Monsters Die When Killed-Chapter 67 - 40: Emotional Quotient

"Transcendent? Young Transcendents like me, or people with the Talent for it!"

Su Zhou could be a bit slow on the uptake at times, but once prompted, he pieced things together quickly. He had a sudden realization, easily figuring out what these three new Academies were all about.

’That’s right. When middle-aged people awaken their Extraordinary Powers, they still have families to support and responsibilities to worry about. As for children, unless their abilities are exceptionally strong—which is practically impossible since Spiritual Energy depends on Life Force and Soul Strength, and kids are weak in those areas—they don’t pose much of a threat. That leaves teenagers like me, not quite adults, not quite kids, who think they know everything from middle school to their second year of high school. We’re the biggest element of instability!’

Instead of staying on guard day and night, it was better to open Academies and official majors to recruit them. The three A Class Academies could take in the most talented Seeds of future paragons, while other affiliated Extraordinary Majors could disseminate Extraordinary Knowledge and keep them in line. That way, you could stop know-it-all teenagers from running around, causing mayhem with their powers and giving the whole world a massive headache.

Of course, only someone who knew about the Spiritual Energy Revival could come to this conclusion. The vast majority of ordinary people were kept in the dark, at most having a vague suspicion that a great change was coming to the world.

’If it really is a brand-new A Class Academy with an Extraordinary Major...’

As he thought of this, Su Zhou let his mind wander, though he also felt a bit conflicted. ’It would definitely be better for me to get into one of these specialized Academies... but if I do, I might have to part ways with Qiming.’

’Forget all our years of brotherhood—without Qiming’s financial support, how am I supposed to afford to slay demons and eat!’

Weapons, the Night Travel Clothes, and all sorts of other miscellaneous gear and living expenses—it all cost money. It wasn’t that Su Zhou couldn’t manage on his own, but if he could have his buddy help out, why bother doing it himself? So thought Su Zhou·Pang Hu.

Although Su Zhou had now learned some basic crafting techniques from Yara—like refining the Wood Centipede’s two large mandibles and stinger into a Cross Spear Blade and forcing it onto a wooden shaft—he was still far from being self-sufficient.

Then again, it was a good thing the Wood Centipede was a Wood Attribute Evil Demon. Otherwise, with Su Zhou’s rather crude crafting method—which consisted of just using his Divine Magic Fire to fuse them together—the Cross Spear Blade never would have mounted onto the wooden shaft. For that same reason, he still hadn’t used the Obscure Crystal, lest he waste it.

"Not bad. Your world has its act together. It’s not just Zhengguo; the European Union, the American Federation, Ross Country, Fusang, and other scattered nations have all begun to implement corresponding reforms."

Yara, however, paid no mind to its Contractor’s worries. It took its phone (sponsored by Shao Qiming, in name and funding) out of Su Zhou’s pocket and started tapping the screen with its tail to look up the news. A moment later, it understood. "They’re handling the Spiritual Energy Revival quite well, not like some worlds that insist on brutal suppression... Of course, that might be because your world already had Extraordinary Inheritances in ancient times."

"I can already predict their measures: take a soft approach to all publicly-exposed Transcendents, bringing them into the fold. And for all potential future Awakenings, provide them with a clear path for advancement—criminals excepted, of course."

"Even if someone’s ability is pathetically weak and only good for a laugh, the government is willing to make them a star, a classic example of buying Thousand Gold Horse Bones. A lot of these idols from Fusang Country really do have traces of Spiritual Qi on them, and their abilities are probably just making pretty, colorful lights."

’Whatever, the college entrance exams are still a long way off anyway.’ Su Zhou couldn’t be bothered to think about something as distant as choosing an Academy. He pulled out his phone and sent a message to his dad.

*Dad, what have you been so busy with? You’re always coming home late. Didn’t you say the 719 murder case was already solved? Don’t tell me it’s those other murders in the Hongcheng Old City?*

*My cooking’s gotten better recently. I wanted to make you something.*

After sending the messages, Su Zhou pulled out a textbook and started reviewing the key points—he hadn’t forgotten he was still a student, after all. A long while later, his phone buzzed with a reply.

*My good boy, Dad is very happy to hear that, but I’m really swamped with other cases right now... You guessed right. Be careful these days, and stay away from the Wanshou Palace Mall area in the Old City.*

To be honest, when Su Zhou saw the two words, "Dad is...," his inner contrarian had a brief urge to act up. But then he remembered this was, in fact, his actual dad, and he was left with a strange feeling he couldn’t quite place.

But no matter. The information had been easily tricked... no, *extracted!*

"Got it, Yara. There’s a new Evil Demon, or some other kind of Demons and Evils. Its hunting ground is probably around Wanshou Palace in the Hongcheng Old City."

After replying "Okay, Dad" like an obedient son, Su Zhou switched off his phone and declared, full of zeal, "It’s another murder case, at the very least."

"Being the son of a Patrol officer certainly is convenient," Yara remarked, somewhat exasperated. It naturally understood the logic: after the major 719 serial murder case, every Patrol officer in the city was on high alert. Petty thieves were too scared to make a move, and even the most audacious master thieves weren’t bored enough to pick a fight with the on-edge Government Office.

So, if a similar Extraordinary murder case were to occur so soon after the last one, it would mean that Demons and Evils were still lurking in the city.

"There have been a few scattered, strange deaths recently, but those locations are classified information. There’s no way we could investigate them on our own. And this situation is different from the Wood Centipede case. The Spiritual Energy Revival is now in full swing, so my dad has probably already been exposed to Extraordinary Power and signed a related non-disclosure agreement. He wouldn’t tell me so easily."

Su Zhou wore a surprisingly practiced expression as he spoke with confidence. "Since he specifically told me to stay away from Wanshou Palace, that basically confirms the killer’s operating in that vicinity. Of course, he couldn’t tell me it was related to a case, but warning a family member to be careful? That’s hardly a breach of protocol."

"So, are you planning to head out now and check on the situation?"

Yara narrowed its eyes slightly. It was beginning to realize that the young man before it was a habitual offender in this regard; he had probably wheedled information out of people like this in the past... though for what reasons, it couldn’t guess.

In response to the question, Su Zhou nodded, then shook his head. "Not right now. I’m going to finish memorizing these key points Qiming gave me."

"This afternoon, I need to go to the Electronic Street in the Old City to buy a new laptop anyway. On the way, I’ll observe for any traces of Spiritual Qi and see if it’s an Evil Demon or a common Demon, and find out what it’s been up to."

"Oh? Why are you buying a new computer?" 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Yara nodded at first, then its serpentine eyes widened. "Don’t tell me... you’re buying it for me?"

"Wow, now I see why you have such high charisma! Your Emotional Quotient is something else!"

"That’s part of the reason, I guess. It’s a pain for me when you have to use my computer to look stuff up every time... Of course, the most important reason is the sale!" Su Zhou then pulled a folded flyer from his pocket, his eyes burning with passion. "70% OFF! Who could possibly resist that?!"