In Dragon Ball: A brutal beating of Frieza at the start

Page 60

"An eternal adventure..." Goku crushed another Senzu Bean. "One day, I will also go and see those unknown galaxies."

Bick picked up Xiaofang, who was exhausted from chasing, and wiped the dirt off her face: "The universe is vast, but some things will never change."

The wind blew through the temple once more, swirling withered yellow leaves that fell where the time machine had once stood. In the distance, city lights flickered on one after another, like scattered stars. And in a more distant place, on some blue planet, a fairy bean sprout swayed gently in the moonlight, as if telling a new story.

Chapter 151 A New Crisis

The desk lamp cast a warm yellow halo in the dim room. Lin Yu's fingertips traced the edge of the letter, his knuckles turning white from the pressure. The wax seal pattern in the upper right corner of the letter—a raven with outstretched wings—flashed in the light, like some kind of ominous metaphor.

"Three days? They've calculated it precisely," Lin Yu murmured, his voice laced with suppressed gritted teeth. A night breeze swept past the window, lifting a corner of the curtain and casting his sharply defined profile into shadow.

squeak-

The silence was shattered by the sound of the wooden door being flung open. Su Yao rushed into the room, raindrops still clinging to the hem of her black trench coat, her hair damp and plastered to her forehead. She went straight to the desk, her high heels clicking rapidly on the floor: "Old Lin, the convenience store owner downstairs said someone slipped you a letter—"

Before she could finish speaking, her gaze was fixed on the letter in Lin Yu's palm. In the instant her pupils contracted sharply, the walkie-talkie in her trench coat pocket emitted static. She instinctively pressed the receiver, but her fingertips froze abruptly when they touched the metal casing.

"Let me see it." Her voice suddenly turned serious, and her gesture of reaching for the letter was decisive and unquestionable.

Lin Yu didn't let go, his fingertips grinding over the words "closest friend" on the letter, his Adam's apple bobbing: "Last week you said headquarters detected cultural relic smuggling activity on the black market, is that related?"

Su Yao raised an eyebrow and finally sat down in the leather swivel chair opposite her: "You suspect 'The Raven' has made a comeback?" She tapped the table with her index finger, "But they only ever deal with antiques. Ancient artifacts... that's beyond their scope of business, isn't it?"

Snapped!

Lin Yu suddenly slammed the letter on the table, the ink still wet on the four characters "Life in danger" blurring and becoming frayed with the vibration: "Three months ago, Old Chen fell off a cliff in Yunnan, and the scene was sealed with crow wax. Do you dare say that's a coincidence?"

A cold, somber atmosphere suddenly filled the air. Su Yao stared at his reddened eyes, then abruptly reached out and loosened his tie—it was an old, navy blue tie with a barely noticeable burn mark at the end. "Don't jump to conclusions," she softened her voice, her fingertip tapping below his collarbone. "Has your 'old friend' been making any moves lately?"

Lin Yu looked up abruptly, just as a muffled clap of thunder rolled past the window. He remembered the coffee cup that had been knocked over at the alley entrance three days ago, and the raven tattoo that had been visible on the back of the neck of the man in the baseball cap as he bent down to pick it up—at the time, he had thought it was his imagination.

"Have you checked the surveillance footage?" He got up and walked to the bookshelf. The second book from the left on the third shelf, "Appreciation of Cultural Relics," was pulled out, revealing a silver hard drive in a hidden compartment.

Su Yao shook her head: "I checked. The messenger was a high school student in a school uniform. He was drugged near a trash can on a street corner. It was a blind spot for the surveillance cameras, so they didn't capture anything." She paused, then pulled a transparent evidence bag from the inside pocket of her trench coat. Inside was half a black feather. "This was found on your study windowsill. It's the same material as the one 'Crow' left three years ago..."

The moment the hard drive was plugged into the computer, the blue light from the screen illuminated the tense faces of the two men. Lin Yu quickly typed on the keyboard, and the surveillance footage jumped to the street corner three hours earlier: the boy in the school uniform indeed stopped under the seventh sycamore tree, looked around, and then stuffed the envelope into the mailbox—but above the mailbox, which should have been empty, a blurry black shadow flashed by.

"Wait!" Su Yao suddenly grabbed his hand. "Zoom in on the bottom right corner."

