Mia, holding the blue-headed, goofy cat with its little tin crown tilted, nodded seriously at Chen Mo. The meaning was clear: she thought the suggestion was acceptable.
Chen Mo remained silent for two seconds.
"You little traitor, you're playing around and then you start selling out your guardian, aren't you?"
Mia blinked but didn't say anything.
Annie, who was standing to the side, was initially a little nervous, but couldn't help but laugh when she heard this.
Chen Mo reached out and straightened the crown on Mia's head, then picked up the cat's ear and turned to walk out.
"I'll take the little girl home first," he said. "She needs to go to bed early, or she won't grow tall."
Annie paused for a moment, then quickly followed.
The night market was much less crowded, and the roadside stalls were packing up one after another, though the aroma of roasted corn still lingered in the air. Chen Mo walked to a quiet corner and glanced back at Annie.
"Wait here for me for two minutes."
Where are you going?
"Take the kid back to sleep."
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Mo, carrying the silly cat in one hand and holding Mia's hand in the other, vanished from the spot in an instant.
Annie felt a blur before her eyes, before the wind could even stir. She stood under the streetlight, momentarily bewildered.
Inside the safe house, Allen was dozing off.
The television was still on, the volume very low, and the news anchor on the screen was earnestly trying to cover for Vought.
The door lock clicked softly.
Chen Mo pushed open the door and shoved Mia and the blue-headed cat into Allen's arms.
"Hey, Allen, you're still awake? What were you doing just now?"
Allen was jolted by the impact and almost rolled to the ground, pillow and all. He looked down at Mia in his arms, then at Chen Mo, his gaze still not fully focused.
"You're back?" Allen rubbed his face. "I was in the bedroom just now, and when I came out I found that you had been taken away by Mia."
"I thought you were fast asleep." Chen Mo casually patted Mia's hair and handed the snack to Allen. "Here, have some."
Allen raised an eyebrow, suspiciously taking the snack. "I have a feeling you weren't saying anything nice."
Mia hugged the silly cat and nestled obediently in Allen's arms.
Chen Mo patted her little head.
"Go to sleep early, I'll show you how to make the claw machine owner cry next time."
Mia nodded seriously.
"Um!"
Allen looked down at the little crown on her head, then at the silly cat in his arms, his expression a little complicated.
"You've done a pretty good job taking care of the kid!"
"That shows I'm very approachable." Chen Mo turned and walked out. "Don't keep Mia up too late, and watch less of this channel; it's all nonsense."
The door was closed.
A few seconds later, only the news anchor's voice remained in the living room.
Allen looked down at Mia and saw that the little girl had already closed her eyes while hugging the silly cat.
"Alright." He sighed, pulling the blanket over her further. "At least you didn't bring me back a live one today."
Annie was still standing in the same spot on the street.
She glanced down at her phone, and when she looked up again, Chen Mo had reappeared on the roadside, grinning at her.
Annie opened her mouth.
"You really only took two minutes."
"That shows I'm punctual." Chen Mo glanced at her. "Let's go, where's the coffee shop?"
Annie snapped out of her daze and quickly pointed to the street corner.
The café was still open, warm light shining through the glass windows. There weren't many people inside, and the staff behind the counter were wiping cups.
Annie made a reservation while waiting.
As soon as she sat down, she pushed the soda water on the table toward Chen Mo. She picked up her coffee cup, her eyes shining brightly.
"You were really amazing when you saved that passenger plane," Annie said in a low voice, her tone getting faster and faster. "Those huge, blood-red wings, bringing the whole plane down, I even wondered when I saw the news that Vought had edited the footage again."
Chen Mo picked up the soda water and took a sip.
" Vought does indeed cut fake footage quite frequently; your suspicion is quite reasonable."
"But it's true." Annie leaned forward. "I saw those passengers later, and their eyes were different when they talked about you. That's not something an extra could fake."
She paused here, her voice softening.
"And then there was that incident with Vought Tower. If it weren't for you, I might already be in the Deep..."
