The Secrets of Heaven, Season 4

Chapter 24

"Go to hell!"

Hearing the man in black's smug laughter, Tong Jianguo couldn't help but shout angrily, and blood gushed out of his ruptured wound again.

"I'm sorry, but now it's your turn to die. The boss has given the order to kill you, and I will never give you another chance. Although I am unwilling myself, my senior."

×? took another step forward, the muzzle of the gun less than a meter from Tong Jianguo's forehead. The huge maze of the stands instantly fell silent, turning into a tomb.

"Shoot."

Tong Jianguo knew he had no chance to fight back. He faced the gun calmly and composedly, his only concern being Yuling beside him.

From the moment he became a mercenary many years ago, he was mentally prepared for tonight, no matter how many people you have killed—the final outcome is always to be killed.

To kill or be killed?

This is also a problem, but it's not a choice you can make yourself.

The man in black nodded slightly, looking directly into Tong Jianguo's cold eyes, his gun barrel remaining perfectly still as he exclaimed, "Perhaps, I will have this moment too, and I think I will think of you at that moment—goodbye, friend!"

Suddenly, Yu Ling swiftly flashed in front of Tong Jianguo. Because the distance was so close, the heavy muzzle of the gun was almost pressed against her forehead.

While taking a big surprise, he was determined not to give Tong Jianguo a chance to launch a sneak attack. He quickly took two big steps back, still holding the pistol level.

"Yu Ling! What are you doing?"

Tong Jianguo shouted, trying to push Yu Ling away. But she seemed determined to be a human shield, desperately blocking his way and moving towards the muzzle of the gun in his hand.

This chaotic situation caught X off guard. He carefully backed away, saying, "Don't do anything rash. I won't hurt you. I just want to take you back to your father."

"No!" Yu Ling became unusually brave. This vast, enclosed maze was maddening, and at this moment, she was like a little female leopard in the forest, advancing towards the hunter's gun. "You won't dare shoot me!"

He knew she had his weakness exposed, but he remained expressionless as he gripped his pistol tightly. To prevent Tong Jianguo from drawing his gun, he raised the muzzle two centimeters and decisively pulled the trigger!

The bullet spun as it shot out of the muzzle, tearing through the dusty air within the maze, the gunshot echoing among the countless concrete pillars...

Bang……

Ye Xiao and Xiao Zhi both widened their eyes at the same time. They both heard a muffled gunshot that seemed to pierce through the ceiling above them.

"quick!"

He rushed out of the small room, with Xiaozhi following closely behind. Unexpectedly, he bumped into an American as soon as he stepped out. The American saw Ye Xiao's bandaged head and his menacing appearance, and was so frightened that he squatted on the ground and screamed.

Now that they had been exposed, the two of them couldn't care less. They hadn't run far when they saw a ventilation hole with its cover removed.

Ye Xiao concluded that the gunshot did not come from this floor, but from the space above the floor, and the opened ventilation hole made him even more suspicious.

Just then, a Chinese staff member ran over in a panic, only to be grabbed by Ye Xiao, who asked fiercely in Chinese, "Has anyone been up here just now?"

Yes! Yes!

The other person's Chinese proficiency seemed to be limited to the word "have," but that was enough—Ye Xiao immediately climbed into the ventilation duct and pulled Xiaozhi up as well.

The slope increased significantly, and after passing through a removed isolation barrier, they entered the upper space.

maze.

Under countless white lights, Ye Xiao saw densely packed cement pillars distributed within the massive circular foundation, stretching as far as the eye could see.

He smelled gunpowder—the smell of the bullets that X had just fired.

Although the walls were filled with extremely powerful explosives, they were covered with a safety layer, so even if you were hit by a bullet, you would be fine.

Ye Xiao carefully pulled out his pistol, his gaze sweeping along the smell of gunpowder, and spotted three people facing off.

Tong Jianguo and Yu Ling stood together, while a few meters away was a figure in all black, holding a black pistol and pointing it at the two people in front of him.

"Put the gun down!"

Ye Xiao also pointed his gun at the black figure—×.

The maze fell silent once again.

A few minutes ago, the man in black did fire a shot, but it was only to warn Tong Jianguo not to use Yu Ling to make any rash moves.

The bullets then whizzed past their heads and struck a concrete pillar behind them.

In fact, he did not understand that even if Tong Jianguo were to sacrifice himself, he would never risk Yu Ling's life.

The warning shot rang out through the floor, attracting Ye Xiao and Xiao Zhi.

The man in black, who had dug his own grave, slowly turned his head. The white light clearly illuminated Ye Xiao's face, as well as his own.

Exactly nine hours earlier, these two faces had met under the sun in Nanming City.

Ye Xiao was the victor nine hours ago.

It's still Ye Xiao now.

Nine hours ago, Ye Xiao was forced to release ×.

Even though Xiaozhi is still by his side, will Ye Xiao let X go again?

"Hello."

He said something very politely, looking at Ye Xiao with a calm face, but the muzzle of his gun was still pointed at Tong Jianguo and Yu Ling.

Ye Xiao, Xiao Zhi, Tong Jianguo, Yu Ling, and the man in black, their five shadows stretched out by the maze lights, like ghosts branded onto the cement ground.

It was this face—Ye Xiao's memories not only returned to this afternoon, but also to Chiang Mai a week ago.

