Chapter 1 Sparse Lights

Rong City, a sparsely lit office building.

Underground parking garage.

A Jeep slowly parked in its designated spot.

The driver was a woman, not too old, but with a well-maintained figure and a vigilant glint in her eyes. In the back seat, there was a large waterproof cloth, the kind used for camping.

More importantly, beneath the waterproof cloth was an oddly shaped human-like bulge.

At this moment, Qian Mowen was knocked unconscious, his hands and feet bound, his mouth tightly wrapped with several layers of tape. He had been almost completely stripped, leaving only a pair of underpants to cover his body.

This man, who was about to take office as the acting director of the Night Watcher's Execution Department, now looked as pathetic as a plucked duck.

The whole affair reeked of strangeness, so after receiving the news, Crimson initiated the most stringent plan. En route, Qian Mowen was transferred from Car No. 2 to the woman's Jeep in a highly covert manner.

Currently, Car No. 2 was still circling the western part of the city, far from here, checking for any tails following him.

No. 6 and No. 7 followed behind No. 2, responsible for guarding.

The woman glanced at the rearview mirror, then touched the Bluetooth earpiece hanging on her ear. Her voice was flat, businesslike. "I've picked up the person. Come out."

A few seconds later, Wan Yuanning, who was sitting in the car and disguised using her ability, heard a muffled thud from the roof. The Jeep shook, and then a petite figure jumped down from the roof.

A person who looked like a little girl appeared outside the car door, wearing the same Bluetooth earpiece. A huge black bag behind her was very conspicuous, and half of an ax was exposed.

No. 8 squinted and casually knocked on the car window.

Startled, Wan Yuanning was still in shock, "What were you doing up there?"

"Safety." No. 8 replied indifferently. A moment later, as if suddenly remembering something, she looked at Wan Yuanning's face and emphasized, "No. 3 reminded me. He was worried I would be in danger."

No. 8 was dressed entirely in black, making it difficult to detect her presence in the darkness above the parking lot.

Having been with these guys for a long time, Wan Yuanning roughly understood the relationships between them. She really wanted to say that No. 3 reminded you only to ensure the mission was foolproof, and hoped you wouldn't be presumptuous.

But after seeing the weapon bag behind No. 8, she nodded silently.

Handily opening the rear door, No. 8 pulled back the waterproof cloth, revealing a man curled up in a very strange posture.

The man had his eyes tightly closed, was relatively thin, but his skin was exceptionally pale. A flashy pair of red underpants was particularly eye-catching.

"What the hell is this?" No. 8 showed a disgusted expression. "The message I received was to come and receive the acting director of the Execution Department. How much bribe did the higher-ups of the Night Watchers take to choose a guy like this as director?"

"Speaking of... is his ability related to these underpants?" No. 8 had a sharp tongue but a kind heart, which Wan Yuanning was already used to.

"The target is definitely correct. The person I received is this one," Wan Yuanning said seriously.

No. 8 turned her head, showing Wan Yuanning a malicious smile, squinting her eyes and said, "I say, you didn't turn him into this, did you? No way, no way."

Before she could finish speaking, a man's voice rang in both of their earpieces at the same time, "Hurry up. The Master is still waiting."

"Got it, got it." No. 8 replied hastily. She recognized No. 3's voice. This man always carried out the Master's orders most thoroughly.

The two of them worked together to stuff Qian Mowen into a very large duffel bag, then dragged the duffel bag all the way to the elevator.

Qian Mowen was awakened by a splash of water. When he groggily opened his eyes, he was confused by the scene before him.

He saw two women not far in front of him.

One sitting, one standing.

And he was tied to a chair.

His gaze focused on the woman sitting down. Although this woman looked ordinary, she had a certain aura about her. Obviously, she was the leader of this group.

The woman was naturally Lin Wan'er, and at this moment, Wan Yuanning was standing beside her.

"What are you looking at? Confess honestly!"

A rebuke rang out, startling Qian Mowen. The voice exploded almost in his ear. He looked subconsciously and saw a girl standing beside him.

The girl looked very cute, but her expression was fierce. Qian Mowen stared at the girl's face. After a moment, his expression suddenly changed. "You... you're Crimson No. 8!"

Being recognized didn't surprise the girl, and she even seemed to enjoy it. The corners of her mouth turned up, revealing two small tiger teeth. She pretended to say, "I didn't expect it. You're quite knowledgeable."

"Aren't you dead?" Qian Mowen was terrified. "They all said you were killed by the Chief Adjudicator in two moves."

