Chapter 28: Security Goes Up the Mountain
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Walls have ears. That was what Li Chenqiu meant.
Li Ji glared viciously at Li Chenqiu, then sat back down in his chair.
Speaking without restraint in an unfamiliar environment was one thing if no one discovered them. But once they were exposed, they would no longer be able to survive in human society. Li Ji was no fool; he naturally understood the gravity of the situation.
“Nothing matters more than food. Stop worrying about all that nonsense and come eat, Xiao Qiu!”
Li Qingxia hurried over, took Li Chenqiu by the hand, and pulled him into a chair. Then she continued cheerfully from her place at the table:
“For the next few days, let’s just stay here and eat and drink well. Boss, how long has it been since you last had a proper rest? Take this opportunity to relax.”
Li Ji rolled his eyes at her. “Eat. You talk too much rubbish!”
…
…
Over the following days, the public uproar grew louder and louder. The utterly ordinary name Li Chenqiu rose like a new star and, overnight, occupied every news headline in City No. 11.
He became the focus of public attention, the subject of conversation over tea and after meals.
“This fried-rice shop hasn’t opened for days. I was still hoping to go see that Chosen One for myself.”
“How could it open? Look at all the reporters lying in wait around the place. The hotel next door is packed with people from the academies trying to recruit him. How could the shop possibly operate under these circumstances?”
“He blew up an ability-testing device with one punch. That’s seriously monstrous. I wish I could become a Chosen One like that.”
“Go home and drink some more. You can have anything in your dreams.”
“Speaking of which, Li Chenqiu’s background is truly pitiful. Abandoned by his parents as a child, he survived by scavenging food from garbage heaps and grew up little by little. Now that the fried-rice shop has taken him in, he finally has a home.”
“His bitterness has finally turned to sweetness. After suffering so much, he’ll be able to live a good life from now on.”
What these people did not know was that the child they spoke of—the one who had scavenged food from garbage heaps—had long since starved to death on a cold winter night. Only his appearance remained, and it had been given the name Li Chenqiu.
Outside, the world was in turmoil. Inside the hotel, everything was calm.
The three of them obediently stayed indoors, devoting themselves wholeheartedly to eating.
Li Chenqiu in particular was either sleeping or eating meat.
It was not that he wanted to take advantage of the situation. The reason lay in a phone call he had received several days earlier.
On the afternoon after seeing off Zhu Cheng, Li Chenqiu received a call from Wu Shan of the Public Security Division.
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The DNA test report had come back. No matching person had been found in the DNA database. In other words, the person who had been in the fourth-floor hotel room that night was overwhelmingly likely to have been either a Reviver or a Chosen One.
After that, he learned from Li Qingxia that several high schools in City No. 11 had organized a bonfire party to ease the pressure on their senior students as they prepared for their examinations.
The party was to be held on North Yellow Mountain, and the date was April 16—the very date circled on the hotel calendar.
This also meant that the mysterious person in the hotel had not been targeting him, but Fourth High School!
Who would secretly monitor Fourth High School and deliberately circle April 16 on a calendar?
There was only one possibility: someone was plotting something. Whether that person was a Chosen One protecting the students or a Reviver intending to slaughter them, Li Chenqiu did not care.
He cared about only one thing. If someone intended to attack several thousand students, did that mean that on April 16, North Yellow Mountain might be swarming with large numbers of beings above the First Forbidden Level?
The murals in the palace needed to be colored. To do that, he needed slaughter. North Yellow Mountain might be a stepping stone for him to increase his strength.
To prepare for this uncertain battle, eating meat to replenish his life energy and improve his physical functions was the only thing Li Chenqiu could do at present.
Inside the hotel room, Li Chenqiu sat before the floor-to-ceiling window with a cup of coffee in his hand, looking down from above at the humans below, tiny as ants. The three o’clock sunlight passed through the glass and fell across his face, giving his indifferent eyes a trace of false warmth.
Li Qingxia walked over from the sofa and patted him on the shoulder. “They sent me the bus pickup point. Let’s go!”
Li Chenqiu drained the coffee in one gulp, rose, and said, “Send me the location. I’ll go alone.”
