Based on the initial layout map, the Priest’s escape route could be determined. Li Xiao found every single module along that path and thoroughly scrambled their numbers, ensuring they couldn’t escape through the exit.

In the monitoring center, a technician noticed something was wrong and immediately reported it to his superior: “There’s a problem with the module movement trajectories!”

“What kind of problem?” A middle-aged Beta in a business suit walked over to the console.

The technician operated his controls rapidly, attempting to make corrections: “The staff corridor is moving in reverse! If this continues, they’re all going to be trapped inside!”

Several red-highlighted modules appeared on the virtual screen, with warning prompts popping up above them indicating that the movement code was scrambled.

The middle-aged Beta stared at the movement trajectories of the red modules, growing increasingly astonished.

Thousands of modules operated under AI calculations following a meticulously designed movement pattern. If even a single module malfunctioned, the entire program would go haywire.

Yet right now, as many as ten modules were malfunctioning, yet it hadn’t affected the operation of any other module at all.

What on earth was going on?!

Middle-aged Beta: “Could the AI be making smart corrections?”

The technician answered urgently: “No, the AI is currently paralyzed! Multiple attempts to wake it up have failed!”

The middle-aged Beta was startled. Who had hijacked the AI?

Before he could figure out the situation, a nearby technician reported loudly: “Military combat forces have surrounded the airspace over Luminous Island!”

Hearing this, the middle-aged Beta didn’t seem particularly surprised. He told the first technician: “Quickly return the errant modules to their positions!”

Sweat poured down the technician’s face: “I can’t! Every time I pull it back, it runs off on its own again!”

On the holographic projection, module A28 retreated one grid under the technician’s manual input, but quickly advanced forward by one grid again.

“Where’s the surveillance?! Where are the Priest and his people?!” the middle-aged Beta roared.

Technician: “Currently restoring it!”

In a panic, the middle-aged Beta threw a punch: “Hurry up! They’re all going to be dead!”

Li Xiao maneuvered the room until it was near the stage, catching sight of the stone pillar covered in corpses from one side of the corridor.

Up close, the visual impact was staggering.

Li Xiao leaped onto the raised platform, his gaze sweeping over the nearest corpse.

The metal rods were identical to the ones in the abandoned base—even the piercing locations were no different.

Even if that underground base had also been a sacred site for the Gaofeng tribe, having even such minute details match perfectly was far too contrived.

Li Xiao walked around the stone pillar for a couple of paces, signaling 09 to transform into a military knife.

09: [You’re making me do the dirty work again. 07 never has to do these things.]

Li Xiao: [You’re the Grandfather—the strongest among all battle armors.]

09: [Well, of course~]

With that, it obediently transformed into a military knife and slid into Li Xiao’s palm.

Hearing their exchange, Song Jin: “…”

So easy to fool.

Li Xiao used the military knife to slice open the faces of two corpses. The blade tip met no bone resistance and slid in with ease.

“How is it?” Song Jin asked, waiting below the platform.

Li Xiao: “They’re mannequins.”

Song Jin observed their surroundings out of the corner of his eye: “As expected.”

Other things could be recreated and restored down to the last detail, but not corpses.

Li Xiao scanned the military uniforms worn by the mannequins. They had clearly undergone aging treatments, but from the fabric to the tailoring, right down to the texture on the buttons, it was obvious they weren’t bootlegs.

A few more gunshots rang out, and Jiang Chi urged: “Are you done yet? Standing here feels completely unsafe—we could get shot in the head from behind at any second.”

“Jinx.”

Song Jin walked past him. “You’re a space pirate leader, yet you’re such a coward.”

Jiang Chi toughened up and retorted, “I call this treasuring my life.”

The original entrance leading downward had closed, and even the module itself had been relocated elsewhere.

Li Xiao glanced at the layout map, then led them toward the west side of the stage. He manipulated the code to open the entrance, revealing a downward-sloping staircase.

The paths beneath the stage stretched out in all directions, shifting once every fifteen seconds under the control of the smart AI system.

From their position to the module where the Priest was located, it would take at least five shifts.

By the second shift, several frantic performers appeared in the corridor ahead.

