Chapter 248: Gunshot

Han Meng pondered for a long time in court before finally turning and walking out. As he exited the main gate, the warm, intense sunlight made it difficult for him to open his eyes.

Having spent so long in the sunless dark prison, Han Meng's eyes could not adjust to the sunlight immediately. He shielded his eyes with one hand and squinted as he looked around.

Outside the courtroom, a crowd had already gathered. When they saw Han Meng emerge in his prison uniform, they simultaneously erupted in enthusiastic applause, as if cheering for the triumph of justice and truth.

Han Meng's gaze fell upon the newspapers in their hands. After a moment of hesitation, he spoke:

"Excuse me, could I borrow that for a moment?"

"Of course, Officer Han Meng!"

A passerby handed the newspaper to Han Meng. As he opened the first page, his eyes fixed on a large headline:

*The Black-Clad Enforcer of the Chaotic Era—"Criminal" Han Meng*

Han Meng paused slightly, his gaze quickly scanning the text below. The article detailed his actions during his tenure in District Three, including but not limited to sweeping out underground trade, purging enforcers within District Three, single-handedly facing a fifth-tier calamity, confronting Aurora City to protect the survivors of District Three, and even unearthing the story of how he had executed the nephew of the president of the Starfall Merchant Guild years ago, which led to him being shunned by Aurora City and self-exiling to District Three.

The article also recounted Fang Lichang's slander against him from a few days prior, using an extremely sarcastic tone to imply the absurdity and injustice of the court's verdict. In its lines, not a single sentence explicitly defended him; the writing was objective and fair, yet every sentence, when combined, seemed to exonerate him.

It was precisely this article, full of irony, that stirred the emotions of a large number of citizens, causing them to spontaneously follow the trial and, invisibly, exerting public pressure on the court.

Han Meng's brow furrowed unconsciously. There was nothing wrong with the article itself; all its content was true.

But the key was that its content was too detailed and comprehensive—it was as if the author had personally experienced everything.

His suspicion grew stronger, and his gaze fell upon the inconspicuous author's name at the beginning of the article.

"Lin Yan..." Han Meng murmured the name.

"Lin... Yan?"

The cold wind, sharp as a knife, cut coldly across Zhao Yi's face.

He lowered his head, moving quickly through the alleyways. In the pocket of his grey cotton jacket, his hand gripped a dirt-covered dagger, his palm already slick with sweat.

Although Han Meng was ultimately acquitted, the traitor Old Man Ding was not caught and had fled the courtroom in terror. Zhao Yi naturally would not let him off so easily; he had to teach him a lesson.

"Damn it... Which way did he go?"

Zhao Yi reached a crossroads. There were no signs of pedestrians in any direction. He frowned and cursed under his breath.

Just as Zhao Yi was deliberating, Old Man Ding's terrified voice suddenly rang out from deep within the alleyway in the distance:

"Spade 6... He's Spade 6!! Don't kill me... Don't kill me!!"

Zhao Yi's eyes lit up, and he immediately chased after the sound.

Outside the two alleys, Old Man Ding stumbled through the cold wind, constantly grasping his messy hair, staring at the empty air before him, his eyes filled with endless terror.

"You're Spade 6... No... He's Spade 6!"

"I don't eat playing cards... I really don't eat playing cards!"

"You're Spade 6! You're still trying to trick me!! Fang Lichang! I... I... Please let me go... I don't want to die!!"

"Ghost! You're a ghost!! All of you are ghosts!!"

After two consecutive days of extreme nervous tension and constant fear stimulation, followed by a long period of numbness and daze, a massive wave of fear suddenly flooded his mind, completely breaking through his sanity. Under this silent, inhuman torture, Old Man Ding had completely lost his mind.

He shrieked, running frantically and aimlessly through the alleys, as if something were chasing him, his eyes bloodshot.

Just as he was about to turn another corner, a figure suddenly appeared before him.

It was a young man in a brown coat, with silver half-rimmed glasses resting on his nose. A slender glasses chain swayed slightly in the cold wind, and his indifferent gaze looked down at the stumbling, small figure running towards him.

Old Man Ding crashed into his chest as if hitting steel and fell to the ground.

"Spade 6... Don't kill me!! Don't kill me!!!" Old Man Ding stared blankly at Chen Ling, screaming loudly.

Chen Ling simply watched him quietly. After a moment, his hand slowly emerged from his pocket... A black, cold pistol pressed against Old Man Ding's forehead.

The deranged Old Man Ding no longer had the reactions of a normal person. He just kept repeating the same phrase, begging Spade 6 not to kill him, like a wriggling and repulsive maggot.

"The performance was excellent," Chen Ling's lips slowly parted.

"Congratulations on wrapping up."

Bang!

A flash of fire erupted from the gun's muzzle, and a bullet instantly pierced Old Man Ding's skull. A spray of blood splattered across the brown coat as Old Man Ding collapsed stiffly and lifelessly to the ground, a pool of blood silently spreading in the alley.

At the same time, a figure in a grey cotton jacket hastily turned the corner. His gaze swept over the scene, and he froze.

A wisp of smoke drifted from the dark gun muzzle. Before the bloodstained brown coat, Old Man Ding's body lay in a pool of blood, his features distorted like a terrified demon.

"You..." Zhao Yi looked at the expressionless Chen Ling, his face filled with horror.

He never imagined that someone else, besides himself, wanted to kill Old Man Ding, and in broad daylight, with a gun, no less?

Zhao Yi certainly remembered that face. Just minutes ago, they had been sitting side-by-side in the spectator's gallery, but the reporter Lin Yan had left earlier than him... Could it be that he left early specifically to kill Old Man Ding?

But... why would he do that?

A cold wind swept through the alley. On either side of the bloody corpse, two figures faced each other in dead silence.

Chen Ling also hadn't expected Zhao Yi to appear here at this moment, but seeing his demeanor, he could probably guess Zhao Yi's intention. This kid was certainly getting bolder after committing one murder.

Chen Ling squinted slightly, glanced at Zhao Yi, put his pistol back in his pocket, and unhurriedly turned the corner, leaving the scene.

"Wait!"

Seeing this, Zhao Yi immediately stepped over Old Man Ding's body and hurriedly followed.

But when he turned the corner, within his sight, there was no longer any sign of the reporter.