Shao Tong absorbed Lin Wan'er's ability, so he wasn't surprised by Wu's existence. Jiang Cheng shook his head with a hint of regret. "You're right, Wu is strong, but you should also know that any strange power will be suppressed within the old chairman's domain. It's not time for him to awaken yet."

Shao Tong looked at Jiang Cheng and shrugged indifferently. "If you insist on saying that, there's nothing I can do. In my plan, he's an indispensable link."

Before Jiang Cheng could speak, a sharp aura swept over. Shao Tong didn't even see who it was before a powerful force gripped his neck. The coldness on that hand almost suffocated him.

"Don't kill him," Jiang Cheng said, stopping Wu. "At least not yet."

Seeing Wu appear, Shao Tong's face, already flushed red, didn't show much fear. Instead, a glint of excitement appeared in his eyes as he looked at Wu.

"Cough... cough cough..."

As Wu released him, Shao Tong fell to the ground, coughing violently. A transparent barrier enveloped the room, isolating the sound at the same time.

"Great, you... you really are awake!"

Shao Tong clutched his throat, unable to hide his excitement. But before he could finish speaking, Wu pressed his hand on his head, pinching his temples with two fingers, applying slight pressure.

"Tell me your plan."

Wu's voice crashed into Shao Tong's mind like a tidal wave. He twisted and struggled in agony, veins popping out on his forehead, but Wu's hand held him firmly like an iron clamp.

In the face of immense pain, it was impossible to concentrate and weave lies, a common interrogation technique.

"I have no malice, I just want freedom. The Watchmen are wary of you. There's something terrible on you, but I don't know what it is. I... every word I've said is the truth!"

Shao Tong screamed incessantly. At Jiang Cheng's signal, Wu finally released him. Shao Tong, who had been so confident moments before, was now sprawled on the ground like a dead dog, gasping for air.

But what truly disturbed Jiang Cheng was that he was smiling. The guy, also from District 13, was grinning through tears and snot. "Great, you really are awake. I... I have a chance to be free."

Jiang Cheng didn't know how tragic Shao Tong's past was, but he could clearly sense Shao Tong's obsession with the word "freedom."

After venting his emotions, Shao Tong got up and began to explain his plan. "To ensure Li Bai doesn't die, someone has to take this bowl of white rice for her. Among us, only you can do that."

Shao Tong looked at Wu, his tone becoming more sincere. "Next is the identity token. To turn that token into a death gate and fool the villagers, you need to invade Li Bai's shadow. As long as you become one with Li Bai, the identity token will naturally be a death gate. Only in this way can you successfully enter the ritual site."

"That's my entire plan. Believe it or not." Shao Tong looked at Jiang Cheng, then said, "I know what you're worried about. The reason you haven't revealed that Wu has awakened is that you don't trust these teammates. Of course, the one you trust the least is me, worrying that I'm feigning betrayal, a true mole, leading you step by step into a trap."

"Your worries are valid. Like you, I don't trust those outsiders either, and I can tell you clearly that this possibility is very high."

At this point, Shao Tong became serious. "I suspect the Watchmen sent more than just me and Lu Qin to carry out this mission. Among the remaining people, there may still be their agents lurking. If there really is, then this person's level and understanding of the mission must be higher than mine and Lu Qin's."

"I once tested Lu Qin, but there were no results."

Li Bai struggled to support herself, looking at Shao Tong with a pale face. "Who... who do you suspect? Zhang Qizheng, Zhu Jie, or... or Tang Qisheng?"

Along the way, the performances of these three had been quite commendable, at least Li Bai hadn't seen any major problems.

Unexpectedly, Shao Tong slowly shook his head. "I'm not too worried about whether or not it's them three. I'm really worried about Miss Li Bai and that Yao Shunyu."

"You suspect us two?" Li Bai wondered if she was hallucinating.

"Shouldn't you two be suspected?" Shao Tong retorted. "How long have you known Jiang Cheng and Wang Fugui? And as far as I know, your acquaintance was quite dramatic. Such a strange dream in Mount Xixie failed to take your lives; on the contrary, it brought you to Jiang Cheng's side. Isn't that strange?"

Li Bai clutched her chest, coughing violently from the shock. "Cough... cough cough... I'm not, Yao Shunyu... Yao Shunyu wouldn't be either!"

"The first half of your sentence is correct. The reason I'm telling you this is because I've already ruled you out." Shao Tong said frankly.

Jiang Cheng raised an eyebrow. "Because of the rice?"

Shao Tong nodded without hesitation. "That's right. Miss Li Bai was prepared to die just now. That kind of determination can't be faked, so I believe her."

"But... but Yao Shunyu also saved Wang Fugui. The night he held the grave soil, he didn't ask us to open the door. He only chose to leave after hearing that Wang Fugui was safe. Everyone saw it."

Li Bai was still explaining for Yao Shunyu. She couldn't accept someone slandering her partner. "Shao Tong, you're... you're sowing discord!"

If her weak body allowed it, Li Bai would have picked up the water bag beside her and thrown it over. This guy was a conspiracy theorist.

Jiang Cheng signaled Li Bai to be quiet, turned to Shao Tong, and raised his chin. "Continue."

"Miss Li Bai's doubts are easy to explain. Stepping back, even if Yao Shunyu had knelt down and begged us to open the door that night, would we have opened it?" Shao Tong asked.

"No," Jiang Cheng replied for Li Bai. "Whether he's human or ghost, it's impossible to open the door for him. He can only rely on himself."

According to the situation at the time, everyone couldn't tell whether Yao Shunyu was human or ghost. But even if he was human, no one dared to gamble, gamble that the first one to enter after the door was opened would be Yao Shunyu himself, or the ghost waiting nearby.

In other words, no matter what Yao Shunyu did at the time, he had no chance to enter. No one could gamble everyone's life to save one person.

Stepping back, even if a few of them agreed, Zhang Qizheng, Zhu Jie, Tang Qisheng, and the others wouldn't agree, so there was no need to discuss this issue at all, and it couldn't be used as a basis to confirm Yao Shunyu's identity.

"Anything else?" Jiang Cheng asked.

Shao Tong smiled strangely. "Of course. Do you still remember the order of the nameplates on the ground with our surnames on the night we dealt with the late Madam?"

"Lu Qin secretly moved the plates, representing our order of appearance. Yao Shunyu was behind me, he was the last one."