Dark Light Chaser.

Chapter 32 The Pursuit in the Shopping Mall

Having said everything he could, Ai Liang ignored Xia Qinian, who was lost in thought, and launched into another round of questioning Xu Zhihai.

"What is your purpose?" Ai Liang asked. "Why are you telling me this information for no reason?"

Ai Liang knew that there was no such thing as a free lunch. Xu Zhihai was not a philanthropist and would not reveal this information for no reason. He must have his own purpose.

“Purpose?” he said. “My purpose is simple: to be a tainted witness seeking asylum. I’ve taken my revenge, but I don’t intend to join that weird organization. The name Apostles doesn’t sound like a respectable place.”

Xu Zhihai munched on a chicken leg, speaking openly about how he was using and discarding the mysterious person who helped him get revenge, without showing the slightest bit of remorse.

"Then why didn't you just confess to the police? Why did you have to go after Xia Qinian?"

Ai Liang pressed for an answer.

"Because I have a history of intermittent mental illness, do you think they would believe what I just said? They'll either think I'm faking it or that I'm having a mental breakdown and talking nonsense. I guess they won't start to doubt or verify it until I'm actually kidnapped by the Apostles, and by then it will be too late."

"Why do you think I'd believe your nonsense?"

“You’ve already believed it, because you’ve been targeted by them too, haven’t you?” Xu Zhihai looked at Ai Liang with a strange smile. “Besides, they can disbelieve what I say, but if the renowned hermit chooses to believe me, they’ll definitely take that information seriously.”

"hehe."

Ai Liang sneered. Now he was 100% certain that Xu Zhihai had definitely informed the police about this meeting.

"Don't be so cold," Xu Zhihai said, narrowing his eyes. "Since we're all getting what we need, wouldn't it be better to have an open and honest discussion?"

Xu Zhihai looked at Ai Liang with a probing gaze and said, "Why did you carry out a bloodbath against the underground forces in Nevada City? It seems they didn't provoke you."

Xu Zhihai remained silent until he made a stunning statement, his first question directly addressing the core of Ai Liang's identity as a recluse.

"Does it have anything to do with you?"

Ai Liang replied coldly.

"Well, how should I put it? Actually, I can sense the deepest emotions buried in a person's heart, but you've killed so many people and yet you're completely unmoved, which surprises me." Xu Zhihai spread his hands and raised an eyebrow at Ai Liang. "I have heard rumors about you."

"Ten years ago, during an operation, someone very important to you was brutally murdered by the Cat's Eye Gang. So you transformed from an intelligence broker into a butcher of hell, turning your blade against those big shots in the underworld to appease the spirits of your fallen comrades. Is that really the truth?"

Seeing Xu Zhihai's curious gaze, Ai Liang's lips twitched uncontrollably behind her mask. "No."

"Was it because he was disappointed with the safety of Nevada City that he decided to become a dark hero to fight criminal organizations?"

"."

Ai Liang remained silent.

The guesses Xu Zhihai made were all fabricated by those idle information brokers.

Ai Liang only kills heinous and irredeemable criminals. Because he has the ability to read minds, he can accurately distinguish who can be killed and who cannot.

It is precisely this characteristic that has led those idle intelligence brokers to release their own fabricated intelligence and a bunch of baseless evidence.

Originally, Ai Liang was simply using the image of a scumbag to vent his negative emotions, but as the story spread, he became a man with a tragic past that ordinary people could not imagine, a vengeful figure burdened with a blood feud.

The key point is that those gang members actually believed it. Many of the gang leaders, before their deaths, expressed their willingness to hand over the henchmen who killed the hermit's parents (some said his wife, children, siblings) and offered huge rewards to seek reconciliation.

Then, under Ai Liang's disapproving gaze, they were severed from their tracheas or arteries and struggled to their deaths.

Ai Liang once anonymously bought information about himself out of curiosity, and I must say, the fabricated story was quite convincing. It's a real shame that these information brokers aren't screenwriters.

However, Ai Liang did not expect that Xu Zhihai would bring up these things that seemed so fake at this time.

Is this guy really Xu Zhihai? The kind-hearted, bespectacled junk collector, the high-IQ genius who planned two murders, and now this sharp-tongued, gossipy busybody—how many masks does he actually wear?

Ai Liang couldn't quite understand Xu Zhihai's personality. Every aspect of his emotions seemed genuine, but each one was a mask, as if he had schizophrenia.

