A pink sports sedan, expensive and painted with anime graphics, pulled up in front of the hospital.
Because there were many people coming and going, it was hard to miss.
Yu Ze had to try his best to cover his face as he quickly jogged and hopped into the passenger seat, his face clearly showing his disdain.
The driver was a junior from the Capital, also with the Capital Investigation Bureau, even younger than him, and still a minor.
With a slam on the gas pedal, they used expert driving skills and dynamic vision to perfectly dodge the traffic, taking a special route out of Mingwang City.
Once on the outskirts with wide open roads and sparse traffic, the joy of manual driving lost its luster; the junior immediately switched to autopilot, and the rest of the trip was now handled by the system.
Their seats reclined backwards into the chassis to maximize cabin space, and down came the projection screen—
the entire cabin transformed into a private cinema.
The junior, not in a hurry to play an anime or a movie, first took a bubble tea from the car’s refrigerator, sucking on it while curiously asking:
"Senior brother, how is that guy? Was he really terrible? Got seriously injured on his first mission and ended up in a hospital? Or was it you who helped him escape danger in the end?"
Hearing this assessment, the junior’s ears almost stood on end.
"Huh?! To hear ’strong’ from you, senior brother, just how amazing must he be, that he’s lying in a hospital?
You just came here not long ago, and a peripheral place like Mingwang City, logically speaking, shouldn’t have anything dangerous."
"You, a local who has lived in the Capital from birth, of course, don’t know about the situations on the outside. The spread of the ’Corner’ can no longer be judged by past concepts.
The situation is similar nationwide; the Capital just happens to be a bit more troublesome.
The thing we encountered this time is quite special. Even if I had dealt with it alone, it would have taken quite an effort. I suspect that the Pseudo-Person Organization might be involved, but it has nothing to do with me.
The fellow is quite good, having become a ’Connector’ less than three months ago and is already adept with the basic powers, and even some derived abilities that shouldn’t be appearing so early."
"Senior brother, what level do you estimate his ’Connect World’ to be?"
The junior’s body shook, almost spitting out the tapioca pearls.
"At least A, but the specific level will only be known once he goes to the Capital."
"Senior brother, what do you base your estimates on? Can you tell me about it? Is it really that amazing?"
Yu Ze took out a wrapped talisman from his pocket, with something apparently hidden inside.
Even though the junior carefully unwrapped the talisman, she still got pricked.
The acute pain and burning sensation made her cry out.
A thorny iron wire was left inside; even touching it lightly brought intense piercing pain that could not be suppressed through the senses.
"This... a sensation I’ve never experienced before, what kind of world is it, senior brother, have you encountered it?"
"No, the only thing I know is that it’s not a positive world."
"How’s his temperament?"
"Extremely hostile to anything related to the ’Corner’, addicted to killing. On this basis, he possesses excellent independent thinking skills, values emotions, and cares about his teammates.
His current ability to explore the unknown would grade between C and B, but I believe he can grow further.
He still has too many concerns and is not ready to head to the Capital directly.
We need to give him some personal time; he’ll naturally come over when he’s ready.
Ah, to be so young, barely eighteen and already so capable, I’m a bit afraid he might steal my thunder when he comes to the Capital."
The junior’s eyes rounded with excitement as if they were sparkling. "Senior brother, what do we do? I suddenly want to turn around and go to the hospital to see him."
"Don’t disturb others’ rest."
"Oh, right. Let’s watch some anime then, there’s a new series that’s really good."
"You watch, I’m going to take a nap... I’m a bit tired."
A calming talisman adhered to his forehead. Yu Ze fell directly into sleep; no matter how loud the volume, it would not reach his ears. It could even promote rapid recovery of the brain and extend the duration of deep sleep.
The junior stuck out her tongue playfully and eventually settled on a sheep-themed animated film. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ NoveI(F)ire.net
Luo Di completed his hospital discharge at six in the evening, deciding to report to the Investigation Bureau tomorrow.
