Zhou Zhengde felt like his head was about to explode!
He strode through the bustling lobby of the 13th Floor Security Office, his face frighteningly dark. The clerks who had been whispering about the shooting immediately lowered their voices when they saw him.
Fortunately, the Security Captain of the thirteenth floor cared greatly about his image. Rather than grabbing someone at random to vent his anger on, he suppressed his temper, turned several corners, reached the witness protection room, and kicked open its alloy door.
Wei Na, who was soaking in a bath while wearing a swimsuit, jumped in fright.
The two Security Team officers at the door immediately lowered their heads... then secretly peeked from the corners of their eyes.
"Mm-hm," Wei Na said with a smile. "What's wrong with my ex-boyfriend? Do you have to hand me over already? Could you at least let me pick out something nice to wear?"
"Those Black Fire Gang bastards wouldn't dare touch me!"
Zhou Zhengde's words reeked of gunpowder. He turned and glared at the officers by the door, and they hurriedly shut the alloy door.
Zhou Zhengde took off his cap, undid the top button of his inner collar, went to the table in the corner and adjusted the room's lighting to its brightest setting. He then gulped down several mouthfuls of cold water and paced around for quite a while before finally calming down.
"Who exactly is this Mu Liang?"
Zhou Zhengde's voice carried unconcealed fury.
"Wei Na, I know you served in the military and got kicked out! I also know you have several Psionicist friends in the 13th Institute!
"Wei Na!
"You have to tell me the truth now! Who exactly is he?"
"What do you mean, who is he? A very interesting, handsome young man?"
Wei Na climbed out of the oil-drum-turned-bathtub and wrapped herself in a towel from the side. Her pinned-up long hair gave off the unique charm of a mature woman.
She asked in confusion, "Did something happen? I haven't had much contact with him. You know it all—I received a report about someone in the district attempting self-harm, so I went to provide medical support. Then I ran into those scum Black Fire Gang sent over... You need to tell me what happened before I can help you judge the situation."
"He killed two Black Fire Gang gunmen in a counterattack! Barehanded, with only a folding knife, he killed them! Two! Trained Black Fire Gang gunmen with guns!"
Zhou Zhengde spoke with emphatic pauses.
He paced around for quite some time.
Wei Na was clearly stunned. Then her eyes began to shine, and exclamations like "Wow" and "He's that amazing?" escaped her sexy red lips.
Zhou Zhengde became even more irritated.
He snapped, "Just now, the alarm I gave Mu Liang went off. I sent people over, and they brought back more than a dozen wounded punks! That bastard Rotten Fish was taken away! I checked the surveillance footage and saw that Mu Liang had taken Rotten Fish hostage! Only one camera caught a blurry shadow! Now they've vanished into thin air! They most likely went to the Lower City!"
Wei Na folded her arms and smiled casually. "Really? Are you sure? Mu Liang, a handsome but skinny young man, killed two gunmen and took down a whole group of punks? Is he really that cool?"
Zhou Zhengde: ...
He needed to calm down.
"I know you're very interested in this young man right now, but get this straight: I, Zhou Zhengde, am the one protecting you!"
Zhou Zhengde cursed.
"Mu Liang is very likely a Psionicist! One of those disgusting, filthy, shameless Psionicists!
"Just thinking that I may have helped a killing machine raised by the 13th Institute makes me sick! Sick!
"Do you know why I was transferred down from the Enforcement Team? Do you know how much I hate those bastards?"
"Well, all right. I suggest you calm down first. Your voice is far too grating," Wei Na said much more gently. "I thought you were jealous of him."
Zhou Zhengde was utterly speechless.
Wei Na blinked her left eye and crossed her legs as she sat in a single chair, her snow-white calves glowing softly.
She smiled. "Tell me about the injuries of those two gunmen, the injuries of those punks, and the survivors' statements. Although I left the military hospital years ago, I should be able to tell whether those injuries were caused by a Psionicist."
"There was surveillance at the site of the shooting, so the entire incident was captured..."
Zhou Zhengde quickly described the fierce battle from the surveillance footage, then changed the subject.
