At the 8.20 Conference, the atavist representatives cast their votes. In the end, the government faction won by a razor-thin margin of just one vote. The core clause of the Atavist Management Regulations was now amended. The era when atavists were only governed by other atavists was history.
Under the night sky, the heavy doors of the Great Hall creaked open. The reporters, who had been waiting outside all day, perked up at once and swarmed the entrance. The spokesperson announced the result and added that video clips of the conference would be released soon.
The eyes of the entire world were on Hualan. Foreign politicians watched with intense focus, some anxious, others waiting to exploit any weakness.
For nations with malicious intent, this conference had seemed like a perfect opportunity. They knew the government was desperate to achieve its goals, and given the typical arrogant nature of the atavist families, Hualan was bound to fracture from within. It would have been the perfect moment to fish in troubled waters.
After all, a unified, harmonious nation is hard to tear apart from the outside.
So, when they first heard the spokesperson’s announcement, they cheered, acting as if they had finally caught Hualan off guard and could bring the nation to its knees.
But their joy was short-lived. Once the video clips of the voting process were released, they were left dumbfounded.
The domestic netizens were just as shocked.
If the government’s first move was unexpected but logical, their second move—allowing the atavist representatives to vote on their own fate—was bold, reckless, and brilliant.
How did they even dare to do it? If they had lost, they wouldn’t have been able to touch the first clause of the Atavist Management Regulations for another hundred years. Sure, they could have tried to restrict the families through other minor laws, but it would have been a poor compromise.
[This is crazy! Just one vote!]
[Even though we already know the result, watching that vote made my hands sweat like crazy!]
[I have to say, the government’s think tank is incredible. Did they plan this all along, or was it just a massive gamble?]
[If it was a gamble, it was a legendary one. Our leaders have serious guts!]
[Gosh, I never thought an official conference could be this thrilling! Plots I couldn’t predict, strategies I couldn’t fathom… I’m too excited to sleep!]
[But I honestly didn’t expect some members of the atavist families to actually support the government!]
The official videos didn’t show everything. Some details had to be kept private to save face and prevent unnecessary public outrage.
Still, what was released was more than enough to drive netizens wild. People screamed in excitement in front of their screens, unable to sleep, while related hashtags dominated the hot search boards.
Back in the Great Hall, after Madam President’s concluding speech, the conference officially ended. Everything was set in stone. The attendees stood up and began to file out, their faces pale and grim.
Jing Pei and her two companions had been sitting in the very back row, so they were among the last to leave. As they walked out, they crossed paths with the Lou family and the members of Intelligence Division Nine.
“Quite a surprise, isn’t it, Family Head Lou?” Liao Yi’an said. A polished, gentleman smile on his face somehow made him look very wicked.
The woman standing opposite him was Lou Ningzhou, Lou Ting’s mother and the current head of the Lou family. Her sharp, beautiful features were cold as ice, her star-like eyes glaring at him.
Lou Ningzhou said coldly, “Cut the crap.”
“Why so hostile? As old classmates, I think I showed you plenty of respect just now. I didn’t even bring up how your son killed his own father the moment he was born as an example of the darkness within the atavist families,” Liao Yi’an said with an unpleasant grin. “After all, there’s no better case than that to show how corrupt things are. A six-winged Judgment Angel only judges the guilty, right?”
Lou Ningzhou’s expression grew even colder. “Liao Yi’an, don’t twist the facts. The investigation concluded years ago. It was just an infant unable to control his surging atavist power, leading to a tragic accident. It had nothing to do with the Scales of Judgment. My husband lived an honorable, clean life. Don’t you dare throw mud on his name!”
“Oh? You say he wasn’t judged, so he wasn’t?” Liao Yi’an chuckled.
Lou Ningzhou clenched her fists. Her husband had been a rare, brilliant young judge in Hualan, a man of absolute integrity. He had always called himself the final line of defense for justice, sending countless criminals to prison and saving many lives.
Yet, because of Lou Ting’s birth and his judgment ability, her husband’s reputation was dragged through the mud. The relatives of those criminals even seized the opportunity to cry foul, claiming they were wrongfully convicted. His legacy was ruined, and he couldn’t even rest in peace.
This was a thorn buried deep in Lou Ningzhou’s heart. Every time it was pulled, she bled. It was the reason she couldn’t face Lou Ting and had even hated him for a very long time.
Liao Yi’an relished the suffering of atavists. Just as he was about to needle her further, a girl’s voice drifted from behind them.
“Wow, Section Chief Liao, I didn’t realize you trusted Lou Ting’s judgment so much. In that case, why don’t we propose having Lou Ting inherit his father’s profession? He can work as a judge and do executioner duty on the side. What do you think? It would save the country a lot of manpower and resources.”
Liao Yi’an’s face instantly soured. “Young Heir Long, you must be joking. This country doesn’t rely on atavists to set rules or carry out judgments.”
He certainly hadn’t refrained from bringing up Lou Ting out of kindness. He simply refused to acknowledge Lou Ting’s judgment as something fair or legal. To speak of it would mean validating Lou Ting’s authority.
