SDT 66

Chapter 66: Wuxiang City

Lu Kongyun investigated Wuxiang City, finding it to be a sprawling, abandoned construction site built with foreign investment but abandoned due to a broken funding chain. The entire area was virtually deserted.

Lu Kongyun arrived at Wuxiang City carrying a sniper rifle and a military backpack. Following the instructions on the note, he located the target building. Instead of entering immediately, he positioned himself at a relatively distant building facing the target. From a window offering a clear vantage point, he peered through the sniper rifle’s scope to observe the interior of the small structure.

Dawn was breaking. The first floor was somewhat visible, with occasional human silhouettes appearing near some windows, confirming guards were stationed there. The second-floor windows, however, were all boarded up. He mentally marked several positions he deemed worthy of attention before circling around to the opposite side of the complex. Once again, he looked through the scope to observe the other side of the target building.

Beneath this side lay a deep foundation pit filled with steel rebar and rubble, making the building appear like a sheer cliff face.

Therefore, he could only enter through the main entrance.

Having made up his mind, Lu Kongyun set down his bag, retrieved only a handgun and the necessary tools from inside, then rose and set off toward the target building, traveling light.

He quickly approached the three-story building and walked along the wall toward the entrance. The entrance was dilapidated, with a rusted “Sales Office” sign. Despite the sweltering heat, a strange, chilling air wafted out with the breeze, evoking an ominous foreboding.

Lu Kongyun picked up a stone that looked slightly sharper from nearby, carved a conch shell emblem, symbolizing the honor of S Country into the doorway, then crouched down and slipped inside the building.

At the first corner, he encountered a figure. He approached silently, then jumped up, wrapping his arms around the person from behind in a swift, bare-handed chokehold.

The man’s strength was surprisingly immense. He struggled desperately, choking and gasping, twisting his body and slamming back against the wall in an attempt to break free. Lu Kongyun absorbed the impact, his arms still locked tightly around the man. The man’s face gradually turned purple. Lu Kongyun counted down silently in his mind. When the time was up, he slowly released his grip. The man collapsed limply. Lu Kongyun quickly produced plastic zip ties, securing his hands and feet, then sealed his mouth with duct tape. He immediately proceeded to the next window marked with a person holding the handle.

Having dealt with three people this way, he dragged all three unconscious bodies into the room. After searching them, he closed the door and moved on to the next area.

After clearing the first floor, he found the staircase and ascended. The sealed windows on the second floor suggested this level was likely far more treacherous, possibly booby-trapped by the so-called “Cleaners.” The floor was noticeably darker and quieter. The faint, peculiar scent Lu Kongyun had detected since entering grew heavier here, relentlessly invading his nostrils.

He also heard voices conversing.

“I… I don’t know…”

He tiptoed down the corridor, following the sound. He saw a wide, open square space. In the center of the clearing, three people were tied to stools.

The one in the center, though splattered with blood, still held his head up and gasped for breath. The two flanking him lay with necks twisted, blood streaming from their mouths, showing no signs of life.

Lu Kongyun looked up and saw a slender man sitting in the center of the wide spiral staircase opposite him. His hands gripped the railing, his legs dangling over the stairs like a prisoner behind bars, staring at Lu Kongyun through the railings. His eyes were wide and eerily fixed.

Lu Kongyun noticed a female figure lying motionless on the stairs beside the thin man. Her clothes were disheveled, and she appeared lifeless.

With his keen eyesight, Lu Kongyun spotted another figure hanging motionless in a dim corner of the second floor, feet dangling downward.

It seemed that aside from the last survivor bound in the center and the gaunt man who appeared to be the mastermind, none of the others showed any signs of life.

“You’re Hao Dali?” The skinny man holding the stair railing spoke, his voice small and high-pitched like a young girl’s, making it all the more unsettling. “You took care of all the trash on the first floor? Not bad.”

The last living person, bound to the central chair, immediately looked up, all eyes turning toward Lu Kongyun. Though his face was unfamiliar, his eyes were striking. Lu Kongyun mentally ran through the numbers, confident enough to conclude this was the one.

Lu Kongyun glanced at the skinny man on the stairs and replied, “Hao Dali isn’t my real name.”

