The First Appearance of the Demonic Clouds

2 a.m., EVO luxury apartment in downtown Los Angeles.

Constantin was jolted awake from his sleep, his heart clenching as if something had grabbed it. The sudden palpitation made him jump out of bed, panting heavily. The actress Emily beside him was fast asleep, her fair and graceful figure clearly visible in the moonlight, but he felt no desire for her whatsoever.

Frustrated, he threw off the thin blanket, walked barefoot to the huge French windows, and with a whoosh, pulled open the heavy blackout curtains, gazing out at the city lights from the 25th floor.

However, the scene before him made him frown deeply.

It's not about seeing, it's about feeling!

The night sky over Los Angeles seemed to be permeated with some kind of inexplicable pollution; the starlight was dim, the clouds were churning, and there was even a faint sense of... misfortune in the air.

"Damn it!" Constantine cursed. This wasn't the demon or vengeful spirit he was familiar with, but something much stranger, perhaps from... the East?

He irritably stepped onto the terrace, lit a cigarette, and prepared to leave for Chicago the next day.

The SWAT team's explanation was just a pretext; their real purpose was to find the alchemical symbol known as the "Red King." Qin Jin's choice during their last visit to Amy's hospital room made him deeply aware of this.

If you want to become a qualified exorcist, what's the point if you can't even defend against possession and control by demons and vengeful spirits?

In the past, he might have tried to find a solution to the anomaly in the sky, but now, Qin Jin's suspension had made him see things more clearly. He was unwilling to stay and be a free henchman in the face of the impending crisis.

Even Catherine, he would notify her to leave.

After the call connected, it rang for a while before Catherine's sleepy and impatient voice came through:

"Jack! Do you know what time it is? You'd better have something really important to do!"

"Listen, Casey," Constantin's voice was unusually serious, lacking its usual relaxed indifference:

"I sense something! Something's wrong with Los Angeles, something very wrong!"

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, then Catherine's voice became clearer: "What's wrong? Be more specific."

"I can't quite put my finger on it, but it felt awful, like some... huge thing!"

Dante exhaled a smoke ring, his voice carrying a warning tone:

"Qin is going on a trip tomorrow, and I'm going to Chicago too. If you stay here by yourself... I'm afraid you'll be forced to take on responsibilities, which is not only dangerous, but you simply won't be able to handle it."

"so what?"

"So, run away, my dear comrade," Constantine bluntly stated.

"Have your dad come up with a reason to go to New York, Washington, or anywhere else, just get out of there as soon as possible! Let Los Angeles run its course for a while."

There was another long silence on the other end of the phone.

Constantine could imagine Catherine frowning, torn between her inner turmoil. Of the entire Group Two, she was probably the one with the strongest sense of justice and the greatest sense of responsibility.

However, she wasn't stupid...

"……I see."

Finally, Catherine's voice came through, tinged with weariness but also decisiveness: "I'll make the arrangements. Take care of yourself, Jack."

"You too, newbie. Contact me when you get there."

Constantine hung up the phone, stubbed out his cigarette, looked out at the unsettling night sky, then glanced back at the pale body on the bed—

I'm getting a little tired of it, so I might as well take this opportunity... and break it off.

……

The next day, around noon, Qin Jin stuffed the last piece of luggage into the spacious trunk of the Dodge Ram and closed the car door.

Aresa, holding the energetic Yuanxiao, sat in the passenger seat. The little guy seemed to know they were going on a long journey, his bright black eyes curiously looking out the car window.

"Let's go?" Qin Jin started the engine, and a deep, powerful roar sounded.

Aresa held Yuanxiao in her arms, nodded gently, and seemed to have a very slight upturn at the corners of her mouth: "Mm."

The black steel behemoth drove away from Qingcao Community and merged into the traffic heading out of the city. Qin Jin headed straight for Xisen Mining Area, intending to deal with the Tong family's opponents before setting off, so he could travel in peace.

Unbeknownst to them, at the same time they were leaving, on another flight bound for Chicago, sat Catherine, yawning and looking disgruntled.

