Awakened Zhongli Template, Retiring in Terra

Miss Mudrock Preparing for Work.jpg

Now, This Is What You Call Professional

Aak's father had once been a renowned attending physician at Lungmen Central Hospital. However, he was framed in a medical accident, and his career suffered severely as a result.

He resigned from his position as a physician and vanished from the public eye. When he reappeared, he had become the Poison Doctor, a figure feared throughout Lungmen's underworld. A few years later, he died in a gang shootout.

Aak inherited his father's mantle and possessed medical talent worthy of being called genius-level. Yet he had also inherited the bad parts—such as his terrible, lawless personality.

Fortunately, under the careful care of Lee, Hung, and Waai Fu, Aak had gradually been guided back onto the right path. But some mistakes had to be experienced firsthand before they could be remembered clearly.

Like this reckless intrusion into the Cat Gang's hideout—it had been an extremely dangerous act. Lee would deduct the medical expenses from Aak's future commission payments. Only by making him feel the consequences personally could he avoid repeating the same mistakes and putting himself and his companions in danger again.

That was precisely why Lee had refused Shi Lei's offer to split the medical costs. He insisted on bearing them alone, so he could teach the unruly Aak a harsh lesson.

Following the Lungmen Guard Department's regulations, Hoshiguma took the three members of the Koi-Style Detective Agency back for questioning. Before leaving, she warned the Cat Gang members that if they could not produce the approval documents today, someone would be sent to demolish the illegal structure.

Since Shi Lei and the three Penguin Logistics Messengers had not acted at all, they were treated as mere bystanders. They left the hideout and headed toward the company.

Noticing Cat Gang members secretly following them, he gave Croissant and Texas a look. The two colleagues understood immediately and stopped beside an intersection.

The view here was open, with a wide field of vision. To avoid exposing themselves, the stalkers could only hide behind utility poles or trees, unable to overhear the three of them.

Croissant wore a teasing expression as she glanced at those sneaky figures, then quickly withdrew her gaze and said, "Tell us the truth. Are you planning to take down the Cat Gang?"

Shi Lei felt that she was asking something she already knew and smiled. "Does that even need asking? Of course. What, do you have intel on the Cat Gang?"

"I don't, but Isu does. He's our company's intelligence supervisor, responsible for all kinds of operations, including gathering intelligence across Lungmen and Terra. Don't underestimate Isu. He can rival an entire intelligence team."

Croissant's lavish praise for Isu surprised him. He had never expected that the logistics supervisor who was busy all day was also an expert in intelligence work.

"He's that good?"

"Of course. If you don't believe me, ask Texas. If you want to take down the Cat Gang but don't know where to start, give him a call. You'll get the information you want soon enough."

Shi Lei was skeptical, feeling that this sounded rather exaggerated. From what he had seen so far, the Cat Gang was an organization that did not care about saving face, was capable of major schemes, and was extremely cautious.

He cast Texas an inquiring look. Only after seeing her nod did he take out his phone and call Isu.

After learning that Shi Lei wanted information on the Cat Gang, as well as the whereabouts of the landlord connected to the disappearance case, Isu simply said, "Wait for me," before hanging up.

More than ten minutes later, the phone rang again. Isu was extremely efficiency-minded and spoke quickly, reminding Shi Lei of that short firefighter.

"The Cat Gang is an old Lungmen gang. After the Rat King unified the Slums, they suddenly disappeared without a trace. In recent years, they've quietly been doing pharmaceutical business, along with some unspeakable dealings. The current Cat Gang has a strong corporate culture and can't be compared to the old Cat Gang. Their operations are divided up, each handled by a different deputy gang leader. Even if you get hold of evidence against one of them, you still can't bring down the entire Cat Gang. Do you understand what I mean?"

"I get it. The Cat Gang has spread its businesses out and placed them under different people. If one department gets shut down, the others won't be implicated and can continue operating normally, right?"

"Right, that's exactly it. Wait a moment. I'm checking the Upper City's surveillance footage."

The sound of rapid keyboard tapping came from the other end of the call. The crisp keystrokes were strangely reassuring.

Street surveillance was under the Transportation Bureau's jurisdiction. Yet Isu could access it whenever he wanted, and he said it as casually as if it were nothing.

Now, this was what you called professional.

Isu had already made it clear that the Cat Gang would not be easy to deal with, but Shi Lei still had no intention of giving up.

A company secretly engaged in illegal dealings was surely committing blood-soaked atrocities behind the scenes. If he could take them down, it would count as removing a menace from Lungmen.

