Fated One. Now, I have no clue how you’d translate that into another language, but in Chinese, it’s one of those titles that’ll send a chill down your spine. When people talk about the supreme destiny, or someone with fate hanging over them, they usually mean someone with massive luck—and even bigger responsibilities. Usually, in Chinese, "destiny" is all about imperial power, the throne, being the absolute ruler.
And then there’s "awakening." That word’s got even more hidden meaning. It means the Fated One is still snoozing—hence the whole awakening thing.
The "Chosen Ones" have already made a huge fuss, but as soon as the prophecy about the "Fated One" hit the scene, everyone’s nerves went taut.
Honestly, even Jack Young himself couldn’t help but wonder if he was the Fated One when he heard those three words.
"Chosen Ones, SD Syndicate, all the factions—everyone’s here for the Fated One. Some just want to join the party, others have their own shady motives and keep stirring up trouble behind the scenes." Jasper Xiao said seriously to Jack Young, "Whenever someone hears a rumor, they start guessing if the person is the Fated One. So, with all this suspicion and snooping, everyone’s careful but also super ambitious. That’s Shanghai for you right now."
While Jasper Xiao was talking, Jack Young glanced over at a guy sitting in a far-off corner. Even though Jasper had used his powers to muffle their voices—so much so that even the folks at the next table wouldn’t notice—this guy was still sneakily keeping tabs on them. If Jack hadn’t seen all sorts of tricks back in Steel Balls City, he might’ve missed the guy’s weird moves.
"You’re being tailed," Jack Young whispered telepathically, then spoke out loud, "Let’s go, time for a stroll."
Jasper Xiao was no slouch at counter-surveillance either. He stretched lazily, patted his belly, and said, "Haha, you’re right! Let’s head out and walk off some of this grub!"
So the two of them got up and left. Jack Young could sense that the guy was indeed tailing them. Through his special sight, he couldn’t see any boundary marks, so the guy probably wasn’t a Chosen One—though who knows which side he was on. Jack shot Jasper a look, asking if they should nab him, but Jasper shook his head, saying it wasn’t the right time. The two melted into the crowd and started making their escape.
The guy following them was pretty professional, but his perception was several levels below theirs. After a couple twists and turns, the two obvious big guys had vanished from sight. He rushed to where they’d last stood, looked left and right, and finally had to admit—frustrated and helpless—that he’d lost them.
"That guy’s after you." At a not-so-hidden but easy-to-overlook little food stall nearby, Jack Young looked at the tail and asked, "SD Syndicate?"
"No clue. I get tailed all the time. My family background is so weird, I can barely hide the fact that I’m a Chosen One. The Queen even called me her 'henchman,' but right now..." Jasper Xiao gave a wry smile. "I don’t know if I’m an eagle, a dog, or just some rabbit leading the wolves. And I’ve got no idea if these people are here to protect me, watch me, or something way more complicated. I didn’t even dare travel to Shanghai with my teammates—been dodging around solo, haven’t even shaved. Still got tailed, though."
"In that case, I recommend you carry some tasty snack sticks—good for eating, throwing, and smoke bombs too (Gintama reference)." Jack Young scanned the area. When it came to counter-surveillance, Jasper Xiao couldn’t hold a candle to him. "Alright, no tail for now. Let’s get you cleaned up; can’t have you looking all scruffy. We’ll chat as we walk."
"Sounds good."
Jack Young gave Jasper Xiao a proper makeover—looked much better after. As they walked, they swapped intel.
Jasper Xiao’s top concern was The Queen’s whereabouts and safety. Jack Young assured him she’s in another world, but not in any danger.
Jasper Xiao felt relieved.
Jasper’s second concern was Jack Young’s own situation. He asked if there was anything he could help with. Jack Young admitted he had a headache of a problem, but doubted Jasper could really help. Then he reconsidered—no harm asking for backup—so he explained the situation and handed Jasper an "Emergency Fool Plan," hoping Jasper could force a shutdown if things got out of hand.
Jasper Xiao promised to help, saying, "Hey, one of the best uses for a hammer is to whack something bad until it’s good again." He was pretty confident in his hammer—said it worked wonders on anything.
Jasper Xiao’s third concern was Li Yuncong’s whereabouts. He asked Jack Young if he’d seen his mecha partner. Jack said he hadn’t seen Li Yuncong, but figured the kid was a lucky charm and would be fine. Jack then teased, "Since you already went to a fortune-teller, why didn’t you ask them, and now you’re asking me?"
