Qiangzi

Black Rock City, outskirts.

Inside an abandoned old house, Steward Diao of the Netherworld Organization held a phone and repeatedly dialed the same number, his face full of anxiety and irritation.

His call log showed that he had already called the number dozens of times, yet every time it rang for ages without anyone answering.

"Hello, the number you have dialed is temporarily unavailable, please wai—" As the familiar female voice came from the phone again, Steward Diao immediately hung up. He squeezed so hard that cracks spread across the phone screen.

Staring at the shattered screen, Steward Diao had originally wanted to throw the phone away, but unwilling to give up, he dialed the number again.

To his surprise, it was answered after only two rings.

"Elder Feng!" Steward Diao said excitedly. "I finally got through to you. Did your mission go smoothly?"

"The mission is complete. The target has been eliminated!" The voice on the other end was firm and forceful.

"Ah, that's good. With you personally handling it..." Steward Diao suddenly paused. "Wait, you killed that woman? Didn't the higher-ups say to keep her alive?"

"Why should I, Feng Buqing, explain my actions to anyone?"

"Th-this... yes, yes, you're right. Did you get the formula, then?"

"Half a pound of Solomon's seal, half a pound of astragalus, half a pound of apples, half a pound of oranges. Boil two bowls of water down until half a bucket remains. Don't drink it. Just pour it out."

"That's the formula?" Steward Diao scratched his head. "You have to be joking."

At that point, Steward Diao sensed that something was wrong. Lowering his voice, he asked, "Elder Feng, did something happen? You're not usually like this."

But Elder Feng started rapping over the phone. "I was never this kind of person, but because of you, I became a strange person, the first time I became like this..."

Steward Diao's expression changed as he shouted, "You're not Elder Feng! Who are you really?!"

"I am a delicate maiden, not a man."

Just as Steward Diao was about to question him further, a heart-wrenching cry came from the other end of the phone. "Qiangzi, don't go, Qiangzi..."

The call had not ended, but no matter what Steward Diao said, he received no response. All he could hear was "Qiangzi" over and over again.

In a fit of rage, Steward Diao clenched his fist and crushed the phone into a lump of scrap metal.

"This matter is of great importance. I must report it to the higher-ups."

He then took one of his subordinates' phones, dialed a number, and reported the entire sequence of events.

"During the call, someone named 'Qiangzi' was mentioned repeatedly. He may be connected to this matter, so we can start investigating from that angle."

"Also, the Hunters who escorted Liu Wenyin should be returning to Black Rock City one after another. I'll question them individually."

"This should be the one. What do you think?" Liu Wenyin asked, looking at Su Ze beside her.

"Pretty good. It's quiet around here, spacious enough, and it even has a yard. Most importantly, it's clean."

"Then it's settled!"

Su Ze had accompanied Liu Wenyin to look at houses all morning, and they had finally found a fairly good one.

They immediately signed a rental contract through an agent and paid half a year's rent.

They might not even stay for a month, but there was no helping it. The landlord required payment in six-month installments.

It was only a little wasted money. No big deal.

Afterward, they picked up Aunt Yun from the hotel and brought her to the house.

The newly rented house still needed many things, such as bedding and toiletries, so Liu Wenyin pulled Su Ze out to buy them.

As they passed a market, Liu Wenyin said, "Let's buy some groceries."

"You can cook, Sis?"

"I learned."

"That's great."

Su Ze was a little excited. Living in Luofan Kingdom, eating was a major problem. He truly could not stomach Luofan Kingdom's cuisine.

It was said that a Cocoon Breaking Stage expert from another country had eaten street food in Luofan Kingdom and ended up with diarrhea so severe he nearly collapsed.

Even Evolvers could not withstand Luofan Kingdom's food, yet its ordinary citizens were perfectly fine after eating it. All that could be said was that the Luofan people's digestive systems ranked among the best evolved in the world.

They bought some vegetables and seasonings, then went to the busiest street nearby to purchase daily necessities.

There was a great deal of foot traffic on this street. Several shops specializing in Evolution items had opened there, and quite a few Hunters came here to buy and sell Evolution items.

As Su Ze and Liu Wenyin passed by, they heard several Hunters talking loudly.

"Jabani and his group really stepped in shit! They actually found the corpses of two Tier 2 Exotic Beasts during this trip into the mountains!"

"Not just them. That gambling addict next door to me went into the mountains with a team yesterday and came back today. They just wandered around halfway up the mountain, and the loot they found filled every bag their whole team had!"

"What's been going on these past two days? Exotic Beast corpses keep turning up in Black Rock Mountain Range, and the Evolution Substance is still perfectly preserved—the kind that can be made into extracts."

"I'm so jealous. I'm heading into the mountains tomorrow too!"

Su Ze and Liu Wenyin exchanged a glance. They both found it a little strange, but it had nothing to do with them, so they did not think much about it and left directly.

After buying everything they needed, the two returned to the rental house carrying bags upon bags of goods.

Liu Wenyin was responsible for cooking, while Su Ze was responsible for putting things away and making the beds.

By the time Su Ze had finished tidying up, Liu Wenyin had finished cooking as well.

Looking at the four dishes and one soup on the table, all fragrant and enticing, Su Ze's appetite was thoroughly awakened. He picked up a piece of braised fish with his chopsticks and tasted it. "Mmm! Delicious!"

Su Ze gave her a thumbs-up and showered her with praise. "Sis, how do you manage to be brilliant at the podium and in the kitchen?"

"Cooking is actually similar to doing experiments. What goes in first, what goes in afterward, how much oil to use, how much water to add—there are fixed measurements for all of it. How to cook it, how high the heat should be, and how long it should cook all have standards too. Every dish is like a formula. You just plug everything in. It's very simple."

Su Ze blinked. Was it really like that?

But after Liu Wenyin put it that way, Su Ze noticed that every dish she made turned out exactly as it was supposed to. The seasoning was balanced, and the sweetness and spiciness were just right.

Though delicious, it lacked a little of that homely warmth.

Sometimes, people's taste buds needed the stimulation of sourness, sweetness, bitterness, and spice to find an extra measure of satisfaction, just like life itself.

But Su Ze was not a picky child. As long as it tasted good, what more could he ask for?

"After dinner, send me a copy of your basic information. I'll have the Dongli Kingdom Household Registration Department create a file for you first," Liu Wenyin suddenly said.

Su Ze froze for a moment, then understood that after investigating him, Liu Wenyin and the Dongli Kingdom behind her had chosen to accept him.

He nodded. "Alright. I don't have much other information anyway. My name is Su Ze, and I'll send you my date of birth later."

Liu Wenyin put down her bowl and chopsticks. "Mm. What about your household registration? Why not register it under my family?"

"Sure. We're family anyway, but... we don't share a surname. What should we put down for our relationship?"

Liu Wenyin thought for a moment. "Put down siblings. Say you're my father's adopted son."

Su Ze said, "Actually, listing us as husband and wife would make more sense."