Luck is also a form of strength.
In his previous life, Su Fan had heard that some companies would specifically recruit employees who seemed exceptionally lucky.
The idea was to have them serve as good-luck charms for the company.
It might have sounded a little superstitious back then, but now that he was genuinely involved in cultivation, he could understand that there was more to it than mere coincidence.
Hiring…
At that thought, Su Fan’s eyes lit up.
His antique shop was in need of an employee who could handle all sorts of matters, both big and small.
This girl not only knew about antiques but was also remarkably lucky. Wasn’t she practically the perfect candidate?
Once the idea took root, Su Fan found himself looking at the girl lying on the floor with a little more warmth.
He needed to find a way to get her to Los Angeles to work for him.
Before long, electricity was restored to the hallway, which had previously been illuminated only by the emergency lights.
As the elevator doors opened, the female receptionist stepped out with a pair of technicians carrying toolboxes.
She was just about to greet Su Fan when she noticed the two unconscious people on the floor. Her expression changed instantly.
The receptionist wasn’t the only one startled. Even the two burly technicians flinched in fright and instinctively tried to retreat into the elevator.
Su Fan had no choice but to sigh, raise a hand, and gesture that he had nothing to do with what had happened.
After the misunderstanding was cleared up, the receptionist called the police. Officers responsible for maintaining law and order in the area soon arrived at the scene with their colleagues.
The officer in charge was a middle-aged man with a thick beard. His overall demeanor reminded Su Fan a little of Dyson.
However, when the officer got a good look at the unconscious girl’s face, he could barely conceal his panic.
“I’ve already checked her condition. She was knocked unconscious by a powerful sedative. If you don’t believe me, you can test the handkerchief that man was carrying.”
Before the officer could say anything, Su Fan spoke up from the side.
Seeing how calm the young man was and how clearly and concisely he expressed himself, the officer took another look at him.
“Please come with us to assist with the investigation.”
As someone involved in the incident, Su Fan was taken to the police station along with the receptionist and the technicians, who had witnessed what happened.
He gave a brief and straightforward account of the events.
“…That’s what happened. The hotel’s surveillance cameras might not have recorded anything because of the power outage, but once the girl wakes up, she’ll be able to confirm that I’m telling the truth.”
The police officer who had returned from outside had been listening throughout the account.
Seeing that Su Fan wasn’t nervous in the slightest and even seemed quite comfortable explaining the details, he asked, “You seem very familiar with police investigations. Have you ever worked at a police station?”
“I have a few friends who work at the Los Angeles Police Department. I occasionally help them solve cases.”
The officer exchanged a glance with the other investigator conducting the questioning.
Just then, another police officer entered the room carrying a stack of documents.
After carefully reviewing them, the officer in charge nodded and turned his attention back to Su Fan.
Everything the young man had said was true.
The man who had disguised himself as a housekeeper had a criminal record in the police database. He was a murderer who had escaped from prison.
The handkerchief he had been carrying really did contain a potent sedative.
“Mr. Su Fan, you’ve been cleared of all suspicion. You’re free to leave.”
The officer personally escorted Su Fan out of the police station.
“I’m sorry we interrupted your vacation plans. And thank you for saving my daughter’s life.”
“Your daughter?”
Su Fan was taken aback.
“Yes. My name is Charlie Swan. As you can see, I’m the police chief of this town. And that girl…”
Before Charlie could finish speaking, his phone rang.
“Please excuse me for a moment…”
He glanced at the caller ID, gave Su Fan an apologetic smile, and answered the call.
“Dad, Mr. Su Fan isn’t a bad person! He’s the one who saved me…”
“Bella, calm down. The investigation is already over. Su Fan was cleared a while ago. I was just about to take him to find another inn where he can stay…”
Charlie continued explaining the situation to his daughter over the phone, completely unaware of the change in Su Fan’s expression behind him.
A father who was the local police chief. A girl who had recently moved here from somewhere else. A high school student named Bella…
Wait a minute.
The girl he’d just saved was none other than the female protagonist of *Twilight*—Isabella Swan!
No wonder her expression and mannerisms had seemed strangely familiar when she opened the door earlier.
They were so much like Kristen Stewart’s characteristically awkward, twitchy acting style. The only difference was that the girl’s actual appearance bore little resemblance to the actress.
It also explained why she had trusted the police’s announcement so readily. After all, her own father was the town’s police chief.
Thinking about it carefully, there had been plenty of clues, yet he had failed to recognize her immediately. The problem was that his preconceived image of Bella had gotten in the way.
The actress herself didn’t have the typical sweet, innocent-girl appearance. Instead, she had a somewhat world-weary look that differed considerably from Bella’s original appearance and personality.
Yet, deep in Su Fan’s subconscious, Bella was supposed to look exactly like Kristen Stewart, affectionately known as K-Stew.
Well, well, well. What were the odds of running into someone like her in such a small place?
Meanwhile, Bella seemed to finally relax after confirming that her father and the other officers hadn’t treated Su Fan too harshly. She then ended the call.
Charlie turned back to Su Fan with a friendly expression.
“Sorry to keep you waiting. I’ll take you to collect your belongings, then help you find another inn. How does that sound?”
Since a murder had occurred at the previous inn, the establishment would have to suspend operations. Staying there was no longer an option.
As a police chief who had lived in the area for many years, Charlie knew all the good places in town.
He was more than willing to show kindness to the young man who had saved his daughter’s life.
Su Fan knew he deserved the courtesy and didn’t stand on ceremony.
Of course, during the drive, he also took the opportunity to discuss the missing-person cases with Charlie, asking him to share any new discoveries as soon as possible.
Knowing that Su Fan had helped with investigations before, Charlie assumed he was simply interested in the progress of the case. He didn’t suspect anything unusual and readily agreed.
In fact, he went a step further and explained some of the specific details.
As it turned out, the police hadn’t accused a brown bear of the attacks without evidence. Some time earlier, a group of officers had gone up the mountain armed with guns and accompanied by police dogs.
There, they had discovered brown bear tracks.
They had even found human teeth in the bear’s droppings.
The theory that a brown bear had attacked people seemed practically conclusive.
Even so, Charlie could sense that something wasn’t quite right. The strangest detail involved the body of one particular victim.
There were human bite marks on the victim’s neck, and not a single drop of blood remained in the body.
“I brought this up with my superiors, but they just told me not to overthink it.”
Charlie couldn’t help sighing as he spoke.
As they continued their conversation, the two soon arrived at an inn that looked quite nice.
Charlie exchanged a few words with the owner, and a room was quickly arranged for Su Fan.
However, as they passed the front desk, Su Fan caught sight of a group of muscular men sitting farther inside. Their upper bodies were bare, and they were chatting merrily among themselves.
Although they were indoors, the winter chill had already seeped into every corner of the town.
Yet these men seemed completely unaffected by the cold. In fact, faint wisps of heat seemed to rise from their skin, and their vitality was so vigorous that they hardly seemed like ordinary humans.
Su Fan knew exactly who they were.
They belonged to another major faction in *Twilight*: the Quileute werewolves, whose supernatural lineage had been passed down through generations.
