Rain fell steadily over the streets, and several patrol cars cruised slowly through the city.
These weren’t ordinary patrol vehicles—they were unique to this enclosed city. To the untrained eye, everything here might look like the outside world. But in truth, it was completely different.
Inside one of the patrol cars, six people were seated, chatting idly as they watched the road ahead.
“Why’s the boss so concerned about that intruder, anyway? Does he really think one person could affect the people in this place?”
The people in this car knew everything about the city. More accurately, they were the ones assigned to watch it.
And rather than calling it a city, this place was more accurately an island.
Nothing could get in.
Nothing could get out.
Around the perimeter of the island, guards stood watch. Anyone who approached would be forced to turn back.
And if someone insisted on pushing their luck, well… special measures would be taken to change their mind.
“Regardless of why he’s here, that person is definitely a threat to us.”
A quiet voice spoke up from the shadowy rear corner of the vehicle.
Everyone froze.
Because ever since they boarded this car, no one had noticed there was another man riding with them.
He wore the same patrol uniform, which eased their nerves a little.
“Relax, there’s only so many people in this city. As long as the other teams are checking carefully, this has nothing to do with us.”
The man in the shadows said nothing more.
The vehicle continued down the road, rain pattering steadily against the windows.
A voice crackled through the radio.
“Team D, report. What’s your status? Have you located the suspect?”
The man in the front passenger seat picked up the radio and responded calmly.
“HQ, we’ve found no trace of the suspect. Over.”
“Confirm: all six personnel in your vehicle are accounted for?”
“Affirmative. All six present. Over.”
He placed the radio back on its holder and leaned into his seat.
Then the driver turned to him, frowning.
“Wait. Aren’t there seven of us in this car?”
“Are you stupid? Today’s roster says—”
He stopped mid-sentence.
Because there really had been a seventh voice earlier.
And no one had thought to question it. They just accepted the presence of that extra person—because he looked the part. Same uniform. Same gear.
But this patrol car was supposed to have six people.
The man’s eyes widened.
He twisted around, looking toward the back.
The lively conversation from earlier had gone silent. Now, a single man sat quietly in the rear seat.
His cap was pulled low, hiding his face. The others who had been seated near him were now slumped over—unconscious.
“Y-You…”
The man before him was like a phantom.
None of them even realized what he’d done. Somehow, in such close quarters, he’d silently knocked out half the team.
The realization chilled him to the bone. He had underestimated how important their intelligence should’ve been.
Cold sweat drenched his back.
He reached instinctively toward the pistol at his waist—but before he could even draw, a fist crashed into his face.
A sharp ringing filled his ears.
The driver turned, startled—but his brain barely had time to react before his head was slammed violently into the steering wheel.
A cold voice followed:
“I’ll be borrowing your gear for a while.”
The man in the passenger seat clutched his bleeding face, his mouth trembling.
“You… you can’t escape… This is our city!”
Through his bloodied fingers, he saw the figure pause slightly… then give a polite nod.
“Thanks for the reminder.”
A flash—an elbow to the face—and the man fell unconscious.
…
At headquarters, massive monitors displayed live footage from across the city.
They had been watching the cameras nonstop for some time now— But there wasn’t even a trace of HuMing.
The time between his appearance and disappearance had lasted only a few minutes.
But it was enough. He had vanished, leaving no trail.
Only now did they begin to understand the kind of man they were dealing with.
Standing silently behind them, Zero watched the screens too.
Suddenly, a voice came from behind him.
“Zero. He wants to see you.”
Everyone knew who “he” was. And they knew who stood before them.
Zero—his most capable aide. The one person even the staff sought to please.
Without replying, Zero turned and left.
He passed through a hallway, stopping in front of an elevator. A button was pressed, then a security scan confirmed his clearance.
The elevator descended quickly.
When the doors opened, two rows of fully armed mercenaries stood at attention.
None of them turned to look as the doors opened.
These were elite soldiers, hired by him. Zero had seen what they could do.
They were originally kept outside, assigned to off-site missions. But now—now they were all gathered here.
That alone showed just how seriously he took HuMing’s arrival.
Something must have happened between those two in the past.
Zero didn’t linger on the thought. He continued forward and used his passcard to open a heavy metal door.
This place—unlike the quarters above—was their true base of operations.
A narrow corridor stretched out before him. On either side, technicians in lab coats moved quickly, busy at work.
One of them injected a syringe into a man strapped inside a containment pod.
Moments later, the man’s eyes bulged red, fury overtaking his face. He began to thrash, pounding against the reinforced glass in front of him—but to no effect.
Outside the pod, the researchers murmured something to each other, then shook their heads.
Barely ten seconds passed before the man’s eyes rolled back. Foaming at the mouth, he collapsed into unconsciousness.
Zero didn’t even blink at the sight.
This was routine.
Eventually, he reached the end of the corridor.
A door stood before him, with a bold sign emblazoned on it:
“BOSS”
He knocked, then pushed the door open.
The office was modest. One desk. One couch. One row of alloy cabinets along the wall.
Seated on the couch was a man with unmistakably Eastern features.
He held a cigar, eyes gazing lazily at the ceiling—lost in thought.
“Sir. You called for me?”
“The patrol units haven’t found him, have they?”
“No. He moved too fast. Within minutes, he was already gone.”
Francis stood up slowly, placing a cup of coffee on the desk in front of Zero.
“Take a moment to rest, he’ll be standing before us soon enough.”
He picked up a remote and turned on the hovering projector.
Several surveillance feeds came into view.
Ye QiuXue and Kang Xin were tending to children in the orphanage.
Xia XiaoXi and Han YunXi were shopping in a mall.
Other members of the Gu family were also shown, their movements fully exposed.
Francis wasn’t in any rush. He picked up a dart from the desk and flicked it lightly.
The dart landed squarely between Han YunXi’s eyes.
“Let’s start… from here.”
Zero stared at the screen, his face expressionless, saying nothing.