"I'm plotting a route for you."
The Supply Ship didn't waste time. As a member of the intelligence and technical support squad, his job was to provide those carrying out missions with as much support as possible.
"The firefighting helicopter will arrive in three minutes. Sky Net is expected to recover eighty percent of its visibility."
"I'll plot the safest route possible for you in the meantime."
However.
Qin Annian gazed at the smoke billowing from the building, the terrible red glow of the flames reflected in the depths of his eyes.
"I want the fastest route."
"Supply Ship acknowledges. Rerouting."
"Using the map from before the fire started, I've plotted the route that will take the least time."
"Officer Qin, good luck."
Qin Annian switched communication channels and connected to Miss Ju Zi's network.
[Real-time positioning in progress.]
[Proceed three hundred meters to the left...]
The alley on the left looked like a path to Purgatory, with the flames from the buildings on either side intertwining above it.
Qin Annian checked his equipment and said to Zheng Yi:
"Take him away now. Leave the Supply Ship."
Zheng Yi knew there was no talking him out of it. He gave him the code for their team's communication channel.
"This is our team's channel."
By protocol, an officer needed the Assault Team captain's approval to access the team's communications.
This was to prevent their whereabouts from being leaked while the Assault Team was carrying out a mission, putting them in danger.
But.
The situation was too urgent for Zheng Yi to care about such rules.
"If anything happens, you can contact Captain Zheng."
"Clotting gel, oral medication, adrenaline..."
Zheng Yi took his medication out of his medical pouch and handed it to Qin Annian.
"Officer Qin, please be careful."
He carried the old man, whose breathing was faint, and headed back.
Qin Annian put on a combat mask that filtered smoke and poison, then turned and followed Miss Ju Zi's directions.
Rumble!
The road was littered with objects warped by the flames. Some dropped like fireballs, making his journey perilous.
But the slight increase in mental strength he'd gained from practicing the Water-Fire Tempering Technique let him sense the danger in advance and avoid it every time.
[The Iron Rod Gang is a mid-sized gang in the Old District.]
[Gang leader Zhao Wang. Life Development Power: 17.6 points. Combat strength range: 40–60.]
Miss Ju Zi relayed information about the Iron Rod Gang to Qin Annian.
[Go right thirty meters to reach the Iron Rod Gang headquarters.]
Qin Annian streaked through the fire like a shadow, covering the thirty meters in the blink of an eye.
A huge warehouse stood before him.
A crude perimeter had been set up around it. Apart from gravel and sand, there was nothing on the ground. The fire was raging, but for now it hadn't spread here.
Besides.
The warehouse was built around a massive iron frame, with almost no combustible materials to keep a fire going.
Perhaps they were relying on the fire as natural cover. Not a single member of the Iron Rod Gang was posted outside.
Qin Annian took the long case off his back and carried it in his hand, ready to draw a weapon at any moment. Then he strode toward the warehouse.
He'd barely reached the two-meter-tall sheet-metal doors, which were only pulled shut, when his keen hearing picked up the commotion inside.
"Don't you like standing post?"
"Then stand properly!"
A burst of wild laughter rang out, followed by a muffled groan of pain.
"You joined the Iron Rod Gang and still dared to be a traitor?"
"You've got some nerve!"
Smack!
After the sharp crack of a slap, the raucous laughter grew even louder.
"Still counting on that officer named Qin?"
"He can barely save himself!"
As soon as the words fell.
Boom!
The warehouse doors toppled inward, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Beneath the white lights, the scene inside the warehouse was clear.
Lin Zi'ang was covered in wounds, holding a standing posture atop two stacks of bricks. His hands were bound and suspended overhead. A thick rope ran through a pulley, with the other end looped around the neck of a weathered middle-aged man.
The thirteen-year-old boy had sandbags weighing dozens of pounds tied to both legs. The red bricks beneath his feet had been kicked away.
As the doors fell, Zhao Wang, holding an iron rod, kicked away the bricks under Lin Zi'ang's feet.
The pulley transferred the weight, lifting the lifeless body. It swayed in the air.
At the sight.
Killing intent surged within Qin Annian to its limit.
"Huh?!"
"An officer? Are you that guy named Qin? You actually came here to die?"
Zhao Wang's furious expression instantly turned to delight.
He looked at Qin Annian as if he'd found a precious injection that could rapidly boost his Life Development Power. Greed filled his eyes.
The bounty offered by the Cultivation Holders Association was irresistible!
Even providing information alone came with an enormous reward.
Besides.
They'd also given the gang a drug that could enhance their combat strength.
"Get him!"
"Hold him off!"
At Zhao Wang's command, his men injected the drug into their bodies and charged forward.
He could feel his blood growing hotter and hotter!
Zhao Wang's eyes turned bloodshot. He let out a hoarse growl and lunged at Qin Annian like a beast.
Qin Annian wasn't a bloodthirsty man. He'd never killed anyone in the course of his duties before.
The only exception had been a member of the Cultivation Holders Association. But that man had died because his Modified Organ overloaded, causing his other organs to fail rapidly.
"Miss Ju Zi, under the relevant regulations of the Emergency Lockdown Order, I'm about to use lethal force."
Leaving a record, Qin Annian moved forward faster than Zhao Wang could react and abruptly raised his right leg.
Leg Technique: Mountain-Splitting Axe!
Boom!
A razor-sharp force gathered around his leg. The rushing air formed the phantom image of a giant axe.
Horror flashed across Zhao Wang's face. He hurriedly raised an arm to shield himself!
Crack!
The bones in his arm snapped, and it slammed into his right shoulder.
Then.
The razor-sharp force crashed into his shoulder and neck, then his collarbone, shattering every bone it touched.
Only when the splintered bones pierced his organs did the frenzied Zhao Wang regain his senses.
He stared at Qin Annian as if he were a terrifying demon, his mouth opening and closing as he tried to say something. But all that came out was a gush of bloody foam.
However.
Even after their leader was kicked to death, the rest of the Iron Rod Gang still charged at Qin Annian after injecting the drug.
There was no fear in their eyes, only madness.
"Illegal drugs?"
Qin Annian set the dark case on the ground and snapped open its mechanical latch.
Click!
One compartment slid forward from the case, revealing a short gun secured inside.
Qin Annian grabbed the gun and swept it forward.
He'd never trained with a gun, but fist and gun were much the same.
The short gun became an extension of his arm. Applying the Willow-Bending Fist, he swung it through the air like a willow branch.
The seemingly gentle force became terrifying, snapping tendons and bones when it struck the gang members.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
Three strikes were enough to leave a large number of men on the ground, wailing in pain.
Whoosh!
The gun's blade swept past.
The thick rope binding Lin Zi'ang's hands was severed.
The boy hit the ground and crawled forward unsteadily without a word, stopping beside a tall paint bucket filled with water.
Trembling, he reached out and lifted the little girl from the water. In a tearful voice, he cried:
"Niu Niu!"
"Niu Niu! Wake up!"
At the sight, Qin Annian slowly lowered the middle-aged man's body.
He remembered the slippery old man who ran a breakfast stall in the Old District, kneeling and about to kowtow to him just to make sure he kept his word.
"Tsk!"
"How touching!"
A mocking voice came from outside the iron doors.
"Officer Qin, they're suffering like this because of you!"
"Don't you feel guilty?"
Before you continue