Revisiting Ning's Manor

Outside the Ning family manor.

The screech of brakes tore through the tranquil night as five cars screeched to a halt outside the main gate.

Car doors flew open in unison. Dongfang Shuye was the first to step out, his cold gaze sweeping over the seal left by the Pengcheng police on the manor's entrance.

The paper seal fluttered slightly in the wind, looking rather flimsy.

He merely waved his hand. Several team members behind him immediately stepped forward, deftly tearing down the old police tape and replacing it with the one they had brought.

The new cordon was thicker and darker in color. Hung upon it was a sign with white characters on a black background, strikingly conspicuous.

[Special Task Force Operation. Unauthorized Personnel Keep Out.]

Eight large characters exuded an air of authority that brooked no argument. (The extra two characters are on the house.)

Dongfang Shumu's team members did not rush to enter. Instead, they stood on either side, expressions solemn, as if waiting for something.

Lin Mo leaned against the car door and let out a bored yawn.

A few minutes later, a low vibration began to rumble through the ground.

Approaching from the distance, several dark green military trucks roared onto the scene. Heavy tires crushed against the pavement as they positioned themselves, completely blocking off the manor's exit.

The truck doors opened, and squads of fully armed soldiers leaped out. Their movements were swift and silent as they fanned out, guns pointing outward, forming a defensive line of steel.

Lin Mo raised an eyebrow. This setup... it looked like they were going to war.

Then again, he had never formally seen the military in action before. Now that he had, he had to admit—it was impressive.

"The military isn't subject to local jurisdiction," Liu Zheng, standing beside Lin Mo, whispered, reading his thoughts. "The Special Task Force has more authority than we imagined."

A Major, rank insignia displaying two bars and one star, stepped briskly out of a vehicle. His leather boots clicked crisply against the concrete.

He walked straight up to Dongfang Shuye, stood at attention, and delivered an impeccable military salute.

"Team Leader Dongfang! Duan Zhipeng, Commander of the 7th Battalion, Pengcheng Military District. Here to assist with the mission under orders from superiors!"

"Greetings, Commander Duan."

Dongfang Shuye nodded in return. "The mission is simple. Have your men lock this place down tight. Not even a fly gets out.

"For anyone attempting to break in or escape: first, issue a verbal warning; second, fire a warning shot. If they still refuse to comply, neutralize them on the spot."

"Understood!" Duan Zhipeng didn't hesitate for a second.

The intent was simple: prevent anyone hiding in the manor from escaping, while simultaneously cutting off any enemy reinforcements.

With a battalion of over three hundred men surrounding this single manor, calling it impenetrable would be an understatement.

Faced with a fully armed military force, no one would dare act rashly. Attacking one soldier meant bringing down the wrath of the entire military district.

Having given his orders, Dongfang Shuye turned around, his gaze landing on Lin Mo.

"It's your turn to perform."

Lin Mo raised his hand. "Go, doggy!"

The figure known as the Frozen Killer crouched slightly at Lin Mo's command, then launched forward like a cannonball, instantly bursting with terrifying speed.

The carved iron gates, standing over three meters tall, posed no obstacle. The black shadow traced a sharp arc through the air, silently vaulting over the gate and sprinting toward the main mansion.

This scene caused the corner of the strict and disciplined Major Duan Zhipeng's eye to twitch.

Dog?

What kind of dog was that?

Dongfang Shuye watched the Frozen Killer, whose body had been completely repaired, then turned to look at Lin Mo.

"Don't mess this up. That guy isn't weak."

"Relax. No one can break the Mister's talismans."

The other members of the Dongfang Team didn't react much. They simply stepped forward, used a special tool to snap the gate lock with a *click*, pushed open the heavy gates, and walked inside.

Behind Lin Mo, Liu Zheng spoke up, "Let's follow them."

"What's the rush? With your scrawny arms and legs, you're weak as hell, you know?"

Liu Zheng's face darkened, and he silently took a half-step back.

Only then did Lin Mo leisurely bring up the rear, hands in his pockets, strolling as if he were in his own backyard.

This was his first time seeing a manor of this scale with his own eyes; it was far more impressive than anything he'd seen in movies.

However, weeds now ran rampant, the fountain was dry, and many precious plants had withered from lack of water. The whole place exuded an air of neglect and decay.

Now that he was inside, he could see it really was something special, though the lack of maintenance gave it a thoroughly dilapidated feel.

"If that girl Ning Qingcheng is alright, she'd get to inherit this huge manor, wouldn't she?"

Xia Zhi, however, replied, "If Ning Qingcheng is alright, she'll probably have to go back to Tianjing with Team Leader Dongfang."

Lin Mo sneered. "Why does this sound like a revenge drama?"

But Xia Zhi didn't say anything more.

The Ning Family Manor was just as pitch-black as it had been the day before.

The members of the Dongfang Team donned night-vision goggles as they entered.

Looking at the structure, Lin Mo couldn't help but mutter, "This reminds me of Resident Evil 1. Isn't this practically a western mansion?"

Lin Mo wasn't wearing night-vision goggles, yet he could still see his surroundings clearly.

Liu Zheng couldn't help asking from beside him, "Is Master Beixuan watching over us?"

"What are you afraid of? Even if the Mister isn't here, I can still cover you guys."

His divine sense had already enveloped the entire mansion. The moment he stepped inside, he had pinpointed the problem with this place.

Perhaps from the very beginning, even the Ning branch family had been compromised.

Up ahead, the Frozen Killer had clearly already ascended to the third floor under Lin Mo's direction.

The others followed him up.

"The third floor contains the Ning family's main living quarters. Could the secret be hidden in here?"

Walking into a study, Liu Zheng noted that the decor was far superior to the study downstairs, and the room was more spacious. The one below was likely just a reception room.

The Frozen Killer walked over to a bookshelf.

One of the team members frowned.

"We should have pulled all these books down earlier; we would have found the anomaly eventually."

However, the Frozen Killer didn't use a book to trigger the mechanism. Instead, he twisted a decoration on the bookshelf, manipulating it like the dial of a safe.

*Click!*

The bookshelf shifted, revealing an elevator behind it.

One of them reached out to press the button, but Dongfang Shuye instantly slapped his hand away.

"Don't touch it. Cube, you're up."

Cube stepped forward and raised his hand, turning the elevator doors transparent to reveal the empty elevator shaft behind them.

Dongfang Shuye raised his hand, and someone behind him handed him a glow stick.

With a snap, the glow stick lit up.

He tossed it into the shaft to see just how deep it went.

At that moment, Shouzhen couldn't help but ask, "Why not just call the elevator up?"

"Because we don't want to alert them," Xia Zhi answered Shouzhen.

Meanwhile, the elevator doors had been pried open.

The fully equipped Dongfang Team prepared to rappel down.

It was a drop of several dozen meters. In other words, the underground facility was about ten stories deep.