Chapter 765
Chapter 765
-----------------------------------------------------------------
>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 765
>Chapter Title: Weapon
>-----------------------------------------------------------------
In the unfinished, abandoned basement, Li Huowang patiently examined the fingers of these captives, trying to identify the one who had kidnapped him before.
However, after checking all around, Li Huowang was surprised to find that every single one of them had all their fingers intact.
“How is this possible? That shouldn’t be right.” As Li Huowang furrowed his brows pondering this, Zhao Lei’s earlier words resurfaced in his mind.
Li Huowang shook his head and glanced at the row of bound captives on the ground, along with the lack of fear on their faces. A flicker of doubt passed through his eyes.
Suddenly, something occurred to him. He quickly crouched down again to inspect their fingers. This time, he didn’t look—instead, he pressed on each one.
This time, he finally found something new. When Li Huowang felt that two fingers didn’t have the normal sensation of skin, he glanced at the man and gently tugged, pulling off the two prosthetic fingers from his hand.
“So it was you all along.” Li Huowang stared at the somewhat unfamiliar man before him.
Seeing Li Huowang remove his prosthetics, the man opened his mouth and spat something at him with an indignant expression. But clearly, Li Huowang didn’t understand a word.
Li Huowang turned to Qingwang Lai in the distance. “What’s this guy saying? Translate for me.”
Qingwang Lai, who had been talking with Zhao Lei, walked over. After listening for a few seconds, he said, “He’s cursing you. Do I need to translate?”
“Never mind.” Li Huowang kicked the man hard in the stomach before saying to Qingwang Lai, “We’ve got so many people tied up here—is that really okay? And all those dead before.”
“No problem. Like I said before, I’ve got plenty of connections. Plus, these guys’ identities aren’t exactly aboveboard.”
“You can leave this to me, don’t worry too much. But if there’s a next time, don’t go so all-out.”
“That was a truck—it’s metal, you’re flesh. You dared to charge it? One slip-up, and we wouldn’t even have a full corpse to collect.”
“I know, you don’t need to tell me.” A hint of impatience crossed Li Huowang’s face at the concern.
“Since we’ve caught them, we can’t just keep them locked up forever. We’re short on manpower—if they refuse to cooperate, what’s your plan?”
“Then we use them as bargaining chips to negotiate with those outside. Best case, we figure out what their goal is and how much they know about the projection side.”
Li Huowang furrowed his brows in thought for a moment. Facing these people of unknown origin, he couldn’t come up with any ideas for the time being.
“You can make calls with that thing on your ankle now, right? It’s been long enough—maybe it can come off.” Qingwang Lai asked Li Huowang with concern.
“I already asked. They said at least two years. No approaching any schools within that time.”
“Two years? That’s too long—it’s not right. I’ll ask my lawyer friend about it.”
Li Huowang looked at Qingwang Lai in some surprise. “You grad student’s got some serious pull. How do you know everyone?”
“Heh, is that a compliment?”
“You keep interrogating. I’ll check on Qian Fu. Fifth Sister, toss me the RV keys.”
Catching the keyring with the multi-tool knife, Li Huowang left the basement and headed toward the RV parked nearby.
He glanced at Qingwang Lai’s luxury car and patted it before using the keys to open the RV door.
As soon as he stepped in, Li Huowang saw Qian Fu, tied up tight. He was stretching his neck as far as it would go, trying to snag a dagger from the nearby table with his mouth.
Li Huowang reached over, picked up the dagger, and tossed it onto the pile of weapons on the other table. These had all been collected from the captives’ hideout earlier.
Seeing his escape plan fail, Qian Fu flew into a rage. “What the hell do you want from me?! I’m begging you! Let me go!”
Li Huowang walked over to the pile of weapons and started browsing. “Qian Fu, quiet down. This is for your own good. They’re clearly after us—you go running off alone, and they’ll grab you for sure.”
“We took out their nest, but we don’t know if they’ll send more for now.”
Qian Fu stared at Li Huowang with wild, mad eyes. After taking several deep breaths, he said, “It’s Qingwang Lai who told you that, right? He’s lying! He’s a huge liar!”
Seeing Li Huowang pick up a crossbow and aim it at him with one eye closed, Qian Fu’s face drained of color.
“Don’t let that good-guy face fool you—it’s all an act! I was in the same hospital as him! Every time, he’d trick the doctors into thinking he was cured, then he’d relapse and get locked up again!”
“Don’t trust him! Don’t trust him no matter what!”
Li Huowang set the crossbow down and looked at Qian Fu. “If I don’t trust him, should I trust you instead? Just stay put.”
“We don’t want to keep you tied up either. Once this mess is over, go wherever you want—even if you run out to the street and eat garbage, I won’t care.”
With that, Li Huowang ignored Qian Fu and focused on picking out his spoils.
Qingwang Lai couldn’t get guns, but others had kindly provided them. Li Huowang picked up the hefty weapon and handled it carefully.
Having it in his hands made Li Huowang feel much more secure. But while he now had the gear, he still didn’t know how to use it.
Though he’d said Qingwang Lai’s drugs weren’t great, Li Huowang knew deep down that “rule of law” had played a crucial role in taking them down this time.
Otherwise, with just their small group, capturing them without injuries would’ve been harder than climbing to the heavens.
Li Huowang fiddled with it for a bit, only to realize he didn’t even know how to eject the magazine or disengage the safety. He set it down.
He’d have Qingwang Lai teach him when he had time.
Li Huowang picked up a combat knife and examined it. It was a dog-leg blade, wide at the tip and narrow at the handle, but he soon put it back.
This was better for hacking than killing. Unless he hit a major artery, it’d give an adrenaline-fueled enemy a chance to flee.
After browsing a while, Li Huowang satisfiedly selected a stiletto combat knife.
The whole blade was matte black, 30 centimeters long, with an I-shaped handle. The edge was razor-thin and sharp, and the grip was thoughtfully wrapped in hemp rope—even soaked in blood, it wouldn’t slip.
He picked it up and thrust straight at the table in front of him. The sharp point easily punched a hole.
Pulling the knife out and eyeing the deep gash, Li Huowang nodded in satisfaction. He grabbed a second one and tucked it into the back of his clothes.
This was the real deal—simple, portable, concealable, and no learning curve.
(End of chapter)