Gao Liang and Xiao Heshang spoke in a teasing tone, completely unfazed by the group Lin Feng had brought. When Xiao Heshang casually gestured toward the crowd, two or three people instinctively took a step back. One of them hesitated, then scratched at his face, peeling off a thin layer of makeup. Someone behind him gave him a kick, snapping him out of his daze. He awkwardly slapped the disguise back on and ducked behind a nearby Soul Husk, trying not to be noticed.
Seizing the opportunity, I rushed over to support Hao Wenming. That kick from Lin Feng had done some real damage—his face was pale as paper, and every cough brought up blood. Even so, he kept his eyes locked on his brother, glaring as if he wanted to burn a hole through him.
After Xiao Heshang finished speaking, Gao Liang chuckled and turned his attention back to Lin Feng.
"Quite the production you've staged here," he said. "You must've been planning it for a long time. But tell me—how did you know the Heavenly Principle Diagram would be in the Bureau at this exact moment?"
Lin Feng didn't answer immediately. Only after confirming that his men and the Soul Husks had fully surrounded the four of us did he speak slowly.
"To be honest, if you'd asked me two years ago whether I'd ever betray the Bureau, I would've laughed. Everything you're seeing here today—this entire operation—was originally meant for the Religious Affairs Commission in Taiwan. Even when the Diagram fell into the Bureau's hands, I didn't plan on doing this."
He paused, his voice turning cold.
"All I wanted was for that kid Shen to do me a small favor. Then I would've vanished with the Heavenly Principle Diagram. Qiu Bulao and Po Jun would still be alive. Aside from losing me, the Bureau wouldn't have changed. Director Gao, this is fate—heaven's will, not mine."
I couldn't help but interject. "So what you're saying is, it's all my fault? If I hadn't refused you, Po Jun, Wang Ziheng, and Qiu Bulao would still be alive? You wouldn't have stormed the Bureau with a horde of Soul Husks?"
Before Lin Feng could reply, Gao Liang spoke again, tone flat.
"Qiu saw through you, didn't he? You two were close. If you'd died under mysterious circumstances, he would've been the first to question it."
At the mention of Qiu Bulao, Lin Feng's face darkened. He let out a long breath.
"Old Qiu was a good friend. These past two years, he's been the one looking after my family. Then one day, when I snuck back to retrieve some things, he discovered me. I gave him two choices—help me as an inside man or drink demon acid. He didn't even hesitate… he drank it."
Rage surged in my chest. "You forced Qiu Bulao to drink demon acid and killed his son, and you still dare to call him a friend?!"
Lin Feng snorted coldly and ignored me, turning instead to Gao Liang. "Director Gao. Let's not waste time. Will you hand over the Diagram—or should I take it myself?"
Gao Liang didn't respond right away. Instead, he turned to Xiao Heshang and said with a grin, "Master Xiao—it's been over thirty years since we fought side by side. What do you say? Shall we stretch our old bones?"
Xiao Heshang burst out laughing. "Let's do it! Even if it's just to help Sanda teach his boy a lesson. I refuse to believe that the two of us can't handle a half-ghost."
Gao Liang nodded, then turned to me and Hao Wenming.
"Wenming, family matters are best handled by family."
"I'll deal with that traitor myself!" Hao Wenming growled, gripping the Celestial Ruler in his hands, eyes locked on Hao Zhengyi.
That left only me without a task. As the Soul Husks and Lin Feng's men closed in, a creeping dread spread through me. I glanced at Gao Liang, uneasily asking, "D-Director Gao… what about me?"
He gave me a devilish grin and gestured in a wide arc. "Everything else… is yours."
"What?!"
Before I could argue, Gao Liang and Xiao Heshang had already charged at Lin Feng. Hao Wenming shook off my support and sprinted toward Hao Zhengyi, raising the Celestial Ruler high.
