Jiang Qing slipped out of Lake Island and caught a cab toward the designated meeting spot.
Master Wu left the estate right behind him and followed in silence. He chose to walk, since there were so few cars around at midnight, and taking a cab would have tipped Jiang Qing off easily.
A wave of disbelief crashed over Master Wu’s chest, immediately followed by boiling fury. Never in a million years would he have guessed that the insider was Jiang Qing. The mere thought that this boy might be manipulating his daughter—god knew what he intended to do to Wu Ying—made rage burn hot in his veins, stirring an uncontrollable killing intent.
If Jiang Qing was the Young Heir of the illegal organization, the riddle from years ago finally made sense. Master Wu had always been baffled by how he and Jiang Yu had ended up together that night. Jiang Yu herself had been utterly clueless, leading him to conclude that someone had engineered the trap using her as bait. Yet no matter how thoroughly he investigated back then, he couldn’t uncover the mastermind, forcing him to bide his time and wait for the enemy’s next move—only for nothing to happen for years.
To think it was Jiang Qing all along! Who would ever suspect a twelve-year-old child, especially when that child was the victim’s own son?
Catch the thief red-handed. He would tail the boy, see what scheme he had up his sleeve, and then settle the score.
Jiang Yu had begged him to spare her son’s life. Out of respect for their years as husband and wife, he could spare the boy from death, but Jiang Qing certainly wasn’t escaping a severe beating before being dragged off to the Tribunal Division!
Master Wu kept a distance from the car and stayed hidden from Jiang Qing in the cab.
Elsewhere, several shadows dashed through the dark night with menacing speed.
Inside his office, the Host paced back and forth in a nervous sweat.
The location Long Jin had given was a suburban wetland park. Cold night winds rustled through swaying branches, casting eerie shadows across the path. Passing through the woods, a lakeshore clearing opened up, bathed in pale moonlight.
Jiang Qing knitted his brows as he walked. What on earth did Long Jin want him to do here?
Behind him, the soft snap of a dry twig echoed through the trees.
Jiang Qing whipped around in instant alert. “Who’s there?”
A beat of silence passed before a figure stepped forward from the shadows.
Jiang Qing narrowed his eyes, sliding a hand behind his back toward the compact yet lethal Atavist pistol tucked at his waist.
“It’s me, Young Heir,” a female voice echoed, though Jiang Qing instantly recognized the speaker behind the vocal illusion: Mister Fei.
Several people stood behind Mister Fei. As top operatives, they moved with quiet steps, almost like ghosts.
Though these were his own people, Jiang Qing felt no relief. Instead, an ominous dread welled up in his chest.
“Mister Fei, you tailed me?”
“Young Heir, we came to escort you back. None of the Atavist families recognized your childhood photo today, but tomorrow the Tribunal Division will deploy facial recognition algorithms. By then, escaping will be out of the question,” Mister Fei explained.
“I still have unfinished business,” Jiang Qing replied.
“Are you referring to the grand gift you intended for the Wu Family?” Mister Fei asked.
Jiang Qing gritted his teeth slightly. “Correct.”
The moment the words left Jiang Qing’s mouth, a terrifying wave of killing intent whipped through the air like a gale.
A thunderous crash echoed as dust and blood exploded into the night.
Mister Fei yanked Jiang Qing aside just in time. Squinting through the swirling haze, a towering figure gradually emerged under the moonlight.
Broad and imposing, the man radiated a pressure that marked him as an absolute powerhouse.
The organization’s Atavists, positioned around Jiang Qing in a defensive ring, immediately snapped into high combat readiness.
An overwhelming sense of foreboding tightened around Jiang Qing’s heart.
“Jiang Qing, why don’t you tell me what grand gift you have planned for my Wu Family?” Master Wu asked, standing atop the lifeless bodies of two organization operatives he had dispatched in a split second, a cold, humorless smile on his face.
Wu Ying woke with a strange sense of unease. Reaching across the bed, she found Jiang Qing’s spot empty and cold.
“Where did he go?” Her throat felt parched. With Jiang Qing gone and no one to fetch her a drink, she got up to grab water herself.
Finding the bedside pitcher already filled by Jiang Qing earlier, she poured a glass and ambled toward the hallway to check on him. The moment she pulled open the soundproof door, muffled weeping reached her ears.
The sobbing drifted up from downstairs. Following the sound, Wu Ying reached Jiang Yu’s room, where the doorway stood slightly ajar.
Surprised, Wu Ying stepped inside and tapped her shoulder gently. “Aunt Jiang, what’s wrong?”
