Chapter 102

Chapter 102

“Sister Ying, what’s going on?”

Scream after scream echoed through the Beast-Fighting Arena.

Yin Minmin helped push the small cart, frightened to the point that tears welled in her eyes.

Qin Ying said calmly, “Ignore it. Get to the elevator, now.”

“Zhang Lang, keep watch. If anything happens, shout immediately.”

It had to be said-when everything descended into chaos, Qin Ying’s attitude and demeanor made her seem utterly dependable.

Even Huang Zezhong, who was completely at a loss, followed along with them.

Once they reached the elevator, Qin Ying quickly pressed the button twice.

Unexpectedly, the elevator had stopped running.

“That’s impossible. Even if the power’s out, there should be backup power.”

Huang Zezhong’s mental fortitude was average at best. He threw himself at the elevator and started slapping the doors.

Hearing his out-of-control shouting and the noise of him banging on the elevator, Qin Ying yanked him back by the collar in irritation.

“If you don’t want to die, shut up!”

There was no way the elevator had stopped for no reason. The most likely explanation was that someone had cut the power.

Someone wanted to trap everyone here and let them die.

Qin Ying hauled Huang Zezhong closer and asked, “Where are the fire stairs?”

Huang Zezhong was truly useless. In his panic, he couldn’t even answer.

Seeing him like this, Qin Ying clamped a hand around his throat. “Listen carefully. Someone wants to trap us all in here and kill us. If you want to live, answer my questions properly.”

“If you can’t even answer something this simple, then stay here and wait to die.”

Her fingers tightened, pressing precisely against the blood vessels at the side of Huang Zezhong’s neck.

After his vision went black for a moment, he actually sobered up a little and raised a hand to point in one direction.

“Lead the way!”

Time was life. Without wasting another word, Qin Ying let go and shoved him so hard he staggered.

Huang Zezhong was drenched in sweat, but right now he had no choice but to obey. On trembling legs, he led Qin Ying and the others toward the fire escape.

Huang Zezhong was in front, while Zhang Lang, wearing the Black Trench Coat, brought up the rear.

Qin Ying, Yin Minmin, and Lin Yicheng stayed in the middle, pushing the small cart loaded with the dog cage.

As they raced down the long corridor, the people in the private rooms finally snapped out of their shock and started panicking.

Fortunately, Qin Ying had made a decisive call. They just happened to avoid the crowds rushing the other way and weren’t blocked in the hallway.

“It’s… it’s just up ahead.” Huang Zezhong was clearly lacking in exercise. After only a few steps of running, he was already panting.

They finally made it into the fire escape, only for their hearts to sink.

The stairs leading to the second floor were tightly blocked by coffee tables, chairs, and other debris. There was no way to escape upward.

“W-what do we do?” Huang Zezhong shakily sank toward the floor, only to be kicked by Qin Ying.

“The fire escape is blocked this badly, and none of you knew?”

Huang Zezhong only wanted to cry. He said, “It was fine yesterday!”

Before he could waste more time talking, Qin Ying glanced at the stairs going down and said decisively, “We go down.”

“No.” Lin Yicheng objected at once.

Although Lin Yicheng was only a Second Generation Heir, being spoiled and fond of fun didn’t mean he had no brain. He had already figured out that this was a trap aimed at everyone.

Since the other party had cut the power and even moved junk here to block the fire escape, it meant this place was already completely under their control.

One floor down was the Fighting Dog Rearing Area. Another floor below that was the Disposal Area.

Both places held large numbers of specially bred fighting dogs. The chances were extremely high that the other side would release those vicious beasts.

If they went down, they would be no different from meat delivering itself to the door.

“I know!”

If even Lin Yicheng could figure it out, Qin Ying naturally could too.

But rather than stay on this floor and face that Zheng-like thing whose head could ram open an iron cage, it was better to risk going down and confront those fighting dogs.

At least they still had Zhang Lang on their side… and Han Lie!

Hopefully, in his current form, he would have some deterrent effect on those dogs.

Qin Ying had secretly come here once when she was little. Back then, she had entered through the air-raid shelter on the lowest level.

Even though the place had been renovated several times since, she could still remember the general direction.

As long as they found that iron door, they could get out.
Qin Ying had a reason to take the gamble, but she couldn’t say it out loud.

