Seeing Xu Chao's conflicted expression, Qin Xun fell silent, unsure what to say.
Only after the woman and the young man had walked away, talking and laughing together,
did he break the silence.
"Is that man the friend you mentioned?"
"No."
"Hmm... Could he be her younger brother, then?"
"She does have a younger brother, but he's only ten."
"Could he be a friend of hers or something?"
"But they just said they were going home..."
Qin Xun fell silent for a few more seconds, then said softly, "It's still early. If you want to cry, go over to that corner. I'll keep watch for you."
Xu Chao slowly turned to Qin Xun, his expression solemn!
A few seconds later, he suddenly burst out laughing and slapped Qin Xun on the shoulder, his face animated.
"Hahaha, I fooled you, didn't I? I don't know her at all. I just made that story up to trick you."
Qin Xun looked into Xu Chao's eyes. "It's fine to deceive me, but don't deceive yourself."
Those words made Xu Chao's already aching heart hurt even more!
Right now, he wanted nothing more than to crouch in a corner and have some quiet time alone!
"What, you don't believe I was making that story up?"
"Eyes can lie, and expressions can be controlled, but you can't fake the smell of vinegar on you. You reeked of it just now!"
"Who said I was jealous?"
"Deceiving yourself must be painful, right?"
"You really know how to talk! Come here, let me see if your gunshot wound has healed!" As Xu Chao spoke, he reached out to pinch Qin Xun's shoulder.
Qin Xun quickly took a step back. "Don't inflict your pain on other people."
"Would it kill you not to rub it in?"
Qin Xun looked at the man and woman, who had walked over a hundred meters away. Folding his arms, he said calmly, "If you agree, we can follow them. I'll lure the man away and give you five minutes alone with her. Say what you want to say, ask what you want to ask, and don't leave yourself with regrets."
"Forget it. I shouldn't disturb her." That was what Xu Chao said, but his eyes clearly showed he wanted to do it.
"Just don't hide under your covers and cry alone tonight."
"Who do you take me, Xu Chao, for? If I cry, I'll cry with a thunderous display! Why would I hide under the covers and wipe away cat piss like a woman?"
"I can tell!"
"Let's go, Cold-Blooded Killer. I'll take you to see your sister!"
"Cold-Blooded Killer?"
"Yeah, you're just like a cold-blooded killer. Didn't you know?"
"How so?"
"You hardly ever smile and always wear a stern face. On top of that, you're ruthless when you kill. If I don't call you Cold-Blooded Killer, what should I call you?"
"Cold-Blooded Killer... You know, that's a pretty cool nickname. Thanks for giving me one. I'll give you one too. I'll call you Dog Training Master!"
"I like that nickname too!" Xu Chao hooked an arm around Qin Xun's shoulders. "Come on, I'll take you to see your sister."
He led Qin Xun left at the next intersection.
Before turning, he took another long look at the woman's retreating figure.
A few seconds later, he smiled knowingly and left with his arm around Qin Xun's shoulders.
Up ahead, the woman stopped and turned to look at the deserted intersection, as though she had sensed something.
"What is it?" The young man stopped as well and turned toward the intersection she was looking at.
"Nothing. Maybe it was my imagination. Come on, let's go home."
Rumble!
A clap of thunder erupted out of nowhere, and rain poured down in torrents, so fierce it was as if a hole had been torn in the sky.
After running two blocks through the downpour, Xu Chao led Qin Xun into a shop that was still open.
The storefront looked very shabby from the outside.
But inside, it was lavishly decorated, and rows of fluorescent tubes on the ceiling lit the shop up brightly.
The shop was large, covering more than two hundred square meters.
Shelves lined the surrounding walls, displaying all kinds of melee weapons.
There were short sabers, spears, flying wheels, and more, a dazzling array of every variety.
It looked as though the shop mainly sold melee weapons.
There was only one man in the shop.
He looked to be in his forties, with a full beard and a floral shirt. He was neither fat nor thin, but just right.
He stood in front of a shelf, wiping the dust off it with a towel.
"Old Crab!" Xu Chao called from the doorway.
The man looked over, a smile immediately spreading across his face. "You're here? Come in and wipe the water off your faces!"
He tossed over the towel in his hand.
Xu Chao didn't mind that it had been used to wipe dust. He caught it, wiped the rain from his face and hair, and passed it to Qin Xun.
After wiping the water off his face, Qin Xun had intended to pass it to Mengmeng.
But Mengmeng was shaking all over in the doorway and quickly sent the rainwater flying. It seemed she didn't need it?
"He's A Shui's younger brother?" Old Crab walked over and looked Qin Xun up and down.
"Yes, he's Brother Shui's younger brother." Xu Chao turned to Qin Xun. "Let me introduce you. He's called Old Crab, the crab you eat. We've known him for years. He's one of us and can be trusted!"
"Brother Xie." Qin Xun greeted him politely.
"You do look alike. You know, you really do! Those eyes of yours are exactly like A Shui's!"
"Oh, come on. One has single eyelids and the other has double eyelids. How do they look alike?" Xu Chao said with a laugh.
"I mean what's in his eyes. What's in his eyes is exactly the same as what's in A Shui's. Once he's set his mind on something, he has to do it, and once he's set his mind on killing someone, he has to kill them!" Old Crab looked at Qin Xun with a smile. "Am I right?"
"I don't know about the first part, but he does strike pretty ruthlessly," Xu Chao replied.
"This is our first meeting, and I didn't prepare a gift for you. Feel free to look around. If anything catches your eye, just take it." Old Crab was easygoing and gave the impression that he was easy to get along with.
"Where's my sister?" Qin Xun wasn't very interested in the weapons here. Right now, he only wanted to see Qin Ling.
"They're staying at the hotel at the end of the street. The rain's too heavy right now. I'll take you there when it lets up!" After speaking, the man looked outside again, as though he felt something was missing. "Where's Dazhuang? Why isn't he here? Didn't they say he was with you?"
"He didn't come?" Xu Chao frowned.
"No."
"We ran into some danger yesterday morning. He stayed behind to cover our retreat and told us to go on ahead."
Old Crab fell silent for a moment. "Don't worry. He should be fine."
Clatter...
The sound of chains scraping against each other rang out in Qin Xun's mind once more.
His gaze settled on a birdcage in the shop.
The cage was made of solid iron, and a black bird was confined inside.
Its feathers were black from head to toe, its eyes were blood-red, and its sharp claws could easily tear through flesh.
"A demon creature?"
Old Crab glanced back at the cage and nodded. "Yes, it's a demon creature. This kind of bird is called a Black Blood Pigeon. Its blood is very effective for treating injuries, but it only works when it's fresh, so I got a live one and keep it caged, ready to use whenever it's needed."
Qin Xun took two steps forward, and the sound of chains scraping in his mind grew louder and louder.
With a thought, he brought the sound under his control, and it gradually subsided.
He was certain now that the sound of chains scraping in his mind was most likely because there were demon creatures nearby!
As soon as the chains detected the aura of a demon creature nearby, they would sound!