Geng Nuo caught sight of what was in He Fei’s hand he hadn’t used a key to pick the lock, but rather a bent piece of iron wire.
“…”
“You…” Geng Nuo instinctively retreated a step. Simultaneously, He Fei shoved hard, and the iron door creaked open, revealing a pitch-black abyss inside resembling the maw of a giant abyss. Geng Nuo’s reflex was to spin around and run, only to find that five or six people had materialized behind him at some point, forming a semicircle and slowly closing in.
The moment he turned his head, those individuals swarmed forward, subdued him, and shoved him forcefully through the door.
The speed left Geng Nuo with no time to react.
Bang.
The iron door slammed shut, plunging Geng Nuo into pitch darkness. His arms were twisted behind his back, rendering him completely immobilized.
Click. The lights flickered on.
Geng Nuo squinted instinctively, and He Fei stepped right up before him.
Scanning his surroundings without a sound, he noted that aside from He Fei, five people stood around him—two pinning his arms, one standing behind him, and the remaining two stationed slightly ahead and to the sides of He Fei. Their expressions were gravely stern, looking remarkably guarded against him.
Three of those five faces were instantly familiar; they were the ones who had tricked him out to beat him up last time. It appeared they were in cahoots with He Fei.
He hadn’t expected He Fei to be the one plotting against him all along.
This bungalow resembled a factory workshop more than anything else. Behind He Fei stood a row of massive machinery currently sitting idle, resembling silent, sleeping behemoths. The smoke Geng Nuo had spotted earlier from the billiard room must have been generated when these machines were operating.
Why on earth would a factory workshop housing heavy machinery exist inside a club? It was thoroughly incongruous.
Suppressing the flurry of questions in his mind, Geng Nuo demanded, “What on earth are you trying to do?”
Failing to see the panic he had anticipated, He Fei looked somewhat disappointed.
“I thought you’d cry just as prettily as you did in front of General Gu.” That didn’t matter, though; He Fei quickly broke into a smile, as if reminiscing about the past. “You know what, Geng Nuo? You’re truly my lucky star.”
Geng Nuo: “…”
“The goddess of luck always favors brainless idiots. For two years, I tried every trick in the book to pull Yuan Bingqing down, but he always held the nobles’ favor, surrounded like the moon among stars, leaving me with nothing but his leftovers to scrape by. I never expected that the moment you arrived, you’d knock him right down.”
“Shark Club has an unknown underground business that serves as our primary source of revenue. Back when Marquess Wright was alive, my performance metrics were always suppressed by Yuan Bingqing; now it’s finally my turn to flip the tables. And you, Geng Nuo—though I saw you were special the moment I laid eyes on you, I never expected you’d step over Yuan Bingqing’s head and catch General Gu’s eye. What a delightful surprise.”
He Fei’s delight grew increasingly unrestrained; he had waited far too long for this moment.
“From the moment you broke into General Gu’s suite and managed to crawl out alive with all your limbs attached, I knew you were destined to become…”
“My performance record,” he smiled and said.
A wave of nausea washed over Geng Nuo.
“Actually, your original ending wasn’t supposed to be like this.” He Fei looked at him with a gaze carrying a sliver of feigned pity. “You should thank me.”
“Pix’s original plan was to send you off to serve Baron Percy when he visits next week. Whenever he brings a large entourage, the servers chosen either end up dead or crippled, and the ones at the bottom of the performance rankings are terrified it’ll fall on them.”
“Coincidentally, you arrived.”
Geng Nuo was aware of this Baron Percy business, having overheard Yuan Bingqing discussing it in the corridor earlier. He noticed that the moment He Fei uttered that final sentence, the breathing of the other servers nearby noticeably hitched for a fraction of a second.
If he was He Fei’s performance quota, there was no reason to let the other servers in on it. Clearly, those individuals were the bottom-ranking performers he had mentioned; they helped pad his numbers, and in return, he acted as their umbrella.
