Where's My Dragon?

"So, do you regret offending her now?" Wen Jifei asked in a low voice. "A little," Han Qingyu replied thoughtfully. "Scientists really do seem terrifying." If Han Qingyu and his crew actually resorted to masked robbery right now, the most they could snatch was whatever their targets carried on them. The fortunes of big shots and the storehouses of major factions were completely out of reach. As for kidnapping—in an isolated city no one could escape from, kidnapping someone from a major faction was practically suicide. Yet Zhe Qiuhong could pull it off. She was a miraculous physician of the highest order. Kidnapping and extortion conducted by a miracle doctor were gentle; in every sense of the word, she held people by their weak spots and took their money... "Weak spot, huh?" Han Qingyu's thoughts suddenly wandered; the phrase snagged on him. Of course, he had weak spots too. In their current situation, the people around him were his weak spots—the kind that, if seized, could break him. He unconsciously glanced at Wen Jifei. Wen Jifei's sniper rifle only had a single bullet left. Without that, he was truly just a piece of fragile porcelain in the City of Iniquity. "Why are you looking at me?" Wen Jifei asked. "Qingzi might be thinking of sending you out to find some big shot and snipe him when he least expects it," Zhu Jiaming guessed with a laugh, though it was secretly a subtle suggestion. "Right, Qingzi," Wen Jifei ignored him and suddenly called out. Han Qingyu: "Hmm?" "Doctor Zhe's idea—I think we could give it a test run to see how well it works... Like, let's chop the Little Prince half to death first. He definitely still has secrets." "Oh?" That actually sounded quite reasonable. Han Qingyu turned his head to look at Zhu Jiaming. "...I'm on your side, Qingzi," Zhu Jiaming said hurriedly. "Besides, I told you everything! Seriously, I've spilled it all." Han Qingyu chuckled, nodded, and said, "Just kidding." In truth, the Little Prince definitely had Bones of Eternal Life hidden somewhere, and more than one or two pieces at that. After all, he had been working on this for over two decades. However, he likely valued those things more than his own life. Trying to force it out of him would be tough, and they might actually end up killing him and losing plenty of leads. Besides, the man was right here. Even if they tried kicking him out now, he wouldn't leave. Han Qingyu was in no rush. "Why... why are none of you paying attention to me?" Across the table, Zhe Qiuhong stood, tilting her head slightly as she asked. Because of the alcohol, her usually straightforward gaze looked somewhat glassy, and even her tone, typically bristling with cool rationality, had turned bizarrely soft and childlike. "Oh, we are. We're discussing it right now," Wen Jifei said. "The problem is, we can't find a suitable person to stab right off the bat, you get it? We need to pick the right target. Ordinary people aren't worth the trouble, and we aren't familiar with the major factions yet. If we carelessly end up chopping a super combat power, we're all dead..." "All dead? You guys...?" Zhe Qiuhong murmured in thought. Then her eyes lit up, tinged with sorrow. The two emotions mingled in an eerie blend. "Then... I'll bury the rest of you nicely first." She paused, glancing between Han Qingyu and Wu Xu, her gaze already appearing to plan out the incision marks and sequence. "Actually, I've thought about it. When I dissect you two, I might cry. Cry really hard..." "Get lost!" Han Qingyu cursed in all sincerity. Zhe Qiuhong shook her head. "I don't wanna get lost. How about I tell you about my current research? Want to hear it?" Her current research? Wasn't that just the lizard and the snake! Han Qingyu said, "No." "Then how about I tell you about Chen Buer? Really incredible stuff..." "Shh, stop." "I won't." "Stop." "No way. Let me tell you, Chen Buer..." *Smack!* A light chop landed on the back of her neck, and Zhe Qiuhong slumped into unconsciousness. The iron armor clanked around as Rusty Sister snapped indignantly, "Qingzi, how could you—" "Shh. Someone's here," Han Qingyu signaled for quiet. Someone had arrived and was now perched outside atop the courtyard wall, peering in. Han Qingyu had just felt a faint vibration, unable to gauge the details. Signaling the others with his eyes to hold the house, Han Qingyu took down his combat-blade, walked into the courtyard, and came to a halt. The visitor did not move. "I don't know who our friend out there is, but show yourself," Han Qingyu said, his gaze snapping toward the wall. *Holy crap, so bright.