Chapter 43

Countdown: 40:20:00.

Qingchen walked out of the alloy gate as usual. He saw the prisoners in the corridor looking at him with strange eyes, seemingly surprised by his reappearance after five days.

However, this time he did not walk down the corridor but stood still.

He waited for the prison broadcast, then followed the queue downstairs for the meal.

The prisoners immediately believed the rumors from the past few days: this young man had angered Li Shutong and was locked in a small black room for several days, enduring some torture.

So, the young man had now lost his special treatment in Prison No. 18.

However, the prisoners still dared not easily provoke him, as Li Shutong could offend the Qing family, but they could not.

During the meal, Lu Guangyi and Qingchen sat far away from Li Shutong.

Qingchen lowered his head and ate carefully, chewing thoroughly before swallowing.

His intestines were very fragile now, and he had to be cautious.

During the meal, Qingchen did not say a word, remaining silent.

There was a clear divide between him and Li Shutong.

It seemed as if they were still good friends a few days ago, but today they were like strangers.

The prisoners whispered, gossiping about what had happened, wondering if Li Shutong and the Qing family had fallen out.

They also speculated about what forbidden object Li Shutong guarded, which made him so cautious and irritable.

At this moment, only Guo Huchan remained carefree.

He carried his tray and sat next to Qingchen, saying cheerfully, "How did you offend Li Shutong, to be tortured like this?"

Qingchen looked up at him, "Sitting next to me, aren't you afraid of offending Li Shutong?"

Guo Huchan said indifferently, "I'm not afraid of the Black Spade Consortium, so why would I be afraid of Li Shutong?"

"Then why are you here?" Qingchen seemed uninterested in the talkative and promise-making Guo Huchan, not even looking at him while chatting.

"I'm different from others. Others might value the Qing family behind you, but I value your abilities!" Guo Huchan said, "I'm serious, I want to invite someone with your ambition."

"Not interested," Qingchen said calmly and then stood up. He threw his tray to Lu Guangyi to wash and walked alone toward the reading area.

After a few steps, he seemed to be out of strength and almost fell to the ground, but he managed to catch himself with his hands in time.

Qingchen got up and continued walking.

Unconsciously, two prisoners had followed him and were casually approaching.

However, in the next moment, the previously weak Qingchen suddenly turned to look at the two.

The young man's eyes were clear but had an especially oppressive presence, as if he could see through them.

The two prisoners were stunned. They exchanged glances, seemingly making a decision. In an instant, they each pulled out a sharpened toothbrush handle from their waistbands and charged at Qingchen.

In Qingchen's eyes, the hydraulic actuators in the mechanical legs of the two prisoners suddenly activated, and he could even see steam shooting out from their steel limbs.

This was not a physical reaction from the mechanical limbs but rather the mechanical structure compressing air, instantly vaporizing the moisture in the air!

However, just as they leaped to attack, they both closed their eyes and fainted.

Qingchen stood still, sidestepping to let them pass by him, and they rolled on the ground several times before finally stopping.

The two did not get up again; their consciousness was tightly bound by Lin Xiaoxiao's nightmare.

Qingchen squatted down to observe them, and Lu Guangyi walked over, using his mechanical arm to pry open their mouths and forcibly pull out their molars.

The prisoners were stunned; no one had seen what had happened, as everything happened too quickly.

They did not know why these two prisoners had attacked Qingchen or how they had fallen.

Lu Guangyi showed Qingchen a molar in his hand, which was clearly a silver poison sac.

At this moment, Qingchen understood that the three dead soldiers who had died earlier were not targeting Li Shutong; their target was himself.

The two dead soldiers who attacked today had entered five days ago, along with Jian Sheng from Chuanzhou.

At that time, everyone's attention was on Jian Sheng, but even amidst the chaos, Qingchen had noticed the strangeness of these two.

Initially, he did not pay much attention, but on the fourth day in the black room, the more isolated he was, the clearer his mind became, and he reviewed all the unusual events that had occurred.

So, he gave them a chance, a chance for him to be alone and weak.

To determine who these dead soldiers were targeting.

If they did not act, he would have exposed them; if they did act, the answer would be clear.

Calculating the time, the first batch of dead soldiers had entered with him.

So, when he first arrived, someone wanted to kill him. If he had not found Li Shutong immediately, making the other party wary, he would have been dead long ago.

The dead soldiers who entered later seemed to have received a death order, willing to die to kill him, which explained their urgency.

Who wanted to kill him? The other shadow candidates?

Qingchen could not be sure, but this was the most likely answer.

It seemed that the competition for the shadow position was more dangerous than he had imagined.

The shadow of the Qing family, who specialized in dirty work, would stop at nothing. Only those who dared to eliminate their rivals were worthy of being a shadow.

This nine-person race in the dark was not about who was better at executing tasks but who was more ruthless and decisive.

At this moment, four mechanical prison guards ran over in unison.

However, they did not bother Qingchen but directly carried the two dead soldiers away.

Qingchen knew they would face extremely harsh interrogation and punishment, as he had just experienced it.

"Boss, what do we do now?" Lu Guangyi asked.

"Wait for them to talk," Qingchen said, then exchanged a glance with Lin Xiaoxiao and walked toward the reading area.

...

Nighttime, Prison No. 18 had returned to its usual tranquility.

As Qingchen lay on his bed thinking, the alloy gate of his cell opened by itself.

He was not surprised but quietly walked out. Li Shutong, Ye Wan, and Lin Xiaoxiao were already waiting for him in the fitness area downstairs.

This was a prearranged meeting. Li Shutong's teachings could not be known by others, and after 9 PM, all prisoners were forced to return to their cells, giving Qingchen ample time to learn... how to become a superhuman.

Li Shutong looked at Qingchen and asked, "Do you have any questions? You can handle other matters before we start."

"Who wants to kill me?" Qingchen asked.

"They haven't confessed yet," Lin Xiaoxiao said, "These two are quite tough, even in the nightmare, they held their ground. They were genuinely criminals, not planted, so we couldn't find any leads. Their mechanical limbs seem to have been specially replaced to avoid tracing their sale or production. But don't worry, give me seven days, and I'll give you an answer."

"Thank you," Qingchen nodded.

Li Shutong thought for a moment and said, "It's likely one of the younger members of the Qing family, vying for the shadow position. Danger is inevitable, and you need to be mentally prepared for it."

"Why do they all want the shadow position?" Qingchen was puzzled, "Even if it means risking their lives?"

Li Shutong smiled and said, "Because, from some generation, the Qing family established a rule: only those who have been a shadow can become the head of the family."

...

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