There were surveillance cameras here. For all she knew, someone was sitting behind the scenes eating chips while watching them scurry around like rats.

Qin Ying’s expression turned grave. Her gaze swept over Yin Minmin, Zhang Lang, and Lin Yicheng. “Are you willing to trust me?”

Unexpectedly, the first to nod, and the most decisive about it, was Zhang Lang. “I trust you!”

Trust and fear were not necessarily contradictory things.

Yin Minmin was a beat slower, but she said just as seriously, “I believe you.”

Lin Yicheng didn’t speak. He bit his lip and thought for a moment, then threw caution to the wind. “Just my rotten luck, then!”

The kid liked extreme sports and was born with a gambler’s streak. Once he had made up his mind, he urged, “Let’s go!”

Only before leaving, he looked at the cart they had been pushing and hesitated over whether to abandon the two dogs.

Qin Ying saw through him at once and said, “Bring them for now. If we really have no choice, we’ll talk then.”

These two dogs were connected to Huodou. Right now, they still had the strength to carry them, so they would carry them. If they couldn’t anymore, they would give them up.

Qin Ying opened the dog cage and pulled the two dogs out.

The mother dog was highly wary and bit down on the back of Qin Ying’s hand.

Fortunately, she was weak, so the bite didn’t draw blood.

Qin Ying hissed in pain, and Zhang Lang took the mother dog from her.

He was wearing a long trench coat. With the hem tied into a knot, it was just enough to cradle the dog.

Seeing the mother dog keep whimpering, Yin Minmin tore off her hair tie and bound the dog’s muzzle shut.

Qin Ying was wearing casual clothes. She did the same, using the hem of her top to sling the charred puppy against her chest.

In the blink of an eye, the three of them had wordlessly finished all of this in perfect tacit understanding.

“Go!”

Qin Ying stayed at the rear. After urging them to leave first, she found a few pieces of angle iron among the debris blocking the path and jammed the fire door shut.

By then, screams were rising and falling beyond the fire door. The smell of blood spread through the air. That vicious beast had already come up.

Qin Ying shielded the burned puppy in her arms and could only hope that once the beast had eaten its fill, it would find somewhere to rest.

She was already moving as quickly as she could, but when she had descended half a floor, she heard Huang Zezhong cry out in alarm.

The sounds of fighting followed.

She quickened her pace. As she turned the corner, she saw Huang Zezhong collapsed on the ground.

At the front, Zhang Lang had one hand gripping the collar of a Brazilian Fila and was shoving it back, keeping the vicious dog’s fangs away from his neck.

This was the dog that had pounced out from behind the fire door just now. Luckily, the one walking at the very front had been Zhang Lang. He had fused with a Monstrous Beast, making his movements agile.

If it had been anyone else, they would likely have been killed in a single strike.

“Shut the fire door,” Qin Ying called.

Lin Yicheng and Yin Minmin stepped forward at the same time and closed the door.

In the next second, there was a tremendous bang, and the fire door shuddered from the impact.

If the two of them hadn’t braced their backs against it, the door might already have been knocked open.

From outside came bark after bark. The dog was calling its companions.

Anxiety surged through Qin Ying. She stepped forward, bent her elbow, and slammed it hard into the Fila’s eye.

Any other dog would have let go and retreated after a blow like that.

But the Fila had originally been bred to capture escaped slaves and was famous for biting down and never letting go.

After being trained in this dogfighting arena, it had become even more of a machine of flesh and blood.

Qin Ying’s elbow strike instantly left its eyeball bloodshot, but it still did not give up on biting Zhang Lang to death.

Just as Qin Ying was hesitating over whether to have Han Lie let out a roar, Zhang Lang, pinned beneath the dog, suddenly spoke with perfect clarity. “Miss Qin, please move aside a little. I need to take off my coat.”

Huang Zezhong, listening from the side, nearly burst into tears. Had this man gone mad from fear? Why was he taking off his clothes at a time like this?

Before he could think any further, he saw the savage Fila get hurled away, slamming straight into the wall.

In the fire escape, Zhang Lang slowly rose to his feet. He removed the Black Trench Coat he was never without.

The right side of his body swelled and warped at an inconceivable speed.

His skin looked as if it had dried out and cracked, and from the fissures grew scale after scale, like those of a pangolin.

Zhang Lang had transformed into a Monstrous Beast.