10 PM, Autumnwood Town.
The streets of this small town, not too big and not bustling, were deserted early in the evening. Su Nuo carried a few large spring onions and tomatoes as he walked towards his home when he was stopped by a fully armed military unit on the street.
"Sir, there is currently a temporary curfew ahead. Please detour or wait for a moment," a soldier holding an assault rifle politely said to Su Nuo.
"Curfew? What's happening?" Su Nuo asked curiously.
"Well... it's probably due to a car accident," the soldier replied.
Su Nuo looked at the assault rifle in the soldier's hand, gleaming with a cold aura, and said, "Have the Autobots and Decepticons started fighting again? And you brought this guy with you?"
"I told you it's a car accident. Why so many words? Detour if you're told to detour," the soldier glared at Su Nuo.
While they were talking, a loud boom echoed, causing Su Nuo to startle. A massive fireball rose from behind a nearby building, accompanied by billowing black smoke.
"Damn it! I knew it was the Autobots and Decepticons fighting again!!"
"It's nothing. The sewer was blocked, and we're clearing it."
"Is clearing the sewer supposed to make this kind of noise?"
"This is the noise when we clear the sewer."
Su Nuo: "..."
He looked at the street blocked by green trucks and military jeeps and thought that something suspicious was going on, but he had become accustomed to it.
Ever since the outbreak of the Light Burst incidents, the world had become peculiar, with all sorts of rumors about superpowers, monsters, and various phenomena circulating endlessly.
But ultimately, they were just rumors. The authorities had never provided a clear explanation about the Light Burst; they only said it was a special natural phenomenon and urged the citizens not to panic and to approach it rationally. Although they said so, the authorities had been following the Light Burst wherever it occurred.
The next Light Burst was happening in the nearby Jincheng City, adjacent to Autumnwood Town, and Autumnwood Town was within the coverage area.
The military had stationed themselves here half a month ago, so Su Nuo was no longer surprised.
But it didn't affect Su Nuo much. He had no interest in Light Bursts or superpowers. Life had made him a practical person, and as long as tomorrow's vegetable prices didn't rise, he wasn't worried.
Su Nuo didn't bother the soldier any longer. After all, there was more than one way to get home; he just didn't like the other route.
Because that was a very dark alley. During the day, it was a gathering place for delinquent youths, and at night, it always sparked negative thoughts.
Su Nuo was afraid of two things: spiders and ghosts, and this alley happened to have one of them.
But today, he had no other choice.
Su Nuo took a deep breath and entered the alley. He hadn't walked far when all the light disappeared from his surroundings.
The alley was composed of uninhabited old houses, cluttered with debris. During the day, it was nothing special, but at night, the debris seemed like lurking ghosts in the corners.
For some reason, in the past few days, Su Nuo had been recalling various messy posts he saw on the forum.
Stories like people disappearing due to the Light Burst and their bodies being found in the alley a few days later.
Stories of people seeing monsters in the alley.
Stories of people walking into the alley and never coming out.
Su Nuo shivered and quickened his pace, muttering to himself, "Hmph, it's all nonsense. How could there be monsters in this world?"
Little did he know that, in the pitch-black alley, a pair of malicious and narrow eyes were fixed on him. The owner of those eyes lurked in the darkness, observing Su Nuo's every move as he walked towards the exit of the alley.
At this moment, the creature suffered from the torment of hunger and pain, which made it restless and desperate. And now, a human happened to pass by the alley where it was hiding.
Slowly clenching its sharp teeth and lowering its breath, the creature concealed itself in the darkness, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
As it watched its prey walking briskly, slowly turning away from itself, it knew the time was ripe. Its sharp claws extended slowly, ready to launch a deadly attack.
But just then, the prey suddenly stopped...
The prey turned its head and locked eyes with it...
The prey walked towards it...
The prey reached out and lifted it into the air...
"Huh, whose dog got abandoned here?" Su Nuo examined the bewildered creature, dangling in mid-air with its paws outstretched and a dumbfounded expression.
It was slightly bigger than a cat, covered in dirty and muddy fur that concealed its white coat. It bore numerous injuries and looked like a puppy at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it was not.
"Uh... it's a fox," Su Nuo exclaimed in surprise. "You look like a dog, though."
The little fox: "???"
The little fox stood still for a moment, then frantically flailed its paws. After struggling for a while without being able to deliver the planned lethal blow to Su Nuo, it realized that it may have overestimated its current condition.
It thought, perhaps it was truly going to die here.
Su Nuo looked around, finding the surroundings empty and knowing that there were no residents nearby. He had no idea if the little fox had an owner, but seeing its pitiful state, he sighed and carried it towards his home.
Little did he know that about five minutes after he walked away, two figures appeared at the edge of the alley. They were two middle-aged men dressed in black trench coats, wearing hats that partially concealed their faces.
"Was that presence just now here?" one of the men asked in a low voice. The man's left hand was adorned with a white glove, while the palm of his ungloved right hand crackled with electricity.
"The presence has disappeared. We arrived too late," the other man furrowed his brow. "Strange, after our chase, it should have been on its last legs. Instead of stopping to recover, it actually managed to transfer its power."
"After all, it's a high-level species. High-level species cannot be judged by common sense. If it weren't for its severe injuries due to unknown reasons, we wouldn't have had this opportunity."
"Should we continue the pursuit?"
"Not for now. We've missed the best timing, and even if we find it, the two of us won't be able to handle it. But as long as that thing is still in her possession, it shouldn't be lost." The man put on another glove, covering the dazzling electricity on his hand. "Lift the martial law, inform the squad, and clean up the traces."