Gunshots echoed from the distance. The performers ducked down clutching their heads, screaming in terror.

The military knife in Li Xiao’s hand transformed into a pneumatic gun. As the performers crouched, he pulled the trigger.

An air bullet whistled past their heads, instantly blowing off a killer’s head.

A headshot from nearly a hundred meters away.

Seeing such exquisite marksmanship, Jiang Chi couldn’t help but whistle: “Slick!”

Li Xiao: “You’re not bad yourself.”

Song Jin blew off the head of a killer who had just ducked out from around a corner, saying icily, “You dare flirt right in front of me?”

Li Xiao: “…”

What kind of misunderstanding do you have about flirting?

After taking out a batch, the three sprinted down the corridor.

A fair number of killers had crossed over, and with no rooms to take cover in within the corridor, standing still meant taking hits.

The space began to shift once more.

Five killers appeared in the newly connected module. Song Jin happened to be standing right at the edge of his module, less than a meter away from the closest killer.

The killer had his gun raised and was preparing to pull the trigger the moment he saw Song Jin.

Li Xiao wrapped an arm around Song Jin’s waist to pull him aside, raising a leg to kick the killer’s gun away.

In that lightning-fast instant, Song Jin could clearly see the killer’s finger preparing to pull the trigger and the image of the gun flying up into the air, feeling himself dragged back by a immense force.

With his life threatened, every cell in his body sounded an alarm.

With Song Jin’s reaction speed, he could tell he could have dodged it himself, but he hadn’t expected Li Xiao to be so much faster than him.

Whether during past sparring matches or exams, he had never encountered such an extreme situation, leading Song Jin to believe their reaction speeds were roughly equal.

Looking at it now, Li Xiao had never been serious with him before—otherwise, a victor would have been decided long ago.

The thought made Song Jin grit his teeth in annoyance.

While they dodged, Jiang Chi pulled the trigger toward the seven killers opposite them.

A click sounded; he was out of bullets.

Three killers remained.

Jiang Chi scrambled to take cover: “I’m out of ammo!”

Li Xiao casually handled the three, flicking his toe to kick a dropped gun toward Jiang Chi before it hit the floor.

Jiang Chi leaped to catch it, rapidly opening the magazine to check the round count, slapped it back in, and racked the slide. Noticing another killer running over out of the corner of his eye, he was just about to take care of him when the killer’s neck was drilled through by a bullet fired from a side passage, spraying blood as he collapsed instantly.

The next moment, three soldiers in military uniform ran out from the side passage. The man leading them wasn’t in uniform, but Jiang Chi could tell from his posture and expression that he was also a soldier.

Gao Cheng snapped his gaze toward the source of the commotion. Seeing the disguised Li Xiao and Song Jin, he was astonished.

“What are you two doing here?!”

Li Xiao’s gaze swept over the three soldiers behind him. Judging by their uniforms, they were local garrison troops.

The Zifu Constellation was Zheng Kang’an’s turf—not friendly forces to him.

“Came to watch a show. Didn’t expect to run into trouble,” Li Xiao asked casually. “What about you?”

Gao Cheng rushed over to Li Xiao, speaking rapidly: “We’re conducting a joint operation with the local garrison to wipe out a cult.”

“A cult?” Li Xiao asked deliberately. “Are you talking about those Gaofeng tribe performers?”

Gao Cheng: “They aren’t just performers—they also spread superstition, recruiting numerous followers across the nation and engaging in illegal fundraising reaching tens of billions.”

Jiang Chi was stunned as he listened from the side: That actually makes so much money?!

Why the hell was he still acting as a space pirate then? He might as well switch careers and become a priest!

The floor beneath them began to vibrate; the space was shifting again.

“I’ll have my men escort you out,” Gao Cheng said, subconsciously looking over at Jiang Chi, who had just spoken. Once he saw him clearly, his pupils shrank sharply. “Y-You are?”

Seeing the shock and suspicion in his eyes, Li Xiao explained before Jiang Chi could speak: “An audience member we rescued just now.”

