Settling Scores

In front of an apartment door, one man crouched down to pick the lock with a pin, then pushed the door open. Another man entered, holding a gun in both hands. The man who picked the lock quickly closed the door and drew his own weapon. The two moved through the entryway and stormed into the living room.

A man sat at the table in the living room. He was shirtless, his abdomen wrapped in layer after layer of gauze. Even so, blood continued to seep through the bandages with every cough, forming an irregular circle on the floor. He looked listless and weak, clearly nearing the end of his life.

The man who had picked the lock aimed his gun at the injured man and asked with a laugh, "Ding Shi, how did you turn into such a pathetic mess? Where did that arrogance go when you slaughtered my entire family? Where did it go?" He jabbed the barrel of his gun twice against the head of the injured man, Ding Shi.

Ding Shi smiled indifferently and said, "You both came? Since you're here, let's sit down and settle our accounts—let's settle the accounts from these past six years. Wang Meng, please, have a seat."

The man addressed as Wang Meng was six-foot-three, strong and burly. Wang Meng confirmed that Ding Shi was not hiding any weapons, pulled out a chair, and sat down opposite him. He looked into Ding Shi's eyes and asked, "Number Two, how do you want to settle this?"

Ding Shi did not answer. He looked at the man who had picked the lock: "Stupid Dagger, you sit down too."

The man who had picked the lock was five-foot-seven and thin. As he sat down, he corrected him, "My nickname is Short Dagger." He didn't mind wasting a little time if it meant watching his enemy die slowly.

Ding Shi said, "The first account: the one between Wang Meng and me. I followed you when I was eighteen. I went through hell and high water for you, and how did you treat me?"

Ding Shi pointed to his abdomen and held up two fingers: "Two bullets. Are you even human? Are you still human?"

Wang Meng remained unmoved. "You were an undercover cop."

Ding Shi asked, "True, I was an undercover cop, but did I ever make a move against you?"

Wang Meng said, "You would have eventually."

Ding Shi asked in disbelief, "You're going to kill the me of today because of something that might happen in the future?"

Wang Meng froze. How was he supposed to answer that?

Short Dagger sneered, "Don't think I don't know. Your undercover mission was to help Wang Meng wipe out the various criminal gangs in A City. Then, you were supposed to take out Wang Meng to complete the Purification Operation."

Ding Shi looked at Short Dagger: "So it's your turn, is it? You wiped all my electronic undercover files, killed my superior, and stole the only physical file. Tell me, how did I ever wrong you?"

Short Dagger: "How did you wrong me? Ha! Five years ago, you killed my entire family. My parents, my sister, my brother—four lives. Do you think I would ever let you go?"

Ding Shi shook his finger and said, "I didn't kill your family. Our boss is named Wang Meng, and he's sitting right next to you."

Ding Shi looked at Wang Meng: "He used the physical file to threaten me. If I didn't take you out, he would give the file to you and have you take me out."

Wang Meng paused for a moment, then he and Short Dagger simultaneously raised their guns to each other's heads.

Short Dagger grinned hideously: "The blood feud of a wiped-out family is irreconcilable. Wang Meng, what do you say?"

Wang Meng explained, "He was the one who instigated me to eliminate all the criminal gangs in A City."

Short Dagger countered, "And you just did it because he said so?"

Wang Meng replied, "He is my brother."

Ding Shi demanded, "Then why did you shoot me?"

Wang Meng: "Because you were an undercover cop."

Ding Shi felt a sense of frustration: "Your enemy sows discord with a few words, and you come to kill me? Do you even have a brain?"

Wang Meng admitted he wasn't as smart as Ding Shi; for the past six years, Ding Shi had been the one plotting for him. But Wang Meng wasn't stupid. He used his pistol to push down Short Dagger's gun, lowered his own, and looked at Ding Shi: "Number Two, I know you too well. If there was someone sowing discord among the three of us, it would definitely be you. So, I won't listen to a single word you say."

Ding Shi asked, "You're avoiding the truth."

Short Dagger spoke first, asking, "Ding Shi, are you really an undercover cop?"

