After wrapping things up downstairs, Captain Chen went up to the second floor and found the youth in a blue cloak. His voice was heavy as rain. “Looks like we failed. Do we head back and keep searching?”

The mysterious youth stood with his back to them, a blade of sarcasm in his tone. “You let them slip the net. Think you’ll find them now? With your skills, you’ll just die in batches.”

Shame pricked like needles. “Then what do we do?” Captain Chen knew they’d been careless because of the blonde girl’s looks, so he held back any retort.

“Don’t rush. We’ve still got a chess piece in hand.” In the shadow of his cloak, water gathered in his palm like a clear seed. His hand jolted. Pop—the sphere burst into spray.

He turned slowly. “Those in charge, with me. The rest, get to work.” He led the way into a side room, footsteps crisp as flint. Several officers followed.

“I think it’s around here.” A golden blur darted off the path and into the trees, sunlight weaving through leaves. Little Loli ran light and quick, eyes hunting the undergrowth.

“This is it.” She stopped before a cave mouth, dark as a beast’s maw. Right—this was the cave she and Lin Fan had lived in after dealing with the bear.

“So many places to hide, and I pick this hole...” She plopped down, rubbed her aching legs, a dull throb like lead. “After a run like that, I can’t switch forms for a while.” She flipped open her suitcase. Inside were toiletries, some food, and water—small anchors in a storm.

“This should last a few days.” She snapped it shut, brushed off dust like ash, and slipped into the cave on quiet feet.

“Nothing’s changed, huh.” The old fire marks curled like charcoal scars. Leaf-beds still lay where they’d spread them. A few fruits on the ground had gone faintly moldy, a green bruise of time.

Memory rose like a tide. “On a normal day, Lin Fan would already be on a plane to find me. I wonder what happened.” The image of that reliable big boy etched deeper, like ink in silk. “Anyway, clean up first. I need somewhere to sleep. When this blows over, I’ll go back.”

In the hidden base, decisions fell like stones. “That’s the plan. And leak a little word that the target escaped. Otherwise... there’s a chance it fails.”

“Isn’t this too violent? It might hit too many civilians. The city could take real damage.” Captain Chen rubbed his chin, brows tied in a knot.

“If you’ve got something faster and better, go for it. I just get things done. If the result’s acceptable, the process doesn’t matter.” The blue-cloaked youth shrugged, a handsome face written with weathered indifference.

“In the short term, this is the cleanest cut. Anyway, action beats talk.” Chen lowered his head as if a scale tipped. The brim of his cap cast a shadow over most of his face.

“Good. You handle the set-up. I’ll make my preparations.” The blue-cloaked youth strode out, a gust through an open door, leaving the officers to their thoughts. “Get the word out. Then handle the rest step by step.” Chen tapped the table, soft as rain.

“I remember Lin Fan picked fruit over there.” She took off her jacket and tied it around her waist. She moved through the trees on quiet soles, golden eyes sweeping like twin suns. She looked like she was hunting fruit. In truth, she watched for bugs with a shiver ready.

“That one.” After a while, she stopped at a not-so-tall tree. She climbed a small slope, stepped back, gathered herself like a spring, and jumped.

“Ow!” She’d overestimated herself. A perfect takeoff, then a face-first dive into a pile of leaves. She popped up, slapped dust from her clothes, and glared at the red, ball-like fruit glowing on the branch. “If I could turn on combat mode, I’d chop down your whole tree in one swing. Damn!”

The childish threat stuck sweet as candy. She still gave the trunk a kick. Pain flashed up her foot. “Ow! Even trees bully me at times like this!” Tears welled and broke like dew.

Then a familiar feeling curled around her like mist. “Wait, that little bead again?” In trouble, this was the best gift. “Why didn’t I sense it last time?”

She abandoned the fruit at once and sprinted the way her senses tugged her, feet whispering over roots. “Should be here...” After a bit, a cave appeared, just wide enough for two to pass. Her gut said the bead waited inside.

“I hate caves. Why am I crawling into this thing!” The dark tunnel stretched like a throat. One bug inside and she’d die of fright.

“Don’t be scared. Once I get this bead, my combat power spikes again.” She steeled herself. Her eyes sharpened like amber glass. She pulled out her multi-function power bank, switched on its flashlight mode, and went in.

“It’s right ahead!” The pull in her mind led her on. Closer and closer, and it swelled, strong as a drumbeat. She raised the light high. The cave seemed to end.

“I see it!” At the edge of the beam, a slab like an altar sat in the gloom. In its center lay a red bead. It wasn’t a real altar, just a flat stone, yet it breathed that solemn air. She rushed up and grabbed the bead.

“Evolution bead detected. Absorb?” The system chimed, crisp as a bell.

“Evolution bead?” Last time the system called it an Energy Bead. So what’s the difference? She held it up. Unlike the blood-red from before, this one only wore a red shell. Inside, it was bottomless black, like the cave’s own night.

“Whatever it is, it can’t hurt.” She rolled the bead in her fingers once, then chose to absorb.

“Absorption confirmed. Evolution gained: Bloodgod Claw.”

“Huh? Bloodgod Claw?!”

Blood mist surged like a scarlet tide and swallowed the golden-haired girl whole.