As the master of his own brain and a professional with such high development of cerebral domain, Yu Zhezhong immediately realized that Qin Xuezhong had accessed his memories and sensed his emotions.
For a moment, both of them felt a bit awkward and fell silent.
In Creek Valley City, there is a customary practice. When someone wants to express their feelings, they extract a short virtual dream segment from a machine, capturing moments when they miss a person. This way, the beautiful scenery they saw and the emotions they felt while thinking of the other person can be sensed by the recipient.
It's a romantic and straightforward way of confessing feelings.
Although Yu Zhezhong didn't think too much about it, he quickly realized that seeing Qin Xuezhong in his home, waiting for her with dinner, was somewhat similar to the way young people express their feelings through these virtual dream segments.
But who would forcibly access such private moments?
Moreover, these past years he had either been in combat or conducting research, and then he became a puppet. He was completely clueless about romance.
At that moment, he found himself at a loss for words.
On the other hand, Qin Xuezhong didn't even know this custom; she just felt a bit embarrassed for seeing someone else's privacy.
A former high-ranking officer and a genius researcher playing the role of a housekeeper at home, and looking quite happy doing it. Wouldn't that make Yu Zhezhong feel awkward?
Not wanting to dwell on that, Qin Xuezhong decisively said, "They might have already come looking for you. Let me help you block the puppet system first, then we can escape."
"Okay." Yu Zhezhong also focused his mind.
Xiao Qin was very decisive, but after she blocked the puppet system within Yu Zhezhong's body, she didn't know what to do next.
In the training modules she had been through, it was all relatively simple. It was one thing to escape on her own, but if she had to take a companion who was clearly in bad shape, her mind went blank.
Seeing her confusion, Yu Zhezhong calmly said, "Follow me."
He moved as if he were at home, quickly rummaging through the cabinets to find several cleaning products that Qin Xuezhong didn't recognize, and pulled out some metal parts.
After quickly mixing them, he placed everything in the microwave.
"This is a makeshift explosive; it will explode about two minutes after being heated in the microwave," he explained.
Then, he gently tugged on Qin Xuezhong's wrist, indicating they should head out through the balcony at the back of the kitchen.
His hand felt weak, yet it exuded a powerful confidence that made Qin Xuezhong follow him instinctively.
He first grabbed two pieces of clothing from the balcony, handed one to Qin Xuezhong, and put the other on himself. He briefly explained, "They saw our clothes when they controlled me, so changing outfits will make it harder to be spotted."
Xiao Qin complied.
Next, he effortlessly removed the kitchen door and positioned it at the junction of the neighboring balcony, creating a makeshift bridge.
He crossed over first, and to reassure Qin Xuezhong, he quickly grabbed a rope from the neighboring balcony and tossed it over.
"Wrap it around your waist, hold on tight, and walk over slowly without looking down. Just keep your eyes on me."
Xiao Qin was indeed a bit scared.
This apartment wasn't high—only ten floors. She instinctively glanced down and saw the bustling street below, the neon lights blending with the smoke from food stalls. Looking down made her a bit dizzy.
Her heart raced.
After all, Qin Xuezhong wasn't a combat-trained individual like Yu Zhezhong. Even with various skills, she was still an ordinary person prone to nervousness.
At this moment, Yu Zhezhong reiterated, "Don't look down; just focus on me."
When Qin Xuezhong glanced over, Yu Zhezhong's gaze was very serious and captivating, the lights outside reflecting various colors in his pupils.
For reasons she couldn't explain, Xiao Qin felt a bit more at ease and mustered the courage to step onto the balcony, moving toward him.
The door panel was quite short; even with careful steps, she crossed in just three strides.
Yu Zhezhong firmly held onto Qin Xuezhong's upper arm, guiding her down.
After that, everything turned into Yu Zhezhong's personal performance.
He struck the door panel with force, creating an almost undetectable crack.
"If someone comes chasing after us, this might give them a chance to fall," Yu Zhezhong explained while using a small tool to unlock the neighboring balcony door.
At that moment, a loud crash echoed from Qin Xuezhong's apartment.
"They're here; let's go."
Yu Zhezhong led Xiao Qin swiftly through the neighbor's house, exiting and entering the fire escape.
From the fire escape, they moved into another family's room.
As they passed through, he casually grabbed a couple more pieces of clothing.
"I was worried we'd be caught in the fire escape, so changing our clothes again is safer," he explained.
Throughout the process, Yu Zhezhong remained calm, moving without haste, adopting a graceful and efficient pace as they advanced.
Unlocking doors, moving through rooms, grabbing a couple of items, and misdirecting any pursuers.
Xiao Qin simply followed his lead, and it felt like a quick stroll as they reached the ground floor.
