Chapter 55 - 53: Of Course You Have to Be Excited

Chapter 55: Chapter 53: Of Course You Have to Be Excited

Bright yellow warning tape cordoned off the riverbank. The river’s surface was empty; all boat traffic had been temporarily suspended.

A helicopter flew toward the cleared-out dock.

At this time, only personnel from the Inspection Bureau and the River Patrol were on standby at the dock.

The moment Feng Ling stepped off the helicopter, she saw Su Yuqing’s grim, tense face. He looked like someone owed him eighty million.

Flanking him were two rows of fully armed Special Attack Team members, Qin Liang among them.

Feng Ling scanned the area but didn’t see Huangfu Miaomiao. Then, she spotted a small skeletal head peeking out of the window of a distant van.

"Let’s hear it." Su Yuqing’s gaze swept between her and Zhou Diao. "What’s the current situation?"

Feng Ling averted her gaze and said to Su Yuqing, "Four Alien Species bought intel to kill me. I killed three, but one escaped. They were at the Mengjia Hotel buying information on the Hidden Boss. In two hours, I’m going to the Mengjia Hotel to take care of them. I can’t let a group of Alien Species that knows my name, address, appearance, and Card Ability run rampant in Qingjiang City. Plus, they have tracking abilities."

Su Yuqing quietly sucked in a sharp breath.

’In that case, wouldn’t the Mengjia Hotel be a den for Alien Species?’

"I’ll dispatch personnel immediately and lock down the streets around the Mengjia Hotel within two hours." After a moment’s thought, Su Yuqing asked Feng Ling, "But why two hours?"

Feng Ling pulled open her collar, revealing a large patch of skin below her collarbone. Right over her sternum was a gaping, fist-sized hole!

A literal hole. You could see the fabric of the back of her shirt right through it.

Expressionless, Feng Ling closed her collar. "I need two hours to recover."

Just looking at it made Zhou Diao wince in sympathetic pain. "Quick, get the Little Skeleton to give you a shot of a Recovery Agent!"

"I don’t want to become dependent on that stuff," Feng Ling shot him a glance. "This is fine. It lets me clearly understand this body’s limits for endurance and recovery."

Su Yuqing also winced, his brow furrowed in a deep frown.

"Go rest in the van."

The van was usually for Zhou Diao’s exclusive use. It was similar to a celebrity’s luxury van, with a spacious interior that included a medical bed and matching first-aid supplies, ready to support wounded personnel in the field.

The moment Feng Ling pulled open the van door, a thick cloud of perfume washed over her, making her reel for a moment.

Inside the van, Huangfu Miaomiao silently drew back the hand holding a perfume bottle.

Feng Ling: "..."

She ducked into the van, lay down on the medical bed to rest, and said to Huangfu Miaomiao with her eyes closed, "Get on the player forums and see if there are any new posts about the Hidden Boss. If you find any clues, write them down and tell Captain Su."

"Okay..." Huangfu Miaomiao quickly opened the player forums.

She hurriedly scrolled through over a hundred posts but found no titles containing the words "Hidden Boss." Most were requests for help with missions or trades for points.

Two days had passed since the last system announcement, so it was normal for the hype around the Hidden Boss to have died down a bit.

Huangfu Miaomiao kept scrolling.

Just then, Feng Ling, still lying on the medical bed, spoke. "Nothing, right?"

"Mm..." Huangfu Miaomiao looked over at her. "You... how did you know?"

"The Alien Species that escaped said its employer bought my intel at the Mengjia Hotel. It seems some players specialize in selling information." Feng Ling spoke softly with her eyes still closed. "And that Alien Species seemed pretty scared of the intel sellers. So I’m guessing... our target has considerable power and prestige among the players. When necessary, they can monopolize information on the forums to ensure their deals go smoothly."

Huangfu Miaomiao stared at her blankly. "I never knew..."

Feng Ling opened her eyes in annoyance, rolled them at Huangfu Miaomiao, then closed them again. "I really don’t know how you’ve survived the past two months."

Huangfu Miaomiao pouted but said nothing.

Feng Ling added, "You should get ready, too. Once I’m rested, I’ll need you to go to the Mengjia Hotel."

Huangfu Miaomiao’s eyes went wide. "M-me? But I..."

Feng Ling’s brow twitched. "Shut up."

She was in no mood to explain her reasons right now.

The van fell silent.

...

Thirty minutes later, the van door was pulled open—

Su Yuqing and Zhou Diao entered one after the other, carefully closing the door behind them.

Su Yuqing said, "I’ve already positioned my people near the Mengjia Hotel. To avoid tipping them off, I have them disguised as road maintenance workers, on standby 150 meters from the hotel. Once you’re rested, Zhou Diao will go with you. If you need any equipment or weapons, you can request them now."

Feng Ling opened her eyes and thought for a moment in earnest.

"They brought in three Fishman Alien Species and deliberately ambushed me on the river to use the environment to their advantage. This time, at the Mengjia Hotel, I want to create an advantage for myself..."

She looked up at the sky outside. There was no moon tonight.

"Is there a way to cut the power to the entire block the Mengjia Hotel is on?" Feng Ling asked.

Su Yuqing replied, "I can have the power company cooperate, but hotels usually have backup power."

Zhou Diao immediately said, "I’ll go smash the backup generator!"

Su Yuqing still felt it wasn’t a good idea. "That might cause panic among the hotel guests."

’The hardest part about dealing with Alien Species wasn’t their bizarre variety of abilities, but the fact that they always blended in with ordinary people, making them difficult to identify.’

’If they didn’t have to worry about civilian lives, just bombing the hotel would be the most efficient and convenient solution.’

Feng Ling said, "Do you have a micro-camera that can live-stream? We can have the Little Skeleton take it into the hotel. If it encounters an Alien Species, it can make a prearranged signal."

Su Yuqing glanced at Huangfu Miaomiao, then hesitated for a moment before replying, "We can do that."

He hesitated because he wasn’t sure if Huangfu Miaomiao would be willing to cooperate.

’But it was, admittedly, a relatively safe plan—sending an Alien Species in to scout was far better than having members of the Inspection Bureau risk their own lives.’

Feng Ling let out a breath and closed her eyes again, murmuring, "I have to kill them... All the Alien Species that know about the Hidden Boss. Not a single one can be left alive. I have to kill them all."

Beside her, Huangfu Miaomiao hugged her knees without a sound, burying her head even lower.

Su Yuqing looked at them. "...You should keep resting. Zhou Diao and I will head out."

The two of them got out of the van and closed the door.

Zhou Diao stretched his shoulders and legs, his voice full of excitement. "We might be in for a real fight tonight."

Su Yuqing looked at Zhou Diao with a hint of exasperation.

’He was starting to think there was something wrong with all combat-type Card Holders. They all got hyped up at the prospect of a fight. Feng Ling was like that, and so was Zhou Diao.’

"Yeah, and the medical team will probably be ’in for a real fight,’ too," Su Yuqing sighed. "I really don’t get what you’re so excited about. The logistical and financial pressures behind every operation just give me a headache."

"Of course I’m excited." Zhou Diao’s eyes shone as he clenched his fists. "Humans may have a whole range of emotions, but the brain is often dominated by just one at a time. If you get excited enough, you forget about fear. And there’s no room for fear in a fight."

Su Yuqing stared up at the dark night sky, silent for a long time.