Trouble

At the same time.

In a restaurant across the street, a group of three were drinking and talking loudly.

Their faces were flushed red from the alcohol.

"How about it? Stick with me, and as long as I have meat to eat, you'll definitely get a mouthful of soup."

At that moment, the tall, powerfully built young man in a black tank top at the head of the table let out a chuckle.

As he spoke, he reached out and stroked the ferocious black wolf-head tattoo on the back of his hand.

"Brother Shan is mighty!"

"Seriously impressive!"

One of them sighed with feeling.

"But speaking of which, Young Master Lu really knows how to throw money around. It was just beating someone up, yet he was willing to spend a hundred thousand yuan."

"Heh heh, if there weren't people like that, how would we make money? Still, that kid really is pitifully unlucky. His goddess got stolen, he got cheated on, and then he got beaten up too. He's probably still lying in the hospital now..."

The other man chimed in from the side, his tone brimming with gloating delight.

The tattooed young man in the black tank top, Wu Shan, smiled and was about to say something when his peripheral vision caught sight of someone boarding a vehicle outside the window.

"Brother Shan, what is it?"

The two beside him had been talking animatedly.

Noticing Wu Shan's strange reaction, they followed his gaze out the window but saw nothing, so one of them asked in confusion.

"I think I saw that kid!"

Wu Shan withdrew his gaze, his brow tightly furrowed.

"That kid?"

The two lackeys exchanged a glance, clearly not understanding.

Wu Shan shot them a sidelong look and snapped, "The kid Young Master Lu had us beat into the hospital! And it looked like the injury on his leg had healed."

"What?"

"How is that possible? Boss, you didn't see wrong, did you? I even asked around indirectly. That guy's injuries should've kept him in bed for at least two or three months. Even if he recovered, he'd be left disabled. How could he possibly be better so quickly?"

The two men's expressions changed slightly.

Hearing that, a trace of hesitation flashed across Wu Shan's face as well.

After all, he had only caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye, and with the distance between them, perhaps it really had just been someone who looked somewhat similar.

"Young man, you really have a good eye. Don't be fooled by how battered this bowl looks—this is an artifact from the Yun Dynasty eight hundred years ago. Look at the texture, the feel, the patterns, this glaze..."

The stubble-faced owner introduced it with spittle flying everywhere, wearing the expression of someone who insisted that not buying it would mean losing out big.

Hu Qi, squatting on the ground, twitched at the corner of his mouth and lowered his head to look at the chipped blue-and-white porcelain bowl in his hand, unable to stop himself from grumbling inwardly.

With workmanship like this, he could even see the scraped-off production stamp on the bottom of the bowl.

An antique from eight hundred years ago? Eight days ago would be more like it!

He gently put the bowl down. Its listed price might be fake right now.

But if he accidentally broke it, its value would multiply several times over, and there was no way he could afford to compensate for it.

"What a pity. None of these things have that cool current that can increase Modification Points."

Hu Qi felt irritated. Over the past few hours, he had practically touched every stall.

Yet there had not been the slightest response.

Having a cheat but being unable to use it put him in an extremely foul mood.

This thing didn't even come with an instruction manual. At least tell me how to obtain Modification Points!

If only the panel had some kind of spirit I could communicate with.

The thought flashed through his mind.

But it was only a thought. For one thing, after several days of exploration, the panel had proven itself to be nothing more than an inanimate object.

And besides, if there really were some intelligent spirit with a little girl's voice, Hu Qi would only feel uncomfortable.

He swept his gaze around. This entire street was lined with antique stalls and shops.

As evening approached, the crowd grew thicker.

Young couples could be seen everywhere, squatting in front of stalls and haggling with the vendors.

The neon signs and streetlights on both sides also lit up, their lights reflecting and setting each other off.

The sky seemed blanketed by a vast black curtain, deep and oppressive.

Rumble!

Then, lightning like branching tree limbs flashed through the black canopy overhead.

It was followed by rolling thunder that shook the heavens. A girl passing nearby was so frightened by the sudden thunderclap that she cried out in alarm.

Suddenly.

A cold gust of wind swept past, like the overture before a performance.

Plop!

A drop of icy rain struck his skin, spreading threads of chill.

Hu Qi looked up and saw bean-sized raindrops pouring down without warning from the ink-black sky, instantly shattering the street's former atmosphere and tranquility.

The previously dry, scorching ground was swiftly soaked, and a faint earthy smell filled the air.

The people who had been leisurely strolling the street cried out and scattered in search of shelter, while the roadside vendors hurriedly packed up their "antiques."

The owner of the stall Hu Qi had visited earlier even accidentally dropped that "antique porcelain bowl" from the Yun Dynasty eight hundred years ago, smashing it to pieces as he packed up.

Yet judging by his expression, he did not care in the slightest.

Seeing this, Hu Qi was somewhat speechless.

Then he pulled a folded black umbrella from the backpack on his back, opened it, and walked forward along the roadside.

The raindrops grew denser and denser, splashing sheets of water across the ground like countless pearls leaping and dancing.

The street was soon flooded, forming rushing streams that surged toward the drains.

The dim yellow streetlights refracted through the curtain of rain, casting hazy halos of light.

The entire world seemed to have transformed into a world of water.

The formerly noisy, sweltering atmosphere vanished, replaced by a sense of calm and desolation.

Watching this scene, Hu Qi's irritated heart, troubled by his inability to find the source of Modification Points, gradually calmed as well.

I'm being too impatient.

Since the Scarlet Modification Panel exists, there must be a way to find the source of Modification Points.

One hour later.

Qirong City, Eastern District, outside the Hanlin Garden residential area, at the bus stop.

Hu Qi got off through the rear door.

However, he did not head home. Instead, he walked toward the intersection on the right, intending to buy some groceries at the nearby market for dinner.

"It really is that kid!"

At that moment, beneath the awning outside a milk tea shop on a street corner, Wu Shan and the other two, who were sheltering from the rain there, exchanged looks. Each saw the surprise in the others' eyes.

After spotting Hu Qi earlier, the three of them had wandered around nearby with nothing better to do.

They had not expected to actually run into Hu Qi.

"Brother Shan, there's something really strange about this kid!"

The lackey beside him wore a peculiar expression. After all, he had personally done it back then, without holding back in the slightest.

"Xiao Feng, Ah Zai, you two follow him first and see where he goes.

"I'll call Young Master Lu and ask for instructions. We'll contact each other by message later!"

Wu Shan thought for a moment before speaking.

"Got it, Brother Shan!"

The two lackeys answered, pulled up their hoods, and chased in the direction Hu Qi had gone.

Seeing this, he took out his phone and dialed one of the numbers.

No one knew what the person on the other end said.

Wu Shan first lowered his voice and apologized humbly.

Then, as if he had heard some good news, his face flushed red as he said in wild delight:

"Thank you for your trust, Young Master Lu. We made a mistake last time."

At this point, Wu Shan paused.

His gaze turned vicious.

"Don't worry. This time, I guarantee he won't be able to get out of bed!"

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