Chapter Twenty: The Arrival

“What did you say? What happened to Kexin?” Nangong Yuchen shouted anxiously.

A sudden crash of breaking objects came through the phone.

“Tell me! What on earth is going on?” Nangong Yuchen’s voice was loud, nearly a roar.

“We’re in District B, Star Sovereign Tavern, come quickly—” The girl on the other end had just given the location when the call abruptly disconnected.

Nangong Yuchen’s face was taut with worry. He didn’t even have time to put his phone away and dashed toward the station. This was the outskirts of District C, and hailing a cab was nearly impossible, so he could only head to the station first, catch the maglev to District B.

He had entirely forgotten Angel behind him.

“Hey, you!” Angel called after his fleeing figure, but Nangong Yuchen seemed not to hear, forcing her to quicken her pace in pursuit.

He’d heard of the Star Sovereign Tavern in District B because he worked at a café nearby. The area was notorious for its chaos and crime, which only made his anxiety and fear greater. If anything happened to Kexin, how could he ever face their parents?

He had no memories before the age of six. He only knew that at six, he was adopted from an orphanage by his current parents, who raised him as their own. Nangong Kexin was his older sister by two months, but often she felt more like a younger sister—she was always looked after by him, rather than the other way around. So, since childhood, he simply called her Kexin, never “Sister.”

He ran at full speed, covering nearly twenty-five meters per second, leaving Angel far behind. But once at the maglev station, he could do nothing but wait, anxious and restless.

Two minutes later, Angel caught up, panting. “Are you in that much of a hurry to be reincarnated?”

“Angel, I don’t have time for you. You should just take the ride home by yourself.” Nangong Yuchen’s voice was curt, not even bothering to look back.

“Hmph!” Angel huffed in anger.

The two fell silent—one anxious, the other sulking. When the maglev arrived, they both boarded.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived in District B. Nangong Yuchen shoved his way through the crowd and hurried off the train.

Angel watched him disappear, her face no longer puffed with anger, replaced by a trace of guilt and a soft sigh. “I hope you make it in time.”

—

As soon as Nangong Yuchen exited the maglev station, he flagged down a taxi at the roadside, urgency in his voice. “Star Sovereign Tavern, please!”

“Hurry!” he kept urging along the way. Luckily, the tavern wasn’t far, and given the late hour—ten at night—the roads were clear, so they arrived quickly.

Stepping out of the cab, he saw the opulent facade of “Star Sovereign” ahead. Pulling out his phone to call Nangong Kexin as he strode toward the entrance, he was met with blaring music and no answer.

Inside, chaos reigned—youths and young women, drunk beyond reason, clinging to each other, some lost in shameful acts in shadowy corners.

“How could Kexin end up in a place like this?” The stench of alcohol and decadence made Nangong Yuchen’s brow furrow. Such places seldom attracted decent people.

He circled the whole bar but found no sign of Kexin. His anxiety only grew, especially since she wasn’t answering her phone. A sense of dread gnawed at his heart.

Just then, the music abruptly stopped, as if for a song change.

He quickly dialed Kexin again. Still no answer—but this time, he heard her ringtone, coming from the bar counter.

Fury surged within him as he strode over to the bar, confronting two blond youths behind it. “Where’s the girl whose phone just rang?”

Both had obviously been drinking. The taller one slurred, “You mean those three chicks? They went upstairs with our boss. Who are you to them?”

“Heh… Yeah, are you one of their boyfriends or something? Ha!” the other mocked.

“Damn you!” Nangong Yuchen, blazing with anger, vaulted over the meter-high bar, landing inside. He slapped the mocking youth across the face, sending him flying several meters into a patron’s table.

“Hey! He’s attacking people!” someone screamed.

Ignoring the commotion, Nangong Yuchen grabbed the other blond by the collar, voice cold. “Speak! Where are the girls?”

“You bastard, how dare you cause trouble in our tavern?” the youth sneered.

“Damn you!” With a roar, Nangong Yuchen smashed the youth’s head against the bar. Twice. Blood streamed down the blond’s face, his nose flattened, a gruesome sight.

“Speak, or you die!”

“I—I’ll tell you!” The pain sobered the youth instantly. “In… in the VIP suite on the second floor!”

Nangong Yuchen flung him aside, snatched up his sister’s phone, and dashed toward the stairs.

Just as he reached the staircase, the bar’s flashing lights shut off, replaced by stark white illumination. The music died. Seven or eight thugs, bottles and metal pipes in hand, poured out, surrounding him.

“Get him, boys! He dared to start trouble—beat him within an inch of his life!” barked the bald leader, brandishing a steel pipe with a vicious grin.

“Get out of my way if you want to live,” Nangong Yuchen replied coolly. These thugs were nothing to him. With a punch of nearly three hundred kilograms, a nerve reflex of twelve, and a speed of over twenty meters a second, he was no ordinary man.

“You little punk, you’re dead!” The bald man swung his pipe, his lackeys following suit.

Some patrons turned pale; others watched with anticipation. Three girls had caused a scene earlier, now a guy was starting a fight—the Star Sovereign Tavern hadn’t seen this much excitement in ages.

“I said get out of my way!” Nangong Yuchen caught the swinging pipe with one hand, twisted, and sent the bald man flying—no one saw where he landed.

“Boss!” his men shouted, but before they could react, Nangong Yuchen sent them flying as well, one after another, in less than two seconds. They crashed into tables and staircases, writhing in pain, some bleeding and unconscious.

He had no time for them. Taking the stairs two at a time, he raced to the second floor.

There were only three private suites. In his haste, he kicked open the first, only to find men and women engaged in shameless acts.

He tried the second—same scene, no sign of Nangong Kexin. Several men burst out, but he dispatched them with a kick each, knocking them out cold.

At last, he reached the third suite—the most lavish of all.

Without hesitation, he kicked it open. The scene within made his eyes widen in rage, his vision tinted red, murderous intent surging as he roared,

“Kexin!”