"There were no functioning cameras in Rotten Fish's territory.
"And those punks basically didn't see anything. They only heard several whooshing sounds, then felt intense pain in their necks and had trouble breathing. A few are still unconscious. The lack of oxygen to the brain may leave some Aftereffects."
Zhou Zhengde pondered for a moment before continuing.
"Some... nuts were found at the scene. Standard repair parts—you can get a bag for 1 General Quota.
"The places where those punks were hit were very similar, all around this part of the neck.
"You know I'm a good shot. If you gave me a standard-caliber Sniper Rifle and let me brace myself properly, even from within fifty meters, it would be difficult for me to hit almost the exact same spot every time. Extremely difficult.
"The only possibility I can think of is a Psionicist—one capable of using telekinesis to move objects.
"But that doesn't make sense either. Even the lowest-ranking E-Class Psionicist is an extremely valuable resource... Mu Liang has lived in this area for years. He's timid, a target for the punks' bullying, and was even bullied into attempting suicide. His life trajectory is traceable."
Wei Na asked, "Could he be a Psionicist the 13th Institute hasn't discovered yet? Maybe he awakened some ability on his own?"
Zhou Zhengde immediately said, "Impossible. I can guarantee it one hundred percent—Psionicists are cultivated! Psionicists aren't mutations of human individuals, much less human evolution! Besides, he took that punk leader Rotten Fish hostage. He may be planning to use Rotten Fish to go to the Lower City and take revenge on the Black Fire Gang. The Black Fire Gang has now directly threatened his life."
Wei Na countered, "If he were a Psionicist, would the Black Fire Gang be able to threaten him? Are they looking to die by offending the 13th Institute? Could he have used a slingshot, or some homemade kinetic weapon?"
"No, I need to find out where he is! I can't let him run around with a gun!"
Zhou Zhengde's expression turned somewhat vicious.
"The Black Fire Gang opened fire on my turf. That's already a serious violation of boundaries. I've arranged to meet the Black Fire Gang's boss at the City of Joy on the forty-sixth floor in three days.
"For these three days, the Black Fire Gang should behave themselves.
"If the situation becomes serious, higher-ups will take notice of this place. Then it may be beyond my control!
"Don't worry. I'll settle this as soon as possible."
Wei Na frowned. "Don't put yourself in danger because of me, my ex-boyfriend."
"It's not just because of the friendship we've had since childhood."
Zhou Zhengde picked up his military cap and lowered his head to put it on. He adjusted his uniform in the mirror, the corners of his mouth dipping slightly.
"It's also because of that damned hypocrisy and fake sense of justice you mentioned!"
Zhou Zhengde turned to leave, but Wei Na suddenly called out to him.
"Hey, do you want to stay a few more minutes?"
"Hm?" Zhou Zhengde frowned. "What's wrong? Do you need me to keep you company and chat? I don't remember you being this fragile."
"Not that." Wei Na pointed at the door, then at the clock on the wall, clicking her tongue softly. "Earlier, I heard your officers discussing how you stayed here for five minutes last time. Taking away the time for undressing, dressing, and tidying yourselves up, the main event probably lasted less than fifty-five seconds..."
Dark lines filled Zhou Zhengde's forehead as he stormed out and cursed.
"The Lower City gangs are bullying us right under our noses! You may not care about your dignity, but I do!"
"Get moving, all of you! Let me find out who took favors from the Black Fire Gang, and I'll shoot him!"
Then he turned around, walked back inside, locked the door behind him, calmly went to sit in the corner, picked up a paper book beside him, and began reading. He sent a message through his simple communicator to Lin Tao, the assistant he had brought down from the Upper City.
[Do not contact me again for at least half an hour.]
Wei Na reminded him with a smile, "Your current girlfriend won't mind?"
"I secretly broke up with her before coming down here. She wouldn't let us announce it—she has her own lofty political ideals." Zhou Zhengde curled his lip disdainfully. "Women are nothing but stumbling blocks in the way of my ideals... Stay away from me! Stumbling blocks! We ended long ago!"
