: The Fox King

The white-haired girl dialed the phone shakily, then burst into tears, looking utterly miserable as if she had suffered a great injustice.

The two black-haired JK girls next to them were also huddled up and talking on the phone, their previous arrogance long gone, and they were both sobbing and wiping away tears.

Qiao Yuan ignored this and looked at them all as pitiful, but in reality, the truly pitiful people couldn't find any help and had to rely on themselves for everything.

At that moment, Hu Tu looked at Qin Xue's torn coat next to him, cursed a couple more times, unbuttoned his own white shirt, took it off, and draped it over Qin Xue.

Qiao Yuan glanced at it and thought, to be honest, after six days of high-intensity military training, he had gained some muscle and was no longer as soft and limp as before.

Two minutes later, the sushi restaurant owner arrived after hearing the commotion and scolded them, "What have you done? I still need to do business!"

Qiao Yuan sat cross-legged and continued to quietly drink his tea, ignoring the situation and not informing Yan Baobao.

This is such a small matter, it's not worth it.

The white-haired girl cursed viciously, "Get lost, you old geezer! Haven't you seen enough? If you dare utter a single word, I'll shut your little shop down!"

The owner, wearing a white chef's hat, seemed to recognize the white-haired girl. His lips twitched slightly, and he eventually left dejectedly.

Hu Tu realized that Qin Xue and her classmates must have been arrogant and domineering in the past. Fortunately, Qiao Yuan was there to help him vent his anger.

After waiting for half an hour, and after the white-haired girl made seven or eight phone calls like a shrew, a black Ember hovercar finally landed outside the sushi restaurant. It was a regular sedan, unlike the large hovercars that the team usually used.

Hu Tu had been wanting to ask Qiao Yuan why he hadn't informed Yan Baobao, but seeing the other party's leisurely and unperturbed demeanor, he refrained from asking, assuming that he must have his own plan.

At this point, the disheveled white-haired girl regained her arrogance and said, "You're finished, hahaha, damn it! Even if you kowtow to me now, it'll be too late. What good is knowing how to fight? In this world, you need connections. I'm going to slap your face until it's bruised and battered!"

A hint of pity flickered in Qiao Yuan's eyes: "That's such a pity, you have no hope in this lifetime."

"Damn it, shut up!" The white-haired girl stood up cursingly, but sat back down after hearing a series of steady footsteps outside the door. She began to sob loudly, covering her face and wiping away her tears.

His face-changing speed is even faster than that of a Peking Opera master.

Qiao Yuan listened calmly as the door to the private room was opened, revealing a tall, muscular, blond young man whose powerful muscles were accentuated by his black mecha suit.

"That's him! Look at the beating he gave me! All those country bumpkins outside the city are potential criminals. Arrest him and make him rot in jail—no, exile him to that polluted area outside the city to fend for himself!"

The blond youth frowned slightly as he looked at the white-haired girl's pitiful appearance. Just as he was about to speak, his eyes widened in surprise, and his gaze fell on Qiao Yuan.

Qiao Yuan looked up, slightly surprised, and realized that it was Yan Baobao's teammate, Captain He's subordinate, Paul from the Rodel District. They had chatted in the car a couple of days ago after the incident in the Willen New District.

However, no matter how he looked at it, he felt that Paul and the white-haired girl were not related by blood.

"Speak up! Are you mute? Your sister has been beaten like this and you're completely unmoved!"

"Paul! Are you deaf?!"

Qiao Yuan shook his head calmly. He had noticed the white-haired girl's tone was very forceful when she kept calling to urge him earlier.

Paul, with blond hair, took a deep breath and subconsciously raised his hand to rub his temples: "Stop shouting, I can hear you. Do you have to make a scene for everyone to know?"

In fact, he had just seen Hu Tu's angry face and Qin Xue's distraught state, and with Qiao Yuan present, the whole story was already clear to him.

only……

"Then arrest him!"

"What are you still standing there for?"

As dusk settles, the dazzling neon lights outside bathe Hu Tu's balcony in a kaleidoscope of colors, a truly pleasing sight. Like the Jiangnan Building, the soundproofing is excellent.

