Foreign Forces

Lin Mo threw the two corpses directly onto the ground.

The thick stench of blood mixed with the burnt smell of smoke, stimulating everyone's nerves.

Lin Mo walked over to Xia Zhi. She was lying on the ground, her face as pale as paper, a trace of blood still hanging from the corner of her mouth.

With a raise of his hand, he cast a miraculous healing art.

Gentle life energy instantly enveloped Xia Zhi. She only felt a warm current flow into her abdomen. The excruciating pain, which felt like thousands of blades churning inside her, quickly receded. Her displaced internal organs returned to their proper positions under the powerful healing force.

In passing, he also infused spiritual energy back into her jade pendant, reactivating its protection.

In just a few breaths, Xia Zhi let out a long sigh of relief, and her pale face recovered its normal rosy complexion.

"It's fine now." Lin Mo's voice was not loud, but it clearly echoed throughout the laboratory.

Liu Zheng and Old Bai, who were standing guard in the lab, finally relaxed their tense nerves upon hearing this.

Liu Zheng looked up at the laboratory, which had been sliced to pieces. The walls, desks, and chairs were covered with deep gashes, showing just how terrifying the wind blades from earlier had been.

He steadied his mind and walked over to help up the still-trembling Lin Huaimin and another surviving student.

"Professor Lin, please calm down first. I have something very important to ask you."

Liu Zheng's voice was steady and powerful. "Among the batch of ancient texts Professor Lu Mingxin gave you, was there a red stone hidden inside?"

Lin Huaimin froze for a moment. "What red stone? No, absolutely not! All he gave me were these ancient texts, each one incredibly precious. But as for a stone, I've truly never seen one."

Hmm?

Old Bai and Liu Zheng exchanged a glance, both seeing confusion in each other's eyes.

"Could it be that Lu Mingxin hid the matter of the stone?" Old Bai rubbed his chin, unable to stop himself from muttering.

"Maybe." Liu Zheng was also unsure.

At this moment, Lin Mo and Xia Zhi walked in from outside, one after the other.

Lin Mo's gaze swept over the messy scene and finally landed on Liu Zheng. "Any clues?"

In fact, he had already scanned the entire laboratory and confirmed there was no Philosopher's Stone.

"The trail is dead." Liu Zheng shook his head. "Looks like we still have to start with Lu Mingxin and ask him if he's ever seen that stone."

"Alright then." Lin Mo seemed a bit impatient and simply waved his hand.

"Since that's the case, I'll leave this place to you. Clean it up and then come find me at my house. If you really can't find any clues, just wait until tonight."

Hearing the mention of tonight, Liu Zheng and Old Bai's spirits lifted. That's right, they still had their final trump card.

It was also at this moment that they noticed a pitch-black little bat perched on Lin Mo's shoulder. It was staring blankly ahead with two small, red-bean-like eyes.

Liu Zheng asked tentatively, "Is this...?"

"Yes, the vampire sent by MI10." As Lin Mo spoke, he reached out and pinched the bat's tiny head. Probably with just a little force, the vampire named Albert would die on the spot.

"I'll take him back and interrogate him first. When I'm done, I'll hand him over to you guys."

He had an unusually huge interest in these foreign factions.

Before his voice even faded, he had already turned and walked outside, as casually as a breeze that leaves no clouds behind.

Only Liu Zheng and the other two were left in the laboratory, looking at each other in dismay.

Liu Zheng looked at Xia Zhi's torn clothes, which were still covered in dust, and asked with concern, "Are you alright?"

Xia Zhi patted her pocket and curled her lips in slight frustration:

"I'm fine, it's just that the jade pendant lost its effect." Obviously, Xia Zhi didn't know yet that Lin Mo had conveniently replenished its energy.

"Hey, that's no big deal!" Old Bai patted his chest and comforted her with towering heroism, "Next time, I'll go first. My skin is thick and rough, I can take a beating!"

"You're a fragile chicken, okay?"

Sharp police sirens approached from a distance. Backup had finally arrived.

Just like in the movies, people only showed up after the fighting was over. However, even Acting Director Chen Lai had come along.

As soon as he entered the door and saw the laboratory looking like it had been visited by a demolition crew, along with the three corpses lying on the floor, he couldn't help but rub his forehead and sigh.

"I say, couldn't you guys have left someone alive for questioning?"

"We did, but he's still with Lin Mo. He said he'll let us interrogate him after he's done."

Chen Lai also knew that Lin Mo could directly bring people under his control.

He stopped dwelling on it, waved his hand, and resumed his authoritative demeanor: "Alright, the scene is entirely yours to handle. Remember, we haven't seen anyone from MI10. These are all vicious criminals who infiltrated from overseas, understand?"

Old Bai and Liu Zheng exchanged a tacit look.

Nothing wrong with that. Dead men are indeed all bad guys.

System: Interrogating is a kind of enjoyment.

"You mean to say, you can't transform back into a human form now?"

Lin Mo slouched lazily on the sofa, his voice betraying no emotion.

Between his fingertips, he pinched a trembling little black bat, its wings bearing a few faint scratches.

"Yes. Originally, after transforming into a swarm of bats, as long as not too many of them die, I can condense back into a human form..." The little bat's voice was shrill and weak, but under control, it also lacked any emotion.

Meaning Lin Mo had killed too ruthlessly, so he couldn't change back.

Hearing this, Lin Mo did not have any particular reaction.

It didn't matter if he couldn't transform back. If he needed to, Lin Mo had his ways.

Anyway, he could play with it however he wanted.

He shifted into a more comfortable position, stretched out the little bat's wings, and held it up to the light, as if inspecting some rare novelty.

"So you actually have a dick too."

Lin Mo was just about to reach out and flick it a couple of times, but then remembered this guy's true form.

Never mind, he shouldn't dirty his own hands.

Lin Mo asked casually, taking the opportunity to use this little thing to fill in the missing pieces of his understanding of the world's hidden side.

"Tell me, what kind of trash are the ability users from other countries?"

Under his control, the little bat would answer whatever Lin Mo asked, basically unable to hide anything.

Most countries had official organizations for ability users.

But not all countries did. For example, in places like Japan and South Korea, the organizations were loose, functioning more like several large families acting independently and occasionally cooperating for profit.

"What about Britain?" Lin Mo grew a bit interested.

"Britain was originally divided into two major factions: the Vampire Council and the Knights of the Round Table. However, as the rules were gradually perfected over the years, the two stopped fighting and cooperated with the official government to jointly establish MI10."

Privately, there were also independent ability user organizations. Those who couldn't get along with the officials simply broke off on their own.

As Lin Mo listened, his fingers tapped rhythmically against the armrest of the sofa.

So it seemed, everywhere was actually the same.

Just like their side: on the surface, the officials were in charge, but in the shadows, places like Dragon Tiger Mountain or the mysterious Hidden Sects—which of them weren't the type to accept orders in name but act as they pleased?

Everyone minded their own business, maintaining a delicate balance.