The night wind blew, carrying the chill of early autumn and the lingering scent of gasoline from the abandoned gas station.
He looked down at the terminal in his hand—the device that once made him feel omnipotent was now as silent as a cold brick.
It wasn’t a problem with the terminal, nor was it the signal or any technical glitch.
It had been cut off unilaterally.
The organization had severed contact with them.
“Qin Zhong’an...”
Liu Junnan leaned against the car door, hands in his pockets, looking up at the pitch-black night sky.
“Don’t you understand yet?”
“From the moment Boss Mu made that call, we became discarded pawns.”
Qin Zhong’an’s body swayed as if he had been struck by something heavy.
“That’s not possible...” He was still struggling, his voice lacking conviction. “The organization wouldn’t...”
“Wouldn’t what?” Liu Junnan looked down at him. “Wouldn’t abandon us?”
“We’ve done so much for the organization, how could they—”
“Done so much?”
Liu Junnan interrupted him, his lips curling into a bleak smile.
“Do you really think the organization cares about that?”
Qin Zhong’an’s hands hung limp at his sides. The terminal slipped from his palm and hit the ground with a soft thud.
Liu Junnan didn't look at Qin Zhong’an. He felt nothing regarding the fact that the organization had abandoned them.
Because his current master was Su Wan.
He leaned against the car door and closed his eyes, replaying everything that had happened recently in his mind.
Suddenly, a question occurred to him.
The organization didn't know that his mental power had been completely exhausted during his fight with Su Wan.
In the organization’s assessment, he was a Level 2 Peak Sensory-type Ability User who could detect agents from the Special Abnormal Affairs Bureau in advance and hold his own in a direct confrontation.
Therefore, in the organization’s plan, tonight’s script should have gone like this—
Agents from the Special Abnormal Affairs Bureau arrive in Jiangcheng.
He receives a tip from Qian Musheng and senses the targets approaching.
He issues a warning and evacuates with Qin Zhong’an.
The Bureau agents give chase...
He uses his sensing ability to evade capture. If he can't evade them, he engages them directly.
The people sent by the Bureau would most likely be Level 2 as well; he might not win, but he could at least stall for time.
Then, during the pursuit, he and Qin Zhong’an would gradually lead the pursuers away from Jiangcheng.
They would be hunted and flee the entire way, drawing the Bureau agents further and further away...
Liu Junnan opened his eyes, his gaze clear.
He seemed to understand now.
The organization had two goals in sending him to Jiangcheng.
The overt mission was to find the mysterious Ability User who might exist in the city.
The covert mission was to act as bait to draw the Special Abnormal Affairs Bureau’s attention away from Jiangcheng.
As for whether he could escape, whether he would be caught, what he would confess after being captured, or what his ultimate fate would be...
The organization didn't care at all.
Because he knew very little to begin with.
He was just a Sensory-type Ability User—a tool, a pawn that could be discarded at any moment.
Leaning against the car door, Liu Junnan suddenly laughed.
Qin Zhong’an stood two meters away, looking at him blankly, unable to understand what he was laughing about.
Liu Junnan spoke, his voice raspy,
“The organization didn't send us to Jiangcheng just to track down that potential Ability User from the start.”
“In Jiangcheng, that project... that land... is what the organization truly cares about.”
His voice was very low, like venom squeezed from between his teeth.
“The organization made such a big scene that it was impossible for the Special Abnormal Affairs Bureau not to know. It was only a matter of time before they sent people here.”
Qin Zhong’an’s face was now as white as paper.
“You... you mean...”
Liu Junnan said each word deliberately, “From beginning to end, we were bait.”
“The organization sent us to Jiangcheng ostensibly to find an Ability User, but in reality, it was to lure the Bureau’s eyes away.”
“That project is about to start, and the organization doesn't want the Bureau noticing any anomalies in Jiangcheng.”
“So, they needed someone to make a commotion here, attract the Bureau agents, and then lead them away.”
Qin Zhong’an’s lips were trembling.
From the day he joined Yuansou, he knew that in this organization, nothing was exempt from being sacrificed.
Everyone was a pawn.
In the darkness, neither of them spoke.
Liu Junnan pulled the car door open and sat back in the passenger seat.
“Let’s go.”
“If we don't leave now, the Bureau agents really will catch up.”
Qin Zhong’an slowly turned his head, his gaze hollow and numb.
He leaned over to pick up the terminal, sat back in the driver’s seat, and started the car.
By the time Su Wan returned to Room 102 in Jinxiu Garden, the clock on the wall had just passed 2:00 AM.
She sat down on the edge of the bed, feeling a wave of exhaustion.
The amount of information she had gathered tonight was staggering.
Liu Junnan, Yuansou, the Guixu Project, the Special Abnormal Affairs Bureau, the Abyss Seats...
That project, that land, and the truth behind the Su family’s downfall...
All these mysteries were waiting for her to unravel them.
Since there was nothing urgent on Blue Star for the moment, she decided to return to the Apocalyptic Plane to increase her strength as quickly as possible.
Su Wan immersed her consciousness and tapped the puppet icon on the system panel.
【Host Puppet charging complete. Do you wish to retrieve it?】
“Retrieve.”
In a flash of light, the puppet appeared before Su Wan.
“Master.”
Its voice was identical to hers, and even the coldness in its tone was replicated perfectly.
“While I am away, you will handle things here on Blue Star.”
“The usual rules apply: keep a low profile and do not actively involve yourself with the outside world.”
The puppet nodded. “Understood, Master.”
Su Wan turned, about to issue the travel command—
A faint ripple of consciousness stirred in her mind.
【Master.】
It was Liu Junnan.
【Qin Zhong’an and I have successfully evacuated, but there is something I must report to you.】
【Yuansou has abandoned us.】
Su Wan’s brow twitched slightly.
Liu Junnan recounted the night’s events and his deductions to Su Wan in detail.
【...The organization has cut all ties with us.】
【They sent us to Jiangcheng ostensibly to find an Ability User, but in truth...】
【We were bait.】
【I suspect that after the Bureau agents are led away by me, Yuansou will send others to Jiangcheng.】
Su Wan’s pupils constricted slightly.
She leaned against the window frame, her gaze falling on the heavy darkness outside as her fingers rhythmically tapped the windowsill.
Bait to attract the Special Abnormal Affairs Bureau’s attention...
That project, that land, and all the truths she wanted to know were hidden within Yuansou’s next moves.
It seemed she couldn't leave just yet.
Su Wan looked up, her gaze turning sharp.
【Liu Junnan, I previously blocked the Bureau agents from tracking your location. Now, I will expose your movements to them once more.】
【We will play along with their scheme and lure those two agents out of Jiangcheng.】
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