Bathroom
Just as Jiang Hou was recalling everything that happened today, a girl's voice came from outside: "Jiang Hou, are you in there?"
"Um, it's me." Jiang Hou snapped back to reality and responded.
Outside the bathroom, stood a girl in pink pajamas.
The girl's face was fair and slightly round, with brows and eyes like paintings, a small nose, looking quite beautiful, especially those blue eyes that appeared like sapphires under the light.
However, at this moment, the girl frowned slightly: "Why are you back so late, it's past ten. Didn't you say you were just going to stroll around the park?"
"Cough!… Well, I fell asleep on a bench." Jiang Hou found an excuse.
"Fell asleep on a park bench? Be careful not to catch a cold."
"Hmm, it won't happen next time."
"Alright, as long as you're okay, wash up and go to bed early…"
"Okay."
Hearing the sound of the door closing outside, Jiang Hou's eyes showed a gentle look.
The girl just now was Qin Siyu, daughter of Qin Buyi, the owner of the house. As for Jiang Hou, technically, he was Qin Buyi's adopted son.
At seven years old, Jiang Hou's family had a car accident during a trip, his parents and grandfather died in the accident, leaving him as an orphan at a few years old.
Relatives helped handle the aftermath, but no one wanted to take in a burden.
Eventually, Qin Buyi drove over from a neighboring province upon hearing the news. As his father's comrade, he went through the paperwork to adopt him.
In Qin Buyi's home, besides Jiang Hou, there was also a daughter who was a month younger than Jiang Hou.
As for Qin Buyi's wife, she was said to be from another country, and for some reason, returned home when Qin Siyu was very young, never to come back.
The three formed a new family.
Luckily, Qin Buyi had a decent job, as the security team leader at a mine, with a monthly income sufficient for the family's expenses, managing to raise the two through ups and downs.
Qin Siyu didn't resist the suddenly appearing Jiang Hou either, as they had a close relationship since childhood.
Though after entering high school, this girl occasionally nagged.
Saying he stays home all day, not caring about his appearance, and doesn't cut his hair when it grows long, no wonder he's a senior in high school and still hasn't found a girlfriend.
Jiang Hou always just smiled at these remarks, never paying much attention to them.
With a mature mindset, Jiang Hou was out of place with those around him since infancy, even as he grew older, unable to play with 'peers'.
No choice, those kids' games seemed too childish to him.
Including behavior and speech, they were all on different wavelengths.
As for utilizing the advantage of being a transmigrator, planning step by step to start businesses and get rich, these could only be pondered over.
This isn't Earth, and he's not reincarnated back ten or twenty years earlier, without the advantage of foresight, how could he start off in unfamiliar territory?
If one's behavior and speech exceed the expected age, it appears strange to those around, receiving too much attention.
Like a primary school student constantly uttering life reflections usually reserved for adults, it always appears odd.
Thus, Jiang Hou seemed out of place since childhood, with a silent personality and few friends, speaking more only with Qin Siyu and Qin Buyi.
Of course, that silent personality is just how others perceive him.
Having experienced death and his family's upheaval as a child, Jiang Hou's demeanor grew somewhat indifferent, looking at most people and things with disinterest.
As long as he feels comfortable, that's enough.
In this contemplation, Jiang Hou turned off the shower, picked up a towel and began drying his hair, his gaze gradually falling on the mirror.
The young man in the mirror had disheveled, wet hair, a tall figure, with obvious muscles bulging in his arms and chest, especially the six-pack abs.
Even Jiang Hou had to admit, the reflection looked quite striking.
But before tonight, he was merely a slightly handsome ordinary high school student, still having a few pimples typical of his age.
Though he stood at 1.78 meters tall, due to lack of exercise, he was somewhat frail.
But now, he felt his height should be around 1.80 meters!
"Handsome!" Jiang Hou narcissistically praised, striking a bodybuilder pose, before finishing drying his hair, putting on clothes, and heading out.
By then, Qin Siyu had already returned to her room, but Jiang Hou knew she surely wasn't asleep yet, busy with her phone.
With smartphones' widespread adoption, the internet has integrated into all aspects of people's lives, gaming, entertainment, socializing, and daily living, making it indispensable.
Jiang Hou shook his head, turned off the hallway lights, and returned to his room.
Qin Buyi's workplace was somewhat distant, taking a few hours' drive there and back, so he stayed at his company since Qin Siyu started high school, only returning home on Sundays.
Thus, normally, it was just the two of them at home.
Back in his room, Jiang Hou lay on the bed, looking at the back of his left hand.
The black mark had also scaled down when he returned to human form, roughly ten centimeters long and five centimeters wide, covering most of the back of his hand, quite conspicuous.
"This thing needs to be concealed." Jiang Hou pondered.
He entered the ruins due to the black mist, and if he could go in, others could as well, perhaps many have already entered.
Moreover, since returning, Jiang Hou felt an invisible pressure, a strong force directly reverting him from the black Giant Ape form back to human.
Though forced transformation back into a giant beast seemed possible, the 'stamina' consumption would be terrifyingly high.
Under such circumstances, Jiang Hou's warrior form remained a trump card not to be used lightly, leaving him with only a physique twice to thrice that of normal people; a handgun could easily kill him.
However, this suppressive force apparently didn't affect the physique, only targeting supernatural power, which was good news for Jiang Hou.
In due time, as the giant beast form continued to evolve, surpassing a hundred, hundreds of meters in size, the attributes in human form would also rise to astonishing levels.
When movement speed surpasses the speed of sound, and power grows to obliterate buildings with a single punch, personal safety won't be a concern.
With this thought, a smile appeared on Jiang Hou's face.
Naturally, such things could only be imagined for now, for the ruins weren't a paradise but Hell, and those monsters and fierce beasts won't just stand there waiting for him to kill them.
Maybe next time he'd encounter a terrifying creature that'd instantly kill him with one blow.
After daydreaming for a while, Jiang Hou finally took out his phone, opened the video app, and after some thought, typed "Bizarre events nationwide" into the search box.
Immediately, a bunch of videos related to the title appeared.
[Cultivator undergoing tribulation during rain, bravely takes lightning strike unharmed]
[Mysterious creature spotted in Qingshan River, rumored to be the legendary water monster]
[Dense fog everywhere, many sight large creature shadows]
[Titan giant boa corpse discovered, measuring nearly twenty-seven meters, exceeding world record]
[Ten mysterious creatures recently...] All these video titles were exaggerated, seemingly indicating many supernatural creatures and cultivators.
But as Jiang Hou clicked into the videos, it was evident that those monster images had PS traces, including that tribulation video having people P'd in.
He continued browsing until unknowingly falling asleep.
It wasn't until a sudden knocking sound awakened him the next morning.
"Jiang Hou, time to get up."
Awakened by the noise, Jiang Hou opened his eyes, staring blankly at the ceiling for a moment before reacting.
"Coming."