Chapter 31

“What, what is this for?”

Shi Yu was surprised for a moment, his mind full of thoughts about those beautiful hands.

To be honest, he didn’t like snakes and felt a little scared of them. He thought cats and dogs were cuter. But these hands strangely matched the snake very well.

The silver-white scales showed the danger of cold-blooded animals, but also had a mysterious feeling that was hard to explain and very attractive. After closing his eyes at first, Shi Yu couldn’t help but open them again to look once more.

The second look was still very unique.

Oh no, what is he thinking?

Shi Yu covered his eyes, took a deep breath, and sent a question mark to the other side.

ID “Shark blowing bubbles” replied, “Hey brother, what are you doing?”

“Why send this?”

Brother?

Sang Huaiyu was surprised. It was the first time someone called him “brother.”

He looked it up online and found out it was a common way male streamers talked on live platforms. Sang Huaiyu thought about it and slightly put his hand to his chin.

“Not good looking?”

After a while, simple words appeared: “Not good looking?” He didn’t know what the other person was doing, but somehow just reading those words made Shi Yu imagine how the other person spoke.

Weird.

“Ahem, it’s quite good looking.”

Shi Yu had a normal taste. Even though he didn’t like snakes, he couldn’t say the photo was bad. But after saying that, he realized something.

“Wait, it’s not about whether it looks good or not.”

“It’s about why you suddenly send a snake photo late at night?”

After saying this, he took a sip of water and stared at the picture, remembering this “deep sea” brother clearly.

But Sang Huaiyu didn’t think he did anything wrong and smiled a little.

“Don’t you like pets?”

“I just happen to have one. I want to show you.”

He paused a bit after speaking.

“Don’t be scared.”

“It’s very obedient.”

Do snakes really listen that well?

Shi Yu was doubtful. Even if it was a pet snake, it couldn’t be more obedient than cats or dogs, right?

Seeing Shi Yu’s obvious disbelief, Sang Huaiyu chuckled lightly.

“If you don’t believe me, I can show you tomorrow.”

Shi Yu: ???

Okay, that works.

Wait, when did he say he wanted to see it?

Shi Yu thought it was already nice that he didn’t block this “deep sea” guy. Why would he want to see a snake?

But after saying that, the other side went quiet. The avatar stayed still for a while, then dimmed, meaning offline.

Shi Yu wanted to say something but stopped. So he just kept quiet.

Forget it, he thought. He’d talk about it tomorrow.

If this “deep sea” guy sends another photo tomorrow, Shi Yu would tell him he really didn’t like snakes and not to send any more.

Although the other looked like a fan of his, some things still had to be refused. Shi Yu twitched his mouth and stared at the avatar on the screen a moment before putting down his phone.

But maybe because he accidentally saw a snake today, Shi Yu had a rare scary dream.

In the middle of the night, his dream was blurry and dark. He felt very sleepy and couldn’t open his eyes. Just as he was about to fall asleep, he suddenly felt he couldn’t move his waist. Something seemed to be covering it.

Half awake, half asleep, Shi Yu reached out blindly to touch it. Just as he was about to open his eyes confusedly, the dream suddenly stopped.

Shi Yu: …

!!!

What kind of dream was that?

After a whole night of rest, why did he have such a scary dream?

In the morning, sunlight shone on the blanket. Shi Yu raised his hand to block the light and after a while felt the cold and darkness from the dream fade away.

He smiled dryly, feeling the dream was really strange.

It must be because he was scared yesterday!

Just as Shi Yu was about to get up, he suddenly touched his belly.

Feeling that it was quiet but still alive, he relaxed.

Hmm, this little thing is still here.

The little creature might have eaten too much energy these days and needed time to digest. Early in the morning it was always sleeping. Seeing it so quiet, Shi Yu thought something was wrong.

But since it was sleeping, it avoided the prenatal teaching device.

No way!

Since he bought it, he couldn’t waste it. When the little creature woke up, he would use it properly.

Thinking this, Shi Yu slowly got up and went to the bathroom.

…

On the other side, Sang Huaiyu wasn’t in a hurry to message Shi Yu.

After all, being too eager can make people feel suspicious.

He put away the snake tail, changed clothes, and calmly went to the Supernatural Abilities Association.

Shen Yan had come early due to hospital leave. When he saw him, he looked a bit more closely. He remembered telling Huaiyu about Shi Yu’s live ID last night and wondered if Huaiyu added him as a friend.

Shen Yan didn’t know his own complicated feelings. Seeing Huaiyu looking natural and happy, he paused.

“You look good today.”

Sang Huaiyu turned his head, white silk falling on Shen Yan.

“Yes, indeed.”

