Chapter Eighty-Two: The Mysterious Wang Jian

Zhao Shanshan focused intently, raising her gun. In that moment, her spirit, energy, and presence surged, as if she had become one with the weapon itself. All her attention was fixed on the gun; her body evaded the tree demon’s attacks purely by instinct and intuition.

Of course, Fu Yang and Ah Huang helped block quite a few roots for her.

She aimed at the backs of Liu Mengshu and Tuka Cha ahead…

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Shanshan fired four shots in rapid succession, each pair of bullets targeting the two demon men.

Liu Mengshu and Tuka Cha were at the crucial stage of controlling their little ghosts to seize the tree's heart. Neither expected someone would assault them with a firearm—a hot weapon—at such a moment.

As the saying goes, no matter how skilled, one still fears a kitchen knife.

The two demon men, caught completely off guard, were targeted by a sharpshooter like Zhao Shanshan—disaster was inevitable.

“Tuka Cha, how’s it going?”

“Don’t rush, Evil Daozi. This Corpse Demon Tree is extremely tough. My little ghost just reached the front of the heart—ah!!”

The sorcerer hadn’t finished showing off before a pig-like scream burst from his lips; the sudden agony shot straight to his mind.

At the same time, Liu Mengshu was hit as well, but he remained composed. Though the pain was severe, he made no sound, showing the endurance of a martyr.

For any normal person, taking two bullets in the back is fatal.

Having succeeded, Zhao Shanshan was drenched in sweat, as if pulled from water, her clothes soaked through.

This was like a battle between masters: seemingly simple movements, yet it exhausted all her energy and strength.

Fu Yang saw Shanshan’s steps falter; without hesitation, he swept her up in his arms, not glancing back at the chaos, intent only on escape.

“Fu Yang, put me down, I can manage…”

“Don’t be stubborn! Those shots you fired just now were mentally draining.”

As he dodged the tree demon’s attacks, Fu Yang spoke earnestly.

Zhao Shanshan was deeply moved. She wrapped her arms around Fu Yang’s neck, her nostrils filled with the scent of youthful sweat and hormones from his exertion.

Her heart pounded wildly.

She couldn’t tell if it was from exhaustion or from experiencing such intimate contact with a man for the first time in her life…

At last, the three of them escaped the area dominated by the tree demon’s roots.

Ah Huang lay sprawled on the ground like a dead dog, gasping for breath, looking utterly bedraggled.

“Hahaha! You really are out of shape. You’ll need to train harder, or else how will you subdue demons and capture ghosts?”

“Huff…before I came to Jiangcheng, it was all petty stuff, nothing like these powerful evil spirits. Damn this place…”

Zhao Shanshan whispered, “Fu Yang, put me down.”

Only then did he realize he was still holding Shanshan. The two were so close they could smell each other's scent.

In a flash, Fu Yang blushed, quickly setting Zhao Shanshan down. “Sorry, sorry! Whenever Ah Huang starts joking, I forget myself.”

Zhao Shanshan smoothed her hair by her ear. “Thank you for saving me. It looks like we’ll have to ask the relevant authorities to destroy the tree demon tomorrow morning, and contact the media to seal off the news as much as possible.”

The three hurried out of the botanical garden. Zhao Shanshan would likely be up all night reporting and working.

As for Liu Mengshu and Tuka Cha, after being ambushed and wounded, they couldn’t handle the enraged tree demon and had no choice but to retreat.

When the Hundred Trees Garden finally returned to calm, it was two or three in the morning. Centered around the century-old banyan, the ground in the entire area was crisscrossed and torn, as if an earthquake or dozens of bulldozers had repeatedly driven over it.

If ordinary citizens saw it, the incident would surely make headline news…

The leadership of the botanical garden was awakened in the middle of the night by urgent calls, all receiving the same command: the garden must close immediately for two days!

Though bewildered, the displayed number terrified the leaders into compliance.

Three hours after the tree demon incident, before dawn, at Jiangcheng Airport.

A helicopter from the direction of SH descended smoothly in the private business section.

Deputy Director of the Jiangcheng Public Security Bureau and head of the Criminal Investigation Team, Zhao Weiguo, brought his deputy, Zhao Shanshan, to greet the arrival.

“Shanshan, I didn’t expect things to get so out of hand this time. The whole botanical garden is a mess, and we’ll need to mobilize resources to contain public opinion. Headquarters will definitely hold us accountable.”

“Uncle, this is my own responsibility. You don’t need to step in.”

Zhao Shanshan, usually gentle, now wore a resolute expression.

Indeed, Deputy Director Zhao Weiguo of the Jiangcheng Public Security Bureau was her uncle.

“Ah, how could the old man let you take the blame? The family sent word: you must return directly to BJ.”

Zhao Shanshan shuddered, a hint of hesitation and unwillingness flickering in her eyes.

“But…”

“There’s no ‘but’. Shanshan, the situation here is beyond your capacity to handle. At first, we thought it was a routine homicide, but now it’s far too dangerous. Headquarters has issued an order: a special department of the National Security Bureau will take over all your work.”

A bitter smile appeared on Zhao Weiguo’s face. “Even I… must fully cooperate and assist!”

What!

A special department of the National Security Bureau?

As a police officer, Zhao Shanshan was vaguely aware of many secret matters, especially after meeting Ah Huang and Fu Yang and experiencing things ordinary people could never imagine.

“Is it… Section Zero?”

This time, it was Zhao Weiguo’s turn to be surprised.

“How did you know about Section Zero, Shanshan? Oh, you’ve been spending time with Master Huang lately—he’s a Daoist. It’s not surprising you know.”

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…

The helicopter landed on the tarmac. The spinning blades whipped up strong winds, sending everyone’s hair and clothes flapping wildly.

A young man in a black trench coat stepped out of the cabin.

A cropped haircut, a lean face, eyes sharp as a hawk. With a cold, distant aura, he was clearly not someone easy to approach.

Zhao Weiguo hurried over with Zhao Shanshan to greet him.

“Zhao Weiguo, Deputy Director of Jiangcheng Police, head of the Criminal Investigation Team. This is Zhao Shanshan, Deputy Captain. She was in charge of the series of incidents stemming from the drowning of a Jiangcheng University student.”

“Wang Jian, Special Investigator of Section Zero, National Security Bureau, East China Division.”

Their hands briefly shook in a formal gesture, then released.

Wang Jian turned to Zhao Shanshan. “Deputy Captain Zhao, within three days, please hand over all your work arrangements and materials to me.”

“Understood.”

Concise, with not a word wasted. Clearly not someone easy to deal with.

“Special Agent Wang, I’ve arranged a luncheon at Jiangcheng Grand Hotel. Some colleagues from the bureau will be there to welcome you.”

Zhao Weiguo still wanted to foster good relations with this investigator.

“That won’t be necessary. I’m here to catch demon men, not to dine. But I appreciate your kindness, Deputy Director Zhao.”

With that, he strode off without another word. (First update!)