"Do you want to go? If you do, I can take you," Shen Xingyue asked.
"In the vast mountains, I won't tag along and cause trouble," I said earnestly. Yaoyao’s not letting me go has its reasons. This is unlike the previous encounters with the Shanhai demons, where we were on the defensive. This time, we are taking the initiative. There’s no need to risk me, the "reincarnation of Bai Ze."
To put it bluntly, even if Yaoyao, the true "reincarnation of Bai Ze," were captured or sacrificed this time, the Bai Ze demon clan could still rally around me as their central figure and continue to resist the Shanhai demons.
But if I were captured, even if Yaoyao stepped forward and revealed the truth, that she is the reincarnation of Bai Ze, the problem is that I've already raised the banner of 'the tiger's skin.' If she were to step out now, many people likely wouldn't believe her. At the very least, it would diminish the cohesion of the Bai Ze organization to some extent.
"Alright, then I won't see you off. I still have some matters to attend to this morning." Shen Xingyue glanced at her watch. "...It's almost noon. Why don't you and Kun Kun eat in the cafeteria before you leave?"
"Isn't today a day off? Is there food in the cafeteria?" I asked.
"Oh, right. We still have to order takeout..." Shen Xingyue patted her forehead. Even as the head of the Sabia Northeast Region, with a high-ranking position, she didn't have the privilege to make the cafeteria aunties work on weekends.
"I should have some delicacies back at my place. I'll go back and see. If there's anything ready, I'll bring some over for you," I said.
"What delicacies? Not wild animals, are they?" Shen Xingyue frowned.
"I don't know either. I have to go back and check." I said. I didn't know what good things those demons had hunted last night, but I definitely couldn't give Shen Xingyue anything illegal as a gift.
The sound of a car horn came from downstairs. I activated my Spirit Sense technique; the fox demon had arrived.
"Xingyue, I'm leaving."
"Go ahead, I won't see you off." Shen Xingyue put on her stern face again, completely absorbed in the gibberish on the screen.
I went out, went downstairs, and got into the fox demon's car. The fox demon frowned and asked, "You didn't sleep with Shen Xingyue last night and make my boss angry, did you?"
"...It was clearly her who slept with Shen Xingyue," I said.
"That's more like it, haha."
Back at the base, even though three major figures were gone, the base, due to its extremely dense population, didn't seem deserted at all.
I first went to the kitchen to check. As expected, there was new stock – another top-grade tuna, just finished its resting period and tasting excellent.
Chen Ke cut me a piece. It was delicious on its own, but even better with her secret sauce.
"Cut a pound, pack it with the seasoning, and send it to Shen Xingyue," I instructed the fox demon.
"Sure thing, on my way."
I wasn't hungry yet. After meeting with the few of them one by one, the fox demon had already driven off. I then asked Chen Ke to cut another half a pound. This time, without the seasoning, I personally pan-fried it and packed it in a thermos. Chen Ke disguised herself and me, and we drove to the hospital to visit Chu Qi, bringing her some food as well.
Sabia had taken over Chu Qi's security, so we couldn't get close to her ward. We had to call Shen Xingyue, and only then did we get to see Chu Qi, who was recuperating in bed.
Although she didn't have high-level spiritual energy, she was still a martial artist, and her bodily functions were at their peak human state. She was recovering quickly and in good spirits. Before I could speak, Chu Qi proactively asked about my "energy bullet" spell, how it worked, and why it was so powerful.
I explained the principle to her, saying it wasn't very powerful, just that the attack method was quite subtle, creating a surprise effect. The power wasn't great.
"Not powerful? You still beat me up like this!" Chu Qi laughed and punched me.
However, I dodged it. I asked Chen Ke to open the lunchbox, and a unique aroma of fried high-grade seafood instantly filled the ward, making the patients in the adjacent rooms salivate.
"Wow, what is this? It smells so good!"
"Tuna, haven't you had it before?"
"Tuna isn't just tuna," Chu Qi took the fork I offered and picked up a piece of fish. After tasting it, she said, "This is top quality. It must have been brought by the dolphins, because human fishing techniques can't catch fish this good."
"Why? Is it because the dolphins swim deeper?" I asked.