Su Qingxue's "Information"

At the back entrance of the secondhand market, the dying embers of dusk had stained the sky a murky orange-red.

The air was thick with the mixed smells of dust, rotten vegetables, cheap paint, and the rank odor of some animal's fur.

Both sides of the narrow alley were piled with all kinds of dust-covered "antiques," rusted mechanical parts, and faded old furniture. They were like the city's undigested waste, exuding their final breath of decay here.

Lin Xiao leaned against a peeling, mottled utility pole at the mouth of the alley. The hood of his oversized sweatshirt was still pulled low, hiding most of his face.

The brace on his right arm was hidden beneath his sleeve. The wound on his back from the dart had received basic treatment, but its searing pain remained vivid.

What unsettled him most, however, were the two scalding, impure streams of warmth he had just absorbed from the low-grade Energy Stones, as well as the glaring yet slightly reassuring number in his mind: -1.3.

Some of his sense of strength had returned, and the depletion of his soul had been temporarily suppressed. But the price was that his body felt like a hodgepodge. The dryness and sluggishness of fire and earth energy clashed wildly through his meridians, making him feel as if he had swallowed two red-hot branding irons.

Worse still, he had already been waiting here for nearly half an hour, yet he had not seen so much as the shadow of the "Old Ghost" who supposedly lacked the little finger on his left hand and reeked of sulfur and rust.

Fatty Wang nervously crouched behind an overturned, broken wicker basket nearby. His beady eyes uneasily scanned the sparse stream of suspicious-looking people in the alley, while he muttered nonstop, "Brother Xiao... That Skinny Monkey kid isn't going to screw us over, is he? What time is it already... If we stay any longer, it'll be dark, and Scarface Qiang's people..."

"Shut up." Lin Xiao's voice came from beneath the brim of his hood, carrying a faint, barely perceptible hoarseness and irritation.

He knew this place was no longer safe to linger in.

The masked man sent by Scarface Qiang had just been crippled by him. Revenge could escalate at any moment.

But the temptation of Source Energy Points was like the devil's whisper, making it impossible for him to give up on this opportunity so close at hand.

Just as Lin Xiao was debating whether to wait another ten minutes, the phone in his pocket vibrated once. It was not a call, but a text message.

He pulled out the old phone with its shattered screen. The screen lit up, displaying a number with no contact name—yet one that made his pupils contract slightly.

Su Qingxue.

The message was extremely brief, containing only one line:

After school, rooftop.

There was no greeting and no explanation. It was as cold as an order.

Lin Xiao held the phone, and the corner of his mouth slowly curled beneath the shadow of his hood.

This ice queen... had taken the initiative to contact him?

So she already knew that Scarface Qiang had blocked him outside the school?

Or was this about those "deep-blue eyes"?

"Fatty." Lin Xiao put away his phone. His voice returned to its lazy tone, but carried an unquestionable finality. "We're leaving."

"Huh? We're not waiting anymore?" Fatty Wang froze.

"No. A 'friend' is looking for me."

Lin Xiao deliberately emphasized the word "friend." The roguish smile on his face held a hint of meaning. "The good stuff won't run away. Staying alive is more important."

Tianhai Third High School's rooftop.

The wind howled, carrying the cool air of the city at dusk and sweeping away the foul odors from the industrial district.

The last glow of the setting sun stretched the shadows of the abandoned desks and chairs into long slants.

Su Qingxue stood at the edge of the rooftop with her back to the stairwell.

The hem of her plain, light-blue martial arts uniform fluttered gently in the wind, outlining her slender figure from behind.

She did not turn around, as if gazing down at the noisy campus below, where the bustle was fading and lights were gradually flickering on.

The golden radiance of sunset fell across her cool profile. Her skin was smooth and lustrous, yet she carried an indescribable sense of detachment.

Lin Xiao sauntered up, his footsteps unusually clear across the empty rooftop.

He stopped about three meters from Su Qingxue and leaned against a paint-chipped metal table. His right arm was still hidden beneath his sleeve, and his face wore his usual smile—thirty percent roguishness and seventy percent amusement.

"Great Martial Artist Su, summoning me so urgently—were you missing me?"

Lin Xiao's voice was deliberately frivolous.

Su Qingxue slowly turned around.

The afterglow of sunset danced in her cool eyes, but could not melt the chill sealed within them.

She looked at Lin Xiao's carefree, mocking smile, her gaze sharp as a blade, as if she wanted to pierce through his skin and see those deep-blue, inhuman eyes from that night.

"Lin Xiao." Her voice was colder than the evening breeze. Without any pleasantries, she went straight to the point. "You've gotten yourself into serious trouble."

"Oh?" Lin Xiao raised a brow. His smile did not change, but his gaze grew somewhat more serious. "Such as?"

"This afternoon, near the abandoned container yard in the western industrial district..." Su Qingxue's gaze was like a cold probe, locking tightly onto Lin Xiao's expression. "A powerful enforcer from the Blood Wolf Gang's outer circle, 'Viper' Ah Qi, had both arms crippled. He was skilled with darts and concealment, and his strength was close to that of a two-star martial artist."