A close-up of the image revealed a silver badge reflecting light faintly in the shadow of the mailbox base. Lin Yu's pupils constricted—it was a raven with outstretched wings, clutching half a bronze mirror in its claws.

“It was him.” Lin Yu’s voice was so low it sounded like it was being squeezed out from between his teeth. “The bronze mirror that was destroyed in Dunhuang back then was actually in their hands.”

Su Yao frowned: "But we recovered seven pieces of the bronze mirror fragments three years ago, and the remaining three..."

Boom!

A dull thud came from outside the window, like something heavy hitting glass. Lin Yu grabbed the paperweight from the table and rushed to the window, only to see a black blur flash past the streetlamp, casting a winged silhouette on the wall. He pushed open the window, and a black feather wafted in from the damp night breeze, landing on the back of his hand.

"Stop chasing!" Su Yao grabbed his wrist. "They're clearly trying to lure you out." She pointed to the golden patterns at the base of the feathers. "Just like three years ago, they're 'Crow' homing pigeon feathers. They're warning us."

As Lin Yu turned around, the computer suddenly emitted a piercing alarm. An encrypted video popped up on the screen, and after three seconds of static, a dimly lit warehouse appeared on the screen. The camera slowly panned across rusty shelves, finally settling on an iron chair in the corner—a man in a gray hoodie was strapped to the back of the chair; it was Lin Yu's close friend, Zhang Ke.

"Old Lin!" Zhang Ke's voice was nasal, clearly from being beaten. "They said...the artifact is in your hands. Don't worry about me, whatever you do—"

The screen was suddenly covered by snowflakes, followed by large, blood-red characters: Tomorrow at noon, Century Square fountain, bring the magic weapon to exchange for the hostages.

"Damn it!" Lin Yu slammed his fist on the corner of the table, blood immediately seeping from his knuckles. Su Yao grabbed a tissue and pressed it to his hand, only to find his gaze fixed on the bottom right corner of the screen—where there was a tiny reflective dot, like some kind of metal ornament.

“It’s a bracelet.” Su Yao squinted. “Zhang Ke never wears jewelry, but this thing… looks like he was forced to wear it.”

Lin Yu suddenly grabbed his coat: "Let's go to Zhang Ke's house. He said there's a hidden compartment in the basement that might hold clues."

"Wait!" Su Yao grabbed his arm and pulled a palm-sized tracker from the drawer. "Take this with you. If I don't receive a message from you within half an hour, it will activate its location tracking."

As the two rushed into the rain, in the shadows of the street corner, a man in a baseball cap chuckled into his Bluetooth headset: "They've taken the bait. The bronze mirror fragment... it'll come in handy now." He wiped the rain off his hat brim, revealing a faint raven tattoo behind his ear. "Tell the boss, Lin Yu's 'old friend'... seems to be getting restless too."

In the night rain, the fountain in Century Square stood silent as a monster. Lin Yu touched the tracker in his pocket and suddenly remembered what Su Yao had said in the garage: "If the other side knows that Zhang Ke is your weakness, they will definitely know that the artifact is not in your hands at all. What they want... is probably the fragment map in your possession."

He reached into his inner pocket, where a yellowed parchment lay hidden—a fragment of a map he'd found three years ago in a Dunhuang tomb, marking the locations of ancient artifacts. Just as his fingertips touched the corner of the paper, he heard the sound of leather shoes splashing in a puddle behind him.

"Mr. Lin, I've heard so much about you."

A hoarse male voice mingled with the sound of rain. When Lin Yu turned around, he saw three men in black emerge from behind the fountain. The man in the middle was wearing a crow mask, and the muzzle of his gun was pressed against Zhang Ke's temple.

"Where's the artifact?" The masked man shook the muzzle of his gun, and Zhang Ke let out a muffled groan.

Lin Yu raised his empty hands: "Release the person first, and I'll take you to get it."

"Heh, do you think I'm stupid?" The masked man raised his hand, tearing open a corner of Zhang Ke's hoodie to reveal a bomb controller on his chest—a bright red countdown was ticking below his collarbone. "See that? Ten minutes left. If you don't hand over the stuff, he'll blow you to pieces."

Su Yao's words suddenly exploded in his ears: If the other side knows that the artifact is not in your hands, they must have a backup plan. Lin Yu's peripheral vision swept across the buildings around the square, and he caught a reflection on the rooftop of the seventh building—it was a sniper rifle scope.

