The Trap

Inside that dilapidated residential building, a dozen gunmen and several burly fighters lay hidden within narrow corridors and doorway-less rooms. Holding their breath in focused concentration, they waited for Wu Han and Wei Dong to enter. They all belonged to the same mercenary team. Acting on instructions from a certain commissioner, they had used a fake hostage kidnapping to lure the pair into a trap; per the commissioner's orders, they were to take them alive if at all possible. Seeing Wu Han and Wei Dong halt in front of the building, the mercenaries secretly braced themselves. To their surprise, however, after exchanging a few words, the two suddenly began retreating. "What's going on?" "Why are they leaving?" "Did someone fucking blow our cover?" Panic immediately set in. Had they slipped up somewhere? If their targets walked away now, they wouldn't be able to fulfill what the commissioner had tasked them to do. The team leader barked fiercely, "Damn it, to hell with it! Move! Keep them here!" Instantly, the fighters burst straight through the walls, while several gunmen near the front rushed to the windows and opened fire on the two from a distance. Had Wei Dong and Wu Han entered the building, they might have been caught off guard. But they were still outside and already on high alert. The moment rapid, running footsteps echoed from within, they exchanged a glance and immediately split up, sprinting in opposite directions. A barrage of bullets chewed into the dirt behind them, but not a single round found its mark. Once a fighter hit full stride, their speed was terrifyingly swift; unless someone possessed exceptional marksmanship, hitting them was practically impossible. The fighters hit the ground outside and charged straight after the two. All five fighters from the mercenary team deployed this time, every one of them a prime male in his thirties or forties. Two went after Wu Han, while three surged toward Wei Dong. The three pursuing Wei Dong were the stronger combatants. Their plan was to tie down Wu Han, concentrate their strength on taking down Wei Dong first, and then easily mop up Wu Han on his own. Wu Han ran for a short distance, pulling far away from the line of fire and rounding into a blind spot beyond the shooters' line of sight. The two fighters kept pace right behind him. Both were seasoned veterans; rather than rushing to engage, they stayed glued to his tail without giving him room to break away. Wu Han had seen Wei Dong being cornered by three men earlier. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have worried about three fighters posing a threat to Wei Dong, but current circumstances were far from normal. Thus, he didn't run far. Reaching an open clearing, he skidded to a halt and turned to face his two pursuers. Both fighters wielded iron chains. Seeing him stop, they stopped as well, yet neither made an aggressive move. Their role was purely to stall. If Wu Han didn't move, neither would they. Once the others finished off Wei Dong, converging on him together would make the job effortless. They placed more importance on Wei Dong because he was a student of Wuyi Academy. Knowing he would not be an easy opponent, they had assigned the bulk of their strength to him. What they didn't know was that Wu Han had also graduated from Wuyi. He, too, had come through a formal combat training system and possessed extensive real-world combat experience. Furthermore, because he handled so many commissions, he never lacked for medicinal supplements in his daily training. Wu Han eyed the pair, unslung and cast aside the gun on his back, then leaned forward, kicked off the ground, and charged toward one of them. The man in front raised his longsword vertically along his centerline in a parrying stance, while the other readied himself as well, shaking out his iron chain with a sharp clatter, poised to flank Wu Han the moment the two clashed. In mere moments, Wu Han closed the distance to just two or three meters. From his posture, he appeared poised to level his spear and thrust. At that very instant, however, he suddenly twirled the shaft between his index and middle fingers, switching from a forward grip with the webbing of his thumb facing outward to a reverse grip with the webbing facing inward, and hurled the weapon forward with all the momentum of his charge! Thrown with tremendous ferocity, the sheer force carried him airborne for a split second the moment the spear left his hand. The opposing fighter never expected him to throw the spear at such close quarters. Incapable of reacting in time, he took the spearhead straight through his mouth, bursting out the back of his skull. The second fighter was already halfway through his charge. Wu Han hit the ground, rode his momentum forward, and dragged the dying man around so his back faced outward, shielding Wu Han from view. Seeing the spearhead protruding from the back of his comrade's head, the charging man hesitated for a split second. At that moment, his companion's corpse was violently shoved, flying off the ground and hurtling toward him. He hastily dodged aside, letting the corpse hurtle past his flank. But Wu Han was nowhere to be seen where the body had stood. Stunned for a moment, he suddenly realized the truth. Turning his head, he saw Wu Han clinging to the airborne body, staring straight at him. The man's eyes went wide. Before he could react, a shadow flickered. Wu Han lunged ahead. Reaching out midair with both hands, he locked one arm around the man's head, clamped the other hand over it, and used his body weight to wrench back and downward. With a sharp snap, the man's neck