Played for a foolâ¦
A memberâs heart skipped a beat as he was about to turn his head when he suddenly felt a chill on his neck, tensing his body instantly.
An urgent voice came from behind his head: âDonât move, drop whatâs in your hands.â
The member tried to roll his eyes back, slowly gripping the steel bar tighter, but a pricking sensation on his neck silently urged him on.
âLet go, quickly.â The voice hastened.
âClang!â
The steel bar slipped from his grasp and fell at his feet.
âStep back.â The person behind immediately pulled him backward.
âStop thinking about playing tricks, Zhang Laoer, didnât you recognize my voice?â the voice continued.
Disappointment in Zhang Laoerâs eyes was swiftly replaced by astonishment, and after a brief pause, he exclaimed, âYou are⦠Captain Mu?!â
âGood of you to remember to call me Captain Mu.â Mu Chen was still close behind Zhang Laoer, not loosening his grip at all, âBut you shouldâve known you might encounter me, right? Donât tell me Ai Feng didnât mention this possibility. Normal survivors wouldnât bother coming to Dongming City for no good reason. With a bit of analysis, narrowing down the suspects isnât that hard, right?â
âNo, we thought you were all deadâ¦â Sweat formed on Zhang Laoerâs forehead, shining faintly in the dim light.
âOh, trying to fool me? Damn, so you all really take me for a fool? Let me tell you, that guy wasnât wrong, if you really cared about whether I was alive or dead, at least you wouldâve tried to talk or negotiate first, to confirm the targetâs identity and our status, right?â Mu Chen growled in a low voice.
Zhang Laoer, drenched in sweat, could only offer a pale defense: âI was just following orders, I didnât know anything about what youâre sayingâ¦â
Mu Chen freed one hand and started rummaging through Zhang Laoerâs pockets: âNow, I do think Xia Zhi was quite prescient, his approach was really about self-preservation and gaining merit⦠But, well, he ended up being the first among us to die.â
âWhat does that mean?â Zhang Laoer didnât dare to struggle, watching helplessly as Mu Chen searched and tossed various weapons from his person into a corner.
âItâs nothing. Too many variables have come into play, leading to this inevitable outcome. Zhang Laoer, I know if that had been me instead of the plastic one, you wouldnât have hesitated to strike, so donât expect any mercy from me now.â
Mu Chen gritted his teeth and pulled out a small knife from behind Zhang Laoerâs waist, demanding coldly, âTalk. Whatâs the order? How many people has Ai Feng brought, and whatâs the plan?â
Zhang Laoerâs face turned ugly as he spoke, âIf I tell you, Iâll die a horrible death, Captain Muâ¦â
âNot talking? Then die now.â Mu Chen applied a bit more pressure in his hand.
Feeling the sharp edge of the knife pressing against his skin, and his carotid artery seeming ready to be cut open at any moment, Zhang Laoer closed his eyes tightly in panic.
âIâll talk, Iâll talkâ¦â he whispered, speaking quickly, âApart from our group that just entered, every living thing is a target. Alive is best, but if not⦠kill them all.â
âThatâs the order? What about the rest?â Mu Chen pressed on.
âNot many people brought, around ten. As for the plan, all exits are blocked, and I bet more will come. Captain Mu, if you help us catch the others, it counts as a merit! Even though the guy from headquarters is dead, as long as you didnât kill himâ¦â Zhang Laoer said anxiously.
âI do want to killâ¦â Mu Chen let out a cold laugh and suddenly kicked the back of Zhang Laoerâs knee.
Zhang Laoer grunted, involuntarily dropping to his knees.
âCaptain Mu! Donât be rash! This is Dongming City, itâs not worth it⦠Ah!â Zhang Laoer took another hit to the back, his voice suddenly dropping, âCaptain Mu, donât do this, opposing Niepan wonât end well for you, help me, and the credit is all yours! What do you want? Booze, cigarettes, women! As long as you have merit and are useful to Niepan, who would kill you? Donât let a moment of anger lead you to a dead end!â
âMerit, huh? That does sound tempting.â Mu Chen paused for a moment in his actions.
Zhang Laoer immediately felt a glimmer of hope and continued to persuade, âExactly! All those troublesome matters, just pin them on someone else, and youâll have nothing to do with them. Nowâs a great opportunity, Captain Mu!â
âIt is indeed a good opportunity,â Mu Chenâs voice suddenly got closer to Zhang Laoerâs ear, âBut⦠those kind of people disgust me. How can I turn myself into something as disgusting as them?ân/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âCaptain Mu, donât be foolishâ¦â
âLet me tell you, there are things that some people canât do, and then there are those who just wonât do them. I, Mu Chen, am the kind who just canât do it, no matter what. Are you satisfied now?â As he spoke, Mu Chen grabbed Zhang Laoerâs hair, fully exposing his throat.
âNo, donât kill me⦠Captain Muâ¦â Zhang Laoerâs voice began to tremble.
