Gao Yang slowed his pace and quickly made a decision to head toward a more populated area.

Theoretically, if a conflict occurred in a crowded place, it would only attract more Wrath Beasts, increasing his chances of dying. But on second thought, if the one tracking him was a Wrath Beast, it meant the beast had already discovered—or at least suspected—his identity as an Awakened.

But it hadn't attacked him immediately; instead, it was tracking him. This indicated that the Wrath Beast wanted to consume him alone. Since it wanted to consume him alone, it definitely wouldn't make a move in a crowded place.

Soon, Gao Yang passed by a 24-hour convenience store. He took a deep breath and turned inside.

Shortly after, a girl with medium-short hair, wearing a school uniform, came running around the corner. She chased to the convenience store door, hesitated, and then adjusted her bangs before walking in.

As soon as she pushed the door open, she bumped into Gao Yang.

She was startled. "Ah!"

Gao Yang had gathered all his courage to make this sudden turn. When he saw the girl's face, he was initially surprised, but soon felt relieved.

"Xiao Si?"

The girl was Gao Yang's classmate, Wan Sisi, known for her shy and introverted nature.

Wan Sisi was flustered, clutching her shoulder bag tightly and began a stiff and nervous performance: "Hi... Hi... What a coincidence, you're here too? I... I took the bus and missed my stop, then I got a bit hungry and thought of buying some snacks..."

"Were you following me?" Gao Yang asked directly.

Wan Sisi's face grew scarlet up to her ears. "I, I... um..."

Gao Yang looked around; the cashier and customers were attentively observing them.

Standing in the doorway was indeed awkward. Gao Yang grabbed Wan Sisi's hand and led her to a corner of the convenience store, sitting by the glass window, and bought some snacks and drinks.

A minute later, Wan Sisi was sipping instant coffee in small sips, gradually relaxing and even becoming a bit excited. She lowered her head and muttered to herself, "He held my hand and even bought me coffee..."

"What did you say?"

"Oh, nothing!" Wan Sisi quickly looked up, "Thank you for the coffee."

Gao Yang took a bite of a hot dog. "So, why were you following me?"

Wan Sisi lowered her head again, her voice becoming softer. "Gao Yang... you must be very sad about Li Weiwei, right?"

Gao Yang was slightly stunned but said nothing.

"It feels like you've changed into a different person lately. You don't talk much with classmates anymore and just daydream by yourself every day." Wan Sisi's tone was full of concern.

"Really?"

Gao Yang felt grateful: Thank you for the reminder. It seems I need to maintain my original social circle to avoid raising suspicion.

"People can't come back to life after death. No one wanted something like this to happen..." Wan Sisi cautiously glanced at Gao Yang, "Please don't get too caught up in it. If you have any troubles, you can talk to me."

Gao Yang stopped eating and took a serious glance at Wan Sisi, who had medium-short hair, bangs, an oval face, clean complexion, a tiny physique, and wide eyes that fluttered shyly and anxiously like a frightened deer.

Wan Sisi frequently talked quietly, appeared nervous, and avoided eye contact with others. She was the kind of soft-spoken girl that everyone liked to "tease."

Quite a few boys liked her, but she didn't seem to notice.

Normally, Gao Yang had a good relationship with Wan Sisi. She was the English class representative, and he occasionally asked her for help with English problems.

Since Li Weiwei's death, Gao Yang hadn't spoken to her much, so it was understandable she was concerned.

Wan Sisi blushed under Gao Yang's gaze, shifting her eyes away nervously. "I'm sorry... Forget what I just said..."

"Thanks." Gao Yang smiled gratefully, "I didn't expect you to care so much about me."

"No! I'm not caring!" Wan Sisi denied it, but her expression gave her away. "We're all classmates; it's what we should do!"

"Don't worry, I'm not getting caught up in it. I'll be fine after a few days of adjustment," Gao Yang said.

They chatted for a while about trivial things, life, college entrance exams, until their hot drinks were finished and the snacks were gone.

Wan Sisi got up to throw away the trash. She looked around and, when no one was watching, secretly put the disposable coffee cup into her pocket with a happy face.

None of this escaped Gao Yang's notice.

Could Wan Sisi be secretly in love with him?

Then Gao Yang remembered Li Weiwei almost killing him on his birthday. Maybe Wan Sisi was the same: professing love one moment and turning into a terrifying Wrath Beast the next.

Gao Yang felt mixed emotions.

They parted ways outside the convenience store. After Wan Sisi's happy figure disappeared around the corner, Gao Yang opened the system again.

The luck points didn't multiply, indicating Wan Sisi was indeed not dangerous.

After the small episode, Gao Yang continued walking. After two minutes, he stopped again.

No... it still feels like someone is following me.

Come to think of it, he had become more sensitive, probably due to increased "mental power." It seemed this attribute upgrade was indeed useful.

Gao Yang suddenly quickened his pace, turned at the next corner, threw away his backpack, and hid behind a vending machine, holding his breath.

Seven or eight seconds later, a figure ran out, noticing the backpack on the ground. Just as he was about to pick it up, Gao Yang jumped out. "Wang Zikai?!"

Wang Zikai was startled. "Ah—"

"Were you following me?"

Wang Zikai chuckled, "Wow, brother, I hid so well, yet you still found me!"

"I told you to stay home and practice!" Gao Yang was frustrated, his head aching: Brother, if you keep acting recklessly, I can't protect you.

Wang Zikai looked distressed, "This practice is so damn boring, I can't stand it anymore!"

"How will you get stronger without practice?"

"Can't I go kill monsters or do something else? Just sitting and meditating every day really doesn't seem to work!"

Of course, it doesn't.

But if you don't act recklessly, at least you can stay alive.

Gao Yang sighed, "Your physique is very special; your growth rate is slower than ours. Once you succeed, you'll be stronger than us all. You need to be patient. As the saying goes, 'When Heaven is about to place a great responsibility on a great person, it first exercises their mind with suffering, strengthens their sinews and bones, exposes their body to hunger...'"

"I get the idea." Wang Zikai looked pitiful, "But it's really too dull!"

Gao Yang was silent.

Seeing Gao Yang's stern face, Wang Zikai immediately smiled, "Brother, brother, don't be mad. I'll go back and continue practicing, okay?"

"Shut up."

"What's wrong?" Wang Zikai lowered his voice, looking around, becoming excited.

"We're... being followed."

Gao Yang felt like he was going crazy.

When will this end?!