Su Ding was both surprised and amused, "Are you sure you want to take me to an underground boxing ring?"
When she was researching the Ouyang family, she had stumbled upon it online.
There was a large underground boxing ring in the Southern Territory, where many professional and amateur fighters competed, earning high commissions for their victories.
Some people came to make money, while others came to gamble and have fun.
She had seen on forums that some individuals there possessed incredibly robust physiques, and the boxing matches were extremely exciting and passionate.
"Interested?" Jiang Chu smiled.
Su Ding gave a noncommittal reply, "Okay, let's go take a look."
She was very curious about what the iron bodies boasted about by netizens actually looked like.
Underground Boxing Ring.
The entertainment venue was much less crowded in the afternoon compared to the evening, but it was still a clamor of voices, with quite a few spectators.
Jiang Chu led her to the VIP seats and looked towards the stage.
Su Ding surveyed her surroundings; most of the attendees were men, though some had brought their girlfriends to experience something new.
"Roar! Go on!"
"Go, Number One! Go!"
Two fighters on stage were already locked in a fierce exchange. One, having just regained his footing, was kicked down, spraying blood on the spot.
Excited screams and the frantic waving of glow sticks filled the air.
Su Ding's eardrums ached from the noise; it was almost like a concert!
The audience's fervor made her realize that such violent spectacles were rarely seen elsewhere.
The underground boxing ring was indeed a unique feature of the Southern Territory!
"Is it too noisy?"
Jiang Chu turned to look at her, asking with concern.
Su Ding only knew he was talking to her but couldn't clearly hear his words. She leaned closer, "What?"
A slight smile played on Jiang Chu's lips, a flicker of joy in his eyes.
As he leaned in, he could catch the light, alluring scent from Su Ding's hair, causing his heart to feel a bit tight and flustered.
He leaned close to her ear and said loudly, "Are you thirsty? I'll get you some water."
Su Ding finally heard him clearly and quickly waved her hand, "No need, thank you!"
She turned her gaze back to the stage, her eyes inadvertently drawn to Fighter Number Two. This person...
"Jiang Chu, Jiang Chu!"
Su Ding nudged the man beside her, "Doesn't Number Two look a bit familiar?"
Jiang Chu heard her and also looked over.
His gaze swept across the face of Fighter Number Two, and after a moment's thought, he exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't that the guy we met at the restaurant?"
Su Ding nodded.
She hadn't expected to see him at the boxing ring so soon after seeing him get dumped by his girlfriend at the restaurant.
This man was tall and slender, not appearing to have much muscle. He had been lifted and thrown by his opponent earlier, and it seemed he was about to lose.
But now, he had thrown his opponent out with one hand—
"Ahhh!"
"Number Two is so strong, too strong!"
The crowd below let out excited cheers, and even Su Ding couldn't help but feel a sense of apprehension.
This man was special.
From her observation, this person likely didn't frequent the gym regularly, and his physique was even somewhat unhealthy. His boxing movements were not standard, relying entirely on brute force.
This strength was almost incredible...
Su Ding couldn't help but furrow her brow; it was indeed as the online comments described – formidable and terrifying.
"Are you feeling unwell? Should we leave?"
Jiang Chu leaned in to speak to Su Ding, unintentionally being stirred by that faint fragrance once again.
Her profile was so beautiful.
Even in the dim lighting, her charm was in no way diminished.
Su Ding kept her eyes fixed on the ring, completely oblivious to the man beside her, "Wait a moment longer, let's finish this match."
The outcome on stage was already evident, with Number Two finally pinning Number One to the ground.
"Three..."
"Two... One..."
"Number Two wins!"
Fierce cheers erupted from the entire venue, and the host continued with the next segment.
At this moment, the man jumped off the stage. His head was bleeding profusely, but his expression remained unchanged as he strode towards the changing room.
Su Ding looked at the man's vacant eyes and found something unsettling.
"Jiang Chu, let's go."
She stood up and left the underground boxing ring through the VIP passage.
