Chapter 204: The Terrifying Depths

Chapter 204: The Terrifying Sewer

Nine years ago, he had a custom aluminum-magnesium alloy house built at our factory – one of those modular types.

Later on, he gradually ordered more items: a special bed, a frame, and such.

After that, I never saw him again. But in my nearly fifteen years at this factory, it was the first time we ever built an aluminum-magnesium alloy house…

The factory boss went on and on.

“What’s the delivery address?” Xiao Yu interrupted.

“I don’t know the address,” came the reply.

The boss shook his head. “Once it’s ready, he comes to pick it up himself.”

Both Xiao Yu and Wang Dong’s hearts sank.

“If you’re erecting an aluminum-magnesium alloy house in the city, you’ll definitely need a construction permit.”

Xiao Yu reasoned, “He wouldn’t be that foolish – the house must be hidden from plain sight.”

“Outside the city?” Wang Dong frowned.

“Not sure.”

Xiao Yu shook his head. “Even in the suburbs or in rural counties, building such a house would stand out too much.”

“Could it be…” Wang Dong exclaimed in surprise.

Xiao Yu added, “Underground!”

Only when it’s built underground can it remain hidden.

“Any underground project requires approval.”

Xiao Yu continued, “Check if, nine years ago when Luo Fei bought that aluminum-magnesium alloy house, any private permits were sought for underground construction. This isn’t a small project – no one would dare do it in secret.”

If it’s underground, it has to be the 850 Basement.

Even a small project couldn’t be completed quickly.

This type of basement construction, essentially an excavation project, would definitely require permits…

“One more thing.”

Wang Dong’s eyes lit up, “He must have a piece of land registered under his name!”

Exactly – without land, how could anyone start construction? Whose territory would he be trespassing on?

Unbelievable!

They began checking whether Luo Fei had any land in his name or had applied for underground construction permits.

After forty minutes, they found something!

Indeed, he had left the city.

At the outskirts lay a deserted factory compound.

The land of this compound wasn’t registered under Luo Fei’s name.

It was registered under his father’s name.

This factory used to be run by his father until it went bankrupt…

……

Before dawn, the dark sky was suddenly torn apart by a piercing alarm.

Over a dozen police cars and two military vehicles, arranged in a long line, left the city and headed towards the outskirts.

Twenty minutes later, the convoy halted; countless police and armed officers leaped from their vehicles, guns drawn.

Xiao Yu and Wang Dong strode toward a deserted factory in front of them.

A swarm of police cars and armed police completely cordoned off the compound.

After two SWAT officers broke down the factory door…

Xiao Yu’s nostrils twitched as his eyes flashed with a cold, determined light.

This is the place!

Inside, a smell that matched the odor from Luo Fei’s home lingered.

“Search!” Wang Dong barked.

Criminal and SWAT teams began scouring the factory while armed police kept watch outside.

Why such a massive operation?

It was suspected to be a case involving twelve lives!

Three members of the Ji Family.

Nine victims, skinned.

Twelve lives in total!

Worse yet, some victims had been skinned alive.

It wasn’t just about the lives lost; the sheer brutality of the crime was unbearable!

After more than half an hour of searching, the entire factory had been combed through and nothing was found.

“You’re playing games with me?”

Wang Dong lost his temper, a cold sneer on his face. “Bring in a few excavators – dig even three feet down if you have to, until you find him…”

“Stop!”

Xiao Yu couldn’t take it any longer. “Let me handle this!”

Wang Dong chuckled, his expression saying, ‘go ahead,’ as he baited him.

At first glance, it seemed like a foolish move, but he was really using his little brother as a tool.

Xiao Yu was too tired to argue, and for the sake of two boxes of Special Edition Cigarettes, he let it slide.

Activating ‘Falcon’s Eye’ and ‘Wangdie’s Nose’, he followed the scent step by step, advancing slowly.

Until he reached the area outside a Storage Room.

The Storage Room door had been smashed in, leaving the interior in darkness.

Under the bright beams of police flashlights, the room was completely empty.

“Empty?”

Xiao Yu stepped inside.

His eyes meticulously scanned the floor.

Until he spotted a sewer vent on the wall.

The vent wasn’t large – just a drainage grate on top.

Xiao Yu crouched down to inspect the ground.

“No dust?”

It proved the storage room was frequently cleaned.

If one was careful, no footprints would be left behind.

Though invisible to the naked eye, Xiao Yu’s ‘Falcon’s Eye’ detected something.

Not only footprints, but also dragging marks.

Xiao Yu reached for the drainage grate, grabbed it, and lifted.

“Snap!”

It didn’t budge?

The grate seemed to be jammed by something underneath.

Something was wedged below… Xiao Yu sneered.

A police car drove into the storage room; criminal police attached a steel cable to the grate and secured it to the vehicle.

Buzz!

The police car revved up, and the steel cable went taut.

Boom!

The metal grate, along with a slab of concrete, was wrenched from the ground.

Returning, Xiao Yu peered into the pitch-black sewer below and shone his powerful flashlight inside.

“No ladder.”

However, along the sewer wall he could see several indentations that could serve as footholds.

The sewer was oddly deep – about seven or eight meters.

Raising his hand, Xiao Yu drew his pistol, checked it, cocked it, and holstered it again.

Without any hesitation, he descended into the sewer…

While climbing down, Xiao Yu activated ‘Python’s Sense’ and ‘Wax Moth’s Ear’, holding his flashlight in his mouth while keeping ‘Falcon’s Eye’ active.

If anything seemed off, he wouldn’t hesitate to draw his pistol and fire.

He reached the bottom of the sewer without encountering any anomalies.

Soon after, Wang Dong climbed down.

The two proceeded along the sewer.

After about ten meters, they paused.

Xiao Yu halted and glanced to his side.

He caught a whiff of a putrid stench – the odor of decaying flesh!

On one side of the sewer wall stood an iron sliding door.

After a brief inspection, Xiao Yu pressed his hand against the metal door and gave it a light push.

It flipped over immediately.

Using his arm for support, Xiao Yu shone his flashlight inside.

He froze.

“What’s wrong?”

Wang Dong asked quietly, leaning in to take a look.

He, too, froze in place.

What had they seen?

Under the light,

a horrifying scene unfolded before them.

Countless corpses were piled together.

Every single body had been skinned.

They were all covered in lime powder.

And most disturbingly,

countless rats scurried over the bodies, darting about in panic under the light.

Many rats had even emerged from the victims’ mouths and bodies…

……