Stronger with Crimson Modifier-Chapter 52: Source (Part 1)

Lin Tong was driving. The car was moving quickly and steadily.

The scenery outside flew rapidly backward.

Hu Qi’s hand, holding the bag, could feel the Camphor Tea Duck inside trembling faintly, as if it had encountered something terrifying.

Noticing this, he glanced at Helinta, who was sitting beside him.

At this time, her eyes were slightly closed. A red longsword rested against her leg. The blade was sheathed, and the scabbard was plain, without any ornate designs.

Judging by its appearance, it didn’t look much different from an inexpensive one bought online.

But even though the sword remained sheathed, he could faintly sense a dense Evil Energy swirling around it.

Hu Qi’s nose twitched; he could smell the faint scent of blood wafting from it.

Just then, as if sensing his gaze, Helinta turned her head. Her wine-red eyes met his, utterly devoid of emotion.

Hu Qi gave an awkward smile and quickly looked away.

’I need to be even more careful around her,’ he thought.

’She’s extremely dangerous, and that sword has definitely killed a lot of people.’

...

"Hmph. What a couple of useless fools!"

The very instant Hu Qi killed the two Black Blood Species... inside a brightly lit villa more than twenty kilometers from Hanlin Garden, a slender woman in a black dress was sitting on a sofa.

It was the same woman who had spoken with Lu Ming Bell earlier.

The black, featureless mask she wore was gone, revealing a stunningly beautiful face. A beauty mark beneath the corner of her right eye added to her captivating allure.

Her fair skin seemed to radiate a mesmerizing glow under the lights.

She was undeniably a great beauty, and the sight of her delicate brows furrowed in a frown was enough to stir a sense of pity in anyone who saw her.

"I really didn’t expect this."

Fragmented images, sent by her two thralls just before their deaths, played out in her mind.

The images showed a nearly naked Young Man with a calm expression, raising an axe high.

The woman’s eyes flickered. The incident with Lu Ming Bell had brought Hu Qi to her attention.

Through her connection to her thralls, she discovered that two of them happened to be right next door to him.

So, she had ordered them to capture him.

Of course, her motive wasn’t to help Lu Ming Bell. She was merely wondering if she could plant a pawn within the Shexin Sect.

Her long life had taught her some mind-controlling Dharma Gates aside from simple conversion.

In the past, most of these attempts had failed.

Still, a few of her pawns had managed to survive and prove useful.

Unfortunately, she never got her hands on the man. Instead, her two thralls were killed.

’For a prodigy like him, if he can’t be used, the best solution is to kill him.’

But the thought of a certain blonde, red-eyed lunatic made the killing intent in her eyes subside.

’I’ll have to leave this be for now. That lunatic followed them to Qirong City this time.

Running into her would be a huge pain.

What a pity. If I were just a little stronger, I wouldn’t have to be so cautious...’

Her voice trailed off into silence.

...

Hu Qi hadn’t been far from Hanlin Garden to begin with, so it only took a few minutes for the car to pull up to the complex’s entrance.

A large crowd of uniformed police officers had already gathered at the base of Building 8.

Yellow caution tape cordoned off the entire building. The commotion had naturally drawn the attention of residents in the other buildings.

People were leaning out of their windows or craning their necks from their balconies, staring over and wondering what was going on.

As Hu Qi’s group approached, two young officers guarding the perimeter frowned and moved to block their path.

Lin Tong stepped forward and produced a black identification folder from his coat, flipping it open.

After seeing the credentials, the young officer’s expression changed, and he quickly straightened into a formal posture.

"Sir!"

The exchange seemed to attract the attention of those inside the building.

Moments later, three figures emerged: two men and a woman.

The leader was a Young Man, while the other two appeared to be in their thirties.

Strangely, however, the Young Man seemed to be the one in charge.

This Young Man had sparse, short eyebrows, a low nose bridge, and a few faint freckles on either side of his nose. He looked quite plain.

"Senior Brother Lin, and... greetings, Second Senior Sister."

He started to speak after seeing Lin Tong, but his words faltered when he caught sight of Helinta.

The expressions of all three changed instantly as they bowed in greeting.

Helinta merely gave a slight nod in response.

"This is Junior Brother Hu Qi, who is joining the core class this year. And these are your seniors, King’s Power, Zhang Lian, and Qin Yuan."

Lin Tong made the simple introductions.

The trio nodded at Hu Qi, their attitude friendly.

Hu Qi dutifully greeted each of them in turn, though he was inwardly surprised.

’Clearly, since they’re addressed as seniors, they must all be members of the core class.’

’And based on the police officer calling them "Sir," they definitely have an official background with the Xia Federation.’

’The Red Scale Fighting Club seems far more powerful than I ever imagined.’

Soon, the group of six took the elevator.

They rode it up to the fifteenth floor, where Hu Qi lived.

The elevator doors opened to the overwhelming, choking stench of blood.

Directly across from the elevator lay the corpse of a man whose head had been blown apart. A trail of blackish-red blood snaked from the body toward the door of apartment 1503.

Fortunately, none of them were ordinary people, so the sight didn’t faze them.

"After a thorough sweep, we found 165 units in the building. Besides twenty-some empty units and a few untouched lower floors, whose residents luckily escaped...

...the remaining 101 households, with 139 people, are all dead.

This was all caused by two Blood Slaves. This is one of them; the other is on the 13th floor.

This Black Blood Species was likely killed inside one of the rooms and then dragged out into the hallway.

Judging by the facial wounds, it was done with an axe. The attacker is incredibly strong and most likely a Secret Martial Artist who has cultivated their Qi and Blood..."

The freckled Young Man, King’s Power, explained.

However, before he could finish, he noticed a strange look flash across Hu Qi’s face.

Lin Tong, standing beside them, cleared his throat.

"Senior Brother Lin, did I say something wrong?"

King’s Power looked over, puzzled.

"It’s nothing. It’s just that your deduction is a little off. The one who killed these two Blood Slaves is standing right next to me."

Lin Tong gestured toward Hu Qi. He then briefly recounted the story Hu Qi had told him in the car.

Hearing this, King’s Power and the two behind him all stared at Hu Qi in astonishment.

They had already examined the wounds on the Black Blood Species. A normal person shouldn’t have been able to inflict that kind of damage.

But not only had Lin Tong said it, Helinta was also standing by silently.

Her silence was undeniable proof of the story’s truth.

It left the three of them momentarily speechless.

’Are all the rookies this monstrous nowadays?’