"Remember to bring back two more packs of instant noodles!"
As Lu Wanyin opened the door to leave, Yue Qinshan called out to her back.
Lu Wanyin snorted coldly as she closed the door, and then a muttering voice could be heard from outside.
"Talking about escape money... you never even thought about leaving any for me."
After Lu Wanyin's footsteps completely faded away, Yue Qinshan turned to look at Jiang Huai.
The moment he turned his head, his expression was completely different from before.
"Kid, let's talk now."
His voice was deep and carried a hint of threat.
"You'd better give me an explanation. What exactly are you?"
Yue Qinshan, being an experienced Awakened, had participated in the battles against the beast tides and knew how terrifying the beasts were.
Let alone an Abyss-level beast, even a Lord-level beast was beyond the capability of an average Awakened to contend with.
And last night, that white bone giant—Yue Qinshan himself couldn't say he was confident in defeating it.
"I really don't know," Jiang Huai sighed helplessly. "I wish you could explain why my body turned out like this."
"Heh, this really is strange."
Yue Qinshan set aside the empty instant noodle bowl and studied Jiang Huai carefully.
"That girl told me about your situation, and I went to inquire about you myself."
As he spoke, he pulled out two cans of chilled beer from an old, noisy fridge.
"You were attacked by an infected creature called a parasite. The girl saved you, and her report says you have extraordinary regenerative abilities, right?"
Yue Qinshan handed a can of beer to Jiang Huai.
Although Jiang Huai wasn't used to drinking beer so early, he still accepted it.
"Yes."
"That's nonsense!"
Yue Qinshan slammed the table, his voice serious as he said, "Even an Awakened with the strongest regenerative abilities couldn't survive after their heart was ripped out! You need to understand the difference between regeneration and regrowth!"
"Sorry, I don't know much about Awakened individuals."
Jiang Huai opened the beer, took a sip, and looked at Yue Qinshan. "So, what exactly am I? Do you have any idea?"
Yue Qinshan sighed and took a sip of beer himself.
"Do you really want me to tell you?"
"I believe I have the right to know."
After a moment of hesitation, Yue Qinshan nodded. "If I hadn't seen it myself, I wouldn't have believed this crazy stuff either. You're... a beast."
The words hit Jiang Huai like a thunderclap in his brain.
Though he didn't know much, he had seen the beast with his own eyes yesterday.
Was he that kind of monster?
"Listen to me before you get shocked. The white skeletal giant you turned into last night was indeed a beast, but right now, there's no trace of the beast inside you. You're completely a regular human."
At this point, Yue Qinshan, frustrated, pulled out a cigarette and lit it.
"This is the part I don't understand."
Then, as if remembering something, he looked at Jiang Huai again. "Can you control that kind of power? Show me if you can."
Jiang Huai felt like he was being asked to do something unreasonable. That form had only appeared in a moment of extreme rage and desperation...
But just as Jiang Huai had that thought and tried to tap into that power, he felt a change in his body.
At the same time, he saw the cigarette butt Yue Qinshan had been holding drop into his pants.
"Ow!!"
Yue Qinshan jumped up, shaking his leg to flick the cigarette butt away, and pointed at Jiang Huai, shouting, "What the hell are you?!"
"..."
Having transformed into the white bone giant, Jiang Huai obediently sat on the chair. But the next second.
Crack!
The chair shattered beneath him as he fell to the floor.
Then, with another crack, the floor cracked open under him.
"Sorry..."
The white skeletal giant spoke in a deep, muffled voice.
He propped himself up on the table to stand.
Crack.
The table shattered under his touch.
Scratching his head, the white skeletal giant stood up, his height now over two meters, and the ceiling light shattered, plunging the room into darkness.
Then, there was a series of crashing sounds.
"Enough! Stop it! Change back now!"
Three minutes later, Yue Qinshan replaced the light bulb in the chandelier. When the living room lit up again, he sighed deeply.
"When the girl comes back, just say a thief broke in."
"Teacher Yue, Lu Wanyin isn't an idiot."
Yue Qinshan felt like crying, but what else could he do? He had no choice but to improvise.
"Your situation is really special, so you don't remember how you saved my disciple's life, right?"
Without the table, the two had no choice but to sit on the worn-out sofa.
"Yes, it felt like a reflex at the time."
At this point, Yue Qinshan's expression grew cold again. "Last night, when she was unconscious, I checked her body. Her heart was indeed destroyed, but it regenerated at a visible speed, just like your situation."
After speaking, Yue Qinshan slowly took out his phone, glanced at Jiang Huai, and continued.
"By all rights, I should report your situation to my superiors, since you can turn into a beast. We've never encountered anything like this before."
Jiang Huai felt a little nervous.
He had heard Lu Wanyin mention it.
The organization called Night Demon Patrol wasn't very large, but it had ties with the government.
None of its members showed any mercy toward infected individuals or beasts.
If he fell into their hands, there were only two possible outcomes.
In the best case, they would give him a quick end.
In the worst case, they might dissect him for research.
After all, Yue Qinshan had emphasized several times that his situation was very special.
"Even if I let you off, that doesn't mean others will. The aura you released last night was too powerful, and it probably alerted every organization in Lingyu City and the surrounding areas."
Jiang Huai didn't speak, but fell into deep thought.
Suddenly, he had a bold idea.
"If I can't escape, could you please introduce me to join the Night Demon Patrol, Teacher Yue?"
Yue Qinshan froze, then burst into laughter.
"Hahaha, kid, you sure have guts. Instead of trying to run away, you're asking to join? But joining the Night Demon Patrol requires a test. Once you turn into that skeleton, you'll be exposed right away."
"No, Teacher Yue, I don't need to turn into the skeleton. Don't you remember why I'm being monitored?"
Jiang Huai's words made Yue Qinshan pause. He looked at the young man before him with a different gaze.
"You... you're implying that you're an Awakened with superhuman regenerative abilities?"
"Yes," Jiang Huai nodded.
Yue Qinshan took a puff of his cigarette, then blew out the smoke, holding his phone with one hand and smiling at Jiang Huai.
"Give me one reason, one reason not to sell you to the organization."
Jiang Huai was silent for a moment before replying, "For your disciple."
A cold glint flashed in Yue Qinshan's eyes. "Are you threatening me?"
"I'm not threatening you, Teacher Yue. Although I don't know how I saved Lu Wanyin, I have a feeling that if I die, she won't survive either."
This time, it was Jiang Huai who looked at Yue Qinshan with a steady gaze.
"So, Teacher Yue, do you want to take a chance on my feeling?"
The atmosphere in the room grew tense, with only the sound of the cigarette burning.
After a long while, Yue Qinshan sneered.
"You kid, you're not as honest as you look."
This made Jiang Huai feel a little guilty.
Indeed, no matter how nice the words sounded, he was essentially using Lu Wanyin's life to threaten Yue Qinshan.
But he had no other choice, and neither did Lu Wanyin.
Right now, the power to decide was in Yue Qinshan's hands.
"I've never been this passive in my life." Yue Qinshan extinguished the cigarette in his palm, then looked at Jiang Huai as if talking to himself.
"Sigh, I'm really losing here. If I hand you over, I don't even know how much I'll get, just for a girl I picked up back then... heh."
He shook his head helplessly and finally said, "Deal."