Jormungandr

Before the person was seen, their voice was heard.

A cold, feminine voice suddenly echoed through the empty subway tunnel, carrying a hint of playful confusion: "You... how did you know I was here?"

Luo Qiusheng had long since realized this was a trap intentionally set by Jormungandr. He did not expose her disguise, merely observing the clown-masked figure before him with a calm gaze.

The young girl wore a mottled clown mask that obscured her entire face, revealing only a slender, fair chin. A faint, low, and dangerous aura of the Dragon Tribe lingered around her.

Luo Qiusheng lowered his eyes and pointed to the cracked ground beneath his feet, his tone probing: "Is something hidden down there?"

"No," Jormungandr's voice came from behind the mask. "You were the one who came looking for me, and now I am here."

Hearing this, Luo Qiusheng shook his head slightly, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his lips as he spoke with crystal clarity: "A clumsy disguise attempting to fish in troubled waters; this clown persona does not suit you."

As soon as these words were spoken, the air suddenly stagnated.

Jormungandr's figure stiffened, clearly stunned for a moment.

However, the composure of a First Generation is profound; after only a heartbeat, she suppressed all astonishment and fully regained her state.

Beneath the mask, a pair of pure, brilliant golden vertical pupils slowly ignited. The scorching dragon eyes locked onto Luo Qiusheng with a sharpness that seemed to pierce through everything, as if intending to see through his very flesh and soul.

An undisguised, biting killing intent surged forward. The cold, violent pressure belonging to an ancient Dragon King swept through the entire subway tunnel, causing the surrounding air to nearly solidify.

Facing this terrifying First Generation, Luo Qiusheng remained composed and indifferent. He stood tall, showing not a shred of panic or fear.

"My purpose for coming here today has already been achieved," Luo Qiusheng said in a peaceful, neither humble nor pushy tone. "The Secret Party's execution team has already withdrawn. I am not a weapon for the Secret Party to use in dragon-slaying; being your enemy is meaningless to me, and I have no interest in it."

Before his voice had even faded, Jormungandr suddenly let out a low laugh, a string of obscure, ancient dragon-language incantations spilling from her lips.

The ancient, profound syllables reverberated through the tunnel, carrying the unique power fluctuations of the Dragon Tribe, and the invisible pressure suddenly surged.

Luo Qiusheng frowned slightly, feeling a sense of helplessness in his heart.

He had no intention of fighting.

His original intent for this trip was merely to secretly confirm Fenrir's hiding place and become familiar with Jormungandr—who was currently masquerading as Xia Mi—to pave the way for his future stable concealment and free movement.

With his current strength, after absorbing Constantine's complete dragon bones, his own Spirit Word and physical power had undergone a massive transformation; his strength was no longer what it once was.

Yet, it was precisely because of this surge in power that he needed to be even more cautious.

The Secret Party was notoriously suspicious and used harsh methods. Once they caught even a hint of an anomaly, the smallest doubt would ferment indefinitely, eventually evolving into endless investigations and entanglements, adding countless unnecessary troubles.

The best way to lie low was to be airtight, leaving no handles for the Secret Party to find, and no traces for them to investigate.

He was single-mindedly avoiding conflict and seeking peace, wanting only to lie low, but the Jormungandr before him was stubbornly persistent to the point of obsession.

As the dragon-language spell flowed, the hard concrete floor beneath his feet cracked inch by inch. Fine fissures spread rapidly, and the scorching heat hidden deep underground began to rise; a destructive power was quietly accumulating.

Luo Qiusheng clicked his tongue internally and stopped hesitating.

There was no need to fight to the death with the First Generation Jormungandr here; the cost outweighed the gains.

His figure moved suddenly. He turned sharply and, wrapped in a gust of wind, decisively charged out of the subway tunnel exit.

The moment his figure stepped out of the tunnel, a deafening roar exploded behind him!

The thick rock layers collapsed with a crash, and a sky full of rubble and dust surged upward. The entire subway entrance was instantly buried, completely sealing off all exits to the tunnel.

High on a platform, the evening breeze stirred her hem as Jormungandr, wearing the clown mask, stood silently.

She watched the young man's calm, retreating back, her brilliant golden pupils narrowing slightly. The biting killing intent around her faded, leaving only a heart full of confusion and contemplation.

This human was too strange.

He feared no Dragon King's pressure, had no intention of competing in dragon-slaying, and despite possessing power rivaling a high-ranking Hybrid, he only retreated and avoided conflict, concealing his edge at every turn. He was nothing like the dragon-slayers cultivated by the Secret Party.

Jormungandr tapped her fingertips against the void, her thoughts churning as she secretly speculated about Luo Qiusheng's true identity and purpose.

Yet, she did not notice that in the shadows of a building a hundred meters away, Luo Qiusheng, who should have completely departed, had not gone far.

He stood with his hands behind his back, hidden in the deep night. His eyes were clear and profound, watching the figure on the platform with a hint of playfulness and scrutiny.

A flash of knowing amusement crossed Luo Qiusheng's eyes.

As expected, once the docile skin of Xia Mi from the original story was stripped away to reveal the true nature of a Dragon King, Jormungandr was suspicious and violent, yet also sufficiently pure.

Blindly retreating would only be seen as weakness. By showing his bottom line and then withdrawing, he would instead make this First Generation wary, preventing her from probing too easily.

This confrontation had served to fully gauge her temperament.

Since Fenrir's location was confirmed and he had successfully planted a seed of doubt in Jormungandr's heart, this entry into the game was already sufficient.

The night wind whistled, scattering the dust.

Luo Qiusheng took one last deep look at the clown figure standing on the platform, then stopped lingering. With a flicker of his body, he completely dissolved into the vast, chaotic crowd of the city, leaving Jormungandr standing high above, trapped in her own speculations about him.

After landing, the two of them went straight to the subway station to meet up with Luo Qiusheng, only to find the area already cordoned off with police tape.

"You're here?"

"What happened here?" Chu Zihang asked, looking toward Luo Qiusheng.

Lu Mingfei stared blankly at the pile of ruins.

"It's fine now. One of the twins of the King of Earth and Mountains caused some destruction here. Sigh, it's my fault; I didn't manage to stop her."

"As long as people are safe," Chu Zihang said, his gaze shifting toward the inside of the station, where people were digging through stones and others were weeping, every face stained with tears.

Seeing that Chu Zihang had also become lost in thought, Luo Qiusheng hurriedly pulled their focus back. "The mission I received this time was to rendezvous with Deep Sea Cod. There's a high probability he's already on his way back, so let's just treat the next few days as a vacation and get some well-deserved rest."

Luo Qiusheng bid the two of them a smiling farewell before taking his leave.

Although Chu Zihang was puzzled, he still headed home first to see his mother, Su Xiaoyan.

Lu Mingfei, on the other hand, randomly found an internet cafe and started playing StarCraft.

"Tell me, Mingfei, with your skill in StarCraft, why haven't you considered going pro?"

"Huh? Oh, forget it. I can't even beat an amateur player like Nono..."

Luo Qiusheng retorted irritably, "She was using an AI, she was hacking! Do you think this is CrossFire?"

"Alright, alright, let's play a round. I'll show you what it means to be ahead of the curve."