Doomsday police, please show your god/demon ID card.

Tick-tock~ Tick-tock~

The pipe swallowed up all light.

The tactical boots sank into the sticky, cold mud with a dull thud.

Tang Long switched on the low-light mode of his tactical flashlight. The beam of light cut through the darkness, startling several large rats, which scurried into the depths of the sewage.

"Stay close."

Tang Long lowered his voice and led the way.

Behind him, five police officers, including Zhao Fan, stood guard with guns drawn.

The group walked through the confined tunnel for about twenty minutes.

There is a fork in the road ahead.

"Left side, walk along the wall." Wu Zheng, leaning on his cane, stepped forward.

"This place collapsed once; it's not safe."

Tang Long nodded slightly, and the group continued forward.

After walking about a hundred meters more, Wu Zheng stopped again.

"Stop." He pointed to an inconspicuous fork in the road ahead: "You can't take the main road anymore, there's a sludge pit ahead."

He led the team into a narrower branch pipe.

The space was only wide enough for one person to bend over and pass through. The backpack rubbed against the pipe wall, making a rustling sound, which amplified the feeling of oppression.

About twenty minutes after we left, the view ahead suddenly opened up.

This is an underground pipeline maintenance room of about 30 square meters, with a large pump and a power distribution box piled up in the corner.

"We've arrived! This is the only way to take them out! We can guard this place." Wu Zheng breathed a slight sigh of relief.

He stepped forward and pointed to the top of the maintenance room, where there was a square ventilation shaft.

"In addition, this ventilation shaft allows you to climb up to the abandoned factory building on the next floor, providing an escape route."

Tang Long glanced around and quickly issued instructions.

"Two people went up the ventilation shaft to control the high ground and escape route."

"I'm going to the left wing, behind the water pump."

"Go behind the right-wing electrical distribution box."

"Zhao Fan, take Wu Zheng and retreat to the innermost corner to hide."

"Everyone! Turn off your flashlights and switch to night vision goggles! Remember, our goal is to capture him alive; prioritize the use of melee weapons."

"Understood." After a few short replies, the group quickly disappeared into the darkness.

The maintenance room fell silent again, with only the dripping sound of water from the distant pipes pounding on everyone's nerves.

Tick-tock~ Tick-tock

Time crawls slowly in the darkness.

suddenly.

Splash... splash...

It sounded like the dragging of many people wading through water.

The sound grew louder as it approached, accompanied by a few impatient shouts and suppressed sobs.

A beam of intense flashlight swept haphazardly across the pipe wall.

Several figures slowly appeared within the beam of light.

Four fully armed men, wearing tactical helmets and bulletproof vests, and carrying automatic rifles, were well-equipped.

Among them were ten survivors strung together by a thick rope, each one ragged and with a numb expression.

The group included men, women, and even a thin boy who looked only thirteen or fourteen years old.

They were driven forward like livestock, and if they slowed down even slightly, they would be kicked in the back.

The head of the guards brandished his powerful flashlight and cursed under his breath.

"Hurry up, you bastards! If you waste any more time, I'll skin you alive!"

As the group passed by the maintenance room, they weren't particularly vigilant, merely glancing at the surrounding equipment out of habit.

however.

Just as the armed captain turned around and the flashlight beam moved away...

A dark vine had quietly begun to climb up his trouser leg.

next second.

The captain felt a sudden tightening around his neck and the wrist holding the gun, as an irresistible force surged through him.

He was lifted off the ground and dragged into the darkness.

"Well……"

Before he could even utter a complete scream, his throat was gripped tightly, his vision went black, and he lost consciousness.

Almost at the same instant.

puff!puff!

Two soft, muffled thuds.

The team members lying in ambush on both sides pulled the trigger, and two crossbow bolts coated with anesthetic accurately struck the necks of the second and third guards.

The two men froze, without uttering a sound, and collapsed limply into the sewage.

The fourth guard's pupils constricted, and he was about to raise his gun to fire.

A dark shadow whistled down from the ventilation shaft above him, slamming heavily onto him and knocking him to the ground, before raising its right fist.

Boom!

With a muffled thud, the world fell silent once more.

The whole process took less than five seconds.

Silent, efficient, and deadly.

The ten survivors, linked together by ropes, stood frozen in place, staring at everything that was happening before their eyes, their faces filled with terror and bewilderment, forgetting even to scream.

"Don't make a sound! We're here to rescue you!"

A team member quickly stepped forward, lowered his voice to reassure them, and at the same time used a dagger to cut the ropes binding their hands.

Wu Zheng, leaning on his wooden cane, staggered out of the shadows.

His gaze was fixed on the crowd, sweeping over their panicked faces.

