BL Ch60

The Phantom sped along the mountain road like an arrow, as if all four wheels wanted to leave the ground and fly.

After taking a frantic phone call, Ji Lin was filled with worry. Yet, with them racing along a winding mountain road at night, a single mistake could send them through the guardrail to their deaths. He couldn’t help but remind the reckless Zhao behind the wheel, “Keep an eye out for any oncoming cars!”

Zhao was too focused to respond, flooring the gas pedal with the headlights and roadside lamps illuminating their path. “Don’t worry, Officer Ji! This whole mountain belongs to Young Master Yu! Aside from the cars from Mansion No. 1, there won’t be any traffic down here!”

“…”

It wasn’t the right time, but Ji Lin couldn’t help muttering that classic line to himself: The lives of the wealthy really are something else!

Meanwhile, inside Mansion No. 1, the scene was indeed unimaginable to any outsider:

Seeing Bai Zhao subdue Jiang Sheng, Zhou Yi immediately rushed to Yu Duqiu’s side, pulling out a military knife to cut through the nylon ropes binding him. He asked with a frown, “Why didn’t Xiao Bai shoot?”

Yu Duqiu rubbed his sore wrists, keeping his gaze on the two struggling figures. “He probably thought I’d be scared—idiot. Give me the gun.”

Zhou Yi handed it over at once. “This one fires nails instead of bullets, so its caliber is smaller. The wound on Xiao Bai’s arm shouldn’t be severe, but if he hits a vital spot… it could be fatal.”

In other words, Zhou Yi worried he might miss the shot.

After all, other than that wild shooting spree at a parking lot in America, no one had ever seen Yu Duqiu fire a gun and didn’t know if his aim was any good.

In such an unpredictable situation, even Zhou Yi couldn’t guarantee he’d hit his target in one shot.

Without a word, Yu Duqiu took the gun and strode toward the two men wrestling on the floor, shouting as he went, “Bai Zhao! Get out of the way!”

He sounded confident, but Zhou Yi noticed that Yu Duqiu’s gun hand was trembling slightly.

“Master—” Zhou Yi was about to intervene when the music hall’s grand doors suddenly burst open with a loud bang! slamming against the wall and rebounding.

Lou Baoguo tumbled in, acrobatically flipping to his feet. Taking in the scene of surrendering, unconscious, and struggling foes, he roared, “I knew it! You didn’t open the door for me because you wanted to steal the glory! Scheming old bachelor!”

Zhou Yi snorted with laughter. “If you could break it open yourself, why’d you need me? Quit blabbing and get to work!”

Lou Baoguo took stock of the situation in a flash, locking onto his target and shouting, “Brother! Stand back! I’ll—”

Before he could finish, two gunshots rang out. Jiang Sheng let out a scream, one shot hitting his calf and the other his shoulder, leaving him dangling like a broken puppet.

Zhou Yi and Lou Baoguo stared in shock, mouths agape.

Yu Duqiu lowered the gun, pressing his trembling right hand with his left. His heaving chest betrayed his heavy breathing, but his expression was cold and his light-colored eyes glinted with icy menace. “Useless fool—I had to handle it myself.”

Bai Zhao released the now-helpless Jiang Sheng, staggering backward, bloodied and exhausted. Yu Duqiu quickly stepped forward, bracing Bai Zhao’s uninjured arm and letting him lean on his shoulder.

“What’s wrong with you?” Yu Duqiu scolded him harshly. “Showing off again? So what if you fired a gun? Did you think I’d faint from fright? You think I’m that fragile?”

Bai Zhao shook his head, his swollen face looking somewhat comical. “This little wound… I’ll be fine. I didn’t need to shoot to take all three of them down…”

“One day, your arrogance will get you killed.” Yu Duqiu scoffed, “This is the second time I’ve broken protocol and fired for you. If there’s a third, the gun will be aimed at you.”

Bai Zhao chuckled weakly. “At least… none of them were honored enough to be personally killed by you.”