“Alone?” Li Qingxia raised an eyebrow. “Who told you you’d be going alone? I signed up too.”
Li Chenqiu turned around in surprise. “You’re going to North Yellow Mountain to work as a security guard?”
“Of course. Seven hours, from six in the evening until one in the morning, for two hundred and fifty yuan. Food and lodging included, plus transportation both ways. How could I pass up a daily-pay part-time job like that?” Li Qingxia replied as though it were self-evident.
“Don’t go. Stay at the hotel and keep the boss company. Let me see the address.” As he spoke, Li Chenqiu reached for her phone.
“What are you doing?” Li Qingxia stepped back. “Whether I go or not isn’t up to you. You’re only my younger brother. Do you really think you can order me around?”
“You…” Li Chenqiu drew a deep breath and forcibly suppressed the urge to hit someone. Keeping his voice calm, he said, “This trip to North Yellow Mountain may be dangerous. It won’t be safe for you to go.”
Li Qingxia narrowed her eyes when she heard that. “What danger?”
“I don’t know. There’s danger, that’s all.” Li Chenqiu shook his head. After a moment, he added, “It may be extremely dangerous.”
“Then why the hell are you going? You can’t go!” Li Qingxia declared firmly. Before Li Chenqiu could react, she deleted the address from the phone.
“I deleted the address. Don’t even think about taking that job. If you dare go to North Yellow Mountain by yourself, I’ll tell the boss.”
Li Chenqiu: “…”
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“You’re in your twenties. Why are you acting like a child? I’m definitely going today. Whether you tell me the address or not changes nothing. It only affects whether it’s convenient.” Li Chenqiu’s tone was resolute.
“You—you already know it’s dangerous, so why are you still going?”
Li Chenqiu replied matter-of-factly, “Why shouldn’t I go? It isn’t dangerous for me. If anything, it will benefit me.”
Li Qingxia hesitated for a while, then steeled herself and said, “Then I’m going too. I have to keep an eye on you!”
“Second Brother, do you have no idea how capable you are? What will you do if we encounter danger and I don’t have time to protect you?”
“My eyes can see farther than yours. Why would I need you to protect me? If there’s danger, I’ll be long gone!”
…
Under Li Qingxia’s determined arguments, Li Chenqiu eventually agreed.
After leaving a note for Li Ji, the two of them headed to the pickup point for the security buses.
Five buses that had not yet started their engines were parked beside the broad road.
Wearing a mask, Li Chenqiu looked at them with a trace of confusion and asked Li Qingxia beside him, “Are all five of these buses for security guards?”
“How should I know? Let’s go ask.” Li Qingxia muttered, leading Li Chenqiu to the door of one of the buses.
“Name?” asked a young local man squatting in front of the bus without even raising his head.
“Li Dashan. This is my younger brother, Li Dahai.” Li Qingxia smiled and gestured toward Li Chenqiu.
Because Li Chenqiu had become too famous, Li Qingxia had used false names when registering them. Li Chenqiu was wearing a mask for the same reason.
As for why he did not alter his appearance, it was not because he did not want to, but because he could not.
The surveillance cameras throughout the urban district of City No. 11 provided almost complete coverage. Li Chenqiu’s figure would remain exposed to them constantly. Even if he changed his appearance, he could not truly become invisible. If someone really wanted to investigate him, following the clues would certainly reveal traces.
There was also a strong possibility that his ability to change his appearance would be exposed, and that perceptive individuals might even connect it to the disaster water that had appeared from nowhere.
The reason he had not been discovered after the incident at Lujiang Bridge was that Li Chenqiu had buried a change of clothes in advance along the banks of the Lujiang River. He had then used the river’s current to evade all surveillance and reach Lujiang Bridge to carry out the deed. That was why the Special Abilities Bureau had failed to find even the slightest clue afterward.
This time, however, there was no Lujiang River. Since that was the case, it was better to conceal himself casually and act openly.
If he encountered a Reviver on North Yellow Mountain, he would openly reveal his true identity and eliminate them. If he encountered a Chosen One, he would find an opportunity to kill them. There were not many surveillance cameras on the mountain, so all he needed to do was leave no traces.
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