What is he planning to do next? Racking his brains for a moment, Geng Nuo guessed he was undoubtedly going to use something to control him—perhaps drugs, perhaps an injection. Whatever it was, once he succeeded, Geng Nuo would truly be out of options.
Geng Nuo’s eyes tracked He Fei’s movements unostentatiously as the man sauntered over to a machine, gently brushing his hand across it with a gaze as deeply affectionate and devoted as though looking at a beloved lover. Geng Nuo noticed him pick something up off the machine before turning back around.
Geng Nuo’s internal alarm bells shrieked.
He tried to twitch his arms, but the men pinning him immediately increased their pressure.
Those individuals were remaining constantly on guard against him as well.
He Fei paid no mind to his small movements, strolling over until he stood five paces away. Raising his hand, he pinched something between two fingers. Squinting to look closely, Geng Nuo saw it was a red-and-blue capsule.
“Though this stuff is most commonly used on Omegas, its past results on Alphas and Betas haven’t been half bad either—though the boss has other treats prepared for General Gu,” He Fei babbled on smoothly. “As for you, swallow this pill obediently, and you’ll have a wonderful life ahead of you.”
“A wonderful life? Then why don’t you eat it?” Geng Nuo sneered.
He Fei offered a faint smile. “I think we have no need to argue over that question.”
Because the outcome was already sealed.
Geng Nuo asked calmly, “Then as a final courtesy, can you let me die with clarity?”
He Fei looked surprised. “My dear, why would you think that? Of course you aren’t going to die.” The corners of his mouth curved into a sinister smile. “Old friends as we are, I naturally have to satisfy such a minor request.”
“Rest assured, you won’t die—at least not right now. The drug takes effect within an hour, and calculating the time, it will coincide right with the start of the banquet. General Gu will find himself a docile, obedient, and lovely toy, and from then on, all your joys and sorrows will be dictated by your master. Of course, you won’t retain any awareness of it; it’ll just feel like a dream you’ll never wake up from.” He Fei shrugged, wearing an innocent expression that practically begged to be punched.
Geng Nuo curled his lips without smiling. “So this is your most lucrative business? Looks like I never had the option of leaving this place alive from the very beginning.”
“Hmm…” He Fei feigned thought. “That is true. What a pity; even if you stayed in General Gu’s backyard, you wouldn’t have survived long based solely on his fleeting pity.”
He Fei looked at him with pity. “After all, you’re merely an appetizer.”
Geng Nuo’s brow knitted tightly; he couldn’t comprehend what the man was driving at.
“Who told you not to be one of us, and a Beta on top of that? General Gu holds far greater utility for the boss; a mere Beta could never shoulder a major role. But once General Gu tastes your freshness and grows unsatisfied, he’ll realize the true value of Omegas like us.”
He Fei stepped up right in front of him with a smile. “Alright, no more nonsense. Honestly, knowing all this doesn’t do you any good anyway, because once this pill goes down…”
“I won’t have any self-awareness left at all, right?” Geng Nuo picked up the line.
“Uh-huh.” He Fei raised a brow, slightly surprised at his compliance, but overall thoroughly gratified.
“Fine.” Geng Nuo offered a desolate smile, dropping his head in defeat and looking thoroughly dejected, as though he had accepted his fate.
Lifting his head, he asked with pitiful innocence: “Will taking this pill feel very agonizing?”
Truth be told, Geng Nuo’s face possessed an extreme degree of deceptiveness. Whether viewed by overbearing Alphas, fellow Betas, or Omegas, seeing him invariably struck a chord deep within the heart. Even if jealousy or malice naturally arose, one couldn’t help generating a three-tenths share of pity toward him.
Just like right now, He Fei—who was moments away from dealing a ruthless blow—hesitated for half a second. The hand holding the capsule paused right near Geng Nuo’s mouth, and his tone softened by half.
