Chapter 271: The People You Can't Afford to Offend
By the time Lin Qin and the others snapped back to their senses, the old woman and the child had vanished from before their eyes.
It seemed they had gone after Chen Junnan.
"Quick, let's go..." Lin Qin said, coming to her senses. "Those two are far too dangerous! We need to get back immediately!"
The other three quickly nodded and dashed off toward the direction of "Heaven's Gate."
...
Chen Junnan and Qin Dingdong ran for their lives for a while, but as they rounded a corner, they saw the old woman and the child standing right there waiting for them.
"Uh..."
At this sight, Chen Junnan slowly slowed to a stop, bracing himself against the wall and gasping for breath.
He felt he never should have left that room.
It was only the first day!
What kind of monsters had he run into?
Qin Dingdong stood nervously behind Chen Junnan, both of them trying to steady their breathing as much as possible.
"Hey... so it's you..." Chen Junnan finally looked up, putting on a grin. "Oh wow, if it isn't Grandma Ma! What a coincidence, huh?"
"Oh..." The woman known as Grandma Ma narrowed her eyes slightly. "Little Chen, isn't it?"
"Hey! That's me, all right!" Chen Junnan walked forward with a smile, cold sweat beading on his face as he greeted the old woman. "Hey, you know what, I gotta say—after all these years, you're still as spry as ever!"
"Oh my... such a silver tongue." Grandma Ma waved her hand with a laugh. "I'm old now, no good for anything..."
"Where'd you get that idea?" Chen Junnan helped Grandma Ma sit down on the side, then reached out and patted the bare-bottomed child's head. "Look at you! Tiger! You've grown so tall!"
Qin Dingdong stood trembling the whole time. She knew Chen Junnan was stalling for time, but she couldn't think of a way to escape.
"Uncle Chen!" the bare-bottomed child called out with a grin.
"Oh, you little rascal, you remember to call me Uncle Chen now! Come here, let your uncle give you a hug!"
Chen Junnan bent down, trying to lift the child. Although the boy only came up to his thigh, he was as heavy as if rooted to the ground.
No matter how hard he tried, the little boy's feet didn't leave the ground.
"Hey..." Chen Junnan gritted his teeth and struggled for a while, but ultimately failed. "Looks like Tiger's grown up—your uncle can't even lift you anymore..."
"Uncle..." The boy laughed and sniffed at Chen Junnan. "You smell like you'd be really tasty today..."
"Hey!" Chen Junnan patted the boy's head again. "Listen, Tiger, don't mess with your uncle, okay? I've got important business to talk over with Grandma Ma!"
"Mm!" The boy nodded happily, then slowly began to drool. "After you're done talking, can I eat you?"
Hearing that, the smile that had been plastered on Chen Junnan's face slowly faded.
He glanced at the boy warily, then turned to ask the old woman: "Grandma Ma... what brings you two here today? What's the occasion?"
"Oh..." Grandma Ma sat nearby, constantly pounding her back. "Little Chen... I don't know if you heard a commotion a few days ago... a loud 'bang'—such a big sound, so clear, so magnificent!"
"A few days ago...?" Chen Junnan frowned slightly. He naturally had no idea what had happened a few days ago, so he looked back at Qin Dingdong.
Qin Dingdong nodded after hearing this and said, "About six days ago, a 'Resonance' we'd never heard before manifested—even the glass windows shattered."
"What...?" Chen Junnan was stunned. "Even glass shattered?"
He wasn't new to operating in the Land of Elysium, but he'd never seen a Resonance of that level.
"Is it Old Qiao's Resonance?" Chen Junnan asked in a low voice.
"No... it's even stronger than that."
"Even stronger than that?!" Chen Junnan rubbed his chin, thinking for a long time. He ran through almost every famous Resonator in the entire Land of Elysium, but not one matched.
"Little Chen..." Grandma Ma pounded her back again, then stood up with great effort. "We need to find that child. We have to see what his ability is."
"Pfft, that's easy, isn't it?" Chen Junnan's eyes darted, and he quickly stepped forward to help the old woman. "Tell you what—you and Tiger find a place to rest, and I'll handle this for you!"
"Oh... no, that won't do..." The old woman shook her head. "If this isn't handled well, Little Tiger and I will be in trouble. Little Chen, we appreciate your kindness, but you go on ahead."
"Go on? Me? Hey, look at what you're saying." Chen Junnan rolled up his sleeves, revealing his pale arm. "No matter how busy I am, I can't just ignore you. Besides, Tiger just said he wants to eat me—how can I, as his uncle, just walk away? Come on, Tiger, your Uncle Chen hasn't bathed today, so the saltiness should be just right."
Qin Dingdong nervously grabbed Chen Junnan's shirt and whispered, "You bastard... what are you doing?"
Chen Junnan turned back and said in a low, serious voice, "Sis Dong, I've had it today. Get out of here and tell Old Qi the situation—I'll see him in ten days. When they start eating me, you run like hell."
Qin Dingdong still hesitated. She had only just caught hold of this man—who knows if he'd disappear again?
"Little Tiger, don't eat him." Grandma Ma shook her head, shifting her feet lightly, and in the blink of an eye she was seven paces away. "If we waste time, you'll be the one getting eaten."
"Ah... right." The child suddenly remembered something, nodded quickly, and took the old woman's hand. In another flash, the two disappeared from the street.
Seeing them gone, Chen Junnan plopped down on the ground.
"Man, that was terrifying..." He looked up at Qin Dingdong, still shaken. "It's only the first day! And the 'Heavenly Horse' and 'Heavenly Tiger' are already strolling the streets..."
Qin Dingdong felt her limbs go weak too. She leaned against the wall and slowly sat down.
But three seconds later, she felt something was off. She immediately stood up and kicked Chen Junnan.
"Hey?"
Before Chen Junnan could react, Qin Dingdong started punching and kicking him.
"Stop, stop, stop!" Chen Junnan shouted. "Sis Dong, keep this up and I'll lose face!"
As she hit him, her expression changed. Big teardrops started streaming down her face.
"Chen Junnan, you bastard..." She stopped and stared at him, eyes red. "Explain this to me—is that how 'Scapegoat' is supposed to be used? What gives you the right to die in my place?!"
Chen Junnan slowly got up, dusted himself off, and smiled. "Maybe because I want to?"
"You..."
Chen Junnan shook his head. "Sis Dong, the past is the past. This time, I just want to help Old Qi and Old Qiao escape. The situation looks really bad—we need to meet up with them as soon as possible."
Qin Dingdong thought for a long time, then asked, "So do you have a plan?"
"I don't know what a 'plan' is. All I know is that as long as I'm around, each of them gets an extra life."