His body also started to shake uncontrollably, the blade resting on his bobbing Adamâs apple, as if it could slice into it at any moment, turning him into a cold corpse.
Mu Chen squatted behind him, clutching his hair and gritting his teeth.
Suddenly, he raised the knife and then swung it down heavily.
âThump.â
Zhang Laoer fell to the ground with his eyes closed, yet there was no blood on Mu Chenâs knifeâ¦
âYou better not wake up too soon, or next timeâ¦â
Mu Chen stared at Zhang Laoer for a while, helplessly glanced at the knife in the water, then looked around and ran off to one side.
Seconds later, he entered a small storage room.
âItâs me,â Mu Chen immediately said in a low voice upon seeing the flash of cold steel.
The glint quickly disappeared, and a girlâs figure darted out from behind the door, looking behind him, âCome in.â
âMaybe we should just close the door,â Mu Chen casually suggested.
Another female voice came from the darkness: âWouldnât closing it draw more attention?â
âItâs like turning this place into a rat trapâ¦â Mu Chen said as he crossed several shelves and entered the interior of the warehouse.
In the corner, Ling Mo was helping Xu Shuhan sit on a stack of boxes.
Xu Shuhan was still panting, her eyes looking eerily red in the darkness.
Upon seeing Mu Chen, she abruptly raised her head, emitting a hair-raising grinding sound from her mouth.
However, Ling Mo swiftly grabbed the back of her collar and dragged her back.
Xu Shuhan twisted in frustration but ultimately gave up.
âIs she really not fully turned into a zombie yet?â Mu Chenâs expression looked shocked.
âIf she had fully turned, I wouldnât be able to hold onto her. Plus, once she gets used to it, she wonât try to bite you anymore, for nowâ¦â Ling Mo said.
Mu Chen, taken aback, then said, âThat âfor nowâ sounds quite ominous!â
âHow did your questioning go?â Ling Mo quickly changed the subject.
âI found an old acquaintance, and he shared some information with me. It doesnât sound good. That kid and the experimental product are both dead, and Ai Feng will definitely see it through to the end. And, they donât care about our life or death anymore. Luckily Xia Zhi has been dealt with, otherwise, if he sold your information, that would have been bad. But they are very familiar with me⦠soâ¦â
Mu Chen sighed.
âWhat about the acquaintance?â Ling Mo asked thoughtfully, then suddenly inquired.
Mu Chen was startled, then shook his head, âI⦠I didnât go through with itâ¦â
âIt looks like relying on you to be the mole is out of the question, thenâ¦â Ling Mo said with regret.
âI just refused that very offer!â Mu Chen roared, then added, âEven if they deploy Number 0, me acting as a mole would be pointless, Iâd be found out immediately.â
âNumber 0 is that powerful, huh.â A hint of anticipation flickered in Ling Moâs eyes.
This kind of mental monitoring, even he couldnât cover many people at the same time. In fact, he had to focus his attention on one person and observe for a while to detect any abnormal fluctuations.
From this, it seemed that Number 0âs specialty was primarily in monitoring and information relay.
And Ling Mo, his Mental Sphere was feeling hungry right nowâ¦
The youngster from Niepan headquarters, although a mental ability user, Ling Mo hadnât rashly consumed his Mental power to avoid leaving any trace.
Because using the consume ability in that situation would have been impossible to completely hide from Mu Chen.
Even if Mu Chen hadnât noticed, there was still a mental seed from Number 0 in his brainâ¦
Although Mu Chen was now on the same side as Ling Mo, that seed was like a ticking time bomb, constantly keeping Ling Mo on alert.
It was like a âspyâ that could awaken at any momentâ¦
However, seeing Mu Chen return at least proved that he himself was not compromised, and all that was needed afterward was to find a way to remove the mental seed from his brain.
But bringing it up at that moment obviously wasnât the right move. After thinking, Ling Mo said, âSince thatâs the case, we donât need to keep running. Once weâre outside, they know the terrain better than us, and with Number 0 tracking you⦠Letâs just stay here and take out this group first!â
âJust the few of us?â Mu Chenâs eyes widened in shock. What kind of thought process was this!
He had just finished saying the other side was well-prepared, and this guy was already thinking about wiping everyone outâ¦
âYeah, take out one batch, and the pressure on us is lessened by that much,â Ling Mo seriously nodded in agreement.
âWait a minuteâ¦â Mu Chen suddenly realized something, âYouâre not planning to⦠no, you never intended to escape Dongming, did you? Hey, donât turn your head!â
âHehe,â Ling Mo chuckled thoughtfully.
âHey, I donât want to die here! Are you even listening to me?â Mu Chen ranted frantically on the side.
At that moment, within the mall, figures were slowly moving in various places.
Not far from the entrance, on the main staircase, one person was leading several figures, moving slowly upwards while sticking close to the wall.