The night wind was chilly, and the terrain was uneven. Marcus chose not to go up the hills where the Temple of Fetfulness was because in the event that he was followed he could shake the tail more easily and would n trouble to the temple.

  Taking a short break to check around every few steps, Marcus was finally half. It seemed no one was following him, so he could speed up a little and be slightly reckless.

  It had been more than an hour after leaving the house of Captain Ko. But still, when his thoughts drifted he not-so-distant memory of what just happened. Chills still shot through his bad his extremities. From everythihered, it must be Mrs. Ko, the wife of his captain who had not shown her face to anyone for more than a few years.

  Whatever happeo her, Marcus could only assume it was some kind of foul py, and the captain, with his access to certain forbidden knowledge, decided to keep her “alive” but failed - or at least, he did not succeed, and wound up creating something terrifying.

  Captain Ko ended up not getting ba after all. Maybe he could call the captain again after he was doh his business iemple of Fetfulness.

  His heart sped up for a few beats; his ears rang; and the hairs on his back stood up. Something happened - something in the general area behind him.

  He looked back, and saw a thin golden pilr of light shooting up at the sky. It was no thicker than a bolt of lightning, but was much brighter. It was more than a beam of energy - as a sense of fortitude, devotion and sacrifice seemed to have permeated through the atmosphere. Marcus knew not how it ossible for this kind of emotion or spirit to spread to and resoh him just through sight. But for a very brief moment he felt the urge to weep.

  Clouds gathered in the air above the energy beam, it seemed as if some kind of thuorm was brewing and about to burst ience. And as the stradually took shape, something iy’s air, iy’s veins and the very being was dealt a heavy blow. A looming grimness over the city was injured. It was broken before, but now, the wounds began to burn aer. Water was rising, the dams were crag, and the ground, was shaking.

  Before he could take another look at the golden energy beam or the clouds above it. Another abnormal occurrence broke out to his right. It was another distant area - an area ihe Northern District that was quite close to the border area between the Northern and the South-Western District. A pilr of smoke rose up into the sky, a blood rainboeared in the sky but was almost instantly swallowed by the smoke.

  The terrifying power of the blood moon was weakened, diminished and ed. It was the first time Marcus ever saw something like this before. Before long, the pilr of smoke turned into a giant dark cloud. And when he fixed his eyes on it, he could see human faces and arms made of smoke appearing and disappearing from its exterior.

  Whatever it was, it was definitely not something he would want to deal with right now. In fact, he doubted anyone could actually do so. Maybe it was something he o ask the master about. And at the moment, the dark cloud was floating up North. Its speed was not that high, but as far as Marcus could tell, there was nothing that could stand in its way.

  “Fuck.” Haviwo inexplicable phenomena, the sense en Marcus’ mind only grew more intense. He threw caution in the wind and shot up the hill. No one followed him anyway.

  “Detective Cai, you’re just in time.” Master Liaoran was in the yard with Wuzui. Two inse burners were pced on their sides, a thin bamboo fabric carpet ced beh them. From where Marcus was it seemed the master was just giving his apprentice a lesson. But somethi different - the main thing was that Wuzui was wearing an official monk robe, simir in style to the master’s but fitted to Wuzui’s build and physique.

  “What - what’s happening, Master?” Marcus asked, his eyes narrowed.

  “Nothing that should trouble you.” Master Liaora out a rexed sigh then Wuzui: “It’s just a lesson on scriptures, before Wuzui would go on his first tribution.”

  “A tribution? What is that? ” Marcus stepped into the yard, still fused as he had never heard of any tributions in the history of the temple before: “How e I’ve never heard of it?”

  “It’s because you’ve never been a monk in this very temple, detective. ” Master Liaoran chuckled: “But no matter. You’ve e with questions and need for advice. And I just so happen to have a lot of time for you.”

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