"Phew, finally killed it..."
Only after seeing the freak sprawled on the ground like a heap of rotten meat, its blood-red eyes finally shut, did Xiao Xiao let out a long breath.
Now he could finally be certain that the man was dead.
Before he had completely killed him just now, Xiao Xiao had not relaxed in the slightest.
He knew all too well how easy it was to stumble in a ditch. With a man this unfathomable, even cutting off his head might not make things safe.
And now, although he could be certain the man had been dealt with, he still felt shaken.
A thousand-point veteran really was something else...
He had actually felt quite confident all along. Although he had not formally begun the second stage of strengthening, Mind Burst alone could already help him handle many crises. Combined with Extreme Sensitivity, Mind Burst allowed him to display an astonishingly powerful instinct. Even the Old Gramophone's playback effect had turned out to be extraordinarily effective...
With so many advantages, he had still nearly been beaten to death by the other party?
Xiao Xiao felt frightened whenever he thought of what had just happened.
He was clearly only a rookie. Why had he run into such a terrifying and abnormal opponent?
The man had also said he was an outsider, but if he was an outsider, why had he been filled with hostility toward Xiao Xiao?
He took two deep breaths and began analyzing the situation calmly.
He still needed to find Yang Jia and the others. Perhaps only they could explain everything.
"Uh..."
As he was thinking, Xiao Xiao turned around and saw Little Four hanging upside down by the window, his gaze vacant.
"You..."
Seeing a veteran come over, Xiao Xiao became somewhat excited.
"Whoosh..."
The Little Four hanging upside down from the window suddenly jolted the instant Xiao Xiao looked over.
He nearly fell from the window, but his body control was excellent. With a twist and a climb, he successfully slipped into the office. He stood firmly, pressed both hands against the outsides of his thighs, and bowed respectfully. "Hello, Brother Xiao."
"?"
Xiao Xiao was somewhat puzzled, and his emotions were thrown off for a moment.
Although his build and height were indeed somewhat greater, he was only a rookie...
Why was Little Four being so polite to him?
But after only a moment's distraction, he assumed that the boy was simply well-mannered and hurriedly said, "Thank goodness you're finally here..."
As he spoke, he pointed to the heap of rotten meat by the wall. "Someone attacked me just now."
"That scared me to death..."
"..."
Looking at Xiao Xiao's terrified expression, Little Four silently took a step back. His legs trembled slightly.
"Right."
His voice trembled, but he forced himself to control it and said solemnly, "I saw everything just now. You were indeed very frightened..."
As he spoke, he could not help turning to glance at the corpse by the wall... if it could still be recognized as a corpse.
His voice quickly dropped, and he raised a hand to swear. "Brother Xiao, don't worry. I keep my mouth shut. I absolutely won't say anything I shouldn't!"
"?"
Xiao Xiao's emotions were completely interrupted.
Little Four was a veteran, after all. Why did he seem so strange?
He was a rookie who had just suffered such a huge shock. Wasn't Little Four going to comfort him at all?
Just as he was thinking this, he and Little Four stared at each other in an atmosphere that was tense yet somewhat awkward. Suddenly, the roar of an engine came from outside the window. As if rescued, Little Four hurriedly turned toward it.
A black motorcycle and a white SUV sped in from outside the docks. When they neared the office building, both stopped, and Yang Jia and Ruan Ruan emerged.
"Thank goodness you finally came..."
Little Four leaned out the window and waved at them vigorously, looking as though he was about to cry with joy.
"That scared me to death..."
"..."
"Why does he seem even more eager for them to come than I am?"
Xiao Xiao fell silent for a moment. Little Four seemed to have taken all the nervousness he was supposed to show and all the lines he was supposed to say...
Those were clearly supposed to be my lines.
As he was thinking, Ruan Ruan leaped through the window like a cannonball.
While still in midair, she spotted the heap of rotten meat in the corner and the Pain Hound gnawing hard on it. After all, Xiao Xiao was only a rookie. Although he thought the man should already be dead, he still had not ordered the Pain Hound to release him.
A thousand-point veteran, no less...
What if the man was only faking his death and suddenly struck him?
But the sight caused Ruan Ruan's pupils to contract sharply in midair, and her body suddenly dropped to the ground.
"You haven't finished eating yet?"
Then she obediently straightened up and said to Xiao Xiao, "Hello, Brother Xiao. It's really great that you're all right..."
"?"
A question mark appeared over Xiao Xiao's head. Why did Ruan Ruan seem strange too?