Jiang Chi happened to be standing behind Li Xiao, his gun-toting hand concealed. Hearing this, he quickly hid the gun behind his back, sniffling as he raised his voice to wail and shout, “Officer, save me! I can’t find my wife and child!”

Gao Cheng widened his eyes, scrutinizing Jiang Chi continuously.

“Focus on your business, don’t let us delay your arrest,” Li Xiao walked past Gao Cheng with quick steps. “I know where the exit is. Let’s talk later.”

“Hey—wait!” Gao Cheng turned, attempting to call them back. “Leave this uncle to me.”

Jiang Chi had been about to walk off, but stopped dead in his tracks upon hearing that.

“You’re the uncle! Your whole family are uncles!”

As Song Jin hauled him forward by the collar, Jiang Chi cursed loudly at Gao Cheng, “If I can’t find my wife and child, I’m filing a complaint against you! Just you wait, kid!”

Annoyed by the noise, Song Jin kicked him: “Shut up!”

“Hss, fine, fine, fine, I won’t talk, I won’t talk.” Jiang Chi immediately caved, limping along after them.

Gao Cheng couldn’t get a word in at all. By the time he wanted to give chase, the module shift was complete, and Li Xiao and his group were nowhere to be seen in the corridor.

“Lieutenant Colonel Gao?” Seeing him lost in thought, a soldier inquired, “What are your instructions next?”

Gao Cheng withdrew his gaze suspiciously: “Proceed!”

With that, he contacted the technical department in the rear via the public channel: “Have you successfully hijacked the AI?”

Technical Department: “We ran into a slight issue. There’s a third party intruding in the system. We’re currently trying to purge them and gain control!”

“A third party…” Gao Cheng thought of Li Xiao almost instantly.

In another module, Jiang Chi breathed a heavy sigh of relief upon seeing that the soldiers hadn’t pursued them.

“Thank goodness my acting was good and I wasn’t discovered, or I’d be heading to jail.”

“Not necessarily.” Thinking back to Gao Cheng’s reaction just now, Li Xiao felt a bit puzzled.

Had Gao Cheng recognized Jiang Chi as the leader of the Snow Leopards, or had he mistaken Jiang Chi for someone else?

Jiang Chi gasped: “Don’t scare me!”

Running ahead, Song Jin’s voice sounded extraordinarily cold within the metallic corridor: “To keep you from living in fear, I can send you off early.”

Jiang Chi said dryly: “…Thanks, but no need to trouble yourself, sir.”

This young master’s temper is truly foul.

How does the Second Highness put up with it?

Li Xiao monitored the surveillance footage in his field of vision, leading them toward the corresponding passage. On the fifth shift, they finally connected with the passage where the Priest was.

Holding a handgun transformed from his staff, the Priest was being pursued by two killers. Turning to fire, he failed to watch where he was going, nearly crashing into Song Jin by the time he realized it.

Seeing that Song Jin was also holding a gun, the Priest redirected his firearm, simultaneously retreating in panic.

Just as Li Xiao was about to move, he saw Song Jin strike like lightning out of the corner of his eye, grabbing the Priest’s arm, pulling him in for a knee to the chest, and raising his gun to pull the trigger on the pursuing killers in a single fluid motion.

“Ugh! Cough, cough, cough…” Taking a heavy blow to the chest, the Priest bent over coughing violently, instantly losing all mobility.

The two killers in the distance collapsed to the ground simultaneously.

In the span of a breath, the one who needed capturing was captured, and those who needed killing were killed.

Li Xiao flicked his eyes at Song Jin, feeling that the little lion was in a bad mood.

No, rather, it was terrible.

Song Jin clamped the Priest’s chin to yank it up roughly, confirming that his greyish-green eyes weren’t fake.

“The real deal.”

“What do you want?!” The Priest struggled, but couldn’t break free, trembling with fear.

Jiang Chi put on a menacing face: “Scamming people out of money! And daring to scam so much—see if I don’t beat the crap out of you!”

Song Jin: “…”

Why the hell are you so bitter?

Li Xiao scanned the route from their position to the exit.

09 couldn’t gain complete control, so the module couldn’t be moved directly to the exit—it would require at least six more shifts.