“No, it won’t. You won’t feel a thing, you just have to swallow it…”
Lowering his eyes, Geng Nuo’s gaze fell upon the capsule. Suddenly snapping his head back up, his sharp gaze pierced straight into He Fei like a broken blade. He Fei blinked in surprise, and then he saw Geng Nuo burst into a smile.
It was an intensely provocative smile.
The next second, Geng Nuo jerked backward, using his own skull like an iron hammer to smash it viciously toward He Fei. The moment flesh met flesh was fleeting, but the shock of the skull collision was intense, and in a flash, Geng Nuo genuinely thought his brain was going to rattle right out of his skull.
With a miserable shriek, He Fei crashed backward onto the floor, clutching his head in agony as a streak of red spilled out between his fingers.
“Eat my ass!” Geng Nuo roared at the top of his lungs. He felt his forehead burning with pain—he had no idea if blood was flowing, but there was no time to care. Without a moment’s hesitation, before the others could react, Geng Nuo executed the exact same maneuver, throwing his head violently backward. Another shriek rang out, breaking the grip of the person who had been pressing tightly against his back. In that brief window, the remaining four individuals finally snapped back to reality. Geng Nuo was struggling so violently that the two men holding his arms were beginning to lose their grip, and as the last two lunged forward together, Geng Nuo used the pair on either side as leverage, leapt up in place, and delivered a double-chested kick straight into the incoming pair.
Landing steadily on his feet, he glanced sidelong at the final two flunkies still clutching his arms.
Those two were the exact same cannon fodder who had tried to trap him in an isolated corridor last time only to get beaten black and blue by Geng Nuo.
Swept by that cold glare, the pair instantly turned coward, their grip loosening by more than half. Geng Nuo easily slipped free of their restraints, and with zero hesitation, he grabbed both of their collars. The two fellows were hauled up into his hands like a pair of helpless baby chicks and violently slammed headfirst into each other midair, knocking them out cold on the spot.
Within moments, Geng Nuo was the only person left standing in the workshop. Panting heavily to steady his racing heartbeat, he raised a hand to wipe his forehead—no blood. He Fei was sprawled not far away, half his face nearly flooded with blood.
He felt the back of his head as well; it was fine, though a visible, swollen egg-sized bump was already rising on the forehead of the guy he had headbutted behind him.
“…Damn, my skull is seriously hard as f*ck!”
Geng Nuo even found the presence of mind to mutter that to himself. Scanning the room, he strolled over to He Fei, squatted down to survey the man’s miserable state, and sneered:
“When I don’t bare my fangs, you really took me for some delicate, fragile Omega like yourselves?”
“Two of you couldn’t beat me last time, and doubling the headcount this time somehow meant you could?”
“Keep dreaming in your spring and autumn fantasies!”
Speaking of spring and autumn fantasies, Geng Nuo shifted his gaze to the capsule lying on the floor. Following his line of sight, He Fei realized what he was planning, and ignoring the terrifying blood on his face, he scrambled frantically on all fours to escape.
Geng Nuo wasn’t about to grant him that chance, stepping down firmly to pin him to the floor.
“Stay still.” Geng Nuo picked up the capsule, grabbed He Fei by the hair from behind, and forced his head back at an awkward angle. “Why don’t you experience this dream yourself?”
“Please, please, spare me! Don’t! Let me go, Geng Nuo, I’m begging you… Ngh! Mph-mmph!” He Fei shrieked in absolute terror, but Geng Nuo had no intention of showing mercy; the man hadn’t shown a shred of leniency toward him just now.
Forcefully prying open his jaw, Geng Nuo barked, “Swallow it down!” He Fei watched in absolute despair as all his struggling failed to break the iron grip, while Geng Nuo stuffed the pill into his mouth with a serene, unbothered smile on his face.
He realized far too late that he had been completely deceived by that exterior; this guy was clearly an incarnate demon holding court.