"Bullshit!" No. 8's pretty eyebrows shot up.

Just as No. 8 grabbed Qian Mowen's neck, wanting to find out who was spreading the rumors, she caught a glimpse of Lin Wan'er's chilling face. Suddenly, her body couldn't help but tremble.

The situation was quickly brought under control.

"Don't kill me. I'm also acting under orders. And... and I have no grudges against your Crimson in the past, and no recent conflicts. It's the old guys in my family who want me to be the director of this Execution Department. I don't actually want to!" Qian Mowen was a pragmatic person. In the face of life and death, face was useless. He only wanted to live now.

Lin Wan'er's voice was flat and cold. "If you want to live, you can. I'll ask, you answer. I have a way to judge whether what you're saying is true or false. If I find out there's even one lie..."

"You'll send me to the afterlife," Qian Mowen said with a mournful face.

Lin Wan'er nodded. Wan Yuanning, who was standing beside her, expertly took out a notebook, ready to record.

"Who did you come to Rong City with, the time, the place of departure, and the purpose?" Lin Wan'er was concise. Her narrow eyes were fixed on Qian Mowen's face, giving him great pressure.

"I came with the President... no, no, not the President, just the President, and the Torchbearer. The three of us came together, the time... the time is today."

"They came to find me. It was at one of our Qian family's strongholds near here. It was quite sudden. I only rushed back after hearing the news. I didn't receive any notice before."

"They first told me that they were preparing to make me the acting director of the Execution Department, and then said they wanted to use my Qian family's influence in this area to have me go with them to a place."

"I don't know what they were going to do. I didn't dare to ask. Finally, we arrived at an abandoned building in Rong City, and then the President fought with a guy..."

...

Qian Mowen behaved very honestly, looking dejected and resigned.

Lin Wan'er asked many questions in a row, and he answered every one.

It was clear that Lin Wan'er was very satisfied with Qian Mowen's attitude. Her posture had gone from tense at the beginning to relaxed now. She leaned back in her chair, like a lazy snake.

"Consider yourself lucky, kid!" No. 8 bared her teeth, glaring at Qian Mowen. Originally, she had been hoping that this person was a tough nut to crack, so she could give him a good beating.

But now, his attitude couldn't be more cooperative.

This made her very frustrated.

Lin Wan'er took the coffee that Wan Yuanning handed her, took a sip, and lowered her eyes, asking casually, "Elder Song of your Qian family's Hall of Law Enforcement has close ties with the Night Watchers, and has more than once sent disciples who were about to be completely corrupted to the Night Watchers, and participated in formulating plans for the outbreak of paranormal events in various places. Was this something you tacitly approved of?"

"Elder Song..." Qian Mowen showed a suspicious expression, stammering, "This... this Crimson Madam, are you mistaken? My Qian family's Hall of Law Enforcement doesn't have an elder named Song at all."

Anyone with eyes could tell that there was a trap in this. Lin Wan'er was trying to trick Qian Mowen.

That's right, from beginning to end, Lin Wan'er had been suspicious of Qian Mowen's true identity, and guessing his purpose for being here at this time.

Now, everyone could finally rest assured.

Lin Wan'er nodded, gently put down the coffee cup, then quickly drew her pistol and aimed it at Qian Mowen's forehead. It was a very delicate pistol strapped to her thigh, but judging from the caliber, its power was enough to blow Qian Mowen's skull open.

Qian Mowen was stunned by this scene. After reacting, he immediately shouted loudly, and his body struggled violently. "What are you doing? You just said that as long as I confess honestly, you won't kill me!"

Lin Wan'er's face was cold. She said, one word at a time, "The Qian family doesn't have a Hall of Law Enforcement at all."

As soon as she finished speaking, before Qian Mowen could defend himself, the gunshot rang out. It didn't directly blow Qian Mowen's head off, but inevitably, several large blossoms of blood bloomed on Qian Mowen's chest.

The enormous inertia directly knocked Qian Mowen, who was tied to the chair, to the ground. He lay horizontally in the pool of blood, his eyes wide open, staring unblinkingly at the ceiling, blood foam flowing from the corners of his mouth.

No. 8 blinked. The scene before her was too sudden. She hadn't reacted at all.

Wan Yuanning's breathing was rapid. She stared at the corpse for a few seconds, then looked at Lin Wan'er, her chest rising and falling sharply. "This... what's going on? Isn't he Qian Mowen?"

