It took Zu Zhichong one second to realize what was going on, one second to spring out of bed and sprint to the door, and another second to twist the k.n.o.b to open the door. With a big smile on his face, he greeted Li Zong. "Hey, Chief. I was sleeping just now!"

He had rushed in such haste that the plug on the headphones had been pulled out of the socket on the iPad. Loud voice of his teammate in the game was heard. "f.u.c.k! Who killed my brother! I"ll slaughter each and every one in the city to avenge your death! My poor bro, your death was even more miserable than that of a chicken."

Li Zong was impa.s.sive. "Well. You"ve just lost the next month"s salary along with the bonus."

Zu Zhichong wailed, "Please don"t, Chief! I don"t even have enough money to buy instant noodles!"

Suddenly, his eye fell on He Zheng standing beside Li Zong. As if he had just grabbed the last straw that might save his life, he quickly stepped up to him, played cute and winked at him, sparing no efforts to curry favor with him. "Dearest He Zheng, please put in a good word for me."

With an expression on his face that seemed to be suggesting "Beat it, psycho", He Zheng disgustedly shook his hands but didn"t say anything mean to Zu Zhichong.

Zu Zhichong was a little surprised at this reaction of He Zheng but tried harder to convince him.

"Dearest He Zheng, please help me. I promise I"ll return the favor. I"ll do anything for you. All you have to do is ask. Please dissuade Chief from cutting my pay. I haven"t been paid for half a year!!!"

He Zheng glanced at Li Zong, implying that Li Zong was being too harsh on Zu Zhichong.

Unsurprisingly, this glance saved Zu Zhichong. Li Zong gave a cough and Zu Zhichong, on hearing this, twisted his head around, tears in eyes.

He was wearing a pair of boxer shorts and a vest, which made him a rather unpresentable scene.

"Get changed and come out." Li Zong tapped at the watch on his wrist. "Do it within a minute and you can keep the next month"s bonus."

He had just finished the last word when the door was slammed shut. Zu Zhichong had sprinted inside like a light breeze.

He Zheng had an impression that this man and that cat, both of which worked for Li Zong, had a screw loose.

Before the time was up, Zu Zhichong managed to make himself presentable and walk out of the room.

"Chief." He looked at He Zheng. "Are you here to talk about the induction of He Zheng?"

He Zheng actually felt a little awkward, because this whole thing reminded him of a kid being taken to a preschool by their parent.

Li Zong gave a bob of his head and flicked a glance at He Zheng, saying, "Follow me."

The three of them walked from the staff dormitory building to the United Front Work Department. The rooftop of the United Front Work Department was not just any rooftop but a training field for team members to practice. The power of a qualified exorcist might cause extensive damage. Large sects had their own special training fields, but in SMB, all exorcists practiced on the rooftop of the United Front Work Department, where the couple of leaders of the bureau had placed some magical barriers to protect the building.

Li Zong"s entry card was of top-level clearance. In order not to draw any unnecessary attention, they swiped the card of Zu Zhichong.

They directly leaped from the elevator into the training ground a.s.signed to the first action group. Surprisingly, Tun Shanhai, who had turned into a little white cat, followed them.

"To become a disciple of the Qingwei Sect, you don"t have to come from any particular family background, but you do need to obtain the recognition of the founder of our sect." Most of the time, Zu Zhichong was a careless and casual man, but when it came to recruiting talents for his sect, he seemed to be fully aware of what he was supposed to do.

Zu Zhichong fished a piece of yellow Fu (Fu is a piece of rectangular paper on which magical figures are drawn by Taoist priests to invoke or expel spirits and bring good or ill fortune), which had been folded into a small triangle, out of his pocket and handed it to He Zheng.

"You have to do what I tell you to. You haven"t been instructed in gathering spiritual energy or drawning Fu, but you still remember the incantation that you recited, I suppose?"

He Zheng nodded.

Zu Zhichong informed him, "This is an Elementary Lightning Fu of Qingwei Sect. You have to incant the spell and at the same time guide the spiritual energy inside you from your Dantian to this Fu. If the Elementary Lightning Fu burns, it means that the founder of Qingwei Sect gives his consent to your entry into Qingwei Sect, and I"ll take you to see my sect-uncle."

"What if it doesn"t burn?"

"If it doesn"t burn, Chief would surely light it for you with a lighter," replied Zu Zhichong with his tongue in his cheek.

He Zheng disregarded the ridicule in the words of Zu Zhichong. Recalling what Zu Zhichong did on the plane that day, with the Elementary Lightning Fu between his index finger and middle finger, he closed his eyes and recited the spell that he had heard Zu Zhichong recite once.

"The four enlightened realms, the infinite heaven and earth, all G.o.ds bow before you, thunder is your servant. Ghosts and demons recoil, monsters and bogeys cower. Lend me your power. Bring evil to its end."

The little golden ball inside his Dantian turned into rays of golden light and streamed from his lower abdomen to his right arm. He Zheng, whose eyes were closed, did not know that when he was reciting the incantation, streams of faint golden light flashed across his right hand where the Fu was.

He Zheng was reciting the incantation at a moderate speed. All of a sudden, scorching heat was felt in his palm and his fingers quivered. He opened his eyes only to find that the yellow Fu in his hand had already burnt to ashes. As if having been drained of energy, He Zheng panted for a few moments, exhausted.

Zu Zhichong exhaled deeply in relief. "It seems that you"ve gained the recognition of the sect founder! Congratulations, cutie!"

He Zheng"s shoulders twitched involuntarily with uneasiness.

Li Zong held He Zheng"s fingertips that had reddened somewhat from the heat and gently kneaded them. In a bland tone of voice tinged with pleasure, he informed He Zheng, "The next time you do this, remember to keep your eyes open. And you may throw the Fu away when the spelll is finished."

"Okay," He Zheng replied in an unconcerned voice.

Li Zong flicked a glance at Zu Zhichong, who hurriedly promised, "I"ll send a message to my master shifu right now!"

"All right."

He Zheng withdrew his hand from that of Li Zong only to find that the burns on his fingertips were gone.

The three of them waited at the doorway of the elevator, planning to leave the rooftop. Right at the moment when the door of the elevator opened, a small, yellowish cloud, as if having come out of thin air, appeared in the s.p.a.cious sky above the building.

He Zheng, who was the first to notice it, gave Li Zong a gentle push.

"What is that?"

Zu Zhichong and Li Zong twisted their heads around at the same time. A clap of thunder was heard. It lasted only a fleeting instant and then died away, but even so, Zu Zhichong was still stunned.

He stared fixedly at He Zheng, a vacant look in his eyes, as if there were a flower on his face. "You...You invoked the Thundercloud!!!"