“Last night… seemed like a good start.”

He smiled lightly, pleased.

Those who knew Sang Huaiyu knew he always covered his eyes because of a special fusion, but the thin white silk didn’t block his sight.

Noticing the gaze, Shen Yan clenched his hand, then relaxed and smiled.

“That’s good.”

“You liked him before, now you got your wish.”

Huh?

Liked him? Got his wish?

Hearing Shen Yan and Mr. Sang say this early in the morning confused everyone at the association.

Wang Shan poked Zhao Wen, who glared back.

“What are you looking at me for? I don’t know either.”

He was too tired after bringing back the “Gu Jin” organization members with Dr. Shen last night and went to sleep early, not knowing what happened next.

Both were confused, but Sang Huaiyu didn’t say more. After smiling and nodding, he turned and went into the temporary office upstairs.

Seeing him leave, Shen Yan stayed by the elevator for a while before turning away.

Shen Yan thought he shouldn’t be curious. No matter how Shi Yu and Sang Huaiyu met or added each other, it was their business, not his.

He only felt a little regret for the feelings that rose when Sang Huaiyu gave him chocolate in a desperate moment.

But after learning that not only Han Chuyi, but even Fu Nanyao seemed different about Sang Huaiyu in the association, he suppressed his feelings and things were normal for two years.

He thought he had let go of his special feelings for Sang Huaiyu.

But today, when he just met Sang Huaiyu, he couldn’t control his feelings.

A strange irritation rose. Different from his usual insomnia emotions, but just as uncomfortable. Sitting in the office, looking at the plants outside, when sunlight hit the cactus, he strangely opened his computer.

Shi Yu’s live last night was similar as before, but this time he made dumplings.

Watching him explain seriously, the usual calming voice instead made Shen Yan feel more restless.

Shen Yan watched for a while. After the whole sound clip ended, he remembered to look at the chat messages.

— No sign of Sang Huaiyu.

The top spot on the screen was still showing Han Chuyi, who had passed by earlier. The chat was mostly active with old fans of Shi Yu, no new accounts like his.

So, Sang Huaiyu added Shi Yu privately.

Did Shi Yu agree?

Before, he never replied to private messages.

Closing his eyes slightly, Shen Yan listened to the voice by his ear telling him to calm down.

He touched his forehead and realized that compared to Sang Huaiyu, he was paying more attention to Shi Yu during the live stream.

The person on the screen finished eating, and the bowl was clean.

After some time, Shen Yan snapped out of it and frowned at his own state.

At 10 a.m., everyone from the Abilities Association had checked in. After everyone arrived, Zhao Wen knocked on the door skillfully:

“Doctor Shen.”

“Wang Chenghe is awake. Captain Fu said the higher-ups agreed we can start questioning.”

“Doctor Shen?”

Zhao Wen knocked again after no reply, sounding a bit strange.

“Okay.”

Shen Yan opened his eyes, woke up clearly, pushed down his feelings, and stood up.

“I understand.”

…

Wang Chenghe had been unconscious for a whole day and night after being sent to the Abilities Association.

It wasn’t because Sang Huaiyu hit him hard, but because a man with a horse face had tampered with his body. If caught, Wang Chenghe would immediately suffer a strange backlash.

At Orange Blossom Road, he didn’t die immediately because Shen Yan acted quickly and used his power to stop the watch. Otherwise, Wang Chenghe would have died from the strange backlash as soon as Sang Huaiyu stopped.

He was tied to a chair in the examination room and lay there all night until he finally moved again.

When the alert sounded, Fu Nanyao, Shen Yan, and others came over.

“Wang Chenghe?”

He glanced at the information in his hand.

“From City C, 35 years old, unmarried.”

“At 33, he had a car accident and accidentally merged with a strange balloon, becoming an ability user. But he never registered with the local Xuanmen or Abilities Association.”

“Until July last year, when he committed his first crime.”

Fu Nanyao read the info and looked straight at him:

“The strange thing you merged with went out of control. To survive and release your anger, you joined ‘Gu Jin.’ In February this year, you and other fugitives came to City B.”

“What did you come to City B for?”

“Who else is in ‘Gu Jin’?”

This group hides well. Maybe because Wang Chenghe joined last, he is the only active member found so far. They have to get clues from him.

Wang Chenghe was silent for a while. During the 20 hours of strange backlash, he didn’t think he would survive, but the abnormal signs on his hands grew worse.

His left hand, once hidden by his sleeve, now looked crushed by something terrifying. Blood mixed with broken bones in a strange, frightening way. This contrasted sharply with his normal, honest face.

After barely surviving, Wang Chenghe breathed heavily and finally heard Fu Nanyao’s question.