“Hmm.” Hearing this, the skinny man seemed satisfied. He jumped down from the high staircase with agility. Moving behind the man tied to the chair, he glared at Lu Kongyun through the hostage, his eyes still holding that peculiar intensity.

“You really came. I’ve been waiting for you for so long, I almost thought you’d run off and not show up. I was just about to kill your boyfriend first before coming for you.” The skinny man said.

“Hao Dali” heard his words and his eyes darkened slightly.

The skinny man studied him for a moment longer before saying, “You look nothing like the descriptions I’ve heard. But Ye Yisan is skilled in disguise. Maybe he altered your appearance earlier. This doesn’t count.”

“…Then how can you be sure he’s Hao Dali?” hostage Ye Yisan asked the skinny man, turning his head halfway.

The skinny guy chuckled. “Stop pretending. Aren’t you two a pair of fugitive lovebirds? Besides him, who else would come looking for you alone? Huh?”

The question seemed to strike a nerve with the hostage.

His deep eyes flashed with confusion as he turned his gaze toward Lu Kongyun with equal disdain: “What are you doing here?”

Lu Kongyun didn’t answer. He sniffed.

Lu Kongyun knew exactly where that peculiar scent came from. Alongside the bloodiness, there was the distinct odor of commercially available pheromone-mimicking arousal perfume. Primarily purchased by Betas, this perfume was designed to simulate the scent of pheromones attracting one another during an Alpha-Omega pairing’s heat.

Most who bought this arousal perfume were Betas curious about AO sexual dynamics, using it for playful experimentation or as a private intimate game with their partners.

But this skinny guy was wearing a strong A-type scent, clearly not for fun. Lu Kongyun found the Beta’s smell odd. With his sensitive nose, he sensed something else beneath the potent Alpha perfume, which was why he couldn’t immediately identify it.

The skinny guy approached Ye Yisan, slinging an arm over his shoulder. “Come on, tell your lover how everyone in this room died.”

Ye Yisan shrugged his shoulder to avoid the hand and said to Lu Kongyun, “This assassin is Mr. Ye’s ‘cleaner,’ specifically targeting AO pairs with partners listed on the wanted notices. He administers aphrodisiacs to the Alphas, forcing them to release Pheromone that induce heat in their Omega mates. Then he sleeps with the O in front of the A, and kills the A in front of the O.”

Ye Yisan nodded toward the two bodies strapped to the chair on either side of him. “Both of these are Alphas. The ones on the stairs and upstairs are Omegas.”

“Treating AO like this gives him a real sense of accomplishment,” Ye Yisan said with disgust.

Lu Kongyun glanced at the other four corpses and asked Ye Yisan coldly, “Then how can I take you away? Is there any room for negotiation, money or something? Can I speak with Mr. Ye? Or must we resort to violence to resolve this?”

“…What do you want?” Ye Yisan said. “To capture me and hand me over to your family’s madman?”

Lu Kongyun didn’t answer. The skinny assassin snorted derisively first.

“Take him away? All these years, the wanted notice has never been revoked. ‘Disobedience is contagious. So disobedient dogs must not be kept, they must be eradicated at the root.’ Isn’t that Mr. Ye’s dog-training principle? Knowing this and still trying to run means you must accept the consequences.”

He leaned close to Ye Yisan’s head. “I know you’re a high-ranking Alpha among the dogs Mr. Ye keeps. I’m looking forward to playing the next game with you.”

Lu Kongyun suddenly reached for his gun. The slender assassin’s eyes flashed. With a swift flick of his wrist, a dark object flew toward Lu Kongyun. Pain shot through Lu Kongyun’s wrist, and the pistol flew from his grasp. Blood began seeping from his cuff, beads of crimson trickling down his forearm and dripping onto the floor.

Ye Yisan sighed, looking at Lu Kongyun. “I took down Ding Qi’s entire crew single-handedly. I evaded every manhunt to rescue Yu Xiaowen from Shijia Valley. Why do you think I’m tied up here?”

“…”

Lu Kongyun raised his hand. The motion itself was no problem, but when he tried to exert force, he noticed a change in his body. His agility had vanished entirely, leaving him moving as sluggishly as a tree sloth.

