The sharp, broken cane pierced through the monster's brain, wiping out all signs of life. Yet, even so, the inertia of its leap remained.
Its massive body crashed down like a cannonball, slamming into Lin Qiye and knocking him violently to the ground.
In truth, Lin Qiye was only able to kill this monster thanks to his abnormal dynamic vision and the divine power of the Seraph. His physical strength hadn't increased at all. The monster weighed at least two hundred kilograms. There was no way he could shake it off so easily.
What's more, after forcefully invoking the Seraph's power, Lin Qiye felt as if he'd been completely drained. His body had no strength left, and he was slightly dizzy.
Just then, the second monster, which had been hiding on the other side, began to move.
The predator lurking in the shadows finally revealed its hideous fangs!
Its limbs pounded the pavement as it raced under the flickering streetlights, its shadow flickering like a ghost. A scarlet tongue twisted grotesquely from its mouth.
Lin Qiye could see its movements clearly, but in his current state, he couldn't dodge. He could only watch helplessly as those rows of fangs rapidly grew larger in his vision.
Just two meters away from him, Lin Qiye's pupils suddenly contracted!
Within his perception, something was approaching—even faster than the monster!
Was that... a person?
A real human being.
Whoosh—
A blur flashed before Lin Qiye's eyes as a figure descended from the night sky. The man landed steadily, wind billowing his dark red cloak to reveal the side of a middle-aged face.
He wasn't particularly handsome or ugly—just an average man you might pass by on the street. Someone you'd instinctively overlook.
But the killing intent blazing in his eyes was like a pair of unsheathed blades, dazzling and cold.
He landed in a half-squat, eyes locked on the monster barely a meter in front of him, right hand gripping the hilt of the blade on his back.
"Zheng—!"
A crisp sound rang out as the blade slid from its sheath. The pale blue edge caught the moonlight, cutting through the still air, slashing forward in eerie silence.
It was a straight blade—simple, unadorned.
The blade traced a crescent arc as it collided with the monster's claws, sparks flying from the impact.
Zhao Kongcheng growled and stepped forward with explosive force. His muscles tensed, and the bear-sized monster was driven back several steps!
Lin Qiye's eyes were filled with disbelief. He had fought that monster and knew how terrifyingly strong it was. And yet this man had forced it to retreat?
Who was he?
Zhao Kongcheng didn't let up. His footwork flowed like shadow, clinging to the monster like a parasite. His blade danced, leaving deep gashes across the beast's flesh.
The monster shrieked, glaring at Zhao Kongcheng with hatred. It raised its spear-like limbs to kill him.
But two blade flashes sliced through the air—and the limbs fell to the ground.
Before it could scream, Zhao Kongcheng's eyes lit with cold fire. His blade swept like lightning toward its neck.
The pale blue edge easily cut through flesh.
The monster's head flew.
Thud.
It rolled to the ground.
"Click—"
The straight blade returned to its sheath. Blood soaked Zhao Kongcheng's cloak, but it blended so well with the dark red fabric that it was barely visible.
He didn't spare the corpse a glance. Instead, he calmly lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, then pulled out a walkie-talkie.
"Two escaped ghost-masked targets neutralized. Send in cleanup."
With that, he put away the device and walked over to Lin Qiye.
Lin Qiye simply stared at him. He stared back.
The two men gazed at each other silently, blood pooling around them under the night sky.
Finally, Zhao Kongcheng couldn't hold it in. He spoke first:
"Was I cool just now?"
Lin Qiye: …
He stared at Zhao Kongcheng's eyes for a moment and saw that the man was being serious.
"…Cool."
"D*mn right I was." Zhao Kongcheng grinned. "Wanna be as cool as me?"
"No."
"…Why not?"
"Too risky."
Lin Qiye's tone was dead serious.
Zhao Kongcheng was speechless for a moment. "But you saw it yourself—you've got supernatural powers people dream about. Don't you want to be a hero, like in the movies?"
"No."
"…Because it's risky?"
"Exactly."
Zhao Kongcheng rubbed his temples. This kid was something else. And yet he was already caught in this mess, with such incredible power…
"Alright. This isn't the place to talk. Let's go somewhere else and have a proper chat." Zhao Kongcheng sighed. "Oh, and I'm Zhao Kongcheng. I'm not a bad guy."
"Lin Qiye." Lin Qiye blinked and nodded. "I believe you. Wait here—I need to grab my backpack. My study materials are still inside."
"…Fine, fine." Zhao Kongcheng waved him off and sat down on the curb, a little dejected.
Any normal person would've been scared out of their wits by now. But this kid was still worried about his homework...
And he turned him down, just like that?
D*mn it! Zhao thought. I gave it my all just now! Those blade moves were sick! Even when sparring with the captain, I didn't go that hard!
Speaking of which… how's the captain doing? That Ghost-Face King isn't easy to handle…
He sat on the curb, cigarette dangling from his lips, lost in thought.
Lost in thought…
Wait.
Something's off.
Zhao Kongcheng snapped back to reality. After half a second, he leapt up and scanned the area—
Where was that kid!?
He stood frozen for several seconds, mouth agape, unable to believe what had just happened.
"What the hell?! That little brat ran off?!"
...
"Bro, why are you back so late?" Yang Jin looked at the exhausted Lin Qiye with concern. "Where's your cane?"
"I ran into something on the way home and lost it," Lin Qiye said, forcing a smile as he slipped off his shoes.
To keep Yang Jin from seeing the wound near his temple, Lin Qiye wrapped it again with black silk. The cane was broken—no point in bringing it back to worry his family.
"It's fine. We can just get a new one. …Is everything settled now?"
"Yeah. It's handled."
Little Hei Lai waddled over from the balcony, nuzzling Lin Qiye's leg before rolling over and exposing his belly.
Lin Qiye crouched down, rubbing his belly. "Auntie's not home yet?"
"Mom's working the night shift. She'll be back in the morning."
"Alright. Homework done?"
"Just a little left."
"Middle school's brutal these days… So much homework. If it's too much, just skip it. If the teacher gives you crap, tell me. I'll deal with it."
Yang Jin smiled. "Almost done."
"Good. I'm wiped—I'm going to bed. You should sleep soon too."
"Okay."
Lin Qiye shuffled into his room. Just as he was about to shut the door—
"Bro… Are you really okay?"
"I'm fine. Sleep tight. Oh—milk's in the fridge. If you're up early, heat it yourself."
"Got it, bro."
"Night."
"Night."
The door shut softly. Yang Jin stood outside, holding Little Hei Lai, staring at the door in silence.
He gently petted the dog's head.
"You smell it too?"
"Woof."
He looked up at the dim moonlight.
"He smells like blood."