Buried in her pillows, Jiang Yu shuddered, sitting up to wipe her tears in a panic. “N-Nothing’s wrong.”
“Did my dad say something rude again? I’ll go set him straight.”
Wu Ying turned to leave. She knew her father still loved her late mother the most, and that he only married Jiang Yu out of duty. But he was her husband, so he needed to treat her well. After all, Jiang Yu had taken care of their home for years without making drama or asking for too much.
“No!” Jiang Yu grabbed Wu Ying’s hand, tears pouring down her cheeks anew. “It’s… it’s something else.”
“What is it? Speak up—crying won’t solve anything,” Wu Ying pressed, her brow furrowed.
“It’s… it’s about Jiang Qing,” Jiang Yu sobbed. Tears overflowed uncontrollably as she wept over the tragedy of it all. If only Jiang Qing weren’t affiliated with that evil organization, how happy their family of four could have been. Now, that fragile happiness was about to shatter completely.
Wu Ying’s heart skipped a beat. She pressed for details, but while Jiang Yu could confess the truth to her husband, she lacked the courage to look her stepdaughter in the eye. All she could do was shake her head through tears, begging Wu Ying not to ask and to wait for Master Wu’s return.
Seeing her stepmother in such distress, Wu Ying wasn’t about to wait around—she bolted outside to search for her father.
“Yingying!” Jiang Yu gasped, but Wu Ying had already vanished into the night.
Unable to sit idle, terror gripped Jiang Yu’s mind. Somewhere out there, the three people she loved most were hurtling toward a devastating conflict, and someone might end up hurt or killed. She couldn’t just wait at home.
Though she had no idea where Jiang Qing had gone, it was easy enough to track Master Wu and Wu Ying. The Wu Family’s atavists could find relatives with divining tortoise shells. They would spin a shell flat on the ground until it stopped, and it would point straight toward the target’s location.
Jiang Yu enlisted the help of a friendly Wu Family Atavist, who obliged without hesitation. Locating the direction, he drove her straight toward the spot.
Back at the wetland park, the sight of Master Wu left Jiang Qing feeling as though he’d been struck on the head. His vision blurred and his ears rang, yet beneath the shock, a cold realization dawned: he had been set up. He had walked right into a trap.
“In all my years, I’ve seen it all, but it’s been a long time since anyone gave me a ‘surprise’ like this. You’re quite something, Jiang Qing,” Master Wu spat, having never imagined he’d be played for a fool by a kid.
Jiang Qing stared at him with a dark expression. “Uncle Wu, you shouldn’t be here.”
“If I weren’t here, how would I have learned what a monster my stepson really is? I should have realized it sooner. The night before the Bubble 109 detachment incident, street cameras caught you approaching the membrane-breaking machine. Back then, I assumed you were merely curious. Who knew you went there to commit mass murder? You didn’t even blink at the thought of wiping out a hundred thousand lives—I can hardly fathom what horrors you planned for my Wu Family.” Master Wu stepped forward, his killing intent mounting with every stride.
“Things aren’t like you think, Uncle Wu. Please go back,” Jiang Qing said, his face calm even as his fingers twitched.
In truth, he had gone to stop the membrane-breaking machine and saved those hundred thousand people. Without him, they would have died long before Long Jin or Qiu Fa arrived. But now, he had no way to defend himself.
With his cover blown, returning to the organization was his only remaining option. Society had no place left for him, but at least survival offered future opportunities.
Master Wu continued his advance. “Will you surrender quietly, or should I wipe out your accomplices before dragging you in?”
“Uncle Wu!”
“That gives me my answer.” Master Wu lunged forward, and the group’s operatives moved at the same time.
Chaos erupted as combat commenced.
Master Wu’s strength was beyond question. Even ambushed by multiple organization elites, he maintained the upper hand effortlessly.
Jiang Qing’s phone buzzed. Glancing down at the caller ID, “Wu Ying” flashed on the screen, causing him to freeze completely.
Turning to Mister Fei, he urged, “Let’s leave.”
Mister Fei smirked. “Don’t you wish to deliver your grand gift to the Wu Family first, Young Heir?”
“There’s no time. Let’s go before Master Wu overpowers everyone,” Jiang Qing snapped.
Mister Fei’s smile turned cryptically dark. “Not necessarily.”
Just then, a frantic female voice cut through the air. “Jiang Qing! Dad! What are you doing?!”
Jiang Qing’s heart lurched as he jerked his head up.
Panting, “Wu Ying” stared in disbelief before rushing into the fray to assist her father.
