A Familiar Stranger

The next day, Li Chunsheng, uncharacteristically, rose early to prepare himself. He donned the clothes Mu Shengling had bought him, ready to depart for his appointment.

“Chunsheng, when you meet Miss Liao, you absolutely must not be impolite, alright?” Liuxia spoke like an old mother fretting over her son before a blind date.

“I know, I know. I just need to get the money back, isn’t that enough?” Li Chunsheng replied, a touch of impatience in his voice.

‘To be honest, I don’t quite trust him… After all, she’s Investigator Liao’s daughter. If we arouse her suspicion, it won’t end well for us.’

“Don’t worry,” Li Chunsheng reassured, “That’s precisely why I arranged to meet Liao Xinyi so quickly. I won’t give her time to grow suspicious.”

“Sigh… you’ll have to handle it yourself. Senior Sister can’t help you with these matters now.”

“Alright, I’m off then! Senior Sister, you wake up so early every day, go back and get some more sleep.”

“Wait? Did you forget to bring something?”

“Oh, no, I didn’t! Stop always thinking I’m so scatterbrained, okay?”

“You’ve always been forgetful since you were little, always misplacing things and needing Senior Sister to find them for you… Just a few days ago, you forgot your umbrella… and your lunchbox…”

“Alright, alright, Senior Sister, are you becoming more and more like my mom now?”

“Oh, right, we’re orphans. We don’t have a mom.”

Li Chunsheng waved his hand, turning and departing as if fleeing a nagging mother.

‘Sigh, now that my body’s a girl’s, I can’t even assert my authority over Chunsheng anymore. This child is truly becoming more disobedient…’

Liuxia watched Li Chunsheng leave with a worried gaze. For some unknown reason, a sense of unease settled in her heart.

‘Strange, why do I feel so restless and anxious with Chunsheng going out?’

‘Is it just my imagination?’

Liuxia shook her head, closed the apartment door securely, and returned inside to wash the breakfast dishes.

The young woman washed quickly. After all, this routine had become second nature to her even when she was a man.

Just as Liuxia was about to finish the last plate…

“Thump, thump, thump…” A knocking sound echoed from outside the door.

Liuxia froze, her gaze cautiously fixed on the entrance.

‘Who could it be?’ The young woman remained silent.

Li Chunsheng and the neighbors in this apartment building had never interacted much, so since Liuxia had moved into Li Chunsheng’s home, no neighbor had ever come to visit.

Liuxia pondered, tiptoeing towards the door with soft, silent steps.

Her delicate feet made no sound on the apartment’s smooth floor.

Finally, she reached the door and peered through the peephole.

The next second, Liuxia’s tense expression instantly relaxed.

Standing outside the door was none other than her junior, Li Chunsheng, who appeared somewhat irritable.

“Chunsheng…” The young woman sighed, opening the door.

“See, you forgot something again, didn’t you?”

“You’re knocking on your own door to come home? Did you forget your key?”

Li Chunsheng nodded, his expression peculiar, as if slightly embarrassed.

Liuxia gave him a helpless glance, then turned and walked back into the apartment.

“Hmm, let me see, where did you put your key?”

“You usually put it in your pants, but I always take it out before washing them… and put it on the coffee table in the living room.”

“Senior Sister has told you so many times, how can you still not remember…”

Liuxia muttered, almost to herself, as she headed towards her destination.

Suddenly, the young woman’s steps halted, a bead of cold sweat trickling down her forehead.

‘No, the key isn’t on the coffee table!’

She didn’t even need to reach the coffee table. With Liuxia’s current senses, she could clearly perceive that the key she had placed there was missing.

So… who was following behind her?

Liuxia was instantly terrified, her back drenched in cold sweat.

For a moment, she didn’t even dare to turn around.

“Chunsheng? Why aren’t you speaking?” The young woman swallowed, trying to sound normal as she inquired, all while continuing to walk forward.

“Oh, right, I remember now! Oh dear, look at my memory. I put your key by the washing machine in the bathroom!”

“Just wait there. Senior Sister will go get it for you personally.”

With that, Liuxia quickened her pace slightly, but not too much, fearing that the unknown Li Chunsheng behind her would discover her true intentions.

By now, Liuxia, her guard fully raised, had also noticed that the scent emanating from the person behind her was not pleasant at all!

Indeed, the real Li Chunsheng always exuded a pleasant aroma.

However, Liuxia had grown accustomed to coexisting with this scent, no longer reacting with the same intensity as she had initially.

Just as the saying goes, ‘one grows accustomed to even the sweetest scent,’ Liuxia’s increasing familiarity with Li Chunsheng’s aroma meant she hadn’t immediately detected the discrepancy.

‘That person… is definitely not Chunsheng.’

‘To be able to perfectly impersonate Chunsheng, preventing me from identifying them immediately—that’s certainly not something a Black Iron-tier could accomplish!’

‘It must be at least a Bronze-tier Authority! Is it someone from the Holy Temple? The current me absolutely cannot contend with them.’

‘But they haven’t attacked immediately. Could it be that for some reason, they cannot directly intervene? Otherwise, a Bronze-tier Paladin, even without using their Authority, is not an opponent I can face head-on.’

‘I must escape quickly…’

Liuxia immediately darted into the bathroom and closed the door.

“Ha… ha…” Only then did the young woman dare to catch her breath.

Still, she dared not lower her guard, shouting, “Chunsheng, Senior Sister suddenly feels unwell and needs to use the restroom. Please wait a moment!”

With that, Liuxia hurriedly ran towards a ventilation window inside the bathroom.

The ventilation window was small, but for the now petite Liuxia, it was just large enough to climb through.

‘Chunsheng’s house is on the second floor. If I jump from this height, my body should be able to withstand it…’

‘And I still have some healing abilities, so it should be fine!’

‘I must escape quickly and inform Chunsheng! This house is no longer safe to return to!’

The ventilation window drew nearer. However, just as the young woman was about to touch it, a soft yet firm wall blocked Liuxia’s path, causing her to collide directly with it.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch…” Liuxia clutched her head, crying out in pain. But the next moment, her limbs turned ice cold.

The ventilation window was right in front of her, so why had she crashed into an invisible wall?

‘No!’ The young woman spun around abruptly, desperate to flee.

Yet, at that moment, the entire world before Liuxia plunged into instantaneous darkness—a darkness even deeper than a moonless night.

The young woman was overcome by despair. She instinctively tensed, beginning to strike out wildly like a hissing cat.

“I think I understand how to use this Authority now…” A somewhat familiar voice echoed in Liuxia’s ear.

“If I want to use it for an attack? Can I use it like this?”

From the words, it seemed this familiar voice was also quite unfamiliar with using the Authority.

“Ah, I’ve got it! If I just gather it to a single point!”

Listening to these words, Liuxia felt utterly terrified. She wanted to escape but didn’t know how.

However, the next moment, the young woman no longer had to worry about it, for she felt two searing objects pierce through her legs.

“Ugh… Aaaahhhhhh…!!” Liuxia screamed in agony.