Cold and damp, reeking of a foul stench.
Qin Hao opened his eyes from his sleep, only to find that he was in a place shrouded in darkness.
After struggling to adjust for a while, he finally got a general view of the scene before him. He was inside an enclosed stone chamber. Apart from the tightly shut steel door, there were no other entrances or exits.
Several raggedly dressed people sat in the stone chamber. Some had their eyes closed as they leaned against the walls. Others had their eyes open, but their gazes were dull and lifeless. A few lay motionless on the floor.
Qin Hao forcefully pinched his own arm.
It hurt badly. It seemed this was not a dream.
He had been resting at home, yet after falling asleep and waking up, he had somehow appeared in this utterly inexplicable place!
Could he have been kidnapped?
He climbed to his feet and asked the others:
“May I ask what place this is?”
After he spoke, none of them reacted. In fact, not one of them even turned to look at him.
Qin Hao swept his gaze over them. He could sense no vitality from their bodies, only despair.
There was simply no way to communicate with people like this.
He began checking the belongings he had been carrying.
He had drunk too much yesterday and gone straight to sleep after arriving home. He should still have had his wallet, key, phone, and other items on him.
However, he was completely empty-handed now. Even the ring he had worn for years was gone.
Why was this? Had someone searched him and taken everything?
Just as he was puzzling over this, footsteps and the sound of a lock being opened suddenly came from outside the door.
At the sound, the people in the stone chamber finally reacted.
Those who had kept their eyes closed opened them, while the dull-eyed ones began moving their eyes. Those lying down also stood up.
Although they made different movements, one thing was the same: all their bodies were trembling slightly.
At that moment, Qin Hao sensed an intense emotion coming from them:
Fear.
Clang!
The steel door opened, and a tall, burly figure walked in and shouted at them:
“Time’s up! It’s time for you to depart!”
Upon hearing this, someone in the stone chamber suddenly began to cry out:
“I was framed! They incited me! I didn’t kill any of your people!”
The burly figure barked coldly:
“You had the guts to kill, and the guts to attempt a prison break, but not the guts to die? Take him away!”
As soon as he spoke, several people rushed in, grabbed the man by the hair, and dragged him outside.
“Captain Li! Please, spare my life! I don’t want to die! I really don’t want to die!”
The man cried out and struggled, but he could not resist the other party’s great strength and was dragged out of the stone chamber.
Seeing this, the remaining people also began shouting, their voices filled with terror.
But it was useless. Several more people entered the stone chamber and took the rest away as well.
Watching this scene, Qin Hao frowned. He finally understood: this stone chamber was where death-row prisoners awaiting execution were confined!
Those people must have killed guards in an attempt to escape, but ultimately failed and were sentenced to death.
And the burly man should be one of the guards here.
But the question was, why had he appeared here?
After each of the people had been taken away, Captain Li spat:
“Bah, you worthless scum. You’re this useless, yet you still dreamed of seizing power and escaping. Bah!”
He raised his foot to leave, but after taking one step, he suddenly turned around and looked at Qin Hao:
“Weren’t there supposed to be seven people? Why is there still someone here?”
He came before Qin Hao and shouted:
“Name! Identification number!”
“My name is Qin Hao. I have no identification number,” Qin Hao replied.
“Nonsense! Every prisoner who comes here has an identification number!” he shouted at Qin Hao.
Qin Hao shook his head. “I’m not a prisoner here.”
“Hah. If you’re not a prisoner, then how did you end up here? Did you come for a social visit?” Captain Li sneered.
“That’s what I want to know as well. I was sleeping at home, and when I woke up, I was here,” Qin Hao said.
“Who you are doesn’t matter to me. I only know that anyone who appears in this prison cell is a death-row prisoner. Come with me!” Captain Li gave Qin Hao a vicious grin, seized his arm, and dragged him outside.
Qin Hao followed behind him without resisting, because he knew very clearly that the other man’s strength far surpassed his own. Struggling would be futile.
He did not shout either, because he knew doing so would only waste his physical strength and mental energy. The other party would not care in the slightest.
After walking for a while, Qin Hao’s vision suddenly brightened. Once he had adjusted to it, he discovered that he had arrived in a wide-open clearing.
The people from earlier had already been tied to wooden stakes. Some were crying out, some were roaring angrily, and some were staring blankly.
This should be the place where the execution was carried out.
“Boy, take a few good breaths of fresh air and have one last look at this world!” Captain Li viciously grinned as he tied Qin Hao to a post as well, then headed toward a small room in the distance.
This was the execution-observation room, where the entire execution process could be witnessed and recorded.
He entered the room and reported to a person reviewing documents, “warden, all the prisoners have arrived. Seven were expected, and the actual number is…”
At this point, he suddenly fell silent.
“Hmm?” The warden raised her head upon hearing this.
Her skin was smooth as jade, her brows as light as smoke, and her vermilion lips and pearly teeth were breathtakingly beautiful.
Her features were exceptionally beautiful, but a vicious knife scar running from between her brows to the corner of her mouth had transformed that beauty into something terrifying.
Captain Li hesitated, but still said, “Eight.”
“Why is there one extra person?” the warden asked.
“I don’t know. He says he isn’t a prisoner and that he was at home, but after falling asleep and waking up, he found himself in the death-row prison cell.”
The warden raised her brows upon hearing this and stood up.
Her form-fitting uniform accentuated her figure perfectly: a tall and graceful stature, a slender waist, and long, straight legs—a truly devilish figure.
She came to the window and looked at Qin Hao, who was tied to a wooden stake:
“What is his name? What is his background?”
“Warden, he only said his name was Qin Hao. He didn’t say anything else.”
“The surname Qin? Could he be one of their people?” She frowned, and a cold glint flashed through her eyes.
At this moment, Captain Li added:
“Warden, regardless of this kid’s background, we can just kill him. According to the rules, anyone who appears in the death-row prison cell deserves to die, don’t they?”
“No good person would appear here. Just proceed,” the warden said with a nod.
“Good. Then I’ll send him on his way!” Captain Li eagerly prepared to leave.
“No need.” The warden stopped him and said calmly, “Every bullet here must be accounted for. We cannot use a gun.”
“Then what do you mean?”
The warden smiled faintly. With a turn of her palm, a sharp dagger suddenly appeared in her hand:
“I’ll do it myself.”