Chapter 70: Warm Hospitality
Ranmu City’s daytime was like an Eden, a paradise of order and rules.
But as beautiful as it was by day, it was equally filthy by night.
The hot night breeze brushed her cheeks, but Liu Cheng broke out in a cold sweat.
Minutes ago, she was in the central library, reading a travelogue.
Written in a traveler’s voice, the book introduced the protagonist’s experiences, the roads traveled, various cities, gradually gathered friends, geography, culture, and irreplaceable bonds between friends.
It showed Liu Cheng the beautiful imperial charm of that era.
But travel came with partings.
From one city to the next, separations from friends—by distance or death—coated the joyful journey in bittersweet layers.
She accidentally lost herself in the book, and only after closing it, savoring the bittersweet ending that left her heart heavy, did she lift her head and realize the sky had already darkened.
Most public facilities in Ranmu City were automated, with at most an android lingering nearby.
The central library was unmanned, allowing Liu Cheng to linger there until nightfall.
During the day, no one in Ranmu City dared to break the rules, but now it was night.
The library, a public facility, kept its doors open twenty-four hours a day, without any protective measures.
But Liu Cheng’s rented apartment had fully sealed doors and windows, purchased from the Ability Guild with a year’s worth of her wages, and even came equipped with an electrified grid and other defensive tools.
Weighing her options, Liu Cheng gritted her teeth and decided to head home.
The wide-open library offered her no sense of security.
She pulled the hood of her denim jacket over her face, gripped the hem of her clothes tightly, and hurried through the streets, hoping to safely reach her rented apartment.
In the distance, the sound of an explosion echoed, a flash of fire briefly illuminating the sky, and the hot night breeze carried the scent of gunpowder far away.
She knew it was those ability users.
Those with power never settled for mediocrity.
Under the oppressive calm of the day, Ranmu City at night was perilous and lawless.
Indiscriminate killers, explosion enthusiasts, violent gangs, and human trafficking rings roamed beneath the seemingly tranquil night sky.
Ranmu City had an Ability Guild, but it was more of a facade.
During the day, there was no need for the guild to maintain order, and at night, they turned a blind eye to the chaos.
Because the Branch Leader reveled in it.
And tonight, Liu Cheng encountered a human trafficking ring.
Her hair was yanked up, and the leader, wearing a sleeveless shirt and jacket, sized her up before waving his hand, signaling his men to lock her and the others away.
There were newcomers to Ranmu City, still unaware of the rules, people like Liu Cheng who had lost track of time, and even those who had been kidnapped from their homes.
Trapped in the cramped compartment, Liu Cheng looked at the despairing or defiant gazes around her and realized something: she might have to say goodbye to her mundane daily life and the travelogue she had wanted to reread.
She had come to Ranmu City for the order and peace of its days, only to face death because of its nights.
“Will someone save us?” someone whispered.
No one answered, because no one would.
Only sunrise could save them, when their city lord awoke from his dreams.
“Mommy, what if a killer shows up, kills them, and lets us go?” a child, tightly held by their mother, asked.
Liu Cheng suddenly felt like crying, knowing the child’s naive wish would never come true.
Even if a killer came, they would still die.
This was, as always, a night woven with the desires and destruction of ability users.
And people like them, non-ability users or low-rank ability users, were merely the dregs of society, helpless mud unable to save themselves.
In this narrow, crowded space, all she could feel was despair seeping into her bones.
“Big harvest tonight, huh? The doctor will be pleased,” the leader said, counting the captives like they were chicks.
The vehicle started, and the ability users armed it with their powers, driving through the firelight and clamor to their organization’s stronghold.
They were herded off the vehicle like livestock without dignity, one by one, forced into a larger compartment.
“We need to ship them out before dawn,” the leader, a squad captain, said, glancing at the time. It was already two in the morning.
“Team Seven hasn’t returned yet,” another person said.
“Then we wait ten minutes,” the squad captain replied.
The compartment door was still open, and Liu Cheng could see the night sky outside.
It wasn’t serene at all, just piercing noise.
“Where are they taking us?”
“I bought the most advanced protective doors and windows from the Ability Guild.
Why was I still captured? What does it take to survive?”
“I regret it. I should’ve stayed in my hometown. The Qu clan only massacred the city recently; they probably won’t strike again for years…”
“I want my mom.”
But Liu Cheng thought of the travelogue, of how the protagonist and her young apprentice had met in a scene like this.
The difference was that Liu Cheng wasn’t the protagonist. She didn’t have the protagonist’s strength to roam the empire freely or save everyone here, making those outside pay.
All she could do now was hold herself tightly, trying to draw a sliver of warmth against the chill.
“So cold,” she whispered.
In the distance, headlights approached.
The last squad had returned.
Was her life now on a countdown?
“Team Seven, hurry up!” the leader shouted, raising his voice toward the rapidly approaching vehicle.
But his tone quickly shifted: “Wait! What are you doing!”
“Slow down! Slow down! Stop!”
