Chapter 43: White Tiger
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
There had been quite a few monsters wandering around the Mist Realm earlier, but now they all looked up, raising their phones in hopes of capturing the heart-pounding chase unfolding before them. Unfortunately, even the most advanced cameras could only record blurs—streaks of wind-cloaked illusions flashing past the lens. It was impossible to say if the scene was passionate, but it was undeniably fast. Even Vin Diesel would’ve given it a thumbs-up.
“Loop around to the left!” Shi Wenze shouted. Chiwen executed a slick drift, his full-speed maneuver sending them flying in the new direction. Yu Feizheng, trying to dodge the roc ahead of him, had aimed to turn the opposite way—only to find himself heading directly into their path. He slammed a button, and his steel-winged bird ejected itself midair, vanishing into the deeper clouds once more.
Xu You had finally had enough and started cursing, “What is this, Fast & Furious: Mythical Edition? Even a Porsche can’t yeet itself like that!”
The roc soared upward, her wings spreading wide in a circling motion, like a moving mountain in the sky. Yu Feizheng lightly tapped the brakes, trying to squeeze between the gaps in her feathers—but the sound of crackling electricity buzzed from behind him.
Panic shot through him. He attempted to accelerate again, but he was a second too late. Shi Wenze had already leapt into the air, blade in hand. With a slick thud, the knife buried itself into the left wing of the flying steel beast. Instantly, violet-blue sparks exploded like binding ropes across the metal wing, slicing it clean off.
Chiwen caught up just in time, skillfully catching Shi Wenze as he and the severed wing tumbled downward. But when they looked ahead, they were stunned to see that the flying machine hadn’t lost balance at all. Even with just one wing, it hadn’t slowed down in the slightest—it was still flying like it had divine backing.
Xu You gave up. What was this thing, a Nokia-brand aircraft? How was it still flying after all that damage? With tech like that, why even go rogue? The Civilian Affairs Department in Chengdu had great salaries for monster tech positions!
One by one, the patrol team members dropped out of the chase. In the end, only the roc, Chiwen, and the qilin clinging to Chiwen’s back remained.
On the ground, Little Song climbed off his motorcycle to report in to the department head. After listening to the update, Bai Tianchi let out a deep sigh and said, “I’ll go myself.”
Lin Su, sitting beside him, instinctively straightened his posture. Wait… he’s not just a mascot?
Little Song’s expression turned solemn. “Yes, sir. Please give us five minutes.”
Once the call ended, Bai Tianchi instructed the driver, “To the Mist Realm.”
Then he looked over at Lin Su. “You—”
“Can I come too?” Lin Su asked quickly. “I’ll stay in the car.”
“That’s fine.” Bai Tianchi didn’t argue. He just pulled a small earpiece from the glovebox and handed it over. “Put this on.”
Lin Su, confused, assumed it was to listen in on law enforcement procedures, but once he slipped it in, no sound came through. Before he could ask, the SUV roared forward and burst into the Mist Realm.
All around them came sharp whistles and loudspeaker commands blaring in the local Qiong dialect. Lin Su couldn’t understand a word, and even if it had been Mandarin, the sound of chaotic buzzing and feedback probably would’ve made it impossible anyway.
But clearly, the monsters got the message. One by one, they shoved their phones into their pockets and bolted from the Mist Realm. Within seconds, the once-bustling beach transformed into a foggy, dead-silent ghost town—Silent Hill, basically.
The roc heard the whistle too. She abruptly folded her wings and dove toward the ground. Chiwen assumed she was just worn out—no time to worry about it. His sense of duty surged. At that moment, he felt like the only hope of the village—or at least fifty percent of it. He gunned the throttle again, practically setting the clouds on fire with his speed.
Shi Wenze emptied half a clip into the flying machine’s remaining wing. With a metallic groan, the second wing finally gave way—yet the machine still flew on.
Chiwen barked, “Can you aim a little better?!”
Shi Wenze adjusted the muzzle slightly. “Then fly steady!”
“I am flying steady!” Chiwen snapped, offended.
At that exact moment, something clamped over his head. The roc had somehow caught up without anyone noticing. She pressed a headset onto Chiwen with surgical precision, then placed another over Shi Wenze’s head. “Wear it,” she commanded.
For the first time in his life, Chiwen wore a headset in his monster form. Innovative tech? Sure. Right timing? Definitely not. He wanted to complain, but before he could, the headset tightened—and suddenly, it was like the world had been vacuum-sealed. Every sound disappeared.
Yu Feizheng had no idea what was happening behind him. He could only sense his pursuers growing farther away. Relief washed over him, and he prepared to accelerate again—when a white tiger suddenly leapt from the beach.
The beast was massive, its paws dug deep into the sand. It opened its bloody maw and roared up at the flying machine with rage.
The roar stirred the sea itself, turning a peaceful azure landscape into the tense stillness before a storm. From inside the car, Lin Su—deaf to the world but with clear vision—watched as sand and gravel swirled into a vortex powerful enough to destroy anything in its path.
With a tremendous boom, the steel beast lost control and crashed into the beach. Yu Feizheng, knocked unconscious by the shockwave, was gently snatched from the sky by the roc and laid carefully on the sand in front of the car.
The white tiger shook its body and shifted into its human form—a burly northeastern man.
