Chapter 629: Chasing Shadows in Flame City
by xennovel“Great, I finally found the organization,” he exclaimed.
Night Owl squeezed out from behind the wall and dropped onto the ground, letting out a deep sigh. “Bro, Sis, you have no idea…”
“It wasn’t easy for me.”
“I caught a ride with a caravan, thinking I could sneak into the city and save on fare. But that ride ended up at a military base. Surrounded by people, with no familiar route, I had to rely on your inquiry in the chat group. So I set off a few signal flares to mark my location. Next thing I know, I exposed myself and they all came after me. I had no choice but to run for my life…”
“The faster I ran, the more they chased me. The more I ran, the more they closed in—it was terrifying…”
“I even thought you weren’t coming for me…”
He continued, his tone almost touched by gratitude. “I never expected you to show up…”
“I felt I was about to be cornered, and luckily you came through, taking out those few Ability Users chasing me from behind…”
“I scrambled to catch up with you; you all were moving so fast…”
“…”
As he spoke, he wiped the cold sweat from his head, his chubby face lit up with a relieved smile.
“What’s this now?”
But when Lu Xin and Dracula heard it, they were dumbfounded. “So you actually lured that Ability User here?”
No wonder he initially evaded the Flame Security Hall’s pursuit, only to run headlong into a group of Black Box Ability Users. It turned out they were originally after this chubby guy. Two waves of fugitives colliding in the midst of this bustling, vibrant city?
What a twist of fate…
“Exactly, exactly…”
Night Owl said earnestly, “Good thing you were there, or I’d have been caught…”
Then, his expression suddenly turned expectant as he looked at Dracula. “Sis, about that remaining 30,000 for my payment…”
“The party hasn’t even started yet!”
Dracula immediately lost her temper, glaring not only at Night Owl but even at Lu Xin.
“Why are you glaring at me…”
Thinking back, Lu Xin suddenly wondered, “Why is his remaining payment exactly 30,000?”
“There are still thirty-six hours until the gathering, and now the whole city is hunting us down.”
“Sigh… I had planned so meticulously and been so cautious, yet you two ended up blowing our cover…”
“…”
Dracula fumed, her words laced with both anger and displeasure.
Yet somehow her remark left Lu Xin feeling puzzled. “Seems like she got exposed because she dumped the body in the wrong spot…”
“Bro, got any food?”
While Dracula was lost in thought, Night Owl looked up at Lu Xin with an adorably expectant expression.
“Oh, I do.”
Lu Xin rummaged through his bag and pulled out a chocolate bar, handing it over. “Will this do?”
“Perfect, Bro.”
Night Owl accepted it gleefully. “You know I love my sausages…”
“…”
Lu Xin froze for a moment, wanting to tell him that not every elongated snack was a sausage, but Night Owl had already started munching away.
“Now what do we do?”
Lu Xin turned to glance at Dracula.
The situation was developing in unexpected ways—as if by chance, another party had appeared.
“It shouldn’t be a big problem…”
Meeting Lu Xin’s gaze, Dracula’s earlier conflict smoothed into a casually disdainful smile. “We’re all top talents selected by the Research Institute from the vast crowd. The world is huge—where isn’t there a place to wander? And as for Flame… well, when one can barely protect oneself, trying to mess with us is suicidal.”
She paused, baring a playful snarl with her tiny fangs as if about to strike.
But then, suddenly, Night Owl abruptly turned his head toward the twinkling city lights outside.
In the next moment, both Lu Xin and Dracula sensed something was off.
The room they were in was completely dark with the lights off.
Yet through the floor-to-ceiling window, the dazzling, bustling nightscape of the city shone vividly.
Strangely, however, as they looked out, the lights, buildings, and streets seemed frozen in time—as if the vivid city had turned into a static painting.
At that moment, an inexplicable pressure, like a gentle breeze from the depths of the mind, swept in from all directions.
Lu Xin even began experiencing a mild hallucination, as if the surrounding buildings and high-rises were rapidly closing in. In a flash, his sight tunneled through countless structures, landing him several kilometers away in the mid-air cabin of a helicopter…
Inside the cabin, a man clad in a crisp white Zhongshan suit suddenly jerked his eyes open…
“Swish!”
At that very moment, Lu Xin snapped back to reality, dispelling the illusion.
The hallucination vanished instantly, though its lingering strangeness reminded him that had he not snapped out of it, his gaze would have met that man’s in a way that transcended layers of perception.
Even Lu Xin couldn’t fathom the consequences if their eyes had locked.
……
……
“This bizarre mental assault…”
Dracula, equally unsettled, suddenly spoke in astonishment, “That’s right—it’s the Hell Designer…”
“Hell Designer?”
Lu Xin frowned at this odd title.
“Exactly. He’s one of the people behind designing hell for Flame.”
Dracula’s face grew grim, then slightly confused. “Shouldn’t he be staying in hell?”
“Why come out now?”
“…”
“With the city in chaos, it’s only natural for him to make an appearance…”
Lu Xin felt a twinge of helplessness. “So what do we do now?”
“We…”
Dracula started to answer but then paused abruptly.
At that moment, far off in the night sky, waves of turbulent air betrayed the rapid approach of a large number of Ability Users, though their direction was so chaotic it was impossible to pin down exactly where Lu Xin and his crew were.