Chen Mo leaned back on the sofa, his expression unchanged.
"Don't portray me as too virtuous and noble; I don't like that."
Annie pursed her lips, but couldn't help but chuckle softly.
"You're a really strange person," she said, looking at Chen Mo. "You do things like a hero, but you always talk like a bad guy."
"Then just consider me a nice guy with terrible after-sales service." Chen Mo swirled the soda water in his glass. "I've already saved people, why should I say nice things to them and make them happy? Wouldn't that mean I saved them for nothing?"
Annie choked for a moment.
She lowered her head and took a sip of coffee, but quickly remembered her business, and the smile on her face faded slightly.
"Actually, I just happened to have something I wanted to tell you. The atmosphere in Vought Tower has been strange lately."
Chen Mo looked up at her.
Annie glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention before lowering her voice and continuing, " Homelander hasn't shown up for days. He's not attending meetings, not showing up for interviews, and even the PR department can't get his latest schedule."
She frowned.
"He used to want every camera pointed at him. Now he's suddenly so quiet, I always feel like he's up to something."
Upon hearing this, Chen Mo put down his cup and reached into his pocket to take out his phone.
He opened the encrypted channel and sent Edgar a message directly.
[ Chen Mo: Where did that kid Homelander go? Don't you dare lose my main course!]
Less than two seconds later, my phone vibrated.
[ Edgar: I was just about to report to you. I've found the coordinates of Soldier Boy; he's being held in a secret base in Russia. Also, Madelyn and Homelander have been acting suspiciously lately. I checked, and they seem to be investigating the whereabouts of the original characters as well.]
Chen Mo stared at the screen, his fingers pausing for a moment.
This butterfly effect is quite interesting.
Madelyn should have been killed by Homelander long ago, right? Now she's still playing the role of Homelander's good mother, even helping Homelander get on V1?
He squinted and typed a line of text on the screen.
[ Chen Mo: Keep an eye on it, and tell me immediately if there's any movement.]
Edgar: Understood.
Chen Mo put away his phone.
Annie kept staring at his expression and clearly sensed that something was wrong.
Something happened?
"No." Chen Mo stood up and pushed his chair further in. "There's an Old Popsicle that's been frozen for decades; I need to check its expiration date."
Annie was stunned.
" Old Popsicle?"
"A legacy issue stemming from a very old person with a terrible temper and a volatile temper." Chen Mo walked over to her and casually ruffled her blonde hair. "Alright, relax. Go back and rest after you finish your drink."
Annie blushed and instinctively covered her hair.
I'm not a child anymore.
"Yes, yes, you're a mature adult. Go back, wash up, and go to bed."
Annie:...
Chen Mo waved his hand, said nothing more, and turned to walk out of the coffee shop.
The doorbell rang softly.
A night breeze blew in from the street corner, carrying a slight chill. Chen Mo walked along the roadside into a small alley and looked up at the sky.
Russia Soldier Boy taking a nap.
Vought, Homelander, and Madelyn are up to something behind the scenes.
Things are finally starting to take a more interesting turn.
Chen Mo closed his eyes, and the Blacklight Virus within his body quickly became active. The flight ability, energy manipulation, flame jet, carbon armor, and telekinesis he had previously acquired were dismantled layer by layer, only to be reassembled deep within his flesh and blood.
A series of fine tearing sounds came from behind him.
Black and red flesh surged forth, first spreading out the skeleton, then covering it with a cold, metallic sheen. Two enormous wings slowly unfurled in the dark alley.
At the wing root, several rows of circular injection holes are formed sequentially.
Chen Mo stretched his shoulders, and the metal wings emitted a low, grinding sound.
"This really does look like the final form of a villain."
He looked up, his powerful mental energy spreading forward.
An invisible force, like a knife, forcefully parted the air in front, creating a path. The next second, blue-white flames lit up from the wing root jets.
With a loud bang.
The blast wave overturned the trash cans in the dark alley, and dust fell from the walls.
Chen Mo soared into the sky and sped away into the distance.