Yin Ji’s speed as a Level 3 Mid Stage erupted fully, the concrete pavement beneath his feet splintering into fine cracks as he shot forward like an arrow from a bow, racing toward the direction indicated by the red light.
Yin Ji could feel that the variable was not far ahead.
He could even imagine that if he were just a little faster, just a bit more, he would finally see what this variable—the one that had kept Yuansou on edge for an entire year—actually looked like.
Then, a flash of white light exploded in his mind.
The pain came without warning, like a red-hot steel needle piercing through his brow, traversing his entire skull and reaching the back of his head.
Yin Ji’s footsteps came to a sudden, jarring halt.
His eyes went wide, his pupils trembling violently; his lips moved as if to speak, but only a muffled, incoherent groan escaped.
Immediately after, his knees buckled, and he collapsed forward.
The concrete pavement rushed up to meet him, and he didn’t even have time to raise his hands to protect his face.
Before his consciousness flickered out, the last thing he saw was the dark red light on his Tracker Watch slowly fading into darkness.
A Level 3 Mid Stage, Deputy Director of the Yuansou External Liaison Department, equipped with multiple specialized artifacts like the Tracker Watch…
Yet, in the face of that invisible Mental Shock, he hadn’t lasted even a single second.
Su Wan did not look back.
Her pace was incredibly fast, her figure moving like a wisp of smoke scattered by the night wind.
As she hurried along, Su Wan spread her mental power to its limit, perceiving everything on the outskirts of Jiangcheng.
She noticed that after Yin Ji fell, the Yuansou members closing in from all directions suddenly showed obvious signs of confusion in their movement patterns.
Their blockade hadn’t fully formed yet; almost everyone had stopped in their tracks, lost and uncertain.
A smirk tugged at the corner of Su Wan’s mouth.
Without Yin Ji’s guidance, those hunters rushing in from every side were now like headless flies.
Meanwhile, the true prey had already vanished into the night without a trace.
...
On the west side of the industrial zone, inside a black box truck.
Five people sat in the back, led by a man named Li Xunzhou, a Level 3 Late Stage and the Team Leader of the Guixu Project Security Department Operations Squad.
He was a tall, imposing man who sat there like a silent mountain. His face was resolute, and an old scar over his brow bone stood out sharply under the dim light of the cabin.
At this moment, he was looking down at a palm-sized tracking terminal in his hand.
On the screen, the light representing Yin Ji had completely disappeared a few minutes ago.
“Captain,” a young team member sitting opposite him spoke up, his voice carrying a hint of uncertainty, “did something happen to Deputy Director Yin?”
“Stand by for now…” Li Xunzhou said, his voice steady.
...
To the south, on the top floor of an abandoned factory building.
Two figures stood side by side at the edge of the roof, the night wind whipping their clothes into a loud rustle.
The person on the left pressed a hand to his earpiece, listened for a long time, and then shook his head.
“I can’t reach him.”
The person on the right remained silent for a few seconds before muttering a low curse.
“What do we do now?”
“Wait.” The person on the left let go of his earpiece and gazed out at the silent industrial zone in the distance. “No orders have come from above. We can’t move.”
Everyone knew that Yin Ji had lost contact.
Without his guidance, they didn’t even know which direction the variable had fled.
This carefully planned “Control Variable” plan had ended before it could truly begin.
Under the cover of night, Su Wan returned silently to the Gu residence.
The status of the body double puppet was perfectly normal, still lying in the bed of the East Wing’s side room, asleep.
The servants were still at the door; one was dozing in a chair in the hallway, while the other leaned against a nearby pillar, looking down at a phone.
Su Wan used Shadow Stealth to slip back into the room.
She put away the body double puppet, took off her athletic wear to change back into her pajamas, and lay down on the bed.
Gu Huaian returned to the Gu residence almost immediately after Su Wan.
When he emerged from the secret passage, his coat still carried the chill of the night wind.
His double stood up respectfully and stepped aside.
Gu Huaian waved a hand, and the double silently left the study.
He walked over to the desk and sat down, flipping open the book the double had been “reading.” His eyes fell on the pages, but he wasn't actually looking at the words.
The events of tonight replayed repeatedly in his mind.
After Yin Ji, Meng Changhe, and Wen Ruoan had left in the car, he should have returned directly to the Gu residence.
But for some reason, he had stopped the car halfway and sat inside for a long time.
It wasn't until the night wind had blown away the last trace of warmth that he had finally started the car and come home.
It was now three in the morning.
Gu Huaian leaned back against his chair and closed his eyes, his brow furrowed into a slight knot.
He always felt…
That something wasn't quite right.
But he couldn't put his finger on what it was.
...
The next day.
Before Su Wan had even woken up, the servant guarding the door knocked.
“Miss Su, Miss Su?” the servant’s voice was low and cautious. “Are you awake?”
Su Wan opened her eyes.
The daylight outside was already bright, and sunlight poured through the window frames, casting a patch of warm light and shadow on the floor.
She glanced at the wall clock—it was eight in the morning.
Everything that had happened last night flashed through her consciousness.
“What is it?” She sat up, her voice raspy with sleep.
“The Eldest Young Master is here,” the servant’s voice came from outside. “He’s been waiting in the courtyard for over an hour, saying he must see you.”
It was Gu Huaiyu.
Su Wan paused slightly.
“Let him in.” Su Wan tidied her hair.
“Yes.” The servant responded, and the sound of footsteps faded away.
Su Wan walked to the window and pushed it open, just in time to see Gu Huaiyu standing in the small garden of the East Wing.
He was wearing a thin, dark grey coat today. His hair had been styled, and though his face was still somewhat pale, he looked to be in decent spirits.
Hearing the sound of the window opening, he snapped his head up, and their eyes met across the small garden.
Su Wan saw his eyes instantly turn red.
A moment later, Gu Huaiyu was led into the room.
The moment he entered, he hurried over to Su Wan and looked her over several times from head to toe.
“Wanwan, are you all right?” His voice was hoarse, carrying the fatigue of a sleepless night.
“Are you hurt? Did Gu Huaian give you a hard time?”
Su Wan shook her head.
“That’s good…” Gu Huaiyu seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, his shoulders slumping slightly.
“I heard you were at the Gu residence after I woke up in the middle of the night. I wanted to come over right then, but it was too late…”
He paused, as if remembering something, and a heavy surge of anger boiled in his eyes.
“That bastard Gu Huaian—”
His voice was very low, sounding as if it were squeezed through his teeth.
“Did he force you to come here? What right does he have?! Who does he think he is?!”
Su Wan said nothing, only watching him.
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