Chapter 404 - 218: One-Stop Service (Part 2)
Chapter 404: Chapter 218: One-Stop Service (Part 2)
But the target seemed to sense something. He suddenly sped up and ducked into a dead-end alley next to the children’s playground, one cluttered with maintenance tools and construction materials.
Yang Qi followed close behind, only to find a high wall at the end of the alley. The target was gone!
CRASH! CLATTER—
Just as Yang Qi was cautiously scanning his surroundings, a pile of wooden planks, previously secured by ropes on some scaffolding above the alley’s entrance, suddenly came crashing down behind him. It slammed onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust and blocking most of the exit.
Immediately after, the faint sounds of frightened animal cries and panicked shouts from tourists echoed from the distance.
It was clear that other pre-set sound, light, or explosive devices had been remotely triggered.
A diversion and a roadblock!
’This guy knows he’s been made!’ Yang Qi’s heart sank.
’Trap me here, create a bigger commotion, and then use the chaos to escape from another direction.’
Yang Qi instantly saw through his opponent’s plan.
He glanced at the pile of planks blocking his way, then at the high wall. It was four or five meters tall, smooth, and offered no handholds.
But...
Yang Qi’s eyes narrowed, and he silently activated his Divine Ability—Every Plant a Soldier.
In the corners of the alley, the seemingly withered ivy vines and the weed roots in the cracks of the brickwork suddenly sprang to life.
Several thick vines shot out like nimble snakes, intertwining to rapidly "weave" a crude but sturdy "vine ladder" up the wall. The top of the ladder latched firmly onto a protruding brick at the top of the wall.
At the same time, a few already loose bricks at the top of the wall were subtly pried by plant roots, "coincidentally" tumbling down to reveal several new handholds.
All of this happened in a flash amidst the swirling dust, appearing as nothing more than a coincidence.
Yang Qi took a few steps back for a running start, kicked off the wall, and precisely grabbed one of the handholds with his left hand. His right hand caught the vine ladder. Using his core strength, he coordinated his hands and feet, scaling the wall in a few nimble movements like an ape.
After he was over, the vine ladder quickly went slack, drooping back into its original withered state. The disturbance from the dislodged bricks was hidden by the dust.
On the other side of the wall was another secluded path.
Yang Qi leaped down. His eyes scanned the area like lightning, and he immediately spotted the corner of a gray shirt disappearing around a bend up ahead.
’Chase!’
...
The man running ahead, realizing Yang Qi was still in pursuit, decisively abandoned his eastward route and turned back north.
And so, one chasing the other, the two of them reached the perimeter wall on the northernmost side of the Zoo.
This was the edge of the Zoo grounds. Beyond the wall lay the scrubland at the outskirts of Cangshan—a desolate and secluded area rarely visited.
’The target has definitely been here before.’
He was clearly familiar with the area. He sprinted to the base of the wall, took a running start, leaped, and reached for the top!
His movements were clean and efficient. He had clearly cased the joint before or was experienced in scaling walls like this.
’If he makes it over, catching him will be nearly impossible!’
Just as the man’s fingers were about to touch the top of the wall, a fierce glint flashed in Yang Qi’s eyes. He activated his Every Plant a Soldier Divine Ability once more!
His target wasn’t the man himself, but the wall he was using for leverage and the ground beneath his feet.
In the damp soil beneath the man’s feet, several thick, unassuming ivy roots growing along the base of the wall and a few clumps of tough wild grass suddenly sprang to life.
Like brown pythons emerging from the earth, they instantly coiled around his ankles and calves, creeping upward!
At the same instant, the mortar in the brick the man was about to grab—already loose to begin with—suddenly crumbled under the imperceptible pull of the plant roots!
"Ah—"
The man cried out in alarm as his fingertips found only air. His ascent halted, and the plants tightening around his feet yanked him off balance. He toppled backward, landing hard on a thick bed of fallen leaves.
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
To any onlooker, it would have looked as though the man had simply slipped, or that the old brick had coincidentally crumbled just as he grabbed it—a pure stroke of bad luck.
Yang Qi pounced like a cheetah, giving his opponent no chance to recover.
The man was dazed from the fall, but his survival instinct kicked in, and he struggled to get up and draw a weapon.
WHOOSH!
A precise sweep kick from Yang Qi sent the short blade the man had just pulled from his coat flying. He immediately closed the distance and pounced, unleashing a full display of military grappling techniques.
A wrist lock, an arm bar, a shoulder press, a knee to the spine...
After a series of dazzlingly ruthless and effective moves, the man in the baseball cap was pinned to the ground, his hands bound behind his back with his own belt and shoelaces. His cheek was pressed into the damp leaves, and all that remained were his heavy, indignant breaths.
With one knee pressed into the man’s back, Yang Qi quickly searched him, finding two small, remote-like devices, some assorted tools, and a small notebook.
Only then did he slightly ease the pressure, though his control remained firm.
"WOOF WOOF!"
"Over there!"
"Hurry!"
"..."
The sound of urgent footsteps and barking dogs came from outside the woods.
Deng Lei was the first to charge in, and the sight that greeted him was...
...the target, trussed up like a turkey, lying face down on the ground with Yang Qi’s knee in his back. Aside from some scattered leaves and a broken brick, nothing else seemed out of place.
"Advisor Yang, you’re unbelievably fast!"
Deng Lei was both shocked and delighted. With a wave of his hand, his subordinates moved in to take custody of the suspect.
"This man set up interference devices inside the Zoo. You’ll need to sweep for them as soon as possible."
Yang Qi stood up, handing the confiscated items to Deng Lei. "Also, he’s skilled and has clearly had training. He’s an expert climber and knows the Zoo well. This wasn’t some spur-of-the-moment decision."
Deng Lei’s expression grew increasingly grim as he examined the devices and the notebook. "Just as we thought. These look like simple sound-and-light flash-bangs, meant to create a panic... And the things written in this notebook... Damn it, we’ve caught a big one! We’ll have to give him a thorough interrogation."
With that, he looked at Yang Qi and said sincerely, "We owe you again for this one. From the initial warning to the tracking and the takedown—you handled the whole thing from start to finish! By the way, are you hurt?"