“Okay, here you go.” Lin Yu slowly bent down and took out the parchment from the inside of his leather shoe. “But you have to tell me first who sent you.”

The masked man took two steps forward, his fingertips just touching the edge of the parchment, when suddenly a dark shadow swept across the sky. Lin Yu reacted quickly, shoving Zhang Ke aside—almost simultaneously, a sniper rifle shot pierced the rain, the bullet grazing the masked man's ear and embedding itself in the fountain pillar behind him.

"There's an ambush!" the man in black shouted. The masked man's expression changed, and he raised his hand to pull the trigger at Lin Yu—but Lin Yu rolled sideways into the flower bed, and a metal box fell out of his arms. It was the fragment of a bronze mirror that had been unearthed in Dunhuang three years ago.

"So that's where it was!" The masked man, forgetting to fire his gun, lunged to grab the box. Just as he touched it, Su Yao's voice boomed from the plaza's loudspeaker: "Attention all personnel! Target spotted! Move out!"

Dozens of bright lights suddenly illuminated the square, and SWAT teams poured out from all directions. The masked man cursed and pulled Zhang Ke in front of him as a shield, but Zhang Ke suddenly grabbed his wrist and slammed his knee into his abdomen—it turned out he had already worn through the ropes.

"Old Lin, catch!" Zhang Ke tossed over the bomb controller, and Lin Yu pressed the red button the instant he caught it. The countdown stopped abruptly the moment it reached zero, and the masked man, his pupils reflecting the dark muzzles of the SWAT team's guns, finally collapsed to the ground.

The rain gradually subsided. Su Yao took off her police hat and walked towards the two men. When the beam of her flashlight swept across the masked man's face, Lin Yu suddenly froze—it was an unfamiliar face with a three-inch-long scar on the corner of his left eye.

“It wasn’t him,” Lin Yu murmured. “The ‘Crow’ from back then… had no scars.”

Zhang Ke walked over, rubbing his wrist, and pulled out the eye-catching bracelet from his collar—a half-fragment of a bronze mirror hanging on a silver chain: "They put this on me, saying it's some kind of 'token'."

Su Yao took the fragment, shone her flashlight inside, and suddenly gasped: "Old Lin, look at this."

Tiny inscriptions were engraved on the inside of the fragment, gleaming bluish-green under the bright light. Lin Yu leaned closer to examine them, his pupils suddenly contracting—these were the characters he had seen three years ago in the Dunhuang tomb, meaning: When the seven mirrors are returned to their places, the gate through which the Yin soldiers will pass will open.

Zhang Ke frowned: "So they don't want the divine artifact, they want to open some kind of door?"

Su Yao put the fragments into the evidence bag. When she looked up, she saw Lin Yu staring at the masked man with an almost obsessive gaze, as if searching for a familiar shadow through this unfamiliar face.

"Fall back!" she ordered into the walkie-talkie, then gently touched Lin Yu's arm as she turned. "Don't overthink it. Get Zhang Ke to the hospital first. The rest... we'll investigate later."

As the three walked toward the police car, Lin Yu suddenly turned back to look in the direction the masked man had been taken away. The man looked up amidst the flashing police lights, a meaningful smile playing on his lips—the same smile as the "Crow" who disappeared in Dunhuang three years ago.

The rain intensified. Lin Yu pulled out his cigarette case, only to find there was only one cigarette left. He handed it to Zhang Ke, and the two silently shared a drag in the rain. In the distance, the clock in Century Square struck twelve, a new day dawned, and they both knew that the real crisis... had only just begun.

Chapter 152: Tracking the Shadow

Lin Yu's sneakers slammed heavily into the puddle in the alley, splashing water that traced gleaming arcs under the streetlights. The cold water seeped up his trouser legs, but did nothing to quell his anxiety. A shadowy figure's black trench coat hem flashed past the corner like a ghost; that black hue, like a raven's wing, exuded an ominous aura. He gritted his teeth and sped up, slamming his right shoulder against the half-closed iron gate with a piercing creak. Rust mingled with sweat, landing on his shoulder, stinging his skin.

"Stop! Don't play deaf!" He touched the shard of bronze mirror hidden at his waist; the icy touch made his palms sweat. Su Yao's words from three days ago echoed in his ears: "The Raven Organization is skilled in illusion; never believe what you see at first glance." Now, he forced himself to calm down, his gaze sharp as he warily scanned his surroundings. The streetlights crackled overhead, flickering occasionally, lengthening and shortening his shadow, as if even the light itself mocked his disheveled state.

