My avatar is becoming the final boss

Chapter 361 The Identity of the Guild Leader, the Fourth Member of Lake Hunting (Two Chapters Combined, Seeking Monthly Tickets)
On August 18, at 10:00 AM, in Lijing, China, at the site of the old Jingmai neighborhood, inside an abandoned train station.

Su Zimai, Gu Qiye, and Gu Zhuoan stood silently on the empty platform.

The summer heat almost distorted the distant city into a mirage. Sweat beaded on their foreheads, and the open-air platform felt like a giant steamer, with the sun blazing down relentlessly.

However, the three remained silent, each with their heads down in deep thought, as if they were completely unaware of what was happening.

Clearly, Gu Zhuo still harbors resentment over You Ruier's sudden visit to his home.

He couldn't imagine how he could support his son's relationship if he fell in love with someone from Rainbow Wing, or even got married and had children.
At this moment, he suddenly understood Su Wei's feelings.

Back then, Su Wei probably felt the same way when he saw Su Ying and him get together. Thinking of this, Gu Zhuoan took a deep breath. He sighed more than once in his heart that being a father is really a difficult thing.

At this moment, Su Zimai suddenly nudged him with her elbow, "Speaking of which, how is Grandpa? I didn't even have a proper chat with him before he passed away."

Gu Zhuo'an leaned against a pillar, arms crossed, and said, "Grandpa said he needs to go and have some peace and quiet, and told us not to go to him unless it's an emergency."

“Okay…” Su Zimai thought for a moment, then asked casually, “If he really cares about us that much, why hasn’t he come to see us in all these years?”

“Grandpa said he has been protecting you silently all along,” Gu Zhuo’an said. “He knew the moment you became an exorcist. There are many people in the association he knows who can report your movements to him at any time.”

"Really?" Su Zimai exclaimed in surprise, her hair standing on end, and she hugged her shoulders and shivered. "This is too terrifying... Who would like the feeling of being secretly watched like this?"

She shook her head, frowned, and complained, "I can only accept being secretly followed by a giant moth; as for others, forget it, even my grandfather wouldn't..."

At the end, she suddenly paused, and her words came to an abrupt halt.

Su Zimai blinked, realizing she shouldn't mention that name here, so she slowly turned her head and cautiously glanced at the expressions of the father and son.

There's been no movement on the Gu Zhuo case; I guess he's become numb to it all these days and doesn't have the energy to think about it anymore.
Gu Qiye leaned against the pillar, still staring blankly with his head down. Su Zimai secretly guessed that he was probably thinking about Yuriel.

She silently withdrew her gaze, and in the end, she was the only one among the three who seemed somewhat lonely.

Ironically, Su Zimai has been spending her nights glued to her pillow, scrolling through her phone in bed until the wee hours.

Because she couldn't help but think that maybe her brother wasn't actually dead, and that he was still wandering around somewhere in the world wearing that "giant moth combat suit"?

And who knows, some concerned citizens might even spot Black Chrysalis, take a picture of him, and upload it to Weibo or other social media platforms?
This revealed that the guy was still alive.

If that's really the case, no matter where Gu Wenyu runs to, she will definitely find him, drag him home, and teach him a lesson to see if he dares to play tricks on her again.

Every time she thinks of this, Su Zimai can't help but smile slightly; just thinking about it makes her happy.

But reality is always cruel. Most of the discussions on Weibo about "Black Chrysalis" stop at the time when Black Chrysalis last appeared in Lijing.

At that time, Hei Yong sat on the Lijing Iron Tower, set off a grand fireworks display in the sky, and then waved goodbye to everyone. That departure was forever.

Despite knowing all this, even though she understood everything in her heart, every time she thought of his face in the middle of the night, even if she was very sleepy and her eyelids were about to close, she couldn't help but get out of bed. Head down, she hugged her pillow, picked up her phone, and casually typed "Black Chrysalis" into the search bar, searching for information about him over and over again.

