Courtyard House: Starting with handing over the keys, the state helps me abuse birds.

The room was very quiet.

It was so quiet that even the hum of the light bulb's current sounded like wires being drawn next to your ear.

Xie Weihong sat cross-legged on the bed, his breathing long and even, the rise and fall of his chest almost blending into the night. He hadn't truly "slept" that night, yet he felt more energetic than if he had slept all day.

The second-stage energy flowed slowly in my dantian, like a warm stream, washing my limbs and bones clean.

He opened his eyes, his gaze clear and bright, showing no sign of sleepiness.

"Cultivation replenishes energy."

He drew a conclusion in his mind.

This feels so good, like it's crushing away all the fatigue, resentment, and hunger that life has brought on, and then filling my body with strength again.

It was at this moment that...

His consciousness rippled slightly.

Those are the "tentacles" that appear after the second stage. They don't need to be used deliberately. As long as you have a thought, they can expand out like the surface of water.

About ten meters.

Not far, yet deadly enough.

Xie Weihong's eyebrows suddenly twitched slightly.

Because he "saw" it.

The bolt clicked softly.

The wind outside the window stopped for a moment.

The footsteps that shouldn't have been there crept in from the wall, like a mouse.

He deliberately walked very lightly, but in his mind's eye, every step was clear. Even the wet mud on the soles of the other person's shoes and the slight friction when stepping into the cracks in the floor seemed magnified several times.

Xie Weihong did not move.

He didn't even change his breathing rhythm.

He simply lowered his eyes slowly, a hint of coldness appearing at the corner of his mouth.

Just then, the system notification suddenly exploded in his mind, sharper and more urgent than ever before.

【warn! 】

[A minor demon has been detected stealing baby nightmares and invading the host's territory!]

[Recommendation: Host, evacuate immediately! Avoid alerting the great demon horde!]

[Danger Assessment: Low-level intrusion can be handled, but a high-level aura is approaching!]

Xie Weihong's eyes darkened.

"Stealing baby nightmares?"

He didn't need to guess to know that the so-called little demons in the system were mostly those little beasts who "hadn't shed their animalistic nature."

The system's words "high-level aura approaching" made his heart tighten slightly.

Those old folks in the yard haven't left yet. If we catch this little brat in the act and he starts making a scene, it could really cause even bigger trouble.

But he knew better than anyone else.

If you let such thieves sneak into your house and steal things, you might tolerate it once, but it will become a habit later.

The rules in a courtyard house have always been like this—

If you give in even once, they'll take advantage of you for life.

Xie Weihong's eyes narrowed slightly in the darkness.

He didn't make a sound, and even deliberately made his breathing more even, as if he were "sound asleep".

The dark figure stopped in the center of the room.

The figure was small, but its movements were so practiced that it seemed like it had done it hundreds of times.

He first lay down on the ground to listen for any sounds, and only after confirming that there was no response from inside the house did he slowly raise his head, his gaze fixed on the basin in the corner.

In the basin, two large fish remained unprocessed, their scales faintly reflecting a cold light in the dim light.

Xie Weihong brought it back last night.

It was something that Bang Geng saw through the crack in the window and craved so much that he would swallow his saliva in the middle of the night.

The stalk's eyes shone in the darkness.

There was no fear in that light, only greed.

He licked his lips and his throat bobbed, as if he was already imagining the taste of fish stew.

He was still making plans in his mind.

"Xie Weihong is a coward. He never dared to say a word when anyone bullied him before. He went crazy and beat people up last night, but it only lasted for a while. Once he calmed down, he was back to being a coward."

"If I take the fish away, does he dare to say a word? If he dares to say a word, I'll call for my mom, my grandma, my Uncle Shazhu, and the whole yard can crush him."

The more he thought about it, the more confident he became.

So he reached out his hand.

When his fingers touched the fish scales, they felt cool and slippery, which made him so excited that he almost laughed out loud.

He grabbed the fish with both hands, ready to drag it away.

Right at this moment.

The dark figure beside the bed suddenly sat up.

The light cord was gently tugged.

"Snap—"

The dim light bulb turned on.

The moment the light fell, Bang Geng froze on the spot as if struck by lightning.

He held the two fish tightly in his hands, their tails still dragging on the edge of the basin, water droplets dripping down their scales with a loud thud.

The perpetrators were caught red-handed.

