Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Tang Qiu stepped into the fitness club at 4 p.m. sharp. She had chosen a female coach, tall and sturdy, who looked like a small mountain even from a distance, both intimidating and reassuring.

Tang Qiu chose her for no other reason than that she looked like the toughest fighter among all the coaches. And she always wore a blank expression, rarely speaking. What others might see as too cold and frightening, Tang Qiu saw as flawless and full of advantages.

As Tang Qiu had hoped, the two exchanged barely a few words before the coach, surnamed Zhong, tossed her a thick, bound stack of training plans and said simply, "Take a look?"

Her decisive and straightforward style briefly reminded Tang Qiu of the early years of teamwork during the apocalypse, but she snapped back quickly and compliantly took the A4-sized booklet, leafing through it.

From Tang Qiu's perspective, the plan was nearly perfect except for the time it required. But Tang Qiu wanted fast results, so she closed the booklet and asked, "Can we shorten the time? I need to build combat ability as quickly as possible."

Coach Zhong scanned Tang Qiu's slender arms and legs with eyes as calm as still water, expressionless, and said flatly, "We can shorten it, but your body won't be able to handle it. I'm not going to ruin my reputation."

Coach Zhong didn't offer a single word of persuasion, but her stance was clear.

Tang Qiu thought for three seconds and pressed, "If my physical condition noticeably improves during training, will you adjust accordingly?"

Coach Zhong remained expressionless. "Of course."

Tang Qiu was satisfied. She stuffed the training manual into her backpack, stretched her limbs, and said, "Let's begin."

The next two hours were pure physical agony for Tang Qiu, but her mind was racing with excitement. She could almost hear her cells screaming, a sign that they were transforming, shedding weakness, and stepping into strength.

Maybe from sheer exhaustion, for a moment, Tang Qiu felt like she was back in the first two years of the apocalypse.

Looking back, those two years weren't really the apocalypse yet in terms of human survival rates and warfare. Some small countries had inevitably fallen, but many major powers were still strong nationally and militarily. Only the unique nature of the enemy had created a stalemate. As a vulnerable girl—especially an underage one—who would quickly become a resource in any conflict, Tang Qiu was gathered up and made to learn.

Learn what? Combat, of course. In those two years, Tang Qiu had no fear of the apocalypse—only exhaustion and burnout from endless, grueling training.

The process was painful, but the results were remarkable. Tang Qiu, along with countless other fragile, weak girls she had seen or encountered, quickly transformed from being someone who needed protection into qualified fighters who could fight the enemy to the death.

Tang Qiu was lucky, but also unlucky. She was an underage female, which made her invaluable to the enemy. But her parents were neither of those things. They weren't resources; they were the enemy. And so they died easily, right in front of Tang Qiu. She was powerless to change it, powerless to stop it. Once the enemy's parasitism began, the person was still there, but wasn't that person anymore. For Tang Qiu to live, they had to die.

They didn't leave any last words, but everything they had to say had been said to Tang Qiu countless times before: *Survive. You must survive.*

Every time she faced a predicament or a life-or-death crisis, Tang Qiu would silently tell herself those words. Today was no different. Her body trembled, but her spirit was exhilarated and clear. She told herself over and over: *Get stronger. Survive.*

Finally, two hours passed. The sweat she had shed was enough to give her a full-body bath. She was completely drenched, weak and disheveled, but her eyes were bright—extremely bright, like a burning flame.

Coach Zhong had started off somewhat indifferent, but after two hours, she had completely changed her opinion of Tang Qiu. After hesitating for two seconds, she reached out to Tang Qiu, who was lying limp on the floor, and couldn't help asking, "Why are you in such a hurry? You..."

In that moment, Coach Zhong's mind conjured up all sorts of scenarios, and even her expression shifted slightly.

But Tang Qiu didn't take Coach Zhong's hand to stand up. After a second's pause, she pushed herself up from the cold floor on her own.

Wiping sweat with an already damp towel without looking up, Tang Qiu said, "Because I want to get stronger."

That was Tang Qiu's honest answer.

Coach Zhong thought for a few seconds, then, as Tang Qiu gritted her teeth and started stretching, suddenly said, "Given the perseverance you showed just now, your training time can indeed be shortened. Give me two days, and I'll adjust your training plan accordingly."

Tang Qiu was satisfied. Her initial instinct in choosing a coach had been correct.

After stretching and showering, Tang Qiu retrieved her backpack from the locker and prepared to head home.

As she walked through the corridor past the equipment hall, she noticed a boxing ring set up in one corner, where two people were having a friendly sparring match. A crowd had gathered around it, packed tightly. Tang Qiu glanced over without much interest, squeezed her way through with some effort, and reached the elevator lobby.

She pressed the elevator button, but before the elevator arrived, two people came running after her. Two young men hesitantly called out, "Lawyer Tang?"

Tang Qiu hadn't expected to run into any of the original owner's acquaintances in a place like this. She turned around in surprise and quickly identified them by their looks and the information she had reviewed.

Tang Qiu nodded coolly, accurately addressing them by name, "Mr. Lv, Mr. Chen. Nice to see you."

The shorter, slightly plump young man was named Lv Xinghe, a geography teacher at a middle school. He liked studying mountains and rivers, often trekking into the wilderness, where he'd made many like-minded friends. He was in both camping and hiking groups that the original owner had joined.

The taller man with slightly dark skin was called Chen Chen, who owned an outdoor gear shop. He was also a group member in the original owner's camping and hiking circles.

On the original owner's photo wall, there were two group photos taken during outdoor camping trips, and both of these men appeared in them.

