After shifting to a flying police car in the parking lot, the noisy world quieted down.
The flying police car headed west, towards the edge of the Tree of Life. Shen Siwei didn’t close his eyes during this journey; he kept his gaze fixed on the scenery outside the window.
According to his memories, the western district city hadn’t changed much. The iconic buildings remained the same, but there were many three-dimensional advertisements between the high-rise buildings that Shen Siwei didn’t recognize.
“Commander, how does it feel to live on the top floor?”
The soldier started a conversation with Shen Siwei again.
To be honest, Shen Siwei had only been to the top floor a few times, so he could only rely on his intuitive feelings to answer, “The sunlight is abundant.”
“There’s sunlight on the lower levels too.”
As soon as the soldier finished speaking, the flying car crossed the boundary between light and shadow and entered an area where the sunlight was shining directly.
Due to the layered structure of the Tree of Life, most of the cities in the western district could only receive sunlight in the evening. The closer they got to the edge, the brighter the light became. When the sunlight entered the flying car, it indicated that they were approaching the edge of the western district.
Looking into the distance, beyond the walls of the western district, there was an endless desert.
The high temperatures made it difficult for people to survive in the desert, but compared to the even harsher environments in the other three directions outside the Tree of Life, the desert could be considered habitable.
It was for this reason that most of the criminals exiled from the tree mainly operated in the desert, and over time, an underground city appeared in the desert, a true “City of Criminals.”
“Commander, two more kilometers to the destination.” The soldier’s voice brought Shen Siwei back to his thoughts.
The flying vehicle started to lower its altitude, approaching the industrial zone between the cities below.
The assembly lines in the factories had long been replaced by AI, and the industrial area was rarely visited by people. However, as the flying vehicle began to fly close to the rooftops of the factories, the instrument panel in front suddenly flashed red, warning that the flying car was being targeted by weapons.
Everything happened quickly, and Shen Siwei and the two soldiers had just looked at the screen when the flying car was hit by shells fired from below.
The rapid descent caused centrifugal force to press Shen Siwei’s back tightly against the seat and the car quickly crashed into the ground, and the entire seat was dislodged from its hinges due to the impact.
Thick smoke and spreading flames blocked Shen Siwei’s view. He instinctively lifted his arm to shield himself from the waves of heat, only to find that his exposed skin didn’t feel the burning sensation.
Even though he was clearly grazed by the flames, his skin remained unblemished.
It seemed that Moran was right. Even in this situation, he remained unharmed. Crushing against a glass didn’t bruise him at all.
Looking at his clothes, although they were blackened by the smoke, they were made of flame-resistant material and hadn’t caught fire.
Shen Siwei released his seatbelt and immediately checked on the condition of the two soldiers in the front seat. But both of them had blood on their faces and were no longer breathing.
Shen Siwei couldn’t help but feel regretful. No one expected such an event to occur, which resulted in all three of them being unprepared.
But then again, who would intercept a negotiator halfway?
There was no time to ponder on it. Shen Siwei used his elbow to break the glass window and crawled out of the burning flying vehicle.
It was at that moment he heard voices nearby.
“Damn, he’s not dead!”
“Quick, shoot!”
“Kill him!”
Intense bullets were fired towards him, and Shen Siwei used his elbow to shield his forehead. The flashes of fire made it almost impossible for him to keep his eyes open.
Although the bullets hitting him didn’t cause any harm, the sensation was similar to being splashed with water. Even though they were harmless water droplets, they were enough to disrupt his vision and make him feel irritated.
The reddish whirlwind blew in his light blue eyes, and Shen Siwei’s anger continued to rise.
Four individuals with assault rifles gradually approached the crashed aircraft. The fierce tongues of fire from their muzzles never ceased, but they couldn’t stop the white figure crawling forward amidst the raging flames.
“What’s going on? Why can’t we kill him?”
“What the hell is this monster?”
Shen Siwei kept his head lowered, one hand pressed against his metallic mask to prevent it from falling off.
The white cape was riddled with numerous holes, and the metal skin of the aircraft was shattered. Although Shen Siwei remained unharmed, crawling amidst the hail of bullets proved difficult with every step.
Finally, he lifted his head.
Shen Siwei could clearly see a bullet heading straight for his eye, but instead of closing his eyes, he reached out and grabbed the bullet.
The slowed-down time returned to normal at this moment. Shen Siwei flung the bullet back with precision, piercing the throat of one person.
The other three immediately lost their composure and started shouting, retreating backwards. However, they were too close to Shen Siwei to find cover in time.
A white figure flashed by, and someone’s neck was twisted.
The remaining two hadn’t reacted yet when their throats were slashed by a blade.
At that moment, the crashed aircraft suddenly exploded, billowing thick smoke that soared into the sky.
The shockwave of the explosion and the raging fire had no effect on Shen Siwei. He stood expressionless in place, using the tattered cape to wipe the blood off the dagger, then throwing the cape next to the corpses.
“Colonel Moran.” Shen Siwei opened the communicator and informed Moran of the situation in front of him.
While speaking, his eyes began returning to the cool light bluecolour.
“In short, someone wants to kill me,” Shen Siwei summarized.
“Is it the refugees?” Moran’s tone was serious. “How could anyone dare to kill a noble?”
