Chapter 10

Looking up to see a Qing Dynasty Jiangshi standing in front of me, who could handle that?

Just a moment ago, I had already known that Zhou Chenhao was here from the scent of the Lure-pheromone in the air, but I never guessed he would be dressed like this. I looked at the dark brown eyes that were barely looking at me from the side under that yellow paper talisman and remained silent for a moment before speaking: “…Thank you.”

Just as I was about to reach out to take the things he was handing me, I heard a pleasant girlish voice.

“Hot-pot, you’re scaring people with that ghostly appearance of yours.”

I followed the voice and looked over.

Xiao 6 started shouting in my mind again: “Wow! The female lead is here too! And the second male lead! Host, you’ve encountered the protagonist group!”

I saw two young people walking over from behind Zhou Chenhao.

As they approached, the scent of iced watermelon and jasmine milk green tea grew stronger.

The blonde girl in front had her hair in low twin ponytails, the soft braids resting on her chest.

Her face, under her center-parted bangs, was fair and beautiful, her eyes like green, lustrous jade. Her eye shape was that of puppy eyes with slightly drooping outer corners, making her look cute and innocent.

The scent of iced watermelon emanated from her, cool and carrying the sweet fragrance of watermelon.

At this moment, she was wearing a yellow Taoist robe, a Nine-Liang hat on her head, and holding a peach-wood sword in her hand, dressed up as a Taoist priest.

What a classic Mr. Jiangshi look.

The person who had just spoken was her, the manga’s female lead, Xia Xiaoxi.

Of course, the titles of male and female lead didn’t mean they were the official couple, but rather that they were the main characters of this manga. The same applied to the second male lead.

Walking behind Xia Xiaoxi was the second male lead, Ling Feng, a handsome guy with black hair. He was the kind of handsome that both boys and girls would objectively admit to, with superior facial contours, deep blue eyes like the vast ocean, and a very cool and aloof temperament. Judging by his appearance, he was a cool guy with a cold personality.

His Lure-pheromone scent was very fragrant, a mix of jasmine, the freshness of green tea, and the sweet aroma of milk.

Smelling this scent, I suddenly remembered a comment a manga reader had posted: No matter how cool a man is, his Lure-pheromone is still sweet, and it’s even jasmine milk green tea flavored. (dog head emoji)

However, in reality, Ling Feng was not as difficult to get along with as his appearance suggested. For example, right now, he was going along with his two teammates’ enthusiasm, wearing a black Hanfu with a straight hem and deep garment, and a tall black hat on his head with the words “Peace on Earth” written on it. He held a prop chain in his hand, dressed as the Black Impermanence.

Me: Your team’s style is quite consistent.

A Jiangshi, a Taoist priest, and a Black Impermanence. If you put them out there, you could directly film a Jiangshi horror movie.

It’s just that they were one short, still missing a White Impermanence.

“Oh, sorry about that.” Zhou Chenhao took the fur collar and medal he had picked up with one hand, and with the other, he took off the red-topped official hat from his head. The yellow paper talisman stuck to the hat was moved away with his action, revealing a sunny and handsome face. He smiled and asked, “Did I scare you just now?”

As the male protagonist of the manga, Zhou Chenhao’s hair was somewhat special.

The overall color of his hair was dark red, with the tips, about one-third to one-quarter of the length, being black. He had a wolf-cut hairstyle, with the hair at the back of his neck being slightly longer. His bracket-style bangs were parted on the right side of his forehead, revealing a small portion of his forehead skin.

Because his hair was a two-toned red and black, it reminded the little foodie Xia Xiaoxi of a two-flavored hot pot, so she would occasionally call him “Hot-pot” as a joke.

One could only say that he was indeed the male protagonist; even his hair color was so unique.

I said, “It’s alright.”

It was just that looking up and seeing a “Qing Dynasty Jiangshi” with a yellow talisman covering his face was a little shocking.

As I said this, I intended to take the fur collar and medal from Zhou Chenhao’s hand.

“That’s good.” Zhou Chenhao smiled again and thoughtfully placed the fur collar and medal on top of the military Lolita I was holding. He even helped me adjust the position, then turned his head to look at Xia Xiaoxi’s yellow-robed Taoist priest outfit and exclaimed, “Wow! Are you trying to subdue me?”

Xia Xiaoxi brandished her peach-wood sword a few times, pointing it at Zhou Chenhao: “Halt! You demon! This poor Taoist has a hundred years of cultivation, watch as I subdue you!”

Zhou Chenhao put the official hat back on his head, this time with the yellow paper talisman on the side of his face, not obstructing his vision.

He cooperatively straightened his hands and, imitating the Jiangshi from the Jiangshi movies of decades ago, hopped stiffly towards Xia Xiaoxi.

The two of them began their “battle of magic” here as if no one else was around. One was hacking and stabbing with a peach-wood sword, mumbling something incomprehensible; the other was hopping with outstretched hands, even letting out beast-like growls, completely immersed. People around them were already watching.

Ling Feng silently moved two steps to the side with a blank expression, pretending to look at the cosplay costumes hanging on the rack. He looked like he really wanted to pretend he didn’t know them.

This scene was like an i-person encountering two e-persons—hilarious, absolutely couldn’t blend in.

I was also a little stunned.

I had seen similar daily life scenes of the male and female leads in the manga, but it was still a little shocking. I wanted to leave.

Unexpectedly, Xiao 6 could even ship this, scattering little hearts all over the screen (my field of vision), and exclaimed: “Wow, they’re so shippable! As long as one person starts fooling around, the other will unconditionally follow, never letting the other person be awkward alone! And the Jiangshi × Taoist priest CP is so shippable too!”

