A light rain fell ceaselessly.
Leaving Xinghai City drenched in the night.
As if washing away the city's sin and gore.
Not a soul was in sight on the main streets.
Only occasionally would a car roar past on the road.
Lin Yi wore a hoodie, its hood pulled up, and a black mask covered his face.
His long, narrow eyes glinted with determination.
He activated his [Wall-Running] and [Swift Stride] skills, moving rapidly through the rainy night as he searched for any trace of demons.
He was especially looking for those delinquents on their flashy bikes he had encountered on the bus, and the person he suspected of being a Dog Demon.
But he hadn't seen a single one of them.
Lin Yi had already circled the area several times, but he hadn't found anything unusual.
'Strange. Are all those biker punks okay?'
Lin Yi stopped inside an alley.
He gazed into the surrounding darkness. Not a single star pierced the gloomy night sky.
Only an oppressive mass of dark clouds hung overhead.
It created a deeply uncomfortable, oppressive feeling.
The dim yellow streetlights cast a feeble glow, within which the fine drizzle had nowhere to hide.
Raindrops splashed into the puddles on the ground, sending out rings of ripples.
Piles of uncollected trash were being washed all over by the rain.
Suddenly, Lin Yi saw a figure near a distant trash can.
It was a Scavenger in a raincoat, carrying a burlap sack. They were pacing back and forth, seemingly searching for some choice piece of trash...
Lin Yi began to grow anxious.
Tonight was the deadline for his Demon Hunting mission.
If he couldn't hunt the Dog Demon tonight, the mission would be a failure.
He wouldn't get the fifteen thousand, of course.
And he would have Demon Hunting Points deducted on top of that...
Just as he was about to leave and try his luck elsewhere,
a loud RUMBLE suddenly echoed from the end of the street.
Then, a beam of light from a vehicle's headlights fell upon the Scavenger.
Lin Yi stopped in his tracks. 'Could it be those biker punks again? Don't they ever quit, even when it's raining?'
Just as Lin Yi's heart filled with disgust for those biker punks,
he saw a man in a leather jacket on a cool, heavy motorcycle pull up in front of the Scavenger.
Lin Yi was wondering why the man would stop for a Scavenger,
but in the next moment, the man dismounted, taking a long blade from his bike.
He got off and strode directly toward the Scavenger, dragging the blade behind him.
Lin Yi's heart sank. 'Is this guy really going to pick on a Scavenger?'
He wasn't usually one to meddle,
but to see a grown man about to bully a helpless Scavenger...
Before Lin Yi could even finish the thought, the tables turned.
The Scavenger threw the burlap sack at the man,
and shed their raincoat.
A demon covered in black fur appeared before Lin Yi.
Before Lin Yi could even react, the black-furred demon
turned and fled. The man kicked the sack aside,
and gave chase, long blade in hand.
Just when Lin Yi thought the black-furred demon might escape,
he realized he had been naive...
The man was incredibly fast, closing the distance to the black-furred demon in just a few bounds.
The long blade in his hand flashed like silver.
SCHLICK—
Blood sprayed as a massive head tumbled to the ground.
The body swayed a few times before collapsing heavily into a puddle.
The blood quickly mingled with the rainwater, flowing slowly toward lower ground.
The man walked over to the demon's corpse and casually picked up its head.
The entire process took less than a minute.
From the moment he appeared to the moment he slew the black-furred demon,
it was all over in the blink of an eye.
He hadn't even given the demon a chance to fight back...
As the sole witness, Lin Yi was utterly shocked.
'Even if it was just a Tier 1 or Tier 2 demon, how could it be killed so cleanly? Why didn't it... fight back at all?'
Just as Lin Yi was reeling in astonishment,
the heavy motorcycle roared to life again.
And this time, it was heading right for him.
SCREECH—
A piercing screech of brakes echoed as the heavy motorcycle stopped right outside the alley where Lin Yi was hiding.
It was as if the man had known Lin Yi was hiding there all along.
The moment their eyes met, Lin Yi got a clear look at the man.
He looked to be in his late thirties, not yet forty.
He wore a black leather jacket, but on his head sat an absurdly cute pink helmet.
A cigarette dangled from his mouth, and despite the moonless, starless night,
he still wore a pair of sunglasses.
His face was covered in a thick beard, but instead of looking sloppy,
it just made him look incredibly cool.
As Lin Yi was sizing him up,
the man jutted his chin and said, "Hey, kid. It's a rainy night. What're you doing wandering around out here instead of going home?"
"Huh? I..." Lin Yi started.
Before he could finish, the man patted the rear seat of his motorcycle.
"Hop on. I'll give you a ride home!"
"No, thank you. I have other things to do!"
Lin Yi refused with a firm shake of his head.
The demon's head was still hanging from the back of the motorcycle.
Blood dripped continuously from the severed neck.
Never mind the fact that Lin Yi still had his own Demon Hunting mission to complete.
Even if he didn't, there was no way he was going to share a ride with a severed head.
That thing was prime nightmare fuel.
The man chuckled, a rain-soaked cigarette still dangling from his lips.
He said with a smile, "What, you're scared of a demon's head?"
"It's not that. I really am busy!"
Lin Yi shook his head again, and before the man could say anything else,
he turned and walked deeper into the alley.
He didn't turn to look back, but he felt a bone-chilling sensation on his back.
The man was watching him in silence.
Only after Lin Yi had walked far down the alley did the roar of the motorcycle start up again.
And at that moment,
Lin Yi finally let out a long breath.
The pressure radiating from the man had made it difficult to even breathe.
Especially after he had seen at least five talent traits floating above the man's head.
And every single one was blue-grade at a minimum.
There were even two gold-grade traits...
Since transmigrating, this was the person with the most—and highest quality—traits Lin Yi had ever seen.
'His cultivation level must be incredibly high.'
The sheer pressure from meeting his gaze, even through sunglasses, had been terrifying.
He listened as the sound of the motorcycle faded into the distance.
Only when it had vanished completely did Lin Yi heave a long sigh, his eyes growing even more determined.
Then, he once again became a phantom in the rainy night,
weaving through every corner of the city.
After he had crossed several more streets,
a terrified cry for help suddenly shattered the quiet of the rainy night.