By then, their appearances and clothing were completely different.
They looked like two low-level clerks living here, dressed in cheap business suits and skirts, wearing masks to protect against air pollution, with disheveled hair and the look of having pulled an all-nighter.
Blending into the crowd, Yu Zhezhong immediately slowed his pace.
Qin Xuezhong could clearly see more black-clad individuals patrolling the area, and even drones flying overhead.
The two of them continually navigated between food stalls and small shops. Occasionally, Yu Zhezhong would pull Xiao Qin close, ducking down at a stall and handing her something to eat.
With the pressure lifted, Qin Xuezhong even found herself feeling a bit full.
Before long, they entered a nearby parking lot.
As they passed by a person coming out of the parking lot, Yu Zhezhong bumped into him, apologized, and swiftly pocketed a car key from the man.
After a few taps, a regular flying car lit up not far away.
Xiao Qin watched the whole process, somewhat dazed.
Approaching the car, Yu Zhezhong headed for the passenger seat.
As soon as he opened the door, he collapsed into the seat, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead.
Qin Xuezhong rushed over, "What's wrong?"
Yu Zhezhong clearly struggled to suppress his pain, trying to speak clearly, "Something in my stomach seems to have activated."
Qin Xuezhong: !!!
"Can I connect in to help suppress it?"
"No, I can't feel any conscious connection anymore; it needs to be taken out quickly."
As he spoke, he sent her an address, "This is an underground clinic; there shouldn't be anyone there now. Let's go."
Qin Xuezhong nodded, quickly starting the flying car.
Fortunately, these cars generally have very intelligent auto-pilot systems. Even though she wasn't very skilled at driving, they successfully took off.
The address Yu Zhezhong provided was close; almost as soon as they were airborne, the car began to descend, gradually approaching a dark alley.
Yu Zhezhong pulled a syringe from his pocket, trembling as he injected himself.
After the injection, his trembling body visibly relaxed a bit.
Qin Xuezhong glanced at him with concern.
Yu Zhezhong immediately reassured her, "It's nothing; just a game, I'm used to it."
Used to it?
Xiao Qin listened silently. She didn't say much, but she knew that behind the words "I'm used to it" often lay countless unimaginable stories.
"Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Not right now; let's talk inside." As soon as they landed, Yu Zhezhong pushed the car door open.
The clinic was dark and empty.
Yu Zhezhong didn't seem familiar with the place, but after a quick glance, he turned on the lights and found a well-equipped operating room. Without any hesitation, he lay down on the table and lifted his shirt.
Qin Xuezhong saw that the irregular bulge on his stomach had grown significantly larger and was slightly writhing.
Yu Zhezhong bit down on his shirt and splashed a bottle of disinfectant on his belly.
Then, he pulled out the gun that Qin Xuezhong had found under the bench.
"The anesthesia and the scalpel can be controlled automatically, but when the thing inside comes out, you need to kill it quickly to avoid further danger," he said.
Xiao Qin had never seen such a scene before; her face paled a bit, but she gritted her teeth and moved closer to the operating table.
Yu Zhezhong seemed to relax a bit, saying, "It's okay; as long as we can cut it out, it'll be fine. It's actually quite fun."
He emphasized with a light-hearted tone, clearly trying to comfort Xiao Qin.
She managed to nod in response.
Yu Zhezhong smiled, pulled over the nearby control panel, and quickly tapped a few times.
The entire operating table began to move.
First, it injected anesthesia, then secured his body parts. Next, a gleaming automatic scalpel approached Yu Zhezhong's stomach.
With a gentle slice, blood and mucus surged out.
Following that, a horrifying limb resembling a large insect began to emerge.
Initially, a mechanical arm on the operating table was supposed to grasp this limb, but perhaps due to the excess mucus, it slipped away during the grab!
With immense force, the limb flung sideways, cutting a gash on Yu Zhezhong's arm.
Qin Xuezhong, already feeling tense, saw the situation go awry and quickly stepped forward, wrapping her hand in her clothing. Guided by the returning mechanical arm, she slowly pulled the creature out.
—It was a bizarre fusion of a giant mantis and a small gorilla. The main body was only fist-sized, yet it was covered in hard appendages, resembling a mutated sea urchin.
Without hesitation, Qin Xuezhong fired, shooting off all the limbs of the creature before landing three shots at the central core.
Dark green mucus spilled all over the floor.
She gasped for breath and glanced back at the operating table— the mechanical arm had already begun stitching up the wound.
Yu Zhezhong's breathing steadied as he slowly opened his eyes.
"Are you okay?" Qin Xuezhong asked.
"I'm fine," Yu Zhezhong replied with a smile. "It's not my first time; I'm used to it."