Chương 21: Chapter 14 Farewell to the Martial World
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Suddenly, a notification sound rang out from both of their phones.
Upon opening the phone, it was an urgent news alert:
"Fugitive: Wu Xiaode."
"Suspected of arson, murder, robbery, and other crimes, still at large within the city, having killed three ordinary citizens again tonight."
"This individual is extremely dangerous. Anyone who spots him, please report immediately. A reward is offered!"
"So that's it, he intends to capture me, then force you into submission." Wu Xiaode said, looking at the phone message.
Another message popped up on his phone:
"I can only ensure your phone isn't tracked. Tell Xia Huilan to throw away her phone."
"——Zhao Junyu."
Wu Xiaode showed Xia Huilan the message, and Xia Huilan laughed, "No worries, I have my own ways to shield against tracking."
Indeed, she was such an ace technology expert, how could she overlook this?
Wu Xiaode pondered for a moment and then said, "While they think they have caught you, we should hurry and leave."
"Where to?" Xia Huilan asked.
"I'll find you a motel to rest, and I'll go out to take care of some business. I'll be back before dawn to pick you up, and then we'll head to the countryside." Wu Xiaode replied.
Xia Huilan's eyes lit up, uncertainly she said, "Little Wu, are you going to come with me?"
Wu Xiaode cracked a smile and said, "I'll say goodbye to some friends and get some supplies that will make our escape easier."
"Okay, let's go." Xia Huilan seemed to garner some spirit, speaking earnestly.
Little Wu was very capable.
She still had many technological tricks up her sleeve to confound her enemies.
As long as Little Wu was with her, far away from all this, never returning, there should be no problems!
The two walked out of the garbage dump, and along a muddy path, they finally reached the street.
Twenty minutes later.
A taxi stopped near the train station.
This was a transportation hub, with many hotels, and Xia Huilan quickly found a decent-looking one.
"Make sure to come before dawn." Xia Huilan reminded.
"Don't worry, it might not even take that long, I'll just buy something and meet a few friends, then come for you." Wu Xiaode assured her.
Only then did Xia Huilan enter the motel at ease.
Wu Xiaode watched her from across the street, waiting until she checked in and went up to her room to rest before he turned and left.
He walked past the street corner and into a dark alley.
The Crow Spirit landed from midair onto his shoulder.
Ya tapped his shoulder with its long, sharp beak and initiated telepathy:
"The original job is done, I can go back anytime, but you seem pretty good at killing—shall we keep working together, get some Soul Power to share, what do you think?"
"Welcome," Wu Xiaode replied.
"Where to next?" Ya asked.
"It's quite a distance from the train station to that place called Bright Mechanical Union Technology Company, and the cab fare is expensive," Wu Xiaode said, looking at the taxi app on his phone.
"Little master will fly you there." Ya said excitedly.
"Then let's go," Wu Xiaode replied.
Crow Spirit vanished from his shoulder, and a pair of black wings suddenly unfolded behind him, transforming him into a black bird that soared into the sky, sweeping toward the north part of the city.
...
Elsewhere.
Bright Mechanical Union Technology Company.
Though it was late at night, at least half of the rooms in this skyscraper were still lit.
When Crow Spirit descended from the sky, it flapped its wings vigorously, sweeping over the top of the building.
It saw that the lights were still on in the highest floor, filled with people.
Despite the late hour, it seemed as if they were having a meeting.
Through the glass windows, one could see their serious and tense faces, caught in intense debate.
Crow Spirit glanced and paid no further attention.
It circled the building and quickly located Xia Huilan's previous office.
The spirit perched on the window ledge outside the office, flapping its wings.
——The last time it was here had been half a year ago.
That day Xia Huilan had celebrated its birthday, asking it to wait in the office until she got off work.
But today the window was closed with several people inside busily at work, and Crow Spirit hesitated for a moment without directly smashing the window to fly in.
It retracted its black feathers and hid within the shadows of the night, quietly listening to the noises inside the room.
"We still haven't found those results of Xia Huilan."
"We've searched everywhere, it's no use."
"She must have destroyed the files long ago, otherwise why would she suddenly resign?"
"She could have completed the entire big project just by giving out the technology, and now she resigns?"
The people inside were babbling on.
Suddenly, the office door opened, and an elderly man with white hair walked in.
"What's all this noise about? How's the work going?" he asked authoritatively.
The people in the room all stood up, looking at each other.
"Sorry, Mr. Zhang, we've tried our best but to no avail," a male braced himself and said.
"Hmm, Huilan was my student, I understand her; it's normal that you couldn't find anything. It's late now, go and rest," the old man said kindly.
The people were somewhat surprised.
They hadn't expected him to have no words of criticism and even dismissed them from work.
"Thank you, Mr. Zhang."
They left the office one after another.
Now the office was left with only the elder known as Mr. Zhang.
The opportunity was excellent.
But Crow Spirit still didn't move—
This old man had come alone to Xia Huilan's office and sent away everyone else. What was he up to?
The old man turned on Xia Huilan's computer and rapidly typed a string of characters.
