522: 8.122 Chat A Bit?*

8.122 Chat A Bit?*

When it came to hiding and stalking, if Lu Yizhou claimed to be second, then no one would dare to take the first place.1

After the morning photoshoot session, his blonde hair had become too eye-catching and hence, he slipped on a black wig Ellen had retrieved from the costume crews. A pair of thick framed glasses were sitting atop of his nose, hiding his handsome face from plain sight. In an instant, he transformed into a nerdy white collar worker and seamlessly merged with the crowd.

He was sitting on one of the sofas in the lounge bar. From his position, he could see Ellen posing according to Photographer Song's demand with a dead fish look on his eyes. The distance was far enough that Lu Yizhou would not be noticed by the flock of fans, but close enough that he could rush to Ellen as soon as something happened. 

Ellen's little interaction with Chu Lingshe did not escape his eyes either. Lu Yizhou could read lips and although his sight was sometimes blocked by the passersby, he could more or less guess what they were talking about. He could not help but snort. Chu Lingshe, this shrewd woman, was really problematic.

In front of him, Cyrus was scribbling on his notebook whereas Luan was sipping on a glass of blue soda.

"Okay, so that's the plan. We have no idea what kind of power the bug has in this world. But as long as we're cautious enough, it will be okay." Cyrus closed his notebook and slipped it into his inner pocket. Nobody knew that the seemingly simple notebook contained the full blueprints of the complex labyrinth which every werewolf was dying to get. Cyrus could not help but laugh whenever he thought about it. "It's really convenient to have a system. Everyone is still trying to map the closest area to their room but we already have the complete blueprints. Even the room numbers at that!"

[666: Ehem, yes, yes, this is the work of the almighty 666! Please admire it some more!]

Lu Yizhou let out a quiet snort. "If it can't even do something like this after three days, then it deserves to be recycled into the bin."

[666: *gasp* How… How cruel, Host! QAQ]

"How about the second bug?" Cyrus asked with concern on his face. "We still haven't confirmed their identity yet. I am afraid that something unexpected will happen—"

"It won't."

Cyrus' eyes widened in surprise. He exchanged a glance with Luan and asked eagerly. "Have you locked in on them?"

This time, Lu Yizhou took longer time to answer. His gaze shifted to where the photoshoot session was going on and an indecipherable light flashed through his eyes. "I have a guess," was what he only said in the end.

Cyrus looked at him and knew that he would not be able to find anything out from Lu Yizhou anymore. He shrugged, shelved the thought for later, and offered his hand. He was certain that Lu Yizhou would tell him when the time came. As for why he was hesitating… Cyrus could not begin to guess. "Happy cooperation," he said with a smile.

Lu Yizhou reached out and shook it firmly. "Happy cooperation."

***

[Night three. Werewolves, wake up and begin to hunt.]

Lu Yizhou had not slept a wink and hence, he was not jolted awake by the notification this time. It was different for the person in his arms though. Ella roused awake and rubbed her eyes sleepily. "Brother, what time is it…?"

Lu Yizhou gently held her wrist to prevent her from hurting her eyes. "It's ten pm." Even then, the scenery outside was pitch black. All they could hear was the steady echo of the waves. He told Ella, "Don't forget to choose yourself to heal, okay?"

"Okay… done!" Ella's golden eyes seemed to twinkle. "Big brother, are you going out to fight the bad guys again?"

Lu Yizhou hummed in agreement. He tucked the strand of Ella's hair behind her ear and contemplated on where to start. He had a lot of questions to ask, but he feared that asking it would trigger some bad memories. After all, Ella's subconsciousness seemed to be connected with Zeke's lost memory. Lu Yizhou considered it for a while and asked, "You're not having nightmares anymore?"

Ella shook her head. "It's just…" She trailed off and giggled out of nowhere. 

The corner of Lu Yizhou's lips drew an imperceptible arc. "Is it a good dream?" He asked softly while stroking Ella's hair.

"Hmm, it can be said so…" Ella giggled again. "It's so weird. Big brother, I dreamed that I had turned into a cat!"

Lu Yizhou raised a brow. His first thought went to the world when his lover had become a cat omega with a pair of black ears and fluffy tail on his butt. That was also the time when they consummated their wedding for the first time. Lu Yizhou could not help but reminisce. The event seemed to have come from a few lifetimes ago and he could not help but feel old again. 

He showed a helpless smile. "Is that so?"

"Hmm!" Ella cupped both of her hands in front of her chest to emphasize. "I am so small like this and everyone is a giant! The world becomes so big and scary. Fortunately, big brother picked me up!"

Lu Yizhou did not think too much about it and simply went along with Ella's childish chatter. "Me?"

