Silently, the night came.

Xia Lei rested on the balcony of the emba.s.sy, looking at the stars above him. In the dark, he began to gear his mind around a new question.

The prehistoric chosen one had gone through the Ice Age, mentioning that he was the only one left in this world. The loneliness was too much for him to handle, prompting him to commit suicide. Following that, Zhu Xuanyue appeared and he began his chase after her. He emphasized that the number of years spent and the length of the journey was a blur. The next time he encountered Zhu Xuanyue, she had already possessed a solid form. The man even said that he witnessed Zhu Xuanyue tore down an entire tribe. Though the timeline was unclear, could the appearance of a human tribe hint the end of the Ice Age due to the re-emergence of mankind?

Was Zhu Xuanyue reluctant to kill him because he was the only human left on this planet? Had she seen him as her seed?

Xia Lei was certain that his guesses were highly possible as Zhu Xuanyue didn’t raise a finger on the chosen one for so long. It was only when she received her physical form that the man was attacked. Judging this from her perspective, she had already nurtured an entire jungle. Why keep one sole seed?

There was another thing that Xia Lei couldn’t wrap his head around.

After the battle between Zhu Xuanyue and the prehistoric chosen one, the ancient alloy box was crushed. The man had snuck away its debris. A good portion of it was discarded but the remains were swallowed by him. Who made the compa.s.s that required the ancient alloy parts? Was it him or was it Zhu Xuanyue? Where on earth was the last part at?

It was certain that the Ming Dynasty emperor wasn’t the one who made it. Technology back then wasn’t advanced enough to enable that. This goes the same for the Temple of Apollo on the mountain. Perhaps there was an unknown ent.i.ty that possessed great powers to manipulate the history of mankind seamlessly to be the point of no flaw. Just like the pyramids in Egypt, the disappearance of the Mayan civilization and Atlantis.

Xia Lei’s mind was bustling with activity once again.

Depicted in the Mayan calendar and legends, the world was destined to experience five cataclysmic events followed by new beginnings. Each of them was referred to as ‘an era of the sun’.

The humans of the first era were t.i.tans who were wiped out by famine.

The humans of the second era perished in a gigantic blaze.

The humans of the third era were ape-people, destroyed by one another.

The humans of the fourth era were the people of Atlantis, whose civilization was destroyed by severe flood disaster.

Currently, mankind was in the cycle of the fifth rebirth and destruction. The Mayans had predicted the date of it, twenty-first of December 2012, which didn’t come to fruition.

Despite that, the prior four Mayan predictions were spot on. The appearance of planes and automobiles along with the birth and death of Hitler was as they stated. Even the dates of the First and Second World War were predicted accurately.

In the past, the four Mayan predictions had eerie accuracy. But the fifth prophecy made the other four look like coincidences.

But had it all happened by chance?

“If they could foresee their destruction, would weirdly lucky coincidences be the case for their prophecies? Perhaps, there really is a force or powerful existence that changed the fifth cycle of destruction and rebirth of mankind… ” Xia Lei’s mind wallowed itself in the bottomless pit of the mystery.

Footsteps approached him.

Immediately, Xia Lei’s brain stopped in its tracks. He looked towards its source. Under the pale moonlight, Linda was walking towards him from the stairway. She was still dressed in her gym wear with the addition of a towel around her body. The comparatively thick fabric was wrapped around her body, perhaps meant to dry off her sweat after a blood-pumping cardio session.

Linda stopped at his side, plopping herself down with her towel. She was silent, staring straight at Xia Lei.

The man could catch a whiff of sweat and perfume from her. The remarkable mixture of elements was lethally attractive to men.

“What are you looking at?” Linda broke the silence.

Nonchalantly, Xia Lei pointed at the skies. “The stars.”

“I absolutely adore starry skies. Stars are so mysterious, just like you.” She said.

“Just like me?”

Linda flashed him a grin. “Just admit it, you’re not some fas.h.i.+on manufacturer. The fact that you could donate half a million USD to the Malta Heritage Protection Bureau under my name shows that. That is not a feat a fas.h.i.+on manufacturer could afford to do. Also, you were able to get rid of those three bald men. You saved me but you chose not to tell me.”

She was unconscious during the castle incident, hence she hadn’t learned of Tsukino Kyoko’s existence. Till now, the woman beside him still remained unaware of the deaths of Ferkel and William Arthur. Despite all of that, she had chosen to believe that he was her saviour.

Xia Lei could only smile at that. He wasn’t keen on answering her.

“You’ve saved me thrice. I want to repay the favour but I don’t know how,” uttered Linda, eyes sneakily descended to Xia Lei’s groin.

To save a damsel in distress and have her repay his kindness with her body was rather popular in Western society. But the problem lies in Mister Ma Lei’s s.e.xuality. The man was supposed to be gay. Such a thing shouldn’t have worked on him.

Xia Lei smiled at her gently. “We’re friends, there’s no need to repay my kindness. I’m just glad you’re alright and safe.”

“Are you really gay?” Linda’s mind brought back memories of when they were at the Temple of Apollo.

With a firm tone, Xia Lei replied her, “Yes, I’m gay. Unless you have something against it?”

