Chapter 23

Night.

The bustling city streets were filled with the flow of traffic and the glow of lights.

On the rooftop, there was only the cool night breeze and the hazy, gauzy moonlight.

Hearing the disdainful female voice from behind, the man in the suit turned around. The melancholy on his face had already dissipated with the night breeze, replaced by a handsome smile.

The man had a head of black, tousled hair, and his features were well-defined. Coupled with the deliberately feigned amiable smile, it was as if he had a "pretty boy" label stuck to his forehead.

"Ken, your smile makes me feel sick."

Looking at the man's fake smile, the woman who had just walked out of the door did not hide her disgust.

The woman had a head of wild, wavy red hair, wore no makeup, and was dressed in a thin strapless top and ultra-short hot pants, not minding the large expanse of exposed skin.

To be more precise—

It was muscle.

The man called Ken shrugged his shoulders and smiled, saying, "Shiwei, many times it's not appropriate to reveal one's true thoughts. That's the most basic social common sense."

"That's called hypocrisy."

Shiwei snorted disdainfully.

Ken did not argue. Instead, he held up his phone and waved it at Shiwei, smiling, "Gebul has rolled a 'jackpot.'"

"Oh? Good news."

Shiwei raised an eyebrow, walked over to Ken, and asked, "So are we waiting for him this time?"

"Of course, more people mean more security."

Ken smiled, put away his phone, and took out a pack of cigarettes. He flipped the pack and flicked out a cigarette, holding it between his fingers, and said seriously, "More importantly, the amount of gambling capital he 'advanced' this time is not much, so we shouldn't have to wait long."

"Tch, why does Gebul have to have such a troublesome ability? I can't understand it at all..."

Shiwei placed her hands on her hips and habitually criticized Gebul's ability.

Ken lit the cigarette, glanced at her, and said with a smile, "Gebul's luck isn't bad this time. He only rolled a few times to get the jackpot. If he chooses to 'cash in the chips,' the 'energy' he gets can easily repay the advanced gambling capital, and he can use the remaining 'energy' to punch you into oblivion. That's the benefit of being 'troublesome.'"

"Punch me into oblivion? Who do you think you're underestimating?"

Shiwei turned her head to look at Ken, her aura surging, emitting a heavy oppressive force, making her look like a wild beast about to devour flesh.

Ken maintained his elegant smile and suggested, "If you want to test my words, it's not too late to call Gebul now and tell him not to 'cash in what he wants' but to 'cash in the chips.'"

"..."

Shiwei remained silent, staring fiercely at Ken.

Ken was completely unaffected, calmly smoking.

After a moment.

Shiwei reined in her aura and said coldly, "I'm not like someone who would let 'personal needs' affect the progress of the mission."

"Um, very good."

Ken smiled at Shiwei.

The calm and composed look on his face made Shiwei's veins bulge.

"Screech—"

The iron door on the rooftop was suddenly pushed open.

A young couple walked out of the iron door, stopping instinctively when they saw Ken and Shiwei.

The young girl whispered, "There are people here. Let's find another place."

"Okay."

The young boy seemed somewhat reluctant, thinking it was not easy to find a place where they didn't have to spend money.

He held the girl's arm and was about to turn back to the iron door.

"Snap—"

Just as he turned, a sudden light sound rang in his ear, and a large amount of sticky substance splashed onto him.

"Eh?!"

The young boy stared blankly at the severed arm in his arm, as if he hadn't yet realized what had happened.

Immediately,

A powerful force hit him.

"Snap!"

The young boy's body exploded, turning into a mess of blood and flesh.

At the edge of the rooftop railing,

Ken pressed his palm to his forehead, looking at Shiwei, who had turned the young couple into a meat paste, with a somewhat helpless expression.

He thought this behavior was unnecessary.

Seemingly able to read the message from Ken's gaze, Shiwei, standing by the iron door, turned to look at Ken and said in an unfriendly tone, "What? Have something to say?"

"No, just think it's unnecessary and might cause trouble."

Ken tilted his head slightly and exhaled a puff of smoke.

"Tch."

Shiwei strode towards the iron door, leaving a contemptuous remark.

"They're just two ordinary people you can find anywhere."

"..."

Ken watched Shiwei leave and flicked away the cigarette butt.

"Even though I don't agree with your actions just now, that sentence... is the most reasonable thing you've said tonight."

---

The next day, morning.

Moyou woke up on time, driven by his biological clock.

Last night, he practiced punches and kicks on the shadow mannequin for two hours. He didn't know if his martial arts had improved, but the pain was real...

Cultivating "pain tolerance" is a gradual process, and he felt he had been a bit too eager.

Fortunately, as long as he closed his spirit holes and entered the "absolute" state, the "pain" accumulated during training would quickly fade.

At least Moyou could still endure it and was willing to persist.

Otherwise, if he were to collapse and roll on the ground holding his head because of a single punch in the future, it would be embarrassing.

Moyou got up, washed up briefly, and then went straight to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

He threw the blanched meat into the iron pot, added rice and enough water, controlled the fire, and then took a broom to clean.

Qiduo also got up early. Seeing Moyou sweeping, she greeted him and offered to help.

Adhering to the principle of treating guests well, Moyou didn't want Qiduo to help, but he couldn't persuade her to stop, so he let it be.

With Qiduo's help, the time it took to clean the temple actually increased.

It wasn't because Qiduo didn't know how to clean, but because she was too meticulous...

By the time the two finished cleaning, the meat porridge in the kitchen was almost ready.

Moyou added a bit of salt for seasoning and then served the porridge.

"Shouldn't you open the door?"

After finishing the meat porridge Moyou prepared, Qiduo looked at the closed temple gate.

Moyou lowered his head to clear the dishes and explained, "I'm not good at receiving visitors, so I usually choose to close the temple until Hawk returns."

"But if someone comes, you would still open the door, right?"

Qiduo withdrew her gaze from the gate and turned to Moyou, asking with a hint of meaning.

She guessed the reason Moyou chose to close the temple. Being bad at receiving visitors might be one reason, but more importantly, it was to focus on cultivation.

"Depends on the situation."

Moyou replied casually, carrying the dishes and standing up.

He had just taken a step when a knock came from the gate.

Qiduo propped her cheek, showing no surprise, as if she had known someone would knock.

Moyou just glanced at the gate, ignored the knocking, and walked straight to the kitchen.