Chapter 55

"1, 2, 3,"

The gunshot rang out!

Zhen Ai fell to the ground, clutching her blood-soaked left arm, the burning pain causing her to tremble uncontrollably. She felt around and, though the pain was excruciating, fortunately, it hadn't hit any bone.

She almost immediately turned around but didn't see who had fired the shot.

The other hostages looked terrified, glancing at each other in shock. No one had expected a bullet to suddenly emerge from behind and pierce both Jack's left chest and Zhen Ai's arm.

The former died on the spot.

Arch stared wide-eyed in disbelief but quickly lowered his gaze to King: "With one less person, can I have a bigger share of the money?" King's expression didn't change: "Of course."

But Zhen Ai noticed Arch glance to the right, where the injured college student pressed his chest with Suki, while Amper crouched beside them—two righteous men, Aisa and the Black man.

Who exactly was King's accomplice?

At that moment, a doctor cautiously walked in. King glanced at him and then let him be. The doctor first checked on the guard at the door to see if he was breathing. He immediately called a few assistants to carry the guard out.

Soon, he reentered to bandage the college student's wound, with Suki and the Black man helping.

King watched coldly and suddenly aimed his gun at the doctor: "Come here."

The doctor was a trained officer, and facing King's gun, he approached steadily.

King pointed his gun toward the counter: "Call in the person who just provoked Jack. My condition is to release the 19 people tied up outside."

The hostages bound on the outside heard a glimmer of hope, while the surviving ones caught in the murder game continued to live in nightmares.

The doctor complied with his orders, but as he took a step, he heard King instruct: "I don't want a negotiation expert on the phone; I want the real one."

Zhen Ai clutched her wound, feeling a pang in her heart. It couldn't be Yan Su, could it?

The doctor had a mini camera on him, so when he made the call, he deliberately faced King and the row of hostages near the door. He conveyed King's request to his superior, and the people on the other end began to argue.

Except for Yan Su, everyone else was of one mind: "Do not go!"

Agent Nell said, "There's never been a rule about hostage exchanges!"

Vick echoed, "If we agree to his unreasonable demand, we will completely lose our negotiating position."

"We've been at a disadvantage from the start! Officer Vick," Yan Su's voice was heavy and cold, "There are 29 hostages there, with 3 dead or injured. Even if we analyze these murderers thoroughly, even if we catch them today, so what? More people will die in the meantime!"

Vick was unmoved: "No matter what, you cannot go in. That's an order!"

Yan Su immediately retorted: "I'm not your subordinate, and I don't have to obey your orders!"

The people on the phone were at an impasse, but King said, "If he doesn't come in, I'll kill one person every minute."

The doctor relayed King's words, and the arguing ceased.

---

Zhen Ai gritted her teeth and took matters into her own hands, using the bandages from the medical kit to wrap her wound. After about half a minute, she heard the sound of dress shoes crunching on broken glass; someone entered the bank hall.

Zhen Ai suddenly looked up and met Yan Su's familiar brows and eyes, warm and clear, carrying an indescribable emotion.

Her heart ached painfully, and she felt a sudden sense of grievance.

Fear, panic, and various soft emotions surged at that moment, as if she had only then seen a source of comfort that reassured her.

Yan Su stood tall, his steps steady. The first thing he did upon entering was look at Zhen Ai, who was kneeling on the ground, blood all over her arm, her face pale as death. Although he was worried, he also let out a heavy sigh of relief.

She was still alive, and the vital points weren't harmed.

His expression was cold and proud as he quickly scanned the bank's situation, his gaze softening as it landed on her, staring unblinkingly, as if he had come just for her.

Their eyes locked, both focused intently.

He walked over quietly and suddenly smiled at her. Even his deep-set eyes sparkled with a hint of approval. A little proud, a little smug.

Zhen Ai felt her heart warm up instantly; she understood his meaning. He was praising her. At this moment, such a heartfelt smile was more comforting than any anxious or worried words.

They were both capable of taking care of themselves.

Yan Su averted his gaze and walked up to King, standing tall and looking down at him. He showed no sign of fear or hesitation, as if this were his territory.

He had always been like this, never dimming his imposing presence wherever he went.

A flicker of something strange crossed King's face as he slowly stood up from the ground to meet Yan Su's gaze, asking, "What's your name?"

"S.A.Yan!" Short, swift, cold, and powerful.

King paused: "I'm curious, what does the A in your name stand for?"

"Ace!" Yan Su looked at him indifferently, his eyes containing a barely perceptible curiosity.

"Ace?" King raised an eyebrow, "Someone actually dares to call themselves 'Ace'? Truly audacious!"

Yan Su didn't take his mockery to heart, responding firmly: "Because I am Ace!"

Zhen Ai gazed at his proud and indifferent profile, a gentle smile gracing her lips. Of course, Ace the king—he could certainly carry that name. Only he was worthy of that name.