She longed to see that many people were still discussing him, to see where in the world he appeared, and to know if he was still alive, she thought to herself.

Once, Su Zimai dreamed that Gu Wenyu was smiling at him on the train.

She struggled to open her eyes in the middle of the night. The room light wasn't on yet. She hugged her pillow, opened Weibo, and randomly searched for her brother's name, scrolling through messages she had already read.

Staring at the unchanging words and pictures, tears suddenly streamed down her face, and then she couldn't see anything anymore. She didn't know what she was doing, like a fool... Sometimes, she even wondered if she was sick.

Su Zimai remained silent for a long, long time before raising her head and gazing at the clear, water-washed sky outside the eaves of the station.

"How did you and Ke Qirui meet?" Gu Zhuo'an suddenly asked, interrupting her thoughts.

“Me?” Su Zimai raised an eyebrow. “The troupe leader approached me and said I was very talented and wanted me to join her Ghost Train Troupe.”

Gu Zhuo thought for a moment and pondered, "Then it's very likely that your maternal grandfather asked Ke Qirui to get close to you. After all, he and Ke Qirui are quite familiar with each other, and it's highly likely that it was his idea to let you join the Ghost Train group."

"real or fake……"

Su Zimai was stunned, and murmured in disbelief as she looked up to meet Gu Zhuo'an's gaze.

"Of course it's true, why would your father lie to you?" Gu Zhuo asked irritably.

Su Zimai suddenly realized something, and slowly opened her eyes wide. "So... Grandpa, he wouldn't actually be the president of the Chinese Exorcists Association, would he?"

After saying that, she looked up in shock and met Gu Zhuo'an's gaze.

Gu Zhuo'an was taken aback. "Xiaomai, are you serious?"

“Of course I’m serious!” Su Zimai analyzed logically. “The leader said that in the beginning, it was the president of the Chinese Exorcist Association who sent her to find me… I was wondering at the time who that president was and why she knew me!”

"And even now, I still haven't met the president of the Exorcist Association. Every time I ask the leader, she says that the president doesn't want her to reveal his identity to outsiders."

Thinking of this, Su Zimai suddenly realized, "But if my grandfather is the president of the association, then it makes sense why he doesn't want me to know who he is. It's because he's worried that I'll recognize him! Even though I've never met him."

Gu Zhuo pondered for a moment, then nodded. "What you said makes sense. I'll ask my father-in-law next time I have time. He might really be the president of the Chinese Exorcists Association..."

“Right, right?” Su Zimai did some quick calculations and looked up, saying, “If you count them like this, everyone in our family is really amazing.”

“Yes, yes, our wheat is the best…” Gu Zhuo’an put one hand on his hip and chuckled hoarsely.

Indeed, he had no idea what Su Wei had been doing all these years. He only knew that Su Wei was very disappointed with Su Ying's decision to marry him, so she abandoned their family.

If Su Wei continues to serve as the president of the Chinese Exorcists Association, that makes sense. Given Su Wei's status and abilities, no one is more suitable for the position.

This can be considered as Lake Hunter taking over the China Exorcist Association in disguise, since Su Wei was originally an invisible executor of Lake Hunter, but never publicly revealed this identity.

When the International Exorcists Association drafted the treaty, it was clearly stipulated that the president and senior positions of the China Exorcists Association could not be held by people from Lake Hunter.

Because they are responsible for supervising and regulating lake hunting, this is also a form of indirect control over lake hunting.

If the International Exorcist Association were merely an exorcist force, then Lake Hunter would certainly not obey them, since Lake Hunter is the most powerful exorcist organization in the world.

What's ironic is that the International Exorcist Association, backed by Rainbow Wings, has close ties with the United Nations, so their intentions are essentially the same as those of the United Nations. It's a classic case of a dog relying on its master's power and a fox borrowing the tiger's might.

Therefore, Lake Hunter decisively relinquished direct control of the Chinese Exorcist Association that same year.