As he turned the third alleyway, a stench of decay suddenly assaulted his nostrils, a nauseating smell like rotting meat mixed with sewer filth. The abandoned warehouse's metal sign swayed in the wind; the four characters "Hong Sheng Freight" were corroded, leaving only half of the character "Sheng." Lin Yu slowed his pace, his shoes crunching over shards of glass. His peripheral vision swept over a pile of tires in the corner—fresh drag marks, stained with a dark red liquid, resembled dried blood in the dim light, exuding an eerie aura.

The warehouse's roller shutter door suddenly shook violently, as if struck from the inside by something, producing a deafening sound. Lin Yu abruptly took half a step back, his right hand rapidly forming a hand seal. Pale blue spiritual energy condensed into a shield at his fingertips, and as the energy flowed, faint crackles of electricity filled the air. "I'll count to three. If you don't come out by then, don't blame me for being impolite!" He deliberately raised his voice, trying to cover up the faint footsteps behind him. His heart pounded wildly in his chest, each beat feeling like it would burst out of his chest.

"One—" Before the words were finished, a metallic, twisting sound suddenly came from the ventilation duct on the left, as piercing as fingernails scraping a blackboard. Lin Yu lashed out with his spiritual whip without hesitation, only to strike a wisp of black mist. The moment the mist dissipated, it carried a pungent sulfurous smell, causing him to cough repeatedly. The warehouse door creaked open a crack, and the man in black robes finally appeared.

The man wore a half-crow mask, revealing half his face covered in a crisscrossing network of centipede-like scars, resembling ugly insects crawling across it. A bloodstained black cloth covered his right eye. "Mr. Lin, chasing so urgently, aren't you afraid of killing your friend?" The hoarse voice was like sandpaper, every word dripping with malice. The man in black tossed out a metal box containing Zhang Ke's phone, the screen showing him bound to a chair. Zhang Ke looked haggard, blood trickling from his lips, his eyes filled with fear and despair. Seeing this, Lin Yu felt a throbbing pain in his temples, his anger instantly ignited.

"What exactly do you want? The artifact isn't in my hands at all!" Lin Yu roared, his spiritual energy shield radiating a blinding blue light, as if tearing through the darkness. He deliberately omitted the mention of the sheepskin map, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of half a bronze key protruding from the black-robed man's waist—the pattern was exactly the same as the key he had seen in the Dunhuang tomb, which immediately set off alarm bells in his mind.

The man in black robes suddenly let out a shrill laugh, the sound causing dust to fall from the warehouse ceiling, landing on Lin Yu's shoulder. "Not in your hands? Then what are you looking for, running around antique shops every day?" Before he finished speaking, his black robes billowed without wind, dozens of black chains shooting out from his sleeves, the ends of the chains adorned with gleaming barbs, leaving trails of black afterimages in the air.

Lin Yu rolled sideways, the chains grazing his back and carving five deep gashes into the concrete, sparks flying. He retaliated with a burst of spiritual energy, but the black-robed man easily deflected it. The opponent's moves were too unpredictable; each attack seemed to anticipate his dodge, as if... as if someone was providing real-time intelligence. A chill ran through Lin Yu. Could there really be a traitor among them?

"Don't waste your energy." The man in black robes wiped his mask, revealing a venomous snake tattoo at the corner of his mouth. The snake seemed to come alive, flicking its tongue. "You think Su Yao really came to help you? She met with our boss three times last month at an underground bar, and they had a great time chatting." These words struck Lin Yu like a hammer blow, freezing his movements for a moment. That brief opening was enough for the man in black robes to close in.

Lin Yu felt a heavy impact on his chest, sending him flying backward and crashing into a shelf behind him. Amidst the flying sawdust, he felt for the tracker in his pocket—the one Su Yao had given him, still faintly scented with jasmine perfume. Memories of Su Yao's smile and the black-robed man's words intertwined, throwing his thoughts into chaos. The black-robed man approached step by step, a bone blade now in his hand, its blade gleaming with an eerie green light, flickering in the darkness as if it were alive.

"I'll ask you one last time, where's the sheepskin map?" The bone blade was pressed against his throat; Lin Yu could even smell the blood on it, the stench making him nauseous. Just then, a piercing siren blared outside the warehouse, and red and blue lights shone through the broken windows, casting crisscrossing shadows on the ground. The man in black cursed, then hurled the bone blade at Lin Yu's heart, vanishing into the corner as black mist.

Lin Yu dodged to the side, the bone blade grazing his earlobe before embedding itself in the wall behind him with a dull thud. He struggled to his feet, touching the bloodstains on the wall—it belonged to the black-robed man, and carried a peculiar, putrid stench that sent chills down his spine. His phone suddenly vibrated; it was a location sent by Su Yao: "Three hundred meters east of you in the sewers, I've followed the bloodstains." Looking at the text on his phone, Lin Yu felt a mix of emotions, unsure whether to believe or doubt.

Lin Yu clenched his fist, staring at the bone blade on the wall. The raven pattern engraved on the hilt was exactly the same as the wax seal on the letter. As he reached to pull out the bone blade, a sharp pain suddenly shot through his fingertips—a green light flashed on the blade, burning a raven-shaped mark into his palm. The searing pain made him gasp.

"Lin Yu! How are you?" Su Yao's voice came from outside the warehouse. Lin Yu quickly covered the brand with his sleeve, turning around with his composure restored: "The person escaped, but I got this." He raised the bone blade; under the police lights, the green light on the blade swirled eerily, like some kind of living thing writhing.

Su Yao leaned closer to examine it, her face suddenly turning pale: "This is... the Yinming Bone Blade, only the protectors of the Raven Organization are worthy of using it. Did you... touch any blood on the blade just now?" Her voice trembled almost imperceptibly, and she reached out to grab Lin Yu's wrist, but he subtly avoided her.

Lin Yu recalled the black-robed man's words and a hint of doubt arose in his heart, but he still shook his head: "It's nothing. As for Zhang Ke's condition, they sent another video." He pulled up the video on his phone; Zhang Ke in the video was clearly weaker than before, his left eye was bruised, blood was still trickling from the corner of his mouth, and his eyes were full of helplessness.

Su Yao stared at the screen, then suddenly gasped, "Look at the background behind him! That's an abandoned power plant on the outskirts of the city, let's go!" She turned and ran out, her ponytail swinging straight in the night wind. Lin Yu followed behind, the raven brand on his palm still faintly burning, and the meaningful smile the black-robed man had given him before leaving lingered in his mind.

Police cars sped towards the outskirts of the city, their sirens piercing the night. Lin Yu gazed at the fleeting night scenery outside the car window, pulling out a sheepskin map from his pocket. Under the red and blue lights of the police cars, the faint, dark patterns along the map's edges perfectly matched the bronze key at the black-robed man's waist. His nails dug deeply into his palms, a terrifying suspicion surfacing in his mind—perhaps this crisis was far more complex than he imagined. And Su Yao, the one who had always been by his side, was she truly harboring ulterior motives, as the black-robed man claimed? The road ahead was shrouded in mist, every step filled with unknowns and dangers.

Chapter 153: The Battle Reaches a Stalemate

The warehouse reeked of rust, mingled with the metallic scent of blood seeping from Lin Yu's wounds. The black-robed man's black chains grazed past his ear, smashing a dent the size of a bowl into the corrugated iron wall and causing the overhead light bulb to sway violently.

"Answer me! What exactly do you want from Zhang Ke?" Lin Yu rolled along the shelf, causing the iron pipes on it to tip over with a crash. He grabbed one, and spiritual energy surged from the pipe's wall, emitting a ghostly blue light. The iron pipe collided with the bone blade thrown by the black-robed man, and the sparks from the impact made his hand go numb.

?.

A hoarse, cold laugh escaped the black-robed man's throat, half of his raven mask gleaming bluish-green in the shadows: "Want the answer? Take a look at this first!" He tossed out a silver disc, its surface projecting an image of Zhang Ke hanging from an abandoned chimney—a time bomb strapped to the man's ankle, a countdown display showing only 27 minutes remaining.

Lin Yu's pupils constricted sharply, and his spiritual energy surged out of control. Taking advantage of the moment, the black-robed man lunged forward, his bone blade aimed straight for Lin Yu's throat. At the last second, Lin Yu fell backward, the bone blade grazing his nose and severing a few strands of hair. As he rolled to his feet, his lower back slammed heavily against a small mountain of wooden crates, sending dust of old wood scattering onto his shoulders.

