Chapter 18: Lord of the Sea Abyss × Researcher (18)

Ji Qingzhu stared at the three messages that appeared on the electronic device's screen. Through the translucent screen, she saw her own cheeks slowly turning red in the mirror.

She understood the implications behind his first message.

Ji Qingzhu continued to stare at herself in the mirror, and after a long while, she lowered her head and splashed cold water on her face.

Using her damp hand, she typed a reply on the laser keyboard.

[Ji Qingzhu: Hmm...]

She clicked on Shen Rongyu's profile picture, which showed a scenery of Nightlan Sea. It looked like an elderly person, but Ji Qingzhu knew that he had used a selfie as his profile picture.

Her own profile picture was also ordinary, a blooming epiphyllum grafted onto a cactus on her windowsill. It was the only plant she could manage to keep alive.

She put away the electronic screen, climbed onto her bed, and pulled the blanket up to her neck.

Ji Qingzhu slept on her side, and there was a large glass wall in her bedroom facing the Nightlan Sea. She lay on her side, watching the calm waves, and yawned.

She raised her hand and pressed the button on the control panel on the wall, and the hollow space between the glass walls began to fill with opaque gas, blocking her view of the ocean.

At this moment, she received another message.

[Shen Rongyu: Why did you cover it again?]

[Ji Qingzhu: Mr. Shen, you were peeping.]

[Shen Rongyu: It's just... I wanted to see you.]

Ji Qingzhu could clearly feel Shen Rongyu's dependence on her, but how could this be?

She felt that Shen Rongyu's fondness for her was simply because he didn't understand humans well enough.

But on the contrary, the reason why Shen Rongyu showed an unusual interest in her was... because he understood humans too well.

Ji Qingzhu held her electronic device and stared blankly for a while. She didn't know how to handle their relationship.

She typed slowly and didn't respond to any of his questions.

[Ji Qingzhu: Goodnight.]

She pulled up the blanket and closed her eyes.

The next day, she left the house, thinking about how to go to the Security Bureau in the independent city.

The coastline of Nightlan Sea belonged to the suburb, while the Security Bureau was in the city center.

She was thinking of taking Shen Rongyu with her, so... should she go to the sea and find him now?

While she was thinking, she saw a figure appearing on the beach, and Shen Rongyu walked towards her.

"Good morning," he smiled and greeted Ji Qingzhu.

"Sorry, my car has been modified, so I don't think I can drive to the city," Ji Qingzhu pointed to her modified yacht parked in the small pool in the courtyard.

"I can fly Miss Ji there," Shen Rongyu said, not hiding his non-human abilities.

"Mr. Shen, although I am very interested in your flying ability, there are restrictions on flying vehicles in the city. Any unregistered flying objects will be shot down, and we are already facing charges," Ji Qingzhu brushed the stray hair by her ear.

She was not wearing her research uniform today, just a linen fitted dress with a side slit so she could walk properly as the silk fabric had no stretch.

The weather had turned a bit cold, so Ji Qingzhu wore a thin knit cardigan and carried a large bag made of soft leather on her shoulder.

She rummaged through her bag and took out a few coins.

"Can we take public transportation?" Ji Qingzhu asked Shen Rongyu.

"Sure," Shen Rongyu stepped aside, letting her walk out of the courtyard.

"When you get on the bus, you need to swipe your registered identity card in the city," Ji Qingzhu took out her identity card and wondered if Shen Rongyu had one.

"I have one," Shen Rongyu took out his own identity card.

The identity card had a photo on it. Ji Qingzhu's photo showed her nervous expression facing the camera, while Shen Rongyu's... 

"Mr. Shen, why is your photo a seascape?" Ji Qingzhu asked.

"Oh, I just put that up when I was modifying the system information," Shen Rongyu didn't think much of it and smiled.

Ji Qingzhu furrowed her brows slightly. "Do you know that when we upload photos to update our identity card information every year, it goes through electronic pre-auditing? If the photo is not of a person, it will be rejected."

She implied that there was a big loophole in Shen Rongyu's identity card.

Shen Rongyu's smile froze. He didn't expect that after thousands of years of slumber, humans had become even more cunning.

He flipped the identity card over, revealing the back. "I'll change it when we get on the vehicle."

They left early, and the early bus hadn't arrived at the station yet. Ji Qingzhu asked Shen Rongyu to wait for her at the station while she bought breakfast from a nearby breakfast shop.

When she was still working at Lanhai Corporation, she used to buy breakfast from this shop. The waitstaff were a little surprised when they saw her.

"Miss Ji, it's been a while since you've been here," the waitstaff knew about Ji Qingzhu's identity and the events at Lanhai Corporation. This news had spread throughout the entire independent city.

"Yeah," Ji Qingzhu placed the whole wheat bread and milk on the counter.

"Are you out today because you found a new job?" The waitstaff was curious about Ji Qingzhu because she was usually quiet, making her seem mysterious.

Ji Qingzhu shook her head and took out some loose change from her bag. She had been saving up recently, even taking out some small denomination bills that she had around the house.

The waitstaff was in the process of ringing up her purchase when a voice at the entrance said, "Welcome."

Ji Qingzhu didn't turn around to see who had entered the shop. She wasn't curious about new customers in the shop.

But the waitstaff exclaimed, "He's so handsome."

