Chapter 709

Ning Chen didn't believe any of it, so he naturally couldn't understand those people's thought processes. But the people had been saved for now; the rest of the work would be left to the police.

Ning Chen scanned the group, then said: "Do I need to call the police for you?"

As soon as he spoke, everyone immediately pulled out their phones and started dialing, heads bowed.

No one dared to say a single word against Ning Chen now—they had seen the scene inside the tent when they entered; clearly, that tent had once been a complete slaughterhouse.

Ning Chen had bloodied the entire forest, unearthed the secret organization hiding within it, and faced down the whole organization alone.

They had also seen the guns scattered on the ground inside the tent—there were many, enough for nearly everyone to have one. In comparison, they themselves were like dwarves before giants: not only did they have fewer weapons, but fewer people too.

Clearly, Ning Chen had saved all their lives.

No one would hold a grudge against their savior; the few who had spoken ill of Ning Chen now hid at the very back of the group, heads bowed, avoiding sight.

Ning Chen had guessed roughly what those few were thinking, and he simply smiled it off.

The people were dealt with, the matter was over, and Ning Chen no longer wished to stay here. His check-in task had already shown completion over ten hours ago; returning home now posed no problem.

Because his task completion rate this time was so high, he would additionally receive several extra days of leave.

The system said: "Wait until you return to claim your reward."

Ning Chen nodded, intending to turn and leave, but suddenly someone blocked his path.

Ning Chen turned and saw the man who had stopped him was the uncle. The uncle had looked after Ning Chen well on this journey, so Ning Chen was willing to grant him face; he stopped and asked gently: "What is it?"

The uncle looked uneasy, but thinking of the other teammates' requests and the scene inside the tent, he finally spoke: "... Actually, we want to ask you—how exactly did you wipe them all out?"

Ning Chen glanced at him: "Just hit them."

The uncle froze in place. Everyone standing nearby, hearing Ning Chen's words, couldn't help but grimace.

Ning Chen's words sounded far too arrogant, utterly unconvincing. But those people had truly been killed by Ning Chen—every single one of the hundred-plus inside the tent had their hands severed, stripped of all resistance.

If Ning Chen had simply killed everyone inside with a few blasts, it would be understandable. But the key was—he had entered only to cut tendons, rendering them immobile... This was delicate work; cut too much or too little, and it was useless.

Yet Ning Chen possessed precisely this ability. It was impossible to suspect everyone inside the tent had simply passed out.

Seeing Ning Chen's demeanor, it was clear he had no intention of answering. The uncle asked twice more, realized Ning Chen would say nothing further, and said: "You can answer if you want, or not—if you like, I was just curious."

With that, the uncle walked away from Ning Chen as if brushing it off, likely assuming he didn't want to talk.

But Ning Chen truly wouldn't reveal this secret to outsiders—it was the deepest, longest-held secret in his heart. If anyone discovered he could use skills, a cascade of troubles would follow.

Ning Chen didn't want to endure that, so he kept the secret.

The system would naturally help him guard it, so only Ning Chen himself knew this password... Perhaps one day, when he found Shi Shiya, he could tell her his story.

But now, clearly, there was no such condition. Even thinking of Shi Shiya tightened his chest.

It was indeed painful—after so long without seeing each other, and Ning Chen still knew nothing of Shi Shiya's condition, not even whether she was alive or dead...

Ning Chen took a deep breath. He couldn't let these emotions affect him now; there were far more important things to do.

Ning Chen feared accidents, so he waited with these people for the police. When the police received the alarm call and confirmed many suspects were involved, they brought extra vehicles.

Which meant Ning Chen could hitch a ride.

The helicopter clearly wouldn't arrive so soon. Ning Chen hadn't expected to stay in this forest so long, so he hadn't contacted the pilot in advance. The pilot's location was likely still far away, and Ning Chen couldn't just wait here idle.

So in the end, Ning Chen sat right where he was.

The condition of those inside the tent had improved slightly from earlier—perhaps they lacked the strength to scream anymore; each sat silently, lifeless.

Ning Chen sat beside them, head bowed, staring at his hands. Occasionally, someone glanced his way—glances obvious, impossible for him to ignore.

But he still didn't turn his head; instead, he frowned. He truly didn't want to hear anyone ask him those questions again—it only made him more irritated.

After waiting for a long time, the police finally arrived.

The police came with four cars and two helicopters—plenty to transport everyone.

Before the police arrived, Ning Chen warned the others: "Don't say anything stupid when they get here."

Everyone nodded. Ning Chen only gave the warning—he couldn't guarantee someone wouldn't talk too much.

But it didn't matter; rumors meant nothing to him, as long as they didn't bring real trouble.

The police orderlyly stuffed the people into the cars. It turned out the vehicles still couldn't hold them all—they'd need another trip. Ning Chen grew bored and joined the police, saying: "I'll go with you—I'll leave first."

No one objected to Ning Chen's words. He got into the police car and left the forest directly.

The livestream had been forcibly interrupted earlier; now, though still inside the forest and seated in the police car, the system reactivated his livestream after evaluation.

The screen showed Ning Chen sitting in the police car.

Viewers were startled; comments flooded the screen.

