The red badge that Uncle Luo had given him—Li Xin kept it close. Luo Jin might’ve downplayed it, but there was no doubt it was something precious.
Li Xin could feel it—anything from the High Priest had to be on another level. In Tianjing’s Lunar Church, the highest rank most people knew was Chief Priest. The High Priest was a full tier above that.
As for the card Casey gave him… Li Xin bit the edge of it. Damn. It wasn’t solid gold after all. A bit disappointing. It had “Treasure Lane” engraved on it—a place Li Xin knew all too well. It was the most luxurious shopping street in Tianjing, every shop on it top-of-the-line. He usually avoided even walking past it.
Was this some kind of VIP pass?
Did he look like someone who needed another card?
Back home, a delicious meal was already waiting. Aunt Fei and Xueyin—homework finished—were both waiting for him. The feeling of someone waiting for you… it was something special.
Li Xin told Aunt Fei about “acknowledging” Uncle Luo as family. This wasn’t the kind of thing you said lightly, especially since Luo Jin had even given him that badge.
Lin Fei picked up the badge and studied it closely. Her eyes widened with surprise.
“This is a Full Moon Blessing. There are said to be only twelve in existence. Only those who’ve performed extraordinary deeds for the Church or the Night Watchmen receive it. It’s blessed by the Lunar Goddess—grants strong protective power.”
“Oh, perfect. Let’s give it to Xueyin to wear,” Li Xin said through a mouthful of food. Aunt Fei’s braised beef was getting better by the day.
“This thing’s useless to us ordinary folks, and we don’t really have any trouble. You’re the one going out on missions. Make sure you wear it properly. I’ll make a chain for it tonight so you can keep it on you,” Lin Fei said, leaving no room for argument. “Also, find time to invite Luo Jin over for a home-cooked meal. It’s only proper.”
Luo Jin’s willingness to do all this wasn’t as casual as it seemed. He really cared about Li Xin. And more importantly, he was trustworthy.
“Oh, and this card—my fake Aunt Casey gave it to me. No clue what it does,” Li Xin said, pulling out the Treasure Lane card.
Lin Fei paused and examined the etchings.
“This is a Treasure Lane Gold Card. Almost nobody has one. It comes with all kinds of perks—priority shopping, discounts, that sort of thing.”
Li Xin scoffed. Casey’s logic was completely off. Did he really look like he needed a discount?
“Oh, it comes preloaded with a thousand lira,” Lin Fei added with a chuckle. “You can tip servers who give good service.”
A thousand lira? That was two months’ salary. Li Xin always knew Casey was well-off, but this was rich rich. Suddenly, that little sacrifice didn’t feel so bad. If Casey ever needed him… he could bow in advance.
“Well, that works out. Aunt Fei, it’s not like we can buy groceries with this thing. Might as well use it to spruce up the house. You and Xueyin have a few neighborhood events coming up, right? You’ll need something nice for those.”
Lin Fei and Xueyin were both naturally stunning. And the prettier you were, the more those social events turned into battlegrounds. The kind where the daggers came out in silence and smiles.
Fashion was a language. Aunt Fei’s old clothes were beautiful, sure—but styles had changed. He didn’t know much about fashion, but he knew those were years out of date.
Watching the joy on Aunt Fei and Xueyin’s faces, Li Xin felt a deep satisfaction. Yeah, this was the right move. Money wasn’t something you took with you when you died. If it could bring happiness, then it was worth every coin.
After dinner, he headed to bed early. Tomorrow would be his first shift. As a newcomer, he didn’t have to wait his turn—it never hurt to show some initiative. And right now, without any missions, shifts mostly meant tea and newspapers. That kind of access to information used to be something you had to pay for.
Lying in bed, he gazed at the red moon glowing brightly outside. Its hazy light filtered in through the curtains. His second-floor room was warm and cozy.
In his dreams, the Die began acting up again. Ever since he’d used it in the forest, it hadn’t been right. Before, it would spin. But lately—it didn’t spin at all. It trembled. Or rather, it reacted like it was being touched by some external force.
Was the god of wild roaming—tied to the Die—trying to summon him?
This had happened once before, years ago. Then it stopped.
Proper gods and evil gods were usually just… relative. The god of death, for example—taboo in some nations, revered as a main deity in others. Depends on the faith. But wild roaming gods? They were something else entirely.
Thinking about the nature of the wild god, Li Xin didn’t feel particularly optimistic. So he never responded. If he had to deal with it someday, he’d stall as long as he could—ideally until he understood more about Divine Relics and what they truly meant.
But tonight, the Die was more insistent than ever. The badge on his chest grew hot and glowed red. Yet his body wouldn’t move—he was paralyzed, caught in a nightmare. Normally, a single thought would calm the Die. Not tonight. It kept pulsing and squirming like something outside was forcing its way in.
Li Xin.
Bang. Bang. Bang…
What the hell?
It felt like something was knocking on it…
Li Xin expected it to act up a bit, then settle. But this time was different. The Die started to thrash. He tried to control it—nothing. It surged with such violent force, it threatened to overwhelm him completely. Then—
A wave of golden light burst forth like a tidal wave, swallowing his consciousness whole.
His soul twisted, squeezed like it was caught in a whirlpool. All he could see was blinding gold. Suddenly, everything went still.
Starlight.
Endless stars filled the sky—and amidst them, a few burned brighter than the rest. They hung high above, watching the cosmos from on high.
The next moment, Li Xin felt his body stabilize. There was something beneath him—something solid.
Wait… was he sitting down?
“At last, we’ve been waiting for you… Mr. Gemini.”
The voice was unbelievably sweet. The kind of voice that made you want to hear it again and again. The speaker was using standard Daoyuan Common Tongue.
Li Xin didn’t move. His senses were already scanning everything around him.
He was in a strange place—massive, enclosed beneath a domed sky filled with stars. It looked like a miniature version of the galaxy he’d just seen. If he had to guess, the constellations overhead were the Zodiac—the Twelve Houses of the Ecliptic.
He was sitting on a high-backed chair made of some unknown material. Comfortable.
Before him was a huge round table—more like a roulette wheel. At its center stood a statue. Perfectly visible… yet its face remained blurred, no matter how he looked. The statue held something between its hands—almost like a menu—etched with mysterious runes.
Two golden rails formed concentric tracks around the edge of the table. At fixed intervals, each section bore the symbol of a constellation. The one in front of him?
Gemini.
That “Mr. Gemini”... was meant for him.
There were no walls outside the table, yet the space still felt enclosed. The entire room floated in the void. He’d seen something similar outside the castle years ago—but that was different. The castle’s surroundings had been a howling space storm.
Here, it was peaceful. The starlit void stretched on, infinite and silent.
If I could open a restaurant here, he thought, I’d be rich.
(End of Chapter)