Ding Shi spread his hands: "The words of a dying man are good. I am indeed an undercover cop."

Short Dagger asked, "How can you prove it? You've been a gangster for six years. Did you ever spend a day in the police academy? Did you ever serve a day as an officer? Is there anyone left who can prove you're a cop? No. Whether you want to believe it or not, you aren't a soldier. You're just a thug, a piece of trash—worse trash than even me."

Ding Shi was left speechless.

Short Dagger enjoyed the look of shock on Ding Shi's face. He tilted his head and smiled, saying, "Wang Meng, let's join forces. From now on, A City will be our backyard."

Wang Meng: "Agreed."

Ding Shi: "Disagreed."

Short Dagger asked with a laugh, "Oh? Why?"

Ding Shi replied, "Because my left foot is pressing down on a bomb detonator. Wang Meng, kill Short Dagger, and I'll let you walk. Short Dagger, kill Wang Meng, and I'll let you walk. You'd better make a decision quickly; I can't keep my foot pressed down much longer."

Short Dagger's expression shifted slightly, and he raised his pistol. Wang Meng, however, remained as steady as a mountain: "I don't believe you."

Short Dagger said, "You can believe this part. He's full of malice; otherwise, he wouldn't have guessed we'd joined forces and lured us here. He's beyond saving now, and he's definitely going to drag us down with him before he dies."

Wang Meng: "I don't believe he'd let us go. He just wants to watch us kill each other before he dies to find some amusement for himself." No one understood Ding Shi better than he did. The kid was rotten to the core. If it weren't for that physical file and Ding Shi's own confession, Wang Meng would never have believed he was an undercover cop.

Ding Shi said helplessly, "How boring. Goodbye." Then, he lifted his left foot.

Ding Shi was dead.

And yet, Ding Shi wasn't entirely dead.

A white room, a white table, a white chair, and a white tablet computer resting on the table.

Ding Shi first touched his abdomen; there were no wounds, and his body felt completely normal. He could be certain this wasn't Earth, as the white world was boundless and infinite, with no edges in sight. He leaned in to look at the tablet and saw a multiple-choice question on the screen.

Ding Shi tentatively called out to the space: "God? Devil? King of Hell? Lucifer? Impermanence? Ferryman? Is anyone home?" His voice grew louder.

Suddenly, an Angel Baby appeared in the space. He was soft and pink, wearing a green vest and shorts, with a pair of small white feathered wings on his back. He held a stick in his hand, and there was a halo hovering above his head.

Ding Shi's eyes lit up, and he said in surprise, "An angel?" What did this mean? It meant that God had his file and knew he was a good person.

Angel Baby possessed natural baby fat, and his exposed arms and calves looked just like lotus roots, making one want to reach out and pinch them, but the moment he opened his mouth, the illusion shattered.

Angel Baby tapped a tablet with the stick in his hand and said, "Fill it out," his tone full of impatience.

Ding Shi was in no rush and asked, "Where is this?"

Angel Baby waved his stick, causing subtitles to appear in front of Ding Shi, and pointed at them: "Read."

There were not many words on the screen, and the gist was: This is Ita World, stop yapping for now, and finish the multiple-choice questions first.

Seeing that the other party did not care for conversation, Ding Shi knew when to be sensible and obediently sat down. The multiple-choice options were: valley villa, island villa, mountain villa, sea villa, sky villa.

Ding Shi chose the island villa.

The environment shifted abruptly, and Ding Shi and Angel Baby appeared on the summit of an island. It was a typical island, featuring grassy hilltops, rocky beaches, sandy shores with coconut trees, and dense forests in the mountains. The estimated area was around one square kilometer.

At the top of the hill stood a bamboo and wood hut. The roof was made of palm leaves, and the walls were constructed from wood and bamboo; it was drafty on all four sides and extremely airy.

Angel Baby waved his stick, signaling for Ding Shi to follow him into the hut. Inside the hut were a stone bed covered with palm leaves, a chair, a table, a toilet, a showerhead, a set of sportswear, and a vending machine.