**Chapter Nine: Wheelchair Warrior**
“Is it four-thirty?” Lu Yibei pulled out his phone to check the time, frowning as he said, “We better get going.”
It was already two forty-seven in the afternoon. It would take about forty minutes to get from Mudan Street to Huacheng Airport, and with the time needed to check in, they might miss their flight if they delayed any longer.
After sending her off, it would be almost dark, just right for a trip to the Happy Neighborhood, Lu Yibei thought.
“Mm.” Huasang nodded obediently, following Lu Yibei’s footsteps as they walked outside.
Li Xuan watched Lu Yibei and Huasang’s figures disappear in front of the Huacheng Folk Culture Research Management Bureau, sighed silently, and turned to walk deeper into the office building.
He needed to find An Qing.
Although he had temporarily suppressed the physical damage from the Night Invasion, his stomach still felt quite uncomfortable.
An Qing had some common Alchemical Potions that could help relieve his symptoms.
————
Leaving the entrance of the Huacheng Folk Culture Research Management Bureau, they walked silently through the old alley.
This kind of silence made Lu Yibei very uneasy. Soon, he couldn’t help but strike up a conversation with Huasang, “Hey, you seem to be in good spirits today? You’re actually walking by yourself.”
“I can’t tell at all that you were lying in the alley all day yesterday!”
Huasang glanced sideways at Lu Yibei, her expression somewhat exasperated. She sighed softly, “If you can’t find a topic to talk about, you really don’t have to say anything.”
People who talk just for the sake of talking are the worst. Chitchat is just a waste of life.
“And who told you I’m walking by myself?” Huasang added indifferently, her gaze drifting towards the bike shed at the end of the alley.
Not walking by myself, do you mean I flew here? Teleported? Lu Yibei thought, noticing Huasang’s gaze and following it, slightly taken aback.
In the corner of the bike shed, a brand new wheelchair was quietly parked.
“???”
Lu Yibei turned to Huasang with a head full of questions, and then saw her nod.
That determined look seemed to say, “Just as you think, that’s my wheelchair.”
Indeed, today Li Xuan had pushed her over.
Lu Yibei, “…”
Incredible! Truly worthy of my admiration, I truly am in awe!
I suddenly feel that the words I used to praise you in the report aren’t enough to express my admiration for you.
Just as Lu Yibei was contemplating, Huasang had already walked into the bike shed, sat down in the wheelchair, and then slumped over in it.
She looked just like someone fully paralyzed from the waist down.
Seeing this, Lu Yibei rubbed his slightly swollen forehead and walked up to her. He then noticed that the wheelchair was actually electric, and his eyes lit up.
“Hey, this is fun. How about… we squeeze in together?”
Huasang, “???”
————
In the end, Lu Yibei never got to sit in Huasang’s wheelchair. The moment he suggested they “squeeze in together,” Huasang quickly positioned herself in a way that occupied all the space on the wheelchair.
It took about forty minutes to get from Mudan Street to the airport by subway, requiring one transfer, and they passed through eleven stations in total.
Lu Yibei pushed Huasang, weaving through the subway stations beneath the city, drawing a lot of attention.
Some guy, seemingly a self-media practitioner, even conjured an entire narrative about “my girlfriend being paralyzed in a car accident, and my unwavering loyalty,” trying to interview him and take photos.
But when Lu Yibei began rambling about M78 nebula and subterranean dwellers, the guy left disappointed, as those incoherent and utterly unnutritious, even toxic, ramblings embarrassed self-media.
According to what he said, it was completely unreportable; it was better to make something up.
After all, self-media people are best at that, aren’t they?
Witnessing Lu Yibei chase away that annoying guy, Huasang thought that his excessive chatter seemed to serve some purpose, and couldn’t help but praise him, “You’re quite impressive.”
Unexpectedly, this person is pretty interesting. However, if he knew my situation, he’d probably react just like those in the Dachunyang Palace, right? Huasang thought, a fleeting shadow crossing her eyes.
“Absolutely!” Hearing Huasang’s praise, Lu Yibei proudly lifted his chin, “That guy just now was clearly not a proper media person.”
“Tsk, I hate those unscrupulous self-media folks. There’s always a segment that loves to exploit someone else’s misfortune to gain attention.”
