A Brush with Death

In the bathroom, watching bloody water run between his fingers, Chen Nan suddenly clenched his fists.

"Even if I die, I'll drag those scumbags down with me!" A tragic, heroic resolve surged through him, like a warrior who had crossed the Rubicon with no return.

Though he had sworn such a venomous oath, Chen Nan still felt hollow inside. After all, if something like this happened to anyone, they would not be able to bear it.

He had considered going to the hospital for an examination tomorrow, but then he thought: If I really have some deadly illness, what difference would getting checked make? I might as well pull off one big job while I can.

With that thought strengthening his resolve, he finally calmed down. After brushing his teeth and washing up, he went to bed.

The next morning, Chen Nan heard people downstairs asking questions.

"Ma'am, have you seen this child?"

"Sir, have you seen this child?"

Chen Nan leaned out the window and looked down, confirming that they were the people searching for him. Startled, he immediately pulled his head back in.

What should he do?

Clearly, they were using his photograph to search for him. Even though he always wore a baseball cap, quite a few people here had seen what he looked like. Not to mention the elementary school students living in his room—they knew him even better.

If their luck was not too terrible, finding out about him would be as easy as turning over a hand.

It seemed he had to relocate immediately. Sure enough, staying in one place for too long was not safe. But how was he supposed to leave now?

He could not worry about all that. These people finding their way to this residential complex could not have been a coincidence. He had to get out at once. Otherwise, once they got the answers they wanted, he would not even have a chance to leave.

He immediately contacted the stray dogs downstairs, ordering them to prepare to attack on his command.

He packed up all his belongings, grabbed a utility knife, and left the room with Da Huang.

After entering the stairwell, he could see from the entrance on the first floor that those people were still questioning residents.

One middle-aged woman had even pointed in his direction.

Three burly men came striding over like wolves and tigers.

"Attack!"

At Chen Nan's command, six stray dogs charged at the three men from several directions.

"Ow! These damned dogs!"

The three men cursed furiously. Two of them pulled butterfly knives from their waists, while the other took out a collapsible baton.

A battle of attack and defense between men and dogs began.

Clearly, creatures relying only on instinct could not defeat people wielding weapons. What was more, those three men were obviously skilled at fighting with weapons.

Under the baton's blows, two dogs were injured and retreated from the fight.

Chen Nan was dressed like an elementary school student, and some students happened to come out of the stairwell. He blended in among them, gathered his courage, and edged out with the students.

With dogs attacking people, the children were curious on one hand and frightened on the other. Keeping their distance was perfectly normal. Those three men were busy fighting the dogs and failed to notice the three or five students.

Urged on by parents behind them, Chen Nan followed the children out of the residential complex.

But then another five people came from ahead, rushing fiercely toward Chen Nan!

Chen Nan could only lower the brim of his cap and watch them from the corner of his eye.

Time seemed to slow...

Thump~tap~

Thump~tap~

His heart pounded with tension, and Chen Nan panted heavily.

Those vicious-looking men came before Chen Nan and revealed their weapons...

Yet they passed right by him.

So they had heard the sounds of fighting inside and rushed in. They had not paid any attention to the students around them.

Cold sweat streamed down from Chen Nan's temples. He did not dare run too fast, and it seemed he could not run anyway. His legs were as weak as though they had been soaked in aged vinegar for ten thousand years.

"Fine, I'm soft, I'm soft..."

Chen Nan muttered to himself. Fortunately, as he got farther from those people, he gradually hardened up again—his legs, that was!

For Chen Nan, this group passing him by was no different from brushing past Death itself.

"Retreat!"

Chen Nan did not want those dogs to be beaten to death. Though he had not gone far, he still gave the command.

The dogs had all suffered some injuries, but none were fatal. Animals possessed a vitality far beyond that of ordinary humans. The dogs all escaped and scattered in different directions.

Chen Nan knew he could no longer use those dogs—at the very least, he could not take them with him.

Because they were also a distinctive sign that could expose him.

By the time the five who came later arrived, the dogs had already vanished. One of them, with a skull tattoo on his right shoulder, asked, "Water Duck, what happened?"

The one holding the collapsible baton was Water Duck. He spat and said, "Fuck, a few rabid dogs came out of nowhere and started biting us. Do we look that much like bad guys?"

The tattooed man was called Ghost Head. He frowned. "How is the search for that child going?"

Water Duck tilted his head and said arrogantly, "We've got a pretty good idea already. Someone saw him. He's in this building. We'll go up now and search door by door. We'll definitely corner him in his room."

Ghost Head froze. He recalled the few students he had seen when running into the residential complex. One of them had been wearing a baseball cap.

Combined with the dogs attacking his men for no reason, he instantly realized something.

"You really are useless! That kid got away! Go after him, now!" Ghost Head shouted.

Water Duck did not believe it, but Ghost Head was their leader, and he did not dare disobey. He took several people and went after Chen Nan.

