Jing Shu kicked the door open with a loud bang, the heavy wood slamming against the wall. The detonator was already buzzing at high speed, a frantic, mechanical whine that filled the small space, while arcs of blue electricity sparked across its surface in jagged flashes!
Boom!
At that critical moment, Jing Shu arrived and shouted, "Collect!"
In an instant, she swept nearly all the explosives in the room into her Cube Space, the massive crates vanishing into the void. But the detonator had already been activated, the chemical reaction already surging. Within that split second, a small portion of explosives failed to be collected, remaining on the floor like a lethal residue. With a deafening explosion, the blast went off, the roar of it tearing through the quiet.
For the second time, she is thrown back by the shockwave, the force of the air hitting her like a solid wall. This time was far worse than before. Her forehead slammed hard against a piece of jagged rebar, splitting open with a dull thud, and blood trickled down her face in warm, sticky trails, leaving her in a pitiful state amidst the settling dust.
The conference room erupted with another loud boom, though the power of the blast had been reduced by countless times because of the missing mass.
Jing Shu lay on the ground for a while, unwilling to move. Her entire body ached, every muscle feeling as though it had been tenderized by a hammer. Every single day was proving to be nerve wracking, a constant test of her reflexes. If she ran into explosives again, she honestly had no idea if she could handle it.
Just then, heavy footsteps thundered outside, the rhythmic thuds vibrating through the floor. She cursed inwardly, her breath hitching in her throat. Of all times to arrive, why now? Reluctantly, she pulled out nearly four tons of TNT from her Cube Space, the yellow blocks thumping onto the floor, and staged the scene to look like she had manually cut off the detonator wiring. After all, everyone outside was sharp eyed and hard to fool, and she needed a plausible story.
As someone familiar with TNT, she knew how to stop an activated detonator. All it took was cutting off power to the remaining explosives, a delicate task requiring nerves of steel. Easy to say, far harder to do. In her previous life, she had not have the courage to test it, fearing the sudden end. This time, she used the safer method of her space ability to simulate the result.
Suddenly, blinding searchlights flooded the room, the white beams cutting through the haze of smoke and plaster dust. She shielded her eyes from the harsh glare, her vision swimming.
"There's someone there! A survivor!"
"Catch them!"
"Wait! Captain Wang, I know her! She's the one Mr. Su and Mr. Qian are looking for!"
Still lying on the ground, Jing Shu saw a familiar pair of military boots approach step by step, the grit crunching under the thick soles. Looking up, she spotted Yang Yang's delicate but stern face, his features tight with concern.
"Is that you, Jing Shu?"
Her ears are still ringing with a high pitched whine, but she managed to respond, "Mm."
Yang Yang quickly rushed over, his boots tapping against the floor with frantic speed. He propped her up, his hands steady against her shoulders, and asked, "Are you badly hurt? Mr. Qian has an old doctor with him!"
She shook her head, though the movement made the room spin. "Not too bad, but I should still get bandaged."
Captain Wang frowned, his gaze scanning the wreckage. "Yang Yang, what's going on here?"
"Captain Wang, this is Jing Shu, a classmate who has been traveling with Su Mali. She protected her all the way here. Just now, Mr. Su was asking about her. Originally, she was with Su Mali, but she suspected Lin Yi planned to blow up the castle, so she went off alone to search for clues."
Hearing this, Captain Wang's expression softened, the tension in his jaw easing. "Then hurry, get her treated first. The rest of you, search the ruins."
Jing Shu pointed inside with a trembling finger. "A woman triggered the TNT with a detonator. I only managed to cut most of it off, but some still exploded. Check if she is alive."
Captain Wang's eyes widened, his eyebrows shooting up. He gestured to the massive pile of explosives nearby. "You cut those while the detonator is already active?"
She nodded, her throat dry. "I knew the theory but never tried it before. I figured if I didn't, we would all die."
"Good! Excellent! You saved every one of us! As soon as we entered, we started defusing charges, but only found two decoys. Never imagined the real stash was here. Jing Shu, you've made great merit!"
"I disabled several of these big ones already."
Her heart bled as she thought of it, four tons of TNT. In the apocalypse, explosives are worth their weight in gold. They are useful in countless ways, from clearing roads to defending territory. Still, she told herself not to be greedy. She still had fourteen tons left in the dark corners of her space. That should be enough for any emergency. By now, she truly deserved to be called the Queen of Arms.
"Report! That woman's upper body was destroyed in the blast. Only her lower body remains."
Captain Wang waved his hand, his face grim. "Bring it back for DNA testing."
Jing Shu was escorted to the castle's main hall, her footsteps slow and heavy. A crowd had already gathered, the survivors huddled together, but no one dared to speak loudly. The atmosphere was heavy and chilling, the air smelling of damp stone and fear. Outside, the bombing had finally subsided, the last echoes fading into the rain. She guessed that most of Xishan had likely been blown to rubble, the beautiful mountain scarred by fire. By tomorrow, rumors had surely spread that the richest man in Xishan had lost an entire mountain to an explosion.
She even found herself with enough presence of mind to look around the so called castle of the richest man. In her past life, she had only glimpsed it from afar, marveling at how magnificent and fortress like it looked against the horizon. Now that she is inside, her first impression is its sheer size, vast as a palace, with ten meter high ceilings that disappeared into the shadows and no pillars to break the space. The empty hall radiated understated luxury, the walls lined with smooth, cool stone.
It was not gaudy, but every object was priceless, from the heavy silk hangings to the polished floors.
Having money is wonderful. In the apocalypse, having money is even better, providing a wall between oneself and the chaos.
Being rich felt good for a while. Staying rich felt good forever.
"Jing Shu? Jing Shu, are you alright? Don't scare me!" Su Mali ran over in tears, her face puffy and red.
All eyes turned toward her, the weight of their collective gaze heavy in the hall. After all, when everyone had been relieved to find Su Mali safe, it was Jing Shu who warned that someone planned to blow up Xishan. She had gone alone to hunt for the bombs. In the end, Xishan truly had been bombed, and even part of the castle was destroyed, the evidence of the attack visible in the cracked masonry.
Qian Duoduo, whose face had been pale with rage, finally relaxed, the color slowly returning to his cheeks. "Get her bandaged." He then asked, his voice low, "What's the situation?" He had always claimed the castle is the safest place in the city. But before long, explosives are discovered inside as well, proving him wrong in the most violent way. When one of his teams entered to investigate, they uncovered a host of problems.
He realized then that his steel castle, built at staggering expense, had been compromised. Someone had tunneled beneath it like moles in the night. Thanks to the reinforced materials, the intruders could not penetrate the main walls. But the underground passage reached right to the gate. If he had not ordered the castle's defenses opened, those saboteurs would never have been able to sneak in and plant so many explosives.
Yang Yang spoke first, his voice carrying clearly through the hall. "Mission accomplished. Jing Shu cut off the detonators for four tons of TNT, preventing them from being set off. She saved all of us."
"No way. That's incredible!"
"Looks like it's true. Just look at her injuries."
"Heavens truly protected us."
Qian Duoduo exhaled heavily, the sound a long, weary whistle, and patted Jing Shu lightly on the shoulder. "Today, I can't thank you enough. You not only exposed their plot but also stopped their plan. I, Qian Duoduo, owe you a great debt."
Su Xiangnan's grim face finally softened as well, the hard lines around his mouth relaxing. He said, "Unlike Qian Duoduo, I'm not stingy. I owe you two favors. You saved both Su Mali and me."
"Then I owe you four favors. You saved my entire family of four." Qian Duoduo snorted, the sound a mix of pride and grudging respect.