Up in the sky, Chiwen was slack-jawed. His internal vocabulary felt severely lacking. For several seconds, the only two words looping in his head were what the—. Eventually, he turned stiffly to Shi Wenze. “That… was that even legal?”
“Legal,” Shi Wenze replied calmly. He was stunned too, but being cool was kind of his whole thing. He didn’t do panic.
“You’re not even a little bit scared?” Chiwen reminded him. “You shocked that guy!”
“It was standard procedure,” Shi Wenze said, giving Chiwen a firm pat on the head. “Come on. Let’s go down.”
Chiwen swished his tail in annoyance. Quit patting my head, okay?
Not okay. Now that the mission was done, Shi Wenze’s hands grew itchy again. Chiwen couldn’t take it anymore. With a frustrated snort, he rocketed back to the beach, slammed on the brakes—and flung his annoying buddy straight into the ocean.
Yessss.
Shi Wenze had sustained a number of small injuries while fighting Qiongqi. He hadn’t noticed them in the heat of the moment, but now, as the salty seawater stung his wounds, the pain flared up. He pushed himself to his feet and limped back toward the shore, prepared to deliver a round of righteous roommate violence—until he spotted Lin Su walking toward him.
His expression immediately sobered. Crap. Had his dramatic leap into the ocean looked stupid?
He kicked Xu You’s calf and muttered, “Can’t you fly with a little grace next time?”
“Grace, my ass,” Xu You retorted, flatly refusing to change. “It’s not like you’re a prince riding a damn unicorn.”
Shi Wenze wiped the water from his face, painfully aware that his current appearance might be… less than ideal. But there was nothing he could do about it now. He waved Xu You off to another part of the beach. No way was he letting him linger here as a walking 100-watt third wheel.
Lin Su, usually fond of a good war-torn look, seemed overwhelmed this time. His eyes locked on Shi Wenze’s blood-covered figure, and a wave of dizziness hit him hard enough to make him sway on his feet.
Shi Wenze had been ready to play the wounded-lover card, maybe even cash in early on a lifetime relationship membership. But he quickly switched plans. He stepped forward and gently placed both hands on Lin Su’s shoulders. “I’m fine. Not really hurt.”
“I know,” Lin Su said, his voice steady but faint. “I’m just… not used to seeing this.”
Shi Wenze turned him around so he was facing away. “Then don’t look for now.”
Lin Su blinked. What kind of romantic maneuver was that?
Behind them, the driver leaned on the horn impatiently, honking several times from the car. “Xiao Shi, hurry up! What are you two doing? Why are you just standing there? We need to go!”
Lin Su: “…” Do you have a partner or not? Bai Tianchi had arranged for a small car to take the three of them back to the hotel and even sent a doctor over afterward.
Xu You, who had spent the entire mission sprinting like a madman, was bouncing around again right after his shower, enthusiastically ordering food without needing even a Band-Aid. Shi Wenze honestly didn’t need medical help either, but Lin Su insisted on having the doctor wrap him up in bandages, crisscrossing him like a puzzle.
Xu You came out of the kitchen clutching a coconut and nearly dropped it when he saw Shi Wenze stretched out on the sofa. He stared for a long moment before finally commenting, “You look like a sexy mummy.” Wrapped, but not completely.
Shi Wenze pulled a T-shirt over his head. “Go eat your food.”
“I would if it was here,” Xu You said, and then—because he was Xu You—he reached out and poked one of Shi Wenze’s wounds. Shi Wenze hissed, doubling over and clutching his stomach in pain. Xu You, sipping through his straw, side-eyed him. “Keep pretending.”
Shi Wenze looked toward the door and immediately went full tattletale. “He poked me.”
Xu You: “…”
Lin Su, without looking up, asked calmly, “Did you finish reviewing your flashcards?”
“Wahhh!” Xu You squeaked and bolted upstairs, clutching his coconut. Shi Wenze, still holding his stomach, collapsed in laughter on the sofa. “Why is he so scared of you?”
“You were scared of Old Wang back in high school,” Lin Su said, handing over some medicine. “Do you still need to head over to the Monster Management Committee?”
“Waiting for a call. Probably not for now. Qiongqi’s still being resuscitated, and Yu Feizheng should be unconscious for a while longer. It all depends on whether the team searching the Jinyu Complex finds anything.” Shi Wenze held Lin Su’s hand. “Come sit with me for a bit.”
Lin Su sat beside him, still rubbing the back of his neck.
Shi Wenze frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“I was tense during the ride. My neck’s all stiff,” Lin Su said. “I just ordered one of those little octopus massage devices.”
You’ve got a boyfriend. What do you need an octopus for? Shi Wenze pulled him close, guiding Lin Su to rest against his chest and providing some boyfriend-grade massage services. Unfortunately, his skills ranked several levels below those of the blind masseur back in the neighborhood. Lin Su endured five minutes, mostly for the sake of cuddling against some well-defined pecs, before tapping out with a groan.
“Ow. You made it worse. Feels like I’ve had whiplash for a thousand years.”
Shi Wenze winced. “Uh…”
“Let me recover naturally,” Lin Su said, standing up and rubbing his neck. “Now my back hurts too.”
“I didn’t even touch your back! Just your neck!” Shi Wenze protested.
“It’s contagious,” Lin Su said dryly.
“…”
“And now my ass hurts.”
That, apparently, was the final straw. Shi Wenze perked up immediately. “Well then, come here. I’ll check it out.”
Lin Su: Shut your brain down, would you?
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