"Old Chen? Is...is that you, Old Chen?" He rushed to one of the old men and grabbed the man's shoulders tightly with both hands.

The old man stared blankly at Wu Zheng for several seconds before he reacted.

"Wu...Wu the Cripple? You're...you're still alive? You didn't run away..."

"I'm back with my men!" Wu Zheng's voice was hoarse but carried a fierce edge as he glanced at the others.

"How are my wife and daughter doing now?"

"Do you know?"

Old Chen looked at the other person, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

"Little girl...it seems she's been assigned to the laundry team..."

"As for... I haven't seen your wife since she was taken away."

"What! My wife..." Wu Zheng was stunned for a moment, and the light in his eyes dimmed a little.

Although the other party didn't say it explicitly, nobody's a fool. In this situation, it's highly likely...

He covered his face, his body trembled slightly, and it seemed as if a suppressed sob was escaping from his fingertips.

The atmosphere became somewhat oppressive.

Zhao Fan raised his hand, seemingly wanting to offer a word of comfort, but ultimately couldn't say anything.

Tang Long ignored these sentimental performances.

He walked up to the squad leader, squatted down, and patted the man's face with his dagger.

"Wake up."

The captain slowly woke up, and as soon as he opened his eyes, he saw a face wearing a gas mask and a strange black vine pressed against his throat.

"Who...who are you people?" His pupils contracted instantly, and his voice trembled.

"Answer my question." Tang Long's voice came through the mask, cold and devoid of any emotion. "Where are you taking these people?"

The squad leader hesitated slightly.

However, the vines tightened instantly the next second.

An intense feeling of suffocation made him stare wide-eyed in terror and struggle desperately.

"I'll tell you! I'll tell you! I'm going to the processing plant!"

Tang Long loosened the vines.

The captain greedily inhaled the polluted air, daring not to hide anything.

"Where are you going?"

"I...I don't know." The captain's eyes darted away slightly.

"Don't know?" Tang Long's vines tightened slightly.

"I don't know! I really don't know!" The captain's breathing became labored again, and he hurriedly said, "We're only responsible for delivering the defective and disobedient items! And then bringing the goods back!"

"What does 'defective product' mean? And what is this 'item'?"

"It's...it's those who work slowly, are sick, or want to run away..."

"What did you bring back?"

"The receiving personnel will give us a silver insulated box to take back and give to Brother Xiong."

Tang Long paused for a moment, then changed the subject.

How often should we deliver?

"We must arrive at the processing plant at 2 a.m. sharp every three days."

Tang Long nodded slightly; this was basically consistent with what Wu Zheng had said before.

He continued, "Grain depot shift change? Password? Brother Xiong's whereabouts?"

"Shift change at 3 AM! Today's command: 'North Wind'!"

"Brother Xiong goes up to the 'observation room' on the roof of the office building every day at 1:30 to smoke a cigar, without fail."

Just then, a police officer stepped forward and reported in a low voice.

"Team Leader Tang, we've made a discovery."

Tang Long got up and walked to the other side.

A team member was squatting next to a guard's equipment bag, holding a palm-sized black electronic device in his hand.

On the device, a green indicator light is flashing regularly.

"What is this?"

"I don't know, it looks like a locator, but it doesn't have an antenna," the team member replied. "I searched everyone, and they all had one."

Tang Long picked up the walkie-talkie: "Chen Ming, can you hear me?"

"Here, Captain Tang," Chen Ming's voice came through.

Tang Long described the appearance and features of the equipment.

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the walkie-talkie.

"It sounds like a vital signs monitor that connects to a main unit via a short-range encrypted signal. The main unit will sound an alarm if the wearer's heart stops beating or if the device is forcibly removed."

"Can it be cracked?"

"No, the distance is too far and the signal is too weak. Besides, forcibly removing it will definitely trigger the alarm." Chen Ming's voice was somewhat solemn.

"However, judging from the fact that it's still showing a green light, the other side probably hasn't noticed anything unusual yet."

"But I suspect that the alarm will go off if the escort team fails to arrive at the human processing plant within the scheduled time, or if the signal is lost."

Tang Long glanced at the time: 1:23 AM.

Brother Xiong, we'll be going up to the rooftop at 1:30.

The treatment plant has two "handover" points.

Time is running out.

"Plan changed." He made a decisive decision: "Xiao Zhou, Xiao Li, Xiao Wang, the three of you escort all the survivors back the way you came, meet up with Wang Hu, and report the situation."

"The rest of you, come with me and change into the escort team's uniforms! Target—the observation room on the roof of the office building, to carry out the decapitation."

"If I don't send a safety signal by 2 AM, notify Wang Hu to launch the final assault according to Plan B!"

