"?" Flat-Top felt puzzled but thought that perhaps the boss had hired extra help. Despite his gloomy mood, he still offered the other man a smile as a polite gesture.
Click... Beep.
The sound of a game-over tune came from the cellphone.
The young man squinted and put away his phone.
"Lost again... This level is tough," he said as he ran his hand through his black shoulder-length hair and looked towards the flat-top wearing a black jacket outside the elevator.
"?? You... Not coming out? Buddy?" Flat-Top Black Jacket frowned, the elevator doors had been open for over ten seconds now, but the other party hadn't moved an inch.
"Ah... Sorry, I forgot what I was here to do," the young man said, revealing a suddenly enlightened expression, and lowered his hand.
"Thank you," he said, stepping forward out of the elevator.
Hiss!
In an instant, a streak of red light flashed across Flat-Top's throat.
The light moved so quickly that all Flat-Top saw was a lingering red line in his field of vision.
Blood spattered.
He stood there in shock, raising his hand to touch his neck but felt nothing.
"I..." Flat-Top opened his mouth to speak, but it wasn't until he tried to exhale that he realized he could no longer make a sound.
A sharp pain only then rapidly spread from his neck throughout his body.
'I've been killed!?'
He staggered backwards a few steps, clutching his throat tightly, overwhelmed by pain, lack of oxygen, despair, and a surge of negative emotions.
Hiss.
The red light whirled around and flew back into the palm of the young man.
It was a palm-sized fire-red mechanical knife.
The entire blade was composed of intricate parts, with tiny silver-blue fire lines ejecting from the end.
The blade also bore a string of text, seemingly some kind of encrypted language.
The young man walked out of the elevator, brushing past Flat-Top as he passed by him.
He stopped at the entrance to the living room, didn't push the door but instead raised his right hand.
"Thank you for your trouble, Fire Scythe."
He seemed to be talking to something.
Whir...
In an instant, streaks of red light flew out from his pocket, hovering beside him in mid-air.
Within that red light were several palm-sized mechanical knives.
Standing at the door, the young man extended his hand to the door.
Thump.
Sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle!!
In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen red lights pierced through the door, entering the living room.
The red lights drew multiple red lines, like a set of curved scythes, or a school of agile red fish.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds.
The young man pulled back his hand, gently clenched it.
At once, over a dozen red lights flew back out through the broken door, returning to the pockets in his clothing.
"Perfect," the young man said, turning casually to walk back to the elevator and pressing the button for the first floor.
A breeze blew at that moment, causing the door to slowly tilt and then fall with a crash, exposing the scene within.
Inside the living room, every one of the gang members who had been waiting there lay scattered. Some slumped on sofas, others lay on the floor, and some sat against the walls.
They all had blood flowing from their throats.
On the balcony, Meng Mingcheng lay half-reclined on a lounging chair, staring upwards, with a fire-red mechanical knife stuck in his forehead.
At that moment, the blade lit up with a series of complex red lines, resembling some sort of special circuit diagram.
Boom!!
Suddenly, a burst of flames exploded around the blade.
The fire engulfed the entire apartment — curiously the flames seemed to spread without any combustible material, inexplicably filling every space from the balcony to the living room, bedroom, kitchen, and beyond.
An eerie combustion of air, after igniting everything flammable, exploded again from the center.
Bang!!
The explosive flames burst from the balcony, illuminating the ground below with a bright red glow.
The long-haired young man emerged from the building, glanced at his watch, and began to walk quickly away, whistling.
From start to finish, he never looked back at the explosion.
After leaving the neighborhood, sounds of the property management's firefighting machinery spraying water could be heard behind him.
Outside the complex, several black luxury convertibles were already waiting by the roadside.
The door of the lead car opened, and a two-meter-tall man with sunglasses stepped out.
The muscular man pressed a button on the side of his sunglasses and looked towards the approaching long-haired youth.
"Long time no see, Ding Ning."
"Where's the boss?" The long-haired youth familiarly opened the car door and sat in the passenger seat.
"Waiting for you. As they would say in your Yi Country, he's prepared dinner, a welcome to get you settled in," the muscular man said with a smile.
"As expected of the boss, always knowing what I like, getting everything ready for me," the young man said, patting the car's interior with satisfaction.
"It's a hassle right after you arrive, sorry for the bother," the muscular man started the car, and the triangular headlights slowly brightened with white light.
"Don't mention it, when we get to your main turf, you'll be plenty busy," the young man laughed. "By the way, I heard the boss has set up shop here too?"
"Yeah, after all, there's a lot to do," the muscular man replied with a button press.
The car roared, suddenly accelerating and dashing forward.
The three vehicles formed a convoy, passing through street after street until the apartment complex where Meng Mingcheng resided exploded again in the distance.
The roar spread far and wide, almost lighting up the black clouds in the night sky, tinting them red.
"Such a big commotion?" The driver, worried, asked.
"A gang leader, nobody cares about them," the long-haired young man tapped lightly on the car door with his fingers.
"Many times, acting tough and vicious, banding together for warmth, are just because one is too weak, without anything else to rely on. So make yourself look fierce, and then others won't bully you."
"Anyway, you're the local tough guy, if you say it's fine, then it's fine," the burly man said.
Before long, the car slowed down and stopped in front of a golden restaurant with the Mingde Restaurant sign hanging.
The doorman came forward to open the door.
