The King of Black Fog

The three people from Dormitory 407 walked into the courtyard and all gasped upon seeing the Sand Shield Target.

"Big Bro, do you really wanna be a tough guy?" Dong Ge patted the shield target, which felt as solid as a rock.

"Sticking to my word is one of my best qualities. Come on in, the girls from the female dormitory are already here."

Immediately, the three of them lost interest in the shield target.

After entering the living room and exchanging greetings discreetly, they started to eat.

"I heard there were gunshots near the Moat this morning?" If this topic were brought up by Chen Shao, it would definitely have hidden implications, but since Da Huang raised it, it was out of pure curiosity.

"Yeah, I heard about it too," said a girl named Xu Xiao from Li Qianxia's dorm.

"A crocodile showed up," Chen Shao said with a tone that suggested he knew the insider scoop, "I heard it was as big as a dinosaur."

"Things are getting weirder these days. I even saw a video of an apple tree, with apples as big as balls."

Li Changzhou quietly ate his meal.

He picked up a slice of beef, dipped it in hot sauce, tossed it into his mouth, chewed vigorously, then picked up his Sprite and sipped it as if it were fine wine.

"Ahh—"

The carbon dioxide rushed to his forehead, giving an indescribably refreshing feeling.

He then grabbed a large shrimp, which was quite substantial in flesh.

"I also saw a news report where a fisherman claimed to have seen mermaids at sea!" Da Huang said.

"What kind of fish is a mermaid?" Li Changzhou casually asked.

"Mermaid, you know! Half woman, half fish, the beautiful mermaids! Haven't you seen the movies? Those with long hair and great figures!"

The joke had barely started when everyone burst out laughing.

"Speaking of which, I know one too." Another girl from the female dormitory became excited, "There's a foreign death metal band, and the lead singer is an African grey parrot."

The eight of them chatted and laughed heartily while eating, giggling over even the smallest things.

After dinner, everyone prepared to take a walk nearby.

Li Changzhou didn't go. If everyone left, what was the point of Yang Qinglan staying over?

He washed the dishes and wiped down the table, then started training under the apricot tree in the courtyard.

Instead of continuing to practice his Great Strength Demon Ox Boxing, he pulled out his phone and searched for "martial arts."

He now had constitution, strength, and agility, but he hadn't encountered actual combat and was unclear about many things—like what moves to use in different situations.

It's like someone smart enough to eventually solve a tricky math problem can do so much more effectively with the right formula.

If strong enough, of course, one can dominate martial arts with unmatched speed or overpower all techniques with sheer force.

Unfortunately, a single blow from a bull could kill him.

"Kicking techniques: push, kick, flick, tap, wrap, swing, sweep, hang..."

Li Changzhou held his phone in his left hand and kicked the shield target in various angles and positions.

The continuous popping sounds of hits exploded in the air.

"Striking techniques: rush, bump, squeeze, lean, burst, chop, lift, smash..."

"Grappling techniques: snag, grab, lock, clasp, seal, shut, mislead, intercept..."

Li Changzhou rigorously practiced, strictly adhering to the requirements, not simplifying or skipping any move just because of his strength or speed.

To build a skyscraper, one must dig deep foundations.

Whether it was useful or needed simplification, reality would eventually decide. If he skipped practicing in advance, he might miss that critical flash of insight when it mattered.

Two hours later, Li Qianxia and her group came back without buying much.

"Changzhou, we're leaving," the girl said.

"Big Bro, we're heading out," Da Huang and the others also bid farewell.

"Take care," Li Changzhou prepared to see them off.

As he approached, the girls and the boys stopped and stared behind him.

"What's up?" Li Changzhou turned around, and Yang Qinglan, stretching lazily, walked into the courtyard from Li Qianxia's room.

The ancient-style courtyard with its lush apricot leaves stepped into the mottled sunlight of the universe's center.

"You guys are living together?!" Xu Xiao exclaimed.

"Not yet," Yang Qinglan said, lowering her stretched arms and smiling.

"Not yet?! So you mean you'll cohabit in the future?!" Dong Ge roared.

