Chapter 1258: Old Friend
The exchange had completed a moderately sized deal and specially arranged an aircraft to take Xu Huo to the hotel. Two staff members accompanied him, briefly introducing the high-end entertainment venues in Card City along the way, and presented him with a VIP card. At the so-called high-end venues they mentioned, he could enter directly without an appointment.
Upon arriving at the hotel, the two staff members liaised with the receptionist at Yongxing Hotel, arranging for Xu Huo to enter through the VIP passage—mainly to protect his privacy and prevent anyone with ill intentions from tailing him after he left the exchange.
Once Xu Huo entered the hotel, the two staff members departed. He presented his free voucher, and the hotel staff directly arranged a penthouse suite for him on the top floor.
"This suite will be reserved for Mr. Xu for seven days. Whether you come or not, no other guests will stay here during that time," the manager said as he led him to the top floor. After opening the door, he first introduced, "You only need to raise your left hand and press in the air to bring up the control panel from anywhere in the room. The exterior windows are made of special glass, allowing you to enjoy Card City's night view without any blind spots. If you prefer not to have this transparent feel, you can switch to other static modes or dynamic modes with audio-visual functions."
"The suite includes one large room and four smaller rooms. You may invite your friends to stay with you. All expenses incurred during these seven days will be covered by the Card City government."
"On the same floor, directly opposite, is a leisure and entertainment room offering various entertainment modes, available exclusively to guests of this suite."
"Additionally, you can privately invite performance troupes to perform for you alone, or choose to watch from Card City's aerial stage."
"If you have special dietary requirements, you can also select chefs from Card City to serve you."
"None of these require payment from you."
Though called a suite, the living room alone was spacious enough. The perimeter glass windows were estimated to be thirty meters long—likely designed with the living experience in mind, deliberately controlling the size. Standing in the center of the room, one could still see the bustling scene of Card City outside, with many people riding aircraft to the aerial stage to watch performances.
"Quite a crowd," Xu Huo remarked.
The manager smiled. "Mr. Xu, please rest assured. No aircraft will approach the area in front of the hotel, ensuring your comfort to the greatest extent."
There was still some time before dark, but Xu Huo had no plans to go out. After washing up, he sat down and flipped through the notes Liang Shuang had written.
Aside from "A Thread of Fate Across a Thousand Miles," he had also made detailed records and comparisons of the effects of various items and potions, showing remarkable thoroughness. There was even a price list for the districts he had visited. If he revisited a place after some time, he would note any price fluctuations.
Regarding this, he had written in his records that prices reflected a district's economic condition, and economic conditions indicated the district's recent state—whether it had suffered a major blow or discovered some resource.
His attention to detail bordered on obsessive-compulsive, which might have been why he had approached Xu Huo in the first place. He had thought it would be a win-win situation, but instead, it cost him his life.
Setting down the notebook, Xu Huo leaned back in the soft chair and closed his eyes to rest.
Meanwhile, in a bustling market at the other end of the city, a woman in a black trench coat jumped through a window into a residential building and casually placed the food she had bought on the table.
Two meters away from the table sat a bare-chested man, peeling off a thin film prop stuck to his face.
Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the prop hadn't significantly altered his features—it hadn't even concealed his pale complexion—but it was highly practical. When the mask came off, his face, with no major changes to his features, looked completely different from before.
Xue Lang cast a gloomy glance at the fake face and spoke, "Did you find out where he went?"
The woman in the black trench coat leaned by the window, smoking. Without even lifting her eyelids, she replied in a hoarse voice unlike most women's, "You still want to go after him? Don't forget what the doctor said."
"I'll definitely do what the doctor said, but I'm not letting Xu Huo off either!" Xue Lang looked up at her. "Just tell me where he is!"
"Yongxing Hotel." The woman in black turned her head and slightly curled her lips.
Xue Lang's tone was icy. "He sure knows how to enjoy himself."
The woman in black casually tossed her cigarette butt, drawing a curse from downstairs before laughing and returning to the table. She tore open the food container and began shoveling food into her mouth.
Xue Lang seemed disgusted by her eating manner. Looking away, he said, "Lure him out. Once we deal with him, we'll head to Fresh Flower City."
The woman in black swallowed her food. "I only handle what the doctor assigned. Your personal vendetta is yours to settle."
"I'm the leader of this operation," Xue Lang said in a deep voice.
"I know." The woman in black acted as if she hadn't seen the threat in his eyes. She took another bite and mumbled indistinctly, "But my mission doesn't include dealing with Xu Huo."
Xue Lang suddenly paused, then deliberately turned to scrutinize her. "You wouldn't have feelings for him..."
Before he could finish, a needle appeared out of nowhere and swiftly pierced through his upper and lower lips. Then the table between them split apart, and a floating air shield pressed Xue Lang against the wall. From half a meter away, the woman in black stared coldly at him. "Since you're injured, I suggest you keep your mouth shut. Otherwise, you'll be dead before the mission is complete."
Xue Lang smiled at this, unconcerned about the wound on his lips. "You think you can kill me?"
Invisible rays swept through the room, slicing everything except the walls into several pieces.
As the items in the room clattered to the floor, the woman in black had already opened the door and stood at the threshold.
Both sides exercised restraint, ensuring the fight didn't extend beyond the modest house.
Their eyes met, and finally, the woman in black relaxed her expression. She closed the door again, picked up the food that had fallen to the floor, put it back in the container, and sat on the half-broken sofa to eat.
Xue Lang's disgust was palpable. He said, "We leave tomorrow," and went into the adjacent bedroom.
The woman in black quickly finished her meal, tidied up the room briefly, then picked up the trash bag to take it out—as the bag was swallowed by the disposal unit, the person who had been standing on the narrow staircase vanished.
On an entertainment aircraft directly opposite the top floor of Yongxing Hotel, the woman in black blended into the noisy crowd. She picked up a glass of wine, sat down at a spot by the edge, and turned sideways to face the hotel. She watched the dancing men and women before her for a moment, then downed her drink in one gulp before disappearing from the spot again.
As she left, Xu Huo seemed to sense something and looked toward the aircraft.