King fell silent.

According to the previous agreement, he signaled the doctor to take the 19 hostages away. The outer circle of people felt as if a great weight had been lifted; some helped carry the injured boy, while others took care of children, forming a tall human wall around the entrance.

Yan Su frowned, urging the doctor to take them away immediately; but at that moment, King raised his gun and shot at the electrical box at the hall entrance, igniting it instantly, causing the curtains by the door to catch fire.

Arch dragged gasoline out of the cabinet, pouring it all over the hall, which quickly became an inferno. The freed hostages screamed as they rushed outside, throwing the police line outside into chaos.

The hostages in the center of the hall began to sob in despair; some wanted to flee, but Arch, holding his gun, blocked their way, and no one dared to move.

King said, "Take out your waiting numbers; I need to accompany a customer from the safe deposit box business downstairs."

Everyone hurriedly took out their slips, and after removing the dead two, B028 and A052, the remaining numbers were B020, B036, B044, A060, A068, A076, C004, C012.

Zhen Ai was C012, and Amper was C004.

Amper protested, "I'm not going!"

King pressed his gun against her back, and Amper immediately fell silent.

Yan Su kept her eyes on Zhen Ai, watching her struggle to stand up. She took a step forward to support her and pressed her hand slightly in the palm. Zhen Ai was taken aback for a moment, then smiled faintly despite her pale face. This time it was Yan Su's turn to be surprised, realizing that Zhen Ai had already noticed her.

"Don't worry, I'm fine."

She held her arm, standing steadily, and turned to prepare to follow King downstairs.

At this moment, Aisa said, "Having these two hostages is enough; let us go first!" The other hostages echoed in agreement. King slowly turned his head but looked at Yan Su: "What do you think?"

Yan Su calmly replied, "They can go; I'll stay as a hostage."

King smiled faintly, "S.A., do you know? Because of you, Jack betrayed me, and these hostages have become unruly; because of you, this game has become not fun at all."

Yan Su remained silent, staring intently at him.

King turned to Arch: "Those who break the rules will end up like him." Just as he finished speaking, his expression suddenly turned fierce. He pressed the gun against Yan Su's chest and pulled the trigger…

A gunshot echoed in Zhen Ai's ears.

Her heart felt like it was brutally pierced, watching helplessly as the tall, slender man in a black trench coat fell under the bullet's tremendous force.

"Yan Su!!!"

Zhen Ai screamed madly as she rushed over, seeing Yan Su lying quietly on the ground, his handsome face instantly drained of color. Yet he stubbornly kept his eyes open, his light brown irises still clear, like amber washed with water, quietly gazing at her without blinking.

"Yan Su!" She gently called his name, tears suddenly flooding her eyes, dripping onto his collar, creating layers of dark stains.

The bullet had torn through his trench coat and shirt at his left chest, deeply denting the bulletproof vest underneath.

He simply smiled, pointing at his chest with a hand, his voice very soft: "Here, it doesn't hurt; it's not like outside when I heard the gunshot, that hurt."

After he finished speaking in a halting manner, he paused. His pale lips curled into a faint smile, as if to show he was okay.

Zhen Ai's heart felt like it was torn open, the pain making her tears flow even more fiercely. The handgun was pressed so close to his chest; even with a bulletproof vest, a few of his ribs must have been broken by the gun's impact.

Otherwise, he wouldn't be in such pain that his face turned white.

He was even smiling!

The heat from outside surged in waves.

Zhen Ai wiped her tears, "What if it catches fire and burns you to death?"

"If I burn into charcoal, I can purify the air!" He unexpectedly made such a poor joke. After saying that, he forced himself to stand up immediately.

Zhen Ai saw him biting his jaw in silence, but cold sweat was clearly forming on his forehead. Her heart ached terribly, and just as she was about to say something, King pulled her: "If you don't want him to burn to death, hurry up!"

Zhen Ai was pushed by King's gun, holding her injured arm, glancing back at Yan Su with tear-filled eyes. The sound of the fire truck hadn't yet arrived; the fire grew larger, leaping wildly like a red curtain.

He stood before the curtain of flames, his face pale, looking at her with a deep, affectionate smile at the corners of his lips.

That gaze seemed to say, Ai, we will both make it out alive!

#

Zhen Ai was quickly taken to the vault on the underground level, the way clear and unobstructed. King opened various password doors effortlessly. Zhen Ai had already figured out what was happening. They were definitely being supported by S.P.A. The target was perhaps her safe. She had known all along that the items in the safe would bait them.

In the empty and quiet corridor, Zhen Ai and Amper walked ahead, with King following closely behind with his gun. The three of them walked in a disjointed rhythm.

When they reached the safe, Zhen Ai said little and quickly opened it, casually reaching in to grab something.

