Ratman

"A-Bing, are you ready yet? That Heretic Cult believer is getting more and more agitated. The hostage's neck is starting to bleed. The situation is critical."

"Captain, that guy's a pro. He's keeping his body well hidden, so I can't get a clear aim. There's no chance to take a sniper shot."

"Chen Yan, have you found out who that Heretic Cult believer is? Get in touch with his family as soon as possible and have them come here to talk him down."

"Captain, he's an orphan."

"..."

Listening to his two team members' reports, the Public Security Team captain looked deeply troubled.

He wanted nothing more than to rush in and save the woman being held hostage, but he couldn't see any opening to act.

The Heretic Cult believer was hunkered down in a corner, keeping his body hidden behind the hostage. Only the knife at her neck was visible, and he hadn't left so much as a gap.

"Captain, how about we try using hypnotic gas?"

One of the team members suggested in a low voice.

The Public Security Team captain shook his head. "It won't work. Hypnotic gas is too obvious. Before it takes effect, it could easily enrage the criminal and make him do something rash."

Just as everyone was at their wits' end,

suddenly!

A sharp whoosh cut through the air!

"Whirr!"

The next instant, an egg-sized stone shot past the Public Security Team captain at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow and struck the Heretic Cult believer's hand with pinpoint accuracy.

"Argh—!"

The Heretic Cult believer cried out in pain.

The stone had struck the hand holding the knife.

And it hit at an extremely tricky angle. The powerful impact flipped his knife hand outward, pushing the cleaver away from the hostage's neck until it slipped from his grasp and clattered to the ground.

At the same time, Teacher Strawberry was finally able to escape. Driven by a desperate will to survive, she ran with all her might toward the public security officers.

The officers reacted quickly. One rushed forward to receive Teacher Strawberry, while the others charged in to subdue the Heretic Cult believer.

From beginning to end, the officers had no idea what had happened. All they knew was that the Heretic Cult believer had suddenly clutched his hand and cried out, and then the hostage had somehow escaped danger.

Only Shen Qinghan, who had witnessed everything with her own eyes, gaped in shock, her face filled with astonishment.

"Xiao Chen, you..."

"Let's go. We'll talk when we get back."

Lin Zichen had no intention of sticking around. Seeing that Teacher Strawberry was safe, he climbed back onto his bicycle to take Shen Qinghan away.

But before he could pedal off, the Public Security Team captain ran over and stopped in front of his bike, panting slightly as he said,

"Student, wait a moment. Don't rush off. Was that you who threw the stone just now?"

As he spoke, the Public Security Team captain held out the stone in his hand in front of Lin Zichen.

The Heretic Cult believer had been struck in the hand, and there was a bloodstained stone not far from his feet. Judging by the direction it had come from, the captain guessed that Lin Zichen had thrown it.

It was hard to believe, but there wasn't a more reasonable explanation.

"I didn't throw it."

Lin Zichen didn't want to get tangled up in what came next, so he tossed out the words coolly.

Then he turned the handlebars and rode around the Public Security Team captain.

The captain froze for a moment. Once he came to his senses, he stared after Lin Zichen and shouted,

"Student!"

"Student, stop for a moment!"

"Student, you did a good deed! Why won't you admit it?!"

No matter how loudly the Public Security Team captain called, Lin Zichen showed no sign of stopping. He quickly disappeared around the corner ahead.

"That's strange. Why do a good deed and then refuse to admit it?"

The Public Security Team captain couldn't make heads or tails of it.

Still, he didn't dwell on it. He planned to come back tomorrow and check the surveillance footage to confirm whether Lin Zichen had been the one to act, and how he had done it.

Just then, Lin Zichen rode back with Shen Qinghan and looked at him. "I just remembered something. Is there a reward for acts of bravery?"

"Uh, yes, there is."

"That's right, I threw it. My fingerprints are on the stone. You can take me back to compare them."

The Public Security Team captain: "..."

Lin Zichen had changed his tune so quickly that the captain was left speechless for a moment.

Lin Zichen didn't want to be like this either, but if he wanted to unlock the Ghost Shadow Squid Atlas as soon as possible, he had to find every way he could to save money. He had to bow to the almighty dollar.

The Public Security Team captain said, "How about this? Come to the Public Security Station in a bit to give a brief statement, and we'll compare your fingerprints while we're at it. Once we confirm there's no problem, I'll put in an application for your reward for the act of bravery."

"Sure, no problem."

Lin Zichen agreed readily.

Hearing this, Shen Qinghan, seated behind him, immediately took out her phone and called home to say she'd be getting back later.

As for the Public Security Team captain, he returned to the park to handle the aftermath and take the already-subdued Heretic Cult believer back to the Public Security Station.

"By the way, Xiao Chen, I wonder how Teacher Strawberry is doing. Let's go check on her."

As soon as Shen Qinghan had finished her call, she suggested it to Lin Zichen.

Lin Zichen said, "Okay."

Once they'd agreed, they parked the bicycle to one side and headed together toward the public security vehicle in the park.

As soon as Teacher Strawberry had been rescued, she was taken into the vehicle so they could tend to the wound on her neck. She was probably resting inside now.

Just as the two of them were about to reach the public security vehicle,

the handcuffed Heretic Cult believer, not far off to one side, suddenly began making a pained "heh, heh" sound for some unknown reason.

Next, his face began to split apart, leaving a series of shocking blood-red gashes.

The gashes grew longer and wider until they formed a series of eyes, evenly spaced along both sides of his face.

Including his original eyes, he had exactly eight.

The officer escorting the Heretic Cult believer noticed something was wrong. He immediately drew his gun and chambered a round, then shouted tensely toward the Public Security Team captain,

"Captain, he's mutating! The Heretic Cult believer is showing symptoms of mutation—he's turning into a Giant Mutant Rat!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, the Heretic Cult believer displaying symptoms of mutation suddenly became incredibly strong. He snapped the handcuffs apart, spun around, and lunged at the officer, trying to bite him.

Fortunately, the officer had been on his guard and reacted quickly, shifting aside just in time to dodge.

Turning into a Giant Mutant Rat?!

Lin Zichen heard those five words first, then saw the eight eyes on the Heretic Cult believer's face. Without a second thought, he scooped Shen Qinghan up in his arms, turned, and sprinted out of the park.

He had no idea what exactly was happening, but getting away from the scene as quickly as possible was surely the right call.

Shen Qinghan was still a little dazed, but Lin Zichen had carried her like this plenty of times when they were kids. She obediently wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her face against him, trying to make herself easier to carry.

"Open fire! Shoot, quickly!"

The moment Lin Zichen took off, the Public Security Team captain urgently shouted at the officers.

A deafening volley of gunshots rang out, especially piercing in the silent depths of the night.

"Bang!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

"..."

By then, Lin Zichen had carried Shen Qinghan out of the park. They were both on the bicycle now, and he kicked off hard, speeding away from the dangerous place behind them.

But whether he'd pedaled too hard or something else had happened, after traveling less than twenty meters, the bicycle chain suddenly snapped with a sharp crack.

It hadn't just slipped off; the chain had broken outright. There was no fixing it.

"Fuck!" Lin Zichen rarely swore.