“I’m not sure.” Shen Siwei squatted down and checked the wrists of the dead bodies one by one. He noticed scars where identity chips should have been implanted, indicating that those people had removed the soldiers’ identity chips.
Moran said, “Take a photo of their appearance and send it to me this instance for investigation.”
A faint afterglow could be spotted in the sky indicating darkness was approaching.even without the aircraft, Shen Siwei still needed to go to City Z. He found a modified off-road vehicle that the four assassins had left near a factory not far away and embarked on the road to City Z alone.
The attack occurred when he was close to his destination. After about ten minutes, Shen Siwei saw a roadblock set up ahead.
Several individuals who appeared to be refugees sat by the roadblock, playing cards. As they saw the off-road vehicle approaching, they immediately picked up the weapons beside them.
“Who goes there?” someone shouted at Shen Siwei.
Shen Siwei slowly pressed the brakes and calmly got out of the vehicle. However, his uniform was not much better than the discarded cape, marked with traces of smoke and numerous bullet holes.
The refugees didn’t immediately recognize Shen Siwei. They looked at each other for a moment before someone tentatively asked, “Negotiator?”
“It’s me.” Shen Siwei looked calmly at them, raising his chin without being humble, “I’m looking for Klete.”
“You…,” someone assessed the disheveled appearance of Shen Siwei, then looked at the thick smoke rising in the distance and asked, “Did something happen to you?”
Shen Siwei didn’t want to waste words and said expressionlessly, “Tell Klete to come see me. Seeing that the negotiator wouldn’t answer their questions, they could only go and report.
Neon lights illuminated the dim street, and sounds of commotion could be heard from a strip club.
Klete sat alone in a booth, holding a glass of wine in one hand and a tablet computer in the other. His gaze fell on the electronic map, showing no interest in the swaying buttocks on the stage.
The map marked the energy stations in various areas, all of which were heavily guarded.
Suddenly, a figure emerged beside him. Maiken hugged a beautiful woman’s waist casually and said to Klete, “Boss, the negotiator is here. Aren’t you going to talk to him?”
“No.” Klete didn’t lift his head, still looking at the display screen of the tablet. “The Marg people won’t give us any benefits they are useless.”
“I think so too.” Maiken nodded seriously in agreement. “They must be setting a trap for us.”
Klete didn’t respond further, and Maiken returned to the stage with the woman he was holding, as if the brief conversation hadn’t happened.
After sunset, the city center in the distance became lively, but the outskirts of the city where Shen Siwei was waiting had completely turned dark.
“Hasn’t your boss arrived yet?”
Shen Siwei was getting impatient. He didn’t know if Klete was intentionally showing him disrespect or if it took this long to pass a message.
But just then, the sound of engines could suddenly be heard, and several modified vehicles approached from the front. The glaring headlights made Shen Siwei furrow his brow.
After a while, a few vehicles stopped around Shen Siwei, and more than a dozen tall and burly men got out of the cars.
The man walking at the forefront had a Mohican hairstyle, and his entire right arm had been replaced with a cybernetic prosthetic.
Shen Siwei knew at a glance that it was an illegal modification.
Cybernetic prosthetics were only used for military and medical purposes. Normally, after installation, they would be covered with human skin and not appear mechanical.
But that Mohican’s prosthetic was clearly mechanical, with circuits and components exposed in the air, emitting a terrifying silver glow.
“How can we make the negotiator wait here?” Mohican grinned and approached Shen Siwei.
Shen Siwei had previously read the information and knew that this man was called Barn, the second-in-command of the refugees, known for his atrocities such as burning, killing, and looting.
People like him willingly became Klete’s assasins, which made the military even more curious about Klete’s background.
“Where is Klete?” Shen Siwei asked.
“He’s busy with something.” Barn looked Shen Siwei up and down and then gestured to his subordinates to open the car door. He continued, “Get in the car, I’ll take you to see Klete.”
As Shen Siwei remained motionless, he couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was off.
“What’s the matter? Can’t I invite you?” Barn chuckled hoarsely, using his chin to signal his subordinates to open the car door. Then he added, “Or do you want to wait here until dawn?”
Waiting was definitely not an option.
Shen Siwei was uncertain about their intentions, or perhaps Klete. He could only take it step by step and see how things unfolded.
He walked toward the modified vehicle, but at that moment, Barn suddenly reached out to stop him. “Negotiator,do you think our territory is so easily accessible?” he asked.
Shen Siwei furrowed his brow slightly. “What do you want?”
“Of course, a search is in order,” Barn replied confidently.
After saying that, Barn casually took a step forward, and his hands moved from Shen Siwei’s back to his waist.
“I’m not carrying any weapons,” Shen Siwei said impatiently, his brow creasing as he suppressed the urge to kill.
“It’s not up to you to decide,” Barn leaned closer to Shen Siwei, exhaling onto his face mask. “I’ll know once I search you.”
His hands continued moving downward, patting Shen Siwei’s straight legs, and then… he found a dagger inside the tall military boot.
It was the same dagger Shen Siwei had used to kill earlier.
“Tsk tsk.” Barn shook his head and tapped the blade of the dagger against Shen Siwei’s face. “Lying is not a good look, negotiator.”
With that, he turned to his subordinates and gave them a signal. “Take him away.”
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