Chapter 25 - 19: Shock
Lin Yi stood on an empty street corner with four heavy backpacks on his back, squinting slightly as he adjusted to the sudden brightness.
The sewer’s chill and dampness were driven away, but the complex mix of scents lingering in his nose was magnified by his Spiritual Nose, becoming even sharper—dust, exhaust fumes, the aroma of food from street stalls, and the thick stench of blood and rats from his backpacks.
"HUU..."
He took off his respirator and let out a long, foul breath, as if trying to expel all the filth and blood of the underground world at once.
He then quickly pinpointed his location using the map app on his communicator.
He had simply climbed out of the nearest sewer manhole, so he had no idea what part of the city he was in now.
’The distance is a bit far! Ah, whatever. I’ll just run back. It’ll be good practice for getting used to this 10.0 body!’
His finger swiped across the screen as he planned a route from his current location to the tenement complex. Without further delay, he started jogging, following the directions.
Halfway there, hunger churned in his stomach.
He stopped at a steaming roadside stall and bought two fried pancakes. He devoured them as he walked, and the coarse warmth of the food temporarily suppressed the gnawing emptiness in his stomach.
「Half an hour later.」
The familiar, dilapidated outline of the tenement complex finally appeared hazily in the distance.
However, his pace didn’t quicken. Instead, he stopped near the complex entrance.
His expression instantly turned grave and serious, his sharp gaze sweeping over the depths of the complex.
’There’s still one crucial test to be done!’
’I have to confirm whether the Mosquito Avatar’s ’Stealth’ skill can truly evade the Demon Qi detection equipment!’
’Go!’
With a thought.
In that instant.
The invisible Mosquito Avatar beat its wings silently and flew toward the interior of the complex.
The journey was smooth and completely unobstructed.
The Mosquito Avatar flew nimbly to the deepest part of the complex, weaving and circling between the dense tenement buildings...
The Demon Qi detection equipment, located on the rooftop of the tall central building, remained silent, not letting out the slightest peep of an alarm.
’Excellent!’
The weight on his chest finally lifted, and a huge sense of joy and relief instantly filled Lin Yi’s heart.
He instantly relaxed.
’The ’Stealth’ skill worked just as I expected. It can evade the Demon Qi detection device!’
This meant the Mosquito Avatar’s greatest vulnerability had been eliminated. From now on, it could soar freely through the city’s concrete jungle with no more fear of being exposed!
Greatly reassured, Lin Yi no longer hesitated, striding briskly into the tenement complex.
Back in his simple home, he locked the deadbolt with a solid CLICK.
Lin Yi immediately stripped off his outerwear. He’d been crawling through the sewers in it all night, and it was soaked with sludge, blood, and some unknown slime. Reeking with a foul odor, he tossed it into the humming old washing machine.
Then, he walked straight into the cramped bathroom.
Warm water washed over him, carrying away the exhaustion and filth.
He scrubbed his skin vigorously until every inch felt clean and fresh.
Once thoroughly clean, he couldn’t be bothered to put on pajamas. He hurried back to his bedroom and practically collapsed onto the hard planks of his bed.
The exhaustion from a full night of hunting instantly overwhelmed him. His eyelids felt as heavy as lead, and he quickly sank into a deep sleep.
He didn’t know how long had passed before his biological clock woke him.
He opened his drowsy eyes and glanced blurrily at his communicator’s screen.
’It’s six o’clock already?’
The numbers on the screen clearly showed that it was now six in the evening.
He sat up abruptly and quickly changed into a clean set of clothes.
He got out of bed, left his bedroom, and walked into the living room. He immediately started processing the last two days’ spoils, counting and sorting the rat tails.
Tomorrow was Monday, which meant he had to go back to school. He needed to take these rat tails to the Department of Health to claim his reward money today, and also get the lab class receipt his school required.
He worked quickly and with focus, packing the ordinary rat tails, the Martial Apprentice Level rat tails, and the single First Grade rat tail separately.
The final tally was in:
1,334 ordinary rat tails.
Junior Martial Apprentice Level rat tails.
Intermediate Martial Apprentice Level rat tails.
Senior Martial Apprentice Level rat tails.
According to the bounty offered by the Department of Health, ordinary rats were 10 yuan each, Junior Martial Apprentice Level rats were 100 yuan, Intermediate Martial Apprentice Level rats were 200 yuan, and Senior Martial Apprentice Level rats were 300 yuan...
’So that means...’
22,440 yuan!
’And that’s not even including the tail from the First Grade Rat King!’
’In just two days, I actually made over twenty-two thousand yuan just by hunting rats!’
’If I did this full-time...’
’My monthly income would be at least 300,000 yuan!’
’This money is coming in way too fast!’
An indescribable sense of excitement welled up inside him.
Lin Yi packed the sorted rat tails into a few backpacks.
Next, he returned to the bedroom and took out the three thick stacks of ten-thousand-yuan bills from his nightstand, a gift from Zhou Tiankuo. He planned to deposit them into his bank account on the way.
With all his preparations complete.
Lin Yi hefted the bulging, heavy backpacks, walked out, and SLAMMED the door shut behind him. He then bounded down the stairs.
He hadn’t brought the First Grade Rat King’s tail.
After all, he was still just a peak Martial Disciple. Killing a First Grade Demon Beast was an earth-shattering feat, one that would be impossible for him to explain.
It was better to avoid trouble. He didn’t want to attract any unnecessary attention.
As he left the tenement complex, the setting sun stretched his shadow long across the ground.
With a steady pace, Lin Yi headed toward the Department of Health in the city center.