"No, we've already checked. He's not disguised. He is Qian Mowen. There are photos of him in my database. And his birthmark, the locations of the three scars, they all match," No. 8 said breathlessly. They had checked all of this, and there were no problems, otherwise they wouldn't have brought him back here at all.

Lin Wan'er put away her pistol, glanced at the corpse indifferently, and said, "He's Qian Mowen, that's right, but only his body is. His spirit has been invaded. Now, he's just a walking corpse controlled by someone."

It was the first time Wan Yuanning had heard of such a thing, and she couldn't help but open her mouth wide. "Who, who has such an ability?"

Lin Wan'er turned her head to look at Wan Yuanning's face. "The current President of the Night Watchers."

Although Wan Yuanning was also once a member of the Night Watchers, and even obtained A-level authorization, she still had never seen the true face of the President, let alone understood the other party's abilities.

However, in the eyes of every newly hired Night Watcher, the President was a great hero with a heart of justice, who could turn the tide and save the collapsing building.

But as the truth was revealed layer by layer, Wan Yuanning also glimpsed the truth of this world.

She was a stubborn person. Even though she was now in the Crimson camp, it didn't mean that she agreed with all the actions of these Crimson people, let alone thought that they were good people.

In the end, they were still a group of lunatics.

But the higher-ups of the Night Watchers were a group of devils.

"Giggle..."

A strange sound rang out, like a dying person unwilling to swallow their last breath. Lin Wan'er and the others quickly turned around to look at the corpse on the ground.

The corpse actually sat up straight from the ground, its eyes wide open, staring blankly.

Before they could react, a phantom suddenly emerged from the corpse's right eye, and almost instantly, it rushed into Lin Wan'er's eyes and disappeared.

Qian Mowen's corpse had also completed its mission at this moment, falling straight back down and never moving again.

But the next scene was truly difficult to understand. As Qian Mowen died completely, Lin Wan'er's state also changed. Her whole body shattered like a mirror.

Not just her, but also No. 8, Wan Yuanning, and the entire space, all shattered.

It was still the same conference room, but at this moment, the man sitting on the sofa with his eyes closed finally opened them, his blue eyes emitting a strange light.

The people sitting across from him also opened their eyes one after another.

Everyone looked slightly tired. After all, they had just woken up from a dream.

After opening his eyes, No. 3 immediately looked at Lin Wan'er across from him and asked in a low voice, "Master, are you alright?"

After receiving an affirmative answer, No. 3 was relieved. At this moment, his face was very pale. After all... it was really difficult to create a dream that could deceive a powerhouse of the Night Watcher President's level.

No. 3 took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. "Fortunately, the Master planned everything. Otherwise, today's events would have been difficult to end."

That's right. After receiving the message from Jiang City, Lin Wan'er knew that this was definitely a conspiracy.

The following things were much simpler. Qian Mowen was captured alive. This person definitely had to be interrogated, but for safety reasons, Lin Wan'er arranged all of this in No. 3's dream.

From the moment they stepped into the conference room, "Qian Mowen" was already in No. 3's dream.

Of course, this also included the President who had invaded Qian Mowen's spirit.

And the Lin Wan'er who spoke in the dream was actually No. 3 disguised. After all, he had to dominate this dream. As for the real Lin Wan'er, she was disguised by No. 3 as a bouquet of flowers.

This was the dream he created. He was almost omnipotent here.

"No. 3, you did very well." Lin Wan'er gave No. 3 an approving look. "We successfully lured out the President's spiritual power, and with the shattering of the dream, we buried all of this in the dream."

"Even if we can't seriously injure him, it's enough to make him feel uncomfortable for a while."

No. 3 recalled the phantom rushing towards him, and couldn't help but frown slightly. "Just a portion of his spiritual power is so terrifying. If the President were to come in person, this dream would probably not last even a minute."

...

The night was deep, and after everything had settled, everyone went back to rest.

Perhaps because he was too tired, No. 3 breathed evenly and quickly fell asleep.

In his sleep, he dreamed of tonight's events again, especially the moment when that figure rushed towards him. The image was jerky, but strangely, Luo He couldn't see the figure's face clearly. He only remembered the person's eyes.

Little by little, Luo He made eye contact with those eyes.

Loneliness, despair, sadness... countless similar emotions rushed towards him like a tide, engulfing him.

He didn't feel pain. On the contrary, he only felt relief.

The cold moonlight outside the window shone down, falling squarely on No. 3's face.

After an unknown amount of time, a bizarre scene appeared. No. 3, who was sleeping, suddenly opened his eyes without warning. The blue pupils in his right eye suddenly flipped over, revealing a silver pupil.