Prologue: The Countdown to a Rainy Night

The torrential rain turned the abandoned chemical industrial zone on the western outskirts of Binhai City into a vast expanse of water. Rusty oil storage tanks cast distorted shadows in the lightning, and the air was thick with the acrid stench of diesel fuel mixed with rust. Zhong Hua was bound to an iron chair in the third-floor control room, her mouth gagged with a towel soaked with sweat, the cold metal back of the chair digging painfully into her shoulder blades. Outside the window, the rain curtain blurred the world into indistinct patches of color, with only the occasional car headlights flashing in the distance like dying eyes.

"Mr. Gu said that he'll release the man once he gets the goods." The lead kidnapper was a burly man with a thick beard, toying with a switchblade in his hand, the blade gleaming coldly in the green light of the emergency light. "If your man knows what's good for him, he shouldn't try anything funny."

Zhong Hua's heart pounded, her nails digging deep into her palms. She knew the "thing" referred to the encrypted USB drive—containing the original evidence of Gu Yanting's embezzlement of a huge sum of public funds and falsification of overseas transaction records, crucial evidence that A Yu had spent months retrieving from a deep-sea server. Three hours earlier, she had been forcibly shoved into a van by masked men downstairs at the hospital, and before losing consciousness, she only had time to press the side button on her phone three times—the emergency alarm signal she and A Yu had agreed upon.

"Tick-tock, tick-tock..." The sound of the second hand ticking on the old-fashioned wall clock was amplified infinitely in the deathly silent space. There were still twenty minutes left until the time Ah Yu agreed to make the deal, and the screen of the smartwatch on her wrist had been smashed when she was kidnapped. Only the faint breathing light was still flashing in the dark—it was a positioning beacon she had modified with a spare battery, sending coordinates every thirty seconds.

Chapter 1: The Lone Wolf's Charge

Ah Yu's SUV bounced violently on the muddy dirt road, the windshield wipers futilely battling the torrential rain. The red GPS dot on the dashboard was faintly flashing three kilometers to the northwest—the last location transmitted by Zhong Hua's watch. He gripped the steering wheel tightly with his right hand and dialed Lin Wanqing's number with his left, his knuckles white from the force.

"Sis, the location has been confirmed: abandoned chemical plant, area C." His voice was low, mixed with the sound of rain and engine roar. "I've already notified Captain Zhang, but Gu Yanting's men may have installed a signal jammer. Contact the Municipal Bureau's technical department immediately and have them forcibly crack the frequency band."

"Ayu, don't be impulsive!" Lin Wanqing's voice trembled noticeably. "Team Leader Zhang and the others are already on their way. Wait for backup—"

"It's too late!" Ah Yu slammed on the gas, and the SUV sped up a slope, splashing water half a person high. "Zhong Hua's heart rate monitor shows that she is very unstable. That madman Gu Yanting is capable of anything!"

He hung up the phone, tossed it onto the passenger seat, and pulled a fire axe from the trunk—a weapon he'd used for self-defense when he worked in logistics years ago. Rain dripped from his forehead, mixing with a liquid that he couldn't tell was sweat or rain, blurring his vision. Images from the security camera footage of Zhong Hua's kidnapping flashed before his eyes: she was being held by two burly men, her white nurse's uniform torn at one corner, yet she desperately turned to look at the camera, her eyes showing no fear, only an almost stubborn calmness.

"Hold on, Zhong Hua..." he growled, the steering wheel screeching as he twisted it. The car crashed through a rusty iron gate, the tires crunching over shards of glass with a sharp crack. The buildings in the chemical industrial park stood like the skeletons of a giant beast, the empty pipes whistling mournfully in the wind.

Chapter Two: Traps and Games

In the control room on the third floor, the bearded man suddenly raised his walkie-talkie: "Target has entered the factory area, there are car lights at the southeast gate!"

A static-filled reply came through the walkie-talkie: "Proceed according to plan. Get the USB drive and leave. Boss Gu said no survivors—"

Zhong Hua's heart sank to the bottom. She clearly saw the fierce glint in the bearded man's eyes; it wasn't a simple kidnapping and extortion, but a cover-up. She quietly moved her bound wrists, her fingertips touching a protruding rusty nail on the back of the chair, and began to rub the ropes together vigorously. The rough hemp rope rubbed against the rust, making a faint "rustling" sound, which was masked by the sound of rain outside the window.

Suddenly, a violent crash came from downstairs, followed by the loud shattering of glass. The bearded man cursed, signaling the tall, thin man beside him to watch over Zhong Hua, while he grabbed a knife and rushed towards the stairwell.

"Ah Yu!" Zhong Hua cried out in her heart, her eyes reddening with anxiety. She knew Ah Yu was deliberately making a commotion to attract attention, but this undoubtedly exposed her to the gun. The tall, thin man was clearly nervous, constantly glancing towards the door, his stun gun crackling in his hand.

Just then, the rope on Zhong Hua's wrist suddenly snapped! Without thinking, she slammed her head down into the tall, thin man's stomach, simultaneously kneeing him in the groin. The tall, thin man screamed, and the stun gun fell to the ground. Zhong Hua rolled under the table, grabbed a wrench from the floor, and curled up in the shadows.

"Damn it! Where is he?" The bearded man rushed back upon hearing the commotion. Seeing his fallen subordinate and an empty chair, he immediately picked up his walkie-talkie. "Target escaped! Repeat, target escaped—"

Before the words were even finished, a dark figure burst through the window, a fire axe whistling through the air as it swung towards the bearded man's shoulder. Ah Yu landed with a roll, dodging the switchblade the man was swinging; the axe blade struck the metal shelf, sending sparks flying.

"Zhong Hua!" he shouted, his eyes quickly scanning the room.

"I'm here!" Zhong Hua poked her head out from under the table, her voice trembling with tears.

"Get out of the way!" Ah Yu stood in front of her, engaging in a fierce fight with the bearded man. In the cramped space, the sounds of clashing metal, curses, and rain mingled into a chaotic cacophony. Although Ah Yu was agile, his opponent had a knife and was clearly professionally trained. After a few moves, Ah Yu's arm was slashed, and blood soaked through his sleeve.

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