"Hmm-mm!" She nodded again with a wide grin on her face. "Big brother's hands are so big and warm. Ella likes it very much!" She continued to babble for a few more minutes and her mouth stretched open into a yawn. Lu Yizhou tucked the blanket tighter around her. 

"Ella?"

"Hmm…?" She responded drowsily.

Lu Yizhou closed and opened his mouth, unable to form any words. His chest tightened in nervousness and he was afraid that… the answer he received would confirm his greatest fear. When Ella asked again, Lu Yizhou finally bit the bullet and gritted out, "Have you… talked to your Sister recently?"

It took a few seconds for his question to fully seep into Ella's mind. "Sister?" She had a blank look on her face. "Sister is…"

Lu Yizhou's heart thumped wildly. "She is…?"

Ella had a contemplative look on her face. Lu Yizhou even forgot to breathe as he waited for the words to come out of her mouth. Unbeknownst to him, a thin layer of sweat formed on his palms. 

"Yes, I have talked to Sister once." Ella finally said. "She told me that she's going to sleep for a while and then…" Ella raised her eyes to stare at Lu Yizhou. For a split second, her gaze was devoid of the usual cheerfulness and the gravity reminded him of Ellen. "...she also told me to be careful."

"To be careful?" Lu Yizhou asked with a strange tone. "...Of what?"

"I don't know…" Ella shrugged lightly. "But she told me to stay close to big brother because big brother is the only one who can protect me." She scratched her head, confused. "Do you understand what she is talking about, big brother?"

Lu Yizhou inhaled sharply and could not help but show a bitter smile. "I do." He quickly composed his turbulent emotions and told Ella seriously. "Thank you so much for telling me. Just like last night, there will be a big brother outside. If you need something, don't hesitate to call him, okay?" 

Ella's lips pulled up into a grin. "Okay! Don't worry, big brother. Ella will be okay by herself!"

Lu Yizhou bid her goodnight with a kiss on her forehead and walked out. Cyrus and Luan were already waiting for him outside. Cyrus keenly sensed something was off with him and raised a brow in silent inquiry. However, he opted not to say anything in the end which Lu Yizhou was grateful for. He was not ready to say anything. Not yet.

"So, which one of you will go with me?" Lu Yizhou looked at them back and forth.

Between Cyrus and Luan, one of them had to stay on guard here in case there would be werewolves who wanted to hurt Ella and the other would follow Lu Yizhou to get rid of the bug. 

Cyrus made a decision. "I will stay here. Let Luan go with you."

Luan silently reached out to squeeze his hands. Cyrus' smile became softer when he turned to him. "Go and settle our debts, Luan." They had been waiting for this moment for a long time. Because of the bug, Luan's vocal cord was damaged and he could not speak momentarily. Even now when he had recovered, he had lost his beautiful voice. That's why this bug… Luan had to end them with his own hands.

Luan gave a firm nod in tacit understanding.

"Let's go," Lu Yizhou curtly said.

Both men were taciturn to begin with so they spent the journey in silence. With 666's blueprints in hands, they were like fish swimming in clear water, agile and fast. They deliberately chose safe paths and avoided the red-shaded areas which had been marked as a trap. Along the way, they met a few werewolves. This was the first time Lu Yizhou had ventured this far so it was not strange that he had entered another werewolf's territory. However, they merely stared at each other cautiously and did not take an initiative to fight. After all, this was a precarious time for werewolves camp. What they needed the least was internal fighting. 

It took less than fifteen minutes for Lu Yizhou and Luan to arrive at their destination. 

It was another VVIP suite door that was identical to Ellen's. Lu Yizhou summoned his silver gun without hesitation and shot the door panel. The electric lock issued a faint silver crackle before giving out. After that, Lu Yizhou pushed the door open without hesitation. 

The layout inside was also identical to Ellen's room. Only the position of the window was different and hence, Lu Yizhou immediately locked in on the figure that was sitting on the sofa. To no one's surprise, the bug had been waiting for them.

Lu Yizhou reloaded his gun and aimed.

"Wait a moment," a calm voice sounded. The bug stood up and turned around, their silhouette immersed in the dark. 

Luan entered behind him and flicked the switch on. In an instant, bright light awashed the whole room and revealed the appearance of the bug in front of them. Even at gunpoint, there was not a hint of fear or anxiety on the bug's face.

"Barging in so violently in the middle of the night, why don't we chat a bit?" Chu Lingshe showed a beautiful smile, her eyes crinkled in genuine happiness as they landed on Lu Yizhou. "After all, I have been waiting for so long."

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A/N: the identity of the first bug is revealed! Which one of you has guessed correctly? Hehehe. I think there's a lot of hidden foreshadowing in this one chapter ^^

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