Qiao Yuan admired Hu Tu's hacker room, which was full of professional equipment, such as brain-computer interfaces, virtual remote servers, closed holographic neural networks, reverse osmosis physical wall panels, etc. He didn't recognize most of them and had to ask Hu Tu to explain them.

According to the other party, this bedroom is like a small fortress, which can effectively prevent it from being detected during certain hacking attacks.

Although Hutu is already a hacker, he is currently only at the first-tier hacker level and needs hardware assistance.

As soon as the dim red strip lights in the dark room were turned on, it felt like entering a secret base.

He stayed for a while, and after drinking a cup of hot milk that Qin Xue had cooked, he didn't linger any longer.

Looking at Qin Xue, who was the victim herself, he had always wanted to do something for her, but he felt it was better to leave and reduce Qin Xue's burden.

It was already 7 p.m. when Qiao Yuan strolled along the commercial street opposite Yaoguang University.

Compared to the tranquility near Galaxy University and the restrictions such as vehicle speed limits, this place is as bustling as the Meilin commercial district of Huanxi State back then, with throngs of pedestrians, mostly young and fashionable college students.

After walking for a while, he realized that there were three higher education institutions nearby: Tianqi University Yaoguang Branch, Nantianmen Third Academy, and Shendu University.

Qiao Yuan continued strolling, passing through one glass walkway after another connecting the adjacent floating buildings, and even bought a fried pork chop from a roadside vendor.

After a while, just as he was about to hail a taxi, he paused and looked unexpectedly at a grilled fish shop not far ahead.

Next to four or five college students, a girl dressed in a green frog costume took a skewer of golden-yellow spicy grilled sturgeon, went to the side, and secretly lifted the frog headgear to eat it with relish.

Qiao Yuan's face gradually softened into a smile. The back of the frog costume was as bulging as ever, and he would sometimes cover it with his little hand, just like that morning.

It was Tu Shanlin.

Can you really find someone like this here?

He temporarily gave up on hailing a taxi and walked towards Tu Shanlin's direction.

However, before they could even get close, the other party seemed to sense it and suddenly turned around.

They stood five or six meters apart, their eyes meeting in the bustling city crowd under the cover of night.

Qiao Yuan smiled brightly.

Tu Shanlin, who had just swallowed the frog, quickly turned red in the cheeks, her rosy lips slightly parted, and the grilled fish she was holding was still steaming.

She seemed quite surprised.

Two breaths later, Qiao Yuan made his way through the endless crowd to the little fox's side, a slight smile playing on his lips as he jokingly said, "Long time no see, Frog Hero."

Tu Shanlin's cheeks flushed even redder under the hood, and he stood there stunned with embarrassment.

"What case are you investigating tonight? Do you need my help?" Qiao Yuan's smile remained unchanged.

"Um, ah, eh..." Tu Shanlin stammered for a while before slowly opening her mouth: "There is a fish nearby, but I was just a little hungry..." As she spoke, she quietly tucked the grilled fish behind her back, but the big tail under the frog's clothes was swaying slightly.

Qiao Yuan squinted and sniffed it, then smiled and said, "It looks delicious. How much is it? I'll buy one too. Wait for me!"

"Huh?" Tu Shanlin watched Qiao Yuan walk to the grilled fish restaurant with curiosity, a strange look appearing in his eyes.

She seemed to suddenly understand what Qiao Yuan was doing, but she wasn't quite sure.

Five minutes later, she saw Qiao Yuan return with a skewer of the same golden, spicy grilled fish.

Qiao Yuan took two bites and praised, "Hmm, it's really good, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and there are no fish bones."

"Why aren't you eating?"

"Ugh..." Tu Shanlin's face tightened.

She was simply surprised, surprised by Qiao Yuan's behavior.

original……

Qiao Yuan noticed her restraint; the other person knew everything, yet said nothing.

Just do it, do some very small things, try to make her a little braver, even braver, so that she can continue to eat fish openly and confidently.

Tu Shanlin was shaken, finally realizing that her intuition had been right. She subconsciously smiled, her eyes filled with a hint of melancholy and reminiscence, recalling her mother's face...

"What was that case you were talking about again?"

Qiao Yuan looked around. He had two more timeline attempts left today, which was enough.