Yu Duqiu was left speechless.

Next time someone calls him crazy, he’d have to show them who the real lunatic was.

The household guards Lou Baoguo had brought were quick to act, fearful of Yu Duqiu blaming them for poor security. Without waiting for instructions, they rounded up the enemies and began freeing hostages. Square Face knew the game was over and surrendered meekly, while Yellow Hair was dragged up still unconscious.

Only one remained.

After being shot, Jiang Sheng slumped to the ground. Two guards approached him from both sides, only to see a flash of silver as a knife slashed across one’s chest, leaving a shallow wound. Instinctively, both guards took a step back.

Summoning unknown strength, Jiang Sheng sprang up, waving the hidden knife from his boot. He didn’t linger—he bolted toward the music hall’s window!

Yu Duqiu immediately raised his gun to shoot, but with his hands still shaking, he missed, and Jiang Sheng slipped away.

Gritting his teeth, he aimed again, but Bai Zhao’s hand held down the barrel.

“It’s pointless; this gun has limited range. Don’t push yourself.” Bai Zhao returned Yu Duqiu’s earlier words verbatim.

Yu Duqiu shot him an annoyed look. “I know. He won’t get away.”

Zhou Yi and Lou Baoguo tried to chase after Jiang Sheng, only to see him leap out the window.

“It’s the second floor, and there are bushes below—won’t kill him.” Lou Baoguo shrugged. “He’ll take at least fifteen minutes to limp his way to the main gate. Not to mention the guards won’t let him out. I’ll take some men down and cut him off.”

Just then, the roar of an engine sounded from below.

Lou Baoguo was taken aback. “Where’d that car come from? We parked everything in the garage!”

Yu Duqiu muttered, “Oh. My Koenigsegg’s still out front. I didn’t close the window, and I left the keys on the passenger seat.”

“…”

Silence fell over the room.

Lou Baoguo smacked his forehead. “Oh no! I rushed over here with everyone and forgot to notify the gate guards. It’s pitch black outside—will they recognize it’s your car and let you through?”

“……”

Silence fell over the group once more.

Zhou Yi frowned. “I doubt it. It’s the middle of the night, and suddenly a car is tearing out from the house. Wouldn’t they find it suspicious?”

Lou Baoguo cleared his throat. “But it is the young master’s car.”

“……”

Because it’s Yu Duqiu, nothing he does would come as a surprise.

Indeed, when the two guards on duty at Mansion No. 1 saw that familiar supercar speeding down the tree-lined driveway, they did pause briefly in suspicion: “Where’s Young Master Yu headed so late? Didn’t he just get back twenty minutes ago?”

However, both of them had been rigorously trained before starting this job: don’t ask questions you shouldn’t, especially concerning Yu Duqiu’s unusual behavior. The training supervisor’s warning still echoed in their minds: “Remember, even if Young Master Yu walks past you stark naked, don’t ask a single question.” They exchanged glances, nodded at each other, and pressed the button to open the gates.

The copper gates slowly swung open—

The speeding supercar didn’t slow down in the slightest, brushing past the edge of the copper gates with a burst of dazzling sparks!

The two guards stared in shock, their hearts pounding.

N-no doubt about it, Young Master Yu really drives recklessly at night.

“Did the young master… have any clothes on?” one guard asked curiously.

The other shook his head. “No idea. It was so fast, I couldn’t tell if it was a person or a ghost.”

With its top-tier performance reaching 0 to 100 km/h in just three seconds, the supercar roared through the heavy darkness toward the base of the mountain. Street lights cast sporadic glints across the silver-gray car, like flashes of diamond light, making it appear like a phantom darting through the shadows of the trees, disappearing in an instant.

Jiang Sheng’s hair whipped wildly in the night wind, his young face filled with fierce determination as he floored the accelerator, tearing down the mountain.

The mission had failed, the deal was void. His only choice was to force that guy to talk, then return to his rental to grab his things and flee. With multiple fake identities, he was confident the police wouldn’t catch him within six months.