The waitstaff was amazed by the newcomer's exceptionally attractive appearance and forgot to scan the barcode for the last item.

Ji Qingzhu knew the personality of the waitstaff. On her first day of buying breakfast here, the waitstaff had stared at her for a long time before finally saying, "You're so beautiful."

"I feel like I've been gone for a long time," Shen Rongyu walked up behind Ji Qingzhu and said to her, "Just came to look for you."

"Ah..." Ji Qingzhu turned her head and softly replied.

"Miss Ji, is this your boyfriend?" The waitstaff snapped out of their daze, putting the bought breakfast into a paper bag.

Ji Qingzhu was momentarily stunned and didn't know how to respond.

She couldn't deny it anymore because of last night...

"No, he's not," Shen Rongyu answered for her, seeing her grip the paper bag tightly.

He was being considerate today.

Ji Qingzhu relaxed her grip on the bag.

"Oh, sorry about that," the waitstaff felt a little embarrassed. "I just thought you two looked good together."

Moreover, going out together to buy breakfast like this in the early morning, it looked like something couples would do.

Mainly... Ji Qingzhu had never appeared outside the company with anyone before.

"It's alright," Ji Qingzhu said.

Holding the bag of breakfast in her arms, she ran out of the breakfast shop.

"I didn't cause any trouble for you by coming over, did I?" Shen Rongyu sat in the seat at the station and turned his head to ask Ji Qingzhu.

"No," Ji Qingzhu handed him the bread and milk.

Looking at the whole wheat bread in his hand, Shen Rongyu smiled gently. He didn't eat this.

He tore open the packaging of the bread, and Ji Qingzhuo sat beside him, biting into the bread with puffed cheeks.

She was pondering why Shen Rongyu had denied their relationship earlier, as he didn't seem like the type of person to deny it.

But... it's probably for the best.

Ji Qingzhuo stared blankly at the empty street, while the reason Shen Rongyu denied it was simply because the last time he appeared in front of others on the whaling ship, he introduced himself and his relationship with Ji Qingzhuo.

Back then, he noticed the slight frown on her face and didn't make any teasing remarks like "he is my boyfriend," so he wouldn't say it this time either.

In case he annoys Ji Qingzhuo and she pushes him away, and he swallows her, that wouldn't be good.

After waiting for a while, the bus arrived, and Ji Qingzhuo and he sat in the back seat. This was the first bus of the early shift and also the starting station, so there was no one else on the bus.

Shen Rongyu's self-made identity card also passed the inspection of the unmanned bus, and Ji Qingzhuo officially began to contemplate the interrogation.

"It's difficult for us to clear ourselves of the crime. Even if there is no evidence, but... the injuries on An Kun are real," Ji Qingzhuo said, taking a sip of milk.

"Do you still want to drink?" Shen Rongyu handed her his own cup.

"Having enough daily protein intake is sufficient," Ji Qingzhuo said, not noticing that Shen Rongyu changed the topic, "Mr. Shen, do you need protein?"

"Protein..." Shen Rongyu knew the meaning of the term and smiled to deny it.

He didn't need to eat those things; he needed fresh death and souls to survive.

But... strangely, since awakening, he hadn't eaten anything at all, yet he didn't feel hungry.

Shen Rongyu didn't care about this matter; he always did things as he pleased.

Ji Qingzhuo took out her notebook from her bag and recorded this observation.

"You don't have to worry about the interrogation, Miss Ji," Shen Rongyu said. He had countless ways to bewitch the entire security department with his lies.

But... he wanted to do it in the most normal way possible, otherwise it wouldn't be good if Ji Qingzhuo noticed any clues.

Ji Qingzhuo was a bit nervous. "I won't lie."

"I will," Shen Rongyu said gently.

"I know you will," Ji Qingzhuo had been deceived by him countless times.

"But I can't deceive you," Shen Rongyu lightly laughed, looking at Ji Qingzhuo.

"You have deceived me," Ji Qingzhuo said.

"Didn't you discover all of it? My clever Miss Ji?" Shen Rongyu felt a bit wronged.

"Last night, you said you really liked me," Ji Qingzhuo lightly tapped the back of her other hand with her finger, "but today, you..."

"Said... said we're not boyfriend and girlfriend..." Ji Qingzhuo still had some concerns about this issue because, in her meticulous perspective, kissing was something only lovers would do.

Although she didn't really want to enter into a relationship, but since she did, she should take responsibility, right?

They hadn't reached the point of entering into this relationship yet, but... establishing the relationship first, then breaking up, and returning to their original state after separating, the process should be like this.

They hadn't broken up yet, so how could it not count, then what does yesterday's kiss count as?

Shen Rongyu noticed the conflicted expression on Ji Qingzhuo's face and could tell that she wasn't questioning it because she was wholeheartedly devoted to him, but because she was genuinely confused about certain self-assumed processes being disrupted.

"If Miss Ji wants to continue like this, of course, she can," Shen Rongyu said, lowering his voice. "Everything will follow Miss Ji's process."

"Okay," Ji Qingzhuo took a deep breath, and her orderly process fell back into place.

She opened her mouth, preparing to continue to the next step - breaking up, but she couldn't make a sound.

Because Shen Rongyu turned sideways, held onto her shoulder, and sealed her lips again.

He was just doing what he should do in the ongoing process of a relationship.