Earlier, Constantine had already boarded another plane with his worn-out travel bag, his face showing relief and eagerness to pursue hope.

Qin Jin waited at the mining area for a full hour!

A strange thing happened: the Tong family didn't follow at all, or rather, they didn't even drive onto the road leading to the mining area. This puzzled Qin Jin for a while, wondering where he had given himself away.

Qin Jin had no idea that the semi-retired elder of the Tong family, the one who personally participated in the paper bride's burial, was the one who raised Tong Zhenjiang. In fact, this event was told as a story that permeated Tong Zhenjiang's entire childhood.

Now that he's older, he avoids it even more, not daring to get involved at all.

In the end, Qin Jin had no choice but to leave the mining area and begin his own journey with Alessa.

As for dealing with the Tong family, let's just leave it at that and deliver the final blow as it comes...

The storm in Los Angeles has temporarily closed the door to Qin Jin!

Four days later, in the evening, in a community park near UCLA.

Mark rode his bicycle, having just bought some drinks from a convenience store, and was heading back to his school dormitory.

He is the only son of Simone's executive director, a somewhat bookish college student. These days, his father seems particularly irritable, so he has wisely reduced the number of times he goes home and spends as much time as possible at school.

As dusk fell and the streetlights came on, Mark took a shortcut through the park and suddenly spotted a campervan parked in a shady clearing.

Unlike typical bulky car models, it features smooth lines and understated colors, yet is adorned with numerous patterns of clouds, ribbons, and flying apsaras, exuding a mysterious oriental allure in the twilight.

At the same time, Mark saw a graceful figure crouching next to the RV; she seemed to be in trouble.

The girl was trying to set up a small camping tent, but it didn't seem to be going well. From behind, the girl was tall and slender, wearing a cheongsam with oriental embroidery elements, and her long, jet-black hair was like fine silk draped over her shoulders.

Even just from behind, there was an indescribable and striking exotic charm.

"Do you need any help?" Mark hesitated for a moment, then walked over and asked politely.

The girl turned her head at the sound.

Mark felt his breath catch in his throat.

What a breathtaking face it was!

Her skin was so fair it was almost translucent, and her features were as exquisite as the most perfect sculpture. Her slightly upturned phoenix eyes possessed a strange magic that was both innocent and alluring.

Her beauty transcends race and culture, possessing an otherworldly ethereal allure.

"Ah... thank you!"

The girl spoke, her accent was somewhat peculiar yet exceptionally pleasant to the ear.

She pointed to several brackets on the ground that seemed stuck, "These... don't seem to be behaving properly."

Mark quickly knelt down to help, a strange fragrance, extremely delicate yet captivating, lingering around his nose, like a mixture of some cool floral scent he had never smelled before...

He felt a little dizzy, and his heart was pounding.

The tent was set up quickly.

"Thank you so much! My name is Qingqiu."

The girl smiled sweetly, a smile that seemed to brighten the surrounding twilight. "I'm traveling alone, and this is my first time using this tent. I'm a little clumsy."

"My name is Mark, this...this is nothing..."

Mark was a little afraid to look her in the eye, and felt his face burning.

"Would you like to come in for a cup of tea? I just brewed it; it's a specialty from my hometown. It's perfect for thanking you."

Xiaoyu pointed to the beautiful purple RV. The door was open, and warm, soft light shone from inside, revealing a glimpse of the exquisite interior.

Just then, a few drops of cold rain fell on Mark's face. He looked up and saw that dark clouds had gathered and the raindrops had begun to fall more heavily.

"It looks like it's going to rain..." Mark hesitated.

"Come in and get out of the rain!" Xiaoyu naturally took his wrist; her hand was icy cold and smooth, with a strange feel to it.

Mark felt a jolt of electricity surge from his wrist through his entire body, his mind went blank, and his last shred of reason was instantly overwhelmed by the strange fragrance and the stunningly beautiful face so close to him.

He was practically led up the steps of the RV.