“I’ve been poisoned,” Lu Kongyun said.

“Correct. His perfume contains a specially formulated poison from M Country,” Ye Yisan stated. “After inhaling it, your limbs remain functional, making it difficult to raise suspicion. You walked right into the trap. Soon you’ll be just like me and these two beside me.”

Lu Kongyun: “…”

Ye Yisan: “So what the hell are you doing here?”

“To save you.”

Ye Yisan found it absurd: “…You? Save me? Didn’t you and that madman scheme using that fool Yu Xiaowen just have to get me captured? I’m no Omega, I won’t fall for you two brothers’ tricks.”

Lu Kongyun: “Don’t project your opinion of my brother onto me. I’m not like him.”

Ye Yisan: “What makes you different? You just enjoy bullying those below your rank. Who actually likes you? Yu Xiaowen only wants to smell a S-class Alpha’s pheromones because it feels good. Stop acting like you’re so great and superior.”

Lu Kongyun said nothing, but his lips tightened.

If Ye Yisan wasn’t mistaken, he was staring at Ye Yisan with a look of intense disgust.

But Lu Kongyun merely exhaled before turning to the skinny man and saying, “I’m taking this one with me.”

The skinny man smiled knowingly. “Ye Yisan, so you’ve got other enemies after you too. The life of a secret agent sure is colorful, huh?”

“He’s not exactly my enemy,” Ye Yisan turned to the skinny guy. “Actually, he has nothing to do with me. Tell him to get lost.”

“…You want me to let him go, huh? Fine. Cut the act, Ye Yisan.” The skinny guy ran his fingers through his thinning hair, his eyes regaining a look of interest. “Just because your lover’s an Alpha doesn’t mean I’ll look down on you.”

Ye Yisan: “…Don’t spout nonsense. I’d die before I’d ever be with an Alpha.”

The skinny guy paced slowly, his oddly large eyes fixed on the scene. He kicked the lifeless, disheveled corpse lying on the steps beneath his feet.

“How do you plan to save your beloved, Alpha?”

Ye Yisan: “Don’t talk nonsense!”

“You can make demands.” Lu Kongyun stared at the skinny man.

The skinny guy sat down on the stair railing, looking down at them.

“Any conditions?”

Lu Kongyun didn’t hesitate: “Yes. As long as it’s something I can do.”

The skinny assassin leaned against the armrest, swinging one leg as he looked up at the sky. “Trying to win me over with true love? That trick’s been used by the dead ones earlier.”

“You know, I could’ve evolved into a S-class Alpha. But the headhunter recruiting for Mr. Ye injected me with differentiation-blocking drugs during my growth phase, turning me into this monstrosity. The training center reasoned that males with sexual defects might make more focused psychopathic killers, devoid of empathy to eliminate scum like you.”

His expression suddenly shifted to helplessness as he looked at the two of them. “Do you know why I was forced to stop developing at sixteen, and then tied to a bed at seventeen without being allowed to use the bathroom for a whole day?”

No one answered.

“Pissing in bed under the indifferent gaze of observers and partners is a form of killing training directed at my own kind. There are many such training methods. So I no longer feel shame, no longer feel sympathy for anyone, no longer empathize with any of you. Don’t think you can move me in any way.”

Ye Yisan looked at the assassin who had just brutally killed four people before his eyes, his expression showing little surprise.

“All of you are dogs bred by Mr. Ye. You have pheromones, you have someone who loves you, and if you try to run away, you can even become yourselves again? Hah. That won’t do. Traitors must be killed. What a magnificent rule. It is precisely this rule that allows me to find an order to survive in this unfair, shitty world.”

Ye Yisan gave Lu Kongyun a meaningful glance.

The skinny guy fixed his gaze on his face, and he looked away.

“But you know… I really like you. You remind me of myself back then.”

The skinny guy studied Lu Kongyun with a look that bordered on admiration. “The way I used to be, I was definitely stronger and better-looking than you.”

He stared for a while, becoming somewhat absorbed. Turning, he rested his arms on the railing, propped his chin in his hands, and continued to scrutinize.

“I too long to be my true self again.”

