REINCARNATION PARADISE

Su Xiao drove down the midnight streets at high speed, with the thug seated in the passenger seat beside him.

"How much farther?" Su Xiao had floored the gas pedal, pushing the car to over 160 kilometers per hour. It was the middle of the night, and there were very few cars on the road.

At this breakneck speed, Su Xiao noticed something—despite the speed, he was still in complete control. His agility wasn't just about how fast he could move; it had also significantly improved his reflexes.

"We're almost there, man. Please, slow down. I don't want to die yet." the thug said, his voice laced with despair. He felt like his life was hanging by a thread tonight.

That look in Su Xiao's eyes earlier—the thug had seen it only once before, and it was the kind of look someone gets after killing. But Su Xiao was different. His eyes carried a terrifying savagery.

"Help me find my sword and those who tried to kill me. Do that, and you'll live." Su Xiao lit a cigarette and took a long drag.

The thug sighed in resignation and reluctantly nodded.

After driving into a residential complex, Su Xiao parked at their destination.

"Get out."

Su Xiao held a black handgun in his hand, the same gun he had found in the thug's apartment earlier. It was likely the very gun used to shoot him before.

Following the thug's lead, Su Xiao walked up to the door of the thug leader's apartment.

"Knock."

The thug hesitated for a moment, glancing at the gun in Su Xiao's hand. It was already cocked and ready to fire.

Left with no choice, the thug knocked on the door.

Knock, knock, knock...

After a few rounds of knocking, the faint sound of footsteps came from inside.

"Who is it? It's so late." said a drowsy woman's voice from behind the door.

"Sis, it's me, Zhang." the thug replied.

After about ten seconds, a middle-aged woman, still quite attractive, opened the door.

"Come in, it's late..." Her words were abruptly cut off when a cold, black gun was pressed against her head.

"Step back, slowly, and don't make a sound."

The middle-aged woman was so frightened she froze, staring blankly at Su Xiao. After a brief pause, she complied, slowly stepping backward.

Su Xiao grabbed the thug by the collar and dragged him into the apartment, quietly closing the door behind him.

As the woman retreated, she accidentally bumped into a half-meter-tall vase behind her.

Crash. The sound of the vase shattering echoed through the otherwise silent living room.

"Please, don't hurt me. It was an accident!" the woman cried, panic in her voice.

Su Xiao ignored her, his eyes locked on something else—the display on the coffee table. A sword rack stood there, and on it was his sheathed sword.

Su Xiao walked over and picked up the sword. The familiar feel of the handle brought a slight smile to his face.

"Mom, what's with all the noise?" a voice called from one of the bedrooms.

The door opened, and a young girl, dressed in a nightgown, stepped out, rubbing her eyes.

She froze when she saw Su Xiao and the gun in his hand, her mouth opening as if to scream.

Su Xiao raised the gun slightly, motioning for her to go back into the room. The girl quickly nodded, slamming the door shut behind her.

With his sword now in hand, Su Xiao turned and left the apartment without another word. Before news of Su Xiao's survival spread, he was already on a high-speed train to the neighboring city.

Su Xiao's appearance had changed significantly—he now looked like a student. Given his age, it didn't take much to disguise himself as a university student with some light makeup.

Once he arrived in the neighboring city, he didn't stop. He hopped onto a random long-distance bus and kept moving.

As the bus rattled along, Su Xiao seemed to be resting with his eyes closed, but in reality, he was acutely aware of his surroundings: the cries of children, two girls in front of him whispering to each other, and a young man with headphones bobbing his head in rhythm.

"We interrupt this program to bring you breaking news: A fugitive has been spotted in a neighboring city." blared the bus's TV screen.

Suddenly, Su Xiao's photo appeared on the screen.

"The suspect is wanted for..."

The bus passengers, who had been absorbed in the news broadcast, all turned to look at Su Xiao.

He sighed internally. They were fast. It had only been six hours since his "death" and they had already issued a warrant for his arrest. It wasn't surprising, though. After all, he had technically died and then returned, plus he had been a killer to begin with. Of course he would be a wanted man now.

But Su Xiao didn't see this as much of a threat. Even if the authorities were after him, his strength and stealth skills made it hard for anyone to track him down.

After traveling non-stop for four days, Su Xiao eventually lost track of where he was. Only then did he finally stop.

He pulled out his phone and checked his location. He had ended up in DL City, a coastal town.

"Not a bad place." he muttered.

DL City was surrounded by the sea on three sides. If things got bad and the police closed in, he could always escape by sea.

Still, Su Xiao didn't want to flee abroad unless absolutely necessary. He had many enemies overseas.

The most important thing now was finding a place to settle down. Hotels weren't an option—they were too public and too full of prying eyes. It wasn't a place he could stay for long.

Standing on a bustling street, Su Xiao suddenly felt a pang of hunger. He had been on the move for days and hadn't eaten a proper meal.

He found a seafood restaurant and ordered the local specialty—hairy crabs.

It was May, the perfect season for these crabs, each one weighing at least a pound.

Cracking open the hard shell and dipping the tender meat into a special sauce, Su Xiao savored the rich, succulent flavor. The tender, juicy crab meat exploded with a burst of oceanic freshness on his taste buds, leaving him thoroughly satisfied.

"Check, please."

Su Xiao leaned back after finishing his meal, letting out a satisfied burp.

The restaurant owner walked over, stunned by the pile of crab shells on the table.

"Well...that's quite the appetite." the owner said, astonished at how much Su Xiao had eaten—enough to feed seven or eight people.

Su Xiao's enhanced physical abilities meant he needed a lot more energy. Strength didn't come from nowhere; it required massive amounts of fuel.

"That'll be 789. You can just give me 780." the owner said.

Su Xiao handed over several hundred-yuan bills.

"By the way, is there any place nearby to rent? I'm a student and just arrived here. I need a place to stay for a few months."

The owner pulled out his phone, fiddled with it for a moment, then showed it to Su Xiao. It was an app for finding rental properties in DL City.

The look on the owner's face seemed to say, "Kid, nobody looks for rentals on the street anymore."

Su Xiao smiled awkwardly, took note of the website, and left the restaurant.

Walking down the busy street, Su Xiao's thumb moved rapidly across his phone as he searched the site. It was a small local social network specializing in real estate.

After browsing for a while, he came across an odd listing:

"Prime location, convenient transportation, starting rent: 100,000 yuan per month."

While 100,000 yuan per month wasn't unheard of in DL City, it was still unusual. What was stranger was that the ad didn't provide any details about the property, only a phone number.

Su Xiao wasn't short on money, so he dialed the number. A place with such a high rent should be a luxurious villa.

The phone was answered quickly, and a raspy male voice spoke.

"Meet me at Tianhai Road, No. 37."

With that, the call ended abruptly.

Su Xiao was puzzled for a moment, then shook his head. It all seemed a bit too troublesome. There was probably something fishy going on. A 100,000 yuan rent was already suspicious. He didn't want to get involved, so he decided to look for another place instead.

(End of Chapter)