Is this what a zombie is?

56. Gas leak

At this time, Blackrock Prison was brightly lit, and could even be described as bustling with activity.

However, police officers, forensic experts, and medical staff would not like such a description.

After all, nobody likes being dragged into working overtime in the middle of the night, especially with this amount of work.

Well, all I can do is laugh it off and face life with a smile. What else can I do?

In contrast, Nangong Erya was much more relaxed. She leaned against the yellow warning line, her hands in the pockets of her pink tracksuit, looking utterly bored.

Ideally, she should have been the one to work on things first, eliminating potential dangers, before ordinary people could step in and clean up the mess.

If an ordinary person can't handle this mess, then naturally they don't have the right to enter.

Unfortunately, Attorney Luo and Jiang Chen handled the situation too cleanly, leaving no hidden dangers at the scene. An ordinary person could have easily handled the situation.

Therefore, the current situation has arisen, with the police setting up a cordon to maintain order.

Forensic doctors and medical staff hurried about, carrying out stretchers one after another, each covered with a white sheet.

"Boss, we've checked another body, and it's the same old story—we can't find anything."

A young police officer took off his mask, his face full of frustration.

"The vital signs were stable, there were no signs of poisoning, no external injuries, and no signs of struggle. It was like... like he fell asleep and then never woke up again."

The middle-aged man, referred to as the boss, rubbed his throbbing temples and looked at the corpses in the morgue, feeling that his career had faced a huge challenge.

"How should this report be written? Natural death?"

"Write it down for me!" the middle-aged man snapped irritably. "You're telling me it was a natural death? What, is the underworld short of its KPIs this month, so it's targeting these criminals?"

"If we don't write it this way, how else should we write it?"

If we don't write it this way, we can't get this job done.

"Let me consult my superiors."

As veterans, they had experienced similar bizarre events before and knew that this was beyond their capabilities. In the end, the outcome depended on the superiors' decision, and the final characterization had to be made by them.

Nangong Erya took out a specially made cell phone and dialed a number.

"How is the situation?"

A warm, magnetic young male voice came through the phone.

"You promised to give me a mission to gain experience, but this is what you did. If I didn't know your character, I would have thought you were playing me for a fool."

Nangong Erya spoke casually, as if chatting with family, complaining without any restraint.

She wasn't afraid of challenging tasks, but the problem was that this one was completely unchallenging; she was just there to make up the numbers, which frustrated her.

Dongfang Liang on the other end of the phone also looked quite helpless.

"A sorcerer capable of casting the Blood Curse of Ten Thousand Spirits is no ordinary person. Even if you want to deal with him, it won't be an easy task."

"It's that unknown spirit rune, right?"

Nangong Erya's tone became more solemn. The unknown exclusive spirit rune represents the Awakened One.

Moreover, this awakened one was able to easily kill a sorcerer who had cast the Blood Curse of Ten Thousand Spirits, so it is clear that he should not be underestimated.

Moreover, if awakened individuals are not intervened or controlled, they are like time bombs that could explode at any moment.

"I didn't find anyone at the scene, but I sensed the spiritual energy fluctuations of Nine Lives, so she must have taken him away."

"Should we inform Ximen about Nine Lives?"

A brief silence fell on the other end of the phone. Dongfang Liang rubbed his temples. If this were told to the Ximen family, the entire Xifang family would be uneasy, and that would be another headache.

"Don't let the Ximen family know about this for now. We'll talk about it after we've investigated it thoroughly."

"You stay there and wait. I'll investigate the owner of that spirit rune."

"good!"

Nangong Erya hung up the phone, her bright eyes filled with fighting spirit.

An unknown spirit rune, an awakened one—hopefully, this person won't disappoint her.

……

Inside the Ai family's luxurious villa.

My newly installed 100-inch curved screen TV is playing the morning news.

"This is an emergency news report. Late last night, a large-scale gas leak occurred at Heishi Prison in our city due to aging equipment, causing several inmates and staff to fall unconscious. After emergency rescue efforts, most are out of danger. The specific cause of the accident is still under further investigation..."

The news anchor spoke clearly and distinctly, with a serious expression.

Ai nestled on the sofa, muttering to herself with a speechless expression.

"Gas leak? How did they even think of that? How much gas will leak out?"

Jiang Chen looked at the news report, which was full of nonsense and appeared to be serious, and was powerless to refute it.

Although this reason is clumsy, it is the most acceptable explanation for ordinary people and the one that will least cause panic.

Those who know the inside story naturally understand that this is an official explanation to the outside world.

Whether you believe it or not is irrelevant; they believe it anyway.

"Continuing with the report, several cases of infant theft have occurred in our city recently. As of now, eight infants are missing and their whereabouts are unknown. The police urge the public to actively provide clues; a substantial reward will be given to those who provide information."

"According to another report, an ancient imperial tomb in the suburbs of our city was recently robbed. Several corpses of tomb raiders were found at the scene, their deaths were bizarre, and the preliminary judgment is that it was caused by infighting over the division of the loot..."

Ai Yi's phone vibrated. Looking at the message on it, he proudly shook his phone.

"You've done what you asked for. Now you and Attorney Luo are legally dead. If nothing unexpected happens, the bodies will be sent to the incinerator soon."

"So fast?"

"Hurry up and finish, lest things get complicated. Do you think they don't want to end this as soon as possible? It's not a good thing to let it drag on."

That makes sense. Jiang Chen remained silent for a moment before asking.

"How much did it cost?"

He was well aware that such a sleight of hand operation carried considerable risks and costs.

"Hey, talking about money hurts feelings." Ai waved his hand dismissively. "We're all brothers."

"Speak," Jiang Chen said, his tone leaving no room for refusal.

"Okay, okay," Ai Yi couldn't persuade him otherwise, so she had to confess honestly, "It didn't cost much, I just gave him a lottery ticket."

"Lottery?"

"Yes, it's a winning lottery ticket." Ai Yi said casually, "After tax, it's only a few million, not much. The prize redemption point is owned by my family, so the cash flow is absolutely clean and safe."

Millions...

Although he had extorted a large sum of money from Uncle Chen and could be considered a multi-millionaire, spending several million at once still made him feel a pang of heartache.

With this convulsion, the plasma heart crackled, and an out-of-control, azure arc of electricity shot out from the hole in his chest.