Seeing that Ai Liang did not answer, Xu Zhihai continued to press, "So, which one is the truth, or are neither of them?"

"Nothing to do with you."

"Never mind if you don't want to talk about it. I'm going to the restroom." Xu Zhihai put down the chicken bone and sucked on his fingers. It was unclear whether he sucked on something through the disposable gloves or simply wanted to do it.

As soon as Xu Zhihai stood up, a plainclothes officer sitting not far away stared intently at him. After realizing that he was just going to the restroom, the officer turned his gaze back to Ai Liang.

"How did you meet Xu Zhihai?" Ai Liang asked Xia Qinian, who looked worried, after Xu Zhihai left.

“He approached me on his own initiative, saying that he knew information about the mysterious organization that my uncle had been tracking ten years ago.”

When Xia Qinian learned that Xia Qiyuan's chances of survival were slim, his voice became low and somber.

"So you believe it?"

"There's nothing I can do if you don't believe me. I've been investigating for ten whole years and haven't found a single clue. Even if I knew that 99% of what he said was a lie, I would still take a gamble for the one percent chance. As it turns out, he was telling the truth. Many parts match up, and he had no reason to lie to me."

There's no reason for someone to lie to you. Would they let you know if they were lying to you?

Ai Liang gently shook her head. The current Xia Qinian is just like the former Wang Zi. They were both led by the nose by Xu Zhihai step by step, and eventually fell into the abyss.

Xia Qiyuan was a man of great reputation, how could his nephew be so stupid?

Ai Liang couldn't help but recall the days when she first started working with Xia Qiyuan.

Xia Qiyuan possesses exceptional logical thinking skills, making him practically a modern-day Sherlock Holmes. You can easily fall into his traps and elicit information if you're not careful. Once, he even nearly deduced Ai Liang's home address through her meals, which terrified Ai Liang so much that she started cooking for herself from then on and never chatted with him again.

It was also because of Xia Qiyuan that Ai Liang understood that although superpowers are versatile, they are not omnipotent. The reason why he is so knowledgeable now is also due to Xia Qiyuan's influence.

Ai Liang learned a lot from Xia Qiyuan in less than a year, and Shi Feng, who followed Xia Qiyuan in handling cases, has now become the top officer of the Neihua City Criminal Police Detachment.

Xia Qinian's existence showed Ai Liang what it truly meant to be utterly hopeless. Spending time with Xia Qiyuan day and night would make even a pig develop a bit of an intellectual air, but he hadn't changed at all. In a sense, Xia Qinian was also a talent.

Ai Liang gave Xia Qinian a heads-up: "For the sake of our acquaintance, if you want to investigate this matter thoroughly, you'd better start with Shi Feng. Be careful not to cooperate with Xu Zhihai and be used to death by him. Don't tell me you don't know what he's been up to lately."

"I know, you came even though you knew you would be taken advantage of."

So how come this person has no self-awareness? Doesn't he know that people's physical constitutions cannot be generalized?

If it weren't for her decent relationship with Xia Qiyuan back then, Ai Liang wouldn't have bothered with this idiot.

"I know he's using me, I'm just using that to send a message to Shi Feng," Ai Liang explained patiently.

"Shi Feng? What does this have to do with Shi Feng?" Xia Qinian frowned.

"Not now, but soon." Ai Liang glanced at the plainclothes officer not far away. The officer noticed her and put his hand on his waist, glaring back menacingly.

However, his trembling hands showed that he was not as strong as he appeared, and his fearful appearance clearly indicated that he had recognized Ai Liang's identity.

Ai Liang had secretly taken a photo as soon as he sat down opposite Xia Qinian. Based on the time it would take for the police station and criminal investigation team to get here, the reinforcements for the manhunt should be arriving soon.

Fortunately, Xia Qinian wasn't completely stupid; he quickly realized, "You've been discovered?"

"What do you think Xu Zhihai went to the restroom for? He probably already told the police about this meeting," Ai Liang said.

"But your appearance..."

"There's no change compared to ten years ago. If Shi Feng doesn't recognize him, it just means he's not suited to be a criminal police officer. You're the only one here to exchange information."

After speaking, Ai Liang slowly stood up. He had already noticed many plainclothes officers when he entered the mall. If he still couldn't guess this, he would have lived in vain all these years.

