The Black Book: Seven Deadly Sins
Chapter 275: Brother

Chapter 275: Chapter 275: Brother

On the other side, watching the two little ones playfully fighting, Zhu Haomiao chuckled and shook his head, shifting his attention back to the cultivation technique.

The two of them, along with Diao Chan, leisurely finished their meal, quickly emptying the four-layered food box. In the end, Zhao Nuo, with her round belly, couldn’t help but burp.

"Burp~"

Realizing her impropriety, Zhao Nuo quickly covered her mouth with a blush and guiltily looked towards Zhu Haomiao.

If this were in the palace, she would definitely get a stern lesson from the etiquette officer!

However, to her surprise, such an inconsiderate action didn’t attract any scolding. The young man didn’t even lift an eyelid and calmly packed up the food box, placing it back into the bag.

Embarrassed, Zhao Nuo’s cheeks flushed pink as she awkwardly searched for a topic.

"Mr. Li, is that a Qiankun Bag?"

Zhu Haomiao nodded indifferently, nonchalantly.

"Hmm, you could say that."

"But... isn’t the Qiankun Bag unable to hold living things? Why did Diao Chan crawl out of your bag?"

"..."

After hesitating for a moment and seeing the little girl’s big round eyes filled with curiosity, Zhu Haomiao replied helplessly.

"Just consider it a special Qiankun Bag, and don’t tell anyone."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Nuo straightened her posture, solemnly patted her chest.

"I understand, I surely won’t tell anyone!"

Seeing Little Douding’s serious manner, Zhu Haomiao smiled, curving his lips and offered his pinky.

"Pinky promise."

Seeing this, Zhao Nuo looked disgusted: "Mr. Li, you’re so childish."

"..."

Nevertheless, despite her dismissive words, Zhao Nuo still extended her soft fingers like silkworm babies and hooked them with Zhu Haomiao’s.

"Rest assured, Mr. Li, I, as the princess, keep my word!"

Unable to hold back, Zhu Haomiao affectionately ruffled the little girl’s hair.

"I told you not to act so much like a princess, call me brother!"

"Ooh~"

With a cute whimper caused by the rough handling, the little girl glared at Zhu Haomiao both timidly and fiercely, then smoothed down her messy hair while muttering discontentedly.

"I am a princess with a title!"

"Then do you still want to eat sweet and sour ribs in the future?"

"I do!"

"Call me brother."

"Brother!"

The sweet baby voice instantly satisfied Zhu Haomiao’s every fantasy of having a sister, making him gently stroke her head with a doting smile.

"Good girl!"

"Squeak!"

However, this action invoked Diao Chan’s dissatisfaction, which started nudging its head against Zhu Haomiao grumblingly.

"You little whiny creature... fine, I’ll pet you too..."

Laughing and scolding, Zhu Haomiao indulged equally by giving Diao Chan a good head rub as well.

Until Diao Chan was all content and happy, Zhu Haomiao finally stood up slowly.

"Let’s go."

As he passed by Zhao Nuo, the young man patted her head affectionately.

"Be good and attend your classes, don’t wander off."

"Mr. Li, where are you going?"

"I have a public duty to attend to; I need to take my seat at the office."

With a wave back at Zhao Nuo, Zhu Haomiao walked away without looking back, disappearing outside the door in no time.

Watching his unhesitating departure until his figure vanished from sight, Zhao Nuo felt an unprecedentedly complex emotion in her heart.

Relief, ease, loss, unwillingness...

She was annoyed by others approaching her with motives, but when someone totally disregarded her, she hoped they would care.

On the other hand, Zhu Haomiao strode out of the Royal Martial Academy and headed straight for the Anti-theft Bureau in Lechang Square.

"Inspector Li!"

This time, the guards at the door saluted from afar with utmost respect, showing no slight disrespect.

Releasing a bit of the Original Sin of Pride, Zhu Haomiao nodded politely and gently smiled.

"Yes."

The friendly smile seamlessly merged with a dignified aura, creating a unique personal charm that made others instinctively admire him.

Entering the Anti-theft Bureau’s main hall, Yan Yunsheng, who was handling documents, promptly stood up to greet Zhu Haomiao.

"Inspector Li!"

Examining the subordinate’s expressions of respect and admiration, Zhu Haomiao nodded in satisfaction.

"No need for formalities, continue your work, I’m just here to take a look."

He was here to make an appearance, to brush up his presence; his main goal, though, was the prisoners held in the jail.

Seeing that Zhu Haomiao was about to leave, Yan Yunsheng quickly stopped him.

"Sir, I have something to report."

"Oh? What is it?"

"Regarding the three jailbreakers from yesterday, upon comparing with the Sea Capture Document Library, I’ve found they are all notorious criminals, with bounties totaling 1300 taels!"

Hearing about the money, Zhu Haomiao paused, his eyes lighting up.

"However, I’m just a low-ranking officer. If I were to claim the reward, getting even half would be decent..."

Hearing Yan Yunsheng’s hesitations, Zhu Haomiao immediately understood the implied request and nodded calmly.

"Prepare the posthumous honors for our fallen comrades and hand them to me, I’ll personally go to the General Office to claim the reward."

Upon hearing this, Yan Yunsheng sighed in relief, feeling the joy of having a good boss.

Previously, when Li Lin "played dumb," their Anti-theft Bureau at Lechang Square lacked a strong voice in the General Office, often being bullied and oppressed.

This was why the Anti-theft Bureau members had such great resentment towards Li Lin.

A useless superior causes the entire department to suffer bullying!

Others will brazenly encroach upon your interests!

On the other hand, seeing Yan Yunsheng’s touched expression, Zhu Haomiao faintly understood his emotions, comfortingly patted his shoulder and changed the topic.

"I’ll take a look around the prison, you all continue with your work."

"Yes, Sir."

Leaving the main hall, Zhu Haomiao headed directly to the jail. This time, the on-duty officers who knew what happened yesterday dared not delay, greeting him with utmost respect.

"Inspector Li."

"Yes."

Nodding gently, the young man descended straight to the depths of the prison, finding Overlord Blade Huo Hong.

From afar, Zhu Haomiao could see the pale-faced young man.

The handsome and dashing appearance of yesterday had long disappeared, replaced by a madman-like disheveled hair, a wretched and weak face, and dim, lifeless eyes.

In just one day, he seemed like a completely different person, aged by ten years!

However, the moment Huo Hong saw Zhu Haomiao, he jumped up as if electrocuted, screaming and curling up in the corner of the cell.

"Don’t come over! Don’t come over ah ah ah ah ah!!!!"

Zhu Haomiao: "..."

I’m not some demon!

Your reaction makes it seem like I’m the villain here!

Wryly pursing his lips, Zhu Haomiao ignored Huo Hong’s twisted, despairing expression and carefully observed him.

After a while, Zhu Haomiao crossed his arms, supporting his chin thoughtfully, and nodded slightly.

It seems... forcibly extracting Source Quality from a living being causes immense harm to the target!

With Huo Hong’s spirit and body strength, a few more extractions might just end him.