In the surveillance footage, killers in different modules received word and were redirecting their path toward this location.

Li Xiao yanked off the Priest’s large black cloak: “I’ll draw the killers away. You two take him out through the exit first, and remember to avoid the military.”

Song Jin knitted his brows, his tone irritable: “I’m going with you.”

“Old Jiang will get lost.” Li Xiao put on the cloak, curling his fingers to gently touch Song Jin’s face. “Stay safe.”

With that, he strode quickly into a side passage and left.

Song Jin was already in a bad mood, and now his temper flared even higher. Staring with a foul face in the direction Li Xiao had departed, he tightened his grip on the Priest, making him scream out in pain.

“Ow, it hurts! Let go, let go fast! Ah—!”

Seeing the Priest’s features distort as his eyes started rolling back, Jiang Chi surreptitiously backed away.

This consort is way too brutal.

Song Jin tossed the man over to Jiang Chi, walking forward without looking back: “If you let him make another sound, I’ll deal with you too.”

Jiang Chi hurriedly clapped a hand over the Priest’s mouth: “…”

Good thing the consort won’t inherit the throne, or he’d definitely be a tyrant.

The Priest thrashed desperately, pounding his hands against Jiang Chi’s arm.

Don’t cover his nose along with his mouth!

Suffocating, the Priest summoned all his strength to lick Jiang Chi’s palm.

Startled, Jiang Chi delivered a resounding backhand slap across his face.

Too damn shameless! Scamming money wasn’t enough, now he was trying to hit on him?!

The Priest’s head snapped to the side from the slap, but he could finally catch his breath. Slumped like a dead fish, he greedily sucked in the air.

Noticing Song Jin’s impatient glare, Jiang Chi immediately clamped his hand back over: “Covered!”

Priest: “…”

He was going to get played to death by these people sooner or later.

The modules shifted position once more.

A killer spotted the flutter of a black robe at the end of the corridor and pursued immediately, while notifying the others via the public channel: “Priest spotted at A93, heading southwest of the stone pillar, direct distance roughly sixty meters!”

Li Xiao waited at the corner, listening to the approaching footsteps. The moment a gun barrel poked around the corner, he seized the person’s wrist and forced it upward.

Bang, bang, bang—!

Three gunshots rang out, leaving three bullet holes in the ceiling.

The killer snapped his hand back while throwing a kick.

Li Xiao side-stepped to dodge, catching the killer’s nape to slam him face-first into the wall.

“Who sent you?”

“Ugh!”

A deep, weathered voice exploded near his ear. The killer’s scalp went numb, his face pressed against the cold wall with no way to break free. He roared angrily, “Your Gaofeng tribe slaughtered my Bique kin! We came for revenge!”

Li Xiao said indifferently, “You aren’t Bique. Name the mastermind, and I might consider letting you go.”

The killer was momentarily taken aback before resuming his swearing: “You Gaofeng people are the most despicable! I won’t believe you—ugh!”

Before he could finish, the force on his neck tightened continuously. His bones groaned under the strain, making a cracking sound. The killer suffocated in waves, flailing his limbs desperately.

“I’ll talk, I’ll talk!”

Sensing the grip loosen slightly, the killer’s voice trembled: “Raven hired us!”

09: [Brainwave analysis indicates this person is lying.]

Even without 09’s prompt, Li Xiao could tell from the killer’s micro-expressions.

“It seems you don’t really want to live.”

The pressure intensified again, throwing the killer into complete panic: “It wasn’t Raven! I don’t know who it was, I really don’t! They just told us to go in and kill indiscriminately, catch you, record the torture and execution, and post it online to complete the mission!”

Li Xiao: “Torture and execution?”

The killer said in a panic: “Nail you to the stone pillar! I’ve told you everything I know, hurry and let—ugh!”

With a slight application of force from Li Xiao, a sharp crack echoed. The killer went completely limp, sliding down the wall onto the floor.

Li Xiao turned and continued heading in the direction opposite the exit.

The space shifted again, and killers surged toward the southwest from all directions.

A flash of black suddenly appeared in their field of vision, standing out conspicuously in the silver-white space.

