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Ch 08: The Heart Devil Awakens

Patrick immediately shifted his gaze from his laptop to his phone, then sent a message to Ellie. 

[Is the video footage real? How did you get it?]

The message was replied to by Ellie one minute after it was sent. She explained it in detail through a voice note, making Patrick furrow his brow in disbelief as he listened. 

[Send me all the information about the young man in the video.]

Ellie replied. [Alright. Why do you want it? Do you also find that man strange?]

Patrick only read it and didn’t reply again. He refocused on the laptop screen and replayed the video of Leon’s fight with Uncle Xiao. 

His feelings right now were more or less the same as Ellie’s when she first saw the footage. Unfortunately, the recording was very short. The video cut off because the CCTV was damaged, which frustrated him greatly.

He was the captain of the Red Wolf Special Forces and had been trained since his teenage years, both in martial arts and military tactics. The scars on his body were silent witnesses that he had experienced life-and-death situations in battle. 

Seeing every movement and the aura Leon released, it was as if he were looking at a grandmaster. He also wasn’t sure—whether this was just his feeling or the man truly was a powerful cultivator hiding his identity and strength. Because it was impossible for a martial artist to defeat a cultivator so easily. Not to mention, Leon looked very young.

In the middle of his confusion, his phone notification chimed, showing an incoming message from Ellie. There was a document containing information about Leon.

Patrick opened it immediately. After studying it for a moment, he had to accept that there was nothing special about the information. It only contained Leon’s personal data and his background as a priest from a village who wanted to experience city life.

"Is it just my feeling?" Patrick muttered. He started to doubt his own judgment. "But I’ve been through countless bloody battles, and only a few people can trigger a feeling like this." 

"It seems I need to send someone to spy on him. He’s quite interesting. If he really does have that kind of ability, it would be great if he joined the Red Wolf team."

...

Meanwhile, at 21:25 in the sky over Huston City, Bella’s apartment. 

Leon followed Bella into a modern-designed unit with two bedrooms, one living room, and a kitchen and bathroom. The apartment wasn’t too big, nor was it small. Enough for three to four people to live in.

As a career woman living alone, Bella had no choice but to let Leon see the state of her apartment, with things out of place. The apartment wasn’t exactly messy, just unpleasant to look at for someone who liked cleanliness. Clothes on the sofa, snack containers on the coffee table, and a little dry trash she forgot to clean.

"Sorry, I was in a rush today and didn’t have time to clean up last night’s mess," Bella said, smiling a little sheepishly. 

Leon just stayed silent and gave a faint smile. Again, he was reminded of his childhood, when Bella would scold him adorably for never tidying up after playing.

Now, he could see Bella caught up in her busy life, to the point she didn’t even have time to clean her home. The reality of adulthood really couldn’t be predicted. Sometimes you wanted to go back to childhood, just to feel free once more. No regrets, nothing to think about, and most importantly, he could still see the faces of his mother and father, whom he missed dearly now.

"Ah, you haven’t eaten yet, right? I think there’s still food in the fridge. Wait a bit, I’ll cook it for you."

After taking off her shoes and changing into slippers, Bella hurried to the kitchen. She stopped for a moment when she saw several dirty plates piled up on the kitchen counter. 

"Sorry. I even forgot to wash the dishes last night."

It felt a little uncomfortable to let Leon see the scene in front of him. But Leon just shook his head slightly, as if amused by Bella’s expression.

A while later, Bella finished cooking. The aroma of reheated Smoked Brisket was still enticing as it reached Leon’s nose. Added to that was the barbecue sauce and boiled potatoes coated with butter and black pepper.

Bella then asked Leon to finish it, while she went to the bathroom to clean up. 

Not even five minutes after Bella left, the food on the plate was gone. It tasted so good that Leon couldn’t help but burp contentedly.

Leon then looked around. Since he didn’t know what to do next, he decided to clean up, starting from the living room to the kitchen. 

It didn’t take long for Leon to clean it all. He used telekinesis by channeling his mental energy, making items move on their own and even fly to where they belonged. 

After everything was done, he sat cross-legged on the sofa and closed his eyes to meditate. As he meditated, he could clearly hear the ticking of the wall clock and even the sound of the faucet in the bathroom.

Leon instantly activated his spiritual awareness, which allowed him to see the entire condition of the apartment. His spiritual awareness then unconsciously drifted toward the bathroom, making him startled by the scene there.

In the bathtub, Bella was soaking her body in soapy water. Leon could see her fair, incredibly smooth skin. Her wet, loose hair made her charm spread until even Leon’s physical body could feel it.

Leon swallowed, his eyes still closed. As a man, who wouldn’t be tempted by something like that. But Leon instantly realized what he was doing was wrong, so he quickly withdrew his spiritual awareness and slowly opened his eyes.

The moment he opened his eyes, he immediately shut them tight again, embarrassed, realizing the thing between his legs had hardened.

"Damn it. I only peeked for a second, why did it get hard so fast? Leon, you pervert," Leon muttered, clenching both his fists.

THUMP

At the same time, Leon’s eyes suddenly shot open. In one breath, his chest felt like it had been struck by something hard. His breath caught, his heart pounded wildly. And at that moment, a blackish-red aura began to shroud his heart, spreading until it seeped out from his body.

"Arggh. What is this? No. Not now," Leon muttered, clutching his chest, feeling excruciating pain. "Aararghh! No!"

Bella, unaware of the situation outside, calmly got out of the bathtub and immediately covered her slender body with a towel.

When she opened the bathroom door and stepped out, she looked normal. But after walking a few steps, she started looking for Leon, who was nowhere to be seen.

She walked to the living room while calling Leon’s name. When she found Leon’s body lying on the floor, she immediately smiled crookedly.

"Leon? Why are you sleeping there? Hey?" Bella asked, not yet realizing the situation.

For a moment she grew suspicious because Leon didn’t react. If she were a cultivator, she could see the blackish-red aura emanating from Leon’s body. But as an ordinary human, Bella couldn’t see it at all.

She quickly crouched down, intending to shake Leon awake. But when she touched the man’s skin, she instantly screamed and pulled her hand back, as if she had just touched a hot pan.

"Oh, shit. Leon?! Hey? Are you okay?" she cried, starting to panic. "Hey? Wake up!"