Volume One, Chapter 113: Green Tangerine

Although the brainwashing hypnosis had been lifted, the lingering effects of past experiences still influenced him. Ivanoti was currently striving to follow what Eleven had advised—to pursue what he truly desired—but deep down, his subconscious continued to impose various demands upon him.

This internal conflict gave rise to Ivanoti’s polarized temperament. The lively, dynamic side of Little Feng gave off an impression of innocent charm, while the composed and still Ivanoti would enter a “frozen porcelain doll” state, naturally radiating a cold aura that kept others at a distance.

Watching the little one skipping ahead, Eleven quietly activated his abilities to erase both their presences. After all, that “Qin” fellow also stayed in the same hotel; if he recognized them, there would be no juicy gossip left to hear.

As members within the “Tide,” Eleven and Mode were naturally well acquainted. However, the aftermath tasks involving the “White-clad” group were always kept secret from Mode. Qin’s current strength was still far from sufficient, so certain matters could not be fully disclosed to him yet—such as just how formidable and extraordinary the chatting companions within the “Tide” truly were.

It was already late; few guests remained in the hotel corridor.

Eleven smoothly escorted Little Feng back to her room. Just as Ivanoti was about to knock on the door, Eleven raised a finger and pressed it gently against the girl’s forehead, releasing a subtle wave of spiritual energy that cleansed Ivanoti’s aura.

The girl blinked her silver eyes and suddenly reached out both arms toward Eleven.

Applying a slight force with his fingertip, Eleven gently pushed the little head away.

“Go back to sleep quickly, or you won’t grow any taller,” he teased with a smile before waving goodbye and turning to leave.

Watching the man’s retreating figure, Ivanoti sheepishly withdrew her arms. This time, her hug attempt had failed.

Knocking on the door, Little Feng softly called out, “Senior Jiu Chuan, Senior Zi Wen, I’m back!”

Turning the corner of the corridor, Eleven first activated his powers, causing a dark lotus to bloom beneath his feet, completely erasing his presence. Then he turned to watch Ivanoti disappear into the open door.

Satisfied, Eleven slipped his hands into his pockets and strolled toward the hotel lobby on the first floor.

The scheduled time had arrived. His brief stay in the city of Forty-Nine was drawing to a close. Next, he would take an airliner to the “Demon City” to handle another case.

Sliding into his private car, Eleven gazed out at the nightscape of Forty-Nine City and scratched his cheek.

Just moments ago, he had been laughing at Mode’s endless romantic misadventures, yet his own situation seemed to be turning a bit ominous.

“At such a young age, you should be focusing on your studies,” Eleven muttered to himself, then leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes to rest.

The driver ahead seemingly heard nothing and continued steering the black sports car through the bustling streets of the capital.

...

The morning sun rose, scattering rays of golden light. Countless beams of rosy gold enveloped the vast sky and land.

Mu Qing was awakened from her dreams by Mode. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, she loosened the relaxed bear pillow she hugged and yawned, “What’s going on? Is the Earth about to explode again?”

“Explode? What do you think, that some doomsday cult is causing trouble again?” Mode tossed the blanket he had kicked off back onto the bed and urged, “Hurry up and wash up. The students from Feng’an City have already arrived. After breakfast, we need to gather and set off.”

“Okay... haah...” Mu Qing yawned while agreeing. Stretching, her full curves became even more pronounced. Unfortunately, Mode had already turned away and returned to the outer room, cleaning up the various snack wrappers left from last night.

Though the suite was separated into inner and outer rooms, there was only one television. So last night, after coming back, Mu Qing had lounged on Mode’s bed watching TV for a while.

Mode had planned to sleep in the inner room, but upon opening the door, he found Mu Qing’s clothes tossed all over the bed and gave up. He returned to his side of the outer room’s bed, covered himself, and forced himself to sleep.

The suite’s beds were enormous. While Mode buried himself in sleep, Mu Qing watched silent pantomimes on TV; neither disturbed the other.

However, in the latter half of the night, Mode was once again haunted by restless spirits. Groggily waking, he found Mu Qing asleep with the TV on, clutching the bear pillow as if it were him in her dreams.

After some effort, Mode gently removed Mu Qing and carried her back to the inner room, placing the bear pillow back in her arms. Exhausted, he returned to bed and fell into a deep sleep.

Waking in the morning, Mode saw a notice posted by the administrator of the “Exotic University Winter Camp North China Branch Friendly Group.” He hurriedly urged Mu Qing to get up and prepare to meet the others.

While waiting for Mu Qing to finish washing, Mode pulled two green tangerines from his backpack’s fruit bag. He drew a short blade from the sheath of his spatial stone knife and carefully cut the peel.

Last night, during some downtime at the restaurant, Mode had quietly searched for “simple ways to eliminate odors” and learned a neat trick from a senior. He then pocketed a few green tangerines from the fruit area, just in case.

Squeezing a few drops of tangerine juice, he lightly dusted it around himself. Although Mu Qing’s presence had already been exposed to Su Ziwen, the fact that they shared a room still warranted some concealment.

“All set, let’s go... woof!” Mu Qing, freshly washed, was startled as Mode stuffed a tangerine into her mouth the moment she stepped out of the bathroom.

“What are you doing?” Though surprised, Mu Qing chewed and swallowed the fruit.

“You ate so much yesterday; here, a little tangerine to freshen your palate,” Mode said and fed her the second tangerine to avoid waste.

Eating two green tangerines on an empty stomach, Mu Qing’s appetite instantly returned. After packing her luggage and bear pillow back into the spatial knife’s sheath, she headed to the breakfast hall.

Mode caught the knife sheath Mu Qing tossed him and smiled slightly as she vanished down the hall.

Mu Qing possessed a spatial stone ring of her own, similar to Mode’s knife sheath, both obtained during the “Barrier Breach” incident. However, her ring’s internal space was small, so she stored her larger luggage with Mode.

After all, they wouldn’t be traveling far apart.

Downstairs, after returning the room card, Mode lowered his head and took a deep sniff of his shoulder. This time, he detected only a faint scent of green tangerine.

Carrying his backpack and dragging luggage into the breakfast hall, Mode searched briefly and, after ignoring a certain figure rampaging at the food station, found Su Ziwen and two others.

As Mode settled back down, Su Ziwen’s brow twitched slightly before relaxing.

That woman’s aura had grown even stronger.

Poor Mode was unaware that for Su Ziwen’s keen senses, the simple masking of tangerine juice did nothing.

Back then, even amidst the intense, swirling blood energy, Su Ziwen could still easily identify Mu Qing’s presence.