"Don't overthink it. You should go rest first."
Fortunately, the room Chen Jinzhao booked was spacious, with separate living and sleeping areas, allowing them to rest without disturbing each other.
Inside the room.
Tao Qiyue lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.
The thought of Chen Jinzhao sleeping on the sofa just outside the door gave Tao Qiyue a peculiar feeling.
Lost in her thoughts, her consciousness gradually faded, and she drifted into sleep.
Chen Jinzhao, lying on the sofa in the living room, also felt a surge of sleepiness. He yawned and closed his eyes, preparing to sleep.
A few seconds later, Chen Jinzhao suddenly woke up.
He had been contemplating how to investigate the Divine Kingdom organization, so why was he suddenly overcome by drowsiness?
Something unusual is afoot!
Chen Jinzhao remained calm, closed his eyes again, and pondered.
As he quieted his mind, he realized that someone seemed to be spying on him. He hadn't detected it before because something had been obscuring his senses. As Chen Jinzhao's mind grew calmer, his awareness sharpened, and the feeling of being spied upon intensified.
By now, Chen Jinzhao was certain he was being monitored.
He also knew that the drowsiness he felt was definitely caused by someone tampering with the room. If he had fallen asleep, someone would have attacked him.
"They're quite bold," Chen Jinzhao mused.
Upon realizing this, Chen Jinzhao instantly formulated a plan. He intended to lure the snake out of its hole and see what tactics the other party possessed.
He lay on the bed with his eyes closed, quietly awaiting their arrival.
The second hand ticked away, and time flowed by.
After an unknown period, Chen Jinzhao's ears twitched as he heard a subtle movement from outside the door. He estimated that about forty minutes had passed since he pretended to fall asleep. He couldn't help but think, "These dogs are truly patient. I underestimated them."
The more cautious they were, the greater their scheme must be.
The faint sounds outside the door soon subsided, as if they were deliberately testing Chen Jinzhao. Chen Jinzhao resolved not to move unless he saw them.
Half an hour later.
The sounds outside the door became more apparent, yet they still did not force entry.
After three such probing attempts, Chen Jinzhao finally heard someone trying to pick the room's lock. At that instant, he was ready to strike.
*Click!*
The room door was opened.
Even without opening his eyes, Chen Jinzhao could deduce that there were three of them. Furthermore, judging by the steadiness of their footsteps, he knew they were all assassins. Upon reaching this conclusion, Chen Jinzhao's nerves tensed, ready to unleash a fatal blow at any moment.
The footsteps grew closer, nearing Chen Jinzhao within two meters.
At such close range, an ordinary person would have no chance to react if faced with a firearm. The three individuals made no sound, and in an instant, they raised their guns, aiming at Chen Jinzhao's head.
The next moment.
Chen Jinzhao's eyes snapped open. The "Tai Sui" three-edged dagger in his hand flew out, directly piercing the chest of the person in the middle, killing them on the spot.
The remaining two were caught completely off guard, not even having time to fire their guns.
Chen Jinzhao moved like a shadow, appearing before them. He backhanded one of them, snatching their pistol, and then struck the carotid artery on the other's neck with his elbow. Faced with Chen Jinzhao's lightning-fast movements, this woman had no ability to resist, not even a moment to block.
The woman was knocked unconscious. The last remaining youth suddenly aimed his gun at Chen Jinzhao. They were less than two meters apart, and the youth did not hesitate, pulling the trigger.
*Bang!*
A deafening gunshot echoed.
Tao Qiyue, jolted awake from her sleep, opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling, gasping for air.
Was it an illusion?
Tao Qiyue sat up on the bed and stared at the room door.
As she hesitated whether to go out and investigate, another gunshot rang out. She immediately rolled out of bed, disregarding that she was only wearing a loose nightgown. Grabbing a pistol from the nightstand, she opened the door and then lunged from behind it, aiming at Chen Jinzhao, who stood before the sofa.
"Nobody move!" Tao Qiyue commanded.
A pungent smell of blood flooded her nostrils, assaulting her nerves. As her vision focused on Chen Jinzhao, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then, her gaze fell upon the three figures on the ground, and she lowered her pistol.
"Are you alright?" Tao Qiyue quickly approached Chen Jinzhao.
At her feet, the young man's neck had been broken by Chen Jinzhao, his mouth bleeding profusely, still warm.
Chen Jinzhao shook his head. "It's nothing. Just three ants. They couldn't hurt me."
Tao Qiyue, confirming Chen Jinzhao was unharmed, breathed another sigh of relief. "What's going on with these three? Why did you kill them?"
Chen Jinzhao walked to the bathroom, washed the blood from his hands, and explained the night's events to Tao Qiyue. Feeling a lingering fear, Tao Qiyue said, "So that's what happened. I was wondering why I suddenly felt so drowsy; I was drugged. These people are too skilled to drug someone so stealthily."
"If not for your high vigilance, we might have been in trouble."
Tao Qiyue felt a sense of relief.
She then asked, "So, what do we do now?"
Chen Jinzhao returned to the living room and asked Tao Qiyue to find rope to tie up the unconscious woman. Tao Qiyue then realized the woman was only unconscious, not dead. After following his instructions and tying her up, Chen Jinzhao also told her not to inform the local colleagues in Fengtian, as the Divine Kingdom might have infiltrated the system.
"Oh, oh, if you hadn't said anything, I would have called them." Tao Qiyue replied.
Chen Jinzhao searched the woman's mouth for a while and found a black pill. Tao Qiyue looked at it with surprise. "What is this..."
"Most likely a potent poison, used for suicide," Chen Jinzhao explained. Tao Qiyue suddenly understood.
Having removed the woman's means of suicide, Chen Jinzhao gripped the "Tai Sui" again and then plunged it into the woman's palm, pinning her hand to the floor.
The woman screamed in pain. Tao Qiyue quickly covered her mouth. Chen Jinzhao snorted, "Behave yourself, and I might spare your life. Don't even think about suicide; I've already retrieved the poison pill from your mouth. Your life is in my hands."
"From now on, you answer my questions. If I'm not satisfied, I guarantee you'll regret it."
"Do you understand?"