A violent gale blew across the vast sea, accompanied by rolling dark clouds beyond the horizon.

As they drew closer, the portentous dark clouds descended on the surface of the sea, churning its surface, and causing angry crests of waves to surge upward, as if welcoming the looming storm clouds. As the howling winds picked up, peals of thunder and the threatening flashes of lightning became more frequent.

The raging winds carried wave after thunderous wave of the angry sea inland, smashing viciously into the shoreline. As the ominous clouds advanced toward the shore, angry flashes of lightning glowed intermittently within its abyss.

Such was the nature of a raging thunderstorm in the Pacific.

The massive storm system shrouded a good half of the Ri Nation island within it, including Dongjing, as a torrent of heavy rain drenched the city of skyscrapers and neon lights.

CRACK!

A bolt of lightning struck the top of the Dongjing Tower. In the night sky, it appeared like the tower firing a powerful beam of light into the heavens, and it painted a breathtaking picture for those who saw it.

In the Dongjing Prison, a prison warden opened a series of gates that led into the depths of the prison. The clopping sound from the heel taps of his black leather shoes echoed eerily as he strode along the empty corridors. On any other night, the sound would have carried, but for the reverberating claps of thunder from the raging storm outside.

The warden donned a blue uniform, black pants, and had a baton hanging from his waist—it was Xiao Luo!

This time, Xiao Luo did not put on any disguises, but he very easily knocked one guard out, put on the man’s clothes, and blended in with the crowd. Coincidentally, it was that time when the wardens on the day shift were clocking out and those on the night were clocking in. There would be a 10-minute window where the prison would be at its least guarded.

He looked smart with shiny, black hair, arched eyebrows, and eyes that had an edge to them. As he walked along a prison corridor that had a foreboding atmosphere, he was every bit like an eagle flying in the night, aloof and proud. He continued onward and stopped when he reached Kuroda Kiyotaka’s prison cell.

After he found out that Xiao Luo had killed the rest of his compatriots, Kuroda Kiyotaka could no longer sleep. A stormy night like this one did not help, and a sinister air pervaded his cell block. Dark eye bags had formed below his eyes, and the white of his eyes was red with fatigue and stress. He no longer looked like the minister he used to be. Now, he was pale-faced and balding, and he looked as if he had aged a decade.

When he saw someone suddenly appear at the front of his prison cell, he was spooked. It felt like his soul almost leaped out of his body, and he bolted up as if he had been electrocuted.

The light outside shone dimly. He opened his eyes, squinting to get a better glimpse of the man’s face. “Who… Who are you?” he asked.

“Someone who’s here for your life.”

Xiao Luo took the key and opened the door to the cell, calm as ever before he strode in.

“The mysterious murderer Xiao… Xiao Han?”

Kuroda Kiyotaka finally got a good glimpse at this face, and he was so terrified that he sat on the floor, paralyzed in fear. He broke out in a cold sweat as he felt an inexplicable sense of doom. It was an instinctive response to this enigmatic killer who was here to take his life.

Xiao Luo was expressionless as he glanced at the man indifferently. “Tell me, who were the other Mei Nation participants?” he said.

Like he had stumbled upon an oasis in a desert, Kuroda Kiyotaka scrambled to his knees and pleaded, “I’ll tell you… I will, as long as you let me live. I… I’ll tell you everything!”

“Hm.”

Xiao Luo snorted mockingly, and then he waved his palm in front of the man a few times. Kuroda Kiyotaka felt dizzy like he was falling in and out of consciousness, and his eyes began to lose their focus.

Xiao Luo chose not to lose any more time and decided to hypnotize the man. Kuroda Kiyotaka did not resist and provided Xiao Luo with all the answers he needed. After questioning him, Xiao Luo kicked the former minister in his left temple and sent him flying to his side. Kuroda Kiyotaka died before he even had the chance to cry out in pain. His head exploded and turned to mush from the force of the mighty kick.

“It’s over!”

Xiao Luo retrieved the name list and struck off the last name on it—Kuroda Kiyotaka. He then tore the list to pieces and scattered it above the man’s body, then turned to leave.

WHOO! WHOO! WHOO!

The ear-piercing blare of the security alarm broke the silence, and the entire prison jolted to life.

A thick, white fog suddenly flowed out copiously from the vents, similar to the dry-ice machines used in stage shows, but in this case, vast volumes of the creeping mist quickly filled the prison cells. The sleeping prisoners stirred from their slumber and clutched at their throats. They choked and struggled violently as if they could not breathe, and soon, they were foaming from the mouths before their eyes rolled back and they dropped dead.

Poisonous gas?

Xiao Luo frowned and then laughed wryly as he muttered, “This Anpei… He is truly committed to taking me down. To think he’s willing to sacrifice all the inmates and prison wardens along with me. Oh, he’s vicious, alright!”

He then turned and headed out of the prison in long strides.

Although Xiao Luo had the Yi Jing Jin ability, the Tortoise Breathing Technique was more than sufficient, as it allowed him to go 20 minutes without breathing, and that was more than enough for him to leave this place unharmed.

…

…

In an upscale hotel close to Dongjing Prison, a contingent of uniformed soldiers had gathered.

Anpei was on the balcony of the presidential suite at the very top of the hotel with a cup of coffee. The heavy rain prevented an unobstructed view of the prison, but it didn’t dishearten Anbei. He felt elated and was unable to wipe the glee from his face, as he said, “Toxic CoCl2 gas will cause people to convulse and then die in mere seconds. Xiao Han, I’ve sacrificed the entire Donging Prison to take you down, so be proud of yourself!”

“No one will leave that place alive. By now, it is already devoid of any life, and all life forms will die from the effect of the toxic CoCl2 gas,” Oshima Jun pitched in.

“Oshima, do you think this was worth it?” Anpei asked.

“I do!”

Oshima Jun replied and nodded stiffly. “As long as we can get rid of that enigmatic murderer, Xiao Han, no price is too steep.”

“That is reassuring. Notify your subordinates to clean up the place of any traces of the toxic gas after two hours. Also, bring Xiao Han’s body to me as soon as possible. I want to carve his heart and turn it into a trophy for my room to remind myself of this humiliation forever,” Anpei said.

“Yes, Sir!” Oshima Jun said, standing ramrod straight.

Anpei smiled as he gazed at the prison through the falling rain. He then laughed aloud, for he had finally gotten rid of this thorn in his side.

There was a slight smile on his face as he spoke,” Oshima, do you know what I’m thinking right now?”

Oshima Jun shook his head, “No, I don’t.”

“I suddenly feel the urge to dance. I want to perform our country’s traditional dance.”

“Go ahead, Prime Minister. This is indeed something worth celebrating and being happy about,” Oshima Jun said with a bow.

“Play me the dance music.”

Anpei was truly elated as he limbered his neck and four limbs for the dance with youthful exuberance. At that moment, he felt uninhibited.

“Yes, Sir!”

Oshima Jun was his confidante, and Anpei thought of the man as somebody he could trust deeply. It was natural that he obeyed Anbei without question.

The music he played was in the style of Ri Nation, a tune often played in many anti-Ri Nation films in Hua Nation. In those films, it was maikos with thick layers of makeup who were dancing, but here, Prime Minister Anpei was the one dancing.

Oshima Jun clapped, and immediately several maikos pushed open the door and entered the room. They danced with Anpei, clapping and celebrating this victory.

After all, his political enemy, Kuroda Kiyotaka, had been eliminated, as had the Thousand-faced Killer, Xiao Han. Now that he resolved these two significant problems, even the thunderstorm seemed a thing of beauty in Anpei’s eyes.