Chapter 84

Chapter 84

All day, Xie Yunshen was staring at Yan Shiqi.

He watched as Yan Shiqi calmly descended the stairs and sat at the dining table with his usual steady demeanor, his hair habitually combed back, like a pine tree that stood even taller after weathering storms.

Even under Xie Yunshen's blatant, unwavering stare, Yan Shiqi maintained his composure and finished his breakfast with perfect poise.

Xie Yunshen, on the other hand, would occasionally look troubled, sometimes lowering his head and frowning in thought.

"What's wrong with you today? Are you possessed?" Yi Wuyi asked him as they left the dining room.

"Yesterday, I discovered a shocking secret."

"What?"

Xie Yunshen hesitated but kept it to himself. What if it was just hearsay? He didn't want to be the one spreading rumors.

"Forget it, I'll tell you once I'm sure."

There were four days left before their departure to Country C.

Xie Yunshen was still hung up on the matter of Gao Langdong. He refreshed Shang Guanhong's feed; there were no new posts, but the location tag was still pinned to that abandoned building.

Late at night, in his room, Xie Yunshen took out the Black Impermanence gear.

No matter what, he was going to settle this tonight.

"Where are you going?"

Xie Yunshen jumped and turned around. "Old Five, how do you walk so quietly?"

Yi Wuyi entered the room. "You were just too focused. Are you going to rescue Gao Langdong?" He glanced at the gear in Xie Yunshen's hand.

Xie Yunshen zipped his jacket. "Tonight, before I return, you absolutely must keep this a secret from Mr. Yan."

"Where's your phone?"

Xie Yunshen pulled out his phone and handed it over. "Why?"

Yi Wuyi took the phone and then the set of clothes from his hand.

"You're coming with me?" Xie Yunshen was still smiling.

Yi Wuyi abruptly backed out of the room with the items, closed the door, and locked it from the outside.

Xie Yunshen yelled in alarm, "Old Five, what are you doing?"

"I'll go instead," Yi Wuyi's voice came muffled from the other side. "You need to stay and protect Mr. Yan."

Xie Yunshen stood frozen for a second, then slammed his hand against the door. "Are you crazy? Come back! Or I'll break the door!"

He pressed his ear against the door to listen, but there was no sound from outside.

His phone was taken, and his gear was gone.

Xie Yunshen yanked hard, and the doorknob came off. He kicked the door twice, making the ceiling light sway, but the thick metal security door didn't budge.

"Old Five? Old Five! Don't go! I won't go, okay?" Xie Yunshen ran to the window.

In the darkness, he saw Yi Wuyi's motorcycle racing out the manor gates.

Old Five, you're insane.

The only way for Xie Yunshen to leave was through the window. He used pliers to first remove the security grate, then took out a leather belt, looped it around two solid steel bars, crossed and twisted the belt, the veins in his hands standing out.

The manor was built like a fortress. It took Xie Yunshen a long time to just manage to bend two bars.

From the third-floor window, using a bedsheet to cushion the drop, he jumped to the ground.

By then, twenty minutes had passed since Yi Wuyi left.

"Old Five, please don't be impulsive..." The fierce wind slapped against Xie Yunshen's helmet as his motorcycle, like a crazed leopard, streaked past under the city lights on the wet ground.

The abandoned building loomed in the night, looking down at him like a shadowy beast.

Xie Yunshen quickly ascended the dust-covered stairs. A figure happened to stumble down from above, and Xie Yunshen instinctively grabbed him by the collar.

It was Gao Langdong, his face covered in blood and dirt, looking at Xie Yunshen in terror.

Xie Yunshen pulled him onto the stairs.

"Dr. Gao, where's Old Five?"

Gao Langdong opened his mouth and shook his head. Xie Yunshen's heart sank as he saw the blood and filth filling his mouth—clearly, he had been tortured.

Xie Yunshen pointed to a hidden corner. "Wait for me there!"