Ghost Head stayed behind and headed into the stairwell, where he happened to run into the students who shared a room with Chen Nan...

Chen Nan had already run to Hidden Money Alley. After having Rat hand over all the money, he immediately hailed a taxi and headed into the city.

The place he intended to go was the Immortal Realm club. Things had already come to this point; Chen Nan had to take a risk.

Literary works had always told people that the most dangerous place was often the safest. Chen Nan did not entirely agree with that, but at this moment, he had no choice but to do exactly that.

He had his own reasons. First, bastards like them probably did not read much. Besides, everyone knew the descriptions in books were basically nonsense. No one in their right mind would walk toward danger.

Furthermore, the other side had already sent people to the outskirts of Wu City. The Immortal Realm, located in the city center, probably would not have many people there.

In any case, he had to gamble on it. And after obtaining what he needed from Secretary Huang, he would have had to visit the Immortal Realm anyway.

With Secretary Huang's documents, he could only ensure that someone would be able to wield the weapon of law. But if he wanted to uproot them completely, he had to hand the enemy's weaknesses to the person wielding that weapon.

As Chen Nan was thinking, a girl suddenly waved at the taxi, and the taxi actually stopped.

Before Chen Nan could protest, the girl got in from the other side. Once seated, she told the driver, "Take me to Immortal Realm."

The driver gave a cold laugh. "Sure thing!"

Chen Nan turned his face away, but the girl recognized him at once. She grabbed him and said in surprise, "Hey, isn't this the kid who watched porn at the internet café? Skipping school again?"

The driver laughed. "The place this kid's going is pretty similar to yours."

The girl stared at Chen Nan. "Little brother, watching a website is one thing, but that place isn't somewhere you can go. You'll ruin your body. When the time comes, you won't even know what tune to cry to."

After the intense strain he had just endured, Chen Nan was completely dumbfounded. He was still a child! What were they even thinking?

Before Chen Nan could refute her, the girl suddenly opened her mouth in shock, then whispered, "It's you? So it's you! Are you looking to die, running back here?"

A chill shot up Chen Nan's spine and straight into his scalp.

"You... you work at Immortal Realm?" Chen Nan asked softly. "You're also from the Orphanage..."

The girl immediately covered Chen Nan's mouth, then said to the taxi driver, "We're getting out!"

The driver said unhappily, "We haven't reached the destination yet!"

The girl immediately tossed ten yuan over. The moment the money landed in his hand, his principles vanished. The driver promptly pulled over, and the girl dragged Chen Nan out of the car.

After the taxi drove away, the girl pulled Chen Nan into a secluded place and asked, "You're the child who escaped from the Orphanage?"

Chen Nan could not sense any malice in the girl's mind, so he told her the truth. "Yes, I am."

The girl looked at him for a long time before saying, "You're really amazing."

Chen Nan asked, "You were also from the Orphanage, and after they finished training you, they sent you to work at Immortal Realm, right?"

The girl nodded, her face filled with sorrow.

Chen Nan sighed. "What's your name?"

The girl gave a helpless smile. "How could I have a name? I have a stage name, Butterfly Loves Flowers. They named me that based on the shape down there!"

Chen Nan was speechless. The girl continued, "Since you've already escaped, hurry and leave Wu City. They're looking for you everywhere. If you stay in Wu City, something will happen to you sooner or later."

Chen Nan smiled. "Just now, I brushed past the people who wanted to kill me. It was dangerous, but I'm not leaving. I'll bring those scumbags to justice. When that happens, you'll all be free."

For a moment, an unusual light flashed across Butterfly Loves Flowers's face—the light of longing for something beautiful. But it dimmed in an instant. She said listlessly, "That's impossible. You don't know how powerful they are.

"It's not as though no one has wanted to bring them down, but all those people vanished from the face of the earth."

Chen Nan fixed his gaze on Butterfly Loves Flowers. He did not deliberately use his ability, only spoke with unwavering determination. "I'm not asking you to believe me. I only hope you can fight back. Help me collect evidence of Immortal Realm's crimes, then give it to me. Once I have that evidence, I'll naturally have other ways to send them to court."

Butterfly Loves Flowers fell silent. Her heart was lost and uncertain. On one side was the danger of death; on the other was a life of humiliation. Which side was she supposed to choose?

Though Chen Nan was still a child, he did not feel like merely a child to her.

At the very least, over all these years, how many had managed to escape that hellish Orphanage? Not one—except Chen Nan.

This child must possess some special means, or something else beyond the ordinary.

But that was not the most important thing.

Butterfly Loves Flowers looked into Chen Nan's eyes. They were so clear and pure, like heaven itself—

"Why did you go watch that kind of website?" she suddenly asked.

Chen Nan was speechless again. Helplessly, he said, "I only went online to investigate the Orphanage. Maybe the internet café manager misunderstood when I asked for a secluded computer."

"Fine. I'll help you," Butterfly Loves Flowers said.