Once he found that person, he’d start fresh with a new name, convincing them to quit the scene. America, anywhere—it didn’t matter. With his education, he could always find a legitimate job…

Pain and blood loss made his mind foggy, but he suddenly spotted a glint on the guardrail ahead. Instantly alert, he jerked the wheel to the right!

“Whoosh!”

In less than half a second, the two cars barely brushed past each other at the bend. Master Zhao’s breath caught in his throat; he gripped the wheel tightly, coming to a slow halt on the mountainside, muttering, “Damn…damn…do you want to die…who is that…damn…”

“That’s Yu Duqiu’s car, I remember,” Ji Lin said with a deep frown. “What’s going on? Did he escape alone?”

He tried dialing the number that had gone unanswered all night, and this time, it connected.

“Hello, Captain Ji. I bet you have no idea what just happened over here…” Judging by the familiar, infuriating tone, the man sounded fine and didn’t appear to be in the car from earlier.

Well, then he wouldn’t hold back.

“Jiang Sheng kidnapped you and Bai Zhao, demanded ransom, you could only offer him one hundred million, he wasn’t satisfied, you fought, and then he took off in your car.” Ji Lin connected the known facts, made some guesses, and rattled off his summary in one breath. “Is that about right, Mr. Yu?”

“……” Yu Duqiu seemed to check himself over before finally asking, “Where’d you plant the listening device? When did you do it? I didn’t notice a thing.”

Ji Lin decided to keep him guessing, smirking mysteriously. “Don’t waste your time looking. You won’t find it. Enough chit-chat. I’m here on the mountain with Master Zhao; it’s too late to turn around, but we’ve already located Jiang Sheng’s phone, and officers are en route. Xu Sheng has also tracked down his rental; he’s a sitting duck…”

“Oh—so it was his phone you were monitoring. I was wondering how you knew everything,” Yu Duqiu immediately saw through his bluff.

…Damn, he really let something slip.

“No need for all that, Captain Ji. I’ll get him to stop the car right away. You just focus on catching him,” Yu Duqiu said confidently. “Stay where you are, and tell Master Zhao not to drive.”

Ji Lin found this odd. “Why?”

“You’ll know soon enough.”

The moment Yu Duqiu finished speaking, everything around them suddenly went pitch black.

Ji Lin leaned out the window, surprised to see that the streetlights along the entire mountain road had mysteriously turned off, one by one.

It really was like the entire mountain belonged to them…

Soft moonlight spilled down, and the surroundings turned serene. Shadows cast by the swaying black trees gave way to a view of New Gold District, half of Pingyi City illuminated by a dazzling nightscape of lights—car headlights, streetlights, the sparkling glow of high-rise buildings and residential areas.

Light and night each took up half of the scene before him.

In this world, there’s no absolute light or darkness; even the darkest places are touched by moonlight, and even the brightest places are tinged with shadows.

No one can always bask in warm, radiant light. Even someone like Yu Duqiu, born with every privilege, had once known suffocating darkness and even developed a fear of it. Likewise, no one can hide in the shadows forever without facing the consequences of their deeds.

There would come a day when light shines on the dark places, a day when the ghosts emerge. When that day arrives…

Ji Lin brushed a hand over his watch and smirked, then instructed Master Zhao, “Let’s give chase—”

At that moment, a shrill, piercing sound rang out not far away, like tires skidding heavily against the asphalt, breaking the silence and sending flocks of birds scattering. This was followed by a loud “bang!” that was so deafening it reached even Yu Duqiu on the phone. “Did Jiang Sheng really not stop? Is he insane?”

Ji Lin was equally baffled. Was he not afraid of driving through such darkness on a mountain road?

“I’m going to check! Turn the lights back on!”

Master Zhao, now calm, didn’t wait for orders. As soon as the lights came on, he turned the car around and sped down the mountain with a vengeance.