Simultaneously, searchlights from helicopters raced past overhead, seemingly signaling that several choppers were closing in.
Down on the streets, the earlier chaos hadn’t subsided. Like headless flies, police cars and armored vehicles scurried about, apparently following orders to cordon off the surrounding area, leaving key intersections and evacuating nearby crowds. They might not have had a precise target, but they were determined to seal off the district.
“It’s too late…”
Hearing this, Dracula’s expression hardened as she murmured, “Friends, don’t say I didn’t warn you…”
“In Flame City, you must watch out for the high-ranking priests inside the Black Box—and those tasked with designing hell for Flame. Legend has it they’re far beyond the capabilities of ordinary Ability Users; they might not even be human.”
“It’s entirely possible that the moment we encounter them, we could inexplicably die—or snap and lose our minds…”
“…”
“Huh? That powerful?”
Night Owl, startled, his chubby face trembling with fear, asked, “Should we join forces and take him down first?”
“…”
Lu Xin and Dracula exchanged odd looks simultaneously.
“Are you messing around?”
Dracula glared at him. “If we were outside the city, we might have managed a fight. But here in Flame City—this is their turf. I don’t know what level you can reach in your own territory, but in Flame, even the strongest Ability Users are capped at the third tier when going up against high-ranking priests. It’s nothing short of suicidal.”
“So I propose…”
She said it with stern resolve, “Let’s split up!”
“What?”
Hearing her order, both Lu Xin and Night Owl were stunned, their wide eyes looking at her innocently.
“Sticking together makes the target too big…”
Dracula had already grabbed her case nonchalantly and added, “Then let’s meet at the Gate of Hell during the party…”
“Don’t waste any time—if they spot us, it’ll be too late…”
“…”
As she spoke, she briskly moved to the window on the far side of the room and slipped out quickly.
Seeing her leave so decisively, Lu Xin and Night Owl exchanged baffled looks. Night Owl’s eyes pleaded as he looked to Lu Xin.
Lu Xin suddenly reacted, pulling out two more chocolate bars from his bag and handing them to him. “Buddy, I don’t do illegal stuff… unless absolutely necessary. Besides, what you’re doing is pretty serious.”
“I can’t help you either. Let’s meet the day after tomorrow…”
“…”
With that, he quickly grabbed his case and slipped off in another direction.
He had no choice but to run; reputation was at stake.
At worst, he’d be forced to barge past another sentry post. After all, these guys are crazy enough—breaking into military bases and killing people at will…
“Thanks, Bro…”
As he resolutely towed his case away, Night Owl, visibly moved, waved the chocolate bar in his hand vigorously and shouted, “Then when we meet the day after tomorrow, I’ll treat you to a massage—pick the place!”
……
……
Meanwhile, aboard a helicopter, someone said to the man in the white Zhongshan suit, “Have you found him?”
The man in the white suit slowly opened his eyes and replied in a low voice, “They managed to evade him.”
“Looks like the enemy’s abilities are formidable…”
“…”
“Then what do we do?”
The nearby commander, clearly anxious, demanded, “With the Gate of Hell about to open, how can we afford any mishaps now?”
“Why all the fuss?”
The man in the white Zhongshan suit let out a cold laugh as he took a tablet from one of his aides.
He slowly swiped through it, his gaze turning steely:
“Someone broke into the Flame A-level Military Base, causing a huge commotion that captured the entire city’s attention; someone else exploited the chaos to break into a secret lab in West City, using bizarre methods to trigger a citywide blackout and steal key parasitic items; in addition, a high-ranking priest from Black Box was assassinated, and another was thrown from the ninety-ninth floor…”
“Not to mention the others who caused havoc by robbing banks and stealing—needless to say.”
“And the crucial part is that Black Box just reported a terrifying piece of news…”
He gently brushed his finger over the screen, revealing a hastily sketched drawing.
The sketch showed a man clinging to a wall, carrying a case in one hand and a black bag dangling from his mouth.
His expression was cold, his gaze calm yet laced with disdain.
It was the hallmark of Spider-type artistry—only they could capture such vivid detail with just a few strokes.
The man in the white Zhongshan suit fixed his icy gaze on the sketch. “While they were tracking the Ability User who escaped from the military base, two figures suddenly intercepted them. Not only did they lose track of the target, but in a brief skirmish, one of Black Box’s high-ranking priests was killed.”
“I’ve confirmed with security—they’re the same guy who fought his way from outside straight to the front of Flame City. The internal security couldn’t stop him, and no one could even analyze his abilities. By the time he reached Flame, they had already set up a blockade, but he had already planted an insider…”
“Who would have thought? He only managed to have his subordinate substitute for a high-ranking priest to successfully infiltrate the city.”
“…”
As he spoke, he gritted his teeth, his expression a mix of gravitas and excitement as he murmured:
“He’s bold, insane, meticulous, and ruthless…”
“How many such men are there in the world?”
“It’s certain—we’re facing a meticulously planned assault, and this may only be the beginning.”
“A man like this coming to Flame means his scheme is enormous.”
“…”
At the end, he abruptly tossed aside the tablet and said, “We’ve no time for games!”
“Immediately activate emergency defenses and show them the real side of Flame…”
“Especially that guy—we must find him and completely eliminate him before the Gate of Hell opens.”