Master Wu had anticipated Wu Ying might show up, though he hadn’t expected her so soon. Worried for his daughter’s heartbreak, he fought back-to-back with her, calling out, “Yingying, there are plenty of fine young men out there. If you want, I’ll find you one who looks just like him!”
“Thank you, Dad,” “Wu Ying” replied.
In an instant, Master Wu’s expression froze. Wait—this wasn’t Yingying!
Splat!
It was too late.
A massive syringe plunged through his back, piercing straight into his heart, and a sinister red fluid was injected into his bloodstream at terrifying speed.
Jiang Qing’s composure vanished completely.
The Black Tortoise shell offered matchless defense, but unlike a Dragon’s Reverse Scale, which guarded vital spots passively, the shell required active deployment. That was the solitary flaw in its absolute protection: if an attack was swift and sneaky enough to strike before the shell could be summoned, it proved fatal.
“The organization’s newest poison. Enjoy it, Dad,” the fake “Wu Ying” said with a smug grin as her disguise faded.
Even someone as strong as Master Wu couldn’t handle the poison. His face went pale, and the veins on his body stood out in pain. When the syringe was pulled out, blood shot from the wound. He swayed on his feet, then dropped to his knees.
Holding the miniature divining tortoise shell pointing toward her father’s position, the real Wu Ying sprinted as fast as her legs could carry her. Dread weighed heavy on her mind; Jiang Yu’s breakdown had thoroughly spooked her.
What on earth had happened? Jiang Qing? Sure, the guy had a scheming streak, but he was generally well-behaved. What trouble could he possibly have caused to drive Jiang Yu to tears?
She tried calling Jiang Qing multiple times, but none went through, and Master Wu had left the house in such a hurry he hadn’t taken his phone.
“Dammit!”
Behind her, the car carrying Jiang Yu and the Wu Atavist sped toward the exact same destination.
Before long, the wetland park loomed in sight.
“Uncle Wu! Uncle Wu!” Jiang Qing shoved aside the people in his way, stumbling over to support the collapsing man. “The antidote! Bring the antidote now!” he screamed.
Mister Fei stepped forward. “We haven’t developed a complete antidote for this viral strain yet.”
“Don’t make me repeat myself—bring me the antidote!” Jiang Qing’s eyes bloodshot, his expression frantic.
Mister Fei paused before gesturing toward the fake “Wu Ying.” The disguise peeled away like shedding skin, revealing a member who pulled a syringe filled with green liquid from his pocket.
Jiang Qing snatched it and injected the solution directly into Master Wu’s heart.
Yet compared to the potent virus, the small dose of antidote was a drop in the bucket. Master Wu’s body temperature continued to plummet, his complexion turning deathly gray.
member shrugged. “There isn’t any more, Young Heir. You know we rarely carry antidotes on missions, and this version is merely an unfinished prototype meant for field testing.”
As the light faded from Master Wu’s eyes, despair swallowed Jiang Qing whole. He stared in numb disbelief. How had things spiraled to this? Moments ago, he had believed there was still time to set things right. Now, Master Wu was dead, and all hope was shattered.
“Young Heir…”
“Get lost.”
“Young Heir…”
“Get the hell out of here! Everyone get out! If anyone stays, I’ll kill you myself!” Jiang Qing screamed, clutching Master Wu’s body in uncontrolled grief.
Silence fell over the clearing. Finally, Mister Fei spoke up. “We will await you outside.”
The organization’s members retreated swiftly, leaving Jiang Qing alone with the corpse.
Only the biting night wind kept him company, whistling through the hollow void in his chest until he trembled from the cold. He stared blankly at Master Wu’s remains. The last time he had felt this empty was the day his own father died.
“No… no, there’s still a way,” Jiang Qing snapped out of his stupor, frantically searching the ground for his dropped phone to contact Long Jin. The Information Broker was all-powerful; he would trade everything he owned if she could bring Master Wu back to life.
“Sorry, the call you are calling is switched off…”
The call couldn’t be completed.
Jiang Qing’s face contorted, almost crushing the phone in his grip.
“I have to hide the body first, then go to Long Estate to find her in person…” Pale and frantic, he threw his phone aside and began clawing at the dirt with his bare hands.
“…Jiang Qing, what are you doing?” a familiar female voice called out from nearby.
Jiang Qing froze, his head jerking up like a rusted gear.
Wu Ying stood a short distance away. Her eyes locked onto his first, before slowly drifting down to the motionless body sprawled on the ground beside him.
