Chapter 29: By the Emperor

Zhou Yun, his face masked by Lao Ge’s ugliness, walked through this outpost.

This outpost had once belonged to the local gang that previously held sway here.

With wealth accumulated over more than a decade, they turned it into a three-story spacious house, a level of luxury unmatched in the Lower Nest.

But now the outpost had been seized by the Ark Gang.

“The third man on your left—the one with the fat, meaty face—is watching you.”

“The man leaning against the wall behind you is watching you too.”

“And the second man on your right as well.”

A winged figure within Bai Guang whispered at the corner of Zhou Yun’s vision.

He fluttered his wings slightly, releasing a few strands of white light visible only to Zhou Yun, marking the three individuals secretly observing him.

Zhou Yun glanced casually at the three men.

He realized they weren’t just watching him—they were observing everyone coming and going.

Only after confirming Zhou Yun posed no threat did they shift their gaze away.

“So careful.” Zhou Yun frowned.

Who were they wary of? What were they wary of?

Zhou Yun shook his head and pulled the voiceprint candy from his robe pocket, slipping it into his mouth.

The candy dissolved instantly, a faint sweetness lingering in his mouth, flowing down his throat.

“Cough, cough, cough.”

Zhou Yun coughed twice without expression, his voice low and grubby, identical to Lao Ge’s.

He glanced at the main entrance of the outpost and walked toward it.

“Stop!”

Before he could step inside, two Ark Gang members blocked his path.

“It’s me, Lao Ge, brothers.”

Zhou Yun had already swallowed Lao Ge’s voiceprint candy—his voice was now an exact match:

“Don’t you remember? Last night, it was me who led you all here.”

The two guards remained expressionless, studying Zhou Yun’s head, searching for any sign.

After a thorough inspection, finding nothing amiss, they nodded and gestured for him to enter.

But Zhou Yun did not hurry; instead, he pulled two LHO cigarettes from his pocket and shoved them into the guards’ palms.

“Brothers, to be honest, the Master gave me a task this morning—she told me to find someone.”

Zhou Yun grinned, wrinkling Lao Ge’s ugly face.

“I didn’t find him—he’d already fled.”

The two guards frowned, glancing at the LHO cigarettes in their hands.

“Could you tell me how the Master is feeling today?”

Zhou Yun grinned.

“If she’s in a bad mood, I need to prepare for a scolding.”

The two guards exchanged a glance.

“The Master is troubled by the Hot Thief,” said the guard on the right, shaking his head.

“That little thief has been hopping between several major districts—he’s been wanted by the Ark Gang for ages, but we’ve never caught him.”

“The Hot Thief.” Zhou Yun rubbed his chin and nodded slightly. “Thanks, brothers. I’ll buy you drinks later.”

With that, Zhou Yun stepped past the threshold and entered the outpost.

He hadn’t taken more than a few steps when he stopped, as if suddenly remembering, and turned back to the two guards: “By the way, brothers.”

“Where is the Master now? Third floor?”

“Second floor conference room. She’s discussing the Hot Thief with the gang leaders.”

Zhou Yun smiled faintly and turned toward the second-floor conference room. “Son of a bitch.”

Inside the Ark Gang’s second-floor conference room,

Xiang Leina, her face hidden beneath a wide hood, stared at the records of thefts in this district and cursed aloud.

The thief who used flame cutters had also appeared in this district.

What bad luck.

Though she cursed, Xiang Leina knew the Hot Thief wasn’t truly evil by Nest standards.

Though he stole often, he had more morals than most thieves.

He mostly targeted the homes of the relatively wealthy or gang members, and sometimes, when he mistakenly entered an ordinary Nest worker’s home, he left money to repair the door and a note of apology.

Yet Xiang Leina still felt furious and irritated by him.

Every time she thought of him, she clenched her fists, flushed red, and couldn’t help but spit: “Son of a bitch.”

As the Master of the Ark Gang,

when she first founded the gang years ago, this bastard had robbed her private stash.

This book was recently updated in ##!! UPDATE!

Xiang Leina still remembered how she felt that morning, staring at the door drilled open by a flame cutter and the empty vault.

Though the money inside wasn’t much, it was her own hard-saved savings,

and now it was all gone—stolen by that bastard!!!

Since then, that son of a bitch had occasionally visited the homes of Ark Gang members, leaving behind a jagged hole from his Hot Saw and stealing their cash.

Xiang Leina had nearly caught him several times, but he seemed to possess some kind of precognition, always slipping through her fingers.

“This time, I’ll catch that son of a bitch.”

Xiang Leina gritted her teeth.

She turned to the several underlings in the conference room and said:

“Assign patrols tonight! Each street must be patrolled at least three times!”

“I, Xiang Leina, swear by the Emperor—I will catch that son of a bitch!”

As she spoke, she swung her fist violently at the air.

The underlings nodded repeatedly, vowing to capture the damned Hot Thief.

Xiang Leina exhaled deeply, as if trying to expel the rage lodged in her chest.

She shook her head, still throbbing slightly from anger, and stepped out of the conference room.

And there, right at the doorway, was a face so ugly it could shock heaven and terrify ghosts.

“By the Emperor’s teeth!” Xiang Leina gasped, nearly unleashing a psychic blast.

But then she recognized the ugly face—it was Lao Ge, the local gang member who had surrendered last night.

“Lao Ge? What are you doing here?”

Xiang Leina patted her chest and exhaled.

She eyed Lao Ge warily.

Had he been lurking outside the door, eavesdropping on the meeting?

But what she’d said wasn’t important anyway.

Xiang Leina frowned, scanning Lao Ge from head to toe.

She confirmed that though his ugliness was extraordinary, there were no signs of mutation—he was still a pure human.

“You—”

Xiang Leina paused.

“Did you find the person I told you to find?”

Lao Ge grinned and scratched his head. “Sorry, Master. He seems to have fled already.”

“Fled? Why would he flee?” Xiang Leina blinked, staring oddly at Lao Ge.

Suddenly, her psychic senses flared with warning—she shuddered.

“No!”

The Ark Gang Master, her face hidden beneath the wide hood, suddenly raised her voice and roared:

“You’re not Lao Ge!! Who are you?!”

Exposed! The thought flashed through Zhou Yun’s mind.

Without hesitation, he pulled the stopper from the gourd at his waist.

Yesterday my Tyrant was nearly shattered by a friend’s Terminator squad’s assault, then all six of my melee attacks were negated by their Terminator Captain’s save. So frustrating.

(End of Chapter)