Most of Lin Feng's followers were former Bureau agents who'd slipped through the cracks. The reckless ones were already dead; the rest held a deep fear of Gao Liang and Xiao Heshang. As the two veterans stormed through, no one dared to stop them—some even stepped aside instinctively, clearing a path straight to Lin Feng.
In the blink of an eye, Gao Liang and Xiao Heshang reached him—Gao wielding his short sword, Xiao swinging the Beam Lock like a steel-tipped whip. Both struck simultaneously, raining down blows on Lin Feng.
Meanwhile, Hao Wenming reached his brother. He raised the Celestial Ruler and swung straight at Hao Zhengyi's skull. Zhengyi didn't dare fight back—he dodged again and again, then finally turned and ran. Earlier, he had slapped Lin Feng in front of everyone to protect his brother. Now, no one moved to block Hao Wenming. Who knew whether Zhengyi might come after them later to avenge his little brother?
Gao Liang, Xiao Heshang, and Hao Wenming were untouchable. That left me—the softest target of all.
Lin Feng's lackeys began to close in on me, just as Gao Liang had arranged. I saw two or three of them whispering and making strange hand gestures. The Soul Husks responded, spreading out in formation and converging on my position.
Only then did I realize—Lin Feng wasn't the one controlling the Soul Husks. These people were.
As they drew closer, I began slowly backing away. Maybe my white hair still gave them some pause. They didn't strike right away. But I couldn't just keep retreating—soon enough, they'd close the gap completely.
When the nearest Soul Husk was only twenty meters away, I knew I had to make a move. I suddenly turned and sprinted with everything I had.
Until that moment, things had been at a tense standstill. But the second I ran, Lin Feng's men lit up like they'd been injected with pure adrenaline. They came after me like madmen.
I only made it about fifty meters before I hit a dead end. Ahead was the same elevator Gao Liang and I had taken earlier. But now, there was no chance of escaping that way—there wasn't even time to close the doors.
While I stood there, unsure of what to do, someone launched a fireball at me from behind. It hit squarely between my shoulder blades, blasting me to the floor. The searing heat tore through me like a branding iron. I rolled furiously on the ground, finally smothering the flames.
When I scrambled back to my feet, the Soul Husks and pursuers had already caught up. Both flanks had been cut off.
There was nowhere left to run.
If I was going to die,then I was damn sure going to take a few of them with me.
Just as the closest one sneered, "You little brat, save us the trouble and off your—" You'll do. I didn't wait for him to finish. With a snap of my wrist, I hurled the Blade of Sin straight at his face.
A dull thump rang out as his head—and most of his torso—vanished in a bloody mist. It looked like a watermelon had been blasted open, its insides splattered across the floor.
The scene stunned everyone—Lin Feng's men included. Hell, even I was taken aback. All eyes were fixed on the two legs still standing upright, surrounded by a grotesque mess of limbs and gore. This wasn't a short sword wound. It looked like he'd taken a direct hit from a rocket launcher.
A second later, I pulled myself together. I reached toward where the Blade of Sin had landed and made a grasping motion. A flash of light flickered—and the sword reappeared in my hand.
One of the men who had been directing the Soul Husks let out a shrill cry, and a Husk lunged at me. Between its movements, a barrage of fireballs came whistling through—two or three of them, fired in rapid succession. I dodged the first, but the others struck me square in the shoulder and gut. The pain was searing, but I'd braced myself this time. I rolled through the flames, smothering them against the floor.
Following the trajectory, I spotted the caster: a pale, stout man chanting over burnt talisman papers. You're dead, I swore to myself. No matter what happens today, you're going down with me.
By now, the Soul Husk was right on top of me. Perhaps to avoid injuring the Husk, the fat man had stopped launching fireballs. The nearest Husk raised a clawed hand, aiming for the crown of my head.
I didn't dodge. Instead, I raised the Blade of Sin and slashed upward. The blade met the Husk's claw with no resistance—no sound, not even a hiss. It sliced through the limb as effortlessly as a hot knife through butter.