“What did you come to City B for?”

“Didn’t you already find out?” He chuckled.

“We found that since last year, the strange energy in City B’s downtown has increased. It’s even more interesting than some deserted places. So, we came here to try raising some small strange creatures to feed the ‘Gu.’ We put some bait in the Haolai Shopping Mall to test.”

It turned out City B was really good for raising strange creatures. In just a few days, a special B-level strange mannequin appeared.

Wang Chenghe laughed and explained the Haolai Shopping Mall incident in detail.

“If you hadn’t interfered, the Rotten Butterfly would have eaten the mannequin and wouldn’t have been so easily defeated.”

He didn’t know the two cases had nothing to do with the Abilities Association. His tone was sarcastic, full of hatred.

Fu Nanyao stayed calm. Zhao Wen took notes, then asked calmly:

“Since the Rotten Butterfly delayed us, why didn’t you leave yesterday?”

The purpose of “Gu Jin” was clear. This was the strangest part. The group planned to create chaos and escape, but then they came back to Orange Blossom Road, which was contradictory.

The leaders thought something was going on and worried it was some plot by “Gu Jin.”

Wang Chenghe’s smile stiffened. He wanted to curse when talking about it. He hated the “horse” who betrayed and wanted to kill him.

But since he was caught, he didn’t mind telling something. The “horse” didn’t plan to let him live anyway.

Wang Chenghe raised his head: “I don’t know. It was all orders from ‘horse.’”

“Oh, by the way, ‘horse’ is the leader of Gu Jin.”

“All members have to respect ‘horse.’ This escape and the Rotten Butterfly attack were both planned by ‘horse.’”

“But strangely…”

“Since yesterday, ‘horse’ acted weirdly. Not only did he stop us from escaping, but forced us to go back to the incident site to find something strange.”

Wang Chenghe didn’t hide what ‘horse’ said. His expression was odd:

“I and others split up to watch nearby streets, but we were caught by you.”

Very unlucky.

Others were fine. He didn’t know how he was found.

Shen Yan definitely wouldn’t say someone reported him. Shi Yu’s name flashed again in his mind. He frowned and asked:

“What is this ‘strange point’ you mentioned?”

Wang Chenghe shook his head:

“I don’t know. ‘Horse’ didn’t explain, only said it might not be human.”

After saying this, he suddenly coughed and spat out a blood clot.

Zhao Wen finished recording everything and nodded, looking at the instruments.

“No lies.”

Fu Nanyao looked up:

“Keep telling us all the members.”

Wang Chenghe looked painful:

“I don’t know. When we came, no one used real names, and appearances might not be real.”

“I can only roughly describe their merged objects.”

After recovering, he sneered:

“Whether you can find them depends on your ability.”

…

After Wang Chenghe was caught, the “Gu Jin” members guessed he would betray them. So even though ‘horse’ took measures to prevent leaks, they didn’t feel safe.

After all, ‘horse’ was very strange now.

On the street, an old man coughed a few times while holding his hat. He wiped dirt from his suit, thinking what to do.

By appearance, he looked like an old man in his 70s with thinning eyebrows. But if you looked carefully at his eyes and expression, you’d see he wasn’t as old inside.

Yes, Feng Yunzhen wasn’t really old.

The strange thing he merged with could drain life quickly, making him age fast at first.

At first, Feng Yunzhen couldn’t accept it. But after a long time, he got used to this old body and often used it.

Just like now.

“Sir, are you okay?”

A young man on a bike stopped after accidentally bumping into him.

Feng Yunzhen relaxed his face and smiled kindly:

“It’s okay, young man.”

“That’s good.”

The young man got back on his bike to leave but didn’t notice that the old man, who had been weakly coughing, looked him over and suddenly smiled and followed.

If he wasn’t mistaken, this young man lived in the nearby community.

“Xinmei Garden?”

It’s an old neighborhood with mixed people, good for hiding.

The Abilities Association caught Wang Chenghe here before, surely they didn’t expect him to still be here, living nearby.

Feng Yunzhen relaxed and planned a trick called “darkness under the lamp.” But first, he had to confirm the young man’s identity.

He quietly appeared behind the young man, and seeing no one around the garden, he put his hand on the young man’s shoulder…

…

Shi Yu noticed the guy on the 18th floor was quieter this afternoon.

Shi Yu had lived in the community for over half a year and met the 18th-floor guy only a few times. But he knew the guy liked fitness, especially after work around 5 p.m., he always worked out at home for over an hour.

At first, Shi Yu felt a bit strange about it, but later he even enjoyed listening to the music downstairs while making coffee.

