“Muyan, you finally made it!”

Ye Yiyi’s face lit like a lantern in winter, her joy bursting like warm sunlight.

“Yo, two more beauties. Ha! Nice—more’s merrier.”

The two middle-aged men grinned, eyes gleaming like dogs catching the scent of meat.

“Ning-jie, look...”

Li Muyan leaned toward the tall woman beside her, calm as moonlight before a storm.

The woman wore a black wool coat, wine-red waves rolling like dusk, a carved face with queenly poise, taller than Tang Coco by a head.

She flicked a glance at the men, then pulled out her phone like drawing a blade.

“Hey, someone’s trying to take liberties with your sis. You handling it?”

Her voice was steady, like frost on stone.

“Huh? Who’s that bold? Did they swallow poison? Hold on, I’m coming up.”

Downstairs, a black SWAT cruiser crouched like a panther.

The door popped; a uniformed youth sprinted into the hospital like an arrow loosed.

Inside the ward, the air smelled stale, like rain trapped under tarps.

“Oh, calling people? I wanna see who can touch me!”

Tiger Bro puffed himself up like a rooster and hollered, “Third! Third! You off making out with that little nurse? Get in here!”

“Tiger Bro, you called me? I was at the critical moment—this ain’t cool.”

The man who’d dragged the nurse in stumbled back in, pants half-hitched, shame flapping like a torn flag.

“Cut the crap. See them? Flatten these chicks. I’ll split one with you.”

Tiger Bro’s voice was a blunt club, aimed to bruise.

The hunchbacked one shot his boss a bitter look, then his eyes lit like a gambler’s at gold.

Four beauties stood there—every one a rare gem under moonlight.

“Tiger Bro, you said it. Ha! Heaven’s serving me tonight.”

He rocked forward like a hyena, hunger twitching in his cheeks.

The two, leaving Tiger Bro back, lunged at Li Muyan and the tall queenly woman, reading Ye Yiyi and Tang Coco as soft targets like fledglings in grass.

Suddenly, a black blur cut in like a hawk diving.

One kick slammed into Third; he flew and hit the wall, crumpling like a snapped reed.

“Ah! Ah! It hurts! My waist!”

His cry pitched up like a kettle shrieking.

“Who? Who the hell is meddling?”

Tiger Bro’s glare burned like a cigarette ember.

The young man took out a badge, cool and bright as a cold moon.

“Sorry. SWAT.”

He had tight-cropped hair, a twenty-something jaw chiseled like granite, confidence flowing like clear water.

“SWAT? Since when is SWAT this idle?”

The tall middle-aged man scoffed, swaggering like a boar in rut.

The SWAT youth’s lip curled, a spark before lightning.

He was stepping in when the queenly woman spoke, voice smooth as silk over steel.

“Xiao Kai, drag them out and settle it outside. Muyan, take your girlfriends out.”

“Got it.”

Xiao Kai surged forward, a clean sweep dropping the tall man like wheat.

Before the shock landed, his fist cracked Tiger Bro’s face, stars spraying like glass.

He grabbed collars and hauled them out like trash in a storm, snagging the hunchback on the way.

Li Muyan hurried to Ye Yiyi, her heart knotted like a tight rope.

“Mu Yan, Coco...”

Ye Yiyi’s eyes brimmed; tears slipped like rain off eaves, watching Tang Coco shake like a leaf.

“It’s okay, Yiyi. Let Ning-jie take a look. Ning-jie’s strong.”

Her voice was soft, a hand on still water.

“Come on, let’s step out.”

“Okay... fine.”

Ye Yiyi hugged her arms, walking to the queenly woman like a child seeking shade.

“Ning-jie, Coco’s in your hands.”

“Mm. Don’t worry. I’ll make sure she’s fine.”

Ning-jie smiled, warm as a spring breeze, and Li Muyan drew Ye Yiyi out, the door shutting with a quiet click like snow settling.

The tall woman approached Tang Coco, who sat with her head bowed, voice shaking like a moth’s wing.

“Go... go away... stay back...”

Ning-jie’s eyes turned cautious, thought pooling like ink on rice paper.

Inside, Tang Coco’s mind felt like a dam cracking under flood.

“Program initializing... 95%...”

“Damn it, why can’t I control it? Back off, back off, I’ll kill you.”

The red in her eyes swelled, curling like wildfire ready to break line.

Ning-jie moved without hesitation—two hands cupped Coco’s head like cradling a fragile bowl.

She pressed her lips to Coco’s cherry mouth, a sudden strike like thunder clearing the sky.

Coco’s eyes flew wide; the red inside darted like fish in a net, frantic.

Ning-jie’s gaze flared gold, luminous as dawn on a lake.

A ripple of Anomalous Energy shimmered around them, like heatwaves over stone.

Slowly, the crimson ebbed, fading like embers in rain, until it vanished.

Tang Coco slumped, drifting into sleep like a boat losing oars.

Ning-jie laid her flat, pulled the blanket up like a quiet tide, then straightened, licking the corner of her lip as if tasting storm.

“She’s an Abnormal. And her Anomalous Energy is strong.”

Her whisper was a knife wrapped in velvet.

“Who is she? How did I miss her? Newly awakened Anomaly Power?”

She didn’t chase the thought deeper; instead, she watched Coco’s pale, stunning face, beauty like frost on jade.

Then she stepped out and met Ye Yiyi’s anxious gaze, buzzing like bees in a jar.

“Ning-jie, how’s Coco?”

Ye Yiyi leaned in, worry flaring like wind through a bamboo grove.

“Relax. She’s fine now. Look at you—tied up in knots.”

Ning-jie smiled and ruffled Ye Yiyi’s hair, gentle as a robin’s wing.

“Ning-jie, what’s Coco’s illness?”

Li Muyan asked, steady but wary, like standing under a lowering sky.

“This seems like a rare disorder. When it hits, it triggers sharp heart pain, so she fainted.”

Her lie fell smooth as fog over water.

“I’ll go ask around for specifics.”

“Ah, Coco has that? Can it be cured?”

Ye Yiyi’s voice trembled, hope and fear wrestling like fire and snow.

“I’ll look it up. There should be a way.”

Her assurance landed like a stone on a riverbed.

“Thank you, Ning-jie.”

“Don’t be polite.”

She waved it off, light as drifting willow.

“Okay, I’ve got things to do. I’ll check how that kid handled those guys.”

Her tone firmed like iron under silk.

“Muyan, your friend’s fine. Take her home. With a face like hers—and you all being girls—staying here isn’t safe.”

“Mm, okay. I’ll get things ready.”

Li Muyan nodded, resolve settling like a clasp.

“Mm. I’ll probably swing by tonight. Make me dinner.”

“Ning-jie’s coming? That’s great.”

Ye Yiyi brightened, joy popping like firecrackers.

Ning-jie ruffled her hair once more, then left, stride smooth as a cat.

Ye Yiyi and Li Muyan got Tang Coco home, moving with care like carrying warm porcelain.

As for that hospital, with security that thin, trouble would roll in afterward like a long, grinding storm.