January 16th.
Eleven o'clock at night, with a full moon in the sky.
This was Sijiu, an area near the Sixth Ring Road, a place with a dense network of hutongs (somewhat resembling urban villages).
Ma Xin, who had lived here his whole life, was only seventeen years old.
Seventeen-year-olds were usually in high school or vocational school.
Ma Xin was not.
He got a headache from books since elementary school, but he loved dancing and singing, and even more enjoyed standing on the stage of a nightclub, singing at the top of his lungs to the countless raised hands below.
Well.
Ma Xin's biggest dream was to become a professional singer.
After all, he not only had a naturally good voice but also dance genes that made his legs tremble at the slightest melody.
But his family disagreed.
Although they couldn't afford a house and had missed out on getting rich overnight from demolition, Ma Xin at least had a Sijiu household registration.
Children with Sijiu household registration who didn't study properly but wanted to be singers were absolutely not approved by their parents.
Seventeen-year-olds were in a very rebellious phase.
The more his parents didn't want him to do something, the more he would do it.
After his parents fell asleep at night, Ma Xin would sneak out of the house and had been singing at a nightclub for some time.
Singing at night, sleeping at school during the day.
This could also be considered Ma Xin's reasonable arrangement of his time.
Tonight.
After his parents finally fell asleep, Ma Xin tiptoed out of his bedroom as usual.
"I can earn hundreds or even thousands in one night. Isn't that great? Why study? Why go to school?"
Ma Xin gently closed the living room door and whispered to himself as he entered the tiny courtyard.
His guitar was stored in the utility room next to his neighbor at 609.
Speaking of the neighbors at 609, Ma Xin would sigh.
The neighbors at 609 had been long-time neighbors of the Ma family, but last year they struck it rich in the stock market!
After getting rich, the neighbors immediately bought a house within the Fourth Ring Road, and after their family moved away, they rented out the courtyard.
"We're neighbors, how can they get rich? It's too unfair."
As Ma Xin quietly entered the utility room and took his guitar from the wall in the dark, suddenly!
Bang!!
A crisp sound came from the west neighbor's side.
Startled, Ma Xin cursed, "Damn, setting off firecrackers in the middle of the night?"
Ma Xin's instinctive reaction showed that a boy from the East was simply unworldly compared to a boy from America.
If it were an American boy—
Upon hearing the noise, he would immediately imagine someone was shooting!
Then he would frantically duck under the bed, covering his head.
But Ma Xin—
Only thought it was the tenants of the neighbor setting off firecrackers in the middle of the night.
Instead of hiding, he cursed and then stood on tiptoe to look through the small window.
Whoosh—
Bang!
As Ma Xin poked his head out, he saw a pale blue trajectory, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound, flash past the west neighbor's courtyard.
"Holy crap, someone's shooting!?"
Only then did Ma Xin suddenly realize what was happening, and he cried out inwardly, his heart pounding wildly.
But he didn't hide; instead, he widened his eyes even further.
Alas.
He just wasn't as knowledgeable as an American boy!
Ma Xin watched as, with a loud shout, two dark figures ignored the bullets shooting out from the west neighbor's living room and lunged towards it.
Bang—
As the gunshots rang out again, the lights in the west neighbor's living room went out.
Immediately after.
Ma Xin heard the sound of the living room door and windows being violently kicked open.
And a man shouted, "Qianfan, seal the windows!"
Then came a series of loud noises, interspersed with the screams of men.
The silent night.
Was shattered by the gunshots, shouts, and screams that suddenly erupted from the 609 courtyard.
The dogs in the alley were all startled and barked wildly.
The sounds of children crying and adults shouting also echoed in the night.
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Just as Ma Xin was peering through the window at the west neighbor's house, his collar was grabbed by a panicked, low shout, and he was dragged to the ground.
It was Ma Xin's father, who had woken up and come to see what was happening, only to see his son peering out the window.
Old Ma was so terrified his soul almost left his body—
Alas.
Ma Xin wasn't as knowledgeable as an American boy, and his father wasn't as capable as an American parent.
If it were an American parent, they would have already pulled out a gun, adopted a protective stance for their family, and even saved the world if necessary.
How could they, like Ma Xin's father, tackle their son to the ground and then dare not move?
It's better in America, where everyone is a gun expert, making it easier to die early and be reborn.
Ah!
Ma Xin, protected by his father in a corner, heard another scream and then a man shouting, "Old Gao, you stay and treat these two assassins. I'll go after the woman!"
"Okay!"
Old Gao replied, "Qianfan, be careful."
The man named Qianfan rushed into the courtyard and shouted again, "Old Gao, notify all the brothers at the intersection! Don't stop that woman! She's very skilled and will cause unnecessary casualties."
