Realization dawned upon me–it was the Jiangbei Daggers! I had underestimated their courage and cunningness.
Right now, we were twenty meters below ground. It was unlikely anyone would come to save us. Beside me, Song Xingchen struggled to keep himself upright, supporting his body with his sword.
"Did you kill the Dog Trainer?" demanded the Crazy Six Tao Chef.
"If I said no, would you believe me?"
The fact was, even if I revealed the truth, the organization wouldn't believe that the Blade Master killed the Dog Trainer. Unfortunately, I would have to shoulder the blame.
But even if it never happened, good and evil were on the opposite sides. Since the organization regarded me as a thorn in the flesh, they wouldn’t spare me. At present, I was facing a death sentence.
"Kill me or cut my flesh, just get over with it!" I coldly spat.
The Crazy Six Tao Chef burst into manic laughter, "You really don't understand my art. Revenge for my colleague or loyalty to the organization isn’t something I care about. What I want is your intelligent brain. I’m going to elevate it to the next level by using the best cooking methods. Then I’ll taste and relish it as I integrate your wisdom with my body!"
Even gritting my teeth became impossible with the weakness that washed over me. Flames of hatred smoldered in my eyes as I stared venomously at him, though my heart was filled with helplessness.
The Crazy Six Tao Chef gestured to his men, "Grab him but don't hurt him or the taste will be affected."
Two men in black strode towards us followed by loud exclamations. Next thing I knew, there were two weapons stuck in their throats. The men covered their wound painfully and crumbled to the ground.
"That’s impossible!" shouted the Crazy Six Tao Chef.
When I turned around, I watched Song Xingchen slowly rise to his feet as he drew his sword, the sharp blade gleaming beneath the lights.
"Kill him!"
At the Crazy Six Tao Chef’s orders, his bodyguards charged towards Song Xingchen who deftly jumped on the table and into the air. His sword diagonally sliced the frontmost bodyguard from the right shoulder to the left rib, and moved on to sever another man's head. Before the head could touch the floor, Song Xingchen had eliminated the third bodyguard.
Song Xingchen’s white figure resembled a snow lion. Wherever his blade went, blood splattered like flashing sheets of warm raindrops. I hoped to keep one of them alive for questioning but my lips wouldn’t move.
Fortunately, Song Xingchen wasn’t lost in his murderous desire, leaving two men behind who fainted after being pounded on the head with his hilt. Meanwhile, the Crazy Six Tao Chef had escaped during the fight. Without further delay, Song Xingchen chased after him.
Heart in my throat, I remained alone in the living room filled with blood and severed bodies.
A while later, Song Xingchen returned, removed the gas mask from the unconscious bodyguards, placed one on my face, and another on himself.
With that, he pulled me out of the room since my limbs were still weak. Gathering all my energy, I asked, "How did you do that?"
"Turtle Breath!"
It suddenly dawned upon me that he had been holding his breath as soon as the poisonous gas was released.
At least five minutes had passed from the moment I had been gassed until the Crazy Six Tao Chef came in with his bodyguards, chatted with me, and was attacked by Song Xingchen.
How long could a person hold their breath?
Three minutes? Five minutes?
In fact, the world record was nine minutes and thirty-seven seconds, a feat achieved by a Russian man who managed to hold his breath under an Arctic glacier without any equipment.
Apparently, Yue Fei had a frogman general named Ruan Jilong, who was able to stay underwater for a long time, and this man practiced the Turtle Breath Technique.
Although Song Xingchen wasn’t skilled at Turtle Breath and only practiced it during his breathing exercise, it was more than enough training for him to hold his breath for ten minutes, which he later informed me.
As soon as Song Xingchen helped me out of the underground facility, I urged, "Just leave me here. That guy couldn’t have gotten far. Get him!"
Dropping everything, Song Xingchen ran after the man. Meanwhile, I removed my gas mask and inhaled the fresh air. With the detoxification of the Mind Clearing Pill, I finally managed to move.
A while later, Song Xingchen reported, "He escaped! He had a car."
"What sort of vehicle?" I asked anxiously.
"I’ve contacted Ms. Huang so the police can intercept him on the road." With that, he dropped to one knee.
"What’s the matter?" I asked in confusion.
"I deliberately pretended to be affected by the gas because I was trying to draw information from the man. But I’ve put you in danger. I’m sorry," Song Xingchen hung his head.
I smiled, "No, you did the right thing! You’re not only my bodyguard, but also a member of the special team. I think you deserve a reward!"
As for what the reward was, I reckoned a bonus from the bureau would suffice, despite the fact that Song Xingchen seemed uninterested in money.
Acting quickly, Xiaotao informed the traffic and civilian police, ordering them to intercept a black off-road vehicle. We waited here till about half an hour later when Xiaotao pulled up in front of us. Seeing me sitting listlessly on the ground, she chastised, "Geez, you get into trouble the moment I take my eyes off you! Are you injured?"
"I’m fine thanks to Song Xingchen. Otherwise, I might have become someone else’s meal." I smiled bitterly.
Upon greeting the officers on site, Xiaotao ordered for the two bodyguards who were knocked unconscious to be escorted to the station and interrogated as soon as they regained consciousness. As I had expected, the technical team vomited their guts out when they found the ingredients stored in the freezer by our murderer.
I asked Xiaotao if there was any progress, to which she replied, "Wang Yuanchao has been busy. He’s searched all the registered bodyguard companies in the city but found nothing suspicious. As for the missing persons, we’re still looking. What about you?"
After I briefly explained my findings, Xiaotao queried, "Is it the organization again?"
"No!" I shook my head. "I don't think so."
"Why?"
Both the Dog Trainer and the Infernal Bone Trader had an air of dominance every time they stepped into the room. Additionally, they were prepared to handle almost any situation which left their opponents at a loss.
Compared to them, this bald man who called himself the Crazy Six Tao Chef was weak in both strategy and aura, and Song Xingchen easily defeated him. If the organization was this inept, it would have been long uprooted.
However, these would remain conjectures until I caught the real murderer.
At this time, Xiaotao received a phone call and exclaimed, "Damn it, he got away!"
"What?" I wrinkled my brow.
"The traffic police found the car on the side of the road in Fengxiang. The murderer abandoned his car and fled. I’ve instructed the officers to drive the car back to the station for further investigation."
When we returned to the station, the murderer's car was already parked in the compound. Putting on gloves and shoe covers, I climbed into the car and used seaweed ash to extract fingerprints from the steering wheel. I immediately noticed how fuzzy the fingerprints were.
In the glove compartment was a box of inhibitory drugs and half a bottle of mineral water which must have been consumed by the murderer. There was a chance we could obtain his DNA.
"This man leads by example. He has been consuming human flesh for so long that the toxins from human flesh have invaded his nerves so his hands often shake!"
Yue Fei (1103-1142), Song Dynasty patriot and general.