A tall, upright figure draped in a black cloak stood in the middle of the corridor. The broad hood shaded most of his face, revealing only a sharp, handsome jawline.

The killers raised their guns abruptly, only to see that the opponent had no intention of running at all, even exuding a sense of easy relaxation.

Must be an illusion.

Faced with impending death, he must be too terrified to move.

Someone fired a shot at his legs, only to find the bullet stopping a meter away as if hitting an invisible barrier!

Bang, bang, bang—!

Dense gunfire erupted.

Taking advantage of the gap while the killers swarmed around him, Li Xiao checked the surveillance feed in his field of vision to confirm Song Jin’s location.

After all the killers moved in this direction, the area near Song Jin had been nearly cleared. He was almost at the exit, and things looked smooth.

“Don’t move! You’re surrounded!”

“If you want to live, surrender quietly! Hands up!”

“Freaky! Does he really have some kind of divine power?!”

“Could it be a holographic projection?!”

“Where’s your brain?! He has a shadow!”

The group of killers grew increasingly bewildered. Just as they were struggling to make sense of it, they saw the black-cloaked Priest turn around, scaring them so much they nearly turned tail and ran.

Though he hadn’t done anything, he instantly gave them the illusion that they were dead meat.

A short while later, Li Xiao yanked off the cloak, tossed it aside casually, and stepped over a floor of corpses to head toward the exit.

At the exit, Song Jin could see numerous military vehicles parked on the beach outside in the distance, with several soldiers holding machine guns to evacuate the crowd.

Song Jin glanced at the Priest’s exaggerated performance costume and said to Jiang Chi, “Strip him clean.”

Jiang Chi tore off the Priest’s clothes in two or three moves. Spotting his bright red beach shorts, he whistled: “Pretty flashy, aren’t you?”

The Priest yanked at his remaining shorts: “This is to ward off bad luck! Leave me a little something!”

Jiang Chi: “You’re skinny as a rail and all ribs—who wants to look at you?”

Song Jin’s gaze swept over the beard on the Priest’s face, ripping it off in one pull: “Follow me.”

Tears welled up in the Priest’s eyes from the pain, but he followed without a word.

Mainly, he didn’t dare yell, fearing he’d be slaughtered in a heartbeat.

Originally, all exits were controlled by the garrison troops, but a surge of audience members suddenly poured out from a small side door, drawing the garrison at the entrance away.

Song Jin seized the opportunity to slip out, moving in the opposite direction of the crowd.

By the time Li Xiao reached the exit, he had 09 release the hijack on the smart system and headed toward the small grove marked out by 07.

The wind was strong at night, carrying the salty scent of seawater in the air.

Shortly after entering the grove, a faint, spicy scent of alcohol drifted over, saving Li Xiao’s suffering nose just in time.

Just as he was about to walk over, a blur flashed past. Li Xiao leaned back slightly, pinning the opponent’s wrist: “Hiding here to ambush me?”

“I’m welcoming you.” Song Jin pressed closer, looking into his eyes with a slow, faint smile. “Your reaction speed really is fast.”

There were no lights in this area, only the hazy glow of the satellite. Still, Li Xiao could see heavy murderous intent and pressure within those magnified eyes.

Li Xiao didn’t find it repulsive in the slightest, even feeling that these eyes, bursting with aggressiveness, possessed a soul-captivating beauty.

A wild, untamable lion would only ignite his desire for conquest.

Li Xiao leaned away from Song Jin’s nose, intending to comfort the somehow ruffled little lion with a kiss. But remembering he was currently in disguise and might repulse him, he backed off again.

“Where are they? Let’s go take a look.”

Just as he was preparing to kiss back, Song Jin ended up kissing the air. His brows knitted tightly, his anger spiking wildly.

Li Xiao: “…?”

Why does he look even angrier?

09: [It must be because you flirted with Old Jiang that he’s mad.]

Li Xiao: “…”

Didn’t ask you for relationship advice.

09: [I am the Grandfather, after all.]

