Chapter 118: Cat

But feeding it had somehow become a way for him to calm himself.

After the cat finished eating, it rubbed its head against his shoe.

Ji Henghua’s tense expression finally softened slightly. "Go."

The cat meowed once before disappearing between the ruins.

Ji Henghua looked toward Building Five again.

’Tomorrow I might be able to have a lead.’

The following afternoon, the green-haired man arrived right on time.

He was carrying two heavy sacks.

By the time he reached Lin Zuan, he was panting heavily and looked as though he might collapse at any moment.

Yet the determination in his eyes hadn’t disappeared.

He dropped the sacks onto the ground.

His knees trembled, but he forced himself to stand straight and look directly into Lin Zuan’s eyes.

"Lead me. Lead me to the entrance."

Lin Zuan didn’t move.

Instead, he took out a knife and slashed open both sacks.

The brilliant glow of zombie crystals spilled out.

He crouched down and began counting them with the tip of his knife.

When he finally finished, a satisfied smirk appeared on his face.

He stood and lightly patted the green-haired man’s cheek with the flat side of the knife.

"What an obedient little lamb. Let’s go."

With a wave of his hand, both sacks disappeared.

The surrounding people immediately stared at Lin Zuan with undisguised greed.

Ji Henghua’s eyes narrowed.

A storage-type ability.

It was only natural that some people would think about how wealthy they could become if they killed Lin Zuan and stole the two sacks of zombie crystals.

However, Lin Zuan was far from naive.

He swept his gaze across the crowd, his eyes filled with cold killing intent.

Everyone who had been eyeing him greedily subconsciously lowered their heads.

Ji Henghua continued following them from a distance.

He wasn’t interested in the zombie crystals. His only goal was to find the entrance.

Therefore, he hid his presence as carefully as possible.

Soon, he saw Lin Zuan leading the green-haired man toward Building Five.

The bald man stopped beside one of the cracked floor tiles. He tapped it twice before taking out his knife and carefully cutting along its edges.

The tile slowly came loose.

Lin Zuan lifted it, revealing a narrow staircase leading underground.

He pointed toward the darkness below and smiled at the green-haired man.

"Afraid now?"

The green-haired man swallowed.

Like a lamb walking toward the slaughterhouse, he shook his head and stepped inside.

Ji Henghua instinctively moved forward. But he stopped himself in time.

’You can’t help him now.’

His fingers tightened.

’That man came here to protect someone important to him, and you came here for your brother. If you expose yourself trying to save him, what will happen to your brother? Who will protect him then?’

Those thoughts forcefully suppressed his instincts.

Ji Henghua remained hidden and watched as Lin Zuan looked around.

Then, with a murderous smile on his face, Lin Zuan followed the green-haired man underground.

Ji Henghua didn’t enter.

He knew just how dangerous this place was.

And soon enough, his fears were proven correct.

By evening, the green-haired man suddenly rushed out of the underground staircase.

One of his arms had been severed.

Blood poured from the stump as he clutched it with his remaining hand. Tears streamed down his face, but his eyes were filled with pure hatred.

He ran without looking back.

Ji Henghua immediately closed his eyes. His body remained completely still.

Soon, the sound of footsteps echoed from below.

"Where are you running? Stop right there!"

Several people chased after the green-haired man. But he had clearly learned his lesson.

He didn’t stop.

He simply continued running until both he and his pursuers disappeared from sight.

Only after the area became quiet did Ji Henghua open his eyes.

His legs almost gave out. He slowly pushed himself upright and patted his numb legs.

Then, instead of rushing recklessly inside, he approached the entrance with extreme caution.

He descended halfway down the stairs and stopped.

Sure enough, voices drifted toward him from below.

"That little lamb was so interesting."

Another guard laughed.

"I wish he would come back again. Every time someone like him rushes in, we get a good chase. It’s quite entertaining."

"I hope the boss plays that game again."

Several people laughed.

"The boss truly has strange tastes."

"Forget it. It’s hard enough having to entertain him all the time."

More laughter followed.

Ji Henghua’s expression turned cold.

He slowly reached into his bag and took out a smoke grenade.

He had specifically purchased it before leaving the base. Most bases didn’t openly sell high-grade ammunition, but smoke grenades were much easier to obtain.

Without hesitation, Ji Henghua pulled the pin and threw it inside.

A moment later, thick smoke spread through the underground passage.

"What the hell..."

Before the guards could react, Ji Henghua rushed down.

The sudden attack caught them completely off guard.

Amid the confusion, Ji Henghua quickly searched the area and finally found what he was looking for.

It was a broken wall.

At first glance, it appeared to have collapsed long ago. However, hidden among the broken stones was a narrow gap barely large enough for a person to squeeze through.

Ji Henghua crouched down and carefully moved several bricks aside.

He slipped through the opening.

Then he immediately placed the bricks back where they had been.

From the outside, the wall looked exactly as it had before.

But the process was difficult.

Even the smallest sound could expose him.

Just as Ji Henghua finished arranging the final brick, he heard a guard speak.

"Wait a minute. I think I heard bricks moving."

Ji Henghua’s heart tightened. He held his breath, waiting for them to move the bricks, but a voice echoed, freezing him to the bone.

"Meow!"

A cat suddenly cried out nearby.

The guard immediately cursed.

"For the fuck sake, can you stop being so paranoid? It’s just a cat scratching around the bricks. We misunderstood."

Another person frowned.

"How did a cat even get inside?"

"Lin Zuan is getting careless. How can he leave the entrance exposed?"

"Forget it. Seal the entrance later."

There was a brief pause.

Then someone said coldly, "Kill the cat first."