But if what Su Zimai said is true, and Su Wei is actually the president of the Exorcist Association, then no one at the United Nations would ever have guessed that this president is also one of the members of Lake Hunter.

LakeHunter had already secretly taken control of the entire Chinese branch, and the invisible constraints from the United Nations were meaningless to them.

Su Zimai pondered for a while, rubbing her chin. "If Grandpa really is the chairman, then that means my leader was adopted by Grandpa when he was a child."

"Did your father-in-law adopt Ke Qirui?" Gu Zhuoan asked.

"You mean Ke Qirui?" Gu Qiye raised an eyebrow before looking up and joining their conversation.

Su Zimai turned her head and gave him a disdainful look, thinking to herself, "Good brother, you finally have time to talk to us. Don't you miss your little white-haired kid?"
She sighed, forcing herself not to complain about him, and said in a low voice, "That's right, if Grandpa really is the president of the association, then the group leader is his adopted daughter. The group leader is younger than Mom, so she is Mom's younger sister, which means she is our aunt."

Gu Qiye was stunned. "Ke Qirui is... my and your aunt?"

Su Zimai nodded seriously.

Gu Qiye fell silent. He raised his hand to his forehead, took a deep breath, and said, "Don't rush, let me sort this out."

"Take your time," Su Zimai said, turning to look at Gu Zhuoan. "So, where is Grandpa now?"

“He told me not to tell you.” Gu Zhuo hesitated for a moment, then shook his head.

"Fine, I won't go see him, okay?" Su Zimai asked, frowning. "I just want to know if he secretly arranged for the regimental commander to come see me."

“Xiaomai, Wenyu and your maternal grandfather are quite close, so… your grandfather is also feeling down right now,” Gu Zhuo’an said. “He’s getting old, please understand.”

“Okay…” Su Zimai nodded gently, “By the way, what about that little white-haired kid from earlier?”

After saying that, she turned her head and stared at Gu Qiye.

"There were two little white-haired kids just now, which one are you talking about?" Gu Qiye asked with amusement, seemingly having given up on thinking about his generational relationship with Ke Qirui.

"Of course it's the guy! The girl is probably still asleep in your room, do I need to ask?"

“Oh, Little Caesar has already left. He said he’s going to travel all over the world to collect useful fragments of strange tales in preparation for the upcoming Salvation Society war, so he won’t be returning to Sea Sail City with us,” Gu Qiye said.

"What is that little guy thinking?" Su Zimai asked, puzzled. "Isn't he just courting death?"

Gu Qiye shook his head silently.

He also believed that Caesar's actions were like a moth drawn to a flame, but he had no right to stop him. He simply told him to be careful and to retreat temporarily if things didn't work out.

“That’s someone else’s business, we shouldn’t meddle,” Gu Zhuo’an said in a low voice. “Understood, Dad,” Su Zimai said calmly. “It’s good that you didn’t act impulsively. I thought you would have acted rashly and rushed over to help him fight the Salvation Society.”

“How could that be? If we die, what will happen to our wheat?” Gu Qiye asked.

“Yes… You know that’s good. We’re already missing one older brother, don’t let me lose a second one.” Su Zimai nodded and said softly.

Gu Qiye was taken aback, his expression slightly complicated. After a moment, he chuckled softly, then raised his hand and patted the top of her head.

After a while, a beam of headlights cut through the darkness of the tunnel, and a dark red train rumbled out of the tunnel and came to a stop on the tracks.

Su Zimai led Gu Zhuoan and Gu Qiye onto the train, their footsteps making a clattering sound on the steel plates.

After entering the brightly lit carriage No. 7, she looked up and saw Ke Qirui sitting in her seat smoking. She held the cigarette in one hand and hugged her shoulder with the other, wearing the same khaki trench coat as always.

Gu Qiye and Gu Zhuo nodded to Ke Qirui, and then found a corner in the carriage to sit down.

The father and son clearly had no liking for the culprit who had led their daughter astray.