"I'll get it!" King barked fiercely, worried that Zhen Ai might cause trouble.

Zhen Ai slowly withdrew her hand and stepped back.

Seeing King leaning in to grab something, Zhen Ai suddenly darted behind Amper, wrapping her left arm around her neck and pressing the knife against her throat with her right hand.

Amper transformed into a completely different person, extremely calm, not screaming at all.

King, noticing the movement behind him, was too late to react.

Zhen Ai's eyes were as dark as a black hole: "Don't even think about raising your gun at me; if you move, I will pierce your sister's throat."

A trace of ferocity flashed across King's face, as if he wanted to devour her, but he held back, not moving at all.

Instead, Amper lightly chuckled, "I didn't expect you to be so vigilant; you even hid a knife in the safe. That was my oversight. I also didn't expect you to be so clever, figuring out our relationship."

"It's you who made it too obvious!" Zhen Ai's tone was icy cold as if frozen, completely different from her earlier indifference.

"You are the first to openly challenge him, and he didn't even make an example out of you. During the game, he was uninterested and lacked enthusiasm, yet he cared deeply about your emotions, looking at your expression time and again."

That expression was the purest happiness and affection, unrelated to romance. It was like Zhen Ai's brother, wholeheartedly trying to satisfy any of her wishes, big or small.

"Amper, your expression was certainly very into it; sometimes crazy, sometimes intense, yet you didn't show fear. Also, when that guy got injured, Suki helped to press the wound. You were afraid of dirtying your hands, yet wanted to see his painful expression for a bit longer…"

Suddenly, there was a sharp sound, "Zhi." It was abrupt, with no further reaction.

Amper jumped, pressing the button on the small object in her hand again, producing another "Zhi."

Still, nothing happened, and both Amper and King were incredulous.

Zhen Ai cooperatively let out a soft sound: "Hiss~~~" leaning close to Amper's ear, sneering, "Didn't the person you arranged for you warn you? A stun baton of this level won't work on me." She twisted Amper in a different direction, glaring at King, "Put down the gun and give me the stuff."

King gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with malice. Zhen Ai exerted a bit of pressure, and the knife cut through Amper's skin. In anger, King threw the gun on the ground and handed Zhen Ai a small piece of gold from his hand.

The latter snatched the chain.

In that instant, King suddenly yanked the chain, instantly gripping Zhen Ai's arm tightly. With a strong pull, her injured arm felt as if it were being torn apart, sending waves of unbearable pain through her.

At the same time, Amper exchanged glances with King and violently twisted Zhen Ai's right wrist, breaking free from her grip and forcing her down onto the floor.

Blood immediately poured out from the wound on her left arm, staining the floor in an instant. Zhen Ai was in so much pain that she nearly passed out.

Amper knelt on her, pressing her neck tightly, and chuckled, "He did remind me that your right hand has no strength."

Zhen Ai was taken aback, then laughed, "He? Ha, did he personally arrange things to catch me? With just the two of you, it seems you don't have that ability!"

"He didn't arrange it personally; he came himself," Amper said word by word, sensing Zhen Ai's body stiffening unexpectedly. She leaned closer to Zhen Ai with a gleeful laugh, "He's among those hostages; didn't you notice?"

Zhen Ai's breath began to quicken. He, up there? Then... she suddenly felt an ominous premonition in her heart but desperately resisted thinking about it.

But Amper cruelly made it clear, "Oh, you were so worried about that man called S.A. He saw everything. Do you think he would kill him? What a pity, that S.A. was at least interrupted by my brother, and he didn't even need to compete; it was a direct K.O. Ah, what a shame for such a handsome face."

Zhen Ai lay motionless on the ground, silent as if asleep, as if she hadn't heard anything or felt anything.

Amper continued to taunt her, laughing softly, "If he dies, will you be sad?"

The person pressed to the ground still showed no reaction.

King picked up his gun and approached, "Don't waste time talking to her! Hand over the things and the person; we'll complete our last transaction. Hurry up; this woman is troublesome. If anything goes wrong, we'll all die."

As he spoke, he bent down to pull at the golden chain in Zhen Ai's hand, but she suddenly grabbed him.

A futile struggle!

King impatiently shook her off. If it weren't for that person insisting on live captives, he would have loved to beat her into a pulp... Was there something that pricked him earlier? It hurt a bit... no, it hurt a lot.

King raised his wrist to reveal a blue needle mark.

"What did you do to me…" Before he finished speaking, the handgun dropped to the ground.

"Ah!!!!" A chilling scream echoed through the underground vault, a wail as if claws were tearing at the heart.

Amper turned in shock; the normally taciturn and indifferent man was now curled up on the ground, writhing like a big bug.

"Qiao!" Amper called her brother's real name, lunging forward, only to be horrified.

