Chapter 25: Stirrings of the Heart

The Black Market designated several employees to rotate shifts at the fake address established after their signal interference, a ruse intended to fend off official investigations. Occasionally, uninformed individuals like Nian Tu would send packages to this address, which were routinely destroyed upon arrival. It was only because one of the Black Market staff on duty today happened to be a friend of Xie Jili that Nian Tu’s gesture did not go to waste.

Xie Jili accepted the insulated lunch box from his friend with a dazed expression. Upon seeing the contents, he sat up straight in surprise, a vivid spark of life instantly igniting in his dull eyes. Seeing the listless young man suddenly come to life, several other fighters waiting for their turn in the ring curiously leaned over, letting out exaggerated exclamations.

"Who ordered takeout for you? It looks so exquisite!"
"It doesn't look like takeout, the packaging is too thoughtful."
"This lunch box... let me look it up. Holy hell! This brand is so expensive! You actually know someone this generous? Why are you still fighting in illegal matches? Go cling to that benefactor!"

Men like them, who lived life on the edge of a blade, were all pitiable wretches with no one to care for them. They looked at Xie Jili with a mixture of envy and confusion. If there was still someone who cared about him, how could he bear to risk his life in a place like the Black Market?

Xie Jili lowered his head without a word, opened the lunch box, and gently picked up a steaming bun. A chorus of swallowing sounds erupted around him.

"What the hell is this? It smells so good!"
"Hey brother, give me one!"

Someone recognized it: "Isn't this a bun? The prize from Nian Tu’s livestream giveaway."
"This is called a bun? Why haven't I heard of it before?"
"Who is Nian Tu?"

The person who recognized it was a fan of Nian Tu; he pulled up a photo of her to show the others: "Nian Tu is a very cute little female, my dream mate!"

The photo was a screenshot from her stream. The little female had dark hair and snow-white skin, her round, apricot-like eyes looking earnestly at the viewers. She was truly cute enough to make one’s heart tremble. A crowd squeezed in to look, clicking their tongues in admiration.

"Something sent by a sweet, soft little female—no wonder it’s so exquisite."
"You’re so lucky!"
"You look like a cold, emotionless person, I didn't expect you to watch a little female's stream!"

"Of course he watches!" Xie Jili’s friend, nicknamed Brother Bear—who looked like a bear and had a voice like a booming bell—laughed heartily and slapped Xie Jili on the shoulder. "You guys don't know! That little female even touched his beast form with her own hands!"

What?

The group stared at Xie Jili in unison. The fan of Nian Tu was the most devastated; with trembling hands, he pulled up the Star Network video of the black snake losing control to compare, and realized it truly was him. Before, he had been too busy looking at the little female to notice what the black snake’s human form looked like, but now he finally matched the face to Xie Jili.

Looking at the black snake curled up beside Nian Tu in the video, then at the youth holding the bun in front of them—it seemed as though all the good fortune in the world had fallen upon him alone. Everyone was jealous.

Brother Bear added fuel to the fire, winking at Xie Jili: "Look at you, you were almost melting into a puddle in that little female's hands, your tail hooked and winding around her incessantly!"

The males present were all hot-blooded, and they began to whistle excitedly. Xie Jili’s expression darkened abruptly. The teasing and jeering around him grew more intense. Xie Jili’s fists tightened slowly, tendons bulging on his forehead.

Brother Bear still didn't know when to stop, asking him: "Can you still remember how it felt? Was her hand soft? Did it feel good when she touched you...!"

Before the words had even faded, a heavy punch slammed into his face. Almost no one saw the speed of Xie Jili’s strike; they only heard the fierce whistle of wind. Brother Bear, as tall and sturdy as a small mountain, crashed heavily to the ground with a dull thud.

There was a brief silence, followed by even more raucous noise.

"Whoa! Nice hit!"
"What are you waiting for? Hit him again!"
"Get up, you trash, fight back!"

The brief moment of harmony and friendliness when they discussed Nian Tu was merely a fleeting illusion; what was revealed now was the true atmosphere of the Black Market. This was a living hell filled with violence. Everyone here was a desperado; no one would intervene, no one sought peace. They would only whistle, hoping for more excitement.

Xie Jili stared at Brother Bear, who was crawling up and wiping blood from his nose, his eyes cold and grim. Brother Bear wasn't actually angry; he spat out a mouthful of blood and chuckled: "Still as fierce as ever, you really live up to your reputation."

Brother Bear had once been a fighter who sold his life in the ring, too. After losing to Xie Jili and narrowly escaping with his life, he retired from the ring to become a Black Market employee. The two had become friends through their fight.

A mere punch was nothing to Brother Bear. He raised an eyebrow, suddenly gave a嘿嘿 (heh-heh) laugh, pointed at Xie Jili, and said to the crowd: "See that? This kid has fallen for someone."

Having known him for a long time, Brother Bear knew clearly that Xie Jili was a person with immense tolerance. Even when angry, he would usually suppress it—otherwise, he wouldn't have endured his mother's oppression for so many years until he finally lost control. For someone so patient to suddenly turn on him, just because he made a small joke about the little female—without even using any truly vulgar language—meant something.

Brother Bear patted Xie Jili’s shoulder, acting as if he understood him perfectly: "You’re still young."

"Who hasn't been young?" Brother Bear sighed with great emotion. "I used to have a female I liked, too. I chased after her for seven or eight years."

At that time, he hadn't fallen into his current situation or stepped into the evil soil of the Black Market; he had nearly lived a happy life. "Later, something happened. I came to the Black Market to fight and pay off debts, and I never dared to see her again." Brother Bear kept his mocking, grinning expression: "Guys like us, rolling in the mud, how could we ever be worthy of someone like her?"

Xie Jili remained silent. He coldly brushed Brother Bear’s hand off his shoulder and walked back to his seat without a word.

The young man held the lunch box to his chest again, grabbed a bun, took a bite, and then mechanically reached for the next one, chewing with force and swallowing fiercely. His slightly long hair and lowered eyelashes hid all the emotions on his face, but they could not hide the deep-seated inferiority filling his entire being.

He could barely survive as it was; he had no right to covet anything else.

Before his turn came, Xie Jili wolfed down all the buns, carefully packed away the lunch box, and stood up to head toward the ring. His back was straight and lean, possessing a fragility that hovered between boyhood and manhood. But the moment he stepped into the ring, that fragility vanished entirely; he was like a drawn sword, his sharpness fully revealed.

In this match, Xie Jili won quickly and viciously. His brutal fighting style was like an act of venting, but as his opponent fell, he immediately stopped, forcing the raging fire burning within him back into his chest. As he had done in the past, he spared his opponent’s life.

After receiving half the pay of the others, Xie Jili left the Black Market like a wandering ghost, carrying the empty lunch box. It was high noon, with the sun at its brightest. The streets were bustling with people, some still discussing the incident where the beautiful female had bravely prevented a runaway black snake from hurting anyone. No one noticed that one of the parties involved had returned to this street.

A small jewelry shop had just opened, and the owner was calling out to the young male to come and look, to buy something for his favorite female. Xie Jili walked up, wiped the blood from his hands, and cautiously picked up a blue iris necklace.