Several days later.
The morning sunlight streamed into a tranquil courtyard.
Yu Chunhe was wielding a wooden knife with both hands, swinging it back and forth.
Her movements were very serious, and her eyes were very focused.
The whistling sound of the wooden sword cutting through the air echoed in the confined space, each strike carrying a resolute force.
At one point, the wooden sword suddenly stopped in mid-air.
Yu Chunhe stared blankly at the subtle angle at which her wrist had unconsciously turned.
This is the sheathing technique her brother taught her.
Previously, because this receiving method was somewhat strenuous, he found it troublesome and was always unwilling to practice seriously. When he wasn't being watched, he would slack off and try to cheat.
Now, in the few days since my brother passed away, I've gotten used to this gesture.
Just like her father once said.
She's really talented!
Yu Chunhe bit his lower lip, then turned the blade and continued to slash at the dust floating in the Chenguang.
After a long while, when beads of sweat covered her cheeks, she finally stopped moving.
I took a quick cold shower and changed into a fitted tracksuit.
The girl in the mirror had a sharp look in her eyes, her former leisure and laziness gone.
She put the hair tie her brother had left her on her wrist, then carried her luggage to a living room.
In the living room, the father was watching the morning news.
The news report described a Calamity Beast attack in a certain city that caused serious casualties.
"Dad, I'm going to teach at the provincial Supervision Bureau next door." Yu Chunhe stood in the entryway, his voice much lower than usual.
She was supposed to go out a few days ago, but because of her brother's passing, she kept putting it off until now.
Upon hearing his daughter's voice, Yu Zhenzhong looked away from the television.
He had heavy dark circles under his eyes, and there were a few more gray hairs at his temples than a few days ago.
He looked at his daughter quietly for a few seconds, then nodded silently.
Yu Chunhe gripped the backpack straps tightly.
She wanted to say something—about her brother, about the Supervision Bureau, about how her father would manage for the next three months—but in the end...
All the words stuck in my throat.
Since that night, the house has been silent.
Her father no longer made the same demands on her as before.
He simply watched her practice silently every day.
There was neither a requirement for her to remain with the Supervision Bureau Supervision Bureau, nor a requirement that she be barred from joining.
Yu Chunhe gripped the backpack strap tightly, then turned and left.
The moment she turned around, a barely audible sigh came from behind her.
"Be safe!"
The sound of the door closing echoed inside the dojo.
Yu Chunhe stood outside the door for a while before taking a step forward.
"Beep! Beep--"
Car horns blared intermittently on the road.
Electrician Old Wang skillfully placed the "Under Construction" sign to the side, then turned around and walked back to the manhole cover.
"Alright, Old Li, get down here!"
"Hmm." Old Li took a drag of his cigarette, then threw the butt on the ground and stomped it out.
The two men skillfully tossed the tools needed to repair the cable down the well opening, then climbed down the stairs beside the well.
The sewer pipes were as dark as ever.
Old Wang turned on his headlamp, his gaze sweeping across the wall inside the drainpipe before finally settling on a broken light bulb.
"Damn it, why are all the lights here broken?"
"Why worry about so much? We'll just report it and let someone else fix it. We'll just take care of our own," Old Li said.
Old Wang nodded, confirmed the location, and walked forward.
Soon, the two stopped at a certain point in the sewer.
Their gazes shifted upwards, and their headlamps shone upwards in sync with their movements.
A section of the cable that was originally attached to the wall was inexplicably missing.
The wall still bears charred marks, clearly caused by sparks from a short circuit.
"It's like this again. It doesn't look like electricity theft, nor does it look like a natural meltdown!" Old Wang frowned as he looked at the jagged gaps.
"It doesn't look like it; it looks like it was torn off!" Old Li also frowned as he stared at the broken end of the cable.
If it were electricity theft, the disconnected parts should be relatively neat.
If it were a natural meltdown, so many parts shouldn't have melted in such a short time.
In recent days, they have repaired several similar places.
"Forget about that, let's fix it first!" Old Wang.
"Um."
Unfold the ladder.
Old Wang carefully approached the broken cable, climbing the ladder.
The beam of the headlamp flickered against the damp pipe wall, illuminating the jagged copper core at the broken end of the cable.
"Wire strippers!" He reached down and waved them.
Old Li, standing below, skillfully took out a pair of pliers and handed them over.
The two chatted idly as they talked.
Suddenly, Old Li said something from below.
" Old Wang, did you hear anything?"
Old Wang was slightly taken aback. He subconsciously slowed down his movements and listened carefully.
I could faintly hear rustling sounds in my ears.
"I heard it, but I don't know what it is, maybe a rat or something," Old Wang replied casually, then continued working on the cable.
Old Li nodded slightly, originally intending not to pay attention, but the voice kept continuing.
He looked up at Old Wang, who was using hydraulic clamps to snap together the old and new cables, and said:
" Old Wang, you go ahead with your work, I'll go take a look."
"Okay, remember not to go too far!" Old Wang said without turning his head.
"Yes, I understand!"
Old Li responded and then walked towards the direction from which the sound came.
After a while, once the cable was repaired, Old Wang breathed a sigh of relief.
He sat on the ladder, looked around, and then frowned.
" Old Li told me not to go too far; there are still a few places waiting to be repaired!"
Slightly annoyed, he climbed down the stairs.
After quickly tidying up my things, I headed in the direction the sound came from.
The sound was a bit soft, and the distance was a bit far.
It took Old Wang several minutes to gradually approach the source of the sound.
Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.
At the far end of the field of vision, around the corner, a yellow safety helmet was casually placed on the ground.
What's Old Li up to?
Filled with even greater dissatisfaction, Old Wang walked over.
He bent down to pick up the helmet from the ground, but stopped halfway through.
Scattered, still-wet bloodstains were visible around the area.
A chill, without him even realizing it, replaced his discontent and filled his heart.
The rustling sound still lingered in my ears.
It's just the distance...
Old Wang looked up at the corner that was so close, trembled slightly, but still took two steps forward and walked over.
The beam of the headlamp illuminated the underground passage behind the corner.
Along with the underground passage, it comes into view.
It was that terrified corpse.
Three enormous unicorn rats looked up at us...