Hua Xi

In Mine Town's square, following the officer's orders and under the "mayor's" direction, more and more drifters were gathered and sent out in batches to begin the search.

Meanwhile.

In the pitch-black streets and alleys, a short, plump shadow moved like a civet cat, silently leaping between one dilapidated building after another.

The shadow was wrapped head to toe in thick clothing, with even its head tightly covered, leaving only openings for its eyes.

A huge backpack was strapped to its back.

It bulged as though stuffed with many things. Just looking at it made one feel its weight, yet it did not seem to hinder the shadow's movements much.

"Whoosh—"

Amid the howling cold wind.

The shadow finally reached the best-preserved small building in town, climbing the water pipe hand over hand.

Upon reaching the second floor, it cautiously pushed open a window that had not been fully sealed.

Then it sprang inside.

"Thud." After running continuously through the Wasteland, its frozen-hard boots made a faint sound against the wooden floor.

Flakes of snow blew in through the window. In the cold wind, the flames inside the room's stove trembled.

This was not a large room, but it was quite "presentable."

It was about ten square meters, with a wooden bed and a messy quilt left unmade. It was clear the owner had departed in a hurry.

Beside the bed stood an old wooden table cluttered with miscellaneous items: a notebook, a fountain pen, and an unlit kerosene lamp.

A glance showed that the notebook contained a crudely written work-hours chart. Clearly, this was the bedroom of Mine Town's person in charge—the mayor and Burning Fire Company's local agent.

The shadow's gaze swept over the notebook before shifting to the other side of the room.

A burning stove, a washstand, and a wardrobe.

It looked safe enough.

The shadow relaxed slightly. Then, from beneath its bloated clothing, came the hungry protest of a stomach: "Grrr~"

"Thud." It gently set down the backpack, then skillfully lay prone and slid half its body beneath the bed.

Sure enough, numerous boxes and bags were hidden underneath—the stored food supplies.

"Cured meat, dried vegetables, mutated potatoes, liquor... There are even canned goods!"

As one item of food after another was pulled out, the shadow rummaging with its backside in the air began breathing noticeably harder. When it found an iron can, its eyes nearly turned red.

Its vigilance fell with it.

And at that very moment, the shadow felt something hard, thick, and long pressed against its back.

"Don't move!"

A young voice sounded as well.

!!!!

How could there be someone here?

Who was it?

It had clearly checked the room just now!

The shadow's hair stood on end. As though a bucket of ice water had been poured over it, its entire body stiffened.

"Raise your hands and back up... Don't make any sudden moves, or else..." The voice continued, unhurried.

The shadow paused, cooperatively raising both hands and slowly backing away... It seemed to have accepted defeat, but in the next instant, its body compressed, then sprang!

It spun around with lightning speed, raised a leg, and kicked the "gun" behind it away. At the same time, both wrists twisted.

"Shing!"

"Shing!"

Two blades appeared in its hands as though conjured by magic. Crossing its arms, it launched a ferocious scissoring attack at Lin Tuo!

Danger!!

Inside the room.

Lin Tuo, dressed in a black down jacket, abruptly narrowed his eyes!

In the blink of an eye, he saw two coldly gleaming blades slash toward his face!

At that moment, his mind snapped into high alert. His body moved almost on instinct, sliding sideways as he attempted to evade backward.

"Whoosh, whoosh~"

As the figures shifted, the two knives nearly grazed his cheeks, sending cold sweat down Lin Tuo's back despite his lack of experience in life-or-death combat.

Just as he was about to counterattack, he saw in astonishment that after missing, the shadow twisted around and grabbed the huge backpack on the floor.

Its body compressed and sprang again, shooting toward the window like a released spring!

A feint!

The opponent had never expected that strike to kill him. It had only wanted to force him back and buy an opportunity to escape!

"You want to run?"

At the sight, a surge of anger rose in Lin Tuo's heart. Every cell in his body awakened, and Aether churned within him.

He stepped back, forcefully accelerating with the movement techniques of his family's ancient martial arts. He rushed to the window, his right hand forming an "eagle claw" as he viciously locked onto the shadow's ankle.

"Get back here!" he roared inwardly, yanking hard and forcibly dragging back the shadow whose upper body had already flown out the window.

At the same time.

A knee strike slammed viciously into the shadow's abdomen.

The other party immediately let out a muffled groan. Fine beads of sweat formed on its forehead, and its entire body curled up in agony like a boiled shrimp.

Lin Tuo's knee strike was astonishingly powerful.

Thus, the second after he delivered it, he realized he had hit too hard!

After all, if an ordinary person had taken that force, their internal organs would likely have ruptured and they would have been on the verge of death.

Fortunately, this shadow's body seemed far stronger than normal. Though it rolled painfully across the floor, the injury did not appear too serious.

"Clang." Seeing this, Lin Tuo merely kicked away the short knife in the other party's hand, then casually grabbed a thick hemp rope and bound its hands and feet.

"Don't move, and don't shout. If you draw those people over, I won't be responsible."

Lin Tuo tossed out those words, tied the knot, then stood and shut the window. Only then did he turn back and discover that this person was truly tough. After hearing him, it had not made a sound.

It only hissed in breaths, looking to be in considerable pain.

