Going Out

On a midsummer evening, the temperature was stiflingly hot. Chen Zixuan didn’t turn on the air conditioning, and the entire room felt like a steamer, so oppressively stuffy that it was difficult to breathe.

The breathing light on the black screen flickered, emitting a faint green glow in the dim room.

With a sense of foreboding in his heart, Chen Zixuan opened his phone, and sure enough, the first thing he saw was a message from Gu Yanxi.

[Gu Yanxi: I finish class at 8. Something’s up at the tutoring center, can you come pick me up?]

[Gu Yanxi: #(location)]

He checked the time again. Fortunately, the message had arrived just over ten minutes ago.

There was still more than half an hour before 8 pm. It was enough time.

“I wonder what Gu Yanxi wants from me. Just in case, I’d better go check it out.”

He got up, took a shower, got dressed, and, as usual, looked at himself in the mirror. Compared to a few days ago, there wasn’t any obvious change, so Chen Zixuan finally relaxed a little.

What he feared most was logging out or waking up one day, only to find himself transformed into that girl not even 160 cm tall.

That would be like something out of a ghost story—way too creepy.

Once everything was in order, Chen Zixuan left the house, went downstairs, and arrived at the bus stop outside the community.

Although the tutoring center Gu Yanxi went to wasn’t far from home, the ride there still took over ten minutes, and walking would be too slow. So, Chen Zixuan decided to take the bus.

After a dozen minutes or so, the 616 bus arrived. Since it was summer break, a lot of people were out shopping downtown at night, so the bus was crowded and there were no empty seats.

Having grown accustomed to hard days, this was nothing to Chen Zixuan.

He queued up properly to get on, found a slightly more open spot, grabbed hold of the handrail, and stood there.

The sound of the doors closing echoed, and the bus set off.

Just then, Chen Zixuan suddenly had the feeling of being watched. It was the first time he’d ever felt this way, as if sharp needles from that direction were about to prick him.

Is someone watching me? Observing me?

Thoughts flashed through his mind. Chen Zixuan suddenly remembered that many people on the Legend of Kaloran forum had been asking about Cecilia’s real-life information.

No way… It hasn’t even been that long, and they’ve already found me?

But he was only stunned for a few seconds before gradually calming down.

Impossible. They don’t even know what I look like or even my gender. No matter how skilled they are, there’s no way they could have found me this quickly…

With that, he turned his eyes discreetly toward the source of the strange feeling. The person watching him was a girl in her early twenties.

The girl had shoulder-length, slightly wavy permed hair, delicate makeup, and was wearing semi-transparent black stockings. She looked quite mature—definitely not a student. She seemed much more like someone already in the workforce.

At that moment, she had her right leg crossed over her left as she sat in the rear row. She was staring at Chen Zixuan without blinking. Noticing him glance over suddenly, her expression froze, and she quickly looked away and started fiddling with her phone.

The sensation of being watched vanished instantly. Chen Zixuan also looked away, finally letting out a small sigh of relief.

The stress of the past few days had gotten to him. It seemed he was just being too sensitive…

But, after a few more stops, Chen Zixuan once again felt the sensation of being watched.

Perhaps thinking that Chen Zixuan wouldn’t notice again, the girl was even bolder this time. She actually raised her phone and aimed its camera directly at him.

Was she… secretly taking pictures?

Those words appeared naturally in his mind. Chen Zixuan found it both frustrating and amusing, secretly marveling—is this really the sort of androgynous look that girls in society like nowadays?

Realizing he was slowly turning into a “Cai Xukun type,”

Chen Zixuan suddenly felt a trace of sadness.

Being like Brother Cai Xukun wouldn’t be so bad—at least he’s still “Brother.”

In another twenty days or so, he might only be able to be a “sister” for the rest of his life.

He sighed softly and didn’t try to stop the girl from secretly taking photos.

At worst, he’d just show up in a few pictures—it wasn’t like he’d lose any flesh. If she wants to take pictures, let her be.

Outside the window, city lights flashed by. The closer he got to the city center, the more prosperous it looked. A dozen minutes later, Chen Zixuan got off the bus.

Several girls in the bus let out involuntary sighs of disappointment.

There were still more than ten minutes before Gu Yanxi finished class, so following the route on his phone’s map, Chen Zixuan walked leisurely toward his destination.

On summer nights, many people went out to enjoy the cool air. On a wide street temporarily blocked for mid-section repairs, two guys in vests and shorts were playing badminton.

Judging from their standard movements and tall builds, they were probably students from a nearby sports university.

Just as Chen Zixuan was passing by on the sidewalk, one of the guys suddenly shouted, “Buddy, watch out!”

As he heard the warning, Chen Zixuan stopped and glanced to the side—right as a white object spun toward him at high speed, about to smack him right on the cheek.

But at that moment, for reasons unknown, everything in Chen Zixuan’s vision seemed to fall silent.

The shuttlecock’s speed slowed, and its trajectory quickly became slow enough for the naked eye to follow easily.

This sort of thing had happened before, so Chen Zixuan wasn’t too surprised. He lifted his left hand and caught the flying shuttlecock without thinking.

With a crisp “pa” sound, a light sting spread across his palm.

Those athletes were no joke. Even though it was just a badminton shuttlecock, that speed would have hurt if it hit his face.

Seeing how effortlessly Chen Zixuan caught it, the two guys were stunned for a moment.

One of them quickly snapped out of it, jogging over apologetically. “Sorry, sorry, I accidentally hit it off course. You okay, bro?”

“I’m fine.”

Chen Zixuan smiled. Since it was unintentional, he certainly wouldn’t hold a grudge.

“By the way, your reflexes are amazing! That birdie was so close and you still caught it—it’s like you’re from the sports school too?” the other guy laughed, clearly impressed.

As Chen Zixuan suspected, the two were indeed students from the Xijiang City Sports Academy.

If that shot had been from a dozen meters away, they’d have been confident about catching it. But with under a meter left, nobody could have reacted in time.

“No, I’m still in high school. Here’s your birdie. See you.”

Handing the shuttlecock back, Chen Zixuan continued down the street, soon arriving downstairs at the building with a “tutoring center” sign.

Checking his phone again, he saw it was still eight or nine minutes before eight o’clock.

Opposite was a street vendor selling grilled gluten. Realizing he hadn’t eaten dinner yet, Chen Zixuan pocketed his phone and walked across the street.

***

Chapter 119: Malice Without Cause

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**New Terms**

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep