Chapter 86

"Dad, there's a parent-teacher meeting next Friday afternoon. Can you come back then?"

I suddenly opened my eyes, the intense pain in my neck telling me I couldn't give up now.

Although the seat reclined very slowly, it had already made me lie down completely.

From this angle, Zhang Huanan couldn't exert much force and could only keep dodging backward.

After fully reclining the seat, my left hand continued to grope around and quickly found another button.

Pressing this button would make the entire seat move backward slowly.

"You f***ing..." Zhang Huanan was being pushed back by my seat, and he was about to run out of space.

I finally escaped the wire's restraint, feeling a dull pain in my throat, but this was a life-or-death moment, and anything non-fatal was just a flesh wound.

I immediately raised my gun and turned around, but everything was pitch black, and my brain hadn't recovered from the lack of oxygen.

Based on the sound and experience, I aimed the gun straight ahead, ready to finish off Zhang Huanan.

But at that moment, the car suddenly shook violently.

It took me a few seconds to realize it was an earthquake.

I had lived in Inner Mongolia for over thirty years and had never experienced an earthquake.

But this earthquake was so clear that it made me, who was already dizzy, even more unsteady.

After two consecutive misses, Zhang Huanan suddenly stood up and tightly grabbed my hand.

I had faced him before; this liar wasn't very strong, but his moves were very sinister.

He pressed my gun with one hand and reached for my left pinky with the other, twisting it hard.

I didn't expect this move and instantly pulled my left hand back. In the next second, my vision finally cleared, and I saw Zhang Huanan pull out a hammer from somewhere.

Before I could react, the hammer flew toward my head.

For a moment, I felt the world spinning, as if my soul was about to leave my body.

I knew this was a sign of impending fainting, and the next few seconds would be my last chance.

The car was also sliding around due to the intense earthquake. Through the window, I vaguely saw houses on both sides of the alley collapsing, walls cracking, and even cracks appearing in the sky...

Wait... the sky is cracking?

Before I could react, Zhang Huanan's hammer fell again, narrowly missing me.

I came to my senses, knowing that if I didn't kill Zhang Huanan here, he would kill Xuanxuan and many more people. Even if I died here, I had to drag Zhang Huanan to hell with me.

I extended a finger and stabbed it into Zhang Huanan's eye, feeling a warm, wet sensation as it pierced through his eyeball.

He screamed in pain, releasing the gun, and I immediately aimed at his chest and fired.

The bullet clearly penetrated his lung, but at the same moment, his hammer swung back and hit my temple.

The next few shots went wild, either due to the intense earthquake or the blow to my temple. I wanted to fire more, but my balance was completely lost.

Everything went black, and I didn't even know where I had fainted.

The hammer seemed to keep hitting my head.

But I felt nothing.

A cool liquid soaked my eyes, and I heard the "thud" of my skull.

Everything was shaking, everything was breaking.

Huge sounds like waves came from the distance, screams, shouts, the sound of vehicles colliding, and buildings collapsing, all bursting out at once.

No, I can't die.

I need to finish off Zhang Huanan and get out of the car to save people.

I need to call the team for backup.

I need to save people, save them now.

During an earthquake, every minute of precious rescue time wasted is a life lost.

I have a mission; I can't just stand by...

But will I... still be alive?

...

Am I alive now?

When I opened my eyes, nine strangers were sitting in front of me.

The place looked like an interrogation room, but we never used round tables.

A round table doesn't give a sense of oppression; instead, it gives a sense of gathering and comfort. So, interrogation rooms usually have square tables, while hotel dining tables are round.

At first, I thought this was some trick by Zhang Huanan... but on second thought, we should both be dead.

I reached out and touched my head; the skull was slightly indented, but there was no bleeding.

I touched my neck and felt a sharp pain.

It seemed the injuries I sustained were still there, but I wasn't dead. What was going on?

Injuries to the neck and skull are usually fatal, yet I was sitting here, able to see, hear, and feel my wounds.

A senior officer once told me that when a person dies, they recall their entire life like a slideshow.

But I didn't remember ever seeing these nine people. They all had unfamiliar faces and were looking around just like me.

So this isn't a slideshow, but a strange dream?

A minute later, the person wearing a goat's head mask killed someone without hesitation, and I finally understood my mission.

Even if this is a strange dream, even if this is hell, my mission is not over.

This is the place where I continue to pay my debts.

I will eliminate the evil and save all the innocent.

This time, I will not hesitate, and I will not regret.

I am a police officer, and even here, I will fulfill my duty.

I didn't expect to draw the identity of "Liar," which put me in a dilemma.

Should I save the innocent first... or survive and personally kill the masked pervert?

After a few seconds of internal struggle, I understood.

Never follow the suspect's line of thinking. He wants us to kill each other, but I will save everyone.

As long as everyone survives, there is still hope.

Unfortunately, even if I win this game, I can't go back.

I killed someone.

I can't face Xuanxuan anymore; all I have left is the law's punishment.

So my end can only be here.

Life has no second chances; I can't change my past.

Unfortunately, I don't even have a cigarette in my pocket. The lighter Xuanxuan bought me with her pocket money isn't here either. The days ahead will be unbearable.

If possible, I really hope I could have one more cigarette.

So let me do what I need to do, and then I will go quietly.

My name is Li Shangwu.

I am about to start lying.