Chapter Twenty-Three: Su Yan

In the abandoned factory, Matt gazed at the thin Asian boy before him, unable to suppress his sincere confusion.

“Are you sure this child is the one you’re looking for—Black Void, the one rumored to be able to summon demons?”

At the dock earlier, the situation had been so urgent that, despite Matt’s extraordinary hearing, he could only tell that Black Void was a child. Only after returning to the deserted factory did he realize just how frail the child was. This was no ordinary child, but one exceptionally weak.

The Asian boy, gaunt as a refugee, was little more than skin and bones. He hadn’t bathed in over a month, his body covered in dust as if he’d spent months buried in a rubbish heap.

Matt was convinced that anyone who saw such a child on the street would instinctively want to offer him something to eat.

God, the weak and frantic heartbeat he heard filled him with a sense of guilt.

“That’s right, he is Black Void,” Gu Zhongyan nodded. Among the three, he was the only one able to identify Black Void.

Compared to Stick Elder, who relied solely on intelligence, Gu Zhongyan could sense traces of magical energy from the frail child before him.

That magic carried a violent, sulfurous scent, characteristic of demonic power.

Yet Black Void was only a vessel for the Beast, so the magic within him was extremely faint, almost negligible.

However, if the right method was used, the faint magic within him could create a channel between Hell and Earth, enabling the Beast’s power to descend.

Upon hearing Gu Zhongyan’s confirmation, Matt had no choice but to believe him. He sighed helplessly. “Alright, so what do you plan to do now?”

“This child can’t stay hidden here forever. I can sense his condition is already dire. He needs proper care,” Matt said earnestly.

“That depends on whether our young wizard truly has the ability to eliminate the Beast,” Stick Elder remarked, casting a glance at Gu Zhongyan.

Knowing Stick Elder still doubted his abilities, Gu Zhongyan didn’t bother to explain.

“Rather than questioning me, how about you help me out? I need some materials for my magic. If you two are free, could you lend me a hand?”

“What do you need?” Matt asked.

“Gold, silver, and various gemstones and jade—the higher the quality and the greater the variety, the better. Just gather as much as you can.”

“But no diamonds. The gold and silver must weigh at least thirty grams each, and there must be at least one gemstone or jade. That’s the minimum requirement.”

Matt frowned slightly at these words. Such things were hardly cheap; as a struggling lawyer, he couldn’t afford such an expense.

In contrast, Stick Elder, despite his shabby appearance, remained calm upon hearing this list. He replied coolly, “Is that all?”

Gu Zhongyan could not stand the elder’s lofty, impassive demeanor, and responded with a cold laugh.

“I’d love to have other materials, like unicorn hair, night hippogriff tail feathers, or White River monster spines. But I doubt you’ve even heard of those, let alone procured them.”

“So I won’t make things difficult for you.”

Hearing Gu Zhongyan's sarcasm, Stick Elder’s brow furrowed, but he said nothing more, leaving only, “I’ll bring the items tomorrow,” before vanishing into the night.

Knowing that Gu Zhongyan and Stick Elder were at odds, Matt said nothing further.

He cast a worried glance at the Asian boy, who was trying his best to curl into himself, and couldn’t help but ask, “Is there anything I can do?”

Gu Zhongyan thought for a moment. “Go buy some food. This child must have been hungry for a long time. Besides, I’d like to use this opportunity to see if I can communicate with him.”

“Alright, I understand,” Matt nodded, quickly disappearing within the factory.

Once Matt had left, Gu Zhongyan turned to the Asian boy. Noticing the gaze, the boy instinctively shrank back, burying his head in his knees, afraid to look at Gu Zhongyan.

Gu Zhongyan frowned, realizing the boy must have suffered greatly at the hands of the Triad. Otherwise, he wouldn’t react like this.

“Hello, can you speak English?” he tried.

Receiving no response, and recalling that Yoshioka Shin was Japanese, Gu Zhongyan tried a few phrases in Japanese.

But his knowledge was limited to a handful of words—mostly borrowed phrases with little real meaning.

As someone from the Flower Nation, Gu Zhongyan had little interest in learning Japanese. Had the boy not been so young, he might have blurted out even less appropriate words.

It was merely an attempt to see if the boy would react to Japanese.

Yet the boy remained unresponsive.

So he switched to Mandarin. “Hello, do you speak Mandarin?”

This time, the boy finally responded. His body moved slightly, his head lifting just a bit before quickly tucking it back down.

Gu Zhongyan felt both joy and anger. Joy, because as expected, the boy was from the Flower Nation; anger, because damn those Japanese dogs—even in the Marvel world, they were still causing trouble for his people.

Suppressing his anger, Gu Zhongyan tried to make his tone gentle.

“Are you from the Flower Nation? So am I. In fact, I’m only a few years older than you.”

“What’s your name, where are you from? Guangdong? Hunan? Guangxi?”

“What do you like to eat? Spicy chicken? Hot dry noodles? Or steamed buns from Dog Don’t Care?”

“What grade are you in? Do you have evening self-study? I used to hate those.”

He went on, chatting aimlessly, trying to find topics that might spark the boy’s interest.

Perhaps the goodwill was enough; the boy gradually dared to look up at him, though his gaze still flickered with some timidity—it was much better than before.

Seeing the progress, Gu Zhongyan pressed his advantage, extending a finger and intoning, “Expecto Patronum!”

A silvery-white sprout slowly floated from his fingertip, drifting toward the boy.

Witnessing this magical scene, the boy instinctively widened his eyes, staring intently at the guardian spirit in the air.

“Would you like to play with it? Tell me your name, and I’ll let it play with you,” Gu Zhongyan said gently.

Hearing this, the boy hesitated, pursed his lips, and after much deliberation, whispered, “Su Yan.”

Gu Zhongyan smiled. “Su Yan, is it? My name is Gu Zhongyan, but around here they call me Sean Gu. If you don’t mind, you can call me Brother Gu.”

“Brother Gu,” little Su Yan nodded, using a voice a bit louder than before.

“Good boy.”

Gu Zhongyan smiled, reaching out to gently pat Su Yan’s head.

As the two grew closer, Gu Zhongyan finally learned more about the boy’s situation.