Chapter 120 - 112: ’Ancient Abyss’ Has a Bad Attitude

Zoe ran toward the door almost as a conditioned reflex. Yin Zhen lunged ahead of her, pulling it open first. The older woman next door often helped her throw away the garbage left at the door. It was a small gesture, but it carried a lot of goodwill.

As soon as the door opened, it was indeed the older man from next door supporting his injured wife by her arm. Both of them were terrifyingly pale. When they saw Yin Zhen, they looked as if they had grasped a lifeline.

"Yin, my dad... he..."

Before he could finish, the door next door burst open. A white-haired old man charged out. His mouth was smeared with blood, and his fingernails had grown long and sharp.

Zoe rushed out from beside Yin Zhen. Only when she reached out did she realize that she was now an ordinary human without Extraordinary Abilities. If she unsealed herself, she would assimilate this body into the Blood Clan. But the body was borrowed; she couldn’t do that.

In the nick of time, a bag of garbage flew out from behind Zoe and smashed into the old man’s face. Ying secretly tripped the old man, causing him to stumble backward and fall flat on his back.

Yin Zhen yanked Zoe back inside. BANG! The security door slammed shut. The neighbor couple sat on the floor, still reeling from the shock, while Yin Zhen quickly dialed the emergency number.

During this time, she glanced at Lucy. Lucy nodded and went to deal with the hallway’s surveillance footage of the incident; she couldn’t delete it entirely, but she could create some interference at the crucial moments.

BANG BANG BANG! The door was smashed with deafening force. A Blood Clan member who had lost control due to blood was incredibly ferocious.

A deathly silence hung inside the apartment. Zoe’s face was ashen. Through the open door next door, she had just seen an old woman lying face down on the floor, the bite marks on her neck still oozing blood.

All the beauty experienced during the day shattered. The warm sunlight, the brilliant colors, the delicious food—at this moment, they all morphed into a piercing red in the darkness and a stench of blood thick enough to induce nausea.

Zoe turned her head to look at Yin Zhen, who signaled for her to wait before speaking.

The special task force arrived quickly. In less than three minutes, two armored vehicles blocked the entrance of the apartment building. After a frantic scramble of activity outside, a gentle knock sounded on Yin Zhen’s door.

"Hello, it’s safe outside now. You can come out."

Team members in hazmat suits collected the bodies and cleaned the scene. The injured were placed in ambulances, and all the residents on this floor gave simple statements.

The Blood Clan invasion had already been made public. The news broadcasted the progress of the manhunt every day, so the procedure of signing non-disclosure agreements had been scrapped. Once everything was handled, the task force captain led his team away.

Back inside the apartment, Yin Zhen closed the door securely. Zoe sat on the sofa, staring blankly. Screams and gunshots rang out occasionally from outside, some far away, some close by.

"May, can you tell me what exactly is going on? Why did the Blood Clan come to your world like this?"

Yin Zhen sat down beside Zoe. She pondered and deliberated for a long time, eventually deciding that Zoe had the right to know the truth. Even if she didn’t tell her now, Zoe would find out in the future once she had the system.

"Okay, I’ll tell you everything!"

That evening, Bai Qiang pushed open the doors to the information center with a heavy heart. As soon as she appeared at the entrance, Ma Fan and the rest of the group stood up from various parts of the lobby and surrounded her in the blink of an eye.

"Doctor Bai, did you find anything?" Signal’s voice was hoarse. Beside her, Xian Yu’s eyes were still red, as were Tui You’s. Ma Fan and Ye Se were relatively restrained, but their complexions were equally poor.

They had spent the entire day desperately searching for clues about Blossoming Prosperity, wanting to find this person and avenge their captain. Looking at those exhausted yet stubborn faces, Bai Qiang sighed.

Through the police department that had previously commissioned her for psychological counseling, the community workers, and her own analytical deductions, she had basically grasped the full picture of the situation. She couldn’t easily judge who was right or wrong in this matter. After all, she wasn’t the one involved. She had never experienced the agony the victims had felt. Demanding that Yin Zhen forgive him purely from a legal standpoint would be unfair to both Yin Zhen and Yin Zhen’s deceased mother.

"What I can confirm is that Blossoming Prosperity did not betray Ancient Abyss. Nan Jiamu indirectly caused the death of her family. The law couldn’t convict Nan Jiamu, so she personally sentenced him to death."

Bai Qiang’s words instantly froze the air in the room.

Ye Se silently lowered his head. He knew there had to be an underlying reason. Blossoming Prosperity had acted too insanely back then; without a deep-seated hatred, no one could fight that desperately. Ma Fan’s originally resolute pupils trembled slightly, Tui You’s clenched fists loosened, and Signal opened her mouth, her face displaying a bewildered expression as she needed a moment to digest this reality.