Abruptly, Linda peeled away her towel and pressed her weight against Xia Lei. Not allowing him to struggle, her lips frantically fitted itself against his. Her entire body was oozing with pa.s.sion, her corresponding actions were wild and out of control.

Weakened by the sudden advance, Xia Lei’s body clicked into the mood. The sudden flip of his switch was hard to miss. Before he could halt himself and attempt to control his physiological reactions with his power, Linda had already found her hand on his firm p.e.n.i.s. Xia Lei’s secret was no longer a secret.

A round of silence calmed their frenzy, but the atmosphere reeked of explosives, threatening to blast with the slightest spark of fire.

The moonlight showed off her curves beautifully aided by her spandex set. Although she was fully clothed, the garment bore no difference to her skin. The naughty outline of her nipples and the wonderful curves and crevices around her bottom could be clearly seen.

Xia Lei felt the urge to tear the obstructing fabric away from her form and…

“I knew it! You’re not gay!” Linda yelled. Flames flickered in her blue eyes.

Xia Lei was overwhelmed with awkwardness, but the man quickly calmed his animalistic urge. “Linda. Yes, I admit I’m not gay but I’ve got someone waiting for me back home. I don’t wish to betray her.”

Linda’s eyes widened in shock, the fire in her eyes diminished by the sudden wash of coldness.

“I only see you as a friend,” said Xia Lei.

Linda frantically climbed away from on top of him, forcing out a smile. “You should’ve told me earlier. I wouldn’t have… I wouldn’t have…”

“I’ve already arranged your transport back to Italy. You’ll be leaving tonight,” replied Xia Lei.

“Huh? No, I’m not going back. I need to find the Metal Book.” Linda vehemently declined. She continued, “You can reject me but you have no right to order me around. I want to stay in Malta and I must find the Metal Book.”

“You’ll find it, I can guarantee you that.”

“No!” Linda was furious. “You cannot order me. I will not go home.”

Without warning, Xia Lei rose from the ground and wrapped his strong arm around her waist. With that, he a.s.saulted her lips.

“You… Mmph!” The buzz and bashfulness came to her, prompting Linda to squeeze her eyes shut.

As soon as her eyes closed, Xia Lei’s swung a chop to her carotid artery. The impact wasn’t lethal but hard enough to knock her out.

“I’m sorry, letting you stay would be dangerous and a ha.s.sle. Go back to Italy. Living a peaceful life is something you deserve. Please forget that we crossed paths.” Xia Lei muttered gently to her. Following his soft words was a peck on her forehead.

A few minutes later, two SUVs were parked at the entrance of the emba.s.sy.

Xia Lei placed Linda, who was now bundled in a blanket, into one of the vehicles. Following that, he looked at Alessio, the driver. “Alessio, deliver her safely home to Sicily. There’s something in the blanket, remember to pa.s.s it to her when she wakes up.”

The item mentioned was the Metal Book. Now that Xia Lei was already done with it, he no longer had any use for it. He was the only one on this planet that could understand its content. Even if the book made its way back to the Vatican, it wouldn’t affect anything.

“Alright, I’ll return after I send her back to Sicily.” Without another word, Alessio started the engine and exited the compound.

Xia Lei entered the second vehicle. “Let’s go.”

Sa’im ignited the engine and drove the SUV out of the emba.s.sy’s gate towards the port.

“The FA Organization had been inactive for a while. Have you managed to find out anything new?” In the car, Xia Lei questioned.

“No,” Sa’im answered. “But this is pretty common. The Knight Hospitaller is essentially a transparent empire, never short of fanatics. Together with the funds and weaponry you gave them, it’s only natural for the FA Organization to want to lay low. Their choice to stay silent now doesn’t seem too out of place to me.”

“The Knight Hospitaller had already grasped some intel regarding the FA headquarters, yet they refused to reveal anything to me. The Knight Hospitallers were never friends, to begin with. It won’t be weird if they reached a deal with the FA to plot my downfall.” Something cold glimmered in Xia Lei’s pupil.

“Boss, if what you said was true, what should we do?” Sa’im looked a little disturbed. Tearing down a single Knight Hospitaller was already impossible. If they had joined forces with the FA, it would spiral into a disaster for the Chinese Zodiac Battle Team.

“Trust me, I’ve got a plan.” Weirdly, Xia Lei wasn’t pressed about it.

Sa’im chuckled and slammed on the pedal down hard. The car accelerated towards the port.

Meanwhile at the port, inside a yacht…

“Sa’im and the boss is back.” Watching the road through her binoculars, Yelena announced their return.

A few people then exited the cabin, which consisted of Tsukino Kyoko, Anjum Khan and E’er Demutu.

“I thought the boss would bring along our new friends for the operation. I guess not,” said Yelena.

“New friends? You mean the four female knights?” There was a lewd smile on Anjum Khan’s face. “If he does, I’m going to raise both of my arms in support. Two pairs of twins… Haha, our team will be complete again and now with pretty faces.”

“Quit your daydreaming.” Unamused, Tsukino Kyoko went on. “Those four female knights are not people you can stomach. They’re all authentic cla.s.sic knights and protectors of our boss. They also serve as his...bed warmers.”

Anjum Khan was speechless.