Jasper Xiao was like—oops, totally forgot about that kid. Hahaha…
After a bunch of random chit-chat and nonsense, Jasper Xiao finally got around—blushing a bit—to his fourth concern, which might actually be his biggest: "Teacher, what’s your deal with The Queen? She called you her 'brother,' but what does that even mean?" Jack Young replied, "The most accurate way to put it: we share the same dad and mom."
Jasper Xiao was totally relieved.
But seeing Jasper Xiao like that, Jack Young suddenly laughed. Not too long ago, he wouldn't have even thought in that direction, like his brain just didn't work that way. But now he got it instantly and said, "If you’ve got any ideas, bro, better give up now."
Jasper Xiao was confused, indignant, and a bit upset. "Why? Does she already have a boyfriend or something?"
Jack Young summed it up in one line: "We share parents—and a bunch of other stuff, like sexual orientation."
Jasper Xiao was like, "Wait… what?" He stared for ages, looking totally shocked. He stayed spaced out all the way to their destination. After a while, he suddenly snapped back to reality, like he’d thought of a solution, and urgently asked, "What if I switched genders? Like, if I found some Jusenkyo water or something—would that work?"
"You…" Jack Young was speechless, then gave a thumbs-up. "You’re really going all out—seriously, are you joking or for real?"
"Of course I’m joking." Jasper Xiao gave a helpless, wry smile and shook his head. "Just venting, saying whatever… Oh, and don’t let her find out about any of this!" He looked exactly like a middle schooler terrified of getting caught in a scandal—his emotional intelligence dropped ten years in an instant.
"Well… I promise I won’t 'tell her.' Not that I need to—whatever I know, she definitely knows too. So, technically, I’m not lying."
"Good bro, you’ve got my back!" Jasper Xiao slung his arm around Jack Young’s shoulder, giving a thumbs-up. "I’m not giving up—still got plans to 'straighten things out.' If she finds out, it won’t work!"
Jack Young casually brushed off his hand, face full of that classic 'Heh heh heh' meme expression.
Straighten things out? Kid, you’re way too naive.
"So The Queen isn’t even in Shanghai. Looks like this whole Fated One prophecy has nothing to do with her." Jasper Xiao frowned, puzzled and a little disappointed. "She’s the most unique person I’ve ever met—never thought it wouldn’t be her."
Looking at Jasper Xiao, Jack Young suddenly had an idea. "Got any concrete intel about the Fated One? Like the style, color, or location of their boundary mark? You’re pretty special yourself. Out of all the Chosen Ones I’ve met, yours is the only silver mark."
"Me?" Jasper Xiao was stunned, then thought for a moment. "Now that you mention it, I never really considered myself. If I were the Fated One..." He pondered, then shook his head, letting the idea go. "Forget it, not worth thinking about. The rumors online are wild, but nobody knows for sure. The prophecy’s just one short line—everything else is a mystery, no point guessing too much."
"Makes sense," Jack Young agreed. "Honestly, whether you or I are the Fated One, or whoever it is, or what being the Fated One even means—none of that matters. What matters is who we are, and what we want to do."
"Well said!" Jasper Xiao’s eyes lit up, flashing a big white grin. "Teacher, we’ve known each other forever but barely talked. Chatting with you today—I really feel like we click!"
Jack Young couldn’t help but smile. He realized that, compared to his Queen mode, he and Jasper Saint Paladin got along much better in Teacher mode—more in sync, more equal. If Queen mode was like a bandit chief talking to his deputy, now it felt more like Gold Horn and Silver Horn—okay, bad example, but this time it really felt like a gentleman’s friendship.
"So, all we can do is watch and see what happens. Let’s go inside."
"Where are we?"
"City Museum. I was planning to come here today anyway, bought a few extra tickets, so I figured I’d bring you along."
"What’s the exhibition?"
"An eighteen-hundred-year-old ancient corpse. The official exhibition starts tomorrow, today’s just a trial run. There’s been a ton of ads about it lately, and I’ve just gotten into history, so here we are." Jack Young handed Jasper Xiao a ticket. "This one’s yours."
Jasper Xiao took the ticket and read out, word by word: "Mo, Du, Corpse, King—Black Death Emperor? That name sounds a lot like the Black Death. Did this Corpse King cause some huge disaster when he was alive?"
"Don’t worry about it—someone will explain everything. Let’s head in."