Jiang Sheng hadn’t gone far. After five or six turns, they came across a gap in the guardrail.

“Stop! Master Zhao, wait here—I’ll go down to check!”

“Sure thing, here’s a flashlight!” Master Zhao tossed something to him.

Ji Lin caught it, noticing the Rolls-Royce logo on it right away.

“……”

Using this to search for a runaway suspect felt like he’d just gone from a beat cop to head of the Public Security Bureau.

Ji Lin ran down the hillside, but soon realized the high-powered flashlight he had brought was useless. The sports car had crashed through the fence and tumbled down the slope, colliding with a large rock, flipping over completely so that the wheels faced upward. Worse yet, the rear engine, battered from the impact, ignited the surrounding dry grass, creating a blindingly bright blaze.

On this hot summer night, with the dry air fueling it, the fire spread quickly, raising the air temperature drastically. At any moment, the car could explode, making any approach a suicidal risk.

But after spending countless days, nights, manpower, and resources, Ji Lin couldn’t just let this chance slip by now that he was about to capture a key piece in this game.

Gritting his teeth, he shouted up the hill, “Master Zhao! Call for backup to put out the fire!” Without further thought, he slid down the slope toward the car.

The airbags had deployed, cushioning Jiang Sheng’s head. He had lost consciousness from the violent impact but soon came to, wincing in pain as he found himself hanging upside down in the driver’s seat. Several ribs on one side had fractured, and his leg injury prevented him from crawling out of the car on his own.

By the time Ji Lin reached the car, his clothes were smeared with charred grass. He didn’t waste a second, grabbing the car door and pulling with all his strength, but it was already crushed and deformed, jammed shut beyond human power. He crouched down, squeezing into the narrow space between the front of the car and the ground, reaching through the shattered windshield to try and pull Jiang Sheng out.

The low seat design of the sports car left Jiang Sheng’s lower body practically wedged into the seat, and his strength wasn’t enough to push himself out with only one good leg. After several failed attempts, he waved Ji Lin away, “Just go! Officer Ji, leave me here!”

Ji Lin, enraged, snapped, “Do you think I’m saving you out of kindness? You deserve to die! I’m here to save the truth, to save justice! Now get out of there!”

Jiang Sheng burst into uncontrollable laughter, which soon turned into painful coughing, “Justice…? There’s no justice for the poor, Officer Ji. Why do you think I ended up on this path? Because people like you only serve the rich. You personally cater to people like Yu Duqiu, while when I called the police, you just brushed it off.”

Ji Lin gripped him tightly, not letting go. “Bullshit! Crime is still crime. What excuses are you making? Which station did you report it to? Take me to confront them if you dare. Otherwise, stop lying!”

The fire grew fiercer, thick smoke pouring out, making it unbearably hot inside and outside the car. Ji Lin used every bit of his strength to pull him, but Jiang Sheng’s arms were slick with blood and sweat, slipping through his grip.

Just as Ji Lin reached in further to grab his shoulder, Jiang Sheng somehow found the strength to pull out a sharp knife he had used earlier and lunged forward.

Ji Lin pulled back just in time, narrowly avoiding the blade. He shouted in frustration, “Are you crazy? I’m trying to save you!”

“I don’t… need saving… from a cop…” Jiang Sheng’s voice was weak, his hand trembling as he clutched the knife. “But I admit… you’re a good one… risking so much for that Mu fellow… If I had met someone like you, maybe… I wouldn’t be dying here…”

Ji Lin was stunned, his face changing dramatically. “Who? Mu Hao? Do you know something? Is he alive?!”

Perhaps it was the kindness of a dying man, but Jiang Sheng answered, “I don’t know if he’s alive… Liu Shaojie knows… you’ve already captured him; go ask him…”

“I know he knows!” Ji Lin roared. “But he won’t talk! No matter what we try! Who is he protecting? Why would he rather face the death penalty than tell us?!”