The Soul Husk didn't feel pain. Even with a severed limb, it only paused momentarily before swinging its other claw at me.
I'd planned to switch to the Blade of Retribution and test its edge. But to my surprise, my hand—still gripping the Blade of Sin—moved on its own, as if pulled by some invisible force. Before I could stop it, I lunged forward and drove the blade straight into the Soul Husk's chest.
Its armor offered no resistance. Silent and swift, the blade carved a massive gash from its sternum downward. Viscous, murky fluid poured out in rivers.
Along with the gore, countless translucent wisps came streaming from the Husk's body—souls. I had long heard that Soul Husks were conglomerates of countless souls. Now I saw them with my own eyes: disembodied spirits bound within, now freed and floating like smoke.
They hovered for a moment, drifting, then surged as one—like a gust of wind—straight toward Lin Feng's people. I glanced that way. The Hao brothers were still there, the younger hammering at the elder with the Celestial Ruler.
The Husk, no longer supported by souls, collapsed in spasms. Its body shriveled rapidly, shrinking by nearly a quarter. Its skin wrinkled and sagged like ancient bark. Within seconds, it stopped moving altogether. Whatever unnatural life had been animating it was now fully extinguished.
A hush fell over the scene.
Then someone shouted, "An Gui-zi! What the hell are you waiting for? Send the rest of the Husks! Let's see how many nails this brat can pluck!"
The speaker was a wiry man in his fifties, his voice hoarse with rage. A thin white snake coiled around his neck, flicking its tongue in my direction as if sensing prey.
But his words had no effect. The few who had been commanding the Soul Husks exchanged glances. One of them shrieked sharply, and they all began retreating. The remaining Husks moved with them, backing away over thirty meters.
These Husks were the backbone of Lin Feng's assault on the Bureau. Seeing them fall back sent a ripple through the rest—most of Lin Feng's men also withdrew, forming a perimeter around the retreating Husks.
Only the short, fireball-casting man and the snake-necked elder remained in place.
The elder—Zhao Si—flushed crimson with rage. He turned and bellowed, "An Gui-zi! What the hell are you doing? You're terrified of one brat?"
An Gui-zi answered coldly, "Cut the crap, Zhao Si. Can't you see his weapon nullifies Soul Husks? You want us to waste them all so you can swoop in and claim the Heavenly Principle Diagram for yourselves? What then—take us out after the Bureau's finished? If you're so eager, maybe you should step up."
Zhao Si was arguing mid-battle. Not exactly the mark of a confident man. He stood about fifteen meters from me, still facing away.
Perfect.
I made my move.
With a sharp flick, I hurled the Blade of Sin at the pudgy fireball caster. At the same time, I sprinted toward them.
The stout man had been watching me closely. He sensed my intent the instant the blade left my hand. With surprising agility, he bent backward in a perfect arch—the Blade of Sin zipped past his forehead, missing by inches.
Meanwhile, Zhao Si was still ranting.
"Fine! I'll show you what—"
He never finished the sentence.
A chill surged up his spine. A flash of silver streaked past his side, embedding itself in the crowd thirty meters behind him.
Zhao Si spun around in a cold sweat—just in time to see me charging at him.
Before he could react, the white snake around his neck sprang forward like a bolt of lightning, its jaws wide, aiming for my heart.
At the same time, the pudgy man regained his footing and flung a talisman at me. It burst into flame midair, becoming a blazing fireball.
It was too close to dodge. I clenched my teeth and took the hit head-on. The fireball struck my torso, the impact twisting me slightly—but I held firm.
And then I swung the Blade of Retribution.
With one stroke, the blade sliced clean through the snake's midsection, severing it in two.
But to my horror, the snake's upper half kept flying. Undeterred, it lunged forward and sank its fangs deep into my chest.