Gu Qingxiang’s rented apartment complex was over twenty years old, poorly maintained, with dim lighting in the stairwell. Add to that the haphazardly exposed wires over the fuse box and the small ads plastered all over the walls, thick with dust—it had the atmosphere of a horror movie.
"The vocal cords on the previous one were damaged, so I replaced them!"
The casual tone of the strange man managed to frighten a woman who was on her way downstairs for a night shift. She paused for a moment and then turned to run back up the stairs.
"Big sister, it’s okay, he’s just joking with me!"
Lin Baici shouted out; he didn’t want someone calling the police and drawing them to the scene, but with his current identity, he wasn’t afraid of the police anymore.
"What’s that in your hand?"
Lin Baici frowned and sniffed. Ordinary people couldn’t smell it, but his sense of smell was now stronger than a dog’s; the stench of blood was too pungent.
The strange man quickly opened the cake box in his hands, but instead of a cake filled with the fragrance of cream, there was a head with eyes that had not yet closed in death.
The woman who had gone down saw this and collapsed weakly on the stairs before letting out a scream the next moment.
The woman turned and scrambled back up the stairs on all fours.
"Who gives a decapitated head as a gift?"
Lin Baici almost found himself laughing despite the situation. Even as a God Hunter who had seen many deaths and was fairly thick-skinned, this sudden appearance of a head was still frightening.
"This isn’t just any head; it’s from that monster that eats innards!"
The strange man clarified, grabbing the hair of the head and lifting it to shove it in front of Lin Baici, wanting him to take a good look.
"Alright, that’s enough, let’s go talk outside!"
Lin Baici grabbed the door as he passed, not wanting to bring a head into his home.
The unexpected man was Yi Jisheng, the one Lin Baici had previously captured who liked to collect human body models.
He thought the other would become a test subject for the Jiuzhou Security Bureau and never gain freedom again, but unexpectedly, he was out and about, completely calm, surely with the Bureau’s permission.
The two of them headed to the gazebo in the northeast corner of the complex.
"Let’s hear it, what’s the situation?"
"You caught the wrong person. Apart from stealing some body models, I haven’t done anything evil. The one who eats innards is this guy!"
Yi Jisheng explained, shaking the head in his hand.
After being captured by Lin Baici and sent to the Jiuzhou Security Bureau, he underwent a series of examinations and experiments, which ultimately proved he had not eaten any innards.
Someone else was responsible for those acts.
Of course, Yi Jisheng was not innocent. Being a non-human with most of his body composed of medical body models, he was considered a "Taboo thing," capable of radioactive contamination.
He unwittingly contaminated a stolen body model, which developed consciousness, the ability to move freely, and a taste for animal innards.
The monster Lin Baici killed at Haijing Medical University was the result of Yi Jisheng’s contamination, but if Lin Baici hadn’t killed it first, it would have eventually started eating human innards.
"How did you regain your freedom?"
Lin Baici was curious.
"Director Xia vouched for me!"
Mentioning Xia Hongmian, Yi Jisheng’s face was full of reverence; obviously, he had been severely disciplined by Xia Hongyao’s sister, and fear was deeply etched into his bones.
Yi Jisheng was not a lifeform but could think and live like a Human. This was unique among the hunter organizations.
Xia Hongmian thought it was a waste to keep him locked up since the data collected was limited, so she released him.
"From now on, we’ll be colleagues!"
Yi Jisheng grinned, showing off a set of white teeth from god-knows-where, which gleamed in the moonlight.
After regaining his freedom, his first assignment from Xia Hongmian was to capture the creature that ate innards and prove his innocence.
Yi Jisheng wandered around near the Medical University for over a month until he finally encountered the creature and successfully killed it.
Instead of reporting back, he directly came to meet Lin Baici, carrying the decapitated head.
"What do you plan to do?"
After hearing Yi Jisheng’s story, Lin Baici roughly guessed the creature’s intent. It was probably after some silicone dolls.
"I bring you this head, and you can claim the reward for it."
Yi Jisheng looked eagerly at Lin Baici: "You buy me five dolls!"
Lin Baici remained silent, watching Yi Jisheng.
Yi Jisheng licked his lips and shrank back, his demeanor weakening: "Three...three will do, no less!"
"To catch this creature, I even lost a leg!"
"Why don’t you claim the reward yourself?"
Lin Baici didn’t understand.
Yi Jisheng fell silent, basically it was six words, distrust, discomfort—he had indeed gained freedom, but his time at the Security Bureau had not been without stripping and research.
If it weren’t for Xia Hongmian’s timely intervention, Yi Jisheng might have caused a commotion ending in death. Compared to those Security Bureau people, Lin Baici, the first human he encountered, seemed quite alright.
"I’ve been back and checked; you’ve taken very good care of my wives!"
Yi Jisheng bowed solemnly to Lin Baici: "Thank you!"
Those body models had been kept very clean.
"A small favor!" Latest content published on noⅴelfire.net
Lin Baici had not even lifted a hand; he paid for a cleaning service. The lady who arrived had almost thought Lin Baici was a maniac after seeing a room full of body models.