“They just capture a misleading photo or a short video, add a somewhat dramatic yet plausible story, and dare to post it online!”
Some members of the Urban Legends Chat Group might have sprung up like that, Lu Yibei thought.
While Lu Yibei rambled on, Huasang suddenly noticed that his nonsense, aside from chasing away annoying people, seemed to have another effect—it was quite hypnotic.
“The train is about to reach Huacheng Airport Station. Passengers heading to Huacheng Airport, please prepare to get off, exiting from the right-hand side doors. Please mind the gap between the train and the platform.”
Just as Huasang was about to doze off, the announcement echoed through the subway car.
When the subway arrived, Lu Yibei gently tapped Huasang’s shoulder, then pushed her toward the door.
Huacheng’s accessibility facilities were quite well-equipped. After getting off, it didn’t take much effort for them to leave the subway station.
————
At three fifteen in the afternoon, Lu Yibei and Huasang arrived at Huacheng Airport.
The terminal’s exterior boasted a natural streamlined shape with large-span steel structures adorned with glass curtain walls, resembling a long shell. Unfortunately, the yellow paper with drawn symbols peeking through the steel seams ruined the modern aesthetic of the terminal.
Even the vendors who used to hang around selling magazines and lighters had mostly switched to selling protective talismans.
Dressed in robes, beads hanging from their hands, and a cross around their necks, they would flash a Cthulhu statue at people and ask, “Do you need a protective talisman?”
Lu Yibei had no idea if those talismans were real, but he suspected that if anything truly did happen, the deities those talismans invoked would probably first hold a “Martial Arts Conference” to decide who owned the faith.
In short, it was quite absurd.
Inside the terminal, passengers bustled about, like rushing water or receding waves, filling every corner. Since the night had begun to lengthen, such scenes were often witnessed at the airport, giving people an illusion of being in the golden week.
Most people valued their lives, fearing terrible occurrences while flying after dark, thus trying to travel during the day. The flights scheduled between three to four in the afternoon could almost be considered the last flights of the day, and quite a number of people were rushing to catch them.
Entering the terminal hall, Lu Yibei pushed Huasang to stop next to the designated seating area and asked, “Are you going to check in your ticket yourself, or…”
Noticing Huasang’s lazy appearance, Lu Yibei sighed and said, “Alright, I get it, I’ll help you check in, but I can’t enter the waiting area, so you’ll need to hurry on your own later and not miss your flight.”
“Mm, got it.” Huasang nodded.
After settling Huasang, Lu Yibei took her ID and walked towards the nearby check-in desk, lining up at the end.
This girl really is quite troublesome.
He should have just gone back to the old house to find a suitcase for her and sent it directly to Dachunyang Palace.
After all, if she lay down in it, she probably wouldn’t move, and a simple spell would likely get past security.
As Lu Yibei silently complained while slowly moving along in line, a woman’s piercing scream suddenly reached his ears.
Looking towards the noise, he saw a bustling crowd about a hundred meters away at the passage, a group of people rushing through, shouting loudly as if they were going mad.
What’s going on? A celebrity? Isn’t this chasing stars a bit too crazy? At this rate, be careful your beloved idol might become an urban legend!
Lu Yibei frowned and was about to look away when a woman screamed, running past him.
“There’s a m*rder! There’s a m*rder!”
The next moment, a gunshot echoed through the terminal.
“Bang—bang—bang—!”
Within his line of sight, three gunshots erupted abruptly, and the originally noisy hall fell into complete silence. Everyone, as if in a movie, protected their heads, curled up, and looked around in panic and confusion.
The gunfire suddenly reached Lu Yibei’s ears, startling him so much that his body trembled slightly, his mind short-circuited for two seconds. Just as he regained his senses, gunshots rang out again.
“Bang—bang—bang—!”
Another three shots, and this time the distance was closer. Lu Yibei even saw a hand holding a g*n raised above the surging crowd.
Gunfire sounded again, as if it were a signal, signaling d*ath.
Everyone in the terminal hall immediately awakened from their bewildered state, rushing towards the depths of the terminal or out the door while screaming, occasionally pulling and shoving one another, like a bunch of wild beasts gone out of control.
At the same time, Lu Yibei snapped back to reality, sprinted a few steps forward, vaulted over the check-in counter, and pressed down on the head of a ground staff member who was preparing to peek out.