Seeing Ai Liang stand up, the two plainclothes officers monitoring Xu Zhihai simultaneously received the message and immediately shouted, "Don't move! Police!"

Ai Liang wasn't about to listen obediently. He moved like a rabbit and dashed towards the store entrance in less than two seconds. No one in the store had time to react to what had happened, except for the little boy whose sundae Ai Liang had taken.

Two plainclothes officers quickly gave chase. There were far more people shopping at night than during the day, which made the pursuit much more difficult.

But would Shi Feng let Ai Liang escape so easily? Of course not.

On the chair directly in front of Ai Liang, a passerby who was resting suddenly reached out and grabbed Ai Liang's arm; it was clear that this person was also an undercover officer.

"Team Leader Shi, caught!"

Before he could finish speaking, Ai Liang swiftly grabbed his arm, slid around to his side, and with a backhand grappling move, used his knee to pin him to the ground. The whole sequence of movements was fluid and graceful, the only flaw being that a small portion of the sundae was spilled.

"Release the hostages! Hands over your heads!"

The two behind them weren't going to be idle either; they took advantage of the moment to catch up and aim their stun guns at Ai Liang.

On the escalator, Shi Feng also led a team to rush up, forming a pincer movement, leaving Ai Liang with nowhere to run.

"Please come with us. I don't want to use force." Shi Feng slowly approached, holding a stun gun.

"You can't even beat Xia Qinian?"

In this serious setting, Ai Liang asked a question in a joking tone.

Shi Feng completely ignored Ai Liang's teasing: "You're already surrounded. Just let them go and come back with us. It'll be better for everyone."

Going back with you would be good for everyone? Yang Xingguo has never been kind to me.

Ai Liang didn't say this directly; he just gave Shi Feng a look that said, "You'll figure it out yourself."

While the two were talking, two plainclothes officers on the other side quietly pointed their guns at Ai Liang's exposed ankles.

With such an obvious intention, anyone who wasn't blind could see it. Ai Liang pushed the person in her hand toward the two plainclothes officers, climbed over the railing, and jumped off the fifth floor.

"Ah ah!"

"Someone jumped off the building!"

"where?"

The onlookers downstairs in the mall, unaware of what was happening, gasped in shock. Some girls turned their heads away, unable to bear watching what was about to happen.

Ai Liang didn't fall as they expected. Instead, she transformed into Spider-Man, grabbing the edge of the railing and falling naturally. Then, she grabbed the railing on the fourth floor with one hand, flipped over, and ran towards the emergency exit, all the while holding the sundae she had snatched from the little boy in her right hand.

"Holy crap, is this some kind of acrobatic performance?"

"What is this? An impromptu performance arranged by the mall?"

"It seems like someone is chasing that person."

"Thief?"

Upon seeing this scene, some of the uninformed bystanders downstairs even applauded.

"What are you standing there for? Chase after him!"

After shouting, Shi Feng led everyone towards the emergency exit.

"People downstairs, block all exits! Stop anyone wearing a white T-shirt and cropped jeans!" Shi Feng gave the order into the walkie-talkie as he ran at the back.

As he passed the third floor, Shi Feng noticed water stains on the ground, but he was busy chasing Ai Liang and didn't think much of it.

But as Shi Feng ran, he suddenly realized something was wrong. Ai Liang had entered the emergency exit from the fourth floor. Logically, they should be at most one floor apart, but after chasing for a long time, he could only hear the footsteps of other police officers, and there was no sound coming from downstairs.

Shi Feng suddenly stopped and rushed back to the third floor, opening the sliding door. The surveillance camera not far away was covered in a blurry mess, which was the sundae that Ai Liang had been holding.

Based on the shape and angle of the sundae spill, Shi Feng determined that Ai Liang was heading towards the restroom. He slowly walked in with the stun gun, pointing the muzzle at each stall to inspect them.

Ai Liang was hiding in the innermost cubicle, dispelling her disguise.

The cubicle doors were pulled open one by one, and soon Shi Feng arrived in front of the last cubicle. He held a gun in his right hand, slowly placed his left hand on the cubicle handle, and then pulled it open suddenly.

The cubicle was empty.

At the same time, Ai Liang came out of the women's restroom and walked briskly towards the beverage shop where he had previously stored his handbag. The surveillance cameras at this intersection were covered by sundaes, so he didn't have to worry about being exposed.

(End of this chapter)