Chapter 149: Dark Boundless Realm 04
“What are we going to do next?” He Kangshi asked.
“Find a safe house,” Kui Xin replied.
“That could be tough. I can find a place to rent, but for a safe house… at the very least, it needs to guarantee privacy and security, with all kinds of facilities in place,” He Kangshi said, troubled. “I’m still relying on others myself.”
“Don’t worry, just take care of yourself first,” Kui Xin looked at him and said. “You know the forces here better than I do. Tell me about the gangs near the Black Market in the Midnight District, which gang is strong, which gang has money, and which gang is connected with the ‘upper class’ in the Poleward District…”
He Kangshi’s gaze toward Kui Xin changed. He initially thought that the Black Snake Gang and Maotoufu had come to White Whale City to establish a base for long-term development, but looking at Maotoufu’s demeanor… it seemed far from simple.
“You can’t be thinking…” He Kangshi paused, swallowing the rest of his words.
“You say,” Kui Xin glanced at him.
“You can’t be thinking of wiping out all the gangs in the Midnight District, right?” He Kangshi said with a hint of gloom. “That’s not very realistic; I’m just guessing.”
How could one person sweep through the entire Midnight District? Maotoufu wasn’t Superman. To put it bluntly, the players had only been in Crimson Soil for about four weeks; how much could they grow in that time? Even the first batch of beta testers had barely just graduated from the novice stage, and most of them were living cautiously, not daring to strike first.
Kui Xin casually said, “Your strength isn’t too good; just be my guide. I won’t let you do anything dangerous.”
“I know.” He Kangshi scratched his head. “I’m a rookie; I’m already grateful that the boss is willing to protect me. Now that you’re here in White Whale City, it feels like I have a backing… Sometimes I can’t help but marvel at how big the gap is between people. While I was still rolling in the mud, the boss was already making plans.”
The idle chat ended there.
He Kangshi and Kui Xin found a hidden spot to start exchanging intelligence about various gangs in the Midnight District. Having been in this place for several weeks, he had gathered the necessary information through various channels, and he emphasized the uncertain information to Kui Xin, afraid he might forget something.
Half an hour later, Kui Xin rode her motorbike to drop He Kangshi back at the bar and exchanged contact information with a spare communicator.
Just as He Kangshi was about to wave goodbye to Kui Xin, she stepped on the gas and disappeared without looking back at the end of the street.
“This lady really won’t say a single unnecessary word…” he muttered to himself. “The boss is much more approachable.”
…
On the first day in White Whale City, how could there be no safe house? Without a secure place to stay, how could subsequent actions unfold? After a fight, where would one go to heal and rest? Where to replenish weapons and supplies?
Establishing a secure base requires money, obtaining weapons and supplies also requires money; even having money isn’t enough; one also needs connections and networks.
Kui Xin had none of these, so she planned to take what was available.
Starting off with a gun, all equipment obtained through theft.
Kui Xin organized the information she received from He Kangshi and had Augus pull out case files from the Bureau of Investigation and Order Maintenance to further confirm the general situation in the Midnight District.
Ultimately, her gaze settled on a moderately sized force in the Midnight District.
“Hmm, the boss is named Boris… an ordinary person, not an Awakened, running a medium-sized nightclub…” Kui Xin pondered over the data. “He was previously convicted of indecent assault, so he became a level five citizen, not allowed to enter the Poleward District, but he has several relatives doing business there, making him relatively well-connected… it’s him.”
Running a nightclub means having money. He has goons and connections to get weapons and supplies.
Kui Xin wouldn’t kill him but would control him, turning him into a puppet to stand in front of her, providing her with money and a base of operations for the time being.
Always efficient, once she confirmed her target, Kui Xin rode her motorbike straight over.
She parked three blocks away from her target’s location, locked the bike, and walked to the nightclub.
It was daytime, and the Midnight District was far less lively than at night; the bars and nightclubs were completely empty, which was convenient for Kui Xin’s actions.
Since it was daytime, Kui Xin, accustomed to nighttime operations, felt a subtle awkwardness… habits can be a terrifying thing.
She blinked, activated data manipulation, and the scene before her was transmitted through her electronic eye, clearly presenting itself in her brain. The data port’s location was evident, with “doors” and “lines” intertwining.
Kui Xin hacked into the nightclub’s surveillance system; the hallways, corridors, and offices were all equipped with cameras. Now, these cameras became extensions of her eyes, helping her locate her target.
She effortlessly spotted the target’s figure in an office on the third floor of the nightclub. The camera quietly rotated to focus on Boris.
Boris was counting gold bars, stacking them one by one, carefully opening the safe hidden behind a bookshelf to store the gold bars.
Kui Xin smirked slightly, disabled all the surveillance cameras, and boldly walked through the back door of the nightclub.
