That was the most hellish part.
Due to Taiping Luxury Garden’s uniqueness, Mengjia City’s Resurgence Management Office had classified it as a high-level incident from the start, with top secrecy.
Only internal personnel like them knew; outsiders were clueless.
Even a cesspool like Rebirth of Fire hadn’t dug it up, assuming the Countdown buyer was just some lucky ordinary person.
“Damn.”
“They probably think the Countdown buyer survived by sheer luck.”
Wang Dong couldn’t help speculating, the drama mounting in his mind.
Zheng Shangyun shot him a fierce glare. “That’s the situation now.”
“They’ve sent the message. If we let Rebirth of Fire keep acting up, our observation plan is scrapped.”
“We have to move!”
He frowned. “This time, joining forces with Lena City, we must eradicate this lawless scum organization!”
“Best to resolve it before they make their move.”
Zheng Shangyun had never encountered such a nerve-wracking situation in his life. The thought of Rebirth of Fire provoking that residential complex and the terrible consequences it might trigger made him want to tear that trash organization apart limb from limb.
Lu Jingshan nodded.
“Have the Second Esper Squad join in too.”
Just him and Si Ning’s squads probably wouldn’t be enough.
There was no need for hesitation in a situation like this. Zheng Shangyun raised his hand in approval.
“Be quick about it!”
He emphasized one last time.
Lu Jingshan swiftly assembled his team.
Meanwhile, back in the neighborhood:
After returning home that evening, Bo Ting had initially thought the figure outside was just a drunkard. But after taking a shower, he received another message.
—”1″.
This meaningless “1” appeared on his screen again. Receiving this number twice in the middle of the night would strike most people as eerie.
But Bo Ting had previously endured the relentless 24-hour barrage of “cursed ads.”
Seeing just two digits after such a long gap…
Seemed… not so bad?
He tossed his phone aside casually, yawned, and climbed into bed to sleep.
At a small town on the border between Mengjia City and Lena City.
Several men and women in strange long robes emerged from a bar and scattered.
Soon after, a gaunt, pale man in a robe entered the parking lot.
It was already midnight. The lot held only a few scattered cars, with one flashing its lights, but no other people lingered.
Huaiya glanced behind him. Confirming no one was following, he flipped up his hood and hopped into the car.
“How’s the prep?” the long-haired woman driving asked.
Huaiya raised an eyebrow.
“Need any prep?”
“This kind of ‘hunting game’ always succeeds, doesn’t it?”
He didn’t think dealing with some ordinary guy who luckily survived a weird incident in Mengjia City would be difficult.
Lou Xiaoshan and Pang Juan were the useless ones—they couldn’t control the Lovers’ Bell properly, got backlashed instead, and ended up captured by the Resurgence Management Office. That had tarnished their “reputation” quite a bit.
The long-haired woman frowned slightly at his attitude.
“Don’t get careless.”
“This is an unfamiliar city, after all. Something unexpected might happen.”
She was about to say more when she noticed the man across from her go cold-faced. She wisely shut her mouth.
After checking the time, she asked, “Head out straight away?”
“Let’s go.”
“Drop me at the outskirts of Mengjia City. I’ll hunt the first ‘target’.”
From the online records, it was a young guy.
Living in a neighborhood called… Taiping Luxury Garden in the southern suburbs of Mengjia City.
Huaiya hummed a tune. After downing a few drinks, excitement coursed through him as he twirled a blade between his fingers.
The low-profile vehicle slipped out of the parking lot without drawing any attention.
Once they reached the southern suburbs, the long-haired woman finally pulled over, carefully avoiding cameras.
“I’ll wait at the intersection ahead.”
“Finish quick and get back in. We’ll head to the next ‘target’s’ place.”
“Got it.”
Huaiya’s smile faded. He pulled his hood down and stepped out.
The night air in Mengjia City felt different from Lena City’s—not a bit alike.
Huaiya immersed himself in the humid air for a few seconds before strolling unhurriedly toward the marked district.
But… one minute passed.
Two minutes passed.
Huaiya still hadn’t found the location the target had once posted online.
“Tch.”
Missions in unfamiliar cities were always a hassle. He grumbled and pulled out his phone.
He closed his eyes briefly.
Bo Ting’s phone on the bedside table flickered, as if pinpointed by some “unscientific” method.
When Huaiya opened his eyes again, a smile crept across his face.
“Found you.”
Just five minutes late.
He checked his watch, hummed as he followed the signal into the neighborhood, oblivious to how he’d circled the entrance several times before.
The dimly lit neighborhood, with only a few streetlamps, looked faintly shadowy at night. But it was no different from any ordinary complex in Lena City.
Huaiya had visited countless places like this over the years.
Passing the garden, he plucked a rose, sniffed it like a madman, then eyed the opposite building. He deliberately stomped up the stairs.
But… it was quiet.
No matter how heavily his leather boots thudded, the whole building seemed dead asleep, utterly unresponsive.
Huaiya felt a pang of regret.
If someone heard and came out…
Tonight’s hunt would have extra fun.
Too bad—they were all out cold.
Huaiya shook his head and trudged up to the 13th floor, eyeing the plaque for Room 1302.
“This it?”
The black-robed man muttered to himself. As he reached for the door, a “zzzzt” of chainsaw revved up.
The abrupt sawing echoed through the stairwell, vibrating the floors.
Huaiya frowned, then grinned.
“Someone’s awake?”
“Perfect.”
He pocketed his blade and continued upstairs unhurriedly, to the source two floors up.
Inside the old security door above, the chainsaw stopped, replaced by heavy footsteps and faint coughs.
