Chapter 128: The Encirclement Begins

Chen Bingfeng spoke at a rapid pace on the other end of the communicator. Even through the screen, Ye Chen could sense his anxiety; this was the first time he had seen Chen Bingfeng lose his composure.

"Never mind my search for Jin Yinghui; I have something more important to tell you. Today, Xu Fan and I found a little girl's shoe in the sewer, and we suspect it belongs to Danzai Mei. We also encountered a suspicious person who ran as soon as they saw us, and we ended up losing them."

As a meticulous reporter who excelled at clear communication, Chen Bingfeng hit the crux of the matter in two sentences. If it had been Xu Fan—with his eccentric focus and peculiar way of thinking—describing the situation, Ye Chen felt he wouldn't have lasted three sentences before hanging up in frustration.

Ye Chen’s eyes darted as he grasped the importance of this information, and he urged, "Give me more details!"

Because time was of the essence, Chen Bingfeng did not give the restless Xu Fan any chance to interrupt, handling the explanation entirely on his own. Both Ye Chen and Ye Shanshan listened with intense focus, terrified of missing a single detail. When Chen Bingfeng mentioned that they had taken the unconventional route of the sewers, Ye Chen gave him a mental nod of approval. But when he heard that the mysterious shadow had easily evaded them by navigating the complex turns, another question arose in his mind.

Could the suspect be intimately familiar with the intricate layout of the sewers?

Wait, this was not the time to focus on that. If the shadow in the sewers was indeed the criminal who had abducted the children, how would they act if they were in his shoes?

"Oh no... we've alerted the enemy!" Ye Chen’s face went pale. He had not expected the events to escalate so quickly in just a single day.

A heavy silence fell on both ends of the communicator. Chen Bingfeng seemed filled with regret, while Ye Chen was lost in deep thought. They both understood that if the enemy moved their base now, they might not be so lucky next time. Not only would Danzai Mei and the others be doomed, but the opponent would only become more cautious, and the number of victimized children would continue to grow.

"If you don't pull out the weeds by the root, they grow back with the spring breeze..." A thought sparked: act now, and hope it isn't too late!

After a moment of deliberation, Ye Chen spoke solemnly into the communicator: "..."

"Understood!" three voices replied in unison on the other end.

Immediately after, Ye Chen placed both hands on Ye Shanshan’s shoulders, looking at her with grave seriousness as he entrusted her: "..."

"Yes, I understand."

Ye Shanshan’s reply carried a weight of concern. She didn't know the full extent of the situation, but she had heard rumors of the missing children. The market bazaar was always filled with flying rumors. She had no idea that Ye Chen had been working so hard on this matter recently; a surge of comfort and pride washed over her. He was still the same person he had always been.

As she watched him dash out the door, he turned back within three seconds, poking his head in to add, "It’s cold outside, make sure you dress warmly."

...

Why do my fights always happen in the middle of the night? Ye Chen thought to himself while sprinting, his mind racing. Capturing Zhang Jingye in the early hours, intercepting the cloaked figure at night, the bar brawl in the dead of night, rescuing Chen Bingfeng under the moonlight. Is it my bad luck with timing, or do all villains prefer to operate in the dark?

He looked ahead and estimated the time to the target location... No, it was still too slow.

"Based on Chen Bingfeng's description, quite some time has passed since the shadow escaped. I can't delay any longer; I must speed up."

Anxiety began to gnaw at him. A battle where every second counted was arriving all too soon.

The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. Ye Chen didn't hesitate to leap onto the rooftops—a trick the cloaked figure had taught him that night. A series of rhythmic thuds echoed across the roofs as he sprinted, each step driven by force. He didn't care if he disturbed the people inside; the children couldn't wait. Even the stray cats wandering on the roofs were scared off in droves.

...

From a dilapidated building awaiting demolition, a group emerged. Two figures appearing to be adults walked at the front and back of the line, with eight small figures in between. The children moved with a stiff, mechanical gait, marching in silence. Bringing up the rear was the younger brother, Ma Tupai, wrapped in a large cloak with a hunched back, his features obscured.

The older brother, Ma Tupeng, who was in front, ripped the tarp off an object in the courtyard. "Whoosh," the tarp fell, revealing an aging refrigerated truck. Such vehicles were common in the outskirts of the capital, used primarily for transporting fresh meat and vegetables from farms. It was not as bulky or large as the long-haul trucks that traveled between cities.

Ma Tupeng climbed into the driver's seat alone, turned on the headlights, and twisted the key to start the engine. Perhaps because the vehicle was so old, it failed to start after several attempts. The truck body shuddered, and the headlights flickered as the engine made a sputtering, staccato sound.

Ye Chen, leaping across the rooftops, saw the flickering lights from afar like a signal.

"There! The location is correct!" Ye Chen checked the position in his mind, his expression shifting as he muttered to himself, "Damn it, they're trying to flee! Faster... faster... go faster!"

"Sputter... sputter... sputter!"

The engine finally caught. The older brother slammed his foot down, and the truck crashed through the flimsy, partially closed gate, bursting out onto the street.

"It's over, I'm not going to make it."

Since advancing to D-rank, Ye Chen’s physical attributes—strength, stamina, speed, and reaction time—had all improved significantly. But D-rank was still just D-rank. In You Ya’s words, he was still far from being an "Awakened" powerhouse. A latent energy level of 300+ might seem high, but that was only compared to his previously pathetic 58 points. If he encountered a C-rank enemy, he should run as far as he could.

Ye Chen felt that this dash of cold water was accurate. Even if his running speed on flat ground matched a vehicle, it was only just barely enough to keep pace. If there was any distance between them, catching up completely was not a sure thing.

But just then, several corners of the outer city began to stir.

Ye Shanshan was heading toward the "Lu Dan" family’s residence. Her task was to knock on their door, get the elder to step up, and continue coordinating with the others in the market district. By using their numbers, they could seal off the main routes leading from the market district to the administrative zone. There was no need to explain too much; just one sentence would suffice:

"The villains who kidnapped the children might be trying to escape through the market district tonight, and the children are likely all together."

And this task was, relatively speaking, the safest one of them all.