Me: “…”

Still the same old flavor, there was nothing Xiao 6 couldn’t ship.

More and more gazes were cast from the surroundings. Seeing that Zhou Chenhao and Xia Xiaoxi were still immersed in their role-playing battle of three hundred rounds, I turned my head and gave a nod to Ling Feng who was hiding on the side with a numb expression, then strode away from there with the clothes in my arms, heading towards the fitting room.

Although my walking posture was relaxed and casual, and my steps were steady, there was always a hint of fleeing in disarray.

Ling Feng: “…”

If these two weren’t his teammates, he would really like to leave too.

Just then, Xia Xiaoxi squatted down with a leg sweep towards Zhou Chenhao. From a very low angle, she saw my departing back, a lean silhouette.

She was suddenly taken aback, and a blurry image flashed through her mind—

She was lying on the ground, her vision hazy and the light dim. The large iron gate was opened, and outside the gate was a vast expanse of white light. The cold wind carried goose-feather-like snow and rushed in through the door.

Two people stood against the light at the entrance of the iron gate. The silhouette of the slightly taller one was very familiar. Even though her vision was blurry and she couldn’t see the face clearly, she recognized that it was her older brother, Su Zhao.

The person next to her brother was dressed very thickly, making it difficult for her to discern their figure. Plus, her mind was groggy at the time, and she couldn’t remember clearly now.

She only remembered that the person’s long, snow-white hair was blown by the cold wind, almost merging with the bright white light and the vast snow behind them.

—Then she closed her eyes and fainted, her vision turning to darkness.

Xia Xiaoxi stood up and looked at my back.

She wasn’t sure why seeing my back just now had suddenly reminded her of that scene.

Perhaps it was because both I and that person had white hair? Or maybe it was because my height was similar to that of the person next to her brother? Comparing that person’s height to her brother’s, it was about one meter eighty. But if she looked carefully at me, I seemed to be slightly taller than that person.

“What’s wrong?” Seeing Xia Xiaoxi suddenly stop, Zhou Chenhao leaned over and asked.

He followed her gaze and saw the white-haired boy who had dropped his things just now.

Xia Xiaoxi shook her head: “It’s nothing.”

At the same time, Xiao 6 noticed Xia Xiaoxi’s gaze and said: “Host, the female lead has been looking at you.”

“I know.” I said calmly, “She probably thinks I look a little familiar.”

Xiao 6 was stunned, and its code almost exploded: “Wh-what?! Have you guys met before?

Then she must have remembered that you’re from the Dark Organization now, right? The protagonist group will definitely be wary of you, and they might even report it to the SAIDB and have high-level special ability users sent over. How are you going to get the special ability energy crystal then!”

“Calm down.” I said, “First, I’m not as weak as you think. Even if they bring high-level special ability users, I can still beat them. Second, Xia Xiaoxi might have seen me, but she was under the influence of the organization’s knockout drops at the time. Even if she woke up midway, she would have fainted again quickly, and her mind would have been groggy, so she couldn’t see things clearly.”

I added, “Even if she woke up and saw me, what she saw would have been blurry, and she wouldn’t be able to connect it to the me of now.”

Because at that time, I still had long hair, was slightly shorter than now, and was bundled up like a bear, so my body shape was completely unrecognizable.

“However,” I said softly, “they should be able to guess that I’m a special ability user by now.”

On the other side.

“That person,” Ling Feng finally walked over from the side, also looking at my back, “is probably also a special ability user.”

“Huh?”

Zhou Chenhao looked confused, “But he doesn’t have a Lure-pheromone?”

For a special ability user, smelling whether a person had the scent of a Lure-pheromone was the simplest way to determine if they were a special ability user.

Ling Feng watched as I turned into the corridor where the fitting rooms were located and my figure disappeared. He explained in a low voice, “I observed him just now. His hair roots aren’t black, and the quality of his hair is not bad, so it probably isn’t dyed. The irises of his eyes are also very natural, not like he’s wearing colored contacts. As for the white eyelashes, I can’t tell if they’re brushed on, but his eyes aren’t sensitive to light, so he probably isn’t an albino.”

He asked Zhou Chenhao, “You were closest to him just now, did you notice if he was wearing colored contacts?”

“Um… I didn’t really pay attention.” Zhou Chenhao thought for a moment and replied, “I remember now, no.”

If you met someone whose hair and eyes were different from the norm, and it didn’t seem to be achieved through modern means, and they weren’t sick, there was a high probability that they were a special ability user.

“In the past two years, a drug called X8 has appeared in the underground market. It can temporarily stop a special ability user from secreting Lure-pheromone for about 12 hours.”

Ling Feng said, “Our bureau also has this drug, but it’s currently only available for redemption with points for special ability users of level 5 and above. If I’m not mistaken, he probably took that, which is why he doesn’t have the scent of a Lure-pheromone.”

Hearing this, Zhou Chenhao’s eyes widened slightly in realization: “I see.”

He thought for a moment and then said, “So we’ve encountered an underground special ability user.”

The so-called underground special ability users were those who were not employed by the SAIDB. Some of them had not even registered their special abilities with the SAIDB.

However, the SAIDB’s attitude towards these special ability users was to turn a blind eye as long as they didn’t commit crimes with their special abilities. For outstanding underground special ability users, they could also be recruited into the SAIDB.

“So what if we encountered one? There are more underground special ability users than you think.” Xia Xiaoxi poked Zhou Chenhao with her peach-wood sword and said, “As long as he doesn’t commit a crime, we don’t have to bother.”

Zhou Chenhao smiled, “I think we’ll see him again tomorrow.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep