191: Incoming and Yellow Bird

The night grew deeper and deeper.

Lu Chuan yawned out of boredom, his eyelids involuntarily drooping.

But he quickly startled awake, forcing himself to stay alert.

It was already three in the morning, and there was still one hour until the system's designated closing time.

After A Zhen, the hip-hop man, and others left, several more waves of customers came in, all the same people who had tasted the teppanyaki at the buffet during the day.

When he was busy, Lu Chuan naturally didn't feel sleepy.

But once all the customers left, the fatigue accumulated from one busy period after another would eventually bring with it a wave of drowsiness.

Just as Lu Chuan was once again so tired his eyelids were almost closing.

A high-frequency, almost inaudible, sharp screeching suddenly vibrated incessantly in the alley.

Lu Chuan's skin immediately crawled with goosebumps, then his body tensed, pressing against the wall as he vigilantly stared into the dark depths of the alley.

However, he quickly felt unsafe and retreated under the cash register, instinctively grabbing the bone-chopping knife hidden in the drawer.

In this tense atmosphere, his breathing involuntarily quickened.

Just then, a very faint sound of tapping on the floor suddenly came from upstairs.

The sound seemed to have a calming power; the moment it rang out, Lu Chuan found himself much more composed.

His brain, which had been disoriented by the high-frequency noise, regained its clarity.

Lu Chuan knew that He Jingrui had intervened, seeing him affected by the strange sound.

But… that ghostly thing hadn't truly appeared yet, had it?

Intervening so early, would it… wait, Lu Chuan's eyes suddenly narrowed as he realized something he had overlooked.

Why, why did it only make that sound, yet delay its appearance?

Wasn't its goal to drive away everyone who occupied this house?

Could it be that it had some strange quirk, needing its own background music for its grand entrance?

Unable to figure it out no matter how hard he thought, he could only wait patiently.

Although He Jingrui would be the one truly acting when the time came, as the "bait," he also needed to play his part well.

In this waiting, Lu Chuan's mood gradually grew anxious again.

Time passed slowly, Lu Chuan practically counted every second.

Finally, after another seven or eight minutes, the high-frequency sound outside the alley abruptly stopped, followed by a powerful oppressive aura sweeping into the shop.

Lu Chuan had experienced the full might of He Jingrui's power and realized that this was still a significant step below it.

No wonder He Jingrui said the chances of winning were slim… With danger imminent, Lu Chuan had no time for further thought, quickly following the pre-rehearsed plan, he darted out from behind the cash register and rushed towards the kitchen.

However, just as he was about to burst into the kitchen, a human-shaped black shadow, covered in scales, neither beast nor bird, suddenly appeared at the shop entrance.

A very thin layer of black mist permeated the black shadow's body; as it moved, the black mist stirred restlessly, looking from afar like countless evil spirits baring their fangs and claws, letting out silent roars.

The black shadow gazed at the old decor inside the shop, a hint of reminiscence in its eyes.

But soon, its eyes returned to their dead stillness, and then it lifted its foot.

The next moment, it covered a distance of ten meters, moving from the shop entrance to the kitchen entrance, appearing half a meter behind Lu Chuan.

Then, with a seemingly slow but actually fast movement, it raised its arm and chopped down towards Lu Chuan's back.

Lu Chuan never expected the black shadow to be so fast; this completely exceeded his expectations, and the surprise on his face deepened.

Feeling the strong wind behind him pressing painfully against his back, Lu Chuan gritted his teeth, suddenly using the Nameless Leg Technique, and forcefully lunged forward.

He didn't expect to completely dodge the black shadow's close-range attack; he only wanted to minimize the damage and buy some time for He Jingrui.

For some unknown reason, upon seeing him use the Nameless Leg Technique, the black shadow's movement paused, and its originally fierce downward chopping arm stopped in mid-air.

Lu Chuan was still in his forward lunge and didn't notice this.

But He Jingrui, hidden upstairs, sensed that the black shadow's aura had weakened.

Now is the time!

He Jingrui's fighting spirit had been building for a long time, so how could he miss such a rare opportunity?

"Hmph!"

In a thousandth of a second, He Jingrui furiously smashed his fists downwards, fiercely breaking through the concrete and rebar, pouncing towards the black shadow below.

This sudden change caught the black shadow off guard, forcing it to react hastily.

The next moment, fists and palms met.

Bang.

A circle of white air ripples suddenly spread out, shaking the shop's walls and causing plaster to fall.

The black shadow, having lost some initiative, let out a muffled grunt under He Jingrui's heavy punch, which had six layers of the Nameless Fist Technique added, increasing its power sixfold, and was instantly sent flying out of the shop, into the darkness.

But He Jingrui himself was not unscathed.

He was ultimately weaker than the black shadow in terms of raw power, and even though the opponent reacted in haste, it still caused him some internal injuries.

However, as long as the injuries didn't affect his movement, like broken limbs, He Jingrui wouldn't even frown.

"A Chuan, you stay here!"

He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, quickly instructed Lu Chuan, then with a tap of his toes, he rushed out of the shop, chasing after the black shadow.

If you don't kill the snake, you'll be bitten.

Having suffered such a great loss, the other party would surely seek revenge later.

It's always the thief who has the advantage, not the defender.

Since that's the case, let's decide life and death today.

I live, you die.

As He Jingrui also darted into the darkness, a roar suddenly erupted in the alley, followed by intense sounds of fighting.

After a while, the sounds of fighting gradually faded into the distance and eventually disappeared.

It seemed the black shadow was determined to escape, and He Jingrui was in hot pursuit.

Lu Chuan stood at the shop entrance, frowning, looking worriedly in the direction they had gone.

However, he had no intention of following to help.

Firstly, he knew his own capabilities; going after them would clearly be a hindrance, not help.

Secondly, it was only a little past three in the morning, not yet the system's designated closing time.

What if leaving the shop counted as a failed mission? How would he deal with that?

He would probably be so depressed he'd spit up three liters of blood.

"Sigh."

Lu Chuan shook his head, walked back into the shop, straightened a tilted chair, and then sat down.

He looked at the mess in the shop and sighed again.

This system was really getting more and more frustrating.

It exuded an aura of being a complete scam from inside out; it might as well be renamed the "Host-Scamming System"!