"I guess so," Yang Qinglan said.

The three boys and the three girls all turned their faces toward Li Changzhou like wind-blown wild grass.

"Qing Lan!" Li Qianxia stepped forward two steps and walked to her side.

Yang Qinglan whispered laughingly in her ear, "We can't exactly build two bases, right? Living in one base is cohabitation, isn't it?"

"Bro, this woman is playing you," Li Qianxia, who didn't belong to any faction, always stood on the side that would stir up trouble.

"I see that now," Li Changzhou said, mimicking Yang Qinglan's tone from when they first met.

Yang Qinglan glanced at Li Changzhou, turned her head, and asked Li Qianxia, "Is there anything to eat? I'm hungry."

"Yes, I just cooked and saved a portion for you. I used new bowls and chopsticks too. Oh, how's your cold? Still feeling dizzy?"

"Much better now."

"Bro, you see Xiao Xiao and them off, I'll stay with Qing Lan," Li Qianxia instructed Li Changzhou.

While seeing the others off, Li Changzhou was surrounded and bombarded with questions by Da Huang, Chen Shao, and Dong Ge for a while before he managed to pull his slipping collar back and return to the yard.

"Hmm?"

Just as Li Changzhou was about to go to the living room to settle scores with Yang Qinglan, he stopped in his tracks, walked over to the Sand Shield Target, crouched down, and wiped the ground with his hand, his fingertips picking up some sand.

He rubbed his fingertips together, stood up, and scrutinized the shield target thoroughly, finding a notch.

Had he bought a subpar product?

"Dong dong!"

"Who is it?" Li Changzhou dusted off his hands and walked toward the front door.

"Zheng Qing."

A minute later, the group of three plus Zheng Qing were sitting under the apricot tree at the stone table and benches.

Yang Qinglan held a lunch box filled with beef, shrimp, pork ribs, spicy chicken, stir-fried clams, oyster sauce lettuce, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, dry-fried green beans, and a bowl of loofah egg soup.

There was no rice, and the amount of dishes wasn't much, just a little of each.

"I've reported your matter, and the higher-ups asked me to thank you for your help," Zheng Qing said.

"If I hadn't seen it, it would be one thing, but how could I not help upon seeing it? It's not like it was a life-threatening big deal," Li Changzhou said, mouth talking while his eyes kept glancing at her pocket.

Zheng Qing knew what he was looking for.

"Righteous acts require approval; we'll know specifics in a few days," she said.

"So, Officer Zheng, why did you come in person?" Li Qianxia asked, puzzled.

"This morning's crocodile was not an isolated case. Now similar incidents are happening worldwide, surpassing the number of fires in a single day, reaching twenty thousand occurrences, and that's just what's been documented.

"I came here to ask for your help with such an incident," she said.

"Caught by your charm," Yang Qinglan said, biting into a rib, to Li Changzhou.

Li Changzhou hesitated for a moment, "Officer Zheng, you're not my type."

"..." Zheng Qing remained silent, quietly taking a deep breath.

"My brother likes girls with slim waists and long legs, breasts like peaches, possessing unequalled beauty, a cold yet dazzling demeanor! She must have long hair!

"No man wouldn't like such a woman," Li Changzhou took a sip of Himalayan mineral water.

Li Qianxia leaned back, glanced at Yang Qinglan's back, and added, "Sitting on a stool, hair tips about three to four centimeters above the seat."

Yang Qinglan threw away the bone that had no more meat on it and picked up clam meat with her chopsticks.

Zheng Qing hurriedly interrupted the two siblings.

"I'm here to discuss serious matters," she said, her face stern, "Li Changzhou, we need your skills, we want you to help draw the target's attention to prevent them from escaping."

Li Changzhou looked towards Yang Qinglan.

"Consider it practice, we'll join you," Yang Qinglan said, discarding the clam shell and taking a sip of the soup with loofah.

"What about the price?" Li Changzhou asked Zheng Qing.

"50,000 Daxia Currency, plus some information."

"The information must be valuable."

"Of course!" Zheng Qing nodded emphatically.