Chapter 8

When the girls heard Lin Xinghai say that the security team had already left, their faces turned pale, and they all looked at Lin Xinghai in unison.

After all, the reason they had chosen Lin Xinghai as their roommate was so they could seek protection in moments like these.

Lin Xinghai, however, fell into deep thought. He was not actually afraid of the so-called Axe Gang.

No matter how tough these small-time hooligans were, their strength was limited. If they had the ability to challenge gene-optimized individuals, who would want to stay in the Lower District and be a hooligan?

So, according to Lin Xinghai's estimation, as long as the number of hooligans wasn't too many, he was confident he could win.

But the question was, should he intervene?

After all, once he finished the fight, he could just leave. However, Liu Miaomiao and the others would likely have to stay here for a considerable amount of time.

"How much protection money do they want?" Lin Xinghai asked after a moment of contemplation.

"One month, three points," Shen Yimei replied.

The girls all heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing this. Liu Miaomiao even rolled her eyes at the other girl, "Yimei, you should have been clear from the start."

"If it's three points per month, it's not unacceptable. After all, it's better to avoid trouble when possible," Liu Miaomiao said, all the while observing Lin Xinghai's expression.

She was most afraid that Lin Xinghai would stubbornly refuse to pay the protection money and get into a conflict with the Axe Gang. Whether they could win or not was one thing, but even if they did win, there would likely be endless trouble afterward.

Lin Xinghai did not object, and his expression remained calm.

This surprised Liu Miaomiao greatly. In her impression, he was not someone who was easy to reason with.

Without Lin Xinghai's stance, the girls quickly reached a consensus.

Next, they waited anxiously. Everyone could hear the commotion growing louder and closer, occasionally mixed with the sounds of arguments and punches. Clearly, there were still people trying to resist.

But this resistance was in vain, as the commotion had already reached their door.

Bang, bang, bang!

The door was kicked, and the old door shook violently. The door latch creaked, making it seem like it would break at any moment.

This scene made Lin Xinghai frown, but he still said nothing.

Shen Yimei, who was closest to the door, pulled the latch, and the door was immediately kicked open by the people outside.

Five young men with colorful hair and axe tattoos on their arms stormed in, cursing, "Trying to die? Why did it take so long to open the door? Don't you know who we are..."

The leader's voice trailed off as he scanned Liu Miaomiao and the others, his eyes gradually becoming fiery and greedy.

Not just him, but the other hooligans who followed had similar expressions. In the Lower District, beautiful women were extremely rare.

Especially Liu Miaomiao and Wang Yao, one with exceptional beauty and the other with a fiery figure, either of them could make these hooligans unable to look away.

"Cough!" The leader, after sizing them up for a while, finally regained his composure. He cleared his throat and put on a refined appearance, saying, "Ladies, I'm here to collect the protection money, five points per person."

"What! Five points per person? Wasn't it supposed to be three?" Liu Miaomiao exclaimed, her face turning grim.

She had a bad feeling about this.

The leader smiled, "Three points for ordinary people, but you ladies are special. Protecting you won't be easy, so a higher protection fee is not unreasonable, right?"

"Of course, if you feel short on points, you can also pay in other ways," he added, his eyes lingering on some sensitive parts of Liu Miaomiao's body, the meaning clear.

The other hooligans also wore lecherous grins.

Liu Miaomiao and the others' faces truly changed. This was completely beyond their expectations.

Seeing the situation escalate to this point, Lin Xinghai knew he had to act. He stepped forward in front of the girls.

"Five points per person, right?" Lin Xinghai asked calmly.

It was only then that the five hooligans noticed there was a man in the dorm, and their eyes immediately filled with envy.

Such a setup would make any man envious.

"Sorry, the price has gone up, ten points per person," the leader said with a mocking smile.

"Alright! Ten points per person, give it to me!" Lin Xinghai extended his hand.

From the moment these hooligans started sizing up the girls, he knew this matter could not be resolved peacefully.

The increase in the protection fee was just a pretext. Even if Liu Miaomiao and the others could come up with the points, these hooligans would definitely find ways to make things difficult for them afterward, ultimately forcing them to comply.

So he stepped forward decisively.

Of course, Lin Xinghai's confidence came from using his Detection Skill on the leader before deciding to act.

Name: Wang Damao

Constitution: 15 points

Strength: 19 points

Speed: 11 points

Gene Optimization: 19%

With such attributes, he could easily take on five of them, let alone the others, whose attributes were even worse.

At that moment, Wang Damao and the others looked at Lin Xinghai as if he were a fool.

Even Liu Miaomiao did not believe Lin Xinghai could win against these men.

This was not just because Shen Yimei had described these young hooligans as being able to knock out a 200-pound man with one punch, but also because they had learned about gene-optimized individuals from the information provided by Jiyuan.

"Lin Xinghai!" Liu Miaomiao called out nervously.

"Don't worry, it's fine!" Lin Xinghai smiled, looking relaxed, as if he didn't consider these hooligans a threat at all.

"But you're in my way." Wang Damao's eyes flashed with a fierce light, and he punched Lin Xinghai's head.

How could he tolerate a new "white pig" acting so arrogantly in front of him?

"Too slow!" Lin Xinghai simply sidestepped, dodging Wang Damao's punch.

With his speed of 26 points, the other man's punch had no chance of hitting him.

"What!" Wang Damao's pupils dilated as his punch missed.

Before he could react, Lin Xinghai's counterattack came. It was also a punch, but Wang Damao couldn't dodge it and took a solid hit to the chest.

Bang!

A dull thud echoed, and Wang Damao felt as if his chest had been hit by a sledgehammer. He staggered backward, only stopping when he knocked over a companion.