He had other plans for tonight.
Luo Di and Anna went to the commercial streets of Mingwang City and split up to order from different restaurants, packing the food into insulated takeout boxes as if preparing to bring it home to eat.
A variety of small portions of different snacks were purchased: various types of pizza, baked eggs, fried rice balls, meatballs, seafood pasta, and more.
They then went out of their way to find a rare video store.
Because of his experience with the recent case, Luo Di specifically came to buy genuine DVDs, quickly locating the so-called "Saw series" in the classic movie section.
"Luo Di, I feel like watching parts 1 and 2 is enough; the sequels seem to have gone off track a bit, turning into splatter films."
"Then we must watch even more."
Luo Di added the whole series from 1 to 10 to the shopping basket, not concerned about the cost, even if it meant spending all his money.
As long as he settles the current case at the Investigation Bureau tomorrow, there won’t be a shortage of money.
On their way back to Chinese Street, they picked up a large portion of barbecue from downstairs, carrying all the takeout and DVDs back to the familiar bachelor apartment.
Door closed, curtains drawn.
It would have been better if they had Yu Ze’s talisman, but it didn’t matter. Any ill-intentioned activities outside the door, Luo Di’s tongue would sense it.
"Anna, I’m going to take a shower, remember to wait for me to watch it together."
"Don’t worry! I guarantee that none of the food will be touched before you come out, even though I’m getting a little hungry."
Having just had his cast removed and discharged from the hospital today, Luo Di’s whole body had a certain smell, and a shower was necessary.
He stripped off all his clothes,
stood in front of the mirror,
and reevaluated his body, especially turning sideways to check his spine. That spine concealed under the skin was very quiet, as if it were asleep.
Recalling the Open Spine practice at the nursing home, Luo Di’s mouth slightly twitched with pleasure. It really felt too good.
"Looks like I have to make time for a trip to Fifth Hospital, there are things about Open Spine I need to discuss in detail with Mr. Hawke.
The Suffering he taught me indeed enhances the endurance of my body and effectively prolongs the Open Spine process. Later on, I should spend more time practicing this.
Moreover, Mr. Hawke also said that as long as I accomplish Open Spine, I could establish contact with Hell, but so far, I haven’t seen any signs of connection.
Or is there something wrong with my Open Spine? Is the spine not full enough?
Forget it, let it be for tonight. I’ll think about it tomorrow."
As Luo Di headed to the shower, he also checked the bathroom through the mirror, starting to wash only after confirming he was alone.
Since he was in a hurry to watch the movie and his head was filled with various thoughts, halfway through the shower, Luo Di suddenly remembered that he had forgotten his change of clothes.
But when he pushed open the glass door of the shower, a set of new clothes was already neatly folded on the toilet lid.
Opening the bathroom door, the sound of the TV immediately came in.
Luo Di deeply disliked anyone watching a movie before him, even missing the opening studio logos was absolutely unacceptable as he felt it was the most basic respect for a film.
At the same time, the aroma of the food drifted over, seeming like the takeout had also been opened in advance.
Just as Luo Di was frowning, preparing to question Anna about what was going on,
he discovered that there were already two people sitting on the living room sofa,
there sat "the second person" on the spot where Luo Di often placed tissues. She was wearing oversized men’s T-shirts and sports shorts, precisely Luo Di’s clothes.
She was holding the skewers bought from downstairs, happily chatting with Anna while gnawing on grilled ribs.
When Luo Di entered the living room,
Anna incessantly gave him hints with her eyes and fingers, indicating that everything was requested by the woman next to her and had nothing to do with her.
Luo Di just smiled helplessly,
did not rewind the movie to the beginning but instead sat next to the girl, focusing intently on the film that had just started.
a piece of rib separated from the skewer was gently pinched by two fingers and brought to his mouth.
Who knew, Luo Di seemed so captivated by the opening that he showed no sign of opening his mouth.
"Hey! You’re still the same... aren’t you going to open your mouth? My arm is getting tired."