, though in reality, the two of them slipped right into Jade's room.
As soon as they got inside, Jade quickly locked the door and frantically dove under the bed. Arata had no idea what she was trying to do. He could only watch as half her body disappeared under the bed, apparently rummaging for something.
Shhhhk!!!
The sound of a box dragging across the floor echoed out as Jade pulled a decorative wooden box fastened with a brass padlock out from under the bed.
"What's this? A present for your big brother Arata?"
"No. Big brother Arata, you better brace yourself, because the thing inside here is terrifying."
"Terrifying?"
Arata didn't think there was anything out there that could genuinely terrify him. If there absolutely had to be something, it would be the words "Insufficient Account Balance." Or maybe a clown's jack-in-the-box that jump-scared people the second it opened.
"Big brother Arata, I'm not joking." Jade's expression instantly turned dead serious.
The box wasn't even open yet, and her forehead was already breaking a sweat. Seeing the look on Jade's face, Arata dropped his careless attitude. He noticed she was genuinely afraid of whatever was inside, her hands trembling nonstop as they rested on the box.
"It's not going to be eyeballs or dead lizards or something, is it?"
"No, it's something from the six-winged angel."
"How did you get it?"
"It fell off his wing. I picked it up after he left. Whenever I look at it, I get so scared I haven't even shown it to Uncle Jackie."
"Even Jackie hasn't seen it!"
Arata furrowed his brow. Just how much did Jade trust him to only show him the contents of this box?
"Big brother Arata, I'm going to open it now. Get ready." Jade unlocked the brass padlock first, then turned her head completely away, squeezing her eyes tightly shut.
"Open it. Let's see what the hell this thing is."
By this point, Jade's secretive behavior had thoroughly piqued Arata's curiosity. If she tried to stop him from looking now, he'd absolutely snatch the box away just to see what was inside.