A Guide to Humanity’s Extinction

Three minutes later, in the kitchen.

”I shouldn’t have made that joke and caused a huge misunderstanding! I apologize! Gomen nasai! Sorry!” Xia Ningzhi kept her head bowed, resting on one knee with her hands clasped in prayer, a pair of chopsticks still wedged between her palms. She was just short of outright kowtowing on the floor in front of everyone.

Hearing his third sister’s trilingual apology of Chinese, Japanese, and English, Ke Mingqing felt a sudden wave of relief.

Now this is a true witch. Take some notes, he thought, turning his head to glance at Xia Zili.

”So... Azhi, why did you ask that back then?” Ke Linye turned around, resting his chin on the back of his wooden chair, and smiled faintly at Xia Ningzhi.

He thought for a moment before blurting out his theory:

”Since it isn’t your second sister, and it isn’t you, were you asking on behalf of Xiaoli and A—”

Before Ke Linye could finish his sentence, Xia Zili and Ke Mingqing felt their hearts drop.

The two of them spoke up at almost the exact same time.

”H-how is that possible?!””What are you saying, Big Brother? Could you act like a decent human being for once?”

As their voices trailed off, Xia Zili and Ke Mingqing subconsciously exchanged a glance before silently lowering their heads, refusing to say another word.

Ke Linye froze, slowly turning his head to look at the two of them.

He had only been joking around; he hadn’t expected their reactions to be so genuinely suspicious.

Ke Linye’s expression shifted slightly.

Previously, he had been certain that Xia Lingxue couldn’t possibly do anything out of line, which was why he felt comfortable stirring the pot and making fun of his usually unflappable second sister. But the nature of the situation had changed now. These were his younger siblings.

Ke Linye pondered for a long moment before putting on a serious face. ”Why are the two of you acting so suspicious? Out with it. What exactly happened?” Xia Lingxue crossed her arms and tilted her head at them, her gaze sharp.

”Is that what’s going on?”

Xia Zili and Ke Mingqing kept their heads down and ate in silence, their chopsticks moving in a blur.

For a moment, no one at the dining table spoke.

Ke Mingwei’s expression darkened once more. He hadn’t expected another issue to crop up right after they had just resolved the last one.

But the old father no longer wanted to say a word. He simply swept a hawkish, piercing gaze across their faces.

Xia Wenna cupped her elbow and rested her cheek in her hand as she thought. Finally, those hazy eyes of hers lit up slightly, like a lamp turning on amidst a thick fog. She looked up and said cheerfully, ”Oh, could it be that Azhi really was asking on behalf of her younger siblings, but was too embarrassed to say it, so she used her second sister as an excuse?”

As soon as their mother said this, everyone’s eyes at the table swiveled back to Xia Ningzhi.

Xia Lingxue, in particular, looked ready to commit murder.

Xia Ningzhi was still kneeling on one knee, holding her chopsticks in a gesture of profound apology. She hadn’t expected the flames of war to spread back to her so quickly. Her heart lurched. She was doomed. She was entirely doomed this time!

How did things turn out like this?! One slip-up really does cause a lifetime of regret. If I had known, I never would have told Mom, that blabbermouth! the young girl grumbled inwardly, but the gazes of everyone present grew increasingly suspicious, threatening to swallow her whole like a swamp.

At this point, for the sake of Xiaoli and A’Qing’s happiness, she had no choice but to throw herself under the bus. This entire mess started because of her, so she had to take responsibility for it. With that thought, Xia Ningzhi took a deep breath.

Across the dining table, Ke Mingqing was still trying to figure out how to put an end to this farce when Xia Zili hesitantly spoke up.

”I...”

Hearing her speak, the others shifted their attention to Xia Zili.

”You what?” Ke Mingwei furrowed his brow, staring intently at his youngest daughter.

Xia Zili fell silent for a long time. Just as she was about to raise her eyes and speak, Xia Ningzhi beat her to the punch, her voice loud and her delivery rapid-fire.

