Chapter 98 - 91: Rescuing Xie Shaokun, Zhao Guohui Returns

Chapter 98: Chapter 91: Rescuing Xie Shaokun, Zhao Guohui Returns

"Two!"

The word had barely left his lips. Just as everyone was waiting for Xie Shaokun to shout "one"...

CRASH.

He shattered the car window with a single punch. Gripping Little Nannan, he dangled her out the window, slammed on the gas, and the SUV let out a ROAR. Like a raging wild bull, it shot off in one direction.

"He’s trying to run!"

"Move, quick—"

The utterly baffling move left everyone stunned. But Gao Zhengting’s pupils contracted; he realized something was wrong. His expression grew urgent, and his voice had just started to rise.

CRACK. The surveillance equipment was taken out by a sniper rifle.

Orders couldn’t be issued immediately.

They were leaderless.

The surrounding warriors, concerned for the hostage Little Nannan’s life, could only clear a path.

But when they tried to give chase...

BOOM.

BOOM.

Two successive explosions rocked the middle of the street, blowing a massive crater in the road.

Their pursuit was halted.

CRACK.

CRACK.

...

Several gunshots rang out.

All the drones fell from the sky.

Only then did everyone realize: someone was secretly helping Xie Shaokun!

Who?

The thought flashed through their minds and was gone. They didn’t have time to dwell on it. They all roared, "After him! Quick, go!"

"Don’t let Xie Shaokun get away!"

The scene was chaotic.

「Half an hour later.」

A wrecked and mangled SUV was found.

It was the same SUV Xie Shaokun had been driving, but it was now completely unrecognizable. As for Xie Shaokun and Little Nannan, they had vanished without a trace.

"Damn it!"

"A city-wide manhunt!" Gao Zhengting roared.

"High Group, we just rescinded the warrant for Xie Shaokun’s arrest, and now... now we’re issuing another one? Isn’t this..."

"Just do it!"

Gao Zhengting wasn’t in the mood to listen, and his roar grew even louder.

Just then.

Gao Zhengting’s phone rang.

The director of Group Two personally issued the order to rescind the warrant for Xie Shaokun and Little Nannan. He also severely reprimanded Gao Zhengting for his irrational behavior and ordered him to return with his men at once.

"Give me thirty minutes. I can definitely catch Xie Shaokun."

"I’ll say this one last time: bring your men back, now!"

"But I—"

Before Gao Zhengting could say anything more, the line went dead.

He gripped his phone tightly, unwilling to accept it.

「Ten o’clock at night.」

Special Event Investigation Bureau, Group Two Headquarters.

Group Director Ning Guoqiang was a middle-aged man with a square face, a wealth of experience, and a full head of white hair.

He swept his gaze over everyone present, glaring fiercely when his eyes landed on Gao Zhengting.

Gao Zhengting lowered his head.

"Let me introduce you. This is the newly appointed deputy director, Zhao Guohui. From now on, Group Two will have two deputy directors."

Ning Guoqiang’s words were stunning.

What?

SWISH!

Everyone froze, their gazes snapping in unison to the unassuming middle-aged man standing beside the director.

Zhao Guohui gave a slight bow but said nothing, maintaining a very low profile.

"From now on, he will be in charge of all affairs in Huayang City, Lingyang City, Central City, and Zheng City. Not even I can interfere without cause."

Ning Guoqiang’s words once again left everyone floored.

This...

’Isn’t this a bit too much power?’

He has more authority than even Gao Zhengting!

Gao Zhengting also frowned slightly.

But Zhao Guohui remained silent, his expression calm. It was impossible to get a read on his background or personality.

Everyone only knew that Zhao Guohui was definitely no simple character.

They didn’t dare to underestimate him.

Meanwhile, Zhao Guohui was secretly activating his superpower, getting a rough grasp of everyone’s thoughts. He even had the leisure to mentally summarize his recent findings on using his Insight into the Heart superpower.

’The deeper someone’s schemes, the better they are at hiding their true intentions, and the harder it is for Insight into the Heart to see through them.’

’People with iron wills and unshakable minds are a perfect counter to Insight into the Heart. However, my superpower is still developing. One day, I might be able to see through even their thoughts.’

The fact that Zhao Guohui possessed a superpower was a closely guarded secret. Not even Ning Guoqiang knew.

"Zhao Group, what are your plans?"

Ning Guoqiang asked.

Gao Zhengting and the others were all quite curious.

"Actively seek opportunities for deep cooperation with Xie Shaokun and the person behind him," Zhao Guohui said without hesitation.

"Cooperate with a criminal?"

Gao Zhengting frowned, clearly disagreeing.

"A criminal?"

"He didn’t even spare a little girl. If that’s not a criminal, what is?"

"So now you realize he had a hostage?"

"You..."

Gao Zhengting’s face darkened.

"Hmph."

Ning Guoqiang snorted, cutting Gao Zhengting off. "High Group, a word of advice: for this incident, Zhao Group put in a good word for you with the higher-ups!"