"Understood!"
Gao Lingwang in the west neighbor's living room finally turned on the lights in the dark.
He glanced at the two people, La Mo Cuo and another, lying on the ground. He took out his phone, opened a group chat, and shouted urgently, "A woman has escaped! Nobody stop her! She's very dangerous! Hand her over to Qianfan! I'll repeat, no one is to stop that woman! Hand her over to Qianfan!"
Who was Gao Lingwang?
Who were Qin Zhou and the others?
They were all tough guys who had been to the Blackwater Forest!
Crucially, tonight they had set a trap to capture assassins.
Now, Gao Lingwang's instructions to Li Qianfan, to let the woman go, were given without any hesitation.
Why?
Because that woman was too dangerous!
Although Gao Lingwang was not as good as his uncle Gao Lie, in terms of combat power, he was a genuine top-tier expert.
But just now, in the dark—
After he and Li Qianfan, braving bullets, broke through the door, they happened to confront that woman (the living room lights hadn't gone out yet). Before he could react, the woman, who quickly put on a mask and covered her face with her long hair, leaped at him like a poison dart frog.
Gao Lingwang instinctively threw a punch!
But the woman easily dodged his punch and then delivered a fierce blow to his right rib.
Fast.
As fast as lightning!
Fierce.
One punch directly broke two of Gao Lingwang's ribs!
If Li Qianfan, who had kicked away La Mo Cuo, hadn't promptly rushed over and delivered a knee strike to the woman's back, Gao Lingwang might have been further injured.
This wasn't because Gao Lingwang's martial arts were poor, or the woman's were too high.
It was because the tall and sturdy Gao Lingwang excelled at wide, frontal combat; but in a confined space, his slow turning speed could become his fatal weakness.
The woman, who attacked like a leaping poison dart frog, was inherently agile, and her martial arts were indeed high. Especially her quick and cunning attacks, Gao Lingwang, caught off guard, suffered a severe blow, which was only natural.
In contrast, Li Qianfan, with his slender build, performed much better than Gao Lingwang in confined spaces.
After being suddenly struck by Li Qianfan's knee, the poison dart frog woman, taking advantage of her forward stumble, burst through the door.
The moment the woman fled through the door—
With a wave of her left hand, a bloody gash appeared on Gao Lingwang's right shoulder.
A hand blade!
This slash before the poison dart frog woman escaped was intended to slit Gao Lingwang's throat, who was slow to turn.
Fortunately, Gao Lingwang's reaction speed was also very fast, and by tilting his head, he avoided this killing blow!
What shocked Gao Lingwang even more—
As the woman stabbed him, her leg, kicked at Li Qianfan like a scorpion's tail, also carried a light whistling sound of a blade cutting through the air!
What did this prove?
Her pair of Martin boots also had deadly blades!!
However, Li Qianfan easily dodged that sneak attack kick, and the woman took the opportunity to rush out.
Although the fight lasted only about a minute, it was extremely dangerous for Gao Lingwang, even more dangerous than in the Blackwater Forest.
This made him realize that Qin Zhou and the others should ideally cancel their action to intercept the poison dart frog woman.
With Li Qianfan around, as long as he could pursue the woman, Qin Zhou and the others wouldn't need to risk intercepting her and suffering unnecessary losses.
"This poison dart frog-like woman is probably the fifth president of the dark web, right? Her speed is too incredible! Even Du Junlin would have a hard time against her. If the dark web presidents are this powerful, they will eventually become a major threat to us."
Gao Lingwang covered his bleeding right shoulder with his hand and turned to examine the two people, Joker and La Mo Cuo, lying on the ground.
They were motionless.
Black blood was slowly flowing from beside La Mo Cuo's head onto the white floor tiles.
It was evident that La Mo Cuo, seeing no hope of escape, had taken poison and committed suicide.
As for Joker—
He hadn't poisoned himself, but a pair of scissors were stuck in the back of his neck!
Those scissors were what La Mo Cuo had used to treat Joker's wounds.
During the fierce fight—
Neither Li Qianfan nor Gao Lingwang had used scissors against Joker.
Joker himself couldn't have used scissors to stab himself in the back.
Li Qianfan had knocked La Mo Cuo down with one kick when he charged in, so there was no opportunity for him to kill Joker to silence him.
The one who killed Joker must have been that poison dart frog woman!
"Who was that ghost woman?"
Gao Lingwang, certain that both Joker and La Mo Cuo were beyond saving, thought again of that poison dart frog woman.
January 16th.
The full moon hung high in the sky.
On a road north of the Sixth Ring Road.
Roar—
Li Qianfan had the accelerator pressed all the way to the floor, his eyes fixed on the car ahead.