C5 Divine Invisibility's Takeout(2)

Boss Xi spat out a curse, then nudged his sunglasses up the bridge of his nose and looked up, saying, "The scent of that guy stopped around here, didn't it? Plus, there's a cat that can scale walls. Seems like they're connected. Aren't these neighborhoods part of Rui's turf?"

"Yeah, that damn she-cat." Huang felt the urge to lick his calf where the cat had left its mark, but he resisted, knowing that any such move would earn him a scolding from the icy Boss Xi.

"Do you think Rui's underlings might've tailed us and swiped our stash?"

"Impossible, right? They hate drawing attention, preferring to stay off the radar. Why would they pull a stunt like that?" Huang shuddered at the memory of the cat more merciless than Boss Xi, recalling the harsh lesson he'd received just for relieving himself in her territory.

Boss Xi mused to himself that while things had been one way in the past, the future could be different. This place might well be the gang's hideout. This incident was undoubtedly linked to them.

Suddenly, the buzz of an electric scooter broke the silence. Boss Xi quickly ushered Huang into hiding and peered out cautiously.

"Delivery at this hour? Who orders takeout in the dead of night?"

Boss Xi watched as a delivery guy in a yellow uniform stopped at their previous spot and made a call. After a moment, a vaguely familiar figure emerged from a door.

"Hey, Huang, is that the same guy we ran into earlier?"

"Uh, we dogs don't have the best eyesight, Boss Xi."

"Moron, use your nose!"

Huang poked his head out, sniffing the air with effort, and then suddenly exclaimed, "Boss Xi!"

"What now?!"

"It's beef rice!"

"I told you to sniff out the guy, not the food!" Boss Xi couldn't help but boot Huang's rear in frustration. Huang, with a woebegone expression, replied, "But it smelled so good!"

"Never mind, you've got the brains of a dog; I can't expect too much." Boss Xi, relying on his own sharp wits, reasoned that at two-thirty in the morning, anyone eating was definitely not your average Joe; they had to be some kind of night dweller. And judging by the silhouette, it bore a striking resemblance to the person they'd encountered before. Putting it all together...

"Go! Fetch him for me!"

Boss Xi made a split-second decision, knowing that if they missed this chance, there was no telling how many people they'd have to contend with on a second attempt. Now, with their target alone, it was the perfect opportunity. Get him first, then talk!

"Wuuuuuu."

At Boss Xi's command, the dopey expression vanished from Huang's face. His mouth widened as if it had split open, his teeth sharpening into points. Emitting a muffled growl, he sprang into action, charging at the man with a speed that would put Usain Bolt to shame, like a crazed dog!

Swift as lightning, without a sound!

Boss Xi watched Huang barrel towards the man with the force of a thunderclap. He mused to himself that although the dog wasn't the brightest, its fighting prowess was formidable. It seemed evolution had bypassed its brain and invested everything into brawn.

He nodded in approval, but his smile quickly turned to shock.

"Hey, stop! What the hell are you doing?"

The delivery guy's shout rang out.

"Wuwuwuwuwuwu." In mere seconds, Huang had returned to Boss Xi's side, making pleased noises as he nuzzled against Boss Xi's leg, acting like a dog eager for a pat on the head.

But...

Clutched in his jaws was a box of beef rice.

"You... I told you to bring him back!" Boss Xi kicked Huang's rear, sending him tumbling face-first into the beef rice's packaging and into a nearby flowerbed. Unperturbed, Huang wagged his tail and eagerly licked up his spoils.

"Who the hell are you, man? You got a problem, stealing takeout in the middle of the night?"

"Bang!"

Confronted by the delivery guy in yellow, Boss Xi threw a punch, knocking him out cold. He then turned to look for his original target...

Where did he go?!

"Where's my midnight snack?!"

Shen Xiang, who had been watching a series while riding the elevator home, was ready to unlock his door after hearing the mission completion notification. That's when he noticed the beef rice he'd been holding was missing.

"That's not right. I clearly remember taking the rice from the courier. I just wanted to save some time watching my show."

One shouldn't look at their phone while walking due to potential mishaps, but it was fine to do so while on hold since the system smartly navigated around any obstacles. Shen Xiang stood at his doorstep, removed his earphones, and looked around, puzzled. How could such a tasty dish of beef rice just vanish?

Could he have lost his grip and dropped it somewhere?

No way, the system is too reliable for that, even more so than myself. But then again...

Maybe the plastic bag was subpar and it ripped?

That's a possibility.

He hit the elevator button, found it empty, and decided to head downstairs to investigate where his beef rice had gone.

"It's downright bizarre. How does a perfectly fine meal just vanish? I've been operating this automatic delivery service for years and never once faced something like this."

Shen Xiang grumbled to himself as he combed through the first-floor corridor, but his search turned up nothing. Approaching the main entrance, he opened the door from the inside...

There he discovered a sleazy guy in a hoodie and sunglasses, smacking the head of another man crouched on the ground, who was clutching the familiar bowl of beef rice and wolfing it down.

Their eyes met as the door swung open.

"That's my beef rice!"

"Have you lost your minds?" Shen Xiang burst out. "It's revolting. If you've got the nerve, why not rob a bank instead of preying on us regular folks? Don't you see that our money is hard-earned too? I bust my back working twelve-hour shifts, just... hey!"

Shen Xiang was known for his rambling, both online and off. Sometimes he'd even set his auto-reply to curse out others, and he could be particularly verbose when faced with real-life frustrations.

"Huang, knock him out!"

Shen Xiang instinctively recoiled as a man dropped his bowl and charged at him. After stumbling back several steps, he steadied himself and stared, astonished, at the menacing figure hunched over with a predatory gaze.

The man was tall with triangular eyes, a black beard, jet-black hair, and fiery red eyes – an intimidating sight.

"You're willing to commit murder over a bowl of beef rice?!" Shen Xiang couldn't help but shout. The world was full of all sorts, but given the man's oddity, he didn't want any trouble. Hastily, he added, "I didn't see anything... and yet you're still coming at me!"

As the other person lunged at him, baring their fangs and clawing like a rabid dog, Shen Xiang's irritation flared instantly. It was the classic case of the kind being taken advantage of, the good horse being ridden by anyone.

"System!" he commanded silently: Engage automatic self-defense proxy!

Mission start!

The corridor was set to become the stage for an absurd spectacle, and there, a female spectator stood silently atop an old, weathered streetlamp, her blue eyes quietly observing the scene unfold.

Enter the girl.