The vehicle showed no sign of slowing as it barreled toward them!
“C-rank! B-rank! Move! Stop it! Block it now!”
At the leader’s command, the ability users unleashed their powers.
A torrent of water surged toward the reckless vehicle, and a wall of earth rose from the ground.
“Boom!”
The vehicle smashed through the earthen wall, scattering debris and dust into the air.
It leaped forward, its wheels spinning rapidly in midair.
Under the moonlight, a shadow loomed over the leader and his wide, shocked eyes.
Then it crashed down heavily.
“Boss!”
The ability users scrambled to lift the vehicle, but strangely, no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t budge the abruptly halted vehicle.
A soft chuckle echoed through the night.
Liu Cheng stared in shock at the vehicle just ten meters away and the ability users surrounding it, comically attempting to lift it.
At the same time, she noticed the youth standing atop the carriage, revealed as the dust settled.
Standing there, his belt fluttered with the sharp wind.
The mere act of standing seemed to carry the weight of a thousand pounds at his toes, rendering the group of ability users below unable to budge an inch.
As the dust dispersed with the wind, the youth’s bold brows and eyes came into view, along with the faint, scornful smile at the corner of his mouth.
The dark clouds parted, and the moon quietly illuminated the youth’s silhouette from behind.
He seemed like a god.
“Good evening.” The youth lowered his gaze, his black hair swaying in the wind, falling beside his cheeks. “Your companions invited me to visit, so here I am.”
The ability users below craned their necks, looking up at him.
“But it seems you lack sincerity?” His voice carried a hint of carelessness, and the youth slightly narrowed his crimson pupils, looking down at the ability users attempting to attack.
Spell-type ability users unleashed their powers—water pillars surged upward, entwined with electricity, while earth spikes emerged as if to slice the vehicle in half.
Mimicry-type ability users transformed their bodies, leaping toward the vehicle’s roof with either agile or highly destructive forms.
“Mom, will he die?” a child asked.
His mother lowered her gaze and covered his eyes with her hand.
At the center of the ability users’ attacks, Liu Cheng saw the youth casually raise his hand and snap his fingers.
“Snap.”
The water pillars reversed, the earth spikes shattered, and in an instant, all attacks rebounded to their origins!
“Boom!”
The mimicry-type ability users fell under the impact, and the spell-type ability users were struck by their own abilities.
Dust rose everywhere, yet at the center of the chaos, the youth leisurely withdrew his hand, the smile on his lips never fading.
It was as if all the ability users here were mere insignificant ants.
Throughout it all, the youth hadn’t moved a single step.
“How boring,” the youth said.
Lifting his long boots, the youth seemed to lightly place his foot down on the vehicle’s roof.
Instantly, the vehicle crumpled, and the ability users surrounding it were blasted away.
The immense force even caused Liu Cheng’s vehicle to slide forward several meters.
“So powerful,” someone couldn’t help but say.
Liu Cheng stared at the figure in the dust, dumbfounded.
Long blades aligned in the air, shooting outward with the youth’s effortless steps as he leapt off the roof, pinning all the ability users outside the carriage to the ground.
“Boom!”
The vehicle exploded behind the youth, flames flaring as the hem of his black trench coat fluttered, untouched by the tongues of fire.
His long boots stepped onto the ground, and the youth approached them.
‘Will he kill me?’ Liu Cheng thought.
“Don’t kill me, don’t kill me!” someone cried out.
The youth paused.
Then he turned and walked straight toward the organization’s stronghold, his figure disappearing through the gate.
“…Are we saved?” a trembling voice echoed in the suddenly silent carriage.
“It seems so.”
“Who was that person?”
“Forget who he was—while he’s gone, run!”
In an instant, the people in the carriage grew restless, scrambling over each other to jump out and flee toward home.
“Wait, it’s still dangerous like this!” Liu Cheng was pushed out, and she turned to look at the gate.
‘Was he saving us?’ she wondered.
In this world that had already driven her to despair, could someone truly extend a hand to the lowly sludge like them?
Like the protagonist of that travelogue, powerful yet gentle?
…
The phone vibrated, and Li Li pulled it out to answer: “Hello? What’s up?”
On the other end was An Heyu: “Where are you?”
Li Li glanced around at the unfamiliar garage.
Then she looked down at her feet, where her long boot pressed against the head of an A-rank ability user.
“The room felt stuffy, so I came out for some air,” Li Li said, lowering her head to ask, “Where is this?”
The ability user beneath her, voice trembling, replied, “District 3, Street 4, Number 18.”
So Li Li said into the phone, “District 3, Street 4, Number 18.”
An Heyu on the other end fell silent for a moment.
“Can I ask what you just did?” he asked.
Li Li thought for a moment. “Got invited to someone’s place as a guest?”
The ability user under her foot sobbed, “Please, let me go! I’ll give you anything!”
The background noise was a bit loud, so Li Li casually lifted her boot and kicked the ability user aside.
An Heyu fell silent again.
“…Stay there and don’t move. I’ll be right over,” he finally said.