The smile on Lin Xiao's face did not change in the slightest. In fact, it grew even brighter. "Is that so? What a misfortune. The Blood Wolf Gang has been having terrible luck lately. First Zhao Hu, and now this Ah Qi... I guess they must have done too many bad things and finally gotten what they deserved?"

Su Qingxue was not surprised at all by Lin Xiao's feigned ignorance. The chill in her eyes deepened. "Ah Qi was one of Scarface Qiang's most capable men. Scarface Qiang is the Blood Wolf Gang's leader in the western industrial district. He's ruthless and vindictive. He has more than a dozen capable fighters under him, most of them martial artists. More importantly, he has the entire Blood Wolf Gang behind him!"

She paused, and a trace of warning entered her cool voice. "The Blood Wolf Gang is one of the underworld forces that has been entrenched in Tianhai City for years. It has deep roots and vicious methods. It controls most of the western underground black market, smuggles goods, collects protection fees, and even deals in banned drugs and weapons! They may fear the Su family's reputation and not dare move against you openly at school. But once you leave school—especially when you're on their turf..."

Su Qingxue did not continue, but the coldness in her eyes had already said everything—Lin Xiao's current situation was extremely dangerous!

"Scarface Qiang... the Blood Wolf Gang..." Lin Xiao savored the two names, and the playful smile on his face finally faded somewhat. His eyes turned deep and sharp. "Sounds like they're not people to provoke."

He said they were not to be provoked, but there was little fear in his tone. Instead, it carried the ferocity of a wild wolf that had been provoked.

"It's not that they're not to be provoked. You'll die horribly!"

Su Qingxue's voice suddenly rose, carrying suppressed anger. "Lin Xiao! I don't care what 'secret technique' you used to cripple Ah Qi! But Scarface Qiang isn't trash like Zhao Hu! And his men aren't lone killers like Ah Qi! They'll stop at nothing! Poisoning, kidnapping, ambushes... They might even use banned weapons! You may defend against them once, but you can't defend against them ten times!"

Seeing Lin Xiao still acting as though nothing in the world could faze him, the nameless fire in her heart burned hotter. Unable to hold back, she questioned him with a trace of mockery and deep exhaustion, "Do you even understand how serious this is? Do you really think that little 'secret technique' of yours, which drains your life, can stand against an underworld force that's been entrenched for years?"

Lin Xiao fell silent for a moment. The wind on the rooftop seemed to grow stronger, stirring the disheveled hair over his forehead.

He raised his head and met Su Qingxue's eyes, which were sealed with anger and confusion. The roguish smile vanished completely from his face, replaced by an almost coldly composed calm.

"Su Qingxue." His voice was low and clear, carrying the ruthless edge forged through years of scraping by on the streets. "I know better than anyone how many people want me dead. Zhao Hu does. Scarface Qiang does. Perhaps... some people from your Su family do, too."

He paused, his gaze as unfathomable as a cold pool. "But I'm still alive. And it's not because of luck, nor because of the Su family's reputation."

The words were like a cold dagger stabbing straight into Su Qingxue's heart!

A flash of pain and anger crossed her cool face, but the resolve and danger hidden within Lin Xiao's calmness left her momentarily speechless.

"As for Scarface Qiang and the Blood Wolf Gang..." The corner of Lin Xiao's mouth curled into that signature roguish smile again, but it held no warmth. "Thanks for the 'information,' Great Martial Artist Su. I'll be careful."

He deliberately emphasized the word "information," his eyes carrying a knowing trace of amusement.

It was both thanks and a reminder—don't forget the "deal" between us. You provide information and protection, and I keep your secret.

Lin Xiao's impervious, unyielding attitude made Su Qingxue's chest rise and fall slightly with anger, while the frost in her cool eyes thickened.

She felt as if she were venting her fury at a foul, unyielding stone, achieving absolutely nothing.

She drew a deep breath and forcibly suppressed her roiling emotions.

The last ray of sunset sank below the horizon. The rooftop's shadows rapidly spread, enveloping her cool figure.

"Take care of yourself!"

She coldly threw out her final words, as if remaining another second would be torture. Then she turned and walked toward the stairwell without looking back.

Her white martial arts uniform looked like an ice lotus rapidly withering in the deepening dusk.

Lin Xiao remained where he was, watching Su Qingxue disappear into the shadows of the stairwell.

The rooftop grew completely dark, and the city's neon lights began flickering in the distance.

The smile on his face slowly faded, and his gaze turned as deep and cold as the night.

Scarface Qiang... the Blood Wolf Gang...

Su Qingxue's information had confirmed his guess and outlined the enemy's shape more clearly.

Danger—but danger also meant opportunity!

The chaotic underground world often contained enormous wealth and Energy Stones as well!

His left hand, tucked into his pants pocket, tightly gripped the few crumpled bills he had left and the small glass vial containing the strange pills he had confiscated from Ah Qi.

Source Energy Points: -1.3.

The impure energy slowly circulated through his body like restless sparks.

"Be careful?" Lin Xiao gazed at the distant city divided by neon and shadow. He muttered under his breath, the corner of his mouth curling once more into a cold, feral smile. "Being merely careful won't be enough."