"The warehouse boss you mentioned was abducted by masked men an hour ago. You couldn't see the criminals' faces. They left in a gray van. The license plate was fake, and the last record showed them entering District 27. There are no surveillance cameras inside, so you'll need to verify things yourself."

Finding out that much in barely ten minutes was already incredibly impressive, and Shi Lei was deeply impressed. "No problem. I'll head over in a bit. Thanks, you've been a huge help."

"Don't mention it. Call if you need anything."

He shared the intelligence with the two of them, and after a brief discussion, they returned to Penguin Logistics together. They got into Croissant's orange pickup and quickly drove away, leaving the Cat Gang members following on foot far behind.

Croissant drove toward District 27. Looking at Shi Lei in the back seat through the rearview mirror, she teased, "If you want to take down the Cat Gang, the easiest way is to find the Rat King. With your relationship with his daughter, wouldn't dealing with the Cat Gang be easy?"

The remark left him speechless, and he explained, "What are you talking about? Miss Lin Yuxia and I are just ordinary friends. Besides, taking down the Cat Gang would make a lot of enemies and could invite retaliation. I can handle it myself. There's no need to drag unrelated people into it. What I hate most is owing people favors. Otherwise, I'd keep thinking about paying them back, and that'd be a real hassle."

Texas, sitting in the passenger seat, turned her head toward Croissant's grinning face. No change could be seen in her expression, but the corners of her mouth curled up slightly.

When the pickup reached the checkpoint leading to the Lower City, it passed through without any trouble. Seeing Shi Lei in the vehicle, the Lungmen Guard Department members warmly greeted him, hoping to become familiar with him.

After Croissant drove out of the outpost, she could not resist teasing him again. "Not bad. You're doing well on both sides of the law now. I've been around this long, and I still don't have as much clout as you."

"Oh, don't say that. I just happened to come across some injustice and lent a hand."

"Hahaha, I'm just teasing you. If you're doing well in Lungmen, we'll get to benefit from it too when we're out and about."

A few minutes later, Croissant parked beside a plaza in District 27 and got out. She rummaged through the trunk for a bag of candy, then walked straight toward the children playing in the corner.

"Do you know where the Cat Gang's hideout is around here? Whoever takes me there gets this whole bag of candy."

Such methods were highly practical; with only a tiny price paid, they had obtained the information they wanted.

Seeing Croissant walk over and give a thumbs-up to show it was done, Shi Lei felt there was still much he had to learn.

Merciless Crushing

After paying the price of a bag of candy, the three easily found the Cat Gang's hideout in District 27.

For outsiders unfamiliar with the area, getting information like this would probably take some effort. But for children who spent all day darting through the city streets, it was certainly no secret.

Shi Lei scouted from outside and spotted a gray van parked in the courtyard through a gap in the fence. Judging by its appearance, it perfectly matched Isu's description.

This should be the place.

His failed experience of infiltrating the Cat Gang's hideout that afternoon, only to have them call the police and file a counteraccusation, had made him more cautious. He was in no hurry to force his way in.

Shi Lei created a Rock Spine beneath his feet, then extended both hands in invitation. Croissant and Texas immediately understood, taking each other's hands as they stepped onto the stone pillar. Together, they slowly rose into the air and flew to the rooftop of the nearby building with the clearest view.

"Let's stay here for a while. It won't be too late to move once we spot the missing hostage."

Neither of them objected. Both felt that this was the safer approach. To deal with a cautious Cat Gang, they had to be even more cautious.

Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.

A three-story low building stood in the center of the hideout. At that moment, a dog-headed person with a dog's head ran out of it. His hands were tied with rope, and he staggered beneath his feet, nearly falling over.

Behind the dog-headed person followed a cat-headed person with white bandages wrapped around both his forehead and palms. Judging by his attire and bearing, he was probably a boxer.

Shi Lei was in no hurry to rescue the man. Instead, he took out his phone, zoomed in the camera, and recorded the scene as evidence.

The dog-headed person had only fled a dozen meters or so when Boxing Cat landed a flying kick on him, knocking him painfully to the ground. Then, dragging him by one leg, he forcibly hauled him back into the low building.

Shi Lei sent the video to Isu and asked him to verify the dog-headed person's identity. Two minutes later, he received a reply saying that this was the missing warehouse landlord.

Now that they had both the culprit and the evidence, it was time to move.

"Let's go."

Shi Lei summoned another Rock Spine, bringing the two of them down on the other side as they prepared to break through the front of the hideout.

"Wait a moment, I'll get my weapon."