But since they're living under someone else's roof, they can't say anything. They're international fugitives now, and no one dares to say they're the most wanted. They're only safe within the jurisdiction of the Lake Hunting Bureau.

Elsewhere, they might be living in constant fear and unable to sleep, as the Supernatural Association and Rainbow Wings are doing everything they can to track them down. There are so many different kinds of supernatural abilities in the world, and they could fall victim to some unknown supernatural being at any time.

"Commander, is there any intelligence from Lake Hunting? Isn't the situation quite tense these days?" Su Zimai sat down and asked casually.

"Latest intelligence: it seems that the Nian Beast Lord has invited the Seven Deadly Sins of Norse mythology. They're quite a rare guest." Ke Qirui took off his pipe and said, "Ever since the former Lake Hunter killed four of the Seven Deadly Sins, the remaining three demons haven't shown up for quite some time."

At this point, she curled the corners of her lips and said with a hint of sarcasm, "The association originally thought that the previous campaign had completely extinguished their arrogance, but unexpectedly, they now actually want to rely on the power of the Nian Beast Lord. How shameful."

Gu Qiye and Gu Zhuoan remained silent, one with his head hanging in a daze, the other turning his head to look out the window.

The two had discussed it from the beginning and agreed that they would never get involved in the lake hunt or the Nian beast, nor would they allow Su Zimai and Ke Qirui to go to the battlefield together.

As long as Ke Qirui doesn't cross the line, they won't say anything. However, both of them are worried: will Su Zimai really listen to them?
If Su Zimai insists on running away, they will have no choice but to protect her, and everyone will be drawn into this large-scale racial war.

"Captain, what are the three remaining demons of the Seven Deadly Sins?" Su Zimai asked curiously.

“Gluttony, Wrath, Sloth,” Ke Qirui said. “Don’t worry, none of these three demons are particularly strong. Moreover, Wrath is more like a weapon than a demon. It can transform into the form of a sword and shield for other demons to use.”

"What Pokémon?" Su Zimai said, suddenly recalling a certain creature from Pokémon Sword and Shield.

"Have you brought all of Gu Wenyu's belongings?" Ke Qirui looked at Su Zimai, then at the father and son.

"Yes, I brought everything I needed. I kept a few of his clothes." Su Zimai nodded. "But I threw away that box of diapers."

"That's good. We can take it out from time to time to remember it," Ke Qirui said softly.

She paused for a moment, then said, "Gu Wenyu is a very interesting person. If I had realized his pretense sooner, we could have become very good friends."

Su Zimai was silent for a moment, then said, "By the way... Commander, I want to ask you a question."

"What's the problem?" Ke Qirui raised an eyebrow and looked at her curiously.

"The president of the Chinese Exorcists Association is my maternal grandfather, Su Wei, right?"

As she spoke, Su Zimai raised her head and looked directly into Ke Qirui's eyes.

Ke Qirui paused for a moment, lowered her eyes and remained silent for a while, then slightly curled the corners of her mouth.

She said slowly, "At this point, there's no point in hiding it from you. The chairman, who is also my adoptive father, is indeed your maternal grandfather, Su Wei. At yesterday's funeral, he specifically told me not to talk to him in front of you."

Gu Qiye and Gu Zhuoan were both slightly taken aback, then exchanged a silent glance.

They took a deep breath. They never expected that Su Wei was actually the president of the Exorcist Association. The old man was really a man of few words, and they wondered how many things he was hiding from them.

Su Zimai murmured, "As expected... Grandpa is so good to me, even asking you to protect me, even though I've never met him before."

"It's probably because you look like his daughter. He told me that you look a lot like Su Ying when she was little, and your brother has eyes like Su Ying's, so he likes you both very much." Ke Qirui said, taking a puff of his cigarette.

Upon hearing the name "Su Ying," a glimmer of light flashed in Gu Zhuo'an's eyes.

Su Zimai thought for a moment, "Could it be that after knowing we were being targeted by the Salvation Society, bringing me to Lake Hunt was also his idea?"