Recalling that there was still no lead regarding the original owner's murder case, Tang Qiu kept her expression neutral and cautiously said, "What a coincidence to run into you two here."

As Tang Qiu's eyes swept over the exposed limbs of the two men, she quickly concluded within two seconds that they were ordinary people with no systematic training. Even in her current state, she could take them down in a short time.

While Tang Qiu was observing them discreetly, the two men were also looking nervously and hesitantly at her, their faces clearly showing hesitation. They exchanged glances before speaking with some shame, "We... we came to work out. Last time..."

Both of them looked equally embarrassed. Finally, Chen Chen stammered, "I'm really sorry, Lawyer Tang. Last time, the camping trip was arranged by me. As the organizer and one of the few men there, I should have protected you, but I..."

Chen Chen couldn't continue out of shame. Lv Xinghe's face also reddened. In truth, when the attacker fled, their first instinct had been to chase him. But the attacker's towering, burly figure had filled them with fear, freezing them in place. There were four or five men at the scene, but not one dared to pursue. In the end, they could only watch helplessly as the murderer escaped, and the police still hadn't caught him.

Recalling how Tang Qiu had been knocked to the ground, her head bleeding, her breathing faint, the two were filled with guilt. So when they saw Tang Qiu just now, even though they were afraid to face her, they still chased after her determinedly to apologize.

Tang Qiu understood but didn't want to respond. After all, the original owner of this body had died from the attack. She couldn't forgive or comfort anyone on her behalf. So instead of replying, she shifted the topic. "Can you tell me in detail what happened that night? Especially the attacker's build. You may know that my head injury from that night caused some irregular memory loss, including the events of that night. It's been almost two months, and I still haven't recalled a thing. Is that okay?"

Tang Qiu's strategy of retreating in order to advance worked perfectly. The two eagerly agreed without hesitation. "Of course, Lawyer Tang. Tell us what you want to know, and we'll tell you everything. Or if there's anything else you'd like us to do, we're happy to help."

And so, instead of going home, ten minutes later, Tang Qiu found herself sitting in a coffee shop along the street downstairs.

It was the evening rush hour, with many pedestrians on the road, but the coffee shop wasn't crowded. The three of them picked a quiet corner spot, ordered coffee to their liking, and began their account.

Chen Chen spoke first. He seemed to have been frequently replaying the events of that night recently, as his recounting was clear and detailed.

"That night, around 11:50 p.m., you took a phone call, Lawyer Tang. We were in the third round of Werewolf. I had a civilian card, so I was relaxed and observing others. I saw you pick up the phone and step a few feet away. I was a bit worried you'd wander off, so I kept an eye on you. Once I saw you stay within ten feet of us, I felt reassured and went back to playing."

Chen Chen glanced at Tang Qiu and continued, "The weather was great that night: no clouds, a bright moon, no wind. I could faintly hear you soothing a client's voice. You sounded a bit helpless and tired. Then the game started, and I focused on playing. About twenty to thirty minutes later, I suddenly heard a scream. Everyone was startled and rushed over. We saw you lying on the ground, and a figure darting into the woods."

Chen Chen paused to confirm his memory, then said, "That figure... without a reference point, I can't say exactly how tall, but definitely not short—at least 1.8 meters. Very, very strong, broader than me and Old Lv combined. He ran fast. By the time we got to you, he was already a dozen meters away. He looked clumsy, but in the woods, he was as nimble as a monkey—running and leaping, not stumbling once, disappearing straight into the woods."

Tang Qiu summarized, "So the attacker was a strong, trained male who knew the woods well that night. Anything else you remember?"

Chen Chen hesitated, trying to recall further, then shook his head. But Lv Xinghe suddenly spoke up, "Definitely more than 1.8 meters. At least 1.9 meters."

Tang Qiu and Chen Chen both turned to him.

Chen Chen frowned and asked, "Are you sure? Did you tell the police that?"

Lv Xinghe said, "I did. Actually, I'm not entirely sure. I just thought... something was odd."

"Odd?" Tang Qiu pressed.

Lv Xinghe explained, "Logically, 1.8 meters isn't short. But when someone is very bulky, their height isn't as obvious. Do you remember the figure we saw that night? Even after he had already run into the woods, watching his back from a distance, he was still as massive as a bear. I've thought about it over and over, and I feel that if he were only 1.8 meters, we wouldn't have such a strong impression. So I suspect that person wasn't just bulky, but also tall—maybe 1.9 meters, or even taller."

Tang Qiu was pleased. This was a solid clue about the attacker's characteristics, worth the time spent sitting here dealing with these two.

"Anything else?" Tang Qiu asked.

Chen Chen said, "Nothing else. But after that night, I discreetly checked with everyone at the scene. No one had a motive or opportunity to harm you."

Tang Qiu was noncommittal, asking instead, "Did I have any conflicts with anyone there that night? Who was I close to, and who was I not so close to?"

Chen Chen and Lv Xinghe thought for a moment before shaking their heads in unison. "That camping trip was your third time joining the group's activities. Old Lv and I had met you before, and Tian Li and Tang Fangfang had also met you. That's it—just the four of us. Old Lv and I never had any conflicts with you, as far as we know. Tian Li and Tang Fangfang hadn't either. But you had added each other as contacts, so whether you had any private disagreements, we wouldn't know."

Tang Qiu carefully scanned the expressions of Chen Chen and Lv Xinghe. Their eyes were sincere and honest, not appearing to be lying. She nodded lightly. "Thank you for telling me all this. If I need anything else, I'll be in touch."

The two nodded eagerly in unison. "Of course, of course, Lawyer Tang. Whatever you need, we'll do everything we can to help."