His mind was in complete chaos, and he had no time to ask anything before Yang Jia, dressed in a white windbreaker, entered through the office doorway. The instant she stepped into the chaotic office, her pupils contracted slightly as well. But she controlled her expression perfectly. Without revealing anything, her gaze swept over the heap of rotten meat in the corner, the Pain Hound gnawing furiously at it, and Xiao Xiao beside them.
At this moment, Xiao Xiao looked very calm. Half his body was stained red with blood, yet his expression was remarkably composed.
...What else could he do? Ruan Ruan and Little Four had stolen all his lines.
"I..."
The moment he saw Yang Jia enter, Xiao Xiao was about to ask his questions.
There were simply too many things he did not understand.
"So Ruan Ruan was telling the truth..."
Her gaze swept over the three Pain Hounds. "You've already started feeding him in front of us?"
Unexpectedly, the moment Yang Jia entered, she also froze at the sight of the three Pain Hounds.
She was slightly startled, then frowned and glanced at them.
"Whine..."
The muscles throughout the three Pain Hounds suddenly tensed violently. They released their bites at the same time and backed away several steps.
They crouched on the ground, filled with hostility... and fear.
Only Erha tilted his head slightly, as if he had no idea what fear meant and wanted to come over for some affection.
"We'll talk about everything else after we get back."
As if she had seen the countless questions in Xiao Xiao's heart, Yang Jia drove the three Pain Hounds back, then crouched beside the heap of rotten meat and examined it briefly. After that, she pried open his eyelids to take a look. Her expression had already turned grim when she nodded at Xiao Xiao.
Then she looked at Little Four, who was standing obediently nearby.
"Little Four, stay here and take care of the body... Don't forget to take his card."
"..."
"Yes."
Little Four immediately agreed, sounding rather happy.
Xiao Xiao was somewhat confused. "He looked so timid just now. How did he suddenly become brave?"
"Isn't he afraid of handling a corpse himself?"
"..."
There were too many questions at this point, so this one hardly mattered anymore. Xiao Xiao also said to Little Four, "Sorry for the trouble."
Then he quickly followed Yang Jia downstairs.
"He actually apologized to me..."
Little Four stood where he was, suddenly startled. "Was that a warning to handle it properly?"
After going downstairs, Xiao Xiao immediately got into Yang Jia's white SUV. Half his body was stained with blood, after all, and riding in Ruan Ruan's vehicle would inevitably attract attention. At least in Yang Jia's car, passersby would not be able to see him.
Inside the car, he turned his head and saw that Warehouse One was still in complete chaos.
Foreman and the other workers still maintained their monster forms, standing there silently and twisted.
It seemed that someone was staring fixedly at him, but perhaps out of apprehension, they did not come over.
"Heh, the Red Eyes Club..."
Yang Jia lit a cigarette and, after thinking for a moment, casually placed it between Xiao Xiao's lips.
When she saw the workers outside the car window still maintaining their monstrous forms around Warehouse One, her expression seemed to grow much colder.
"I..."
Xiao Xiao held the mint-flavored cigarette between his lips, its smoke carrying the scent of lipstick. He was utterly bewildered and wanted to speak.
But Yang Jia had already started the car. In a low voice, she said, "You've done very well. Don't worry. I'll handle what comes next."
For a moment, Xiao Xiao did not know what to say.
Although countless questions still filled his mind, he inexplicably felt a sense of reassurance.
The white SUV drove out of the docks, with Ruan Ruan following behind on the black motorcycle. No one dared to stop them. Carrying Xiao Xiao, she crossed the vast city directly, and they gradually arrived at a lush, elevated area in the Uptown District.
A cluster of white buildings constructed among the trees appeared ahead. Yang Jia drove straight through a small entrance.
After parking, Xiao Xiao followed her out and looked around curiously. "Where is this?"
"East Mountain Sanatorium..."
Yang Jia answered quietly without offering any further explanation. She led Xiao Xiao and Ruan Ruan, who had gotten out of the car, forward.
Xiao Xiao could only follow closely behind. Yang Jia was clearly very familiar with this place. People passed them along the way and greeted her politely. What surprised him was that although they saw him covered in blood, they merely looked astonished and did not come over to ask anything.
When they reached a building, they encountered a middle-aged woman wearing a nurse's cap. She smiled and nodded at Yang Jia.
"Doctor Yang, bringing in another patient?"
"..."
Yang Jia nodded at her as well, then continued leading them inside.
"What exactly is going on?"
Xiao Xiao grew more and more astonished as he watched everything and could not help asking Yang Jia.
"What is there to find strange?"
Yang Jia glanced back at him. "We all have our own jobs in this city, don't we?"
"My job is being a psychiatrist here."
Before you continue