Chapter 647: The Gift (Thank you, friend Zhu Junyu, for tipping two Silver Alliance tokens)

When Louis Berry had moved far from the coffee area, Colobo sighed, removed his sunglasses, and took out the 5, 00 Faeljin again, recounting them once more.

His intuition told him this deal was worth risking, so he had come to Matani Import & Export Store—but throughout the entire process, he had been trembling, often too afraid to open his eyes, and his hands had shaken violently while writing the documents.

"Indeed, problems accumulate and explode together…" Colobo whispered almost silently, holding the sunglasses.

He stood up and walked toward the main door of Matani Import & Export Store.

As he walked, Colobo's body suddenly tensed, overwhelmed by an inexplicable sense of danger surrounding him.

His heart leapt into his throat; he professionally scanned his surroundings, his steps instinctively speeding up, slowing down, turning, and halting.

He saw the morning sunlight, the shop still sparsely populated after opening, and a few customers—no one was watching him, no hidden gaze detected.

After walking purely by instinct, he found himself back at the coffee bean and coffee section, standing before the restroom door.

Colobo had been an Exalted for two years; his most important lesson was to trust himself, to trust his intuition—so without hesitation, he pushed open the heavy black wooden door and stepped inside.

Matani Import & Export Store was of considerable standing in Pailos Port; even just one men's restroom had three urinals and three stalls, with two gas wall lamps quietly glowing on the walls, illuminating the cleanly swept floor.

Colobo walked to the sink, turned on the faucet, and prepared to splash cold water on his face, hoping to shake off the feeling of danger clinging to him like a shadow.

As he lifted his head, he saw a face reflected in the mirror.

But it was not his own face!

The face was unnaturally pale, around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with a light brown complexion and pale brown eyes tinged with faint green, staring coldly at Colobo.

Colobo's mind buzzed—he recognized that face.

He was the Patrol Corps' only Exalted of the "Prisoner" Path, Tewanaco Tupian, who had ascended to Sequence 6 "Living Corpse" last year.

He was also the first person who had made Colobo instinctively feel danger, and he had believed that if he spoke of this feeling, he would die soon!

Earlier, when Lu Mi had asked Colobo to write down the name and condition of the Patrol Corps' "Prisoner" Path Exalted, Colobo had been deeply uneasy—even considered refusing the deal. His counting of the bills was not due to distrust of an adventurer who could directly gift a 50, 00 Faeljin bounty, but to buy time to think, to hesitate, to choose.

In the end, he chose to trust himself, to trust the intuition that had made him risk coming here—but he had omitted his own unease regarding Tewanaco Tupian from the documents.

And now, Tewanaco Tupian's face suddenly appeared in the mirror before him.

This… this was the ability of a Sequence 5 "Grudge Spirit" of the "Prisoner" Path—when had he ascended again? Colobo, stunned and terrified, felt a chilling cold seep through his body, as if he had plunged to the bottom of a highland ice lake and instantly frozen solid.

At the same time, Tewanaco Tupian's face vanished from the sink's mirror.

A block of ice, forever unmelting and chillingly cold, seemed lodged inside Colobo's body, radiating a cold that could freeze the soul.

His hands rose uncontrollably, resisting his will, and a voice devoid of any emotion echoed in his ears:

"It seems I've been exposed—you provided my information."

"I'll leave Pailos Port now, but before I go, I'll leave Lu Mi Li two gifts."

What did that mean? What gifts? Who was Lu Mi Li? As Colobo's mind flooded with confusion and bewilderment, he watched in horror as his own hands clamped around his throat and began squeezing with force.

As pain surged into his mind, he faintly understood what the gifts meant:

Tewanaco Tupian intended to kill him—and package his death as one gift!

But he said two gifts—what was the other?

…………

Inside the four-story, cream-colored building of the Patrol Corps.

Camille sipped highland coffee, reading today's "West Baelan Telegraph," thinking of Colobo and Louis Berry's transaction.

If successful, as the intermediary, he could receive twenty percent of the payment.

Knock, knock, knock—the door to Camille's office was tapped.

"Come in." Though not yet old, Camille had deep seniority and was already the leader of one of the Patrol Corps' action teams; if a deputy captain position opened, the only one who could compete with him was the "Prisoner" Path Exalted, Tewanaco Tupian.