“I can’t help you with that,” Lu Kongyun said.

The skinny man suddenly burst into laughter, slapping the railing as he addressed Lu Kongyun: “You’re not on the wanted list, so I won’t kill you. But you must cut out your glands and give them to me. Your glands will be the price for his life.”

Both men across from him fell silent.

“Not possible?” the skinny one said. “See? Your so-called love. That’s all it is.”

He extended his pinky finger and held up one knuckle with his thumb.

After a moment, Lu Kongyun asked, “We’re all poisoned now. How can I be sure you’re not deceiving me?”

The skinny man chuckled. “You don’t have much leverage to begin with. Since you said you want to make a deal with me, trusting me is your only option, isn’t it?”

Ye Yisan: “He’s lying to you. There’s no way he’d ever let anyone go. He’s just playing around. Once he’s done playing, he’ll kill us both.”

The skinny assassin remained relaxed: “So, wanna trust me this once?”

The skinny guy walked up to Lu Kongyun and handed him a small knife.

Lu Kongyun looked at the knife in his hand, slowly raised his own, and took it.

The skinny assassin watched his slow movements with amusement, showing no sign of concern or caution, only a dismissive sneer.

“You start the procedure, and I’ll untie Ye Yisan. You remove all his glands, and I’ll let him go. Or—” The Skinny Killer picked up the gun that had fallen to the floor and aimed it at Ye Yisan. “I’ll just shoot him right now.”

In the end, Lu Kongyun pressed the small knife against his own jaw.

The blade pressed down, drawing beads of blood from his skin. The slender assassin’s eyes gleamed brighter. With a look of excitement, he said, “Your aim is quite precise. Are you in the same line of work?”

A rustling sound came from behind. The thin man turned to see Ye Yisan had already chewed through his rope and stood up. Lu Kongyun immediately threw the small knife toward Ye Yisan with all his strength. His aim was precise; Ye Yisan caught the knife with minimal effort, then used his weight to lunge at the thin assassin.

The moment their bodies collided, Ye Yisan swung his blade at the killer’s throat with all his strength and fastest speed. But his poison-laced movements were restricted. The slender assassin simply stepped back, effortlessly evading the strike.

In truth, Ye Yisan’s slash was just a feint. Clutching the shard of glass that had severed the rope in his left hand, he thrust it directly at the opponent’s windpipe, launching a swift follow-up attack.

The skinny assassin reacted with lightning speed, instantly retreating once more. Yet the blade still sliced through his skin, leaving a bloody trail across his throat.

Oh no, thought Ye Yisan.

He had a gut feeling this time he was really going to die.

The skinny assassin touched his own neck, watching the droplets of blood form. A fierce and excited light flared in his eyes. He stared at Ye Yisan, who was wielding a knife in one hand and a piece of glass in the other. Charging straight at him, he grabbed the nearby stool tied with hemp rope and rammed it into Ye Yisan’s body, forcing him relentlessly toward the glass window. The immense force sent Ye Yisan reeling backward. To maintain his balance, he had no choice but to drop his weapons and grab hold of the hemp ropes on the stool.

The skinny assassin, possessing immense strength, shoved him violently once more. A deafening crash echoed as the glass window shattered, flooding the sealed, dim room with light and fresh air. Ye Yisan felt his body lurch out the window before he plummeted down.

After a moment of free fall, before the wind could whistle past his ears, he suddenly halted. A dull ache shot through his arms. Opening his eyes, he saw the hemp rope had wrapped around him. Looking up, he saw Lu Kongyun clutching the other end.

Lu Kongyun had also leaned nearly halfway out the window.

Veins bulged on Lu Kongyun’s neck as he coldly retorted, “They say you’re some formidable agent, but you’re nothing special. I might as well handle this myself.”

Ye Yisan: “…”

Isn’t this because I got poisoned?!

But he didn’t argue back at that moment. Lu Kongyun’s current behavior caught him off guard; he had no idea when the other might let go of the rope. So he focused solely on looking up. Soon, the skinny assassin’s face appeared before him.

After sizing up the rice dumpling-like figure hanging in midair, the skinny assassin shifted his gaze to Lu Kongyun, clinging to the window frame with the feeble strength of a sloth.

