This was bad. Former Director Chi was in danger!
Never mind whether this risk stemmed from wild imagination or logical deduction—in short, the Bureau could not afford to take such a gamble.
If the former Director was truly targeted by the Disciples of Eternal Night, how could the Bureau maintain its prestige in Haicheng, and how could it ever convince the public that it could properly handle matters concerning Nightmares?
Yu Jin wished he could notify Li Ji right away to keep an eye on the 46th floor, but he soon realized that the Bureau's protection of the old Director would undoubtedly be far more meticulous than what an ordinary agent like himself could fathom.
Perhaps he was worrying over nothing?
He walked over to the window and looked up at the towering 46th floor, feeling that such a height was far beyond the reach of ordinary people.
...
Meanwhile.
Designed for safety and evacuation, the stairwells generally connected all floors from top to bottom.
Trapped in the stairwell, the janitor originally intended to make his way all the way down and find an exit through the garage or morgue. However, the Bureau moved far faster than he had anticipated, already deploying numerous field agents at the stairwell choke points on the first floor—even an entire Special Response Squad.
Seeing that forcing his way through would inevitably invite a coordinated siege, the janitor hid the gloom in his eyes and began climbing back up.
As he climbed, he clenched his fists tightly.
“Don't let me find out who is impersonating me, or else death will be the mildest terror you will ever taste in your life.”
He climbed upward in silence. As he passed a certain floor, a heavy fire door was suddenly pushed open a crack. Two figures dressed as nurses swiftly squeezed inside, latched the door shut, pressed their hands against the surface, and let out sighs of relief.
Yet very quickly, the two nurses froze in place, because they sensed killing intent behind them!
Both whipped around, only to discover a janitor holding a dirty water bucket, standing on the top step of the stairs, glaring murderously at them.
Their expressions shifted in unison, almost crying out in alarm. But immediately afterward, the nurse on the right looked instantly overjoyed, staring at the janitor before her as she gasped in a low voice:
“It’s you, Xia Jie?!”
A flicker of uncontainable fury flashed through the janitor's eyes. The wrist holding the bucket split open instantly, and a blood-drenched bone blade flashed before the two nurses, its razor-sharp tip pressing against the tender skin of their necks, raising goosebumps all across their flesh.
Now any stray dog or alley cat could recognize him?
It was all because of that damn impersonator.
He truly deserved to die!
Indeed, the janitor was none other than Xia Jie—the very Xia Jie who had been driven into a corner by Yu Jin’s accidental meddling.
He was here to achieve the "complete wipeout" achievement.
After lying low for a while, he had happened to hear that survivors from the Qingniao Street investigation team still remained. To him, this completely ruined the integrity of his art of slaughter—it was a silent insult to his pride.
And so, after meticulous plotting, he had decided to risk everything for the sake of his “art.”
Who could have foreseen that on his very first day of scouting, he would be caught red-handed?
What was even more infuriating was that he hadn't shown the slightest flaw himself; instead, an impersonator had muddied the waters and forced him into a corner.
He had wondered whether the Bureau was deliberately baiting him, but the question was: who could have known he would come to the hospital today?
Only the Disciples of Eternal Night!
Only that metallic voice who had a dedicated line of contact with him, pulled strings to smuggle him in, and claimed to be from the Disciples of Eternal Night.
Yet now that he was exposed, whether the other party truly was a Disciple of Eternal Night was up for debate.
And that bastard had dared to call and question him?
The Disciples of Eternal Night deserved to die too!
Boiling with rage, Xia Jie stared venomously at the two nurses, in no hurry to strike.
He could tell there was something wrong with them as well; otherwise, they wouldn't have looked so panicked when ducking into the stairwell.
The nurse on the left was strung tight, forcing herself not to move a muscle. The nurse on the right also appeared frightened, yet the excitement in her eyes far outweighed her fear.
Suppressing her trembling voice, she whispered:
“Don't kill us! We're on your side—we’re with the Disciples of Eternal Night!”
Hmph, the Disciples of Eternal Night were hardly on his side.
Xia Jie gave a cold snort, his ruthless gaze sweeping across them as he rasped darkly:
“Names.”
The nurse on the right hurried to reply:
“Zhao Man, head of the Horn Alley stronghold on Taotie Street. This is Wu Xinting, second-in-command of the Scorpion Tail Alley stronghold.”
Indeed, the nurse on the left was none other than Wu Xinting. Before she could introduce herself, Zhao Man had snatched the words right out of her mouth.
However, she said nothing more, merely standing there in silence.
Seeing that Xia Jie hadn't struck, Zhao Man grew increasingly excited and continued:
“We infiltrated the hospital on a mission. Now that your actions were discovered, we've been dragged into it and can no longer stay hidden. You must be trapped here too, unable to advance or retreat. I thought we had reached a dead end, but running into you showed me there's still a chance to live. Xia Jie, I have a plan that can win a lifeline for all of us. Would you be willing to hear it?”
Xia Jie said nothing, merely casting a cold, detached glance at the prattling Zhao Man.
