64: Follow! - 1

Jiang Ye raised his hand to pull up the hood of his down jacket, ensuring half his face was hidden in the shadows, then took a step forward and silently followed.

"Just as the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind..."

Jiang Ye encouraged himself in his heart: "Today, I'm going to be a righteous guy and teach this Buddy what 'do not do unto others what you would not have them do unto you' means! And by the way... hehe, that 'Presence Reduction Halo' sounds really useful!"

Ahead, Lin Wanxing seemed still immersed in the earlier argument and gloom, walking at a moderate pace with her head down, hands in her down jacket pockets, occasionally kicking small stones on the road.

Zhang Wenhai, like an experienced Pervert, maintained a distance of about twenty meters from her.

Jiang Ye cautiously trailed behind him by over ten meters.

Fortunately, there were still scattered pedestrians and vehicles on the street at this hour, forming a bizarre "tracking chain" among the three, temporarily coexisting peacefully.

Lin Wanxing walked along the brightly lit main road for a while, then suddenly turned into a relatively quiet side road at an intersection.

This road had significantly fewer pedestrians and traffic, with dim yellow streetlight halos. On both sides were mostly residential buildings and small shops, many already closed, shifting the atmosphere from urban bustle to a somewhat serene quiet.

The change in environment suddenly increased the difficulty of tracking and counter-tracking.

As Lin Wanxing walked, she suddenly stopped without warning.

Zhang Wenhai behind her reacted extremely quickly, almost the moment she stopped, "whoosh"—he ducked behind a thick roadside tree, peeking out half his head to secretly observe.

Jiang Ye was also startled by this sudden stop, hurriedly dodging behind a large roadside trash can, his heart pounding "thump-thump."

But Lin Wanxing at the front just lowered her head, took out her phone from her pocket, and quickly tapped the screen, as if replying to a message.

After a while, she put away her phone and continued walking.

Zhang Wenhai behind the tree let out a long sigh of relief, patted his chest, and stealthily followed again.

This time, he was more careful, making full use of roadside trees, bus stop signs, and parked vehicles as cover, advancing with dodges and hides, his movements utterly sleazy.

"This guy... his stalking technique is pretty damn skilled, definitely an old Pervert!"

Jiang Ye thought while mimicking the other's approach, even more cautiously reverse-stalking.

He not only had to watch Zhang Wenhai's movements, predict his next hiding spot, but also pay attention to whether Lin Wanxing might suddenly look back, while constantly scanning his surroundings for suitable cover—utility poles, corners of walls, parked cars... His brain was running at high speed, his eyes almost crossing.

"Damn, this job is harder than I imagined, even Faker would be clueless..."

Jiang Ye felt like an esports player having to watch three lanes at once, switching screens so fast his eyeballs were about to cramp.

Just then, Lin Wanxing ahead seemed to sense something, suddenly stopped, and quickly looked back!

This caught Zhang Wenhai and Jiang Ye off guard!

Both almost simultaneously used a "flash"!

Zhang Wenhai crouched low, squeezing into the gap between two SUVs.

Jiang Ye, relying on conditioned reflexes honed from half a year of dodging traffic police during his food delivery days, took a sidestep and crouched, perfectly blending into the narrow shadow under a fruit shop's sign, instantly merging with the darkness.

Lin Wanxing's vigilant gaze swept over the empty street.

Under the streetlights, only a few scattered pedestrians hurried by in the distance, and a small orange stray cat was crouched on a wall, leisurely licking its paws, its amber eyes curiously watching her.

She frowned and muttered softly: "Seems like there was some sound... was it the cat?" Then shook her head and continued on her way.

Zhang Wenhai and Jiang Ye both sighed in relief, waited a few more seconds in the shadows, and seeing everything normal, slowly got up and followed.

After walking a bit more, Lin Wanxing frowned; the feeling of being watched lingered, and unease surfaced again.

She suddenly looked back again!

The street behind was still empty, nothing unusual, the streetlights illuminating everything clearly.

Hmm... not far away was a utility pole, behind it... seemed nothing abnormal?

"Really, that bastard Zhang Wenhai has made me paranoid..."

She smiled self-deprecatingly, tightened the collar of her down jacket, and continued walking.

Behind the utility pole, Zhang Wenhai pressed tightly against the cold metal rod, muttering frantically: "Can't see me, can't see me, can't see me..."

Only after Lin Wanxing turned back and kept walking did he wipe the cold sweat from his forehead and mutter smugly: "Heh, my stealth skills are top-notch!"

Further back, Jiang Ye hiding behind a bus stop sign, seeing Zhang Wenhai's "I'm so awesome" foolish look, couldn't help but roll his eyes.

This idiot, if you mutter any louder, the Girl could hear you dubbing yourself!

With this psychological quality and skill level, you'll forever be a low-tier Pervert, never reaching the lofty realm of a 'guardian-type gentleman' like me!"

The crisis temporarily resolved, the "tracking chain" slowly moved again.

But after these two incidents, Lin Wanxing's vigilance clearly increased, looking back subconsciously every so often, while Zhang Wenhai became more cautious, hiding even more diligently.

Thus, the three maintained a bizarre dynamic balance, slowly advancing on the winter night street:

Lin Wanxing walked and stopped, occasionally suddenly "looking back and reaching out";

Zhang Wenhai, like a startled bird, made full use of various covers for "serpentine movement," dodging and hiding;

Jiang Ye, like a ghost, conducted "matryoshka-style" reverse tracking further back, hopping repeatedly between various obstacles, striving to maintain the delicate situation of "the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind."