Chapter 112: Reencountering Qu Yi

Fortunately, each squad had its own logistics crew.

Although the Seventh Squad was not exactly beloved within the team, there was no need for them to lift a finger. The noncombatant paranormals in the unit naturally handled everyone’s meals, lodging, and daily arrangements.

Because of their rank, the F-rank Firebird Team had been pushed to the far edge of the resort estate and assigned only a very small villa. Even so, the proper accommodations had been arranged with considerable care, and the Seventh Squad was given a military tent pitched on the parking apron outside the villa.

With everyone busy settling in, no missions had come down yet, so Bai Yuxi took the chance to wander curiously around the temporary gathering site.

Apart from the LDH command post at the center and the villa camps occupied by each registered team, he found that the open spaces in the resort grounds had also been lined with row after row of military tents, meant for paranormals from unregistered teams.

Perhaps because the mobilization had been so sudden, the whole place looked chaotic. People were coming and going everywhere, speaking in a jumble of regional accents from all over the country.

Most interesting of all, many of them wore isolation masks, keeping themselves wrapped in secrecy.

Those masked figures were clearly civilian paranormals in the extraordinary world who did not wish to reveal their identities.

The unmasked ones were mostly official LDH personnel, along with a few registered members who had no need to worry about their identities being exposed.

After thinking it over, Bai Yuxi also took out his data visor and isolation mask and put them on.

Though he was wearing the Firebird Team’s colors, in this camp it actually felt a little out of place not to have a mask on.

Supply, equipment, exchange, provisions... On both sides of the camp entrance, LDH had set up various logistics stations. From time to time, large military transport vehicles could also be seen hauling supplies into the gathering site, a sign that they were prepared for a long fight.

After making a lap and just about to head back to the Firebird Team’s camp, Bai Yuxi turned around and saw a topless jeep roaring in through the entrance at high speed.

With no intention at all of slowing down, it came straight at him, forcing him to jump back several steps in alarm.

"Looking for death?"

"If you want to die, get out of the way!"

Mocking laughter drifted over from the speeding jeep, making Bai Yuxi frown. He did not want trouble, so after a sharp curse he was ready to leave.

But before he could even take a step, the flashy jeep suddenly reversed at speed, rushed back in front of him, and stopped with a screech.

"Damn it!"

"It’s that bastard from last time!"

A head poked out of the window, sizing him up from top to bottom. Then, suddenly in a frenzy of anger, the man shoved open the door and jumped down.

"Shit!"

"You’re still alive?"

"Good. I was looking for you anyway!"

"That last time I didn’t kill your sorry ass was already merciful enough!"

The man wore a sloppy camouflage windbreaker and a pair of hiking boots. Before he had even fully steadied himself, he shoved at Bai Yuxi. "You damn fool actually dared to file a complaint against me? I’m killing you today, believe it or not!"

"I don’t believe it!"

Bai Yuxi’s temper flared too. He raised a hand and slapped the other man’s pushing palm away. "Go on, try killing me!"

By now he had also recognized who this foul-mouthed, detestable piece of trash was.

Wasn’t this the brat from the Tiger Team who had nearly gotten them killed last time, the one called Qu Yi or something like that?

"Oh?"

"Pretty bold, aren’t you?"

"You know who the hell I am?"

Qu Yi seemed genuinely stunned that Bai Yuxi would dare resist him. He yanked off the arrogant sunglasses on his face, his bony cheeks twitching with rage.

Rolling up his eyes, he leaned toward Bai Yuxi. "If I’m going to deal with you, why don’t you try moving again? Stay put, and be a good boy for your Uncle Qu! Or else—"

"Xiao Yi!"

"Can’t you ever sit still for five damn minutes?"

"I’m one step behind you, and this is the kind of trouble you start?"

Before he could stretch out his claws, a roar came from outside the gate. "What are you, a firecracker? You explode at the slightest spark?"

The two of them were standing right at the entrance to the gathering site.

Qu Yi’s jeep had blocked the entry lane, sealing off the gate completely.

The resort in the mountains had decent infrastructure, but it was still in the mountains. The road was steep and only wide enough for two small cars to pass each other. The vehicles that had followed behind could only stop outside the gate, and before long a long traffic jam had formed.

A tremendously burly man strode up from the back of the convoy, and without another word he lifted Qu Yi aside, provoking a burst of frantic struggling and dissatisfied shouting from the young man.

"Brother Hu! It was this punk who filed the complaint against us last time! Why are you stopping me? Let go of me and let me kill him!"

"I’ll kill you first!"

The burly man called Brother Hu kicked Qu Yi hard, so angry that veins bulged on his forehead.

"Do I need to remind you what kind of freak you are, always wanting to lick a pile of shit just to taste it?"

After cursing and smacking Qu Yi several times across the back of the neck, he finally turned to Bai Yuxi with a smile.

"Sorry about that, buddy. My brother here is a real little pest. Wherever he goes, he starts trouble. That’s just his nature, so don’t take it personally. It’s settled now, go on and mind your own business."

Bai Yuxi’s fists had already clenched, but not only had four high-ranking superhuman fighters climbed down from Qu Yi’s jeep, a whole group of fully armed superhuman fighters had also hurried up behind the burly man.

And although Brother Hu’s words sounded polite enough, his attitude was not nearly so humble.

Bai Yuxi ground his teeth and, without saying a word, turned and left.

Among the superhuman fighters of the Tiger Team in front of him, aside from Qu Yi and the four lackeys behind him, there probably wasn’t a single one below D-rank.

A whole crowd had gathered around him, and though no one was openly egging anyone on, the faint, spreading pressure of their biological magnetic fields was already making it hard for Bai Yuxi to breathe.

A wise man did not fight when the odds were against him. Knowing that if he made a move he would gain nothing, Bai Yuxi could only swallow his anger and retreat for the moment.

The extraordinary world was not like the ordinary one. In a circle ruled by the strong preying on the weak, there were not so many rules or restraints.

Even if LDH suppression had made them somewhat more restrained, once a conflict broke out, killing one or two newcomers was still, for a force like theirs, hardly anything worth mentioning.

"Backing down, huh? Backing down already?"

"Go on, keep jumping around. Let me see you try it!"

But Bai Yuxi had no intention of making trouble, and Qu Yi only grew more brazen, bursting into wild laughter and mocking Bai Yuxi’s retreating back.

"I’ll make sure your sorry ass dies, you little bastard!"