"Xu Wenji?"
Zhou Ze stopped what he was doing because he saw the man standing behind him.
So this was the Xu Wenji they had been talking about, the very man who was reluctant to pay him.
He released the collar of Lu Suowei he had been clutching and walked straight forward, finally standing beside Shen Jianyi.
When they parted, there hadn't been an extra man around her. So where did this guy come from?
Zhou Ze frowned. "Who is he?"
Due to Shen Jianyi's special identity, he didn't address her by name directly. Shen Jianyi had been worried before, but now it seemed those worries were unfounded.
Before she could say anything, Gun replied directly, "It's none of your business."
After that, they all stared intently at Xu Wenji in front of them.
He stood there like a puppet, motionless.
Shen Jianyi frowned and took two steps forward. She reached out and pushed his shoulder. The man let out a muffled grunt and took a few steps back.
Immediately afterwards, a hoarse voice echoed in the quiet factory. "You're really a persistent ghost. I've even hidden here, but how could you still find me?"
The voice was very weak. It was obvious that he was definitely injured.
She still remembered that Xu Wenji had been stabbed by so many knives at the auction. At that time, Shen Jianyi had been wondering how a seriously injured man could have managed to stand in front of her.
Now it seemed that the Xu Wenji she had seen before might have been fake. This man was insidious and cunning, and he knew the art of disguise. It would be a piece of cake for him to have someone pretend to be him to deceive others.
If she hadn't been on an out - of - town mission when learning the art of disguise back then, perhaps Xu Wenji wouldn't be so rampant now.
"Xu Wenji, are you blaming me for being persistent?" the woman said coldly. "Why don't you first take a look at what you've done?"
The man in front of her remained unmoved. Even after hearing these words, he showed no sign of emotion.
Compared with the other Xu Wenji she had seen, this one seemed even more fake.
"Want the chip?" Xu Wenji snorted. "Then let's see if you have the ability."
As soon as the words left his mouth, the man started running in a certain direction. Seeing this, Shen Jianyi immediately chased after him.
Just a moment ago, Xu Wenji had seemed extremely weak, but now he could run at an astonishing speed, as if he had taken a stimulant.
Gun wanted to follow, but was stopped by Zhou Ze.
He was like a troublemaker, tightly clutching Gun's corner of the clothes. "What on earth is going on? Can you tell me?"
As an ordinary person, he still dared to meddle in other people's business. Naturally, Gun didn't have the patience for him.
"Let go."
Zhou Ze was shocked by his strength. Such strength was hard to achieve even for someone who worked out every day.
The factory, which had been bustling just a second ago, was now left with only two people. Lu Suowei staggered forward.
He took out a tissue packet from his pocket and wiped the nosebleed.
"You're really cruel," Lu Suowei winced in pain as he touched his face. "You hit me as if you wanted to kill me."
Hearing this, Zhou Ze snorted. "If I wasn't cruel, do you think they would believe it?"
"You're right."
The two of them slowly left in the night, not knowing what was happening on the other side.
...
Shen Jianyi chased for a long way. Finally, Xu Wenji stopped in an open space.
He was holding a broken dagger in his hand. Only the handle was left to hold, and the blade had shattered.
Even so, he still looked determined, as if he wasn't worried about what would happen to him.
"As long as you give me the chip, I'll spare your life," Shen Jianyi said in a gentle tone. "Considering that we both came from the same place, there's no need for us to fight to the death."
Xu Wenji seemed to be stimulated by something. He threw away the only thing that could save his life and began to laugh loudly. His laughter startled the birds and beasts in the forest behind him.
"You're dreaming. There will never be a day when we can live in peace. It's either you die or I die today!"
As soon as the words were spoken, six or seven people suddenly appeared in the open space. Looking closely, these people were ranked from third to ninth on the bounty list.
It seemed that her painstaking persuasion was in vain. She had cared too much about the bond from the research lab.
Shen Jianyi tightly grasped the dagger in her hand. Facing so many people, she didn't feel scared at all. Instead, she was very calm.
Her attitude made Xu Wenji admire her. He clapped his hands. "Even when facing death, you're still so stubborn."
Shen Jianyi ignored him. She saw that the person standing right in front of her was her old rival, Hongxiu.
Hongxiu couldn't wait. She twirled the long knife in her hand. "Red Fox, I never thought we would meet like this one day. Maybe this is fate, which predestined me to take your life."
She snorted. "Let's see if you have the ability."
As soon as the words were out, Hongxiu and the others rushed forward and surrounded Shen Jianyi.
In anyone's eyes, it was impossible for her to survive. Not only were these people not weak, but also they outnumbered her, which was a crucial advantage.
Xu Wenji took two steps back and just stood there watching the commotion quietly.
There was a chaos in front. People thought that Shen Jianyi must have been beaten so badly that she couldn't move or even lost her life. But then, like a ghost, the woman rushed out of the crowd.
Her dagger was covered with blood, but the blood wasn't hers.
Looking at the people on the ground covering their wounds, Shen Jianyi stood coldly under the moonlight. The weak moonlight made her look even more terrifying than usual.
She had managed to injure so many people by herself. Shen Jianyi wasn't cruel enough to take their lives, but if they wanted to harm her, they had to pay the price for their foolish actions.
Shen Jianyi wasn't someone to be trifled with. She usually didn't want to take action because she didn't want to kill or harm the innocent.
But if they were aggressive, she had no other choice.
During the fight just now, the woman had used a lot of strength and was now much weaker than before.
Seeing this opportunity, Xu Wenji shouted at the top of his lungs. "Now's the chance. Surround her quickly!"
As soon as the words were spoken, everyone was about to charge forward again.
Shen Jianyi wanted to dodge, but her feet seemed to be glued to the ground and she couldn't move.
Seeing the long knife about to pierce into her body, she closed her eyes slightly.
"Click—"
A clear sound of impact echoed in her ears. Shen Jianyi opened her eyes and saw the man lying in front of her.