A hidden interface appeared on the computer screen.
A password was required here too.
```
The old man took out his phone, ready to dial when suddenly, the phone began to ring.
He glanced at the screen and immediately answered the call.
A voice came through the earpiece, "How is it going? Have you found that student of yours?"
"Please rest assured, they have captured her. The relevant technical materials will be ready soon; I will bring them to you personally in a moment," the old man quickly replied.
"Good, threatening her with people close to her is an effective method. Well done, come see me on the eighty-seventh floor later," the voice said contentedly.
"It's only thanks to you issuing the warrant that things went this smoothly. This was all under your guidance," the old man flattered.
"No more talk, I'll wait for you to come over."
The call ended.
The old man hesitated for a moment before dialing another number.
"Have you captured Xia Huilan? Tell her to give me the password first; I need it now," demanded the old man.
"Mr. Zhang," an urgent voice came through the earpiece, "they haven't returned. We deployed satellites to search and found their bodies in a landfill—Xia Huilan has disappeared."
"What did you say?" the old man exclaimed, standing up abruptly.
"Mr. Zhang, all the people we sent are dead!" exclaimed the voice.
The old man froze for a few moments before roaring, "Quick, send more people!"
"Yes!"
The call ended.
The old man then made another call, saying, "Go catch Wu Xiaode, double the price. Even if he's dead, I want his body brought back. It's best if you finish the task quickly, otherwise—"
Whoosh!
A sound of glass shattering.
Suddenly, a hand covered the old man's mouth, and another took the phone away.
"Consider the commission to capture him canceled," Wu Xiaode said into the phone.
"Why?" A voice came from the phone.
"Because your client is about to die," Wu Xiaode replied.
The person on the other end cursed.
Wu Xiaode turned off the phone and dragged the old man to the window, whispering, "Surprise?"
The old man's pupils constricted. He flailed and seemed excited to say something, but Wu Xiaode's hand over his mouth prevented any words from escaping.
Wu Xiaode frowned in thought.
"Still missing something, what is it?"
After a moment, he suddenly pulled out a syringe from his pocket and injected himself in the arm.
In an instant.
The disguises on his body began to fade away.
He ripped off the shaping material stuck on his face and body.
"So it's you, Wu Xiaode!" the old man realized.
Wu Xiaode said, "I saw you back then and thought your kind were truly amazing, the driving force of human society's progress. Now I see how vile you really are."
"I'm just an ordinary student, but you wanted to kill me, coerce Sister Lan, so of course, I had to take you down before dying."
Wu Xiaode gently placed the old man on the windowsill.
"Say your last words."
He said expressionlessly.
The old man blurted out in a panic, "Wait a moment, you don't understand what technology Xia Huilan holds! You don't know the truth about this world—we're helping the entire human world; you can't kill me!"
"That's her technology, right?" Wu Xiaode asked.
"She can contribute to humanity!" the old man said, his face turning red.
"Indeed, she can contribute to humanity, but what does that have to do with you?" Wu Xiaode asked again.
"She gave it up, do you understand? She doesn't want to do it!" the old man said.
"You wanted her to sleep with you, right? Of course, she wouldn't want to," Wu Xiaode replied.
The old man's angry expression froze.
Wu Xiaode, puzzled, said, "If you want to plagiarize, just plagiarize; if you're lecherous, just be lecherous. Why pretend as if you're on the side of justice?"
He peered out the window into the street below, confirming it was clear, and then pushed the old man out—
In mid-air, the old man let out a high-pitched scream.
Wu Xiaode transformed into a crow and flew out, returning the old man back through the window.
"Aaahhhhhhhh—"
The old man sat on the ground, screaming hysterically.
Wu Xiaode crouched on the desk, waiting for him to almost finish yelling before quietly asking, "How did it feel just now?"
The old man collapsed completely.
"Feeling desperate?" Wu Xiaode pressed.
"What do you really want? Money? Or something else? I'll give you anything you want, just spare my life," the old man said through gritted teeth.
"No need, this is enough," said Wu Xiaode.
"Enough? What do you mean by enough?" A foreboding feeling rose in the old man's heart, and he reached for his pocket, but Wu Xiaode pressed his hand down.
"Seeing you so desperate feels quite good..."
Wu Xiaode smiled faintly and continued, "Sister Lan must have suffered working under you, but never mind, we don't like to hold grudges."
The old man was stunned.
—Is he going to let me go?
"You're going to let me go?" he asked aloud.
"Yes," Wu Xiaode replied.
The old man got up from the floor, straightened up, and was about to speak—
When Wu Xiaode kicked out, sending the old man flying over the windowsill, creating a beautiful parabolic arc across the night sky.
One breath.
Two breaths.
Three breaths.
This time, Wu Xiaode did not go to save him.
Finally, the old man's prolonged and piercing scream came to an abrupt halt.
Only then did Wu Xiaode turn around, pulling out a piece of paper from the table, wiping his hand, and muttered to himself:
"This should calm Sister Lan down. I've decided, let's write off any debts between you. Let us meet again in the world beyond."
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