Little Pink Starfish

The Emperor Tower, in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows on the top floor.

A handsome man was talking on the phone. A teasing voice came through the speaker, “Hey, Old Wu, your spoiled younger brother has been pretty ambitious lately.”

The man sneered, “Could you maybe mind your own business and not worry about my brother?”

The voice on the other end chuckled. “Seriously though, aren’t you afraid that your little brother will suddenly rise up? If those old bastards decide to use him against you, wouldn’t that be a problem?”

The man’s expression turned cold. He said indifferently, “You could give him a hundred skill points, and he still wouldn’t have the ability.”

With that, he hung up.

After thinking for a moment, he decided to leave work early and check on whatever nonsense his idiot brother was up to.

After all, it was highly unusual for Wu Shaotang to go this many days without going out to party. And what had he been up to lately? Ordering takeout every day was one thing, but hauling dozens of pigs into his house? Not to mention running around pulling strings and investigating people.

He had better not be causing trouble.

Feeling uneasy, the man left the rest of his work to his secretary and assistant, grabbed his keys, and drove to his unreliable younger brother’s home.

Before long, his car arrived at Bai Fu Garden.

---

Wu Shaotang clutched an ultra-thin laptop in his arms, trembling as he presented it to the “monster.”

“Sir, these are the records of all the people in the capital with ‘Bai’ in their name. Please take a look…”

His fear wasn’t unwarranted. Leaving aside what he had witnessed with the pigs, this monster didn’t even know how to turn on the lights at first, but now he was using a laptop better than he could.

That’s not normal! That’s not a human ability!

I’m scared as hell, man.

Qi Guanrui glanced at Wu Shaotang before beginning his search.

After several days in this world, he had confirmed that while he couldn’t implant snake parasites, his fundamental abilities as a Heaven-Swallowing Python remained intact. If he made eye contact with someone for just three seconds, he could read all of their memories.

This was simply the overwhelming difference in mental power.

So, in a very short time, he had learned every skill he needed.

Operating a computer? Child’s play.

A true overpowered protagonist. No matter what ability it was, he picked it up instantly.

The information Wu Shaotang provided had been compiled by professionals. Given the short timeframe, it wasn’t overly detailed, but it included basic details—names, ages, professions, addresses, and recent locations.

For Qi Guanrui, this was enough.

Wu Shaotang nervously waited for a long time before finally seeing the monster lift his head.

He held his breath. “Sir… how is it?”

Qi Guanrui smiled gently. “You did well.”

Wu Shaotang immediately let out a sigh of relief.

Damn, it felt like a giant weight had been lifted off his chest…

But at that moment, the door suddenly opened.

Someone was entering.

Wu Shaotang’s heart jumped into his throat.

The only person who could walk in so casually was his big brother!

Why was he here now?!

He had barely survived dealing with the monster—what if his brother provoked him and ended up dead?! Then who was going to take care of him?!

Wu Shaotang might have been a spoiled playboy, but he knew his limits. Without his brilliant and capable older brother, he wouldn’t be living such a cushy life.

He couldn’t afford to lose him!

Acting on sheer instinct, Wu Shaotang sprinted to the door in record time, clapped a hand over his brother’s mouth, and started frantically blinking at him.

Wu Shaohai froze.

What the hell? Did this idiot younger brother of his eat something weird today?

Then, from inside the room, Qi Guanrui raised an eyebrow. “Allow me to introduce myself.”

Hearing the unfamiliar voice, Wu Shaohai turned his head to look inside.

Immediately, his expression darkened.

Unlike his naive younger brother, Wu Shaohai could immediately tell that this person was dangerous—an absolute anomaly.

What does someone like this want with my brother?

Wu Shaotang, seeing that his brother hadn’t immediately been murdered, let out an awkward chuckle and released his grip.

“Uh, bro, just… be careful.”

Wu Shaohai found the whole situation amusing, but he remained highly alert. After a brief hesitation, he strode inside and sat down opposite Qi Guanrui.

“This gentleman… how should I address you?”

Qi Guanrui nodded at him, his gaze soft. “Gu Shan.”

Then, very casually, he shifted his legs.

In an instant, a long, thick snake tail slithered out from beneath his loose clothing and slammed onto the floor.

With a sharp crack, the marble tile split open.

Wu Shaotang: Ahhhhh! My marble flooring!

Wu Shaohai =口= Monster?!

For the first time in their lives, the Wu brothers were perfectly in sync.

---

A dark and silent night, the perfect time for murder… though no murders had occurred.

Under the dim streetlights, two men walked forward in stunned silence, their expressions still frozen in disbelief.

Eventually, they arrived in front of a twenty-story apartment building.

The shadows around them distorted, and suddenly, the two of them were flung forward. Stumbling, they barely managed to steady themselves.

The shadows then twisted and reformed into the shape of an extremely good-looking young man.

Wu Shaohai forced himself to suppress his shock. After a long pause, he finally spoke.

“…Impressive.”

Wu Shaotang, standing behind him, nodded rapidly. “Super impressive!”

Qi Guanrui smirked and stepped toward the apartment entrance.

The two Wu brothers, of course, followed immediately.

Naturally, neither of them had suggested tagging along—it wasn’t like the calm and composed Wu Shaohai would, and the hedonistic coward Wu Shaotang certainly wouldn’t either.

It was Qi Guanrui himself who had requested it.

He needed these two to run errands for him. Wu Shaotang had been a convenient tool, but Wu Shaohai was someone he could use long-term.

As for Wu Shaohai… he regretted ever deciding to check on his brother.

But at the same time, there was a strange thrill inside him.

He had long been bored with his predictable life. The moment he encountered this dangerous man, something deep inside him had stirred—an inexplicable feeling, almost like… excitement.

This was an adventure.

He hadn’t felt this alive in a long time.

Qi Guanrui ignored whatever thoughts the two might be having. He grabbed each of them by the arm and leaped.

In a single bound, he landed outside a twelfth-floor apartment window.

The room inside was secured with metal burglar bars, and the tenant was a man named Wang Xiaobai.

Without lifting a finger, Qi Guanrui silently forced the door open.

The Wu brothers cautiously followed him inside, watching as he strode directly to the bedroom and blew out a puff of black smoke.

Wu Shaotang, whispering to his brother: “B-Bro… aren’t you scared?”

Wu Shaohai patted his trembling sibling. “Just think of it like a video game.”

Wu Shaotang: TAT

They watched as the office worker inside—who had been on his computer—slumped to the floor, unconscious.

Qi Guanrui barely spared him a glance before turning away.

Wu Shaohai reminded him, “You can’t kill people here. It would cause a lot of trouble.”

Qi Guanrui met his eyes. “Don’t worry. He’ll wake up in the morning.”

Having spent time observing this world, he understood its rules.

Until he found Ziche Shubai, he would not draw too much attention to himself.

Wu Shaotang wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Fine, as long as this monster doesn’t go crazy…

But Qi Guanrui was far from finished.

The Wu brothers did not sleep that night.

They followed him from the south side of the city to the north, visiting hundreds of different people named “Bai.”

And they found nothing.

With every failed attempt, Qi Guanrui’s smile grew darker and colder.

By the next evening, he stood outside a towering sixty-story high-rise, scanning the last few names on the list.

His eyes landed on one in particular.

Gu Bai.

A perfectly common name.

But suddenly, his heart began to race uncontrollably.

At that very moment, Gu Bai lay sprawled on a couch, hugging a liquor bottle, flushed from drinking.

Still thinking, even in his drunken haze—

That damn pervert… why is he taking so long?

No, wait… that pervert isn’t real…