Xian Yu whispered, "So that’s how it is? Blossoming Prosperity was avenging her family. Are we still going to avenge the captain?"

BANG! Tui You slammed a fist on the table, reason and emotion warring within him. Everyone understood that a life for a life was the natural order of things. They wanted to seek revenge against Blossoming Prosperity, but Blossoming Prosperity had been avenging her own dead family.

Just as everyone was at a loss for what to do next, a man in his forties walked in from outside. He had a buzz cut and a square face, wearing a dark green uniform that, despite lacking military rank insignia, was clearly a military combat suit. Two others in similar uniforms followed him but didn’t enter. They flanked the door outside like military guards. Everyone looked at him.

"I am Shen Qing. From now on, I am temporarily taking over all affairs in Guan City." He swept his gaze across everyone present, his eyes finally landing on Bai Qiang.

"Bai Qiang." Shen Qing’s voice wasn’t loud, but it carried an intense, oppressive weight. "You met with Blossoming Prosperity this morning, didn’t you? Everyone knows your relationship is far from ordinary. During this Special period, withholding information, assisting, or harboring an A-level wanted criminal can carry a maximum sentence of treason. Did you know that?"

Bai Qiang wore a look of utter disbelief at his nonsense. "Me? Treason? Oh, alright, alright. Come on, arrest me. You can even shoot me if you want." She brought her hands together and thrust them forward.

Shen Qing’s expression remained unchanged. He looked at Wang. Wang looked a bit troubled but still pressed a remote control. Surveillance footage appeared on the large screen in the center of the lobby. It showed Bai Qiang rushing out of a café, looking left and right, and then standing alone in the crowd, smiling in a certain direction. The footage froze at that exact moment.

Bai Qiang’s face darkened. "You’re monitoring me?"

"Desperate times. Anyone who has had contact with an A-level wanted criminal should be under surveillance. It’s not just you; it’s the same for the others. Someone must take responsibility for Nan Jiamu’s death! Doctor Bai, if you reveal Blossoming Prosperity’s Identity now, it can still be considered active cooperation. If you wait until we find out ourselves..."

Shen Qing didn’t finish his sentence, leaving behind a perfectly timed silence.

Bai Qiang withdrew her gaze from the screen. The fact that they came to ask her provided an Explanation: they hadn’t found out anything. She wondered if Yin Zhen also possessed the hacking abilities of a Black Domain Walker. Thinking about it now, Yin Zhen was right not to make contact with her. That girl was cautious to the extreme. Yin Zhen knew that as long as she showed her face, Bai Qiang would be able to uncover the rest. Had she really trusted her that much?

Bai Qiang smiled at Shen Qing. "Commander Shen, if you want to catch her, you need to have the skills to do so. I certainly don’t have that capability. I’ll tell you frankly: I don’t want to offend her. The dead cannot be brought back to life, but the living must value their own lives! If you think there’s a problem with my attitude, there’s nothing I can do about it. You can either shoot me, or I’m going home to sleep. I hate staying in this dump!"

With that, Bai Qiang pulled down the sunglasses resting on her head, pushed them up the bridge of her nose with her middle finger, and turned to leave. Protect Ancient Abyss? No! ’Ancient Abyss’ had a bad attitude toward her, and she wasn’t happy about it.

"Halt!"

Shen Qing drew his gun, aiming the muzzle at the back of Bai Qiang’s head. Ma Fan took a step forward, wanting to intervene, but was stopped by Ye Se.

Shen Qing’s finger pressed against the trigger, but it felt as if it was jammed by something, preventing him from even firing a warning shot into the air. Even after Bai Qiang entered the elevator outside, he still couldn’t pull the trigger. He had experienced this exact same feeling when facing Nan Jiamu. Shen Qing lowered his gun, his face livid.

Nan Jiamu had protagonist privileges and had once informed several relevant higher-ups about the game invasion. Shen Qing didn’t know everything, but he knew the majority of it. Without a formidable leader, taming this group of people would be incredibly difficult!

The surroundings remained quiet for a few seconds. When Shen Qing looked at the others, Ma Fan avoided his gaze and checked his watch. "It’s time to get off work. Old Ye, you drove, right? Give me a ride."

Ye Se nodded. "Let’s go. Xian Yu, come with me. I’ll take you home first so your mom doesn’t worry about you."

Signal and Tui You also expressed their intent to leave together. A tacit understanding passed among them; they were preparing to find another place for a private meeting.