"yes!"

Once the order was given, everyone began to split up and take action.

Tang Long and the others changed into the escort team's uniforms.

The clothes were clearly ill-fitting. Tang Long's combat uniform looked somewhat bulky underneath, while Wu Zheng looked like he was wearing a sack, completely empty.

Fortunately, the darkness of night completely concealed most of the details.

"Let's go." Tang Long checked the pistol and muzzle token he had taken from the prisoners and led the way into the pipe leading to the grain depot.

At the end of the pipe was a reinforced iron gate.

A dim light shone from behind the door, revealing a guard dozing against the wall.

Tang Long stepped forward and knocked on the iron gate with the butt of his gun.

Clang! Clang!

The guard jolted awake, straightened up abruptly, and walked over impatiently.

"What do you do?"

"Password."

"North wind," Tang Long replied in a low voice.

He passed the token he had taken from the captain through a gap in the fence.

The guard took the token, glanced at it in the dim light of the overhead bulb, and then lazily looked at Tang Long and his companions.

The light was too dim, and they were all wearing helmets with the brims pulled low, so the guards did not notice anything unusual.

"Damn! Come in." He yawned, took out his key, and unlocked the iron lock.

The iron gate creaked open with a harsh sound.

A smell mixed with moldy grains and dust filled my nostrils.

Tang Long and his three companions quickly went inside.

As Wu Zheng said, the focus of defense inside the grain depot was on the outer perimeter and the watchtowers on higher ground, while the access control inside was relatively lax.

Wu Zheng walked ahead, skillfully leading the three of them away from the main road.

They moved quickly through the shadows of rows of tall silos and through the mountains of logistical supplies.

When I passed by the workers' shed area, it was completely silent.

Yet, faint sobs, barely suppressed, could be heard carried on the wind, like the whispers of countless departed souls.

Tang Long's gaze swept over the patrol route along the way.

The defenses were more organized than he had anticipated, with patrols following fixed routes and overlapping patrols, leaving virtually no blind spots.

However, the patrolmen walked somewhat slowly and looked very tired.

The brightly lit five-story core office building in the distance stands out starkly against the surrounding darkness.

That's the team's destination.

Guided by Wu Zheng, they got closer and closer to the side entrance of the office building, with less than fifty meters remaining.

Just then, a group of people came towards us from around the corner.

It was a patrol team of three.

The two met in the narrow passage and both paused for a moment.

Tang Long's heart skipped a beat.

"stop!"

The sergeant leading the team had sharp eyes and looked Tang Long and his three companions up and down.

His gaze lingered for a moment on Wu Zheng's ill-fitting clothes.

"Which team are you on? What are you doing running around like this at this time?"

"I'm ordered to inspect the wiring in Warehouse No. 3," Zhao Fan replied immediately, his voice steady.

The sergeant frowned.

"Password."

"North Wind".

After routine checks.

The sergeant nodded slightly and waved to the crowd.

Tang Long and the others exchanged glances and were about to leave.

suddenly.

"etc."

"Raise your heads!" A powerful flashlight suddenly shone on everyone's faces.

Tang Long, Zhao Fan, and the others remained calm and composed.

But a problem arose when the beam of light shone on Wu Zheng's face.

Long-term malnutrition made him pale and thin, with sunken cheeks, making him stand out from the guards in the granary who were well-fed and greasy.

Even worse, under the stimulation of the bright light and extreme tension, his body began to tremble slightly uncontrollably.

The sergeant's expression changed instantly.

He saw clearly Wu Zheng's face, which was filled with fear.

"It's you!"

The sergeant recognized the lame slave.

His hand flashed to the holster on his waist, while his other hand brought the metal whistle to his lips.

puff!

The Whip of Order, like a long black nail, pierced the sergeant's throat in an instant.

But the whistle, under the silent night sky, only emitted a half-sharp whine.

"Fire!" Tang Long roared.

boom!boom!

Zhao Fan and another police officer fired their guns simultaneously.

Before the remaining two patrolmen could react, they were hit by bullets and fell to the ground.

next second.

Woo-woo-woo-woo

The piercing alarm blared through the night sky, and searchlights flashed wildly, sweeping indiscriminately across the reservoir area.

Lights came on in countless windows, and the air was filled with the sounds of people and the clamor of footsteps coming from all directions.

"Go!" He grabbed Wu Zheng, who was still trembling, and led his team toward the nearest bunker, a huge warehouse of finished grain.

He ran while grabbing the walkie-talkie and roaring.

"Repeat, execute Plan B!"

The voice just fell.

call out!call out!call out!

Three red signal flares shot into the sky from their designated positions outside the grain depot.

Three blinding lights exploded in the pitch-black night sky.