Xingtie: My silly online friend is actually a raccoon!

Lu Ze and Bang Ya followed Liu Wenbo through several alleys until they arrived at a secluded fork in the road.

The streetlights around were already on, and one of them was still flickering and emitting a faint electrical sound.

Liu Wenbo, who was ahead, suddenly stopped and stood in the middle of the fork in the road, as if waiting for something.

Just as Lu Ze was about to greet someone, his wrist was suddenly pulled sharply, and he was dragged into a narrower alley next to him.

His back slammed against the cold wall, and before he could utter a sound, Bonya's hand covered his mouth.

Her palms were warm and soft, yet surprisingly strong.

She pressed herself against Lu Ze's side, her gray eyes fixed on the direction outside the alleyway.

Lu Ze wanted to ask her what was wrong, but his mouth was covered, and he could only make muffled "mmm" sounds.

Then he saw it.

Less than three meters in front of Liu Wenbo, three figures appeared out of thin air without warning.

They wore identical grey monk robes, with hoods hanging low, obscuring most of their faces, and held uniform, standard-issue rapiers in their hands, the blades gleaming with a dull metallic sheen under the dim streetlights.

Lu Ze's pupils suddenly contracted.

Instant teleportation?

He almost cried out.

If Bonya hadn't been covering his mouth with her hand, he would have definitely let out a gasp.

"Don't make a sound."

Bonya's lips brushed against his ear, her voice low, her soft lips gently grazing his ear.

Lu Ze nodded subconsciously.

Seeing that he agreed, Bangya slowly released her hand from his mouth.

But the two remained pressed close together.

Over there, Liu Wenbo seemed to have anticipated the appearance of the monk in the robe.

The moment the monk landed, a cold glint flashed in his eyes.

With his right hand's five fingers together, a layer of scorching red light suddenly appeared on the edge of his palm, as if a ball of flame was burning around his palm.

In the blink of an eye, Liu Wenbo took a step forward and slashed out with his hand, sending a fiery blade flying out and leaving a trail of blazing fire in the dim alley.

A monk in robes was unable to dodge in time, and the flaming blade swept across his waist.

In the blink of an eye, the monk in the robes was cut in two. Then, the severed body began to disintegrate, turning into fine sand in the air and scattering with the wind, leaving not a trace.

The other two monks showed no reaction to their companion's death.

Without any hesitation, they thrust two rapiers, one on the left and one on the right, simultaneously toward his throat and heart.

Liu Wenbo dodged the sword to the side, but another sword sliced ​​through his left upper arm, and blood immediately soaked the sleeve of his school uniform.

He grunted, then advanced instead of retreating, his right hand wielding a blazing blade that clashed fiercely with the two slender swords in the narrow alley.

The light of swords and flames flashed alternately in the darkness, and the sounds of clashing metal and crackling flames mingled together, sounding particularly jarring in the quiet alley.

Lu Ze hid in the shadows at the alley entrance, his heart pounding wildly.

He had never seen a battle like this outside of television.

The battle between the two sides did not last long.

Although Liu Wenbo was injured, his strength was clearly superior to that of the two monks.

After a feint attack, he seized an opening and pierced through the chest of a monk with a flaming palm.

The body of the monk in the robe also turned into grayish-white sand, which drifted in the night wind.

The last monk was struck in the head with a spinning kick three seconds later, followed by a flaming blade strike that severed his head along with the rapier.

The three corpses all turned into fine sand, leaving no trace.

The alleyway fell silent again.

Liu Wenbo stood there, panting heavily.

His school uniform was stained red with blood.

The wound on my left upper arm is bleeding, and there is also a deep cut on my right ribs.

The most serious injury was a penetrating wound in his shoulder, with blood dripping slowly down his arm onto the ground.

He covered the wound on his right shoulder with his left hand, but blood still seeped out from between his fingers.

He slowly raised his head, his sharp gaze sweeping across the dark alleyway and shadows of the corners, finally locking onto the narrow alleyway entrance where Luze and Bangya were hiding.

"Stop hiding." His voice was weak, but still clear and strong. "I know you're hiding there."

Lu Ze's heart sank.

He and Bonya exchanged a glance.

Lu Ze grabbed Bonya's wrist, preparing to pull her away from here.

But as soon as he took a step, a dull thud came from behind him.

He turned around and saw that Liu Wenbo had already knelt down on one knee.

His face was pale, his lips had lost all color due to blood loss, and he was swaying precariously.

He struggled to stand up, but his body wouldn't obey him. He stumbled and fell to the ground, leaning against the wall, gasping for breath.

Lu Ze dared not linger.

Reason told him that the person in front of him and those monks were not ordinary people, and their struggle was far beyond what an ordinary high school student like him could get involved in.

He grabbed Bonya's hand, turned and ran.

The two ran through the alley, their footsteps echoing through the narrow passageway.

They traversed one side road after another, rounded corners piled with clutter, until they reached a crowded area. Only then did Lu Ze slow down, leaning on his knees and panting heavily.

"Should we...call an ambulance for him?" Lu Ze asked, panting, turning to look at Bangya.

His tone carried a hint of hesitation and unease.

Regardless of who Liu Wenbo is, he is so badly injured that he could really die if left untreated.

Bonya did not answer immediately.

She took her phone out of her pleated skirt pocket, tapped the screen a few times, and then turned the screen towards Lu Ze.

The screen displayed lines of simple text in Russian, which Luze couldn't understand.

"I already called." Bonya's voice remained flat.

Lu Ze paused for a moment, then leaned closer to see what she had posted, but the Russian on the screen was like gibberish to him; he couldn't understand a single word.

He looked up and glanced at Bonya with some embarrassment.

Looking at his bewildered expression, Bonya remained silent for a moment, then sighed softly.

"I anonymously reported the crime through this website," she had to explain, her tone tinged with a hint of helplessness.

"It uses an encrypted line, and the signal goes through multiple hops, so it won't be traced back to us. Don't worry."

After hearing this, Lu Ze first breathed a sigh of relief, but was still a little worried: "Really, we won't be found out?"

Bonya did not respond.

She simply stared at Lu Ze, her gray eyes holding an indescribable expression—as if she were looking at an idiot.

She was silent for two or three seconds, then gave him a light glare.

Does this mean you're questioning my professional competence?

Lu Ze awkwardly touched his nose and didn't press the matter further.

They had only known each other for less than a week, so how could he know what her professional abilities were?