—The South Continent was chaotic, especially regions under the balance of multiple factions: whether the bloody "Rose Sect," the terrifying Spirit Cult, ambitious adventurers, or spies and missionaries from different nations, all were extremely dangerous. Some actively assassinated Patrol Corps members, some rebelled suddenly, killing and fleeing, others meticulously planned operations targeting even Patrol Corps personnel. Thus, over the years, the Patrol Corps lost members annually and constantly needed to recruit new ones.

Frequent attacks also had advantages: if victorious, one would likely acquire valuable items and Exalted materials; many of the Patrol Corps members' advancement formulas and elixirs were obtained in such scenarios, leading to a phenomenon:

Compared to cities of similar size in the North Continent, Pailos Port had more official Exalted, and far more mid-sequence official Exalted—though lacking higher-tier power or corresponding sealed artifacts.

Camille was short on money because his advancement rate outpaced his cousins'.

When he first arrived in Matani Nation and Pailos Port, he was only a Sequence 9 "Arbiter"; now he was Sequence 7 "Interrogator," having advanced twice in five years. Recently, he had been saving to buy materials to ascend to Sequence 6 and become a "Judge." Of course, if he had the chance to become deputy captain, the Patrol Corps would surely provide some resources to aid his advancement.

—His loot wasn't always suitable for him; sometimes he traded with teammates, sometimes sold to the Patrol Corps, to earn money while waiting for the correct elixir formula and Exalted materials to appear.

Moreover, since the Patrol Corps had only existed for a few years, it had little accumulated wealth—he had to find ways to purchase practical magical items and regularly replenish talismans and potions, lest he be unprepared and die in some ambush or clash.

Under these circumstances, money naturally ran short.

Chaos is the path to hell—and also the ladder upward!

The one who entered was "Brawler" Sou.

With his brown braids swaying gently, Sou, wearing a sky-blue shirt and beige trousers, walked toward Camille with one hand in his pocket, smiling:

"Have you seen Colobo?"

"I need to speak with him."

Camille had already prepared his excuse:

"He went to the Import & Export Store to buy coffee beans."

Sou grunted:

"Then I'll wait for him to return."

"What do you need him for?" Camille asked casually.

Sou stepped forward two paces and smiled:

"I have an investigation task I'd like him to join—he might spot clues others miss."

"You bastards, don't you worry Colobo might get hurt?" Camille chuckled, then lifted his coffee to his lips and took a sip.

At that moment, Sou pulled his right hand from his pocket, thumb and forefinger pinching a playing card with a metallic sheen.

The card depicted a gray-and-white clown.

Whoosh—the card flew toward Camille's head.

…………

In the men's restroom of Matani Import & Export Store.

Colobo finally saw himself in the mirror.

His face was stained green, his hands tightly choking his own throat, producing the sound of bones about to snap; his blue eyes reflected the figure of Tewanaco Tupian.

Colobo tried to scream for help, but not a single word came out; he tried to run out of the restroom, but couldn't move a step.

His body no longer belonged to him—it was killing him.

Ho… ho… ho… a sound finally escaped Colobo's throat, but it was too faint to be heard.

He felt death approaching swiftly; despair and terror filled his soul.

Suddenly, Colobo's hands gripping his throat paused.

At the same time, from the ventilation shaft side of the restroom, a figure emerged from the shadows.

It was Lu Mi—black hair, green eyes, wearing a white shirt, open black vest, and a golden straw hat.

Lu Mi's face showed surprise and sudden realization; a black bone flute rested against his lips.

A mournful wail rose, and sorrowful music flowed from the crimson holes.

"Chant of Hatred!"

Why did I only now sense malice and danger… Tewanaco barely had this thought before the melody of the bone flute ignited a violent lust for slaughter.

Without sound or warning, a shadow detached from Colobo's body—it was Tewanaco Tupian, with light brown skin and a pale face!

In his pale brown eyes, capillaries bulged, showing signs of rupture.

Colobo, already overwhelmed by fear and despair, was likewise ignited by the "Chant of Hatred."

His heart nearly stopped; he fainted from terror, collapsing with a thud, half-dead.

Lu Mi stopped playing the "Chant of Hatred," took the black bone flute, and vanished into the shadows beneath the restroom's ventilation shaft.

His figure instantly appeared behind Tewanaco Tupian, who was reeling under the assault of murderous desire; he raised the black bone flute, its surface dotted with blood-red holes, preparing to utter "Ha."

Finally, I've found you!

P. .: It's February 29th, once every four years—please give me monthly tickets~ Thank you, friend Zhu Junyu, for tipping two Silver Alliance tokens~

(End of Chapter)