Judging it to be a lone elderly resident, Huaiya’s mood lifted. He picked the lock with his blade and sauntered into the living room, pleased.
“Good evening.”
His exaggerated, malicious voice cut off abruptly.
Elder Wen looked up, bewildered. Who the hell was breaking in at this hour?
Spotting the unfamiliar lanky figure, he froze.
What? Who was this?
Did he think he was Bo Ting?
Come in just like that?
Elder Wen exhausted a lifetime of restraint but couldn’t hold back a curse. He hurled the chainsaw in his hand.
“ZZZZT”—sparks flew as the still-spinning saw arced through the air. Hitting someone would be no joke.
Huaiya blinked, stunned. First time a resident greeted an intruder like this.
No chit-chat—just straight to chainsaw toss.
Normal?!
Huaiya frowned, face darkening, and ducked to evade.
But the chainsaw seemed to track him, circling relentlessly.
Huaiya dodged frantically around the living room. His earlier composed steps turned chaotic.
No need to stomp—it screamed panic.
“Old geezer!”
The tall man’s carefully youthful facade twisted. He wanted to devour the old man opposite.
Elder Wen was already annoyed at the interruption. Now “old geezer”?
The “dying cripple” hobbled over with his cane.
Huaiya’s eyes gleamed with delight.
He’d deliberately provoked the mobility-impaired fool.
This chainsaw had somehow anomalous properties—even his ability to blur his position couldn’t shake it. Looked like he needed a meat shield.
From past weird encounters, once someone died, it should stop.
The old geezer was perfect.
He’d come to kill him anyway—who knew this mishap?
Huaiya smirked coldly. But before Elder Wen reached him for a grab—
The old man sped up. In one second, he closed in, muscles bulging several times over.
He smashed his cane—right on Huaiya’s head.
Bang.
Huaiya’s vision went black. In his last conscious moment, he saw the ordinary old man flex his wrist before collapsing limply.
Thud. A grown man’s weight hit the floor hard.
Bo Ting jolted awake in his sleep, nearly thinking it was an earthquake. Puzzled, he blinked groggily.
“What was that?”
Was Elder Wen upstairs doing woodworking again late at night?
Yawning, Bo Ting grabbed his phone and messaged Uncle Wen.
“Uncle Wen, you still working tonight?”
Upstairs, Elder Wen disdainfully prodded the barely breathing man with his cane. About to act—
His phone rang. Seeing the name, his face changed instantly.
He reverted to frail elder in a second, shakily gripping the phone.
“What’s up, Little Bo? Did I disturb you?”
“Sigh, late night, the flower rack I just made fell over.”
“I’ll prop it right up.”
Oh, like that.
Bo Ting relaxed. Just an accident—Uncle Wen wasn’t trying to make noise.
He nodded.
“Keep it quiet then, Uncle Wen.”
“I’m going back to sleep.”
Last message sent.
Elder Wen sighed in relief, eyeing the scum on the floor.
To avoid disturbing Bo Ting, he pondered—better tie him with rope and dump outside the security post.
Cough cough. Hope someone spots him come morning.
…
Qiu Tao waited in the car forever, no sign of Huaiya. Puzzled.
Three hours already? That long?
Huaiya’s hunts never took this long before.
Lost in Mengjia City’s streets?
Qiu Tao gripped the wheel, deciding to wait more. If not, message him.
Time ticked by.
3:30 a.m.:
If he didn’t show soon, dawn would break, and Resurgence Management Office folks would swarm.
Qiu Tao reluctantly called.
“Hey, what took so damn long?”
“Wanna get caught?!”
Urgency overrode her fear of the psycho. She snapped.
Bo Ting, woken and unable to sleep—maybe quality ruined—stared at the ceiling minutes before getting water and scrolling.
In the living room, he heard a “buzz” from the hallway.
Like a vibrating phone.
Frowning, Bo Ting pinpointed it, baffled.
Opening the door, a phone lay at the 13th-floor stairwell, flashing and ringing.
Neighbor upstairs drop theirs?
Bo Ting’s first thought.
Meant to photo it for the group chat, but seeing it ring—maybe someone calling— he picked it up.
But…
Never seen this model before?
Not from the neighborhood?
Bo Ting puzzled briefly, unanswered amid vibrations, and answered.
Polite “hello” unspoken—a frantic woman’s voice burst.
“When the hell you coming out?”
Once connected, Qiu Tao’s last worry about the psycho hunter vanished.
Haha, what could flip a vet like him and make him drop his phone?
Impossible.
She figured he was lost in his boring game, irritated.
Bo Ting: …
What?
He going out?
So late? Probably not.
Bo Ting checked the moonlit night outside.
“Miss…”
Before he finished, the woman cut in.
“Get out now, or I’m leaving.”
“You lunatic.”
“You can escape the pursuit outside, but I don’t have that ability!”
The lady on the other end sounded a bit neurotic, so Bo Ting instinctively held the phone a little farther away.
He had originally wanted to explain that he wasn’t the owner of the phone.
But at that moment, he suddenly recalled what she had just said.
Wait, if he hadn’t misheard, hadn’t she just said “pursuit”?
Damn!
—Had he picked up a fugitive’s phone?
Bo Ting was stunned for a moment and frowned at the phone.
Just then, he suddenly heard a loud “thud” from the dark stairwell on the twelfth floor. An eerie sound came from behind him. Bo Ting held his breath and stiffly turned his head.
—He saw Elder Wen, panting as he climbed up the stairs.
Bo Ting: ……?!!
Elder Wen: ……?!!