This face, clad entirely in black, lured him away from the bustling Chiang Mai night market and into a small bar where Teresa Teng's old songs were being sung. After a fatal conversation, the bar gave him drugged red wine and temporarily erased many days' worth of his memories.

But at this moment, Ye Xiao remembered everything, and the man in black had nowhere to hide!

Split the wood and I will appear; move the stone and you will find me.

"Put the gun down!"

Ye Xiao once again issued an inviolable order, and Xiao Zhi stood behind him in a daze, no longer making a sound.

In the deathly silent and tense standoff, both Tong Jianguo and Yu Ling were sweating profusely, waiting motionless for the other's reaction.

Half a minute later, X maintained his original expression but slowly shook his head, because he was certain that Ye Xiao wouldn't dare to fire.

Unfortunately, he made a mistake in his first judgment.

After the ultimatum expired, Ye Xiao didn't hesitate for even half a second and calmly pulled the trigger.

Almost simultaneously, with a crisp, loud gunshot, the man in black fell to his knees on one knee, and his pistol fell to the ground.

No mercy was needed. Ye Xiao's bullet struck X's thigh, and red blood flowed from his black pants, quickly staining half of the pant leg.

X endured the dull pain without making a sound. Before he could pick up the pistol, Ye Xiao rushed up and snatched it from the ground.

Now, Ye Xiao is holding a gun in each of his hands.

"You won again!"

Finally, the man in black admitted defeat, kneeling on the ground like a submissive. The bullet was embedded in his thigh muscle, and he gritted his teeth, letting the blood flow freely.

Tong Jianguo and Yu Ling both ran to Ye Xiao's side. Tong Jianguo, with his arm in a sling, patted Ye Xiao's shoulder with a wry smile: "I'm getting old and useless. Thank you, young man."

"What should we do with him?"

Ye Xiao pointed the gun at X, who was kneeling on the ground in pain.

“Although he killed three people in our tour group—” Tong Jianguo turned and stared into the eyes of the man in black, “he’s not a bad person. Let’s hurry up and leave!”

× first nodded gratefully to him, but then roared, "No, kill me!"

Tong Jianguo, dragging his injured arm, pulled Yu Ling back, saying to X, "Someone will naturally punish you."

Behind them, there was no more sound. Ye Xiao, Xiao Zhi, Tong Jianguo, and Yu Ling returned to the ventilation duct and quickly retraced their steps.

The man in black was left alone in the labyrinth of despair.

After passing through two removed isolation barriers, the four returned to the secret base and were forced to exit through the original main gate.

He bumped into several more staff members, and when a woman in her thirties saw the two guns in Ye Xiao's hand, she fainted on the spot.

They ran back to the gate as fast as they could, only to find it still tightly shut. Ye Xiao anxiously ordered everyone to retreat and fired a shot at the door, but it did nothing to open it.

"What happened?"

Ye Xiao was unaware that shortly after they entered the gate, Li Xiaojun had locked it remotely.

"There's a central control room in the base; maybe we could try going there."

Xiaozhi was more familiar with the place, so Ye Xiao immediately pulled her along and rushed towards the control room.

Tong Jianguo leaned against the door in pain, his left arm still bleeding. He and Yu Ling could only stay at the door.

"Hopefully they'll open the door."

Watching Ye Xiao and Xiao Zhi disappear into the cubicles, Yu Ling prayed tremblingly, while supporting Tong Jianguo like a lamb to the slaughter.

A few seconds later, the butcher arrived.

He is Yu Ling's biological father.

A ghostly figure flashed out, holding a pistol and pointing it at Tong Jianguo.

“I know you will definitely return to this door.”

Li Xiaojun had also fought in battles, so of course he knew how to kill and use a gun. He had just hidden in the shadows nearby, and only when Ye Xiao and Xiao Zhi left, leaving only Tong Jianguo groaning in pain, did he step out at the opportune moment.

Faced with the gun pointed at his best friend from back then, Tong Jianguo could only smile bitterly and say, "Although you have changed so much in the past thirty years, your intelligence has never changed."

At this moment, Yu Ling walked up to her biological father and said, "I don't want to stay, and I don't want to go to America with you. Please let us go."

"Daughter, you have no right to choose."

Li Xiaojun finally put on a stern face.

"Kill me!" Tong Jianguo said, clutching his bleeding left arm. "Please treat Yu Ling well."

“Of course, I will love my daughter dearly.” He took another step forward, pointing the gun at Tong Jianguo’s mouth. “My dearest brother, sometimes I dream of going back to our childhood, playing together in the alleyways, taking the train to Yunnan as educated youth, fighting together in the jungles of the Golden Triangle, and falling in love with the same woman. We brothers were always together, inseparable, and I never imagined things would turn out like this. I’m sorry, but it all has to end!”

As Li Xiaojun spoke his last words, his eyes welled up slightly, yet he still looked directly into Tong Jianguo's eyes. Their gazes, separated for thirty years, met, yet the distance between them was that of life and death.

Just as his finger was about to pull the trigger, Yu Ling suddenly sprang up and fell onto Li Xiaojun.

In a tenth of a second, as Li Xiaojun opened his mouth in terror, the inertia of his finger pulled the trigger!

He couldn't stop his fingers; his brain hadn't had time to process the instruction, and even a conditioned reflex wouldn't work.

Li Xiaojun screamed "No!" in his heart, but the bullet had already left the muzzle, and at the same time his daughter tackled her father to the ground.