King's eyes, nose, mouth, and even ears were bleeding profusely. His once robust face was covered in dense black spots, and the hand that had been pricked was rapidly turning black and rotting.

King writhed in excruciating pain, unable to speak fully, his large frame curled into a ball as he rolled on the ground, screaming in agony, each cry tugging at the nerves of those who heard.

"What did you do?" Amper glared at Zhen Ai, who looked pale and was evidently shocked by King's torment. But her gaze quickly shifted to the gun on the ground. Just as she was about to grab it, it rolled quickly into the adjacent corridor.

Amper pulled out the gun she carried, firing a bullet. It was her gun that had killed Jack from behind just now.

As Amper got up, King on the ground reached for her foot, pleading through gritted teeth, "Amber, kill me! Kill me!"

Amper crouched down, cradling his blood-soaked head, her eyes red as she gritted her teeth, "No, wait for me to kill that bitch. Once I kill her, I'll get you out. I'll take you to the hospital. Even if I go to jail, I'll save your life."

"It's useless! Ah!!!" King cried out in unbearable pain, bashing his head against the ground, "This is a new type of virus researched by the organization; there's no cure! And you can't kill her. If you do, the boss won't spare you! Take this."

He extended his bloodied, rotten hand, handing the gold chain to her. "We've completed half of our mission; exchange it for your life. From now on, don't do this anymore. Take the money and live well."

"No!" Amper clutched the chain, crying, "It's all my fault, all my fault for being reckless. I caused this; I caused this!"

"No, I don't blame you. I just hope this is the last time you listen to me: don't kill her, protect yourself." After King finished speaking, he suddenly screamed in agony, lunging to grab the gun from Amper's hand. "Bang!" The sound of a bullet shot through his own head.

...

Amper was splattered with blood, and her beloved brother lay in a pool of blood, blackened like a lump of mud.

The man who had endured countless trials in the army, who had gritted his teeth against various tortures while being captured, couldn't bear the torment and committed suicide in less than two minutes.

Amper showed no emotion on her face. Calmly, she stood up, gun in hand, walking step by step toward the corridor next door. Today, she was determined to torture the bitch who caused her brother's death, one bullet at a time, one knife at a time!

She quickly turned down the corridor, where countless password boxes lined the walls, illuminated in white light, but Zhen Ai was nowhere to be seen.

There were three corridors inside. She moved a few steps, checking each in turn, but all were empty, save for drops of blood on the floor.

She knew that Zhen Ai was standing around the corner at the end.

Amper took off her shoes and quietly approached barefoot. She didn't want to waste time with Zhen Ai, circling around the vault walls. If she could sneak to the other end silently, then no matter which way Zhen Ai ran, she could stand at the end of the corridor and shoot her legs out from under her.

Holding her breath, she edged closer to the end.

But no one told her that Zhen Ai had exceptionally keen hearing.

The moment she saw Zhen Ai's shadow, she abruptly pulled back the safety and pressed the trigger. However, Zhen Ai had anticipated her move. The instant Amper aimed, Zhen Ai was quicker; she reached out with her left hand, gripping the back of Amper's gun tightly and pushing it forcefully.

With a clang, the magazine fell to the ground and landed in Zhen Ai's right hand.

She kicked Amper away, dashed into the corridor, tossed the magazine into her own password box, and slammed the door shut.

Turning around, she quickly went for King's gun on the ground.

Amper rushed over and grabbed Zhen Ai's legs, pulling her down. She got up and delivered a powerful punch to Zhen Ai's abdomen before pouncing like a leopard to seize her brother's gun.

Zhen Ai, fueled by an unknown strength, wrapped her arms around Amper's waist and forcefully tossed her against the wall, then turned back to grab the gun. Amper lunged at her again, and they both seized the gun simultaneously.

Amper's face twisted as she clung tightly to the barrel of the gun. Though Zhen Ai's left arm was injured, she managed to grab the trigger and fired repeatedly, "Bang, bang, bang, bang!" Five shots discharged cleanly from the gun.

Small dents appeared on the vault opposite, smoke swirling around.

"You think I can't kill you?!" Amper roared, suddenly resembling a frenzied lioness. She grasped Zhen Ai's wounded right arm and executed a brutal shoulder throw, slamming her whole body against the password wall.

Zhen Ai crashed heavily to the ground, pain radiating through her body. After several attempts to struggle, she barely managed to sit up. Amper, screaming in fury, charged at her and delivered a kick…

But just then, a series of deafening explosions erupted all around, shaking the earth violently. The basement trembled as if it were a house trapped in an hourglass.

In less than a second, the steel walls crumbled like cardboard, the ceiling caving in.

The heavy metal walls shattered into pieces, crashing down with a deafening roar, and Amper was knocked over, instantly buried beneath the rubble.

In contrast, Zhen Ai, having a lower center of gravity, saw the basement collapsing and quickly ducked and ran along the doorway to escape.