There was only one kind of person who could treat bullets as nothing.
Cultists.
They either relied on blasphemous sorcery or strange drugs to sever themselves from their five senses, making them look like the living dead.
But the cultists wouldn't be opposing them!
Ghost reached the east corridor entrance and only then realized how fierce the battle had been. Bloodstains covered the floor and walls. Several of his men lay seriously wounded, groaning on the ground, and the rat they'd killed looked as if it had been soaked in blood.
He crouched down and tore open the dead man's robe, letting out a long breath. The other man wasn't a cultist. At least, judging by how soft his body was, he was no different from an ordinary person. But Ghost soon made another discovery: beneath the man's clothes was a strange vest. It was riddled with holes, yet still mostly intact, and hardly any blood had seeped out through the bullet holes.
"What is this?"
Ghost had someone take the rat's vest off.
"Looks like... some kind of armor?" one of his men said hesitantly.
It wasn't thick to the touch and could be folded easily, yet it could effectively stop bullets fired from a Steam Rifle. Ghost had never seen anything like it.
"Must be a new product. No wonder they're so hard to deal with." He didn't hesitate any longer and immediately gave the order. "Get the men outside in here too. Leave only the ones guarding the east wall. I want everyone else!"
"Are you sure? Then we won't be able to keep watch on the serious criminals who just escaped."
"Doesn't matter. Execute them on the spot." Ghost spoke coldly. "There are plenty more prisoners where they came from. The priority is to wipe out the rats here and now... Don't forget, the big man is watching."
"Yes!"
The men outside weren't his true inner circle, but they'd do well enough against the rats. The two groups together numbered more than twenty. He didn't believe those six rats could cause much more trouble.
No, one of them was already dead. There were only five left now.
"Damn, how do they still have reinforcements?" Qiao James complained.
Even without leaving the room, they could tell from the clamoring footsteps that the enemy's numbers were steadily increasing.
"Isn't that only natural?" Zhang Zhiyuan said irritably. He'd never imagined he'd have to work with the very people he'd been sent to capture. "Not everyone outside is a gang member. At least some of them are reserve police officers in disguise. Once they realize we're tough to handle, they'll definitely bring in more people."
"How many will there be?"
"Who knows? Our only advantage is that we're in the dark. Anyway, this theater is big enough. We can wear those scumbags down bit by bit."
"No." Asahara Naruko rarely objected, but this time she did. "Don't forget, the reporter is still outside. We can afford to stall, but he can't."
"Damn, I almost forgot about that!" The American slapped his thigh. "He didn't come in with us!"
Everyone rolled their eyes at him.
"You're the one who didn't bring him in," Zhou Zhi said irritably. "You can't expect someone covered in wounds to run as fast as you."
"We couldn't bring him." Taylor finally spoke. "At the time, we had several guns pointed at us. We were lucky enough to make it into the corridor unscathed. There was no way we could carry an injured man too."
"Exactly, just like Taylor said!" Qiao James glared back at everyone. "You're so eager to save people? Then go on and try carrying someone yourselves!"
"Enough, stop arguing!" Zhang Zhiyuan slapped the floor hard. "Host, is the reporter still alive?"
"For now, yes." Chaoyang appeared in time to answer. "The people outside are all focused on you. Dane is currently unguarded."
"Good, good." Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"But that won't last forever." Only Naruko still looked grave. "If we stall too long and they realize they can't finish arranging the scene, they'll make time to silence him. And if we start playing cat and mouse, we'll put much less pressure on them. The reporter will be in serious danger then."
"It's about one in the morning. It'll probably take them two hours to arrange the bodies into the shape of a clock. If we stall for another hour, they might change their plan and simply kill him." Taylor agreed. "So we have to strike back, like we did before."
Qiao James frowned. "I'm not against fighting them head-on. The problem is that they've got reinforcements. We might not win against a dozen guns. If we lose, it'll be a miserable end."
"I have an idea," Zhou Zhi said after hesitating for a moment, "but I don't know if it'll work."
"Spit it out."
"The whole hall is full of chandeliers. They're filled with lamp oil or some other flammable fat. If we could knock them over..."
The American's eyes lit up. "The hall would go up in flames!"
"Not just the hall... I'm worried the whole theater could catch fire." Zhou Zhi paused. "I took a look. The seats are all upholstered in velvet, and the floors are wooden. Once a fire starts, it'll be almost impossible to control."
All living creatures instinctively feared the heat of blazing flames and thick smoke. Once a fire broke out around them, the enemy's numerical advantage would be gone.
The price, though, would be the Sinclair Grand Theatre reduced to ruins.
"Not bad, kid!" Qiao James gave him a hard slap. "Burn it all down. I couldn't care less if we make as big a scene as possible! Let's do it!"
"Sorry to pour cold water on this," Taylor cut in, "but the builders knew those things couldn't be allowed to fall, so they secured them with iron chains. We've only got three crossbows. How do you propose we knock down a chandelier weighing several hundred kilograms?"
"Uh, well..."
"There's a way." Zhou Zhi traced a finger in the air, opening the exchange interface. "It's under Daily Supplies—"
A flash of insight shot through Zhang Zhiyuan's mind!
Thermite!
"This is it... A small packet of thermite costs 50 points," Zhou Zhi explained. "If you spread it out and use it as kindling, it'll burn out in a few seconds. But if you pile it together and use it in just the right place..."
The heat, which could soar to 3,000 degrees, would melt anything holding the chandeliers in place!
"The problem is, someone has to go up to the top floor and plant it. They could also be attacked by the enemy along the way..."
"I'll go." Zhang Zhiyuan waved his hand, signaling that Zhou Zhi didn't need to say more. "There'll definitely be stairs leading upstairs somewhere in the corridor. Just wait for my signal."
"Take this." Asahara Naruko handed him her dagger. "We'll launch an attack downstairs too, to draw their attention."
"Thanks." Zhang Zhiyuan slung the crossbow over his back, tucked the dagger into his belt, and picked up the four packets of thermite they'd exchanged for with all their remaining points. Then he ran toward the other end of the corridor.
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