“Oh, why say that? We’re all citizens of Hualan. As long as an ability is useful, what does it matter if someone is an atavist or an ordinary person? Besides, Section Chief Liao clearly believes Lou Ting’s judgment can’t be wrong, otherwise, how could you be so sure his father was guilty without any proof? I think I’ll go suggest this to Madam President right now,” Jing Pei said, taking a step as if she were indeed about to do it.
Just a moment ago, Liao Yi’an had been smug, but now he looked as if he had been slapped several times, his face turning red and green. He wanted to argue back but couldn’t find any logical words. “You’ve got a sharp tongue! I won’t waste my breath on you!”
He glared at them and gave a bitter warning: “The rules have changed now. You, Lou Ting, and all the rest of you better not let me catch you stepping out of line, or things won’t end well.”
With that, he led his men away.
Long Yiming muttered, “What a piece of work. Intelligence Division Nine is supposed to be the national security prevention department, scanning the entire country. We have billions of people, yet they spend all day obsessing over atavists. I bet he’s just mad he isn’t an atavist himself.”
Lou Ningzhou’s expression softened a lot. She looked at Jing Pei. “Thank you.”
The Lou family angels behind her also cast grateful glances at Jing Pei.
“I wonder if Young Heir Long voted ‘No’ or ‘Yes’?” Lou Ningzhou asked quietly as they walked toward the exit together.
Jing Pei remained perfectly calm and composed. “I wonder if Family Head Lou voted ‘No’ or ‘Yes’?”
Lou Ningzhou stared at her for a few seconds. “It seems I misjudged you. I used to think you were just mesmerized by his divine form. Fortunately, I wasn’t the only one who got it wrong. I wonder how that old lady will react when she finds out?”
“I don’t understand what you mean.”
“You don’t need to. But since you spoke up for us just now, I’ll give you a warning.” Lou Ningzhou looked at Jing Pei, her eyes filled with a weighted look. “Stay away from Lou Ting. Otherwise, you’ll die by his hand.”
Jing Pei was startled. For a split second, she felt Lou Ningzhou was delivering a prophecy rather than a simple guess based on the past.
“Who on earth voted ‘Yes’!”
The moment he got into his car, the Feng Family Head finally let his bottled-up rage explode. His face was twisted with fury. “Fifty-seven votes! Fifty-seven! Whose face are they trying to slap? Dammit! Traitors, feeding on our family and turning on us! What are they trying to do? Is life too comfortable for them that they have to pull this kind of outrageous stunt?”
Feng Yilian sat beside him, lazily playing with a Rubik’s cube. He looked as lazy and detached as ever, indifferent to everything. Yet, his pale fingers hadn’t turned the puzzle once.
“I don’t even need to look online to know how humiliating this is for the atavist families! If I ever find out who they are…”
Just as the Feng Family Head’s voice turned murderous, Feng Yilian suddenly spoke up.
“I was one of them.”
The Feng Family Head stared at his son in absolute disbelief.
“What did you say?”
“I voted ‘Yes’.”
“Why?!”
“I don’t know. Maybe I just thought of my cousin.”
The Feng Family Head froze. Feng Yichu, Feng Yilian’s cousin. He had been exposed as a mole for the illegal atavist serum organization during the Zhang Simiao incident and had been stripped of his family name. Since the family couldn’t allow the phoenix genes to leak out, Feng Yichu would be quietly handled after serving his prison sentence.
Feng Yichu’s betrayal had shocked Feng Yilian. But the “decayed family” his cousin had spoken of was something Feng Yilian understood all too well. It was a thought that haunted him in the dead of night.
To know that his only son, the carefully groomed young heir of the Feng family, had cast one of those votes was a devastating blow. The Feng Family Head slapped Feng Yilian hard across the face, his face red with rage, pointing a finger at him but unable to utter a single word.
At that moment, he began to understand. During the Zhang Simiao incident, almost every prominent atavist family had discovered traitors in their midst. The impact of those revelations had reached far deeper than he had realized.
Inside the Great Hall, several leaders stood by a second-floor window, watching the atavist families’ cars drive away. Soon, they saw the three members of the Long family get into their car and leave.
Madam President folded her arms. “Have someone look into Teng Wenxin and Xu Qian. Be careful. Don’t let them notice.”
These two were the officials who had counted the votes.
“What’s going on? Why are you suddenly suspicious of them?” Ordering Qiu Fa and the Feng Family Head to oversee the vote-counting was something they hadn’t expected.
Madam President shook her head. “That girl knows far too much. She’s truly extraordinary. I wonder if it has something to do with that information broker.”
“You mentioned earlier that she made a request?”
“She made a demand I never could have anticipated,” Madam President said. “It concerns Nevergone District.”
The other leaders looked just as surprised and bewildered as she had been. “She… does she actually know the secret of Nevergone District?”
The secret of Nevergone District was something many in the government avoided mentioning. It had been this way for centuries. Over time, many officials didn’t even know what the secret was; people ignored the slum out of habit. Even if they sometimes felt confused, the general atmosphere of indifference made them drop their questions.
Only Intelligence Division Nine had kept submitting applications to deal with Nevergone District. But the issue was impossible to resolve, so it was always shelved.
And now, that young girl had made a demand.