But today… it was already 5:30, and the guy hadn’t started working out?

Shi Yu drank his bitter coffee, puzzled: Did the guy have something and didn’t come back?

But the guy had messaged him this morning saying he planned a long workout tonight and would warn him on the phone if it was noisy.

Shi Yu glanced at the time and outside.

Sun Heng’s bike was parked in the garden, so he was back.

Shi Yu looked strange and sent a message downstairs:

“Brother Sun, are you still planning to work out today?”

“If not, I will start my live stream soon.”

Because of the noise downstairs, Shi Yu always streamed after the workout. Since no movement for a long time, he asked.

He sent the message but waited a long time with no reply.

That was strange. Sun Heng was very talkative. Just yesterday, half of the messages in the group were from him. How could he not reply now?

Shi Yu waited for a while. When there was still no answer, he decided to start his livestream first. He thought if Sun Heng still hadn’t worked out after the livestream, he would go check downstairs.

Before, Shi Yu wouldn’t have dared to decide this so quickly. But now that he had some ability to protect himself, he felt braver.

Even if just a little braver, it was better than staying at home for weeks like a scared turtle.

He focused back on the screen.

Downstairs, after knocking the original owner of the house unconscious and using strange powers to keep him unconscious, Feng Yunzhen finally put down his hat and could rest for a moment.

He didn’t want to kill him right away because the police were watching carefully outside. He didn’t want to cause extra trouble, so for now, he let the man live. If things went wrong, he could use him as a hostage.

Feng Yunzhen walked to the table and picked up the man’s phone. Seeing it was locked with a fingerprint, he put it down and lifted the unconscious young man’s finger.

The black screen unlocked, and besides some group work messages, one message from upstairs popped up.

“1903?”

The neighbor upstairs?

Feng Yunzhen frowned. He didn’t expect this man had a good relationship with his upstairs neighbor.

That was the last thing Feng Yunzhen wanted—good neighbors meant higher risk of being found out.

He looked at the screen. Seeing the message asking when he would work out today, he checked the chat history and carefully typed a reply.

“I’ve caught a cold these days. Took some medicine this afternoon and planned to rest. No workout today.”

“If you livestream, don’t mind me.”

He copied Sun Heng’s usual way of talking into the chat box, checked it carefully, then sent it.

Shi Yu was livestreaming, casually eating some fried small fish snacks when he saw the phone message.

“Huh?”

Sun Heng replied?

He looked at the message and understood—Sun Heng was sick.

That explained it. Now Shi Yu felt relieved.

“What’s Fishbao looking at?”

Fans in the chat asked curiously when they saw the streamer looking at his phone.

Shi Yu smiled shyly and said, “My neighbor downstairs is sick. I just chatted with him a bit.”

Chat: “The weather is bad these days, cold then hot. Fishbao, you should also take care of yourself.”

Shi Yu: “Okay, don’t worry, I’ll take care too.”

He was about to put down his phone and keep showing off the fish snacks when suddenly he paused and remembered something:

Wait, Sun Heng usually messes up punctuation when he types, but today it looked normal.

Sun Heng’s personal habit was to always make some punctuation mistakes, but today it looked neat.

Because it looked so normal, Shi Yu didn’t notice something was wrong until a memory suddenly came to mind.

—Honestly, such habits are hard to change after so many years. How could he suddenly fix it?

Shi Yu slowly felt something was off. He looked suspiciously downstairs, but when he looked back at the screen, his expression went back to normal.

…

Sun Heng must be in trouble!

After the livestream ended, Shi Yu was sure of this. He didn’t know if something strange had happened downstairs or what, but since it was so close, he had to check.

Even if he couldn’t fight, he could call the ability users’ association for help. He couldn’t just wait to be killed.

After turning off the computer, Shi Yu turned on the home speakers to pretend he was still listening to music.

Then he put on a mask and went downstairs.

Because he wasn’t sure what was wrong, he took the stairs carefully. When he reached downstairs, he frowned at Sun Heng’s apartment on the 18th floor, not noticing the little monster had already woken up.

Late at night, Shi Yu suddenly came down and looked mysterious outside other people’s doors. The little monster, awake now, thought his mom was playing an important game and curiously came closer.

When Shi Yu leaned his ear to the door, carefully listening to the sounds, the little monster copied him.

But it had no ears, so it lifted the tentacles on its neck and pressed them to Shi Yu’s belly, pretending to “listen.”

Shi Yu, who was serious before, now: …???

He looked down and felt something in his stomach, and all the tension disappeared instantly.

When he realized what the monster was doing, his face turned dark and he showed a complicated expression:

Why is this weird creature copying me?

—Is it a little kid who copies everything?!