The long-haired young man sidestepped out of the car and strode toward the wide figure already waiting at the door.
"Long time no see, Boss!" he said with a smile, spreading his arms wide.
"Long time no see, Ding Ning." The figure turned, revealing Xindela's gentle and nostalgic face.
The two men spread their arms and hugged each other fiercely.
*
*
*
Dawn.
The sunlight slanted across the white desk, reflecting a hazy blur of white light.
Li Chengyi lay on his bed without a blanket, hands crossed on his abdomen, looking serene and his body straight.
Whoosh.
Suddenly, his eyes opened without warning, and his hand had already unconsciously touched the gun holster at his waist.
With the holster unsnapped, he had gripped the handle of the gun, ready to draw and fire at a moment's notice.
The automatic pistol could empty the entire magazine in a few seconds.
After making sure of his surroundings, Li Chengyi's tense body slowly relaxed.
"....." He sat up, looking at his right hand holding the gun handle, suddenly feeling a strange sense of touch.
It hadn't been long, and he had become like this....
Sitting on the bed, Li Chengyi felt his head empty, suddenly freed from the imminent threat of the blind spot, his entire being, along with his body and mind, felt an inexplicable sense of weakness.
'No matter what, I might encounter blind spots again in the future; I must quickly strengthen my self-defense. Now that there's no danger, I'd better research Evil Thought Absorption first.'
Li Chengyi glanced at the evil thoughts stuck at 89%.
Getting out of bed, his mind began contemplating how to obtain enough evil thoughts from other sources.
After dressing and leaving the bedroom, his parents had already gone to work, and only his sister Li Chengjiu's room still had sounds coming from it.
Li Chengyi couldn't be bothered to greet her and went about making breakfast with boiled water and eggs.
He liked boiled eggs; just put the eggs in cold water, and they can be taken out once the water boils.
Eggs shouldn't be overcooked, or they would form a black-green sulfide substance on their pale-yellow surface.
He didn't know that before, but then someone told him that this substance is mildly toxic and unfriendly to people with poor digestion, so he paid attention to it.
With two boiled eggs, a carton of milk, and a pack of soda crackers, that was his breakfast for the morning.
Sitting at the dining table in the living room, he ate slowly.
Ding dong.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
Li Chengyi stood up to open the door.
Standing outside was a stranger. Someone he had never met before, wrapped in a black trench coat and wearing a black mask with tea-colored AR glasses, a tall figure.
"Hello, I'm looking for Li Chengjiu," the tall woman said softly with a somewhat hoarse voice.
Only then did Li Chengyi notice the golden braided ponytail at the back of the stranger's head.
"Oh, she's in her room inside," Li Chengyi said, pausing briefly before promptly replying.
He wasn't taken aback by the stranger's weird appearance, but rather the stranger's voice sounded odd, and he didn't understand it at first, only catching on after.
"May I go in? I've also visited a few days ago, and your uncle and aunt have met me," the long-braided woman politely requested.
Removing her glasses, she revealed a pair of gentle-looking blue eyes.
"Of course. Hello, please come in," Li Chengyi stepped aside to let her in.
"My name is Marian, you must be Li Chengjiu's brother, right? It's my first time seeing you, a rare occasion," the blonde-haired woman entered, changing shoes, her voice gentle.
"Is that so?" Li Chengyi smiled, not saying much.
"I wish I had a brother too, but unfortunately, my parents are old and don't want to have another child," the woman said, sitting down on a chair and watching Li Chengyi closely.
"You and your sister look so alike," she said with a smile.
"I'll get you a glass of water," Li Chengyi offered out of courtesy, going to the kitchen to get a disposable cup, ready to pour water.
'Evil Thought Absorption: 92%.'
'Evil Thought Absorption: 100%.'
'Floral Dress's first evolution begins, please wait....'
Suddenly, his hand reaching for the cup trembled slightly.
'Evil Thought Absorption? I'm at home, where are the evil thoughts coming from? Who harbors evil thoughts towards me??!' Li Chengyi's mind turned cold, but he carried on taking out the cup and lifting the kettle to pour water.
The clear water flowed into the cup; he could hear Marian's voice in the living room.
"Chengjiu, your brother is really cute, and your parents are all very nice, how wonderful... No wonder you don't want to...."
"Shut up!!"
With a bang, the bedroom door flung open.
Li Chengjiu's face was cold and fierce, and she walked over to Marian with big steps.
The two women, one standing, one sitting, one twisted in expression, the other smiling.
"How about it?" Marian asked softly, sounding confused.
"...." Li Chengjiu gritted her teeth, veins bulging at her temples and forehead.
"I've been here six times; we are really sincere about you," Marian said softly.
"I...." Li Chengjiu's eyes suddenly felt sore; she felt like crying, but she knew she absolutely, absolutely must not show any weakness!
"You see...." Marian spread her hands, longing visible in her eyes. "You have parents who love you, a brother as cute as a little rabbit, and such a happy, warm home...I..."
"I agree!" Li Chengjiu burst out, cutting her off, "I agree to your terms!"
"Heh, that's good...." Marian slowly stood up, gently hugging the trembling Li Chengjiu.
"Don't be scared, don't be scared, you're doing fine… already doing just fine…"
Li Chengjiu's tears ran down fiercely, and she stood crying.
Without warning and for no apparent reason, she just started crying.