Chapter 555

Dong Ping had been plagued by bad luck lately—first framed by Feng Ju and killed horribly, then resurrected, yet misfortune still clung to him like a ghost.

Seeking revenge on Feng Ju's children failed repeatedly, and he was beaten up instead.

After several setbacks, he finally understood the principle that "misfortune does not extend to wife and children," and decided instead to go straight for Feng Ju's life.

As a "living corpse" pawned to the body retriever, Dong Ping's execution was now hundreds of times what it was when he was alive.

Soon he found an opportunity when Feng Ju was alone, in the alley behind the Patrol Bureau.

To avoid detection, he deliberately chose to take revenge when Feng Ju was alone, so as not to alarm others and bring trouble to his wife and children still in the world.

Sharp claws tore through the air, instantly disemboweling the enemy; to vent his rage, he stuffed several mice into the man's stomach.

Yet he did not die!

Clearly his belly had been sliced open and his intestines gouged out, mice crawling inside, yet Feng Ju still stood firm.

Ghost?!

It was then that Dong Ping suddenly smelled a strong deathly aura, and instantly realized:

The enemy had already died once, and his current state was very similar to his own!

Dong Ping was terrified and fled in panic.

Feng Ju was already dead?

Then I just killed him again—does that count as successful revenge?

The taxi driver watched Dong Ping flee back into the car; the client's resentment on him was like a divided stream, half dissipating, the other half growing pitch black.

The man was completely messed up.

He didn't know whether Dong Ping counted as having succeeded in revenge, or whether he should fulfill the pawn contract.

Felt like success, yet felt like failure—like taking a shit halfway!

Xue Ding'e's revenge?!

The taxi driver's heart had already cooled by half, estimating that this body-retrieval pawn business was probably completely ruined.

He and Dong Ping sat in the car, staring at each other, neither knowing what to say to comfort the other.

Just then.

The car door was suddenly pulled open.

The driver frowned and subconsciously wanted to drive the person away:

"Sorry, changing shifts..."

But the final "le" got stuck in his throat, and he couldn't spit it out.

Only then did he see clearly: the newcomer wore a black robe as thick as night, his face covered by a non-reflective iron mask, and in his hand a pair of Night Watcher Restraints gleaming with cold light.

Faint dark red blotchy marks were visible on the chain—whether rust or dried blood, unknown.

This attire, this makeup—though few in the Nine Districts had seen it in person, none did not know its fearsome reputation: Night Watchman, honored as Black Yama.

For all evil organizations, the top of the most feared blacklist was always their peers 【Destiny】.

And on another whitelist, Black Yama might not be number one, but definitely ranked among the top.

"You refuse the fare?!"

Black Yama's voice was hoarse like a crow's cry, making one's hair stand on end.

Because the temperature inside the car suddenly plummeted, the windows were instantly covered with ghastly white frost, and even exhaled breath condensed into white mist.

The driver shook his head like a rattle drum—how dare he make a sound?

If he dared say half a "no" word, tomorrow the name "body retriever" would lose two characters, leaving only the middle one.

By then, no peers would come to retrieve his corpse.

Dong Ping had already quietly reached for the car door handle, preparing to slip away.

But when Black Yama announced the navigation "destination" string of names, he paused, and inexplicably sat back down.

—Afraid of what?

He was already a dead man; could Black Yama bring him back to life?

Thus, the dilapidated taxi went completely wild under the navigation's piercing alerts.

He had never driven so fast in all his years of retrieving corpses; his feet were completely welded to the accelerator.

Forget red lights—even if gunfire rained ahead, he wouldn't dare stop.

When the car finally stopped, he only then realized the whole car was surrounded by a circle of gun barrels, red laser dots crawling densely over the body.

"Navigation positioning shows, the person is below."

The driver said, terrified.

Night Watchman Raven completely ignored the circle of gun barrels; he got out and coughed twice:

"Lead the way!"

The driver, as if pardoned, took a big step toward the well mouth and leapt down without hesitation.

Dong Ping gritted his teeth, hardened his scalp, and followed closely behind.

Raven turned his neck, his black-hole eye sockets glancing at the Armored Command Vehicle; his black robe moved without wind, and his figure vanished from the spot.

"Damn!"

Zhou Jian kicked open the car door, his face gloomy and fierce as if water could drip from it,

"How could the Night Watchman come here? Damn it, could the report call be true—is 【Destiny】 really hiding here?"

The Deputy Captain's expression changed upon hearing this, and he hurriedly lowered his voice:

"Then do we still continue the cleansing?"

Normal business competition—if it truly involves 【Destiny】, then the nature changes.

Zhou Jian's face alternated between sun and cloud; his military boot soles ground back and forth over the scattered corpse fragments on the ground, and his voice squeezed out from between his teeth:

"Last time we helped the Special Commissioner wipe out a 【Destiny】 party, we turned around and got hit with 【Destiny】's retaliation — the camp suffered catastrophic casualties, even the Hidden Gate got blown to pieces."

Zhou Jian said with lingering fear:

"Before we only heard about it; last time we truly witnessed it. 【Destiny】 really are a bunch of death-defying lunatics. Our Investigation Corps should just garrison the Hidden Gate properly and do business — no need to go rushing out and provoke a pack of madmen."

The Deputy Captain nodded repeatedly, wholeheartedly agreeing:

"The Captain's considerations are thorough."

His position as Deputy Captain came because the previous Deputy Captain died in that 【Destiny】 retaliation operation and he was promoted up; he has no intention of letting the next person benefit early.

Acting under 【Destiny】's banner is merit; actually going to fight 【Destiny】 is a death sentence.

Before, 【Destiny】 always operated in the Upper City; the Investigation Corps lacked correct understanding of 【Destiny】 and was hoodwinked by the Special Commissioner into going.

Now, they have gained a painful lesson and profoundly realized two truths.

First, 【Destiny】's banner is truly useful;

Second, 【Destiny】 really cannot be lightly touched.

It's not that they fear 【Destiny】; it's that the cost outweighs the gain — just like the Investigation Corps wouldn't fear a mere Night Watchman, but also doesn't want to pointlessly invite enormous trouble.

The terror or deterrence one person can bring is limited, but an organization formed by a group of terrifying people brings terror and deterrence beyond imagination.

"Retreat!"

Zhou Jian sat back in the command vehicle.

In an instant, the armored convoy like a steel torrent reversed direction, leaving behind only ground littered with shattered wreckage and streets scorched by artillery fire.

On the town outskirts, those "lice" who had luckily survived poked their heads out from behind cover.

They stared blankly at the departing armored convoy, then pounced on the ruins like hyenas, fingers rummaging through flesh and rubble; every time they found a usable item, a greedy glint burst in their turbid eyes.

The old cripple used an iron hook to skillfully search, letting out an excited laugh; he found a still-intact liver and hurriedly wrapped it in an ice pack.

Behind him, three youths were fighting until heads broken and blood flowing over a section of iron shovel.

Living comrades are comrades; dead comrades are "food" that must not be wasted — this is the scavengers' rule, the survival law beyond the Steel Forest.

Only all lice, when searching for "food," very carefully avoid the holes of the underground shafts, detouring around there as much as possible...

(End of Chapter)