Numerous windows popped up in Li Xiao’s field of vision, the search bar displaying: #Husband Flirts with Side Piece, Wife Knocks Out Front Teeth on Street#, #Man Cheats with Oily Middle-Aged Guy Three Months After Marrying Wealthy Heiress—Turns Out to Be Rare Psychological Condition#, #Free-loader Caught Keeping Older Man, Kneels to Beg for Mercy, Physically Castrated by Rich First Wife#…

Li Xiao: “…”

Whose battle armor are you, exactly?

More and more windows popped up. Li Xiao directly enabled mute mode, and the world finally grew quiet.

The roar of an engine passed overhead. Li Xiao lowered his voice: “Let’s leave here first.”

The island was surrounded by garrison troops; screams and cries could be heard near and far.

Li Xiao had 09 transform into a hovercar, carrying Jiang Chi and the others as they flew to another nearby small island.

07 transformed into an oversized tent, enveloping them within.

Only then did Li Xiao properly size up the Priest.

According to data retrieved from the military system, this Alpha was named Zhan Yue, thirty-six years old, from the Gaofeng tribe. During performances, he disguised himself as an eighty-or-ninety-year-old man, and his voice was also fake.

“Who designed the stage set today?” Li Xiao asked.

Wearing only a pair of shorts, Zhan Yue shivered in the corner from the cold.

Thinking they were going to do something to him, he hadn’t expected such a mundane question. He replied: “We have professional stage designers.”

Li Xiao: “Who?”

Zhan Yue’s eyes turned vigilant: “Are you trying to poach my staff?”

Song Jin raised his chin at Jiang Chi: “Go strip off his underwear.”

Jiang Chi chuckled, rubbing his hands together as he walked over: “Don’t blame me, big brother—you asked for this.”

Zhan Yue grabbed his shorts frantically, adding in a hurry: “I can introduce you to them!”

Li Xiao: “Is this the set for every performance?”

Zhan Yue: “Different. Today’s venue and set were both used for the first time.”

“Is every ritual performance themed around the Bique tribe?”

Seeing Zhan Yue nod, Li Xiao continued, “Do you know that inciting racial hatred is a serious crime?”

Zhan Yue had originally shrunk back, not daring to move, but upon hearing this, he stood up agitatedly: “The Bique tribe slaughtered my people and nothing happened to them! I spread a little publicity about them and it’s a serious crime—is there any justice left in this world?!”

Li Xiao: “When did the Bique tribe slaughter the Gaofeng tribe?”

“Seventy-six years ago! The Golden Sparrow Corps attacked District 68, causing over 90% of the buildings to collapse into rubble, with a body count exceeding three million! Three million!”

Zhan Yue glared at Li Xiao, yelling fiercely, “Back then, the total population of the Gaofeng tribe was under six million—half our people died! If that isn’t a devastating massacre, what is?!”

“Over these decades, how we managed to drag ourselves through—you outsiders can’t even fathom!”

Zhan Yue grew increasingly agitated as he spoke, “Yet what price did the culprits ever pay? They eat, drink, and live just fine! They even attacked His Majesty! The Bique tribe is an inherently evil species!”

“That’s still no excuse for you to run scams,” Jiang Chi remarked from his perch on a tree stump.

Zhan Yue: “I didn’t run scams—they gave it voluntarily!”

Jiang Chi: “Every scammer says that.”

Song Jin flipped through the personal file shared by Li Xiao. Checking the family relations section, he spotted a line and tapped Li Xiao: “This.”

Li Xiao looked over.

Zhan Yue’s great-grandfather was actually Zhan Qiming.

Li Xiao looked at Zhan Yue: “When did these performances of yours start?”

Zhan Yue’s chest heaved heavily: “Twenty-eight years ago, someone contacted my grandfather, saying we could use this method to get the government to pay attention to the matter and help us seek justice. Grandfather agreed.”

Twenty-eight years ago—meaning one or two years after the abandoned base exploded.

Li Xiao had once wondered why the base had been left in its original state after being destroyed, rather than being filled in or demolished. It turned out this was what was waiting.

Back then, a box of blood had been mistakenly delivered to Qiu Bin’s lab, leading him to discover the clue of Z152, which in turn led him to the abandoned base, only to be attacked by Zheng family troops upon exiting.