”Mom, actually, about that question from when we were showering...”

Xia Zili froze, and Ke Mingqing was similarly stunned.

To Xia Lingxue, however, this scene was like the clouds parting to reveal a bright moon. She scoffed and turned her head to look at Xia Ningzhi, ready to see exactly what kind of stunt her third sister was going to pull next.

As a result, the only ones left in the kitchen with grave expressions were Ke Linye and Ke Mingwei.

The father and son stared at Xia Ningzhi, praying she would put them out of their misery.

”What is it, Azhi?”

Xia Wenna blinked, finally reacting with an expression that seemed to say, There’s another twist to this?

Xia Ningzhi lowered her head and kept her voice down. ”Actually, I was asking for myself... I was worried you would find out, Mom, so I lied and said Second Sister and A’Qing were dating.”

A second later, Ke Mingqing turned his head stiffly like a malfunctioning robot, staring blankly at Xia Ningzhi.

Xia Zili also tilted her head. ”...Huh?”

Xia Ningzhi’s face turned red as she parted her lips and murmured, ”I admit it... Actually, I’m the one who has feelings for A’Qing. It has nothing to do with anyone else!”

The kitchen fell silent for a moment. Ke Linye looked as though he had been struck by lightning.

”Azhi, do you mean...” He could no longer view this situation as a mere spectator watching a show.

Ke Mingwei’s expression darkened even further. With dark lines creasing his forehead, he asked in a deep voice, ”Are you serious, Azhi?”

Xia Zili raised a hand to her forehead, while Ke Mingqing buried his face in his arms.

Xia Ningzhi thought about it, then suddenly shook her head.

”I was serious before.”

She paused for a moment before continuing in a deadpan tone, ”But just now, after taking a nap, I suddenly figured it out! My feelings for A’Qing aren’t romantic love; it’s just the worry of a family member.”

At this point, the girl coughed twice, her words firing off like a machine gun.

”Before, I just felt that A’Qing was too naive, and I was worried he might end up with a bad woman in the future. So I thought... ah, since we aren’t blood-related anyway, I might as well marry him myself. That way, I could take good care of him!”

The kitchen fell silent once again. The dining table was completely still, with no one saying a word.

Xia Ningzhi lifted her head, her ears flushed red as she looked around.

A Demon Pill... there’s a Demon Pill in this house... Taiyi Zhenren, where are you?

Ke Mingqing looked utterly dead inside. Slumped in his wooden chair with his hands clutching his stomach, he appeared to be alive, but his soul had been floating up in the heavens for a while now. Ke Mingwei’s face twitched slightly. He stuck a cigarette in his mouth and lit it with a lighter.

Ke Linye stared blankly for a moment before bursting into laughter. Stifling his chuckles, he forcefully patted Xia Lingxue on the shoulder. Xia Lingxue covered her face with her hand, sighing softly a long while later.

”Look at the wonderful younger siblings you’ve raised,” Ke Linye laughed endlessly, his shoulders trembling.

”Shut up,” Xia Lingxue said. ”I haven’t even settled my score with you yet.”

Xia Zili was still utterly dumbfounded.

Meanwhile, Ke Mingqing had the look of a dead fish. How on earth did I offend you people? he thought. So what if I’m trying to kill your whole family? Is there any need to torture me like this? ”Forget it...” Ke Mingwei suddenly muttered. ”You little brats don’t have a single word of truth in your mouths.”

With a heavy sigh, the old father snuffed out his cigarette. ”Don’t bring your jokes to the dinner table in the future. It just makes the atmosphere weird and ruins everyone’s appetite.”

Leaving those words behind, he grabbed his police jacket hanging on the wall and headed upstairs.

”I’m tired. I’m going to sleep.” Ke Mingqing yawned. ”Maybe I’ll meet an immortal in my dreams who’ll guide me to sudden enlightenment.” After speaking, he closely followed Ke Mingwei upstairs.

