The Heir to the Seven Killers in the City

Chapter 25: Forced by Circumstances

“Brother Qin Yu, Brother Qin Yu! How’s your injury?” Someone was calling Qin Yu’s name—the voice sounded very familiar. He forced his eyes open, and after a brief moment of dizziness, he saw clearly that it was Lin Xiaorui calling out to him. “Run!” Before Qin Yu could say a word, he heard Lin Xiaorui shout again. Only then did he realize he wasn’t lying in bed after all, but standing at a street corner. Before he could react, Lin Xiaorui had vanished. A group of hooded figures approached from the same direction, all simultaneously drawing their pistols and aiming them at Qin Yu. No matter how skilled Qin Yu was, he couldn’t go head-to-head with pistols; he had no choice but to evade the danger and take off running. But things weren’t going to go as smoothly as he’d hoped. He’d barely taken a couple of steps when he was surrounded again by the Fire Scorpion Gang’s second-in-command. With pursuers ahead and danger behind, Qin Yu knew he couldn’t hesitate any longer; only by fighting with all his might would he have a sliver of hope. But just as he made up his mind and looked up, he saw a bullet flying toward his forehead at a steady speed—there was no way to dodge it now. Was this how he was going to die? With a whoosh, Qin Yu, who had been fast asleep, sat up, panting heavily, a bead of sweat trickling down his forehead. This startled Zhang Qiqi, who had been tending to Qin Yu, but she quickly recovered and exclaimed happily, “Brother Qin, you’re finally awake!” Then she called out toward the kitchen again, “Brother, Brother Qin is awake—come quick!” As for Qin Yu, he was still immersed in that life-threatening dream and couldn’t quite snap out of it. He patted his head and muttered to himself, “Where am I?” “Whoa, you haven’t gone senile from sleeping too long, have you? Don’t try to scam me—I’m not paying for any treatment, and forget about compensation!” Zhang Xiaofei walked into the living room and, having overheard Qin Yu’s mutterings, spoke up. The voice was so familiar, and the endless chatter—how could Qin Yu not know who it was? When he turned his head and saw Zhang Qiqi, who was overjoyed that he had woken up, everything came flooding back to him. While he was being hunted down, he’d hurriedly taken refuge at the home of his former best friend, Zhang Xiaofei. Probably due to excessive blood loss, he’d actually passed out. “Xiaofei, cut it out,” Qin Yu said, clutching his head, which was still throbbing intermittently. “Oh, so you know who I am. Looks like I saved myself some money,” Zhang Xiaofei said as he sat down on the sofa right next to Qin Yu, then continued to ramble, “Bro, do you have any idea how long you’ve been asleep? A whole day and night!” This remark seemed to remind Zhang Qiqi of something. She stood up and said, “Brother Qin must be hungry. I’ll go to the kitchen and make something to eat.” With that, she hummed a tune as she walked into the kitchen. “Tsk, tsk. Look at that—not even your own brother gets treated this well. But when you walked in covered in blood, you really scared that little girl. She’s been by your side through this whole day and night.” Listening to Zhang Xiaofei’s words, Qin Yu watched Zhang Qiqi humming a little tune as she prepared the meal in the kitchen, feeling a strange mix of emotion and bittersweetness. It had been far too long since he’d been treated with such genuine warmth. Especially after mastering the Seven Kills Sutra, his temperament had changed drastically. Thinking about it now, if he hadn’t met the two of them, he feared he might have gradually turned into a cold-blooded creature over time. Over dinner, the three of them talked at length—reminiscing about the past and dreaming of the future. Qin Yu was in such high spirits, yet he didn’t share his own story. The brother and sister tentatively asked about it, but Qin Yu remained silent, so they didn’t press the matter further. The three of them had indeed grown up together in an orphanage. From a young age, Qin Yu and Zhang Xiaofei had been as close as brothers, and Qin Yu treated Zhang Qiqi just as he would his own younger sister. Zhang Xiaofei was known as the troublemaker at the orphanage, and one had to admit he was indeed more mature than other children his age, so Zhang Xiaofei was usually the one leading the mischief back then. Zhang Qiqi was different; she had been very well-behaved since childhood. Sometimes Qin Yu really felt that, apart from their appearance, these two siblings didn’t resemble each other in the slightest. He glanced up at Zhang Xiaofei’s leering grin and dismissed that thought once again. No, they didn’t even look alike. Zhang Qiqi was so delicate and well-behaved that she had many opportunities to be adopted, but because she didn’t want to leave her older brother and Qin Yu, none of those opportunities ever came to fruition. Once they were both past compulsory education age, the older