She passed through the corridor, the sound of her leather boots echoing in the silent hallway. The goons Boris employed heard the commotion and, alert, came to confront Kui Xin with various weapons.
Perhaps due to her calm demeanor and lack of concealment, the goons couldn’t figure out whether she was there to cause trouble or to discuss business with their boss, so they hesitated instead of acting immediately.
One goon looked her up and down and said, “Do you have an appointment? State your name.”
Kui Xin raised her hand and disabled the voice modification device in her mask.
In her natural voice, she said, “Put down your weapons.”
Her voice carried an unusual charm that instantly gripped the spirits of the goons.
Suddenly, batons, firearms, and pipes clattered to the ground, scattering everywhere.
“Sleep for ten minutes and forget everything that happened after meeting me,” Kui Xin added.
With her words, the goons collapsed in unison, their movements synchronizing perfectly, creating a rather frightening scene.
A few seconds later, soft snoring resonated through the corridor. They had truly fallen asleep.
Kui Xin glanced at them, stepped over one body after another, and leisurely made her way upstairs.
Upon reaching the third floor, Kui Xin politely knocked on the door of Boris’s office.
A voice came from behind the door: “Come in.”
Kui Xin pushed the door open and then closed it behind her.
“What is it? Is there a problem with the accounts again?” Boris assumed it was his secretary and looked up impatiently, only to freeze in surprise.
“Who are you?” His hand stealthily moved toward the alarm button under the desk.
“Don’t move,” Kui Xin’s lips parted slightly.
Boris’s hand immediately froze in place.
Kui Xin activated “electromagnetic detection,” confirmed everything was in order, and scanned the office’s décor.
Three walls were lined with massive wooden bookshelves, the sofa was leather, and the other furniture was solid wood. A vintage bronze chandelier hung from the ceiling, which looked quite valuable.
Kui Xin smiled with satisfaction, “Not bad, I like the decor of this office; it’ll be mine from now on.”
She casually ordered, “Step aside, go to the side.”
Boris obediently got up and left the desk.
Kui Xin drew a sharp dagger from the straps on her thigh. “Roll up your sleeves.”
Boris undid the ruby buttons of his shirt and jacket, revealing part of his arm.
Kui Xin stabbed the tip of the dagger into Boris’s skin, a drop of crimson blood oozing out.
She retracted the dagger and opened her mask, exposing an opening, and extended her tongue to taste the blood on the blade.
A tremendous wave of memories surged over her, nearly overwhelming her.
Boris had a wealthy upbringing, indulged as a child, and had a reckless personality. In his youth, he became increasingly unrestrained, engaged in fights, and committed many vile acts, ultimately being imprisoned for rape. His family paid a bribe to the Bureau of Investigation and Order Maintenance, reducing the charge to a lesser indecent assault, and he was released from prison quickly. Since the Poleward District did not allow citizens below level four to reside there, he struggled in the Midnight District. Given his solid background, he soon achieved some success and built his own enterprises…
His life was ugly and filthy; while appearing glamorous on the surface, it was actually like rotting flesh, with the filthy, repulsive pus visible at a glance, making one want to retch.
Kui Xin tore herself from the flood of memories that didn’t belong to her. She felt dizzy, suddenly gripping the edge of the desk, bending down to cover her mouth and gag a few times, almost vomiting her lunch.
Using “Blood Spirit” always came with such consequences; dizziness was mild. More importantly, absorbing others’ memories caused mental shocks, as if she went through someone else’s life in a very short time. In severe cases, it could even affect her own psyche, leading to self-identity disorders.
The discomfort of suddenly acquiring a new memory was hard to bear; fragmented memories flitted about, and Boris’s emotions mingled with hers, making her mind a mess.
Kui Xin disgustedly patted her chest and waited for her breath to steady before looking at Boris.
“Give me your villa access card,” she said. “Take out some gold bars from your safe.”
Boris walked to the desk, opened a drawer, took out a black access card, and handed it to Kui Xin, then opened his hidden safe and took out several gold bars.
Kui Xin toyed with them for a while and instructed Boris, “If I hadn’t come, then everything continues as usual.”
“Yes.” Boris nodded obediently like a little sheep.
Kui Xin let out a breath of frustration, suppressing the impulse to hit Boris, and left with the gold bars without looking back.
Reading Boris’s memories truly made her sick.
On her way to White Whale City, she had already accessed the memories of the bartender and Red; only Schalit’s memories and her own remained unread.
The bartender’s memory retrieval had failed because his blood was contaminated—he had received someone else’s blood during a healing process.
Impure blood limited the readings, and Kui Xin only accessed a few scattered memory fragments.
Since each blood memory reading produced a significant mental shock, Kui Xin was restrained and didn’t attempt to read everything at once.
Schalit’s memories and her own were of utmost importance; she needed to find a safe place to read them at ease.