Her ears instantly became clear!
Jiang Chu had intended to bring her here, thinking of the classic trope of a guy taking a girl to watch a scary movie, but unexpectedly, Su Ding was engrossed in the spectacle.
Conversely, he himself found the intense fighting scenes utterly uninteresting.
Su Ding glanced at the time, "You have something else to do later, right? Why don't you go take care of it, and I'll buy something nearby before heading back."
Jiang Chu didn't want to push too hard. He smiled and said, "Okay, let's make plans for next time."
"Mm, bye."
Su Ding browsed around a nearby mall before taking a taxi back to her residence.
As soon as she entered, her phone vibrated.
A text message arrived: [Girl, don't go to places like underground boxing rings anymore, it's not safe.]
It was from an unknown number, but the tone immediately made her think of—
Devil!
She immediately called back, but there was no answer.
Her suspicion deepened further; how did he know she had gone to the underground boxing ring that afternoon?
Was someone monitoring her?
Su Ding uneasily pushed the door open and sat on the sofa.
The house was empty. Aside from basic furniture, there were no other superfluous items.
As night fell, it became even quieter.
She thought for a moment and sent a message to Mr. Xiao, who had shown her the apartment when she first arrived, asking him to help find a reliable housekeeper.
If there was a housekeeper, perhaps it wouldn't feel so desolate.
Su Ding scrolled back to the text message. She could sense that the sender intended goodwill, reminding her in a kind manner, but it was frankly too strange.
She pondered for a moment and replied:
[Who are you? Why are you monitoring me!]
However, the message was met with silence, and Su Ding didn't receive any reply from the sender before going to sleep.
Fine, she would see tomorrow.
...
Jiangcheng Bieyuan.
A piercing, terrified scream shattered the night sky—
"Ghost! A ghost!"
"Don't come closer, don't come closer, don't hurt me..."
"Go away, go away!"
Shao Lin huddled in the corner of the bedroom, trembling with fear. Outside the window, a little girl's skirt fluttered in the breeze.
The pink, gauzy hem was snagged by the branches of a tree outside the window.
The night wind blew and blew, like a terrifying specter searching for its enemy...
Shao Lin's face was pale, her eyes underscored by dark circles. Sweat and tears mingled on her face, her lips dry and chapped, constantly opening and closing.
"Don't hurt me..."
Suddenly, a singing voice gradually drifted from afar; it was a children's nursery rhyme.
In the dead of night, the innocent voice of a child sounded particularly eerie and terrifying, waxing and waning, sometimes as if it were right by her ear, and at other times as if it were from an immense distance...
Shao Lin was on the verge of a breakdown.
Her mind kept replaying the photograph she had once cherished the most.
The blood-stained clothes of the little girl after she fell off the cliff.
In a daze, she seemed to see the little girl gradually flying up from the bottom of the cliff, turning her small body. Her face was deathly pale.
Those dark, hollow eyes stared directly at her...
Suddenly!
Her small mouth, stained a vivid, bloody red, opened wide and lunged towards her—
"Give me back my life!"
The small body suddenly cried out, startling Shao Lin into a scream, "Zhang Sao, help! Help—"
In the vast villa, no one responded to her.
These terrifying days had gone on for three consecutive days. She couldn't take it anymore, she really couldn't!
This place was extremely ominous.
"Give me back my life—you give me back my life—"
The shrill, terrifying screams seemed to grip Shao Lin's heart tightly, pushing her to the brink of collapse.
She rolled on the ground in disarray, weeping loudly, "It wasn't me, go find Xu Yan—"
"It wasn't me, it was Xu Yan who harmed you..."
"It has nothing to do with me, I never ordered anyone to harm you."
"Spare me, spare my child."
Shao Lin clutched her lower abdomen, cold sweat streaming down her face. She felt blood beginning to flow from her lower body and was terrified to the point of near fainting.
"Don't hurt my child, please don't..."
"Go find Xu Yan..."