Geng Nuo forced the capsule into his mouth and clamped a hand firmly over his nose and mouth. He Fei thrashed his arms and legs in desperation, but ultimately swallowed it down just as Geng Nuo intended.
The moment his hand released him, He Fei clawed frantically at his own throat in an attempt to vomit it back up. However, drugs of this nature were custom-manufactured; the outer gelatin casing wasn’t designed to wait until reaching the stomach or intestines for digestion, serving purely aesthetic and functional purposes.
Thus, the moment the capsule slid past He Fei’s throat, it had already dissolved completely.
Irreversible.
Geng Nuo operated with extreme efficiency. Knowing he had far more important tasks ahead, he refused to give these people a chance to recover or catch their breath. Leaving a pile of groaning, defeated opponents behind, Geng Nuo retreated silently toward the door.
“Sorry, I’ve got far more important matters to attend to. Until then, you lot can just stay right here… Hopefully someone finds you in time.” With that, Geng Nuo yanked the door open, slipped through the gap, and though the people inside scrambled forward in a panic, Geng Nuo slammed the door shut just ahead of them.
The primitive lock He Fei had picked possessed no digital interface; unfortunately for them, it remained fully intact.
Click. Geng Nuo locked the door from the outside.
He even pressed his ear against the door to listen closely the workshop’s soundproofing proved to be exceptionally decent.
Geng Nuo wasn’t worried about news of these men failing their mission leaking out too quickly. He figured Pix didn’t care who won the spoils as long as the job got done; otherwise, he would have arranged a more secure backup for He Fei rather than forcing them to break into a secret workshop with iron wire.
He had clawed his way back from the jaws of death.
Before he even had time to relish surviving the ordeal, Geng Nuo suddenly noticed that the club building not far away was billowing smoke.
He stood frozen in place, wearing a bewildered expression, right before a deafening blast shattered the glass of a third-floor window, followed by a concussive shockwave and tongues of fire shooting directly upward into the air.
Startled out of his wits, Geng Nuo hastily squatted down and covered his head. Faint screams and the sound of running footsteps echoed from within, while fire and smoke began spreading across multiple floors.
“…No,” Geng Nuo raised his head, staring in sheer disbelief. “All I did was burn a paper shredder!”
“I’m pretty sure I put the fire out, right?”
Standing back up with a slightly panicked expression, his instincts told him this served as a golden opportunity to escape in the chaos, but… but he always felt like he was forgetting something.
“Damn it! My money!!!”
The money was still back in the dormitory!
What should I do?
What else can he do?!
He could lose his life, but he couldn’t lose his cash!
That was money he had earned with his life!!
Without a second thought, Geng Nuo bolted back at a dead sprint, plunging straight into the billowing smoke and raging inferno. The choking, dense soot blinded him, forcing him to crawl on all fours as he scrambled up the stairwell. Thankful that the path back to his dorm was still clear of active flames, he kicked the door open, scooped up the black money bag and the detector from beneath the bed, and bolted back out.
He had no idea if jamming the signal was still effective, but treating it like a dead horse as a living doctor, Geng Nuo hit the button. The indicator light flashed a few times—he had no clue what it meant, but looking through the hallway window, he spotted the patrol drones outside plummeting out of the sky en masse.
It looked like it was working.
His pre-planned indoor routes were useless now, and just the same, surveillance cameras posed zero threat anymore. The single biggest problem he faced right now was carving out a path to safety amidst this sea of fire.
The journey felt like witnessing a living hell. He walked through the fires of Avici, where sinful humans were engulfed in flames, colliding and wailing as screams and shrieks echoed without end. Everywhere he looked, people were being swallowed by tongues of fire—guards, servers, and guests who had arrived early alike.
Did a place hosting such high-rolling visitors seriously lack even a basic automated fire suppression system? Why wasn’t anyone coming to put out the fire?
Stumbling blindly through the blazing inferno, Geng Nuo found himself trapped on the second floor, spinning in circles and unable to find a viable exit route.
