Chapter 843: The Quiet Residential Complex

843. The Quiet Residential Complex

"Hey, where are you going?"

Several female students blocked Eve's path and pulled her to the side of the teaching building.

There was a patch of shadow there, a place few students dared to approach after school.

"I heard you've been pretty cocky lately?"

One of the female students shoved Eve, pushing her against the wall.

Eve remained silent, simply staring coldly at her aggressor.

"Speak up! Aren't you the one who likes stealing other people's boyfriends?"

Another female student swung her hand hard toward Eve's face.

"What do you think you're doing! Let go!"

Eve grabbed the female student's right wrist. The girl tried to break free but found Eve's grip like a vice—impossible to pull away.

"I didn't steal anyone's boyfriend. He confessed to me, and I turned him down."

Eve shoved aside another girl who tried to attack her. She didn't use much force, but the girl suddenly whipped out a small knife and stabbed toward Eve's side.

Smack!

Eve backhanded the knife-wielding student, sending her flying across the ground.

The remaining students surged forward together, but this time Eve held nothing back—each one received a stinging slap.

"Eve, are you okay! I heard..."

At that moment, a senior male student came running over. He clearly hadn't expected to see a scene like this.

Eve said nothing. She simply walked past him and left the school grounds.

"So naive."

Lin Ye absorbed spiritual energy while enjoying the show. He wouldn't act recklessly, especially not in a public place like a school.

The girl had said there was an important member of the cult and one of their bases here. Anyone important enough to be a core member of the cult was definitely no pushover—at the very least, they'd be Controller-level or stronger.

He was too weak right now. If the cult discovered him, he'd die a very miserable death.

Eve walked home alone. As she passed through a narrow alley, she suddenly noticed the flesh ball in her pocket squirming restlessly.

"What's wrong? Are you hungry? I'll get you something to eat as soon as we get home."

Eve took out the flesh ball, and her expression softened considerably.

Suddenly, the flesh ball rolled out of her hand, bouncing and tumbling its way out of the alley.

"Ah! It's dangerous out there! You can't just run off!"

Eve hurried after it. The main road beyond was filled with passing vehicles.

In a spot she didn't notice, several figures were closing in from her direction. If she hadn't left the alley, she would have been surrounded by them.

"What do we do? Should we chase her out?"

One of the figures spoke up.

"...Forget it. We'll make our move somewhere else."

Another figure replied.

Lin Ye rolled along the ground for a while before Eve snatched him back up.

"What's wrong? Was it too stuffy in there?"

Eve examined the flesh ball worriedly, and only after confirming nothing was wrong did she carefully tuck it back into her pocket.

Lin Ye sensed the surrounding terrain and personnel distribution. This place was more dangerous than he'd expected.

Eve didn't return to the alley. Instead, she followed the main road forward. Before long, she turned into an old residential complex and headed home.

Her home was at the very back of the complex. The place was spotless, with no one else around.

Lin Ye rolled a few circles across the floor. There were only traces of minimal daily living—it seemed Eve lived here alone.

"Come on, time to eat."

Eve placed a plate of what looked like scrambled eggs in front of Lin Ye.

Lin Ye wolfed down the eggs in a few bites. He urgently needed nutrients right now.

Light footsteps echoed from the stairwell. Lin Ye glanced at Eve, then rolled over to the door.

His takeout had arrived.

A flood of blood seeped through the gap under the door into the room. Lin Ye didn't open the door—he simply absorbed some of the nutrients.

Soon, Lin Ye completed his advancement. He was exceptionally skilled at processing flesh and blood materials. With the same amount of material, his utilization rate was at least several times higher than a spiritual energy user of the same rank.

"What is this... ugh..."

The hallway fell eerily silent. A dozen or so flesh balls bounced their way down to the ground floor, where a van was parked.

"Why are you sitting by the door? Isn't it cold over here?"

Eve picked up Lin Ye and returned to her room to continue studying.

"Do you need me to control her for you?"

Little Guardian appeared behind Eve and gently patted her head.

"No need. This is cult territory—I need a cover identity."

Lin Ye sent back a spiritual imprint.

"Then why did you still act? Acting creates openings. If you just left her alone, no one would ever find you."

Little Guardian didn't understand Lin Ye's reasoning.

"We came here to collect a debt. No need to keep such a low profile."

Lin Ye still needed time to develop. Once his Development period ended, he would begin purging the cult members in this plane.

Since there was an important cult member here, the cult base inside was bound to hold something valuable—perfectly fitting as interest on those Trade points.

"Something's off outside. You might not need to hide yourself anymore."

Little Guardian suddenly spoke.

With that, she vanished from the room.

Ring ring ring ring ring...

Eve's phone suddenly went off. She picked it up and pressed the answer button.

"Eve, where are you?!"

A middle-aged man's voice came through the phone.

"I'm at home doing homework."

Eve walked to the window. Down below, a large group of suspicious figures in black robes had gathered.

At the feet of those black-robed figures lay several mutilated corpses, their blood soaking the ground.

"Then stay inside. Don't go out for anything, and don't open the door for anyone! I'm coming to get you right now!"

The man hung up, but just before the call ended, a piercing scream rang out from his end.

Eve looked down at the ground floor. One of the black-robed figures happened to look up, locking eyes with her.

The robe concealed his eyes, but it couldn't hide the cruel smile on his face.

Eve quickly retreated from the window. She lifted the bedboard and pulled out a Spiritual Energy Pistol.

She loaded the pistol with practiced ease, then moved to the door. But she didn't hear any footsteps of the black-robed figures coming upstairs.

The commotion downstairs gradually subsided, as if the chaos had only been an illusion.

Eve didn't relax. She crept back to the window to check the situation below.

All the black-robed figures were gone. So were the corpses and bloodstains on the ground.

Eve couldn't make sense of what was happening. It wasn't like those black-robed figures would clean up the scene before leaving, right?

"...What the hell is going on?"

Eve picked up her phone to call her guardian, only to find she had no signal.

Lin Ye rolled over to Eve's feet. He'd just gone to the door to pick up another takeout delivery, and was now strengthening this body.

"Have you gotten a bit chubbier?"

Eve picked up Lin Ye, looking at him with some confusion.

Lin Ye didn't respond. As his body continued to Alienate, his size gradually returned to its normal state.

Still, his weight had increased somewhat. There was nothing he could do about that.