Cthulhu America, I can see the kill line.

Rainwater slid down the mottled walls on both sides of the alley, making the night even deeper.

The rain in Hills seemed endless, washing over this coastal land.

In the quiet, deserted alley behind the prestigious school, a gothic woman holding a black umbrella stood silently.

Her hair was as black as ink, her crimson eyes gleamed in the rain, her beautiful face was framed by the black and red umbrella, and her expression was tense, as if she was waiting for someone.

With a strange buzzing sound, a rift emitting a pale purple glow unfolded behind her.

The woman turned around gracefully, her gaze meeting that of the man emerging from the crack.

"It's time to go."

Kong Jiu took the umbrella from her hand and pulled Mina away.

"Why are you in such a hurry?"

A hint of worry flashed across Mina's eyes as she asked.

"Those people look very professional. I'm worried they might have methods to detect and track subspace fluctuations. From now on, I'll have to run away on foot!"

Kong Jiu gave a hasty explanation, and before he could finish speaking, he had already put his arm around Mina's shoulder, and the two hurriedly disappeared into the deeper shadows of the alley.

The alarm blared faintly from afar, mingling with the patter of rain.

The rain washed away the dust, the odors, and the spiritual energy that once lingered here...

Two hours later.

Soaked to the bone, Kong Jiu pushed open the apartment door, but a hint of relaxation appeared on his face.

He was quite pleased to see old Chad at the security booth downstairs, which meant the killing of the Wintert family could be put on hold for a while.

But when he opened the door, what greeted his eyes was Impa, naked, drunk, holding up a glass of purplish-red liquid, and beckoning to several hot women.

The living room was brightly lit, and his good roommate was sitting on the living room sofa, enjoying himself.

Kong Jiu frowned.

Why did this young master bring his slut party to his house?

"Hey, Jiu Jiu, you're back?"

Upon seeing Kong Jiu return, Ying Pa disregarded his image, waving his nunchuck and swaying as he stood up to greet him.

"The professor said you took the day off today, what did you go to do...?"

Before he could finish speaking, Mina, who had put away her umbrella and entered the room, followed him in.

Kong Jiu quickly covered her eyes and then gave Yingpa a sharp look.

Impa was stunned for a moment, then suddenly sobered up a bit. She awkwardly took the clothes handed to her by the prostitute and put them on haphazardly.

After straightening her clothes, the impeccably dressed Yingpa, carrying two wine glasses and a decanter, staggered up to Kong Jiu and whispered in his ear:

"I figured you took the day off because you're probably off having some time alone with your wife. It's not unreasonable for you to enjoy yourself at home..."

Kong Jiu awkwardly smiled as he took the cup and handed it to Mina.

"I'm sorry to have made you laugh, sister-in-law..."

As Impa spoke, he tilted the decanter and poured a thin layer of wine into their glasses.

"A 66 Lafite?"

Mina sniffed the wine in her glass, but her gaze went beyond the rim and she saw several women of the night heading into Impa's bedroom.

"It really is from '66! My sister-in-law knows about wine?"

With a grin, Impa poured the wine, looking just like a waiter, not at all like a young master.

"Um, she comes from a family of winemakers."

Kong Jiu smiled and smoothed things over, raising his glass to drink with Mina.

Watching his good friend drink up the "small gift" he had offered, Yingpa contentedly took back the cup, embraced the women of the night, and retreated to the bedroom.

The living room quieted down, with only the sound of pattering rain outside the window.

Mina and Kong Jiu, feeling uneasy, exchanged a few glances.

"Perhaps my life experience makes me somewhat unfamiliar with the behavior of real humans..."

Mina raised an eyebrow at Impa's figure: "But your roommate, who partyes every night, also knows how to transfer essence using blood magic?"

"He...is very good."

Kong Jiu glossed over the topic, saying he had once glimpsed the young master's recipes by chance... which were quite aggressive.

The two said no more and moved to the bedroom.

Under the lamplight, Kong Jiu changed out of his wet clothes and picked up the square jade to examine it carefully.

The jade was warm and smooth, cool to the touch, but he was somewhat lost in thought.

"Your dream is about to come true, aren't you happy, big boy?" Mina asked softly.

Mina has been staying here these past few nights, and naturally she has brought her living clothes from Red Rain Fortress.

However, it still features black gauze and subtle patterns, only the style is slightly different.

She seems to take her "I'm a vampire" style of dress very seriously.

