"I actually managed to retrieve a few of the boulders before you got here," Jing Shu muttered, rubbing her temples. One of the massive stones had ended up lodged in a bus window. The problem was, with the fire raging out of control, she had not been able to get close enough to reclaim it into the Cube Space.
Now, the bus was nothing but a charred skeleton, but inside, the massive boulder glowed red-hot, standing out starkly among the blackened wreckage. Burned corpses were reduced to ash and twisted bones. The sight was enough to make anyone's stomach turn.
How was she supposed to explain this? She had not even finished tidying up the scene when a whole crowd showed up.
Jing Shu's tone turned serious. "You might not believe this, but I had dragged a bunch of rocks to block this corner. Maybe there were too many people in the vehicles, and they lost control while turning. They skidded, flipped over, and just happened to crash into the boulders. That's why you see the stone lodged in the window."
The veteran officer next to Yang Yang frowned. "You're saying they flipped first, and only then did the rock break through the glass? But judging by impact physics, it clearly looks like—"
Before he could finish, Yang Yang cut him off. "And the strong smell of gasoline all over the scene, was that your doing?"
Jing Shu shook her head. "You probably won't believe me, but I think they were carrying gasoline themselves. The cars flipped, leaked fuel, and that caused this horrific incident. I only used my crossbow to finish off a few survivors. You've seen action movies — cars always burst into flames after rolling over. These two just did the same."
There was no way she could explain where so much gasoline came from. She had arrived with nothing but her crossbow.
Yang Yang's lips curved into a playful smile. "So what you're saying is this was all a coincidence? You stacked a few rocks, they rolled over, exploded, and no one survived. That's your story?"
Jing Shu nodded rapidly, like a pecking chick. "Exactly. Just a coincidence."
"I believe you… not at all," Yang Yang thought inwardly, though his smile never faltered.
He glanced at the people standing beside Jing Shu. "And who are these two?"
Jing Shu had a box in one hand, her foot on a man sprawled at her feet, and a disheveled young man stood close by. "This is Zhang Qiang, Zhetian's third-in-command. And this," she gestured toward Wang Dazhao, "is my embedded informant in Zhetian." Calmly, she shifted the black case behind her back.
"Relax, we won't pry into your spoils," Yang Yang said, eyes narrowing at Zhang Qiang. "But I am very interested in this man."
"My cousin Wu You'ai has been captured by Zhetian's No. 2, Shangguan Jun. I'll need Zhang Qiang alive as leverage to get her back. Also, please spare a team to guard the villa. I worry they might retaliate out of desperation," Jing Shu requested.
Although she had been checking in with her grandparents and all was normal at Xishan Villa, Jing Shu was not taking chances.
"Fine," Yang Yang said with a smirk. "This trip was worth it. I'll borrow Zhang Qiang for a while."
Jing Shu did not trust Yang Yang not to kill Zhang Qiang. She grabbed the unconscious man by his collar, hauling him like a sack of rice, and climbed into a patrol car with Wang Dazhao. Su Lanzhi and Jing An followed behind in their BYD Song as the convoy headed to the location Wang Dazhao had mentioned.
Jing Shu's suspicions were quickly confirmed. The moment they were on the road, Yang Yang pulled out a long needle, filled it with water, and jabbed it into Zhang Qiang's body. Satisfaction lit Yang Yang's eyes as he prepared to start his interrogation.
Zhang Qiang was wrenched back to consciousness by unbearable agony. His body, riddled with old injuries and fresh burns, twitched violently. Wang Dazhao turned away, pale. The car was unnervingly silent; everyone else was clearly used to Yang Yang's sadistic methods.
The giant man writhed like a maggot. Jing Shu's head throbbed as Wang Dazhao leaned in to whisper grim news.
"Shangguan Jun is Zhetian's most twisted man. He loves torturing people, and worse, he kills them as soon as he's gotten the information he wants. Says it gets boring otherwise."
Jing Shu's heart sank. And Wu You'ai? A gentle soul like her might not fear death, but enduring this kind of torment was another matter entirely. If Wu You'ai died, how would Jing Shu face her grandparents or Third Aunt?
She slammed a boot into Zhang Qiang's back, knocking him flat. "Stay down!"
There was a loud thud, and Zhang Qiang blacked out completely.
Everyone in the car swallowed hard. The sheer force of that kick was frightening. Even Yang Yang shot Jing Shu a surprised look. "This woman… She's terrifyingly strong. Hauling a 100-kilogram man like a toy."
Soon, they arrived at Zhetian's secondary base, a half-constructed office building only a few hundred meters from Ai Jia Supermarket.
"Mom, Dad, stay here. Officer Yang Yang and I will check it out first," Jing Shu instructed. Her parents could not handle what they might see inside. She had already prepared herself for the worst.
As long as Wu You'ai was breathing, Jing Shu had a way to save her.
"Please, let me not be too late."
Her grip on Zhang Qiang's collar tightened, her pace quickening. Wang Dazhao jogged behind her, struggling to keep up.
Yang Yang gestured sharply. "Split into teams. Surround every exit."
Inside, they climbed the stairs. Jing Shu dragged Zhang Qiang up to the fourth floor. The entire building was eerily quiet.
"Strange," Wang Dazhao whispered, frowning. "There should be guards posted here. At the very least, someone watching the door. Did they already realize they'd been exposed and bail? But it's been less than an hour."
"If they left, that's worse. Who knows if they took the hostage," Jing Shu muttered. As she passed the first door, Wang Dazhao's flashlight swept across a corpse sprawled on the ground, body carved with dozens of knife wounds.
"That's Xiao Liu from our community. He took a bodyguard job with Qian Duoduo. Why is he here?"
Jing Shu strode to the second door. Her flashlight revealed another body, limbs twisted and shattered, the face frozen in a grotesque mask of pain.
Yang Yang licked his lips, excitement flashing in his eyes. "I didn't think anyone could be sicker than me. I really want to meet this Shangguan Jun now."
At the third door, Jing Shu planted a kick. The door flew off its hinges, crashing inward. Everyone behind her swallowed again.
Empty.
With every door they passed, Jing Shu's heart sank further. Another flashlight beam revealed a familiar face: one of the elderly women from the community, the first to beg for water on Water Distribution Day. She floated in a pool of murky green liquid.
The light illuminated her bloated corpse. Countless carrion scavengers swarmed over her body, wriggling in and out of her eye sockets and nostrils. The stench was overwhelming. She had clearly been soaking for hours, her body grotesquely swollen.