brother took his younger sister under his wing. Zhang Xiaofei started getting involved in the underworld, and thanks to his defiant spirit and street smarts, he managed to keep both himself and his sister from being bullied. But you can’t walk along the riverbank without getting your shoes wet. During yet another clash between rival gangs, he was stabbed. That single stab nearly cost him his life, but afterward, after Zhang Qiqi’s relentless persuasion, Zhang Xiaofei finally got back on the straight and narrow. He bought this house and took on some manual labor jobs, while his sister, who was quite good-looking, worked as a receptionist at a nearby bar. They managed to get by pretty well each month. “Damn it, a few years back I heard through the grapevine that this area was slated for demolition. I blew all my savings on this dump of a house, but just last year that old bastard in charge of the demolition got taken down for embezzlement. Damn it, now they’re not even going to tear this place down!” Zhang Xiaofei cursed under his breath. Since Qin Yu was there today, Zhang Xiaofei had a few drinks—and even complained that Qin Yu couldn’t keep up with him because of his injury. The two got more and more excited as they chatted; before they knew it, it was already dark, and even though Zhang Qiqi had left for work, the two of them still weren’t done. Once he was slightly tipsy, Zhang Xiaofei started talking without a filter. “Yuzi, tell me the truth, you little rascal. What kind of trouble did you get into out there? Holy cow, you even used a gun! I’ve been on the streets for so many years, and I’ve hardly ever seen a gun. What’s the deal? Are you running wild out there now, even more than your big brother Fei Ge?” Qin Yu looked at the slightly tipsy Zhang Xiaofei and was momentarily at a loss for words. “Are we still brothers or not? You won’t even tell me? What’s the deal? Trying to play the hero all by yourself? Let me tell you, it’s a good thing I’m so badass—ever seen anyone pull a bullet casing out with their bare hands? That’s exactly what I did today, though I’ve never seen a bullet penetrate so shallowly either.” Qin Yu had a rough idea of what had happened. Thanks to the Seven Kill Sutra, his body had been continuously strengthened; even though the bullet had entered his body, it hadn’t penetrated as deeply as it would have in an ordinary person. So Qin Yu tentatively stood up, took a couple of slow steps, and found that aside from a slight stiffness in his knee where he’d been shot, he felt perfectly fine. This left Zhang Xiaofei completely dumbfounded; the peanut he’d almost put in his mouth fell right onto the table. “Holy shit, am I seeing things? Yuzi, you’re way cooler than me—you got shot and you’re already back on your feet after just one day!” Qin Yu smiled slightly, feeling a bit awkward. He didn’t know how to explain it at the moment, so he decided not to explain at all—the less they knew, the better for them. “Xiaofei, we’re brothers. What I’m dealing with goes beyond the realm of normal science, and the dangers I face aren’t something you can handle. Listen, you can’t tag along with me—you’ve got a little sister to take care of.” Zhang Xiaofei shuddered, and suddenly felt all the effects of the alcohol wear off. His mind was in complete chaos—images of Captain America, androids, and Super Saiyans were flashing through his head. He shook his head again, his gaze fixed firmly on Qin Yu. “You’re right. I do have a younger sister, and I can tell that if I go with you, I’ll just be holding you back. But I can’t just stand by and do nothing. If there’s anything I can help with, just let me know. If you can get out of there unscathed, come back. I know you haven’t had it easy out there—consider this your home.” Zhang Xiaofei’s sudden outpouring of emotion made Qin Yu feel a bit uneasy; the two grown men were practically on the verge of hugging each other and weeping. Yet every word Zhang Xiaofei spoke had sunk deep into Qin Yu’s heart. He’d had enough of his previous life of killing. At that moment, he didn’t want to think about wiping out all the evildoers in the world—he just wanted to live a peaceful life with the two of them, brother and sister. But then Qin Yu recalled the scenes from his dream. Neither Lin Hao nor the Fire Scorpion Gang would let him off the hook, and retiring from the underworld wasn’t something he could do right now. So he said, “Xiaofei, I promise you, I’ll come back. But you have to understand that I’m being hunted down right now and am in deep trouble. If I stay here now, I’ll only be putting you both in danger. Wait for me.” As he spoke, he casually picked up a shirt from Xiaofei’s hanger and walked toward the door. “Every second I stay here puts you in danger. We’ll see each other again someday.” “Hey, damn it, you’ve got a way with clothes. That shirt’s super expensive—be careful with it.” “Wait a minute! Keep the shirt—I’ve got a car, so I’ll give you a ride.”