He chuckled.

“Oh my. I knew cutting your glands was just a stopgap measure for you. I was curious to see how you’d play this out. Now it’s turned into a farce?”

The skinny assassin toyed with the gun in his hand. “Truth be told, I do admire you as an Alpha. You talk about how much those Omegas supposedly love you, but as soon as they catch a whiff of pheromones and go into heat, they’ll jump on anyone. Without pheromones, they wouldn’t even acknowledge you as their kind, they wouldn’t give you a second glance. They’re just trash controlled by pheromones like animals, unable to return the bite once they’ve taken it. Yet they delude themselves into thinking they’re deeply devoted, that their love is stronger than gold? How dare they? Isn’t that absurd? Don’t they have any shame?”

Lu Kongyun tightened the rope around his body.

“Hey, what’s it like when you guys hook up with A-lovers?”

The skinny assassin leaned in close, scrutinizing Lu Kongyun’s face. “You seem like such a S-class Alpha. Surely you could conquer most Omegas? Why would you want to be with an Alpha? Is the repulsion and suppression from pheromones counteraction really more thrilling than conquering an Omega?”

Lu Kongyun remained silent. The slender killer pressed the gun against Lu Kongyun’s temple. “Speak.”

Lu Kongyun: “I don’t need pheromones to decide who I like.”

The assassin paused, chuckled, and said, “You sure know how to talk. I told you, Ye Yisan is on my list, not you. If you let go yourself, I’ll spare your life. How about it?”

Ye Yisan looked up at Lu Kongyun.

But Lu Kongyun didn’t answer, nor did he let go.

The slender assassin’s gun barrel swept down from the back of his head, coming to rest against his left shoulder.

Bang!

A gunshot rang out.

Ye Yisan felt himself plunge down before abruptly halting. He saw Lu Kongyun’s clothes turning red.

He couldn’t help but call out in a strained voice: “Lu Kongyun!”

The other replied, “Not dying.”

“Lu Kongyun. Is that your real name? You S Country folks have such weird names, they’re a mouthful.”

The skinny assassin held the pistol, sliding it down from his shoulder until it reached his waist, then circling it around to the front and continuing downward.

“Starting from here, you know, every time you’re tormented by rut, you can’t release it anymore. You might just go mad. Hey, have you heard of the Five Senses Sealing Treatment? I underwent it right after getting the differentiation-blocking injection. I guarantee few sane people can survive it. You might end up becoming a psychopath like me. But… you’d be a psychopath parading around town with a urine bag for life.”

The assassin grinned wickedly, pressing the muzzle tighter against him. “I’ll count to three. Then I shoot.”

Ye Yisan: “Lu Kongyun, what the hell are you thinking? Just let go. Don’t let him keep playing games.”

“1.”

“2.”

Blood had already stained the rope crimson. Ye Yisan couldn’t bear to watch any longer: “You psychotic killer, if you have a grudge, take it out on the right person. Stop playing around…”

“3…”

“Bang!”

The gunshot echoed from afar, yet a distinct, piercing crack echoed in their ears. Everyone froze. Lu Kongyun instinctively glanced down at his lower body, still intact. He turned to the assassin. Half his ear was gone, blood spurting from the wound.

The slender assassin himself wavered for a moment, touching his ear before immediately lifting his gaze toward the abandoned building across the way. Something seemed to be reflecting light there.

He instinctively turned to leave the window. But the distant gunshot and the sharp crack of penetration sounded almost simultaneously once more.

Bang!

A bloody hole appeared in the skinny killer’s head, piercing from the back of his skull through to his forehead. His eyes bulged as he collapsed.

Lu Kongyun and Ye Yisan both looked across at the opposite side.

“You set up an ambush? Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Ye Yisan swayed midair, finally beginning to pant heavily.

Lu Kongyun’s face was turning pale. He stared at the window of the building across the street, the very one he’d just visited, where his sniper rifle, set up for observation, still sat.

“Hang on! I’m coming!” Yu Xiaowen shouted from where he stood, and the figure at the window vanished.

Dai Lanshan was indeed unreliable. Lu Kongyun thought.