"No way—how long has it been since we last saw you? How'd you end up in a police car?"

"... I'm guessing this is roleplay. Who agrees? Who disagrees?"

"Someone upstairs is crazy—who roleplays in a forest?"

"Let's wait and see. Feels like the streamer isn't the type to break laws, and the authorities haven't issued any notice—if he really broke the law, the stream would've been shut down already."

621 enters the police station, a new round of interrogation

It turned out some viewers really were reasonable—at least not as unreasonable as Ning Chen had imagined.

Ning Chen glanced at the livestream and already guessed what those people were saying. He couldn't help but sneer, but he didn't focus fully on the stream; instead, he leaned back calmly in the police car's rear seat, gazing out the window.

His posture looked nothing like a captured criminal—it was more like he was hitching a ride.

Ning Chen's attitude only fueled more speculation among viewers—everyone had their own theories.

Ning Chen leaned forward slightly, pressing his face against the back of the seat, looking at the officer driving: "Am I a criminal?"

His question came out of nowhere, leaving the front-seat officer utterly confused. The officer, still driving, couldn't help turning his head slightly.

This police car held not only officers but also suspects—those suspects sat in the very back, even farther than Ning Chen. Whether by seating arrangement or freedom level, Ning Chen could not possibly be the suspect.

So the officer's gaze toward Ning Chen held a flicker of doubt: "You... are?"

Ning Chen paused.

Then his smile deepened: "Didn't those people tell you I was just hitching a ride? I'm not a criminal."

Ning Chen asked this partly to silence the murmuring crowd and partly to ease his own mood, so he wouldn't be so irritable.

Hearing him say this, the police officer's tone immediately grew heavier: "Do you want to think about what question you asked me in the first place?"

Ning Chen smiled, then fell silent.

Actually, the answer was already obvious; Ning Chen was simply someone hitching a ride, and the audience had just misunderstood.

After leaving those people speechless, Ning Chen stopped speaking, satisfied.

If nothing unexpected happened, Ning Chen should be escorted to the police station along with these prisoners; he needed to give a statement.

Thinking of this, Ning Chen frowned, feeling somewhat irritable. He leaned back, glancing at the people behind him who had completely lost the ability to move.

Ning Chen had applied hemostatic medicine to all of them; although the bleeding had stopped, the pain remained extremely intense. Many on the back seat were unconscious from the pain, and because they were packed tightly together, the cramped space was filled with foul odors.

Fortunately, the area beside Ning Chen was empty, so at least it didn't feel so cramped.

Three hours later, they finally arrived at the police station. The two officers in front opened the car door and got down in coordination with the people; Ning Chen also had to cooperate with the police to help support those prisoners.

Ning Chen sighed and had to get out of the car, helping the people one by one from the vehicle into the police station.

Upon arriving at the police station, he followed an officer to the interrogation room. This room was used for taking statements; Ning Chen followed the person inside, pulled up a stool, and sat down.

The police were not entirely unaware of the situation at the scene; on the contrary, to understand the case, they had specially questioned and learned in detail from Ning Chen's teammates.

The investigation results left them incredibly surprised.

Originally, Ning Chen had no need to come here to give a statement; after all, like the others who came to investigate the forest, he was just killing time, but the results of the questioning turned out to be utterly shocking.

So the police looked at Ning Chen, and the first question they asked was: "How did you find those people in the cult organization?"

There was nothing in front of Ning Chen, but the police were polite to him. Sitting in the chair, Ning Chen heard the question and replied: "I don't know; I just looked around randomly and found them."

The officer taking the statement twitched the corner of his mouth; obviously, he didn't believe this explanation, but Ning Chen's expression was calm and didn't look like he was lying.

The police officer had to repeat the question seriously: "I hope you aren't joking; this is not the time for jokes."

Hearing this, Ning Chen just shrugged and said: "It really was. Believe it or not. If I hadn't just guessed randomly, would there be a map in my head telling me where those people were?"

With this counter-question, the police officer opposite him was left speechless.

Back during the investigation, he had questioned the results of the interrogation; how could Ning Chen possibly find the location of this organization so easily, especially since he wasn't a "local" and knew almost nothing about this forest.

Under such circumstances, it was impossible for Ning Chen to successfully and easily find their location unless Ning Chen had a connection with that cult organization.

This was the real reason the police asked Ning Chen to give a statement.

"... but your behavior is strange," the police officer said. "You didn't lead those people down the wrong path. The forest is so vast, yet you happened to find the most correct route, not taking a single detour. I suspect you have a connection with that organization."

Hearing this, Ning Chen found it somewhat laughable; he curled the corners of his lips and said while smiling: "That guess is quite interesting, but you guessed wrong, sorry."

"Then what is the truth?" the police officer asked. "I must hear it; otherwise, it won't be as simple as just taking a statement."

Ning Chen felt somewhat irritable; his body involuntarily leaned forward, and his entire demeanor suddenly became very oppressive. If the police officer didn't have a gun in his hand, he would probably think Ning Chen was preparing to rebel.

But even with an impatient expression, Ning Chen did not

directly rebel as the police officer had thought; instead, he sat in the chair and stared at himself.