Stronger with Crimson Modifier-Chapter 47: Take Our Time

His mental state and appearance had both improved significantly.

It wasn’t entirely impossible to run into a situation like that.

But he was more inclined to believe she had ulterior motives.

She didn’t approach anyone else, just him. He suspected she was trying to pull some kind of badger game.

He wasn’t afraid, but he didn’t want to attract trouble either.

...

In another room.

The woman, her hair still dripping wet, opened the door and returned to her room.

Just as she closed the door,

"He didn’t come?"

At that moment,

a man’s voice suddenly sounded from the side.

She looked toward the sound.

It was her boyfriend, standing nearby with a blank expression.

Seeing that she had returned, he had asked the question.

"No, that guy is very cautious."

The young woman shook her head. Her expression soured as she recalled what had just happened.

She then briefly explained the situation and asked a question of her own.

"He’s just some ordinary blood food. Is all this trouble really necessary?"

"Lately, the city’s been under lockdown because those other guys have been recklessly hunting for blood food.

It’s best not to cause a big scene,"

the man said in a low voice.

"If we attract *their* attention, not even the Master will be able to save us."

Speaking of *them*,

the man’s tone grew stiff. He was clearly terrified of them.

Hearing this, the woman let out a soft laugh.

"You’re still such a coward. Fine, we’ll wait until later.

We’ll definitely be exposed after this operation anyway. We should eat our fill so we can make a run for it. After this is over, we definitely can’t stay in Qirong City anymore."

"Hmph. I suppose that’s our only option."

The man fell silent for a moment, then nodded.

...

Back in his room, after his shower,

Hu Qi reheated the leftover fish with pickled mustard greens from lunch, adding some meatballs and vegetables.

He took a can of soda from the mini-fridge he’d bought online, popped it open, and took a long, hard swig.

Instantly, he felt refreshed in body and mind.

QUACK QUACK!

As if seeing Hu Qi eating,

the Camphor Tea Duck that had been waiting at the side also let out two quacks.

Hu Qi glanced over.

The food dish inside its cage was already empty.

"You eat so fast!"

He opened a flap on top of the iron cage.

He got up, grabbed some rice grains and corn, and put them inside.

Seeing the food, the Camphor Tea Duck quacked excitedly.

Then, it stretched out its neck.

With its flat beak, it swiftly pecked up several grains of rice, then tilted its head back. With a bob of its neck, the grains were swallowed down.

After a few bites, it seemed to be choking a little.

It stuck its beak into the nearby water dispenser and drank some water.

"You sure know how to eat!"

Hu Qi chuckled.

But when he saw the empty straw nest beneath the duck,

Hu Qi couldn’t help but furrow his brow.

"Camphor Tea Duck, have you been slacking off lately? Your production has dropped off quite a bit."

He remembered that when he first bought it,

it laid basically one egg a day, sometimes even two.

But as time went on,

now it only laid one every other day. The difference was immediately obvious.

As if sensing Hu Qi’s dissatisfaction,

the Camphor Tea Duck flapped its wings and quacked twice more.

Its calls seemed to carry a fawning tone.

Unfortunately,

Hu Qi didn’t speak Duck, so he had no idea what it was saying.

The duck egg production was indirectly linked to the speed at which he grew stronger.

His rapid progress these past few days

was largely thanks to the Camphor Tea Duck’s eggs.

He thought for a moment.

He picked up his phone and typed directly into his browser: "Why do ducks lay fewer eggs?"

The next moment,

the screen showed it was loading.

A pixelated puppy appeared, chasing a ball.

The signal in the top-right corner was down to one bar.

Seeing this, Hu Qi walked to the window.

Only then did his phone signal recover a bit.

Soon, a few possible reasons for the decrease in egg-laying appeared.

The main points were:

1. Diet: Ensure the duck’s feed is nutritionally balanced and sufficient.

2. Provide a suitable environment: The duck coop should be kept dry, ventilated, and warm. The temperature should not be too high or too low. Avoid noisy environments and startling the duck.

