Seize the Throat of Fate with Your Own Hands

Tang Ye looked down, staring blankly at his own hands.

Sticky, warm.

The lingering sensation between his fingers was the reverberation of shattering bone, the slick wetness of splattering flesh and blood.

He had killed someone.

Just like that, he had killed a man.

A sweet, rusty stench permeated the air. It wasn't overpowering, but it felt like an invisible hand gripping his throat and churning his stomach.

"Blargh!"

Unable to hold it back any longer, Tang Ye stumbled over to a nearby drainage ditch. Leaning against the cold wall, he emptied his stomach completely.

Stomach acid and bile burned his esophagus, and tears streamed uncontrollably from his eyes.

Yet, deep within his body, a completely different sensation was wildly taking root.

It was an unprecedented, almost explosive sense of power. It rampaged through his muscles and blood, making his scalp tingle.

The terror of taking a life and the euphoria of gaining power—two extreme emotions tore at his nerves.

But he knew very well that what he wanted to do most right now was to save Chen Miao.

Especially now that he possessed this power.

Tang Ye splashed his face with freezing water, forcing himself to calm down.

Taking a deep breath, he suddenly remembered something.

He walked back to the corpses, held his breath, and began to search them.

A few cell phones, a wad of cash, and some car keys.

He pulled out a tissue and used it to pick up one of the phones. He unlocked it, then dialed three digits.

The call connected quickly. "Hello, this is..."

"I'm reporting a crime! At the abandoned XXX warehouse in Guancheng, someone is holding a girl captive, and people died in a gang fight! Send people quickly!"

Tang Ye's voice was so hoarse it didn't sound like his own. After roaring those words, he immediately hung up and threw the phone far into the drainage ditch.

He didn't care whether the other side believed him or not; hanging up was all he needed to do.

Whether they believed it was their business, but having an extra option was never a mistake.

If the police were useless, the worst-case scenario was... he would just have to make another trip himself.

He clenched his fists, feeling the power that was almost overflowing from within, and the panic in his heart subsided a bit.

"Wait! That car."

Tang Ye's heart sank. Brother Hu had driven away, and he had no idea where their destination was.

If he had known, he should have left one alive for questioning.

He really was a damn rookie.

Just as he was filled with extreme regret, a familiar ringtone suddenly sounded from a dilapidated table not far away.

"Half the city in smoke and sand, the army at the moat! Iron horses and golden halberds, for whom do we fight for the world~"

It was his phone.

Tang Ye's mouth twitched. He had been so focused on using someone else's phone to call the police that he forgot his own phone was still left in the bandits' lair. It must have been confiscated when he passed out.

He walked over and immediately spotted his phone and wallet, arranged neatly on the table like war trophies on display.

An unknown number was flashing on the screen.

Tang Ye took a deep breath and pressed the answer button.

"Hello?!"

The voice of a young man came from the other end of the line, carrying a hint of a lazy smile that clearly pierced his ears.

"Hello. Are you satisfied with how this power feels?"

Tang Ye's mind felt like it had been struck by a heavy hammer. A chill shot straight from his tailbone to the crown of his head, and all the hairs on his body instantly stood on end.

This person... knew! He knew everything!

"Who are you?!" Tang Ye's voice trembled.

"Don't ask who I am. You're out of time."

The other party's tone remained relaxed. "The trial period for this power won't last much longer. If you want to save the girl, head out right now."

"The location is the Taizicheng Hotel in Guancheng."

"However, I must remind you that place is a dragon's pool and a tiger's den. If you go there now, you will almost certainly die."

"So, do you still want to go?"

Hearing that last sentence, Tang Ye froze completely.

He would die.

If he went, he would die.

Should he go?

Regret, unwillingness, and the most primal fear of death submerged him once again like a tidal wave.

If he turned around and ran right now, found a small county town to hide in, he could still live a good life with this life of his.

Marry, have children, live a stable life. No one would ever know what happened tonight.

Just as he was locked in this internal struggle, the voice on the phone sounded again, carrying a hint of impatient urging.

"Hey, have you decided yet? Time is running out."

Then the call was hung up cleanly and decisively.

Tang Ye gripped his phone and wallet, his palms covered in cold sweat.

He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing violently.

Right, leave this place first.

He leaped straight up, easily vaulted over the wall, and ran outside.

The motorcycle he had parked far away earlier had not been touched.

So he got on the motorcycle and headed toward the downtown area.

Should he go?

Or should he not?

Tang Ye felt that he was afraid of death, maybe...

"Is this fun for you?" Ning Qingcheng finally couldn't help but turn her head to look at Lin Mo, her eyes carrying a bit of bewilderment.

The night breeze blew, curling a strand of hair by her temples.

"It's alright." Lin Mo nodded first, then shook his head, his expression as calm as if he were reviewing a dish.

Ning Qingcheng frowned and pressed on, "Just alright? Then why didn't you intervene?"

On their way over, Lin Mo had already explained what he encountered today.

In Ning Qingcheng's eyes, Lin Mo's abilities were unfathomable. Let alone a Brother Hu, even all the hidden troubles behind Brother Hu in that Taizicheng Hotel would be nothing more than a flick of a finger to him.

But he simply refused to.

He was like a spectator sitting in the highest seats of a theater, coldly watching the actors on stage struggle and bleed, until that boy named Tang Ye was on the verge of death, only then did he leisurely intervene to slightly correct the script.

Lin Mo's gaze was profound. He stared at the brightly lit building across the street, as if he could see through its thick walls into the surging undercurrents inside.

He thought for a moment and said, "Perhaps it's because I prefer giving those who originally had no ability to solve problems the power to solve them."

A standard, convoluted sentence.

"Those who were initially powerless to struggle, seizing destiny by the throat with their own hands—that feeling is something they will remember for the rest of their lives."

"After he solves his own problems, do you think... he will step forward to solve the problems of others?"

Lin Mo's voice wasn't loud, but it entered her ears clearly, like a pebble dropped into a still lake.

Ning Qingcheng chewed on these words, an image seemingly appearing before her eyes:

An ordinary person who had fallen into the abyss, granted the strength to climb. What would he choose? Would he escape alone, or would he drag more people up to see the light of day together?

"Once his immediate problems are resolved, will he then sacrifice himself to solve other people's problems?"

Lin Mo stood at a high vantage point, watching the traffic flow back and forth downstairs.

"A person who sacrifices is noble in spirit. If he becomes afraid, I won't judge him harshly either."

Lin Mo paused and added casually, "If he gets scared, then I'll just step in and do it myself. It makes no difference."