“You’re really strange, can you tell me why?” the young man sized him up and asked.
“I like it, what’s wrong with that?” Bái Qiāndào glared at him, but then nervously shifted his gaze.
“Haha! We’re here, this is number 111 Lanli Street, the Mai Family,” the young man laughed.
Bái Qiāndào quickly checked the time on his Thousand-Mile Communicator. He was only ten seconds away from death if he was delayed even slightly.
“All you people surnamed Mai, listen up! Who hired a driver?” a loudspeaker suddenly blared.
Bái Qiāndào looked at the young man shouting at a black object. Had he installed an amplifier on the Flying Car? That violated the law!
The young man winked at him, and a voice came from below, “Mài Tiānlǎng, get down here.”
Bái Qiāndào looked down again at the white jade buildings. On top of one of them was a magnificent sky garden, and in an open space stood a slender, exquisitely beautiful woman with eyes like paintings, looking up furiously.
“That’s my sister, Mài Tiānxuě. She’s always had it in for me,” Mài Tiānlǎng smiled at Bái Qiāndào.
The Flying Car landed on the spacious rooftop, where another Flying Car was already parked. Dozens of high-end Flying Cars of various sizes were parked around the Mai family mansion.
Mài Tiānlǎng got out, and Bái Qiāndào hesitated to move his legs. He was filled with confusion and didn’t know what to say.
Outside, the siblings argued, while Bái Qiāndào felt uneasy inside, trying to sort out his thoughts.
His mission stipulated that he must not reveal his true identity. He couldn’t use his own name, yet it seemed too easy to find out his origins. How could he maintain secrecy? And how could he get the Mai family to agree to hire him as a driver?
While he was agonizing over this, Mài Tiānxuě’s voice came, “Lù Sāndào, come out!”
Bái Qiāndào hesitated. *I’m not called Lù Sāndào. Is she talking to me?*
“Hurry up and come out. My driver, you need to fulfill your two-month contract.”
Bái Qiāndào was surprised. She was indeed talking to him. The system must have changed his name for him. He wondered if he could get away with it.
He got out of the Flying Car. Mài Tiānxuě looked him over and frowned. “I didn’t expect you to be so young. How old are you?”
“Twenty-seven.”
“You’re twenty-seven? I thought you were eighteen!” Mài Tiānlǎng exclaimed.
Bái Qiāndào felt a bit dizzy. While he did look younger, it wasn’t as absurd as eighteen. Saying he was twenty-three would have been more reasonable.
*I’m not a woman, there’s no need to flatter me so much, I can’t accept it!*
“Follow me,” Mài Tiānxuě said coolly.
Bái Qiāndào followed her, appearing somewhat timid. He had very little contact with important figures; in fact, Lán Dānyān was his first.
He didn’t know Mài Tiānlǎng, but he knew something about Mài Tiānxuě. She was the head of the new generation of the Mai family, a business prodigy. The Mai family was a commercial giant, primarily dealing in mineral trading.
Mài Tiānxuě called him young, which was relative to her own age. She was forty this year, but thanks to modern genetic evolution, she looked like a young woman. People nowadays were accustomed to discerning ages, inferring them from subtle details, though good maintenance could conceal it, making her appear to be in her mid-twenties.
Mài Tiānlǎng was probably also in his thirties. Wealthy people were willing to spend money on maintenance, making him look very young. Bái Qiāndào looked a few years younger not because of maintenance but due to his natural appearance.
It was rumored that Mài Tiānxuě was devoted to the family business and had never married, nor even had a boyfriend. Bái Qiāndào was skeptical about this, as prominent families often guarded their privacy, and what reporters dug up might not be the truth.
As he walked with Mài Tiānxuě, Bái Qiāndào paid close attention to his surroundings. He saw people in yellow uniforms, presumably Mai family bodyguards, their waists bulging, likely carrying weapons. Laser guns and other laser weapons were restricted to special personnel; ordinary police still used projectile firearms. These bodyguards likely carried projectile guns, though the Mai family might secretly possess laser weapons, available on the black market.
A man approached them, appearing to be between thirty and fifty years old. Bái Qiāndào couldn’t quite tell, but he could sense a special aura. This person was likely a Spiritual Power User.
“Uncle Zhang,” Mài Tiānxuě called out amiably.
Uncle Zhang smiled kindly at her, which surprised Bái Qiāndào. Calling him "Uncle" implied that Uncle Zhang was at least close to sixty years old. He had never imagined Spiritual Power Users could cultivate to look so ageless. He had only met Lán Dānyān, another Spiritual Power User, and by that logic, she might not look her age either.
Uncle Zhang then looked at Bái Qiāndào, sizing him up, with caution in his eyes. He asked, “Miss, who is this?”
“This is Lù Sāndào, the driver I hired… he needs to help me.”
Uncle Zhang’s caution did not diminish. “Miss, do you know… he’s rather special?”
Mài Tiānxuě scrutinized Bái Qiāndào and smiled faintly. “I hired him from the Demon Hand. The information provided stated he possesses special abilities, but I’m not sure how special.”
“The Demon Hand? Miss, you are playing with fire,” Uncle Zhang exclaimed in alarm.
“It’s alright, I signed a confidentiality agreement with the Demon Hand… Please don’t tell my father about this!”
