"Brother, you were so domineering just now~"
Ye Xinxia clung to Cheng Xiaoyu's arm as they walked along, her steps light and her pretty face beaming with joy.
She'd wanted to teach that Liu Yilin a lesson for ages. He'd kept bothering her, but she couldn't let the image she'd built for herself fall apart.
"I won't let my little sister worry about love. Besides, you don't like him, do you?"
Cheng Xiaoyu suppressed the faint irritation rising in him and ruffled Ye Xinxia's hair. He still wasn't sure why he felt that way... Maybe it was just a brother's desire to keep her under his wing!
"Anyway, you'll have to let me vet any boyfriend you want to date. If I say no, then it's no!"
"You really are domineering..."
Ye Xinxia puffed out her cheeks and instinctively hugged him a little tighter. Her full breasts pressed against him, slightly deforming, but she still felt sweet inside. She rather liked her brother acting this way.
"Anyway, I booked us a restaurant, and I've even reserved a hotel. We don't come to Hangcheng often, so we should enjoy ourselves for a few days. After that, we'll head to Modu."
"Mm, I'll do whatever you say, Brother!"
Soon, they arrived at the restaurant they'd booked and enjoyed some time alone together.
Suddenly, Cheng Xiaoyu froze. A cold sweat broke out on his back as he whipped around to stare at a building barely visible in the darkness beyond the floor-to-ceiling window.
Something was wrong. That feeling... That couldn't be a building!
"Oh my god, what... what is that?!"
"It's a De... Demon Beast?!"
"How is this possible? A Demon Beast this huge has appeared in the center of Hangcheng! Where's the City Demon Hunter Squad?"
"Run... Run!"
A wave of panicked commotion swept through the restaurant. People screamed in terror.
The restaurant, which had just been filled with lovey-dovey couples, instantly became a cacophony of sobs and shrieks. Every face was filled with profound fear.
Outside the floor-to-ceiling window, the building suddenly twisted. A gigantic head turned toward the restaurant.
Its triangular eyes shone brightly, glittering like the floodlights mounted atop a commercial skyscraper.
The light wasn't vivid so much as eerie and terrifying, seeming to pierce straight into people's hearts!
Its head was almost joined to its neck, which swelled outward like a giant hood. Its body was black, though the neon lights made it just possible to make out the faint patterns of scales!
The dark silhouette gazed straight ahead. Given the range of its vision, it was probably staring at the entire building and couldn't even see the people inside the restaurant.
The restaurant rang with wails and cries. Ordinary people who'd never seen a Demon Beast in their lives were terrified, but even the mages who had seen one before were so shaken that their hair stood on end.
Th-That was a snake! It had to be at Monarch level! What was happening to this world? I'd never heard that Hangcheng was so unsafe!
Cheng Xiaoyu was stunned, but he still reacted quickly. He scooped Ye Xinxia up and fled the restaurant, moving faster than the panicked crowd.
He wasn't stupid enough to stand there and try to fight the snake to the death. What kind of idiot would do that?
By the next day, news of a giant Demon Beast appearing in the center of Hangcheng had spread all over the internet. The authorities put out a rather unconvincing explanation, but the residents refused to accept it.
Cheng Xiaoyu thought the story would stay in the headlines for a while, but within a few days, everyone had calmed down. The authorities were clearly handling things behind the scenes, but he still couldn't believe how unconcerned people were.
The incident also seemed to have led to a temporary lockdown around West Lake. With nowhere to go, he and his sister could only stay at the hotel.
At least Ye Xinxia was especially well-behaved and didn't throw a fit. If anything, she seemed pretty happy...
"Xinxia, sorry. I didn't expect something like this to happen in Hangcheng."
"It's okay. I'm happy as long as I'm with you, Brother."
Ye Xinxia put down her phone, climbed from her bed onto Cheng Xiaoyu's, and curled up in his warm embrace.
A complex look flashed through Cheng Xiaoyu's eyes. His hand paused in midair, but in the end he stroked his sister's head and spoke gently.
"How about this? We'll go somewhere during summer vacation. What do you think about the beach?"
"Sure! I've never been to the beach in my life!"
At once, a smile blossomed across Ye Xinxia's pretty face. She was already imagining herself in a bikini on the sand, watching her brother stare at her in a daze.
Just as they were thinking about their travel plans, a call came through.
"Sister Leng Qing, what is it?"
"You know about what happened in Hangcheng, right? I need your help. Could you and Lingling get here by tonight?"
Sister Leng Qing sounded very serious. She must have been in a hurry.
"I know about that giant snake. I happen to be in Hangcheng with my sister..."
Cheng Xiaoyu hesitated for a moment and looked down at the sister in his arms. Ye Xinxia smiled and nodded at him.
What a thoughtful little sister. I feel a bit bad about this... I'll make it up to you later, sis!
"All right. I'll come over in a bit."
"Mm, sorry for taking up your time. I'll make it up to you."
After leaving the hotel, Cheng Xiaoyu followed the location she'd sent and arrived at West Lake. He immediately spotted two graceful figures: Leng Qing and Tang Yue.
Both women wore Tribunal uniforms, which hugged their curvy figures and accentuated their lovely silhouettes. Their long legs made them look tall and elegant.
"Sister Leng Qing, Sister Tang Yue."
At his words, Leng Qing and Tang Yue spotted Cheng Xiaoyu approaching and hurried over to ask after him. They'd checked in on him over the phone, but seeing him in person was different.
"Don't worry. I told you I'm fine."
"But I'm still worried about you! How could those people do that? They actually attacked a group of students who knew nothing about what was going on. People like that deserve to rot in hell!"
Hearing Tang Yue, Leng Qing knew that even though she saw the matter differently, she would still resent those higher-ups if it involved someone close to her.
For someone like her, if the victims had been strangers, she probably wouldn't have been so angry. She might even have casually called it an accident.
Sigh. That was human nature. She wouldn't deny that she was a hypocrite...
"Anyway, I'm standing right here in front of you, aren't I? ...By the way, tell me why you called me here. I'm pretty curious."
Unable to withstand the two older sisters' concern, Cheng Xiaoyu changed the subject.
At that, Tang Yue's expression suddenly darkened, and she finally told him the whole story.
After listening, Cheng Xiaoyu nodded in understanding. So that giant snake had such a deep history. Totem Beasts really did still exist in this world. He'd only ever read about them in ancient books.
"So the most urgent thing is to prove that the snake is innocent, right?"
"Exactly. There's a meeting in a bit. Let's head over first."
The three of them hurried to the Tribunal at Lingyin Temple. Leng Lingling had just arrived in Hangcheng, too. The moment she saw Cheng Xiaoyu, she threw herself at him.
"Hmph! If you make me worry again, I'll stomp you to death!"
"That's disgusting..."
"Not at all. I hate you!"
Cheng Xiaoyu sighed, blocked Leng Lingling's twin-tail attack, and ruffled her head roughly.
"Come on. Let's go in."
Before they could even enter the conference room, a gruff shout rang out.
"They're already dead, and you're still protecting that venomous snake? I didn't come here from the Magic Court to negotiate with you. I'm here under orders to eliminate the threat at West Lake and restore peace to Hangcheng. Hand over the Totem Black Serpent as soon as possible. We'll deal with it!"
Who the hell was that? Why was he so short-tempered? Had he eaten gunpowder?
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