broke, his head twisted grotesquely back and to the side. Landing on his feet, Wu Han let the limp body drop to the ground. Turning immediately, he broke into a sprint, yanking his short spear from the other corpse as he rushed past. Wiping the thick gore off on his sleeve, he ran toward Wei Dong without stopping for breath. Further back, Old Qi had originally been waiting in the car. Whenever the two took on a commission, he was responsible for negotiations, transport and backup, route planning, and all manner of logistical support. Moreover, while he wasn't a fighter, he was a seasoned commissioner skilled in handling all kinds of firearms, possessing considerable combat capability in his own right. The moment he heard the gunshots, his instincts told him something was wrong. Gazing into the distance, he spotted the two being pursued. Quick to react, he immediately got out of the car, ran to the trunk, and hauled out a crate. Popping it open, he revealed a combat mantis that their team had inadvertently seized during a previous commission. To activate this thing, however, required high-energy nutrient solution. The stuff was exorbitantly expensive; the team had pooled their money just to scrape together enough for two vials. Following the instructions, he swiftly injected the high-energy nutrient solution. Within moments, the combat mantis tore through its thick protective casing and leapt out. Old Qi made a hand gesture and pointed forward. The combat mantis bounced ahead, unfurling its wings mid-leap and blurring into a streak of afterimages as it rocketed straight toward the gunmen pursuing from the building. Because the gunmen knew their targets had no firearms, they had rushed out with virtually no tactical formation. But right then, a grey blur flashed by. With a crisp slash, the man running at the front was suddenly cleaved in two. The crowd recoiled in horror, only to see a figure perched atop an adjacent terrace. Crimson compound eyes glared down at them, while two razor-sharp scythe blades up front gleamed conspicuously. One of the gunmen screamed, "Combat organism!" Forgetting all about the chase, the men raised their guns and fired. But the combat mantis lunged downward. Bullets struck its hardened carapace with metallic clangs, ricocheting off harmlessly. Raising a scythe blade, it cleanly severed another head with a swish. Leaping into the crowd, its sharp prolegs pinned a screaming man to the ground. Not all combat organisms were created equal. The combat mantis was a classic model produced by Compound Eye Company—blindingly fast, capable of flight, and devastatingly lethal. Even a weaker Second Limit fighter would struggle against it, to say nothing of gunmen equipped only with standard military implants. One after another was butchered in seconds. Sensing catastrophe, the remaining gunmen scattered in all directions, but it was futile. The combat mantis moved with blistering speed, hunting down every last one. Not a single target escaped; it only ceased once the final man had his head lopped off a kilometer away. Meanwhile, Wu Han had already reached Wei Dong just as the combat mantis tore into the gunmen. Yet he stopped in his tracks—all three fighters sent to gang up on Wei Dong were already sprawled on the ground, while Wei Dong was casually adjusting his blood-soaked boxing gloves. Wu Han gave a fond chuckle. "Not bad, kid." He guessed the mercenaries had gauged Wei Dong's combat strength based on an ordinary Wuyi Academy student, completely unaware of reality: Wei Dong was one of those who had fought his way up from a regional Wuyi school. Old Qi hurried over at this point and asked, "What happened?" Wu Han said, "Eighty percent chance this commission was a setup. Wait here, I'll go check." He went into the residential building alone to inspect the scene, only to discover that the supposed kidnapping victim was a mannequin. The bastards hadn't even bothered to make an effort. If not for Wei Dong's warning, they might well have crashed and burned. Facing a dozen guns inside a cramped room left nowhere to run. Relying on his external conditioning, Wei Dong might have had a chance of breaking out, but Wu Han would likely have been done for. After a moment's thought, he yanked the dummy down. Fake or real, their commission was considered complete. Since the "person" was found, the client had better pay up as agreed. Returning outside, he discussed matters with Wei Dong and Old Qi. Feeling that this was no simple matter, he immediately contacted Chen Chuan. Once the call connected, he explained everything. After listening, Chen Chuan's eyes grew calm and profound. "Don't take on any commissions for the next couple of days. I'll let you know once things are settled on my end." "All right, we'll take a break for the next two days then." Ending the call, Chen Chuan pondered for a moment before stepping onto the terrace of his residence. He dialed Gao Ming. After a brief wait, the line connected, and he asked, "Gao Ming, everything all right on your end?" Gao Ming chuckled. "Cousin, I'm currently handling a few major clients with tremendous influence. The firm would never permit switching handlers midway. Besides, I'm staying inside a safehouse all day and won't go anywhere. I'll just wait for you to settle things on your end." Chen Chuan hummed in acknowledgment. "Keep to that plan, then." After ending the call, he looked outside. According to the Purist Faction, this matter would reach a resolution past noon today. There were still two hours until twelve o'clock. He would wait until then. If it wasn't resolved by that time, he would handle it in his own way. …… ……