Croissant returned to the orange pickup truck and pulled two massive iron hammers from the toolbox. Seeing Texas empty-handed, she proactively offered one of them to her.

"You didn't bring a weapon? Want to make do with this?"

Texas shook her head, fully confident in her unarmed combat ability. Besides, with Shi Lei—the greatest guarantee of safety—here, she did not even need protective gear.

"No need."

Croissant did not press the matter and began warming up. Exusiai had not come today, so she had to have a satisfying fight.

"Let's go."

She strode straight to the hideout gate, swung her iron hammer, and brought it crashing down with a thunderous bang.

"Bang!"

Hearing the sound, the Cat Gang members inside the hideout grabbed their weapons and came out to investigate.

"Bang!"

The heavy, muffled sound was like a drumbeat striking the hearts of every Cat Gang member. Shi Lei formed several Rock Spears and pointed them forward, brutally forcing the gate open.

"Bang!!!"

Seeing Croissant charge in at the lead, he moved with a thought and placed Jade Shields around everyone. Texas deliberately hung several paces behind, ready to provide support at any time.

"Enemy attack! We're under attack!"

A crowd of Cat Gang members rushed forward and were the first to engage Croissant. She swung her two massive iron hammers, spinning like a top and making it impossible for anyone to get close.

Even a slight graze from the spinning hammers could break bones; a solid hit could kill on the spot. Croissant was like a tiger among sheep, leaving wails of agony everywhere she passed.

Before long, Boxing Cat emerged from the building after hearing the commotion.

Texas stood protectively in front of Shi Lei, her eyes fixed solely on him. This guy was probably the minor boss guarding the hideout. To rescue the hostage, they would have to get past him.

Boxing Cat did not care about any of that. He assumed a fighting stance. There were only three enemies who had broken in, after all. He only needed to take down the two unarmed ones first, then focus fire on the last person.

"Haah!"

With an angry roar, Boxing Cat charged straight at them.

Using the momentum of his acceleration, he leaped up and opened with a classic Muay Thai flying knee. He followed with an upward elbow and a horizontal elbow strike to the chest, then smoothly unleashed left and right hook punches.

"Die!"

This entire combo had clearly landed, yet it failed to inflict any harm on Texas. Boxing Cat was startled, but his movements did not slow in the slightest.

He lunged forward over a short distance and launched into a jumping smashing elbow! Then came a heavy swinging haymaker, which shifted mid-motion into a strike to the ribs!

Boxing Cat's offensive was fierce, his moves broad and powerful. His attacks came at an extremely rapid pace. This was a style that used offense in place of defense, pursuing the utmost in power and speed. Even if it exposed openings, his enemies might not have time to react.

But protected by the Jade Shield, Texas did not need to devote any attention to defense at all. She only needed to focus on finding an opening, like a wolf waiting for the right moment to strike.

In an instant, the opponent's guard opened wide as he threw an elbow. Texas drove a palm strike through his chest, sending him staggering back step by step.

Boxing Cat's breathing turned rapid and heavy. He silently cursed his opponent as a martial arts expert. He swayed aside to close the distance, then followed with a swinging punch in retaliation.

Since he had no advantage in trading punches, Boxing Cat immediately changed tactics. He deliberately moved in close to grab her clothes and clinch with her, trying to forcibly drag this Female Lupo into ground grappling.

Normally, anyone caught in Boxing Cat's charging waist hug would most likely lose their balance and fall. But although he had clearly grabbed Texas, he could not budge her in the slightest.

What the hell was this?!

Texas seized the opening and landed a hook on Boxing Cat's jaw. He immediately let go, his whole body leaning backward as he tried to pull away. She lunged forward, wrapped up his legs for a takedown, and locked in an armbar in the blink of an eye!

Boxing Cat's face went pale with shock. He knew the consequences would be severe if she fully locked it in. He hurriedly swung his sandbag-sized fist, smashing it toward Texas's unguarded head.

But strangely, all his attacks vanished like mud sinking into the sea, completely devoid of force.

No, how was this possible?!

An emotion called fear began to wildly breed and swell within him.

Boxing Cat felt like an ant, mercilessly crushed beneath the Female Lupo.

Texas firmly locked his wrist, then bent it hard. A crisp crack rang out. Boxing Cat's face twisted as he let out a heart-rending scream:

"AAAAAAAHHHH!!!"

Texas pressed her advantage. After breaking his wrist, she shifted her position, seized both his ankles, and wrenched them apart.

Crack.

Cold sweat poured from Boxing Cat as pain tore through him. He pounded at her with all the strength he could muster, but it was like striking cotton—he could not inflict any damage at all.