"dream?"

Looking at the jade, Kong Jiu shook his head slightly.

"My dream has never been to destroy the Iron Curtain."

He paused, then turned to look at her.

"I don't think I ever told you that my initial goal was simply to save people."

"Financial freedom, becoming a psionicist, stumbling upon the possibility of returning home... these are all unexpected gains on the journey, never my goals, Mina."

As Kong Jiu spoke, he slowly raised his hand, palm up, making an inviting gesture.

The Stewart family crest, entwined with mistletoe, clearly appeared in Mina's palm and came into view.

"It's time to keep your promise, Mina."

Mina pouted, but still gently placed her hand in his palm.

"Big boy, I really don't want you to become my ex-boyfriend."

The moment the two emblems touched, a fiery attraction surged between them, as if an invisible emotion was whispering in their blood.

"You're wrong, Mina," Kong Jiu said calmly.

This mental influence was insignificant to Kong Jiu, who had glimpsed the true nature of the world.

He circulated his spiritual power, gradually breaking down that concept from the bloodline girl's palm into its most basic form, completely severing its connection with the Iron Curtain.

"I was never your boyfriend. And your feelings for me might just be a distortion of your perception caused by this badge, wouldn't you say?"

Only now did he fully unleash his spiritual power, which was nearly twice that of Mina. A stream of crimson light swirled around Kong Jiu's fingers.

"Our agreement is to take you away from Xinxiang, back to Red Rain Fortress to see Eller, and to leave behind a child."

The emblem gradually peeled away and was reshaped in their hands, turning into two streams of crimson light that entwined around Kong Jiu's fingers.

The hazy infatuation and fervor in Mina's eyes gradually faded and dissipated. Her gaze towards Kong Jiu gradually cleared.

"Do you still feel that same passionate love for me now?"

Kong Jiu, holding that stream of light, met her gaze.

Silence spread through the air.

Kong Jiu knew that shattering the girl's idealized image of her boyfriend was a cruel thing.

He himself had been deeply troubled by the emblem and could almost foresee how mediocre and boring he would appear in Mina's eyes after the filter was removed.

You seem to be...

Mina squinted at Kong Jiu, her eyes revealing dissatisfaction.

"It's coming."

Kong Jiu thought to himself, the anger and disappointment that followed disillusionment might be accompanied by the question, "So you're just that ordinary."

"You've gotten sexier, big boy?"

Mina tilted her head, examining her empty palm, then looked up at him with a hint of mockery and genuine dissatisfaction in her eyes.

Sexy?

Kong Jiu frowned.

He's 1.9 meters tall, and in his more than 20 years of life, this is the first time anyone has used that word to describe him.

"Your perception hasn't changed much, huh? But I really don't like your sexy features."

Mina wrinkled her nose, her hand unconsciously going to her lower abdomen. "This is bad. What if the baby looks like you and is all the good-looking like Dad?"

Kong Jiu's eye twitched.

Why is it different from what I expected?

Mina should have given him a look of disgust and yelled, "Are you an ugly monster?"

Amidst Mina's muttered complaints as she pinched his ear, Kong Jiu activated his spiritual vision and looked out the window.

Sure enough, the health bar that stretched across the sky was empty.

However, it did not completely collapse, leaving behind an empty outline, hanging alone in the night sky.

A hint of doubt arose in Kong Jiu's heart, and he gently brushed away Mina's hand that was rubbing his cheek.

He merged the two emblems together and poured them back into Mina's palm.

"Hey! Big boy, you don't want it anymore?"

Mina looked at the emblem in her hand, its color growing increasingly crimson, and asked in confusion.

"It's no longer needed."

As Kong Jiu spoke, he picked up the ring, intending to contact the rat.

Just then, Mina cupped his face in her hands and turned him to face her.

"I've already proven that I like you not because of the badge! Why are you still acting like this?"

Kong Jiu impatiently tried to break free. For him, the most important thing right now was to contact that rat. Sweet talk with this woman was a complete waste of time.

However, the [Spiritual Vision] that had just been activated and was still open was forced to turn its gaze toward Mina.

He suddenly noticed that a very thin white thread was floating on Mina's health bar, a thin white thread as fine as cotton, extending out the window.

Kong Jiu's gaze sharpened as he looked up at the night sky along the thread.

The thin thread connected the empty health bar in the sky, making it even more glaring.

Is the Iron Curtain still being maintained by something?