Chapter 251: Chapter 251: The New Mr. Lan Mei

The Teleportation Gate opened silently, and a cold wind blew in from Fan Hede Valley into the small motel room.

Rama shivered, his eyes popped open as he saw a light door appear out of nowhere in the room, leaving his mouth agape. The white glow cast Chen Ke and Sleili into dark silhouettes, making them look like visitors from another planet.

Louis, still lying on the bed, hadn’t woken up yet, but the ash from Fan Hede was sucked up by the vortex of the Teleportation Gate and landed on his feet, startling him awake.

“Fuck! Fuck! I’m turning into ash! I’m going to…” Louis sprung from the bed, clutching his feet and brushing off the ash, his head full of cold sweat.

Chen Ke grabbed Sleili and stepped through the Teleportation Gate into the small room, and with a swoosh, the gate closed behind them.

Sleili, having teleported twice in just a few minutes, didn’t even know what to say.

“Mr. Chen Ke! It was you! You scared us to death!” Rama turned on the bedside lamp and saw Chen Ke’s face clearly.

“Don’t panic, everyone… Louis! You’re fine, stop staring at your feet,” Chen Ke explained.

Louis realized his feet were unharmed, and the ash on the ground wasn’t red, which eased his worry. He then turned to survey Sleili, standing beside Chen Ke.

“This lady is…?” Rama got out of bed, feeling out of place in the current atmosphere.

“My name is Sleili Miles. You are Lin Ke’s… Wait, why did you just call him Chen Ke?” Sleili asked.

“He’s always been called Chen Ke, hasn’t he…?” Louis looked puzzledly towards Rama and Sleili.

Sleili cast a suspicious glance at Chen Ke, who simply shrugged, saying, “It’s a long story.”

Chen Ke tidied the room briefly, making space for Sleili to sit by the window. Rama and Louis were wide awake too.

The four of them sat in a circle under the dim light of the table lamp. Chen Ke briefly outlined what had happened with Sleili and the earlier events.

“I didn’t really need to tell you all this in detail, but I think it’s important you understand the risks involved. Sleili might be staying with us for a while until we find her father,” Chen Ke said.

“I don’t mind, after all, we’re just following you. I can’t say I oppose it,” Louis said.

“I’m curious… where do you two come from?” Sleili asked.

“We’re from…” Rama began, but Chen Ke quickly interrupted him.

“They came from Carefree City, and they have their own pile of troubles to deal with,” Chen Ke said.

“Oh… Lin Ke, why do I feel like you’re full of secrets? I knew you weren’t an investigator. What exactly happened at the West Gold Building that day?” Sleili laughed.

“That is none of your business…” Chen Ke snorted coldly.

“I’ll make you tell me… heh heh…” Sleili laughed ominously.

At that moment, a phone vibration sound came from within the small room; instinctively, all four of them reached for their own phones.

Sleili checked her phone, and it wasn’t hers that was vibrating, while Chen Ke didn’t even bother looking at his own phone–did he really need to look to know it’s vibrating…?

He looked puzzledly at Rama and Louis, since both of them were also searching for their phones.

Fuck… why are they searching for their phones… they don’t even have any…

“What are you… looking for?” Chen Ke asked.

“Phones,” Louis said.

Chen Ke was taken aback, an uneasy premonition washing over him–it wasn’t right… something was off…

“Did you go out and buy phones?” Chen Ke asked.

“No, we didn’t. You didn’t ask us to go out, and we wouldn’t dare, but we thought we should have a way to contact you, so we just took…” Rama said while pulling a small phone out from under the pillow.

The tiny cell phone was a Nokia 1208 with a green screen, which, even without charging, could last on standby for over a week. At that moment, the phone was still in Rama’s hands, continuously vibrating.

Chen Ke felt like his head was about to explode. The cell phone was communication equipment issued by Si’s consortium to its assassins. Chen Ke’s former identity, Lin Mo, had one, but he had smashed it the night he rescued Lucina.

The one in Rama’s hand belonged to the blonde assassin…

“I told you not to mess with my stuff!” Chen Ke shouted angrily, snatching the phone from Rama’s hands.

The consortium could track an assassin’s location based on the cell phone signal. Chen Ke had always kept the phone and its battery separated for storage; in reality, this phone was already useless. Knowing what might happen, Chen Ke should have smashed it.

“We… just wanted to contact you… and you asked us to find a new place to rent… but there’s no computer here,” Louis said, trying to smooth things over.

Chen Ke, holding the phone, trembled with anger, but their point wasn’t without reason. He indeed hadn’t left them a way to contact him, mainly because he had too much on his mind…

“Why are you getting so angry… Lin Ke? See who it is first,” Sleery said, her voice softer after witnessing Chen Ke’s outburst for the first time.

Chen Ke took a deep breath and looked at the phone screen, which displayed an unfamiliar number.

It couldn’t be Pankia calling since his nickname was Mr. Lan Mei. Who could it be…?

He hesitated a moment, but the caller on the other end didn’t hang up, so Chen Ke pressed the answer button and put the phone to his ear.

The other side was silent, and so was Chen Ke. The other three people in the room also didn’t dare to breathe too loudly. They all waited for the other party to speak first.

Who could it be?

“Hello… is this Lin Mo?”

A young man’s voice came from the other end of the phone, clear enough for the other three to hear due to the quiet room.

“I know it’s you, Lin Mo… I just knew you weren’t dead,” the caller said.

Chen Ke said nothing, continuing to wait.

“I don’t know what has happened to you, but I don’t care. In a sense… we can now collaborate,” the caller continued.

“Who are you?” Chen Ke asked.

“I am the new Mr. Lan Mei. Of course, that’s not entirely accurate… but as long as you help me take out the former one… I can call off the consortium’s manhunt for you. You won’t be B124 anymore. Then you can do whatever you want…”

“The consortium isn’t short of assassins, plus, I can already do whatever I want,” Chen Ke said.

“Don’t waste this opportunity! Lin Mo! You wouldn’t want to spend your life being hunted… I promise you, if you help me, I’ll help you go back home,” the caller said.

“I can’t trust you. None of you is trustworthy,” Chen Ke replied.

“Think about it… I already know your location, but I still chose to call you first… You can look around and see if there are any assassins,” the caller suggested.

Chen Ke didn’t need to look; he just needed to activate his Spiritual Vision to sense his surroundings. Indeed, as the caller had said, no one had been sent.

“I have no grievances with you, and I’m not concerned about the mess Mr. Lan Mei left before. I want his life, Lin Mo… You’re much more capable than those ordinary assassins. You’re one of the Holy Relics hunters of the consortium… Just help me out, and I guarantee you can return to a normal life after this messy affair is over. Remember, not every assassin can retire alive,” the caller insisted.

The information revealed over the phone was like uncovering Chen Ke’s secrets, causing Sleery, Louis, and Rama to look at Chen Ke differently.

“I will consider it, future Mr. Lan Mei,” Chen Ke said.

“Think about it well. I’ll wait for your call. Do yourself a favor!” the caller concluded.

Beep….

The caller hung up, and at that moment, the phone also used up its last bit of battery power; the phone had never been charged while in his possession.

Chen Ke immediately removed the battery and then smashed the phone, standing up afterward. Of course, he wouldn’t trust what the caller had said–thinking about it, it was clear they would use him as a pawn and then dispose of him like a used tool.

“We need to change locations,” he stated coldly.