Wei Na gave an awkward smile, rolled her eyes, and returned to the oil drum to continue soaking in her skin-beautifying bath.
There were surprisingly many routes to the Lower City.
Wang Jixuan was currently in an abandoned fire escape. This was one commonly used route into the Lower City, and it led directly to the forty-sixth floor.
These zigzagging reinforced-concrete stairways had developed obvious collapsed sections, so one had to tread carefully while walking. Since the power supply here had been cut off, sufficient lighting equipment was the price of entry into this passage.
Although Wang Jixuan had once again become a minor cultivator in the Qi Refining Realm, he did not yet possess night vision. He could only spend an 'astronomical amount' of Lan Yuzai's General Quota to buy several flashlights.
There was one thing Captain Zhou had failed to notice.
Wang Jixuan had not merely taken Lan Yuzai hostage—he had also raided Lan Yuzai's hideout and carried out all the emergency food the punks had gathered over the past few days.
At that moment, the food and various other valuable odds and ends were packed into two large bags hanging from Lan Yuzai's shoulders.
Wang Jixuan kept his right hand in his pocket, aiming the pistol at Lan Yuzai, while his left hand held a flashlight to light the way.
The fire escape wound downward, with a steel platform every thirty meters of vertical descent.
Wang Jixuan looked down and saw faint light glowing on a steel platform far below, where some passersby were resting.
Each floor of the fortress was more than thirty meters tall. From the thirteenth floor in the upper-middle section of the fortress to its very bottom, the vertical drop was nearly fourteen hundred meters.
The two descended roughly twenty floors in one go along the fire escape, reaching an area somewhere in the thirties of the fortress.
Lan Yuzai's Two Legs were already trembling without stop.
Pointing at an empty platform to the side, he asked in a low voice, "Boss, can... can we go up and rest a bit? I really can't walk anymore."
"Sure. You go first."
"It's fine, this won't collapse... All right, all right, I'll go first."
Lan Yuzai trudged up with his head lowered and, feeling as though a great burden had been lifted, set down the two huge bags hanging from his shoulders.
There were several simple folding chairs on the steel platform, two dim oil-powered lamps, and several buckets of water that might not have been changed in years.
"You can't drink the water here. It stinks. Some of it's even been pissed in."
Lan Yuzai skillfully unfolded a chair, lit an oil-powered lamp, and sat down to begin pounding his Two Legs.
Wang Jixuan dragged a folding chair into the corner and closed his eyes to rest.
The earlier 'fierce battle' had consumed more than half the breath within him. This was the perfect time to absorb some spiritual energy and prepare for the vicious fights that might come later.
Although Wang Jixuan had his eyes closed, every movement of the punk leader three meters away remained within his perception.
Lan Yuzai stared at Wang Jixuan, his expression indescribable as his gaze gradually cleared.
Images kept cycling through his mind—the nuts whistling through the air, his underlings collapsing the instant they were struck, and this boss Flick Finger-shooting a camera dozens of meters away right in front of him.
How had he done that?
Lan Yuzai touched the new bruise on his face. The more he thought about it, the more unbelievable it seemed.
After a while, Lan Yuzai tried to imitate the Flick Finger gesture, making several "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh" sound effects with his mouth before lowering his head to think again.
Was his posture wrong?
A long while passed.
Without opening his eyes, Wang Jixuan said, "If you're done resting, keep moving."
"Ah, okay... Boss, can I ask you something?"
"Ask."
"How did you do something that awesome? Did you really flick those nuts out? How could they hit so hard? Are you one of those legendary Psionicists? Holy shit... Can you teach me, boss? I can pay tuition!"
Wang Jixuan suddenly raised a hand, signaling Lan Yuzai not to make any noise.
Lan Yuzai immediately shut his mouth.
Looking down, he saw several new light sources more than ten meters beneath them. Four or five people had left a fire door and entered this abandoned fire escape.
In the shifting light, they could see a man and a woman with their hands tied, wearing miner caps with lamps. Three young men who looked like punks followed behind them with flashlights, spouting filthy obscenities.
At that very moment, a beam of light swept upward and landed directly on Lan Yuzai's face.
Before you continue