Dark Light Chaser.

Hunter Bar, a very straightforward name, but not everyone who comes here is involved in related matters.

Located in the city center, it still attracts occasional curious citizens who come in for a drink.

The area around the bar was quiet, with no drunk people playing or fooling around on the roadside.

Ai Liang pushed open the door with steady steps.

His attire, including a black mask in the middle of the night, caught the security guard's eye a few times. Fortunately, the guard only glanced at him briefly and then left it at that, without questioning him further because of his appearance.

Ai Liang slowed down, using her peripheral vision to find a suitable seat.

The bar's first floor is decorated in warm colors, and most of the people sitting at the bar and in the booths are young men and women.

At a glance, it was clear that these people were not the individuals he was looking for who could resolve his identity issue.

Ai Liang focused her attention on her ears and used the sound feedback to find the stairs leading to the second floor.

Like a regular at the bar, Ai Liang skillfully avoided the tables and chairs of passersby and headed towards the stairs.

But before Ai Liang could even reach the stairs, she was stopped by someone.

"Excuse me, the restroom is over there. Would you like me to take you there?"

A security guard wearing an earpiece smiled and politely reached out to stop Ai Liang.

Although the words "No unauthorized persons allowed upstairs" were not explicitly stated, the meaning conveyed in the polite language was quite clear.

Ai Liang coughed lightly and said, "I didn't come here just to drink."

The security guard just smiled when he heard this: "If that's the case, then you wouldn't have come from the main entrance; you should have gone through the side entrance."

"..."

Well, it's unlikely that someone who knows nothing about this can fool the other party. Reality is not like in the movies, where you can just make up an excuse to get past the guards.

Ai Liang said softly, "Sorry to bother you," and turned to walk towards the restroom.

You don't necessarily have to go upstairs from there; there's clearly more than one entrance on the second floor of the bar.

After a year of training, Ai Liang is now able to accurately capture the thoughts of people and animals, unlike when she first awakened her abilities and would not easily turn her test subjects into idiots.

It can even read the inner monologues of everyone in a large area at once.

The only downside is the long loading time, requiring you to find a quiet place where you won't be disturbed.

After closing the cubicle door, Ai Liang's mental tendrils surged towards the second floor. At the same time, he sent out a force to envelop the bodyguard from before, preparing to probe into the other party's mind.

'Luckily I got back early; otherwise, I would have gotten yelled at again.'

"Rich people just like seeking thrills; there are always people wanting to go up to the second floor every day."

"Suppressing information too much isn't a good thing. If they released the story about the broken leg from last year, fewer people would be curious."

'It's mainly because these young people have money and plenty of free time.'

'When will I meet a rich and beautiful woman who will take care of me... I'd accept her even if she's not that pretty, as long as she's wealthy.'

"..."

I never expected that the seemingly sunny, polite, and scholarly security guard would have such ambitions.

Human thought is very free-flowing; usually, several different thoughts can arise in a single breath.

After observing for a few minutes and confirming that the security guards did not have the information she wanted, Ai Liang cleared her mind and focused her attention on the second floor.

If the main emotions emanating from the first floor are happiness, comfort, and indulgence, then the mental state of the customers on the second floor has one main theme: almost everyone's nerves are on edge.

Thinking about it, it makes sense. Whether it's the person seeking out a bounty hunter to solve their problem, or the bounty hunter being sought out, both have issues to resolve, so their moods are naturally not good. 'Why hasn't that skinny guy arrived yet?'

'That greedy scoundrel will get hit by a car sooner or later!'

'It's been half an hour, and they haven't even made a phone call. Has someone paid to keep track of that kid Pan Junyuan?'

"Watching monkey shows is really interesting."

'Salad, fried chicken cutlet, and rice? Do they think this is a restaurant?'

"........."

Ai Liang scanned the crowd with his mental energy, and most of the people in the crowd were thinking of the three words: 'skinny skin,' 'bounty,' and 'Pan Junyuan.'

Does this mean the main storyline is triggered right from the start?
Ai Liang quickly sorted out everyone's random thoughts. The skinny guy they were talking about was a well-known hoodlum in the city center. He was involved in almost everything, but he was timid and never did big business, only making small money.

As you spend more time in the community and get to know more people, you naturally become well-informed. You should know that most firsthand intelligence comes from ordinary people.

As for Pan Junyuan, he was the mobile bounty worth 800,000.

"We're lucky. We found a suitable candidate on the first day. The next step is to find that skinny guy and see if he has any connections to get a fake identity."

Ai Liang withdrew her mental energy and walked out of the bar.

However, he did not intend to leave.

Ai Liang circled around to the alley behind the bar. After confirming the location of the second-floor restroom, he bent his knees slightly, lightly jumped, grabbed the windowsill with both hands, and leaped inside.

Unlike the first floor, which is filled with warm-toned nightlights, the second floor of the bar is illuminated by pure white LED lights, making the entire hall so bright and airy that it feels almost cold.

Ai Liang avoided the booths and private rooms, and walked towards the only person sitting at the bar with fried chicken cutlet and drinks.

Everyone else was waiting for news about the skinny guy, and if a stranger tried to get close to him at this time, it would only cause resentment and hostility.

The only person I could talk to was the guy at the bar, because he was just watching the show.

Moreover, judging from his emotional feedback, he is not a difficult person to get along with, and it is easier to get some information from him.

As it turns out, Ai Liang's analysis was correct.

He had barely sat down when the other person spoke up: "Oh, a new face. Can you tell me how you got here?"

Ai Liang's expression froze, and she subconsciously glanced at the bartender, who seemed not to have heard anything and continued mixing drinks.

"Don't worry, although they will deliberately prevent some irrelevant people from going up to the second floor, they won't kick you out if you do come up, as long as you don't cause trouble and disturb other people's business."

"How can you be sure I snuck up here?" Ai Liang asked back.

“I already said you’re a stranger, and you walked straight towards me. It doesn’t look like you had an appointment with anyone. I’m the only one sitting at the bar. I can’t be sleepwalking and taking your order, can I?”

As he spoke, the unfamiliar bounty hunter skewered a piece of chicken cutlet with a bamboo stick and popped it into his mouth, producing a series of crisp chewing sounds.

"I see."

Ai Liang said thoughtfully.

"Don't be fooled by him. There are many bounty hunters. He doesn't even recognize all the regulars. If you look around, he'll use the same excuse of 'looking like you've never seen the world' to give you an example."

The bartender, who had just finished mixing the drinks, wiped his hands and mercilessly exposed the strange bounty hunter's trick.

The latter put down the bamboo skewer and smacked his lips: "You talk too much."

The bartender ignored her and simply smiled as he pushed the drinks menu in front of Ai Liang: "What would you like to drink?"

(End of this chapter)