Chapter Fifty-Eight: Where Is Everyone?

Zhou Yi took out his binoculars and looked toward the window of Meng Xiaojiao’s room. There was no light, nor any sign of movement. Zhou Yi felt conflicted. If he called Fatty and the others now, at most Sophia would come over, but in this world she was only a bit more skilled physically—her other abilities couldn't be used. And who knew if the hunter would still be there by then? Waiting wasn’t a solution.

He rolled down the window a bit, glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then slipped out of the car, careful not to slam the door and make any noise. Crouching beside the car, he moved along the wall toward the entrance of the complex. From this angle, he was facing Meng Xiaojiao’s room directly, but still couldn’t see anything. The more uncertain things were, the more Zhou Yi wanted to know what was happening inside.

Biting his lip, he closed his eyes slightly, trying to imagine the scene within Meng Xiaojiao’s room. Somehow, he seemed to sense the layout: a solid wooden wardrobe, a dressing table, and an old-fashioned wooden bed with four posts. On the bed lay a woman—Meng Xiaojiao. At her bedside stood a shadowy figure. He couldn’t make out her face, only that it was a woman. At that moment, the shadow was lifting a scarf, looping it around Meng Xiaojiao’s neck.

Zhou Yi's eyes snapped open, blinking as he looked back at the window. The vision had startled him. Did he just imagine it, or was that what was really happening in Meng Xiaojiao’s room? He had no memory of that room, so it was unlikely to be his imagination. But what was that just now? Even though his eyes saw nothing, when he closed them and concentrated, he could sense something?

His heart pounded wildly; the surprises and shocks of today were too many. Wait—could it be that after absorbing the spirit stone earlier, he’d received a bonus? Besides enhanced strength, had his perception also improved, allowing him to sense his environment without seeing it?

Thinking this, Zhou Yi drew a breath, glanced toward the security booth, then quickly closed his eyes. Focusing, he tried to sense what was happening inside. There was the faint sound of snoring—a guard resting in the back room. In the pavilion outside, another guard stood, leaning on his gun and dozing with his eyes closed.

Opening his eyes, Zhou Yi crept forward to a spot where he could see into the pavilion. Sure enough, the guard was dozing off, his body swaying slightly, gun propped on the ground, just as Zhou Yi had sensed.

By now, Zhou Yi was beyond shocked—he was delighted, barely resisting the urge to shout for joy. But then he glanced toward Meng Xiaojiao’s room and had the uncanny feeling that a pair of eyes was watching him. The sensation was deeply unsettling. He retreated two steps, hiding fully behind the wall. After waiting a moment and sensing nothing, he closed his eyes again, focusing.

Inside, Meng Xiaojiao was still asleep, and the shadow that had been strangling her had vanished.

Zhou Yi froze, eyes snapping open. Where had it gone?

Before he could think further, a chill swept up behind him, making his hair stand on end. That sense of danger made him instinctively roll forward. Spinning around, he saw a shadowy figure standing exactly where he’d just crouched, as if surprised he had managed to evade the attack. A pair of eyes bore into him.

“Who are you?”

Zhou Yi almost laughed—even now, he couldn't lose his composure. Was this person an idiot? Attacking him, then asking who he was?

“Who are you?” he retorted.

The shadowy figure looked him up and down, taking a sharp breath. “It’s you?”

Those words left Zhou Yi stunned. She recognized him? The person deliberately lowered her voice, making it impossible for him to place her immediately. If she really did know him and reported to Cheng Zhi, wouldn’t that guy vanish the first chance he got, making it impossible to find him?

Thinking of this, Zhou Yi stepped forward almost instinctively, reaching to grab the shadow’s arm.

She hadn’t expected Zhou Yi to attack instead of fleeing. She turned sideways and raised her arm to block. Zhou Yi had never fought before; even in the 2020 world, the two people he’d killed had been by trickery, not direct confrontation.

Seeing his arm blocked, Zhou Yi grew anxious. He twisted his wrist and seized hers, pulling forcefully toward himself while his other hand shot for her neck.

The woman grew irritated at having her wrist controlled. She lunged at Zhou Yi, aiming a kick between his legs.

Startled, Zhou Yi instinctively clamped his legs together, catching her leg. But this made him lose his balance, and as his legs drew back, his body toppled toward her.

The two crashed to the ground, the shadow beneath, Zhou Yi on top. He gripped her collar and squeezed her leg tight—the fall was solid, with a dull thud.

They tumbled out of the shadows by the wall, and Zhou Yi stared down at her face, stunned.

It was the young researcher Xiao Zhang from Su Yongming’s team—what was her full name again? But now was no time for pleasantries. This woman had silently crept into Meng Xiaojiao’s room and nearly strangled her—she was clearly a hunter, which surprised Zhou Yi.

Flipping his grip from her collar to her throat, he suddenly remembered: her name was Zhang Linna.

“I want to know—why are you here?”

Zhang Linna dispensed with any pretense, her eyes blazing at Zhou Yi. “Heh, I really didn’t expect it. You’re from the base. That is a surprise. I was wondering why Su Yongming’s father was untouched—you’re the one meddling.”

That word—meddling—threw Zhou Yi for a moment. Without the help of these hunters, would Cheng Zhi have been able to hide so well, break the world’s rules, and become a target for elimination?

Wait—what did Su Yongming’s father have to do with any of this?

“You talk as if you’re so righteous—running over the old man and acting like you’re ridding the world of evil. Don’t you feel guilty saying things like that?”

Zhang Linna’s face was ashen. She struggled, and Zhou Yi clamped his legs tighter—this was no joke. Even if this was only a clone, there was no need to make it a eunuch clone. There’s a difference between not using and not having, after all.

“You think you can control me like this?” she sneered.

Zhou Yi shot her a glare. Was she stupid? She was already pinned; what could she possibly do?

“If I can’t control you, go ahead and escape!”

Zhang Linna tried to free her hands and feet, but Zhou Yi pressed his whole weight down. Her struggles were futile, and after several failed attempts, she was breathing hard.

“What do you want?” she snapped.

Zhou Yi shook his head. Though he had her pinned, he knew he couldn’t subdue her for long. They couldn’t stay deadlocked like this forever. His phone was in his pocket, and he had no rope—he was at a loss.

“I don’t want anything. The base has its rules—you know our mission, but I don’t know yours. Tell me your plan. If I’m satisfied with your answer, I’ll let you go.”

Zhang Linna seemed exhausted. She exhaled, giving him a sidelong glance. “You’ll let me go if I tell you?”

Zhou Yi nodded.

“I can let you go, on two conditions—first, you tell me the plan; second, you don’t interfere with our actions. I’m just carrying out the base’s mission. You’re not my target. But if you interfere, I’ll have to eliminate you. That’s the only way.”

Zhang Linna fell silent.

Zhou Yi wasn’t in a hurry. He held the advantage now, and though he couldn’t do much more, she wasn’t about to escape. Besides, with her as a cushion, he wasn’t cold at all.

After a long pause, Zhang Linna finally looked up at him.

“All right, I’ll talk. But you have to keep your word and let me go. And I won’t interfere with your mission. Is that acceptable?”

Zhou Yi nodded. “Go ahead.”

Zhang Linna glared at him. “You’ll have to let me up first. How am I supposed to talk like this?”

Zhou Yi chuckled, shaking his head without moving an inch.

“Let you go? Do you think I’m three years old? You can talk like this. If you won’t, I’ll call for backup and have you taken back to the base. I might not get a reward, but at least the base will think I’m useful, don’t you agree?”