Xie Weihong sat on the edge of the bed, looking at him calmly, as if he were a mouse caught in a rice jar.

He didn't yell.

There was no cursing.

He spoke slowly, his voice soft, yet it fell like a knife.

"Hold on tight?"

Banggeng's expression changed.

For a moment, he did panic.

But the next second, he remembered who he was and who was standing behind him.

His panic was immediately suppressed and calmed.

He gripped the fish tighter, straining his neck as he shouted:

"What's wrong with me taking your two fish?!"

"Can you finish this all by yourself?!"

He grew more and more confident as he shouted, and even took a step forward, spitting as he spoke, his eyes full of provocation.

"I'm telling you, Xie Weihong, stop pretending!"

"You used to be too scared to even look my grandma in the eye, who are you trying to scare now?!"

As he spoke, he hugged the fish to his chest, as if it were a trophy.

"This fish is mine!"

"Try touching me, and I'll call for help right now!"

【warn! 】

[The little demon "steals the infant nightmare," causing its demonic nature to surge!]

[Warning: The noise from the argument will attract the attention of the "Great Demon"! Please evacuate immediately!]

The system warning went off again.

Xie Weihong simply tilted her head slightly, as if confirming something.

The stick-shaped dagger remains arrogant.

He even laughed, a laugh full of sarcasm that said, "What can you do to me?"

"What, scared?"

"Do you dare hit me?"

"If you touch me even slightly, my mom will make you kneel down and apologize to me!"

He said that sentence with great fluency.

It's like I've memorized it many times.

Like in the past, whenever he was caught stealing, he could use this sentence to shut the adults up.

Xie Weihong slowly stood up.

The moment the second-tier body moved, its aura immediately pressed down.

Banggeng instinctively shrank back, then forced himself to stand up again, his face showing a fierce determination to never back down.

"Why are you standing up? You—"

Xie Weihong approached.

He neither snatched the fish nor took direct action.

He simply reached out and pinched the wrist of the stick stem.

The movements were very gentle.

It's so light it feels like you can just grab it.

Bang Geng's eyes widened in that instant.

He felt as if his wrist was being clamped by iron clamps, his bones were aching, and his entire arm went numb instantly, making it impossible for him to even struggle.

"You...you let go!"

Banggeng's voice suddenly became weak.

He tried his best to pull his hand back, but Xie Weihong's fingers only tightened slightly, and he turned pale with pain, almost bursting into tears.

Xie Weihong lowered her head, looked at him, and spoke in a frighteningly calm tone:

"You think you're arrogant."

"Because you think I'm still the same person I used to be."

Bang Geng's eyes twitched, but his mouth remained stubborn.

"I...I'll just take two of your fish!"

"What do you dare do?!"

He didn't finish his sentence.

Xie Weihong raised her hand and pulled the two fish directly from his arms, then casually tossed them back into the basin.

Water splashed all over Banggeng's face.

Banggeng was momentarily stunned.

The next second, he pounced on Xie Weihong like a wild dog that had been completely enraged, baring his teeth and claws as he tried to scratch her face.

"You dare steal my fish! I'll kill you!"

【warn! 】

[The little demon has gone berserk!]

[A high-level demonic aura is approaching! Host is advised to evacuate immediately!]

The system's voice grew increasingly urgent, like it was urging them to give up.

Xie Weihong's eyes, however, grew even colder.

He watched the thief lunge at him, then simply turned slightly to the side, raised his foot, and kicked the thief.

Bang Geng felt as if his bones had been removed, and he knelt on the ground with a "thud," his knees hitting the ground with a crisp, frightening sound.

Banggeng was stunned.

His mind went blank.

He looked up, his face still wet, feeling the pain in his knees, and for the first time, panic appeared in his eyes.

Xie Weihong looked down at him, her voice low and carrying a chilling warning:

"If you move again, I'll shout that you stole something so the whole yard can hear it."

Banggeng's face instantly turned red.

His shame, fear, and anger surged up all at once; his lips trembled, yet he still wanted to curse.

But he found himself afraid.

Because Xie Weihong's eyes were too cold.

It was as cold as looking at a worm that you could crush at any moment.

Bang Geng finally realized something.

The person in front of me has really changed.

That "soft" feeling disappeared completely.

Standing before him now was someone he absolutely could not afford to offend.