Lin Tuo hesitated, then simply reached out to cut open the other party's clothing and inspect the injury. Unexpectedly, the other party suddenly began struggling fiercely.

"Don't touch me!"

The voice was young and thin, filled with threat.

"A girl?" Lin Tuo froze when he heard it, genuinely surprised.

After all, the padded clothing was so bloated that from the outside, the person looked short and fat. It had been impossible to distinguish their gender.

He reached out and forcibly tore off her hat, hood, mask, and a pair of cold-weather goggles. In the firelight, an exceedingly young, delicate, fair face was revealed.

She was a very young girl, with childishness still lingering between her brows. She looked about fifteen or sixteen at most—perhaps even younger.

Her face was pale and weak, her forehead drenched in cold sweat. She kept sucking in breaths from the pain, yet her eyes glared at him viciously.

"Uh..."

Lin Tuo's movements halted, his heart filled with shock. He had thought this hunted person was some kind of dangerous criminal.

Otherwise, they would not have dispatched two military vehicles to capture her, and their brief exchange just now had confirmed it.

This was completely different from what he had imagined!

But seeing that she was merely in pain and had not coughed up blood or anything, her injury probably was not life-threatening. Lin Tuo was only stunned for a moment before he put on a stern face and said expressionlessly:

"Looks like you're my prisoner now."

The girl maintained her vicious expression as she examined Lin Tuo too. A flicker of surprise passed through her eyes.

"You're not with them?"

Lin Tuo's clothes and bearing were clearly entirely different from those soldiers'.

No, in her eyes, this mysterious person before her seemed utterly out of place with this entire world, unlike everyone she had seen over the years.

"What else would I be?" Lin Tuo exhaled softly, bent down to pick up the rusty steel pipe the girl had kicked away, then dragged over a chair and slowly sat down, sneering.

"If I had a gun in my hand, when would you have had the chance to resist?"

That was practically an admission. The hostility in the girl's eyes weakened slightly, though she remained tense.

"Then who are you? Eastern Old District? A Wasteland Hunter? Or a Gray Mountain Group thug?"

What kind of trash names are these... Lin Tuo grumbled inwardly. He lounged in the chair, even crossing one leg over the other, and said blandly:

"You need to understand your position. You are my prisoner now, so you only get to be interrogated by me."

After a pause, Lin Tuo asked his first question. "Your name?"

Silence.

Inside the room, the girl bit her lips and turned her head away, clearly adopting a hardline stance of refusing to cooperate.

"Your name?" Lin Tuo asked again. Then he clicked his tongue, his gaze suddenly shifting. He used the steel pipe in his hand to hook at the girl's neck, pulling out a metal necklace.

"Ah! What are you doing?" The girl recoiled in fright, but likely tugged at her injury and groaned in pain.

Lin Tuo ignored her and forcibly tore off the necklace. He discovered it was not an ornamental "necklace," but an identification tag.

A brass-colored metal plate hung from the end of the chain. It bore crossed swords and the words "Floating Apocalypse."

Turning it over, he saw a string of numbers on the back, along with a name that clashed entirely with the Wasteland's style.

"Hua Xi? Is that your name?" Lin Tuo raised his head and asked.

The girl said nothing, only turned her head away even more forcefully.

Looks like it was.

Lin Tuo thought to himself. Feeling the lingering warmth on the necklace, he continued asking:

"What is Floating Apocalypse? An organization? It sounds like one.

Hmm, I'm guessing it's the faction you belong to?

So the Gray Mountain Group and the like that you mentioned earlier should also be names of various factions? And those soldiers hunting you, who do they belong to?

Tsk... Don't tell me I've stumbled into a clash between Wasteland factions..."

Listening to Lin Tuo's rambling, the girl named Hua Xi grew increasingly puzzled.

She keenly sensed that this mysterious man probably was not lying.

After all, she was now like a lamb awaiting slaughter... So did he truly not know?

But how was that possible?

Eastern Old District was one thing; it was merely a small local faction.

In this age of inconvenient communication, it was normal for others not to know of it.

But he had never even heard of Gray Mountain Group or Floating Apocalypse, despite possessing such formidable combat ability. It was simply too incredible.

Thinking of combat ability... Hua Xi's confusion deepened.

From their fight just now, she had already confirmed that the other party's strength and combat skills far surpassed hers.

It could even be called a complete crushing advantage.

Yet his "combat experience" seemed extremely lacking.

That was why, when she had risked her life earlier, she had nearly managed to escape.

Yes, he possessed immense strength and skill, yet severely lacked "experience."

Moreover, that young face of his held none of the savagery and brutality of a Wasteland person. Even with a stern expression, he still seemed gentle.

In short, he was strange beyond belief.

And, big brother, you're interrogating me!

If I refuse to answer, shouldn't you be torturing me according to the usual routine?

Like breaking my hands and feet?

Or heating that steel pipe in the stove, then sticking it into my body?

What kind of sense was there in you sitting there, analyzing things with such animated enthusiasm?

Do you even know how to interrogate a prisoner?

Do you want me to teach you?

At that moment, inside Mine Town's small building, Hua Xi—bound to the floor in a duck-sitting posture—suffered a fierce shock to her small heart from the "outside world."