Desperate people, accept the seed of my soul!

"Didn't you ask me what I could change?"

His voice was so hoarse that it was almost inaudible.

"I can't change the rules."

"I can't change the world."

"It won't change the fact that those people you say 'always have to be sacrificed' are the ones you're talking about."

The electric arc surged again, this time no longer a ghostly blue, but a blinding, deathly white.

That was the biomass energy of his entire body, which he extracted, converted into electrical energy, and compressed into his palm.

That was all the hatred he had accumulated over the past two months; it was the last thing he could do for his wife and children.

"But I can let you—"

Liu Zhen stared into Zhao Hongtu's dying eyes, and slowly uttered his last words:

"—Pay the price!"

Lightning pierced through his chest.

In that instant, a blinding white light was reflected in Zhao Hongtu's pupils, and he could see nothing at all.

The heart was pierced by a high-voltage current and exploded into a charred mass of flesh inside the chest cavity.

His body arched violently like a crumpled piece of paper, then fell heavily to the ground.

twitch.

Spasm.

Then it came to a complete stop.

His eyes were wide open, frozen on his final expression—a bewildered look of utter incomprehension.

He still can't understand how the electrician, whom he had never even looked at and who was already wanted by the police, ended up like this.

The rules he had believed in all his life were shattered at this moment by the most primal forces.

Liu Zhen released his grip and looked at the distorted face.

My wife and children, can you see this?

It's just an appetizer.

There's more to come.

—There are many more.

The electric light flickered for the last time at Liu Zhen's fingertips before going out completely.

He felt physically weak, as using his abilities continuously had depleted his physical strength, but his mind was in a state of high excitement.

That was the thrill of revenge, and also an invitation from the abyss.

Meng Zhaowen stepped forward and placed her hand on Zhao Hongtu's body.

Vines sprouted from the cracks in the floor tiles, quickly enveloping and decomposing the corpse.

The plants, like long-starved beasts, secreted a transparent sap that turned flesh and blood, along with clothing, into nutrients.

Just a few minutes later, only a damp patch and non-biodegradable residue remained on the ground.

Even the burnt smell in the air was masked by the fresh scent of the plants.

Liu Zhen stood there, looking at the empty ground.

The fire in my chest burned brighter than ever before.

He lowered his eyes and remained silent for a few seconds.

My tears have long since dried up.

This is the only path left that we must take.

"Han Dongcheng, Song Mingzhang," he repeated the two names in a low voice.

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard a soft footstep behind him.

Meng Zhaowen stood beside Liu Zhen.

He didn't look at Liu Zhen; his gaze was fixed on the spot where Zhao Hongtu had disappeared, as if he were looking at something that others couldn't see.

"Song Mingzhang," Meng Zhaowen said, his voice softer than usual, yet filled with a deep-seated hatred. "He is a close advisor to Wang Hongyuan, the third political commissar of Lieyang Province, and also my enemy."

Liu Zhen turned his head and looked at him.

"He specialized in handling those shady dealings for Wang Hongyuan. My brother unfortunately became part of that shady business and was taken care of."

"I investigated and collected evidence for seven years. But he made it all worthless with just one phone call."

Liu Zhen looked at him.

A crack finally appeared on that calm, gloomy face—a crack of hatred and anger, and something deeper than that.

Liu Zhen reached out and patted Meng Zhaowen on the shoulder.

It was a very light touch.

But Meng Zhaowen's shoulders trembled slightly for a moment.

No further words are needed.

They knew from the beginning what each other was carrying.

This moment is simply a confirmation—that they can walk that path together.

"Let's go, let's hit the road." Liu Zhen turned around.

Meng Zhaowen didn't speak, but simply walked forward silently.

The vines that had completed their task slowly retreated and burrowed back into the ground, as if they had never existed.

The two gradually disappeared into the shadows deep within the garage.

Only the pile of dust on the ground, about to be blown away by the wind, and the faint smell of ozone in the air, remain as proof that something had happened here.

……

Outside the Gwangyang Convention and Exhibition Center, the sound of sirens ripped through the daytime hustle and bustle, and the red and blue police lights illuminated the originally solemn building in a bizarre and surreal way.

A large number of police officers quickly cordoned off the scene, with layers of police tape separating the onlookers from the outside.

The media reporters' cameras and microphones were blocked from view by more than 100 meters away, and they could only capture some blurry images and people's panicked expressions.

Zhang Cheng, head of the Criminal Investigation Division 1 of the Gwangyang City Police Department, walked into the main venue, stepping over the scattered debris.

A pungent smell filled the air—a mixture of ozone, the stench of burning plastic, and even a faint, indescribable odor of melting protein.

The lights in the hall went out completely, leaving only the eerie green glow from the emergency exit, which cast long, distorted shadows of everyone, like a chaotic dance of demons.

"Zhang Ke, the situation is very strange." A young security guard approached. "The power system is completely paralyzed, and the core components are burned out. The VIP area is deserted, and Zhao Hongtu and his accompanying security personnel have all gone missing."

Zhang Cheng frowned, his gaze sweeping over his surroundings.

Scattered on the ground were numerous security equipment such as stun guns and telescopic batons. The outer casings of some of these devices had melted, showing obvious signs of high-temperature overload.

What alarmed him even more were the several charred burn marks with carbonized edges, as if they had been hit by some kind of weapon with instantaneous high temperature, but no body or blood was found at the scene.

"What about the underground parking garage?" Zhang Cheng asked in a low voice.

"We found several staff members who were unconscious. They had no obvious external injuries and their vital signs were stable, but we couldn't wake them up no matter what we did," the young security guard said after a pause. "The preliminary forensic examination showed that their pupils were normal, but their deep coma resembled the aftereffects of a severe electric shock. However... there was no power source at the scene."

Zhang Cheng stopped, squatted down, and gently touched a scorch mark on the ground with his finger.

A faint warmth lingered on my fingertips; this warmth shouldn't still be present after such a long power outage.

"This doesn't seem like a typical criminal case." Zhang Cheng stood up and dusted off his hands.

Zhao Hongtu is a well-known entrepreneur in Guangyang City with close ties to the province; such a person cannot simply disappear into thin air.

If it was a kidnapping, and the other party didn't make any demands;

If it was a revenge killing, where did the body go?

He walked alone to the emergency exit in the corner of the garage, where the signal was slightly better.

The surroundings were silent, with only the faint sound of police officers talking in the distance.

Zhang Cheng took out his phone from his pocket and dialed a number.

The phone rang three times before being answered.

"Mr. Han, it's me." Zhang Cheng's voice was very low. "Something big has happened at the convention center. Zhao Hongtu has gone missing. The situation at the scene is very strange; it doesn't seem like a typical kidnapping."