Hm?

Gao Zhengting froze.

Given Ning Guoqiang’s personality, he wouldn’t lie about something like this. Besides, it was the kind of thing Gao Zhengting could easily verify, so there was no point in lying.

So...

"Why?"

Gao Zhengting looked at Zhao Guohui, confused.

"It’s highly likely that Little Nannan is in league with Xie Shaokun."

The moment Zhao Guohui spoke.

The room erupted in an uproar.

Even Ning Guoqiang was surprised. He asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Zhao Guohui didn’t keep them in suspense. He said, "You’ll understand once you look at this file."

「A few minutes later.」

"Little Nannan was involved in the Treasure House incident before?"

"Why didn’t I receive this file before?"

Gao Zhengting asked, looking at the head of the intelligence division with clear displeasure.

The head of intelligence looked helpless. "There have been too many Mist Event outbreaks recently. It’s been chaotic. This file was only just compiled a short while ago."

Everyone understood.

Ning Guoqiang stated, "I will request more members for the intelligence division. They’ve been under immense pressure lately."

Gao Zhengting understood and didn’t press the issue. He then asked, "Director, why was the warrant canceled? If we catch Xie Shaokun and Little Nannan, we’ll find out everything we want to know!"

Ning Guoqiang spoke again, "This was also Zhao Group’s idea."

Gao Zhengting and the others looked at Zhao Guohui again.

Zhao Guohui continued, "Xie Shaokun and Little Nannan don’t know anything. They’re just pawns. Catching them is useless. It would only force the person behind them to sacrifice the pawns to save the king and refuse to cooperate with us."

’The person behind them?’

Gao Zhengting’s eyes lit up. He asked, "The one who rescued Xie Shaokun today?"

Zhao Guohui nodded.

Gao Zhengting pressed, "Do you know who it is?"

Zhao Guohui shook his head.

Gao Zhengting said immediately, "Then investigate. Catch this person."

Zhao Guohui shook his head again.

"What do you mean?"

Gao Zhengting was confused.

"I sent people to the site of the street explosion. Guess what I found?"

"The explosion at the villa incident was caused by a small amount of explosive detonating another, mysterious explosive device. This time, a grenade was used to detonate another mysterious explosive device."

Zhao Guohui knew what everyone wanted to ask, so he spelled it out. "Right now, we still can’t determine what this other mysterious explosive device from these two incidents is."

"However, we can be certain that they are the same thing!"

"An explosive we’ve never encountered before! Its blast radius isn’t large, but it’s highly likely to be more lethal against the Alien Clans from the Mist Events, especially the Ghost Clan."

Everyone instantly realized the immense strategic value of this mysterious explosive.

But...

"What does this have to do with us investigating the mastermind?"

Gao Zhengting asked.

Zhao Guohui didn’t answer directly. Instead, he continued, "A certain country has already figured out what this explosive is and its detonation conditions, but they aren’t making the information public."

Everyone’s expression darkened. This kind of information should be shared to help the whole world overcome the crisis. To keep it secret at a time like this...

"The mastermind definitely knows!"

Zhao Guohui continued, "This person knows many, many things, some even more important than this. We cannot afford to offend them."

"Especially this time. High Group’s actions only served to startle the snake in the grass, making them more cautious and completely ruining any chance we had of catching them."

"Moreover, High Group’s ’breach of contract’ this time will also make it more difficult for us to cooperate with them."

Everyone fell silent.

They fully realized the gravity of the situation. Gao Zhengting getting stripped of his position would be a light punishment.

"Thank you."

Gao Zhengting finally understood how precious it was that Zhao Guohui had pleaded for him, regardless of the consequences. He lowered his head and offered his thanks.

Zhao Guohui accepted it calmly.

In truth, he had another reason for pleading Gao Zhengting’s case: there was too little talent!

’Gao Zhengting is a sharp sword. Wielded correctly, he could take a great deal of pressure off me. It would be a shame to discard him just like that.’

He gazed out the window in a certain direction, as if his sight could cross hundreds of kilometers to land on an ordinary old residential complex.

Just now, Zhao Guohui had lied.

He already had a guess as to who the mastermind was. When Xie Shaokun was ’exposed,’ he had been investigating suspects potentially involved in the bus incident.

’Is it possible that Xie Shaokun was deliberately pushed out into the open?’

’The goal, naturally, was to provide cover for the mastermind!’

’So, working backward, who is the most suspicious?’

The image of a tall figure appeared in his mind. His feelings were complex. He felt like he’d been played, but more than that... he felt admiration.

In truth, although Zhao Guohui had no proof that the young woman was involved, he could have easily brought her in and interrogated her personally using his Insight into the Heart superpower. But he didn’t.

It was, of course, a gesture of goodwill.

He believed that woman would be able to grasp his meaning.

’Are you still willing to cooperate with us?’

Zhao Guohui wasn’t sure.

But he had no more cards to play.

He could only gamble.