"What? Everyone is missing??"
Inside the private villa, Yan Shang widened his eyes in astonishment.
Prosecutor Fang Lichang stood in front of him, slightly lowering his head, his face extremely gloomy...
"The ten reporters I hired with heavy gold, the defense lawyer we finally managed to instigate to defect, as well as the sole witness we found through a thousand schemes and a hundred plans... You're telling me, they went missing right under your eyelids??"
Yan Shang was so angry that his body was trembling. He forcefully threw the Tea Cup onto the table. "Fang Lichang! How did you handle matters?!"
Fang Lichang opened his mouth and spoke bitterly:
"It's that [Six of Spades]... I chased after him out at that time, and circled the surroundings but didn't find his traces. By the time I rushed back as fast as possible, the hall was already empty... All the news drafts were completely burned up, and the ground was full of blood and Playing Cards. It must be that [Six of Spades] who took them away!"
The Squinting Man at the side also had an extremely ugly expression, responding in a deep voice, "President, this time we might have truly offended the Dusk Society... In a certain sense, this is even more serious than offending the Enforcers."
Yan Shang's fists gradually clenched tight, his knuckles starting to turn white. After a long time, he slowly released them again...
Yan Shang after all had been in business for many years, his temperament had long experienced tempering. He didn't hot-headedly go seek revenge against the Dusk Society. Because during these years he traveled across various Realms, his understanding of the Dusk Society was extremely profound. Even if Aurora City was his home turf, going to provoke that group of madmen was an absolute act of seeking death.
So, Yan Shang in the end could only shatter his teeth and swallow them down his stomach. He coldly looked at Fang Lichang:
"I don't want to care about other things. I only want to know, tomorrow's court verdict, how much certainty do you have?"
Fang Lichang pondered for a moment. "Those few reporters actually don't matter. If they're gone we can still find more. I also had the defense lawyer burn Tan Xin's letters in advance, so their crucial overturning evidence is also gone... The only trouble is that Old Man Ding.
Without Old Man Ding, wanting to convict Han Meng of the crimes of 'collecting protection fees' and 'underground trading' will be somewhat troublesome. However, relying purely on the single crime of being '[Six of Spades]', it's actually sufficient to have Han Meng executed by the death penalty..."
"For the result of the verdict, I have eighty percent certainty!" Fang Lichang answered with conviction.
Hearing this, Yan Shang's complexion finally eased up a little. He gazed at Fang Lichang for a long time, helplessly waving his hand:
"Go on... You had best be able to do what you say. Don't forget, you still have something here with me."
Fang Lichang's complexion slightly changed. After he bowed and saluted Yan Shang, he then turned around and left...
...
Old Man Ding was already thoroughly numb.
He slowly and arduously moved his body, walking on the Wilderness. His eyes were hollow as if his soul had already left his body; his entire person had become a walking corpse.
He didn't dare to recall what he had experienced this whole night. He consecutively encountered "Fang Lichang" three times. Every time the situation, tone, and even the attire were all different. But the other party always, at the time when he finally managed to let down his guard, shattered his fantasy of salvation through various bizarre methods.
Towards the end, Old Man Ding couldn't even feel terror anymore. That face was already deeply carved into his soul. He was like a puppet being wantonly toyed with and manipulated by people, his rationality and logic tortured until completely lost.
If he could see through the nothingness, he would discover that above the top of his head, a thick and massive [Spirit Serpent] was already pressing on his shoulders like a small mountain.
Overnight, the [Spirit Serpent] swallowed a massive amount of terror, causing its body shape to become a whole circle thicker. Right now it also lazily let out a yawn, seeming like it couldn't eat anymore entirely...
At the same time, Old Man Ding who was walking numbly, saw that at the end of the road, a familiar figure gradually manifested again.
Seeing that face, Old Man Ding's hollow eyes finally had a reaction. Struggle and pain emerged on his face. His legs went soft and he knelt down directly in front of that person.
"I can't take it anymore... I truly can't take it anymore..."
"Just kill me, I beg you to kill me... I truly can't run anymore..."
Before that person could even speak, Old Man Ding had already rolled his eyes back, his whole person fainting to the ground.
Regardless if it was body or spirit, Old Man Ding had already been tortured to the limit. Fainting at this moment was his brain protecting its own safety, and also became his only release at present.
Chen Ling's brows raised slightly. "Is this already the limit..."
He shook his head. Casually lifting up the corpse-like Old Man Ding, he tossed him back into the abandoned Warehouse, and locked the main door dead from the outside.
After dealing with him, Chen Ling checked the time, and walked straight towards the direction of the Aurora Newspaper Office...
Yes, he was on time to go to work.
When Chen Ling pushed open the main doors of the newspaper office, Wen Shilin who was sitting at his workstation noticed him, walking straight up:
"Lin Yan, where did you go after listening to the court session yesterday?"
"Oh, I went to do some investigation."
"Regarding Han Meng?"
"Right."
Wen Shilin's face revealed an 'as expected' expression. He forcefully patted his shoulder. "Although I don't know why the Stars Chamber of Commerce wants to target Han Meng, this kind of framing and planting evidence matter is indeed nauseating... Lin Yan, you uphold a heart of justice. I sure didn't misjudge you..."
"...?" From Wen Shilin's eyes, Chen Ling saw appreciation and praise. He even suspected that Wen Shilin's next sentence would be: 'I see the shadow of my youth upon your body.'
"Mr. Wen, there is indeed a matter I must request of you." Chen Ling seemed to recall something. "Regarding the report on the Stars Chamber of Commerce's organ trading..."
"Rest assured, I understand your meaning."
Wen Shilin, bearing a pair of massive dark circles under his eyes, pointed at the thick stack of drafts beside his desk. "I've already prepared it."
Chen Ling spoke from the bottom of his heart, "Thank you."
At this point, all the preparations before Chen Ling's Performance had already been completed. Only the final crucial step remained...
Chen Ling walked to his own workstation, picked up his camera and Notebook, and was about to walk out.
Seeing this, a flash of surprise passed across Wen Shilin's face. "Where are you going?"
Chen Ling turned his head back and pushed the half-frame glasses on the bridge of his nose,
"...to interview someone."
...
Aurora City, Black Prison.
Inside the dim and narrow prison cell, Han Meng wore a black prison uniform, sitting cross-legged on the bed resting with his eyes closed.
Purple Torches danced silently outside the corridor. Within the unchanging dead silence since ancient times, a sudden sound of commotion transmitted from a faraway place... Han Meng's brows frowned slightly, opening his eyes in confusion.
He heard a continuous string of footsteps approaching this place.
"You only have five minutes of time..."
"We are watching you at all times. Do not attempt to make superfluous actions."
"Once we feel that the midway process might cause risks, we will call a stop at any time... Go in."
Creak——
The main door of the prison cell was slowly opened. Under the vigilant surrounding of a crowd of Enforcers, a figure draped in a brown overcoat and wearing half-frame glasses quietly stood in the silhouette of the purple torches, slowly stepping into the prison cell where Han Meng was.
"Hello, nice to meet you for the first time."
Chen Ling closed the prison cell door backhand, and smiled faintly at Han Meng,
"I am the Aurora Daily reporter Lin Yan... Is it convenient to borrow a little of your time?"