What the hell, is it possible to encounter terrorists just by sending someone to the airport? What’s the probability of this? Am I truly being punished by heaven?
As Lu Yibei muttered, he slightly straightened up and looked in the direction of the gunfire.
About thirty meters away from him, two masked brutal men charged into the crowd, their strong arms swinging wildly. Accompanied by several screams, several bystanders were directly sent flying, tracing an arc before crashing heavily onto the marble floor.
The entire process looked like they were struck by a truck moving at high speed, completing one and a half flips in the air at least.
Lu Yibei was momentarily stunned but quickly expanded his spiritual sense. Upon detecting the spiritual energy fluctuations emanating from the two men, which were around 0.5 to 0.7 old rabbits, his expression gradually turned serious.
As I guessed, relying solely on brute strength to throw dozens or even a hundred pounds of people into the air, this absolutely isn’t something ordinary people can achieve.
They are Spiritual Ability Users!
d*mn it, have Spiritual Ability Users become this blatant about their antics now?
Just as Lu Yibei was about to leap up and draw the Gray Owl Badge from his pocket, there was another gunshot, and he quickly ducked back behind the counter.
“Bang—!”
Accompanied by the gunshot, a dazzling flame burst from the dark g*n barrel, the hot b*llet gleamed with a faint silver light, tracing a shallow arc through the air and striking the steel framework above the terminal with a sharp “ding!” noise.
In the next moment, crimson flames erupted, instantly severing the struck steel frame, molten steel raining down, and screams rose one after another.
d*mn it, even though I have no clue why you’re making trouble at the airport, your actions seem to disregard my Siye Society!
If it weren’t for the guns in your hands, I would have surely sprung into action today! Lu Yibei thought fiercely.
Then, while he pulled out his phone to send a message to the Special Action Team, he hunkered down, using the check-in counter for cover, and stealthily circled behind the two men.
Just as the bullets shot by those two men were about to explode, Lu Yibei felt the energy fluctuations unleashed by the bullets.
From the intensity of the energy fluctuations, it could be estimated they were equivalent to a 15 times Red Flame Flash.
Clearly, these were Alchemical Bullets!
Realizing that the thugs used Alchemical firearms and bullets, he immediately abandoned the plan of physically enduring the bullets to subdue the criminals, choosing instead to approach stealthily.
Although it would feel great to reveal his powers publicly, if he acted recklessly and got shot twice, it wouldn’t be showing off but rather stupidity.
Alchemical bullets vary greatly in power depending on their materials. The older brothers in the Special Action Team once mentioned that the best Alchemical bullets could even inflict substantial damage on A Grade urban legends.
In a non-urban legend state, Lu Yibei sensed that charging in directly was too risky.
Even if it were in an urban legend state, weren’t there still bullets capable of harming A Grade urban legends?
Though such high-grade Alchemical bullets are quite costly, what if?
Since there was an opportunity for a sneak attack, why charge head-on?
Moreover, if he couldn’t finish them off in one blow, if they unleashed their fury, it would be hard not to harm innocent bystanders, and the cleanup work of the Special Action Team afterward would be exceptionally troublesome.
Thinking this, as he edged closer to the back of the thugs, he concealed his energy fluctuations and quickly recited a spell silently. With a soft “pu!” sound, a crimson fireball shot up from his fingertips.
At that moment, a booming voice suddenly rang in his ears.
“Stop, what are you doing!?”
“Didn’t you hear me tell you to stop? If you take another step forward, I’ll sh**t!”
cr*p, have I been discovered? Lu Yibei’s body stiffened slightly, and after two seconds of silence, he gritted his teeth and slowly stood up from behind the counter.
As soon as he stood, gunfire erupted.
“Bang—bang—bang—!”
Accompanying the gunfire, a harsh sound of metal clashing followed.
It was just like bullets striking a steel plate.
Lu Yibei was stunned for a moment and turned to look toward the sound, only to see an astonishing scene.
Huasang, her expression icy, was rapidly navigating her wheelchair towards the two thugs, gunfire erupting as bullets struck her body, sparking flashes of light.
It didn’t hurt her at all. She didn’t even furrow her brow.
In that moment, she was like a warrior of the battlefield…
Well, a wheelchair warrior.