Seeing that he didn't object, Zhao Man tentatively went on:
“We brought a large quantity of Dream-Inducing Agent 2.0, and even the higher-concentration 3.0. These agents have a chance to trigger a Nightmare Disaster. Our plan was to test them on long-term bedridden patients, especially the one in psychiatry. But now, because of your rash... your decisive action, we no longer have the chance to complete these missions. Failing the mission means death. My only hope now is to stir up another chaotic incident in the hospital to divert the Bureau's attention so we can deploy these dream-inducing agents before our covers are blown.
“And right now, aside from you, nobody can create such immense chaos!
“As long as you show yourself again and draw away all the Dreamwalkers, giving us an opening, we can swiftly carry the dream-inducing agents to various departments. Even if we have to inject them by force, we'll always find enough openings to succeed a few times.
“However, at this point, we can't afford to wait for the effects of Dream-Inducing Agent 2.0. I know a crude method to refine the dream-inducing factor.”
At this point, Zhao Man cast a stealthy glance at Wu Xinting. A vicious resolve surfaced on her face, and as if making up her mind, she gritted her teeth and said:
“Dream-inducing factors cannot manifest outside the body. In vitro dilution and purification is a technology only the Disciples of Eternal Night possess. For us to achieve this, we can only inject massive amounts of the dream-inducing agent into a single person's body. While the dream-inducing factors manifest within the body and before they are rapidly absorbed and metabolized, we seize the moment to drain that person's blood and filter it. That way, we can roughly refine a dose of Dream-Inducing Agent 4.0 or even 5.0.
“Once the concentration of dream-inducing factors reaches a certain threshold, it can summon a Nightmare Disaster! This was told to us by the Disciples of Eternal Night themselves.
“And as long as a Nightmare Disaster arrives, the Dreamwalkers you drew away will be forced to split their attention back here, because Shuguang Hospital's 46th floor houses an important figure recuperating right now.
“Chi Mu!
“The former Director of the Haicheng Bureau is currently in the hospital's psychiatry department. If he is in danger, or if we can drag him directly into the Nightmare Disaster, you'll have an opening to escape! Between hunting you down and protecting Chi Mu, they will definitely choose to protect Chi Mu first!
“Once their forces split and confusion throws the Bureau into disarray, your chances of escaping will be far greater than staying trapped in this stairwell!
“What do you say, Xia Jie? Are you willing to cooperate with us?”
It had to be said that Zhao Man's plan was indeed the most 'useful' plan for Xia Jie and for themselves under the current circumstances.
Whether it would actually work was another matter, as escaping also depended on the Bureau's subsequent reactions.
Hearing this proposal, Xia Jie gave a few cold laughs.
“Hmph. Whether I can escape is one thing, but once both sides fall into chaos, it'll certainly be enough for you two ordinary mortals to slip away.”
Terrified that Xia Jie had misunderstood her, Zhao Man hurriedly explained:
“There are Dreamwalkers everywhere; we can barely take a step. This plan is most advantageous to you. After all, if you wait here, the enemies you'll have to face will hardly be few. Cooperating with me will at least create an opportunity for you!”
Noncommittal, Xia Jie raised an eyebrow at the woman before him and praised, “How clever. Your name is Zhao Man?”
Hearing that Xia Jie seemed interested, Zhao Man nodded eagerly. Forcing down her terror, she even took two steps forward against the bone blade, presenting herself like merchandise on display.
Having climbed her way up step by step from the bottom of Taotie Street, she knew what men valued most.
What she never expected, however, was that Xia Jie was just a “child”—he didn't buy into that nonsense at all.
Not only that, he despised pretty women.
Chrrk—!
Without any warning, the bone blade resting against Zhao Man's neck thrust violently forward, skewering her throat clean through.
Blood sprayed out, splattering all over Wu Xinting's face.
The light in Zhao Man's eyes vanished in an instant. She couldn't understand why Xia Jie had killed her when she had just offered the best escape plan for both of them.
She stared resentfully at Xia Jie, yet she could see nothing more—nothing except darkness.
Thud—!
The bone blade was slowly retracted, and her corpse collapsed to the floor.
A thrill of murderous delight leaped onto Xia Jie's brow. With a face full of satisfaction, he controlled the bone blade to draw near Wu Xinting, asking playfully:
“Why aren't you speaking?”
Wu Xinting was trembling from head to toe.
She felt as if her heart were about to leap out of her ribcage, and the clothes on her back were already soaked through with cold sweat. Yet she did not beg for mercy, nor did she scream. Forcing down the terror in her heart, she gritted her teeth and said:
“Before the strong, the weak have no right to question. You call the shots here.”
Xia Jie inspected Wu Xinting with keen interest. The bone blade swirled once around her neck before withdrawing smoothly.
“Fascinating. Adults are always hypocritical, but at least you're smarter than her. Hmph, daring to order me around. I think her name shouldn't be Zhao Man—she should be called Looking for Death!”
As the bone blade moved away, Wu Xinting's sweat-drenched hands abruptly unclasped.
She had won the gamble.
She had survived.
...
Rate on N.U.