At a corner, he nearly collided head-on with a “fire-man.” The flailing, clawing figure looked utterly terrifying; Geng Nuo caught a fleeting glimpse of the man’s face, already charred black with eyelids peeled back. Shrieking in terror, he fell backward and scrambled away on his hands and knees.
The scorching steam and dense smoke swallowed up sound. Geng Nuo howled through his tears several times before finally locating his voice, covering his nose and mouth with a sob as he scrambled back to his feet.
Why on earth was everything turning out like this?
Unfortunately, the fall moments earlier had broken the detector. Throwing it down in frustration, Geng Nuo hesitated for a second before picking it back up, ripping open the casing, tearing out the internal parts, screen, and wiring, and tossing the whole mess into the fire, where it instantly erupted in crackling sparks.
He casually tossed the cigar box used as its outer shell to the side.
Fortunately, Geng Nuo had firmly committed the outdoor escape routes to memory, meaning he could still run out without relying on the device.
Breathing grew increasingly difficult as Geng Nuo continued searching for an exit.
Circling around only brought him back to where he started; he was already contemplating the feasibility of jumping out a second-floor window…
Abruptly, Geng Nuo spotted a tall figure in the distance.
The man appeared entirely unfearful of the blazing inferno, wrapped in smoke while arrogant tongues of fire failed to touch even the hem of his clothes. With hands shoved deep into his pockets, he walked forward at a measured, unhurried pace, his steady, solid footsteps cutting through every chaotic noise in the fire and landing one by one upon Geng Nuo’s heart.
It was Gu Chengyan.
Geng Nuo froze in place. He certainly didn’t believe General Gu was here to rescue him. Through the choking smoke, he could distinctly perceive murderous intent radiating from Gu Chengyan’s stern gaze.
Before he could react, black smoke choked his throat and mouth, causing Geng Nuo to turn his head and cough desperately. Whether from the suffocating smoke or something else, the cough brought tears streaming down his face.
Dropping his head, he watched a crystal droplet of water plop down onto the floor, instantly baked dry by the searing heat of the surrounding flames.
Was the air here already this hot? Reason told him he couldn’t linger any longer; with sweat droplets evaporating the instant they formed, human bodies couldn’t hold out much longer in an environment like this.
The next second, Geng Nuo raised his head as another droplet slipped from the corner of his eye down his cheek. Reaching up to wipe it away, he belatedly realized this tasted like tears.
Crying?
Why was he crying? Was it from the smoke?
The voice in the depths of his heart quickly refuted him: Of course not.
Then why was he crying?
Could it be out of grievance?
Geng Nuo thought: He was only one floor away.
He was about to escape.
He was going to take this filthy, grievance-laden, hard-earned money back to cure his father.
He had endured so much suffering here; Pix hadn’t left him a single surviving option, and after clawing out a path to life with his own hands, Gu Chengyan had blocked his way.
Geng Nuo hugged the bag in his arms a bit tighter. By now, he could only vaguely discern the outline of the person opposite him through the blurring sightlines. Biting his lower lip, he asked with defiant, despairing reluctance:
“Are you here to kill me?”
His voice trembled, laden with sobs.
Yet that question still cut clearly through the roaring chaos of the sea of fire, landing straight in Gu Chengyan’s ears.
The man opposite him seemed to shift. Geng Nuo couldn’t make out his movements clearly; all he heard was the crackling explosion of fire all around, while scorching heat baked his nasal cavity and windpipe. Amidst the suffocating blaze, Geng Nuo heard Gu Chengyan reply:
“Yes.”
Geng Nuo blinked, his tears sliding silently down his cheeks. Finally, he caught sight of the man’s movement Gu Chengyan had raised one arm straight out, the muzzle of the gun in his hand pointing directly at him.
“Bang!” A concussive blast echoed, and the world plunged into darkness.