”Don’t take things so far next time. Keep your jokes reasonable,” Ke Linye said, patting Xia Ningzhi’s shoulder with a lingering smile.

Xia Wenna, on the other hand, drooped her head, unable to hide the disappointment in her eyes. After a long while, she finally spoke in a slow drawl.

”Alright, alright... Let’s eat. You kids, really, making your mom get excited over nothing.”

Xia Ningzhi breathed a sigh of relief. She had finally earned the right to sit at the table and eat, but by now, the others had already left.

”I’m not eating either. I’m going for a walk,” Xia Zili said. She slipped on her sandals and headed out the door.

By the time dinner came to an end, only two people were left at the table.

Xia Ningzhi kept her head down, picking at pieces of braised pork with her chopsticks while browsing the rapidly brewing online gossip on her phone. Articles sported titles like [magical girl Ember suspected of having an underground romance with Blue Pigeon] and [magical girl Little Red Riding Hood looks gloomy; cooperation between both companies appears unpleasant]. The girl let out a sigh.

At that moment, however, she failed to realize that someone beside her was scrutinizing her with a gaze as cold as an ice cavern.

”Alright, it’s just the two of us now,” the person said.

Hearing this, Xia Ningzhi gasped sharply. A long moment later, she slowly turned her head to meet Xia Lingxue’s gaze.

Xia Lingxue stood there with her arms crossed, staring motionless at Xia Ningzhi.

”My good sister, can we wait until I finish eating to talk?” Xia Ningzhi flashed a sweet smile.

”No.”

”Spare my life, Second Sister!”

Xia Ningzhi dropped her chopsticks and simply lunged forward to hug the other girl’s thigh. She looked up and blinked, trying to awaken her second sister’s benevolent persona. ”This humble servant truly didn’t do it on purpose!”

Xia Lingxue remained silent for a moment before slightly raising her hand to gently stroke the hair at her sister’s temple.

After a long time, she said softly, ”You are not allowed... to do this next time.”

Residential building, second floor, the second bedroom from the left in the hallway.

Ke Mingqing let out a breath and rested the back of his head against his swivel chair. He turned to watch a silver-white iron dragon roar across the elevated bridge. That was absolutely the longest dinner he had ever experienced in his entire life. Fortunately, he had safely made it through, though looking back on it now, he still felt a suffocating sensation, as if he had just been soaked in the sulfur springs of hell.

Suddenly, a situation arose on Giovanni’s side.

Thus, he slowly closed his eyes and slipped into the perspective over at the abandoned building.

[Loaded perspective of Theater Puppet No. 01, ’Giovanni’.]

At this moment in time, there were only three figures inside the abandoned building. One was Giovanni, who was resting against the wall; another was Bai Ziling, who was asleep in his arms; and the last was the young girl in a black hoodie in the distance.

”Look at your phone,” Heimeng said abruptly.

This hoodie-wearing girl always spoke in a flat tone. Right now, her head was bowed as she played on a PS Vita handheld console.

Hearing this, Giovanni first looked up at her before picking up his phone.

On the home screen, the ’cartoon version of Heimeng’ was constantly popping up text boxes above her head:

[I’ve found it. One month from now, the Qi-Amate Comet Fragments will be transported from the North Pole to China via several transport ships. The ships will also be carrying a group of researchers from all over the world.]

”Will we intercept them at the Leijing port then?” Giovanni looked up and asked.

Heimeng didn’t speak, her face remaining entirely expressionless. On Giovanni’s phone screen, however, the cartoon version of Heimeng enthusiastically raised her arms while a text box Pop-up appeared above her head:

[Yes, Master. The date is August 15th! We will begin our work on that day!]

August 15th. That means I still have a month left to improve my strength, Ke Mingqing thought to himself. Wait a minute, isn’t that Big Brother’s birthday?

He tilted his head. ”On that night, Big Brother won’t end up waiting alone at home for everyone to celebrate his birthday, only to turn around and find out that his entire family is already dead, right?”