"Well, there was a theft this morning near the Sunset District Museum, and apparently there was a double-cross afterwards. I'm looking for clues."

When the case was brought up, Tu Shanlin suddenly became much more cheerful and talkative, and gradually walked side by side with Qiao Yuan on the bustling Baiyun Street.

"That sounds interesting. Let's go. I just came from Hutu's house and I'm free."

"Oh, is that the chubby kid next to you?" Tu Shanlin muttered.

Qiao Yuan laughed as he listened: "Haha, don't tell him to his face that he's on a diet."

Tu Shanlin immediately apologized: "I'm sorry, I wasn't really sure."

"It's nothing," Qiao Yuan said with a smile and shook his head.

Along the way, Tu Shanlin slowly took out the grilled fish that was tucked behind his back, secretly lifted a corner of his hood, and continued to eat it with restraint.

Qiao Yuan smiled but said nothing. He deliberately ate very slowly, not finishing it all at once, lest the little fox become too shy to eat.

The Sunset District Museum is just a few hundred meters away; you can get there by crossing an elevated pedestrian walkway.

When he arrived, he saw a striking silver-gray atom punk building with a signature streamlined exterior. From a distance, the main body resembled a giant, towering rocket with an orange-red top. A circular flying saucer structure extended from the middle, with an orange-red bottom and a light blue ring above. These classic retro-futuristic colors complemented the silver-gray main color perfectly.

As Tu Shanlin stepped onto the aerial humanoid passageway leading to the museum, he began to smell the scents.

Qiao Yuan knew this, as foxes are born with an extremely sensitive sense of smell.

The fox demons of the Tushan clan, who can transform into human form, must be even more extraordinary after their ascension.

He followed the little fox all the way, and half an hour later, they gradually flew past the huge Sunset District Museum, which looked like a small mountain, and past the nearby Nantianmen Third Academy of Sciences. They left the bustling city and arrived at a complex and integrated floating building.

This area includes residential communities, a waste treatment plant, and various convenience stores, small restaurants, bathhouses, mahjong parlors, and other similar establishments.

It looks rather old.

Although there wasn't much noise at the waste treatment plant, it was already rusty and had been there for many years.

Children were playing badminton by the roadside, and every now and then a shuttlecock would fall over the fence, like a withered leaf falling in autumn, returning to that untouchable abyss.

The sounds of mahjong tiles clattering and children sighing in regret drifted from the mahjong parlor, while the lively atmosphere of an old man playing chess by lamplight on the street filled the air.

Upon reaching this point, Tu Shanlin finally stopped, turned his head to look into the dark alley to the side, and muttered earnestly, "It shouldn't be far now."

Qiao Yuan turned his head and glanced at him, then frowned and said, "If you do this, even if you catch someone, how are you going to claim the prize while wearing a frog costume?"

Although he sensed some danger, there wasn't much of a problem with him being by Tu Shanlin's side.

Because the other person always wore a sapphire necklace around their neck that contained a distorted magnetic field.

Tu Shanlin hummed in agreement, looking slightly wistful, and said, "But it can hone my abilities, right? Real combat is always better than school, and then I can gradually become stronger..."

"And then?" Qiao Yuan asked with a smile.

"Huh?" Tu Shanlin was stunned. As she gradually stepped into the dark alley, her golden eyes, hidden beneath her hood, gleamed slightly. She mustered her courage and said, "Then become the most powerful fox... like Mother..."

You could clearly hear her when she spoke, but it was just a sentence of a dozen or so words, and then she would fall silent.

Qiao Yuan was taken aback.

Although the little fox spoke very softly at the end, his ears still caught it.

He immediately understood; this was Tu Shanlin's obsession with becoming a chivalrous hero.

However...

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that the two kids who had been playing badminton were secretly observing them, their eyes filled with wariness.

At the far end, another elderly woman with white hair and a hunched back appeared, carrying a bamboo basket in her hand. There was a faint smell of blood in the air, and it was unclear what was inside.

But as soon as he saw the two of them approaching, he turned a corner, sped up, and muttered something under his breath, causing the lights in the alleys along the way to turn on one after another.

Qiao Yuan's heart sank, and he glanced at the future without hesitation.