* The light filtering from the window struck a bald head, shining like a street lamp. The bald crown slowly rose higher, fringed with a ring of hair along the bottom. "Uh... Boss Dao? Boss Dao, what are you..." Han Qingyu was at a loss for words. After climbing over, Boss Dao hopped down from the wall and staggered, nearly losing his footing—he was drunk tonight as well. Landing, he glanced at Han Qingyu and the blade in his hand, suddenly growing irate. Taking a step forward, he swung a palm straight toward Han Qingyu's head... only for Han Qingyu to dodge it. He tried twice more, failing each time. *Looks like I'm really hammered, or there's no way he could dodge me three times in a row...* Boss Dao thought for a moment, gave up on swinging, and barked: "What the hell did you come out for?! Even holding a blade—think you're hot stuff?! When something like this happens in the City of Iniquity, you walk straight out? Got a death wish?!" Behind him, Wen Jifei, Wu Xu, He Tangtang, and the others rushed out... Feeling slightly awkward, Han Qingyu asked, "Then what should I have done?" "Ambush him, or grab the source energy blocks and get the hell out!" Boss Dao's words weren't drunken nonsense, even though he clearly looked tipsy. This was the proper survival rule in the City of Iniquity: when someone dared spy on your home, they had likely come prepared. "Understood for next time. Thanks, Boss Dao," Wen Jifei chimed in. Boss Dao looked at him and nodded. "Mm." "Then why did you come, Boss Dao? And why were you perched on..." He Tangtang glanced at the wall, thinking: *Thank goodness Qingzi called out first, or you'd be dead, you know that, Boss Dao?* "I... cough." How was he supposed to put it? Looking at the five underlings before him, Boss Dao racked his brains awkwardly. He had taken his crew to drink at the tavern tonight, drinking and eating past midnight, yet Han Qingyu and the other four never showed up. He was worried they had died, or that after the fight, they had gone drinking with Black Tooth's group... The latter in particular made him feel petty and sentimental—something Boss Dao couldn't say. Saying it would lose him face, and he was too embarrassed to admit it. "I was just taking a stroll, happened to end up around here, and figured I'd see how you were doing." That still didn't explain why he had climbed the wall, but he was the boss, so his word was final. With a wave of his hand, Boss Dao strode straight into the house. The five of them had no choice but to follow. Six large sacks of dead iron fragments sitting right on the main room floor were laid bare before Boss Dao. He stood there staring, looking somewhat dazed. Wen Jifei said, "Since it's come to this, we can tell him a bit, right?" Han Qingyu: "Yeah." "Haven't divvied them up yet? Why did Black Tooth leave them with you? Don't agree to this kind of thing in the future," Boss Dao jumped straight to his own conclusion. Then he turned around... and froze again. He saw Zhe Qiuhong lying on the floor. "What happened to her?" "She's drunk." Rusty Sister hastily scooped Zhe Qiuhong up and carried her back to her room. Having thought there was a fight to be had a moment ago, she now looked a bit disappointed. "Oh." Boss Dao looked at the snacks on the table, then at the beer... He reached into his pocket and set ten dead iron fragments on the table. "The meal money you five saved today. Don't go throwing your money around like this in the future." With that, he sat down, turned his head, and looked at them. "What are you all standing around for? Sit down, keep drinking." There was still alcohol left. Aside from Zhe Qiuhong, none of them had drunk much earlier. Boss Dao found himself a cup, poured one, raised it in toast, and downed it... Seeing that it didn't seem to faze him, Wen Jifei brought out the leftover baijiu from last time and handed it over. This went on until about half past two in the morning, when Boss Dao was thoroughly plastered. There was still booze left, but He Tangtang nudged around with his chopsticks and said, "We're out of food, Boss Dao." In the City of Iniquity, one could buy food no matter how late it was; he was hoping to scam a bit more money for booze and snacks. To his surprise, Boss Dao nodded woozily. "Mm." Turning his head, he squinted, pointed a finger, and said, "Go boil that dragon. Never mind, I'll do it myself." Zhe Qiuhong's little flood dragon had slipped out again. ... The next morning, when everyone woke up and finished washing up, Zhe Qiuhong was just getting out of bed. Walking out of her room, she had already returned to her usual self: expression aloof, gaze piercing... even if her hair was a tangled mess like a bird's nest. "Doctor Zhe, last night you..." He Tangtang tested the waters. "Nothing happened last night." Cutting the topic off entirely to hide her embarrassment, Zhe Qiuhong walked past them, unconsciously rubbing the bump on the back of her neck. She vaguely remembered who had struck her; as she walked by, she shot Han Qingyu a fierce glare, but said nothing of it. "By the way, where is my dragon... snake?!" Reaching the doorway, she stopped and turned back to ask. "Huh? It's gone? No idea!" The group in the room shook their heads in unison.