A dull thud came from upstairs.

Xie Yunshen rushed up and saw Yi Wuyi lying under a pile of cement bags.

Hoodie held a triangular dagger, stabbing toward Yi Wuyi's heart.

Xie Yunshen kicked a cement bag, hitting Hoodie, but the spike still pierced Yi Wuyi's chest, blood spurting out.

Hoodie twisted his wrist, the triangular blade carving a circle inside Yi Wuyi's body, causing blood to pour out like a fountain.

A swift side kick forced Hoodie to lean back and stand up.

Hoodie stood, looking at Xie Yunshen. "Finally here."

Xie Yunshen stepped forward with a quick kick, forcing him back, away from Yi Wuyi.

Hoodie wielded his dagger with incredible skill—stabbing low from the right, thrusting upward from the left—repeatedly grazing Xie Yunshen's heart.

His close-quarters combat skills were also unbelievably fast: left front kick, whip hook, jump-step elbow, leg chop to the head, leaving no room to breathe.

Xie Yunshen looked at him and pulled out a coil of fine, resilient, glowing wire from his pocket.

"A garrote wire," Hoodie said, somewhat surprised.

Two minutes later, Hoodie was still suppressed by Xie Yunshen's unexpected attack angles. His right hand was nearly severed by the wire, forcing him to roll away to avoid it, looking disheveled and shocked by the opponent's seasoned experience.

Xie Yunshen only wanted to end the fight quickly and take Yi Wuyi away. He leaped forward with a knee strike, followed by consecutive elbow strikes.

As Hoodie was forced to retreat repeatedly, Xie Yunshen's garrote wire was about to wrap around his neck.

Hoodie was greatly alarmed. He thrust his dagger into the wire but couldn't cut through the thin blade-like thread; he could only pull on it with force.

During the stalemate, Hoodie repeatedly drove his elbows into his gut, trying to force Xie Yunshen back, but Xie Yunshen took it all.

The wire-thin blade was about to cut into Hoodie's neck.

Bang! A gunshot rang out, and Xie Yunshen hit the deck and rolled away.

He had been keeping an eye on Shangguan Hong nearby, dodging as soon as he saw him draw his gun, narrowly avoiding a headshot.

Bang! Bang! Two more shots rang out, the bullets nearly grazing Xie Yunshen's head.

Relying on years of experience, Xie Yunshen evaded them by a hair's breadth.

He rolled to Yi Wuyi's side, using cement bags as temporary cover, hoisted Yi Wuyi onto his back, and in one swift motion, leaped from the stairwell down to the next floor.

"Old Five... Old Five... Hang in there."

His back felt hot and wet; he could tell Yi Wuyi had become a blood-soaked mess, his clothes completely drenched.

Shangguan Hong kept firing from behind. Xie Yunshen leapt down the stairs flight after flight to evade, carrying Yi Wuyi as he ran out of the building.

Gao Langdong hadn't come out yet.

But at this point, Xie Yunshen couldn't afford to worry about him. He wrapped his loose jacket around Yi Wuyi from behind, tying the sleeves around his waist to keep him from falling.

He twisted the throttle all the way, weaving frantically through the city until he reached the hospital.

"Old Five, sit tight for now. I'll go find Dr. Gao and bring him back."

Yi Wuyi had already lost consciousness and couldn't respond. Xie Yunshen gave his hand a squeeze.

Watching Yi Wuyi being wheeled into the operating room, Xie Yunshen left the hospital.

He rode his motorcycle back to the building without turning on the headlights and found Gao Langdong in the woods outside.

He had likely stumbled out of the building in the dark but was discovered by Shangguan Hong. When Xie Yunshen found him, there was a bloody hole in his leg, and he was soaked as if he'd just crawled out of water.

Xie Yunshen took Gao Langdong to the hospital and spotted Yan Shiqi standing outside Yi Wuyi's operating room.

"A Shen." Yan Shiqi looked at him with a grave expression, concern in his eyes.