“Yes, that’s what my adoptive father said. He told me to take you to Lake Hunter as soon as possible, saying that he had already spoken with several family elders of Lake Hunter.” Ke Qirui smiled. “But actually, I know this generation of Lake Hunter, so I don’t need his connections this time.”

She paused, then looked up. "Speaking of which, the four from Lake Hunting are on the train right now."

Su Zimai was stunned for a moment, looking at her in confusion, "Huh? Why are they in the car? Don't they want Haifan City anymore? What if the Nian Beast King launches a surprise attack now?"

"Don't rush, the Nian Beast won't act hastily." Ke Qirui said calmly, "Lin Xingshi said she was curious about what the inside of my train demon looks like, and I just happened to be here to pick you up, so I brought them along."

"Where are they?" Su Zimai asked suspiciously.

“They’re in carriage number 3 right now. Would you like me to take you there to see them?” Ke Qirui asked.

Su Zimai nodded. "I've met Zhou Jiuya, Lin Xingshi, and Zhuge Hui, but I haven't met Zhong Wujiu yet. I'm a little curious about what he looks like."

"Then let's go together."

"Then I'll go too."

Gu Qiye and Gu Zhuoan spoke almost simultaneously, turning their heads to look at each other.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, please stop here." Ke Qirui said with a smile, looking at the father and son. "You are wanted criminals by the United Nations. It would be best if you didn't have any contact with the Lake Hunters. If your whereabouts are discovered, it will be easy to pin the blame on me."

She lowered her head and brought the pipe closer, taking a puff of smoke. "Well, it's a bit like burying your head in the sand."

"Xiaomai, be careful," Gu Qiye said.

"I'll just say hello and be back," Gu Zhuoan also said.

"I know, aren't you two annoying? What could be unsafe? Without the people hunting in the lake, I would have been dead long ago."

After Su Zimai finished speaking, she and Ke Qirui got up and walked out of carriage number 7, entering the middle passage.

"Your brother and your dad really care about you."

"right?"

"Although I don't love you as much as your second brother."

"...Commander, I never want to talk to you again."

"Feel sorry."

The two slowed their pace, chatting as they passed through several carriages. The train was traveling through a spatial tunnel, and outside the window was a dark gray spatial turbulence.

Every time Su Zimai looked out the window, she worried that the big bee named "Qiao" might suddenly fly in and eat her, and her heart would involuntarily race.

Finally, the two arrived at the metal door of carriage number 3.

Ke Qirui took off the pipe, put it back in his trench coat pocket, then raised his hand, turned the doorknob, and pushed open the door.

Su Zimai looked up and saw four figures scattered inside the empty carriage.

Lin Xingshi raised an eyebrow, glanced at her sideways, and smiled warmly.

This was a young woman with medium-length black hair and a long, dark red braid tied at the back of her head. She was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans. To be honest, if Su Zimai hadn't known beforehand, she would never have guessed that this devastatingly handsome woman was actually a girl.

Zhou Jiuya, dressed in his Zhongshan suit as always, sat in his seat with his fist under his chin, eyes closed, taking a nap, his face expressionless.

Zhuge Hui was dressed in a light blue long robe and mandarin jacket in the style of the Republic of China era. He held a folding fan in his hand, wore sunglasses, and had long black hair draped behind his head.

The last unfamiliar face remaining in the carriage was naturally "Zhong Wujiu" from the Lake Hunting Sect.

Su Zimai lowered her head and curiously looked at the other person. She saw that he was a man wearing a dark blue demon mask, a black coat and trousers. Just standing there, he gave people an invisible sense of oppression.

At this moment, Ke Qirui walked into the carriage and teased the four people from the Lake Hunting Group.

"Let me formally introduce you four. This is our Ghost Train crew's genius exorcist—'Master Mai'."

Su Zimai was taken aback at first, then quickly blushed and bristled.

(End of this chapter)