Chapter 118: The Mantis Stalks the Cicada, Unaware of the Oriole Behind

“Heh heh, finally showing your true colors.”

Within the dark building, the man sneered coldly and muttered under his breath. He pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

“Kill them all, no matter the cost,” he said icily in eight words.

After speaking, he tossed the phone to the ground, folded his hands behind his back, and slowly walked away.

Not long after, the phone suddenly burst into flames, quickly turning to ashes.

……

Song Kai faced the Night Ghost opposite him, utterly baffled. What on earth was wrong with the Night Ghost?

Black, blood-like fluid oozed from the creature’s head.

Suddenly, the Night Ghost moved again.

Song Kai fired several shots rapidly—bang bang bang.

But this time, it was useless.

The Night Ghost’s body trembled slightly before a dense black smoke erupted, rising swiftly and sweeping toward Song Kai.

The smoke formed a vague humanoid shape, yet it was unlike any person—more like the vampire bats from films.

In short, it resembled a vampire but was absolutely something else.

Song Kai fired several more shots at the shadowy mass.

Bullets passed through with little effect.

“Insignificant human, disturbing my slumber. Death’s embrace shall be your fate,” the shadow hissed in English as it lunged forward.

Song Kai discarded his gun, muttering to himself, “Damn, what a headache. This ghost is really hard to deal with.”

With that thought, he pulled out his last three talismans and hurled them all at the shadow.

“Boom boom boom…”

The talismans exploded in succession, each releasing flashes of lightning.

To ordinary people, these talismans had no effect beyond mild numbness, but against ghosts, they were powerful dispersal and destruction tools.

Three streaks of lightning flashed.

The shadow collapsed to the ground, shaking violently and screaming in pain before dissolving with a “shh” sound, transforming into a black, cocoon-like object.

Song Kai cautiously crouched down and touched the black cocoon with his dagger.

Its surface was covered in intricate patterns, fleshy to the touch.

He took a deep breath and gently pressed his hand against it.

Energy flowed from the object into him.

It felt chilling, yet unmistakably the energy of spiritual qi.

“Huh?”

Surprised, Song Kai held the object, feeling a continuous stream of energy entering his body. Although the spiritual qi induced a slight discomfort and a bloodthirsty urge, after refining it with the Nine Thunder technique, he could successfully convert it into lightning internal energy and store it within his meridians.

“What is this thing? Not bad at all,” Song Kai thought with a spark of joy. With this, the Nine Thunder internal energy he wasted tonight would be fully replenished, perhaps even with surplus.

He placed the black cocoon into his pocket and was about to inquire about the situation nearby when suddenly a loud explosion erupted. A Land Rover burst into flames and exploded.

Startled, Song Kai looked over in disbelief.

By now, five Land Rovers had arrived, blocking all escape routes for Blood Poison Wan Quan.

Inside the vehicles were members of Interpol, accompanied by soldiers on a covert mission.

Capturing Blood Poison was easy—after all, his strength relied on poison and caution rather than agility.

As they prepared to apprehend him, a rocket flew in, detonating one Land Rover instantly.

More rockets soared, striking the Land Rovers with deadly precision.

Liu Yue was driving one of the vehicles. Seeing the rockets through the rearview mirror, he panicked, slammed the accelerator, and swerved sharply.

The Land Rover spun 360 degrees like a top, then reversed at full speed.

“Boom!”

The rocket exploded behind the vehicle.

The car jolted violently.

Liu Yue turned the steering wheel again, maneuvering the vehicle like a snake along an S-shaped path, dodging three rockets in succession.

“Everyone, be careful. Drive in curves—curves…”

Suddenly, Liu Yue fell silent, tears streaming down his rugged face.

In mere moments, the other vehicles were reduced to charred wrecks.

Gritting his teeth, Liu Yue sped forward.

Two soldiers inside held tightly to the handles.

The rocket’s blast force hurled the unfortunate Blood Poison through the air, engulfed immediately by flames.

Not only Blood Poison but also Dan Lina, who was pursuing closely behind, was caught in the blast.

The explosions and tremendous shockwaves sent Dan Lina flying far into the air.

At that moment, two modified Audi GL SUVs roared in, mounted with machine guns that opened fire on Dan Lina and her group while relentlessly pursuing Liu Yue’s vehicle.

Liu Yue saw Dan Lina writhing in pain by the roadside.

“Help her!”

He slammed on the brakes.

The two soldiers immediately jumped out, pulling Dan Lina into the vehicle before leaping back in.

“Vroom!”

The Land Rover emitted black smoke and sped off into the distance.

Song Kai was stunned—completely dumbfounded.

The flames of war were spreading toward his location.

He dared not be careless and dashed into a nearby field to hide.

Liu Yue drove the Land Rover swiftly through city streets, vanishing without a trace.

The two Audi vehicles, realizing they could not catch Liu Yue, cursed and returned, executing the remaining Interpol officers who had survived.

A minute and a half later, the Audis left, and the field fell silent.

A deathly silence.

Song Kai crouched in a muddy pit, breathing heavily, his heart pounding wildly.

What was happening? Who were these people?

They were overwhelmingly powerful!

Precision rockets, rapid maneuvering.

A battle concluded in ninety seconds, leaving no evidence behind!

This… this was the work of battlefield-hardened mercenaries!

Suddenly, Song Kai understood.

Ding Zhe!

Song Kai pieced it together.

The mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

A chill ran down Song Kai’s spine.

Indeed, Blood Night was difficult to deal with.

This rare chance to capture Blood Night had drawn every effort from Interpol.

Yet, in the process, Interpol’s movements were exposed!

Ding Zhe’s mercenary squad destroyed five Land Rovers in a minute and a half.

If not for the exceptional skill of the last Land Rover’s driver, no one in the entire field would have survived today!

Swallowing hard, Song Kai waited quietly.

He dared not make a sound or move, anticipating the police’s arrival.

Meanwhile, Liu Yue weaved through city streets at high speed.

Dan Lina shook her head and slowly rose, rubbing her temple.

“Hurry, inform the captain, quick…” she said.

Liu Yue, fighting back tears, replied, “Report, we’ve tried contacting him but… no response.”

“No response… what does that mean?” Dan Lina asked anxiously.

Liu Yue spoke rapidly, “Report, after your call for reinforcements, six of our vehicles—eighteen men—were sent out. The rest, including the captain, stayed at headquarters. But now, we can’t reach the captain or the others at base…”

Dan Lina’s mind went blank. Lying on the sofa, she whispered, “It’s… it must be Ding Zhe. We’ve been tracking him for three years, but I never imagined… never imagined it would end like this…”

Liu Yue wiped his eyes and said coldly, “No matter who he is, he won’t get away. I will kill that bastard and avenge my brothers!”

Dan Lina stared at the roof, speechless.

Song Kai remained hidden in the field.

Fifteen minutes later, a large contingent of police and armed forces surrounded the area.

Only then did Song Kai relax.

He didn’t approach the officers but quietly slipped out of the field and called Dan Lina.

“Song Kai, are you alright?” Dan Lina asked, choking with emotion.

“I’m fine. We were deceived. Dan Lina, I’m sorry,” Song Kai said. “Wait for me near the front gate of Tengyun No. 1 Middle School. I’m coming now…”