Those people had originally planned to ambush Raven, because Wei Feng had also obtained the clue to the abandoned base—he was just a step slower than them.

If Wei Feng and his people had gone and seen the Gaofeng tribe so high-profilely recreating the tragic scenes from the base to publicly incite conflict, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Both ethnic groups had suffered heavy blows due to the events back then; this was an unresolvable, deadly feud.

Meanwhile, the Meng family—who had incited the inter-ethnic war—manipulated everything from the shadows, yet managed to remain perfectly hidden. After muddying the domestic situation, they could step forward as saviors to rescue the populace from fire and water.

The motive behind tonight’s show was obvious: the Meng family wanted to take advantage of the momentum surrounding Raven before it passed, giving it another push to put the Bique tribe in the crosshairs and pave the way for their subsequent actions.

Meng Jian still couldn’t bear to abandon the Meng family’s reputation.

A family’s reputation was both Meng Jian’s glory and his shackle. Li Xiao didn’t fear Meng Jian holding on; he feared him not holding on.

An enemy with nothing to lose was the most terrifying kind.

Late at night, Li Xiao sat alone on the beach, facing the pitch-black ocean as he organized the clues surrounding the Golden Sparrow coup.

After hearing that they were connected to the military, Zhan Yue had readily agreed to provide intelligence from back then.

Song Jin glanced online. Sure enough, news of Luminous Island being attacked by Bique rebels had already made the trending searches.

“If they had succeeded tonight, the trending search would have been ‘Bique Rebels Assassinate Great-Grandson of Major General Zhan Qiming.’ Talk about pulling aggro effectively.”

Li Xiao: “If the bloody stage gets exposed, people will curse the Gaofeng tribe just the same. No one wins except Meng Jian.”

Song Jin: “When are we clarifying things?”

“No rush,” Li Xiao said softly. “Someone will be more anxious than us.”

Song Jin tilted his head to look at him: “Zheng Kang’an?”

Li Xiao nodded: “Qi Shoude just died. No matter how stupid he is, he wouldn’t dare let trouble brew in the Zifu Constellation right now.”

The night wind was strong, ruffling Li Xiao’s hair slightly. Song Jin stared at him intently, that elusive feeling creeping back into his heart.

“You look like you take everything seriously, but in reality, you don’t care about anything, do you?”

Li Xiao snapped back from his thoughts: “Why do you say that?”

Song Jin didn’t answer his question, continuing instead: “You told me to think it over carefully before giving you an answer, but you weren’t actually looking forward to my response. You were just giving me time to regret it so I’d leave you on my own.”

Seeing Li Xiao offer tacit acquiescence, Song Jin got up to leave: “Scumbag.”

Li Xiao grabbed his hand: “It’s not like today’s the first day you realized it.”

Song Jin: “…”

He actually didn’t deny it at all.

Song Jin’s face went cold as he looked down at him: “Have you ever been serious?”

Li Xiao: “I am very serious.”

Song Jin: “Guess if I believe you?”

Li Xiao signaled for him to sit down: “What’s wrong tonight? Who made you unhappy?”

Song Jin yanked his hand free and walked away: “I don’t want you anymore.”

Li Xiao: “…”

This childish way of being angry is far too cute.

Li Xiao stood up and chased after him a few steps, wrapping his arms around Song Jin’s waist from behind: “I wasn’t ‘not looking forward’ to your answer. But no matter what you answer, it won’t affect me in any way.”

Song Jin: “Why?”

Li Xiao: “Would you let go of prey just because of something it said?”

Song Jin was so angry he laughed: “Then why did you ask me to answer?!”

Li Xiao chuckled: “Because your reaction while worrying about it is very entertaining.”

Song Jin: “…”

Not far off, Jiang Chi, who had come out to relieve himself, overheard the entire exchange. Watching the young couple start fighting over a disagreement, he shook his head with a sigh.

Hitting is affection, scolding is love—if they don’t fight for a day, they feel uncomfortable.

When young couples flirt, they really couldn’t care less about whether bystanders live or die.