"In such a hurry to save someone?" The man in black robes flicked his wrist, and the green poisonous mist on his bone blade condensed into a hideous face. "Telling you won't hurt; that kid's life is just bait to lure you into handing over the map." Before he finished speaking, the warehouse ceiling exploded, and dozens of black chains hung down like living snakes, their barbs hooking onto Lin Yu's limbs, pinning him firmly to the ground.

Lin Yu groaned, his spiritual energy shield humming under the immense pressure. He caught sight of the bronze key at the black-robed man's waist—the half that matched the hidden pattern on the sheepskin map—and a sudden realization struck him. Three years ago in the Dunhuang tombs, his master, on his deathbed, had drawn a similar pattern on his palm with his blood. At the time, the old man had weakly murmured, "The key...mutual generation and mutual restraint..."

"You think you can succeed by trapping me?" Lin Yu bit his tongue hard, spraying sweet, metallic blood onto the chains. The blood, stained with spiritual energy, climbed the chains like a living thing. The black-robed man was caught off guard, a flicker of panic crossing his face beneath the mask. Taking advantage of the moment, Lin Yu freed his right arm, spiritual energy surging into his palm like a tidal wave, condensing into a sharp blade of light.

However, the man in black reacted extremely quickly, instantly summoning a barrier of black mist. The moment the light blade pierced the black mist, Lin Yu's pupils widened sharply—Su Yao's figure appeared within the mist; the woman was covered in blood, and a chain with barbs was wrapped around her neck.

"Look at the person you can't protect." The man in black robes manipulated the black mist, bringing "Su Yao's" face close to Lin Yu's eyes. "Last time in the warehouse, if she hadn't tipped me off, do you think I could have predicted your moves so easily?"

Lin Yu's light blade trembled violently, but reason returned at the last moment. He remembered Su Yao staying up all night three days ago to analyze the weaknesses of the Raven Organization for him, and the warmth of her palm when she handed him the tracker. "Stop trying to sow discord!" The light blade suddenly changed direction, aiming straight for the black-robed man's ankle.

The man in black robes leaped into the air, his bone blade clashing with the light blade in mid-air with a deafening roar. The shockwave swept through the entire warehouse, collapsing shelves in droves and creating a spiderweb of cracks in the floor. Lin Yu seized the opportunity to roll to a corner and grab a sharp piece of metal. As the man in black robes attacked again, he suddenly hurled the metal piece at the incandescent light bulb on the ceiling.

The warehouse was plunged into darkness instantly. Lin Yu held his breath, relying on his years of combat instincts, and rolled to the side the instant the black-robed man attacked. The bone blade grazed his trouser leg, leaving a scorched mark on the ground. He swung his spiritual whip in a backhand motion, but only struck a wisp of nothingness.

"Looking for me?" The voice of the man in black robes came from above. Lin Yu looked up and saw the man hanging upside down from the ventilation duct opening, the snake tattoo beneath his mask glowing with an eerie red light. "Let me tell you a secret, the bomb on your friend..." the man in black robes deliberately dragged out the last syllable, "...actually doesn't have a detonator."

Lin Yu's heart sank. Just then, a piercing siren blared outside the warehouse, and red and blue lights shone through the broken walls. The man in black cursed and flung out several smoke grenades. In the instant the smoke filled the air, Lin Yu felt something sharp pressed against his lower back—a bone blade, carrying a chilling aura that seeped into his bones.

"Next time we meet, I hope you bring the complete map." The black-robed man's breath tickled his ear. "Otherwise, your little lover's fate won't be as simple as just losing an arm." Before he finished speaking, a sharp pain shot through his lower back, and Lin Yu's vision went black; he lost consciousness.

When he awoke again, Su Yao was shining a powerful flashlight into his pupils. "Awake?" The woman rarely showed such anxiety; her police badge was stained with blood. "Before you lost consciousness, you were clutching this tightly." She opened her palm; it was a strip of cloth torn from the black-robed man's body, the edges embroidered with raven totems, still emitting a peculiar putrid smell.

Lin Yu struggled to sit up, suddenly remembering the black-robed man's last words. He reached into his pocket; his phone screen lit up—a new video. In the video, Zhang Ke's right arm was indeed bandaged, but his eyes were unusually clear. The man quickly made three hand gestures towards the camera. Lin Yu's pupils contracted sharply; it was their unique distress code, which translated to: Trap, don't trust anyone.