Get Lost

With Zhao Xun's appetite, he needed two palm-sized vegetable buns just to feel barely full, which meant a single breakfast would cost four points.

Twenty points would only cover five breakfasts.

His starting points really were too few. He would have to think carefully about how to use them.

According to the Train Rules, the passengers would be ranked by their points at midnight tonight, and whoever ranked last would receive an assistance and encouragement measure.

It sounded nice, but he had a feeling this "assistance and encouragement" was nothing good.

To avoid ending up in last place, he had better not spend any points today.

But going hungry all day would leave him in poor physical condition, which was terrible in an environment where danger could arise at any moment.

Fortunately, he had come prepared.

Zhao Xun hurried toward Car 14.

He had not checked the prices at the upscale restaurant in Car 08. He did not need to look to know he could not afford them right now.

As soon as he entered Car 14, Zhao Xun saw an unfamiliar young man hovering near his seat, occasionally looking up at the large suitcase on the luggage rack.

The young man was about 170 centimeters tall, so reaching the two-meter-high luggage rack would take some effort. Besides, such a large suitcase looked heavy. With his height and reach, getting it down would be even harder.

With people coming and going through the car, he did not dare make a move just yet.

An amused smile appeared on Zhao Xun's face.

He had not taken his suitcase with him because he had planned to come back after checking the restaurant prices, rather than stay away for long. Besides, the suitcase had a combination lock, so strangers would not be able to open it easily.

He had considered that someone might take an interest in his suitcase, but he had not expected anyone to target it so openly in the mere ten minutes he had been gone.

Still, this young man was not particularly bold. He had not dared to simply take the suitcase.

If Zhao Xun's guess was right, the young man's personal mission probably involved his suitcase.

His own personal mission could target other passengers, so there was nothing strange about another passenger's personal mission targeting him.

Zhao Xun walked over at an unhurried pace and stood in front of the young man. "Why are you staring at my suitcase?"

He wore a smile, with no trace of displeasure or anger.

Shen Yalong gave a startled jolt and instinctively backed away two steps before shifting his gaze from the suitcase to Zhao Xun.

Seeing Zhao Xun's friendly attitude, Shen Yalong relaxed a little.

"Sorry, I... I just thought it was curious that yours was the only suitcase in the whole car, so I took a few extra looks." Shen Yalong apologized earnestly. "I didn't mean anything by it. Please don't get the wrong idea."

"Really?" Zhao Xun raised one eyebrow slightly and called him out directly. "I thought your personal mission was to take my suitcase."

Shen Yalong froze. After a long moment, he seemed to make up his mind and stepped closer to Zhao Xun.

He pleaded in a very low voice, "I only need to take one thing from your suitcase. If you're willing to give it to me, I'd be very grateful."

"Take one thing?" Zhao Xun looked interested. "What thing?"

"Anything at all!" Sensing a chance, Shen Yalong hurried to assure him, "As long as it's something from your suitcase. Just give me whatever you need the least. I'll repay you!"

"How will you repay me?" Zhao Xun asked.

Shen Yalong opened his mouth, but for a moment, no words came out.

He had only said that to show his goodwill. He had never thought about how he would actually repay him.

The question left him stumped.

"See? You never even thought about repaying me. Why should I help you?" Zhao Xun spread his hands. "I'm no philanthropist."

With that, Zhao Xun returned to his seat without giving Shen Yalong another glance.

No. 013 had been taken away by a train attendant, while the other four had probably gone to familiarize themselves with the train or work on their personal missions. Zhao Xun was the only person at the table now.

Shen Yalong did not leave. He stood rooted to the spot for several minutes, then suddenly lunged toward the table and looked at Zhao Xun, saying with utter sincerity, "What do you want in return? As long as I have it, I'll give it to you!"

"What do you have?" Zhao Xun asked unhurriedly. "Supplies? Points? Anything I urgently need right now?"

Shen Yalong: "..."

Zhao Xun looked amused. "You have nothing, and you're standing here making empty promises?"

Before Shen Yalong could speak, Zhao Xun waved him away. "Get lost, or don't blame me for getting rough with you."

His words were blunt, yet he still wore a smile, and his voice had a cheerful, lilting tone. For a moment, it was hard to tell what he really meant.

Shen Yalong stared blankly at Zhao Xun for several seconds, anger flickering in his eyes. Suddenly, he reached for Zhao Xun's neck.

Already on guard, Zhao Xun knocked the young man's hand aside.

"What, asking nicely didn't work, so now you're going to use force?" Zhao Xun raised his eyebrows slightly, his face still showing no anger.

There was even still a hint of amusement in his eyes.

"I don't have a choice." As Shen Yalong made excuses for himself, he clenched his hand into a fist and swung at Zhao Xun's chest.

Zhao Xun sprang to his feet, dodging Shen Yalong's fist while kicking at his knee.

By then, Shen Yalong had straightened up. He took a large step back, just managing to avoid Zhao Xun's kick.

The commotion they made was loud enough that everyone in the car fell silent and turned to look at them.

But no one asked what was happening, much less tried to intervene.

Better to stay out of trouble.

When something did not concern them, most people were unwilling to invite trouble upon themselves.

After dodging Zhao Xun's kick, Shen Yalong moved in again, trying to grab his arm.

This time, Zhao Xun did not dodge. Instead, he stepped forward and seized Shen Yalong's shoulder.

Just as he was about to apply force and dislocate Shen Yalong's joint, an arm suddenly emerged from Shen Yalong's armpit and threw a powerful punch at Zhao Xun's side.

Zhao Xun reacted quickly, twisting his body slightly and narrowly avoiding it.

But the next second, another arm emerged from Shen Yalong's left armpit. The instant Zhao Xun dodged the attack from the right, it punched hard at his left side.

This time, Zhao Xun could not dodge and took the punch squarely.

His brow furrowed slightly, and the smile on his face finally faded a little.

Seeing his attack land, Shen Yalong looked smug.

In an instant, another arm emerged on each side of his body, leaving him with one head and six arms.

Clearly, this was his special ability.

Two of Shen Yalong's arms seized Zhao Xun's arms, while the other four clenched into fists and punched at his body in unison.