What Does the Future Hold?

Walking back to his home, Hao Ren was holding a stack of poor quality prints, his emotions welling inside him.

His face was covered in tears.

From that moment forth, he was a civilized, trans-universal employee. He was a human who could communicate with celestial beings directly. He was someone from the Space Administration (hearing about this titan in his background would definitely cause a commotion). In his possession was a contract with God himself and his employee identification number can be found on the heaven’s attendance sheet. If he lived in a world where God was paramount, he would be able to proudly proclaim that he was a candidate for sainthood; as long as he passed the tests for his internship. He would be promoted from a contracted saint to a permanent one.

Who would not be overwhelmed with emotions and covered in tears after finding out about all these?

Why are these godly things and issues so different from the ones seen on TV and novels?!

No matter the circumstances, Hao Ren was appointed to a position in an extraordinary place. Disregarding how weird Raven 12345 is, the Space Administration as well as the whole Xi Ling Kingdom definitely exceeded Hao Ren’s knowledge and imagination by far.

Looking at the contract in his hands, Raven 12345’s words flashed in his mind. "Henceforth, you shall be a trainee examiner. Your one and only mission is to take good care of your house guests. The Xi Ling Celestial Family is not used to employing religious means to manage its affiliated organizations as other religions do. Thus, employees will be graded by their attendance as well as performance. It’s best if you do not blindly follow the religious lore and booklets found on Earth say. I’ve seen this type of silly children in other worlds… anyway, do not worry about it that much and just perform well."

Letting out a sigh, Hao Ren had a feeling once again that he had been hoodwinked. He folded the stack of paper and planned to lock it in a secure location at home so as to prevent Rollie from eating it. In fact, Hao Ren could not believe what he had just been through. He had his doubts on Raven 12345, especially when she held that stack of paper in her hands (have you ever seen God’s contract printed on paper? Also, there were spelling errors on it!) However, Hao Ren was aware of his current situation. No matter who Raven 12345 was, her abilities greatly differed from his. Based on her spelling errors, her habit of playing with her fingers, her fondness for Chinese pancakes as well as her gibberish speech… ordinary human beings would just be unable to handle her quirks.

Thus, in order to guarantee a peaceful life, Hao Ren had no choice but to play along.

Walking under the scorching sun, Hao Ren checked the time on his phone. He was at a deserted road and there was no one to be found. He thought to himself. Working for God is not a reliable job after all. Even transportation can still be an issue. Even though I’m a prophet in the celestial society, I still have to take the bus after the inauguration. Also, I’ve been waiting for such a long time for the bus!

He could not help but think of earthly myths and legends. He was trying very hard to recall how saints and prophets go back to their homes after they had a revelation. Did they enter a crowded carriage to return home? However, after giving much thought into this, Hao Ren still had no idea. Which holy book would actually take note of this?!

While his thoughts were jumbled, he heard a ring. Looking at his phone, he realized he did not recognize the number. Thank God! It’s not 00000012345!

"Hello, who’re you looking for?" asked Hao Ren politely as he picked up the call- from that moment he was someone with an identity, it was time for him to be cautious of his speech and actions. Although the goddess above him was not a reliable one, he was determined to showcase himself as a dependable person.

Lily’s voice could be heard and she was speaking in a worried tone, "Landlord! It’s me! I’m Lily!"

"Sill… Lily?" Hao Ren managed to stop himself from saying ‘silly werewolf’. "What’s wrong?"

"Oh, I have just recalled that your number is on the newspaper ad. I was searching for the place yesterday and I should’ve just called you…"

Sweat was rolling off Hao Ren’s head. "… You called me just for this?"

Lily’s immediately became excited. "Oh, no! Something’s not right with Vivian. She flew out from the window in broad daylight! I’ve tried chasing after her but I lost her!"

Hao Ren wanted to roar at Lily stating that this was supposed to be the main point for her call! Why did she talk about so much irrelevant rubbish in the first place?

"Vivian flew away? She transformed into a bat and flew?" Hao Ren did not know why he was still curious with the details even during times like this. It was probably because he was a bit confused at that time. A few minutes ago, a self-proclaimed God was just reassuring him that the creatures staying in his home will not cause any trouble. Well, he was just out moments ago and now something’s happening back home!

"She transformed into a huge bat before flying away," Lily corrected Hao Ren in a serious manner before continuing. "Before flying away, she mentioned that this place was not safe… I do not know who to look for and that’s why I called you."

"Stay right where you are at home and do not go anywhere. I’ll be back shortly," Hao Ren answered hurriedly as he caught sight of an old and battered bus from the corner of his eyes. Whilst trying to flag down the bus, he was reassuring Lily. After he slammed his phone down, he squeezed inside the crowded bus and thought to himself… What’s wrong with Vivian?

Although Hao Ren’s knowledge on mutants were limited and the only things he knew about them stemmed from unreliable sources such as the television and novels (it was already proven that these sources were in fact unreliable), he was at least certain that vampires were not comfortable out in daylight. In addition to that, Vivian had confirmed this fact personally. Thus, he was certain that a vampire transforming into a colony of bats to fly away was primarily due to an emergency and not because she just happened to wake up and decided to go out for a stroll! And what did Vivian mean when she said that ‘this place is not safe’? Was she referring to his house?

Hao Ren knew that apart from the vampire, the silly werewolf was the other powerful being at home. Vivian looked down upon Lily, so the scene of ‘the vampire being chased away by the werewolf’s bad breath’ was certainly impossible. So, why was his house unsafe?

Suddenly, Hao Ren felt that the mission that Raven 12345 handed to him… was in fact a trap.

It was half an hour later when Hao Ren arrived at the old city of the Southern Suburbs. A few people clothed in work attire was walking towards him when he exited the bus. His heart stopped, thinking to himself, "We’ve been exposed so quickly? Who are these people? Scientists from the Science Academy? Are they setting up traps for the vampire? Was any surveillance system installed? Maybe they’re Special Forces disguised as telecommunication workers?"

He was relieved once they got nearer to him. They were indeed repairmen…

Hao Ren could barely make out their conversation when they briskly walked past him.

"… this is a first in my career, how did that piece of brick manage to get up there?"

"I have no idea. I can only say it’s not done by a human. Who has that kind of arm strength to throw a brick up this high on top of the TV station? But this is so bizarre, that piece of brick snapped three steel rods…"

"Yes, this is so bizarre. I was just wondering what the problem was when I got a call about people not getting any TV signals in Southern Suburbs. Witnessing half a brick smashed into the broadcasting tower, I wonder what are we going to write in our work report now?"

As the repairmen slowly disappeared from Hao Ren’s sight, Hao Ren was clear of two matters:

First, he finally obtained the reason asss to why there was no TV signal in his house.

And of course, now he knew where the brick Lily flung at Vivian during the fight the previous night ended up at…

What’s the point of knowing this?!

Hao Ren carefully went up to his front door. After making sure there were no traces of Special Forces or mysterious men in black suits hiding nearby, he took out his key. However, before he could insert the key into the keyhole, the door opened.

Vivian was standing in front of him, smiling. "Landlord, you’re home!"

After catching his breath (as a matter of fact, it took him awhile), Hao Ren looked at this vampire who apparently ‘flew away’ and with uncertainty, asked, "Vivian, you… didn’t you not fly away?"

"Yes. Something was up and I went out. But I’m back now!" said Vivian as she chuckled.

Hao Ren could only remain speechless.

I can’t imagine what the future holds!