3. Adequate lighting: Ensure sufficient light exposure each day. Generally, 16-17 hours of light per day helps increase egg production.

4. Free-ranging: Allow the duck proper opportunities for exercise and foraging. This can enhance its Physique, but be careful to avoid overexertion.

...

Hu Qi read through the points one by one.

The first two weren’t an issue.

He had done an excellent job with its food and lodging.

Hu Qi certainly wouldn’t mistreat his one and only employee.

But the later points about lighting and free-ranging seemed to be lacking.

He kept it at home every day.

Looking at it this way, this was very likely the problem.

’Looks like I need to find some time to take the Camphor Tea Duck out for a walk,’

Hu Qi muttered to himself.

...

Time passed.

The night deepened.

The time reached two in the morning.

The residential complex was silent.

Only the chirping of cicadas and croaking of frogs could be heard from some unknown spot in the distant greenbelt.

And the occasional sound of a distant garbage truck collecting trash.

In the long, narrow corridor,

faint moonlight filtered through a half-open window at the end of the hall, casting a few rays of pale light.

They fell upon the floor, forming irregular patterns of light and shadow.

CLICK!

Just then,

a door on one side of the corridor opened.

A tall figure and a short one emerged.

The motion-activated light in the corridor ceiling flickered on in response to the movement,

illuminating the two figures.

If Hu Qi had seen them, he would have recognized them as the couple from next door.

However, their expressions were now eerie. Their clothes were in disarray, looking as if they had been stretched and torn.

There were also several dark red and blackish-brown stains on their cuffs and hemlines.

Even stranger, in the dead of night, the pair was emerging from another neighbor’s apartment.

And within that apartment, there was a dead silence.

It was unclear if it was an illusion,

but the surroundings seemed excessively quiet.

"Alright, we can begin!"

the man said softly.

"What a shame. I quite liked this place. It’s a real pity we have to leave so soon."

The woman spoke, her crimson tongue darting out to lick a trace of blood from the corner of her mouth. She squinted her eyes in enjoyment.

"There’s nothing we can do about it. Our Life Level has already changed.

If we stay here, we’ll eventually be purged by Zhu Xi. When that happens, it’ll be a dead end for both of us,"

the man said in a low voice.

"Enough talk. Let’s grab that guy first, then get out of here. Delays breed trouble!"

"What are you afraid of? It’s so late. Besides, we’ve already killed all these people.

Even if he screams his lungs out, no one will come. We can take our time and play..."

The woman’s tone was completely nonchalant.

Thinking about Hu Qi’s attitude during the day,

a bloodthirsty red glow emanated from the depths of her eyes.

Soon, the two of them stopped in front of apartment 1503, directly opposite the elevator.

The next moment,

the woman stretched out her hand.

Something bizarre happened.

Thin, long threads began to grow from her slender fingers.

These threads twisted and intertwined, then inserted themselves directly into the keyhole.

CLICK!

The lock cylinder jumped.

Inside the room,

Hu Qi was under his covers, with the air conditioner on, seemingly in a deep sleep.

Suddenly,

Hu Qi, who had appeared to be sound asleep with his eyes closed, abruptly opened them.

His gaze narrowed as he looked toward the door.

His eyes were perfectly clear, without a trace of drowsiness.

Thanks to the Dragon Spirit and Tiger Fierce Trait he had just acquired, his own energy was incredibly vigorous.

He had only been lying down to rest his mind with his eyes closed.

At this moment,

hearing the strange noise from the door,

he sat up immediately.

Since he’d had his eyes closed in the darkness for a long time,

coupled with the faint, cool glow from the air conditioner’s digital display overhead,

he wasn’t bothered by the dark. He instantly took in all the furnishings in the room, his eyes fixed on the softly moving door lock.

He didn’t make a sound.

Instead, his hand reached for the headboard, where the great axe he had been practicing with during the day was resting.