For a moment, Xie Yunshen felt dazed. He slowly walked over, sat down beside him, and rubbed his forehead with both hands. "I'm sorry..."

Yan Shiqi stood beside him, pulling Xie Yunshen's head to rest against his chest.

"Will Old Five die?" Xie Yunshen's eyes were empty, reflecting the white walls.

Yan Shiqi patted his shoulder, but words of comfort felt too hollow to utter.

Xie Yunshen wrapped his arms around Yan Shiqi, burying his head in his chest, his eyes red.

Yan Shizhou, always impeccably dressed, rushed in wearing pajamas, stumbled at the corridor entrance, and picked himself up.

His face pale, he grabbed Yan Shiqi's sleeve, his voice shaking. "...Where's Fifth Brother?"

"Still in the operating room being resuscitated."

"Why? Why?" Yan Shizhou clutched Yan Shiqi's collar, looking lost and helpless.

Yan Shiqi looked at him. "All we can do now is wait for the outcome."

It wasn't until dawn that the operating room door finally opened. Seeing the doctor's exhausted and somber expression, Yan Shizhou lost the courage to step forward.

Yan Shiqi asked, "How is he?"

"The patient lost a lot of blood, suffered severe trauma near the heart, and has fractured ribs. After resuscitation, vital signs are stable for now, but he requires close observation in the ICU."

"Is he going to be okay?" Xie Yunshen asked anxiously.

"It's still uncertain."

"What do you mean?"

"If the patient can pull through the next twenty-four hours, he'll be considered out of critical danger."

Xie Yunshen said, "Can I go in to see him?"

"Yes."

Only Xie Yunshen and Yan Shiqi entered the intensive care unit, while Yan Shizhou remained frozen in place.

Xie Yunshen looked through the glass at Yi Wuyi, surrounded by various medical devices.

He couldn't utter a single word.

When they came out, Yan Shizhou was still sitting there, motionless.

Suddenly, the heart monitor alarm sounded, and doctors rushed in urgently.

Xie Yunshen turned to see the operating room lights turn on again, his breath catching.

Yan Shizhou's face was pale, his eyes fixed on the floor. On the shiny tiles, he saw his own blurred reflection, looking like a twisted black monster under the lights, unable to break free.

Two hours later, the surgery ended, and Yi Wuyi was wheeled out of the operating room.

Finally mustering the courage, Yan Shizhou looked up at the person lying on the surgical bed.

Yi Wuyi's eyes were tightly shut, his entire face nearly as pale as a corpse's, making it hard to distinguish his lips from his skin.

He wanted to reach out and touch him, but at the sight of the IV needles and the blood oxygen monitor, his heart wrenched, and tears silently fell.

Yan Shiqi signaled the nurse to stop. He leaned down and whispered into Yi Wuyi's ear, "Old Five, don't forget, your mission isn't finished yet."

Xie Yunshen felt that these words had an effect. He saw Yi Wuyi's eyebrows twitch slightly, ever so faintly.

Twelve hours later, Yi Wuyi woke up in the intensive care unit.

Xie Yunshen stood outside the glass and told him about it, sighing, "See, Old Five, you really are a natural-born workaholic."

Yi Wuyi, wearing an oxygen mask, could only smile at him, his eyes asking a question.

Xie Yunshen said, "Are you asking about Dr. Gao? He's fine. The doctor said he needs to stay for observation. But in two days, we're heading to Country C."

Sometimes, he wondered if Old Five was really a robot created by the Yans. Even now, he was still thinking about the family's affairs.

"Thanks to you, Dr. Gao didn't die." Xie Yunshen credited him with the success.

Yi Wuyi tried to speak.

"Alright, save your strength to recover," Xie Yunshen said with a smile.

Now, there were only two days left before their departure to Country C.

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Author's Note: I have a fever today and feel terrible, so the writing might feel a bit sluggish. Xie Yunshen will soon return to his original world.