Uncle Zhang sighed. It seemed inappropriate to say more in front of Bái Qiāndào, but a sharp light flashed from his eyes, as if trying to pierce Bái Qiāndào’s heart.
Bái Qiāndào’s heart tightened, and he felt uncomfortable all over, greatly alarmed. Were the eyes of Spiritual Power Users this formidable?
He remained outwardly calm and said coldly, “Don’t do that again. I have no intention of being an enemy; your young lady invited me here to help.”
Mài Tiānxuě smiled. “Uncle Zhang, he is my assistant.”
Uncle Zhang withdrew the sharpness from his eyes, nodded, and walked away.
“An ordinary person would be frightened unconscious by Uncle Zhang’s gaze, but you seem unaffected. It appears… follow me!” Mài Tiānxuě said, turning to leave before finishing her sentence.
*Damn it, if you only knew, I was almost scared to death! But I don’t understand how I held on. This Uncle Zhang is detestable. Why is he treating me like this?*
He continued to follow Mài Tiānxuě into a vacant, soundproofed secret room with nothing in it.
Mài Tiānxuě stopped and turned around, looking at Bái Qiāndào. Her gaze suddenly became secretive as she asked, “Are you a Spiritual Power User?”
Bái Qiāndào disliked her scrutinizing gaze at that moment, which seemed probing, defensive, and even a bit hostile.
“No,” Bái Qiāndào replied coolly.
“No? Then why could you withstand Uncle Zhang’s stare?”
“I can tell you frankly, I don’t fully understand my current situation, but I don’t like his gaze, nor do I like your gaze right now,” Bái Qiāndào said coldly.
Mài Tiānxuě smiled slightly, her gaze softening. “What special abilities do you have?”
“Ahem, I have some special abilities that need to be used based on the actual situation.”
“The Demon Hand didn’t tell you?” Mài Tiānxuě asked with a slight frown, surprised.
*What would I know about the Demon Hand? A mysterious organization? An evil and forbidden organization?*
“No… Miss Mai, please don’t ask further.” Bái Qiāndào’s heart pounded. *If you ask more, I won’t know either!*
“You have quite a temper! You can’t have this attitude with your employer,” Mài Tiānxuě said with a cold laugh.
“You are my employer, but right now, we are on equal terms. For these two months, I will be a competent driver, and beyond that, you have no right to command me.” Bái Qiāndào disliked Mài Tiānxuě’s attitude. He could be stubborn sometimes, and coupled with the assertive nature of his mission, he spoke bluntly.
“Hahaha…” Mài Tiānxuě burst out laughing. “Antique Flying Cars have long been phased out, and the law prohibits their operation. The profession of driver disappeared a hundred years ago and likely only exists on some planets. You don’t actually think you’re here to be a driver, do you?”
“Miss Mai, I hope you will respect me, just as I am respecting you now,” Bái Qiāndào said sternly.
“Mutual respect… all right!” Mài Tiānxuě said coolly, waving her hand. The surroundings changed.
Bái Qiāndào suddenly felt he was suspended high in the air, surrounded by thick mist and swirling clouds, his feet not touching anything. He let out a startled cry.
“Are you that timid?” Mài Tiānxuě’s mocking voice came from beside him.
Bái Qiāndào’s legs felt weak. He turned to look at her, and saw her looking at him with a hint of disdain.
“What… what is happening?” Bái Qiāndào asked, his voice trembling slightly.
“Virtual restoration. Haven’t you experienced it before?” Mài Tiānxuě smirked.
*Damn, this is the legendary high-tech virtual restoration! They say the scenes are very realistic, like reliving real places. Only by experiencing it can you know how real it is.*
“You can even simulate being in high altitude?” Bái Qiāndào asked in surprise.
“This is satellite sensor capture, focused on a single point, with trillion-fold restoration technology. Of course, it can simulate high altitude.”
Just as Bái Qiāndào was about to ask more, Mài Tiānxuě looked down. “Shh, don’t speak, here they come…”
Bái Qiāndào looked down. Below was a plain, lush green. A giant Flying Car was approaching. Giant Flying Cars were generally used for cargo, possessing stronger power and replacing ancient cargo planes.
Normally, passenger Flying Cars had to fly at low altitudes. Long-distance Flying Cars were allowed to fly slightly higher, perhaps a few hundred meters above rooftops at most. However, these larger cargo Flying Cars could be authorized for high-altitude flight, but restricted below eight thousand meters.
Suddenly, a small black dot flew from the distance, looking like a person.
“A Xuan Cheng Realm Spiritual Power User…” Bái Qiāndào exclaimed in shock.
“You know that Xuan Cheng Realm cultivators can fly…” Mài Tiānxuě looked at him with surprise, then shook her head. “No, that’s someone equipped with flight gear.”
Before she could explain, Bái Qiāndào had already seen clearly. The person wearing a metal mask had a metallic-looking propulsion device on their back.
Although Spiritual Power Users at the Xuan Cheng Realm could traverse the heavens and earth, technology had advanced significantly. Especially with the explosive development of aerospace technology, flight gear had been developed, allowing ordinary people to fly with assistance. However, such equipment was extremely expensive and private ownership was prohibited; only a certain military flight unit was equipped with it. But the black market was omnipotent; for a higher price, one could also acquire it and fly freely outside the city, provided they weren’t detected by the police or military.