“Hah… Officer Ji, death doesn’t scare us… What scares us is living like we’re already dead. I know why he won’t tell you, and I won’t either… I want you to taste that… feeling of hopelessness…”

Ji Lin’s rage was so intense he nearly ground his teeth to dust. He crawled in further. “You’re not getting out of this that easily! If you don’t fear death, why fear arrest? Weren’t you going to find someone? You’re not going to look for them now?”

Jiang Sheng had been slipping into a heat-induced stupor, his eyelids drooping. But at Ji Lin’s words, his eyes suddenly opened, though they soon lost their light. “No… I know they don’t want me… They left without a word…”

Ji Lin continued inching forward, his clothes tearing on the rocks. The scorching heat felt like it was searing his insides, and the thick smoke choked his throat and nose, yet he still reached out to Jiang Sheng. “I don’t know who you’re searching for, but if you die here, it’s over. From what I’ve seen, you didn’t directly kill or deal drugs. You’re still young. You could get out one day. Don’t you want a new life? You’re just going to give up and die here?”

Jiang Sheng’s eyes flickered as he seemed to be swayed by Ji Lin’s words. After a moment’s hesitation, he dropped the knife and reached out. “Officer Ji… you really aren’t like the others…”

Ji Lin stretched his arm as far as he could. “You’re wrong. I’m just an incompetent cop. I’ve missed too many chances to save people… but he told me never to give up hope. I’ll find him, and I’ll save you too!”

Their dirty, outstretched hands drew closer and closer. Ji Lin was wedged tightly in the narrow gap, his chest almost crushed under the weight of the car’s frame. He held his breath, reaching with all he had. They were just a few centimeters away—

Suddenly, his legs were yanked hard, and before he could react, he was pulled out from under the car.

“Captain Ji! Are you out of your mind?” Lou Baoguo grabbed him and started running, spraying the fire extinguisher to create a narrow escape route through the flames.

Ji Lin, stunned, looked around and realized the fire had grown out of control. Flames raged wildly around the car, crackling wood surrounding it. Only the large rock had kept the fire from spreading down the slope, or he’d have been burned alive.

He broke free of Lou Baoguo’s grip, trying to run back. “Don’t stop me! I have to save him! He knows the killer’s identity!”

Lou Baoguo held him firmly, slinging him over his shoulder as he charged out of the flames. “It’s not worth it for a criminal! Don’t be stupid!”

“He doesn’t deserve to die! He’s still a life!” Ji Lin struggled, shouting, “Let go! I still have questions for him!”

Lou Baoguo ignored him. “You can’t save everyone, Captain Ji! The young master told me to remind you: if you die here today, who else will be as determined to save Mu Hao? No one! You’re the only one who believes he’s still alive. He lives because of your belief. If you die, it’s like he dies too!”

Ji Lin froze in shock.

Lou Baoguo tossed the now-empty fire extinguisher aside, steeling himself as he faced the final wall of flames. Taking a deep breath, he charged through it.

As they crossed the flames, Ji Lin caught one last glimpse of Jiang Sheng through the car window.

The firelight blurred his vision, but he thought he saw tears glistening in Jiang Sheng’s eyes as he smiled faintly, revealing two small dimples. Then Jiang Sheng raised a hand, pulling his eyelids up in a playful mock gesture.

Boom!

A sudden explosion engulfed the sports car, sending a shockwave that bent the surrounding trees and scattered shards of metal like a storm. In the fiery glow, the unique materials sparkled like diamonds.

The deafening blast left Ji Lin temporarily unable to hear, his only impression a dazzling display like fireworks.

And the boy with the flame tattoo vanished in the raging inferno.

The police and fire department arrived a quarter-hour later, spending another half-hour to extinguish the flames. Luckily, the hill had firebreaks, preventing the fire from spreading further.

Lou Baoguo sat in the back seat of a car, covered in soot and tending to cuts from flying debris. Suddenly, a bottle of water appeared beside him.

He looked up and grinned. “Ah, Miss Lu, we meet again.”