"What did you give me to eat?" Li Daili asked, her eyes wide with terror. The pill had already gone down her throat, making it impossible for her to spit it out.
"Poison. In twelve hours, if there's no antidote, you'll die a painful death with your insides bursting, your face covered in green pustules," Ning Beichen lied, intending to scare her.
In reality, the pill was a common one, beneficial to her health. But Ning Beichen had no intention of revealing the truth.
"You... you bastard, give me the antidote quickly."
Although she felt nothing at first, as soon as Li Daili heard it was poison, a burning sensation erupted in her abdomen, making her believe the poison was indeed taking effect.
"Whatever you say, I'll give you the antidote if you come with me. Otherwise, wait for death. I'm sure you'll look terrible when you die," Ning Beichen smacked his lips, trying his best to intimidate her. He needed her astrological skills to find Ms. Su's daughter, Su Su.
While his methods were somewhat despicable, Ning Beichen had never claimed to be a good person. Resorting to any means to achieve one's goals wasn't exclusive to villains.
Under Ning Beichen's threat, Li Daili had no choice but to pack her things and go with him, fearing death and a gruesome demise.
"You promised. Once I help you find the person, you'll give me the antidote and let me go," Li Daili said angrily after packing.
"Don't worry, I keep my word," Ning Beichen assured her.
Li Daili couldn't be sure if Ning Beichen's promise was truly binding, but she had no other choice. She could only trust that he wouldn't lie, or pray that he would keep his word.
Soon, Ning Beichen led Li Daili away and headed for Oranje.
After another series of tiresome events, Ning Beichen and his group finally arrived in Oranje.
"Miss Li Daili, it's time for you to play your part," Ning Beichen said.
Li Daili resigned herself to her fate and took out her crystal ball to perform astrology. All her attempts to entice Ning Beichen during the journey had been met with indifference; he treated her as if she were a block of wood, completely unmoved. This infuriated her, and she silently cursed him as a stubborn and possibly gay man. Despite her displeasure, Li Daili dared not challenge Ning Beichen, having already suffered enough at his hands. So, she began to perform her astrological divination.
After a while, Li Daili suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood and weakly told Ning Beichen, "I've found her. She's somewhere above, but the exact location is uncertain. She seems to be hiding."
"Let's go," Ning Beichen immediately headed towards the slums, which loomed like a mountain.
Yan Xiong's men had separated from Ning Beichen; they had all seen a photo of Ms. Su's daughter, while Ning Beichen was with Li Daili. This was partly for her protection and partly because Ning Beichen needed her to help him locate Su Su at any time. To avoid unnecessary complications, Ning Beichen had instructed Yan Xiong and his men to keep a low profile and not use their superhuman abilities too much. The reason was simple: Ning Beichen didn't want to cause panic worldwide. Besides, Yan Xiong and his ilk shouldn't really exist in this world.
Though this world was far from perfect, with environmental issues, viruses, an era of declining magic, wars, and nuclear weapons that could cause immense destruction or even annihilation, these were ultimately humanity's choices. Ning Beichen had no intention of changing any of it, nor could he.
"Move," Ning Beichen, ignoring a reluctant Li Daili, dragged her along.
"Hey, is this woman really not related to you?"
"Why are you searching for her all over the world?"
"Are you really just doing this on behalf of her mother?"
"Hello, hello, say something! What kind of people are you? Detectives? Or mercenaries?"
"..."
"Shut up!" Ning Beichen couldn't stand her incessant chatter.
"Fine, I'll shut up. Why are you so fierce? Hmph! Not a shred of gentlemanly conduct." Li Daili finally fell silent.
However, it wasn't long before she caused trouble again.
"I can't walk anymore. My feet are blistered." Li Daili plopped down on a step and took off her high heels. Indeed, her heels were red and blistered. Despite being an astrologer, her physical condition was ordinary, and her vanity led her to wear eight-centimeter heels, making it impossible for her to walk for long.
Ning Beichen frowned. He didn't scold or berate her. After all, she was helping him, and he had brought her here by force.
"I'll carry you," Ning Beichen said, squatting down.
Li Daili didn't stand on ceremony and climbed onto his back, feeling smug. She couldn't afford to offend him, but she could at least make him suffer a little.
Ning Beichen, however, had no such thoughts. He carried her and strode forward. But even he hadn't anticipated the sheer size and chaos of the slums. Along the way, he was spotted by several people, residents of the slums, or rather, local thugs. Seeing Ning Beichen carrying a woman, they naturally assumed they were a couple of tourists ripe for the picking. So, not long after starting, Ning Beichen was stopped by seven or eight armed individuals.
"Dear sir, would you be so kind as to hand over your wallet, phone, jewelry, and anything of value? Of course, your beautiful companion behind you as well," the thugs said with grinning threats, even adopting a rather gentlemanly tone.
"Scram!" Ning Beichen's only response was a curt command.
"Sir, you're not being friendly. I think you've forgotten where you are. That's right, this is our territory. If you don't want to lose a few fingers, I suggest you comply with our orders," a curly-haired black man said fiercely, pointing a handgun at Ning Beichen.
"Get lost." Ning Beichen had no time to waste with these ruffians. He kicked the man away with a single stomp.
"Damn it, he dared to fight back! Take him down!" The other thugs lunged at Ning Beichen, completely unaware of who they were up against. In the blink of an eye, before Li Daili could even feel fear, all the thugs were sent flying like ragdolls, kicked by Ning Beichen.