Yin Feng's mind suddenly "exploded" with a roar, the scene before him instantly overlapping with images from his memory. Fragments of memories about Guizhou surged toward him like a tidal wave.
It was a snowy day. By the lakeside, a thick layer of snow had accumulated. He parked his car by the roadside, stepped out, and took a breath of the piercingly cold air—the sensation felt as if it were just yesterday.
In the blink of an eye, he descended the stairs and entered that icy cold basement.
He saw Su Ziyi standing by the table, wearing a black silk short dress that revealed her pale, slender arms. She was organizing some manuscripts and turned to give him a sweet smile.
Then he turned and saw a person lying on the ground, wearing only underwear, covered in wounds from head to toe, with thin chains shackled around his ankles.
Suddenly, the memories and sensations that had appeared many times before flooded his heart simultaneously—Yin Chen's torment, soft laughter, whipping, and flesh-cutting. The trembling and confusion in the darkness, the pain and fear, were as clear as a brand seared into his heart.
At that moment, Yin Feng thought, the one the Punishers were torturing must be the person on the ground.
As if sensing something, that person slowly, very slowly, raised his head.
Yin Feng saw a figure and outline almost identical to his own, and he also saw the face—handsome, delicate, yet unmistakably that of Li Mingdi. Just as before, the moment Li Mingdi saw Yin Feng, he showed an expression of terror and agony, as if such imprisonment and torment would never end.
Something inside Yin Feng—a long-held belief—shattered into pieces the moment he saw that raised face.
He had always thought that in his memories, the one imprisoned and tortured in Guizhou was himself.
But it wasn't.
It was Li Mingdi.
So, who was the one imprisoning and torturing Li Mingdi?
Yin Feng suddenly didn't dare to think of the answer.
Immediately after, another scene surged before his eyes.
He saw that person again.
Sitting at the desk, wearing only a white shirt and black trousers, his face cold and clean. What he was reading turned out to be some freshly written manuscripts. Some of the pages even bore traces of fresh blood—Li Mingdi's blood. After finishing, the person took off his plain glasses and placed them on the table.
Then Yin Feng saw Yin Chen standing behind that person, saying something and patting his shoulder with a laugh. Yin Feng heard the person's muffled voice, a voice so familiar, more familiar than anyone else in the world.
That person said: "...While I'm asleep, teach him a good lesson... He doesn't remember anything he's done, yet he still thinks of himself as a righteous hero resisting his inner desires. Isn't that ridiculous?... In fact, I've long been part of it..."
He saw again the scene he had witnessed back when he was You Yingjun—a hand, that person's hand, holding a pen, making a cross on a piece of paper, saying: "None of them deserve to live in this world. Including you, including me, Yin Feng. Because we are all..."
Yin Chen burst into laughter behind him, and the two brothers turned their heads simultaneously, their faces clearly visible.
...Yin Feng felt only a splitting headache, his mind in a daze, no longer aware of his surroundings. He collapsed to the ground, and in his ears was Chen Feng's shocked voice: "Teacher Yin! Teacher Yin! What's wrong with you!" Chen Feng reached out one hand to support Yin Feng while keeping his gun trained on Li Mingdi with the other, preventing him from moving.
But Chen Feng saw Yin Feng, who had fallen to the ground, slowly rise to his feet, head lowered, his expression unreadable.
Chen Feng's heart sank, and for some reason, he had a very, very ominous premonition.
Then, Yin Feng braced himself against the bed and stood up, lifting his head. His eyes were bloodshot, tears streaming down his face. He stared at Li Mingdi on the bed, and suddenly, his face twisted into a grotesque expression. He shoved Chen Feng aside, lunged forward, and clamped his hands around Li Mingdi's throat. Li Mingdi, already weak, was caught off guard by the sudden attack and had no strength to resist. His legs kicked futilely on the bed as he desperately tried to pry Yin Feng's hands away. But Yin Feng's expression was ferocious, his face deathly pale, his eyes fixed on Li Mingdi yet seemingly staring through him at something else. He seemed oblivious to everything, his hands tightening relentlessly.
Only Li Mingdi could hear Yin Feng muttering in an extremely low, slurred voice: "I'm not... not! It's not real! It can't be real! No one can destroy me, not even myself!"
Chen Feng, thrown to the ground by Yin Feng's violent shove, stared blankly as Yin Feng choked Li Mingdi. Seeing Li Mingdi's breathing grow shallow and labored, Chen Feng felt as if he had been jabbed by a needle. He rushed over, wrapped his arms around Yin Feng's waist, and tried to drag him back: "Teacher Yin, you can't do this yourself! Not here!" But Yin Feng was clearly out of control. He turned and kicked Chen Feng away, then tightened his grip on Li Mingdi's neck again.
Chen Feng fell to the floor, struggling to get up, when suddenly he heard the door behind him crash open with a loud bang. He turned in horror to see Xu Mengshan and You Mingxu standing at the doorway, both staring at Yin Feng in shock. Chen Feng's heart ached so intensely that he felt momentarily unable to rise. Behind them, he saw several others—Tuya, Guan Jun, and Xiao Yan.
Had they noticed him and Yin Feng leaving one after the other and rushed over?
And of all times, they had to witness this!
Chen Feng's mind was in chaos, but Xu Mengshan stared, dumbfounded. He even wondered if he was dreaming—witnessing Yin Feng trying to kill Li Mingdi with his own eyes!
Xu Mengshan had been on duty that night, stationed outside Li Mingdi's door with a colleague. He had just stepped away to use the restroom and, upon returning, ran into You Mingxu rushing over with Yin Feng's followers in tow. Sensing something was wrong but unwilling to believe his suspicions, he hurried back only to see this scene...
Xu Mengshan felt a sharp sting in his eyes, his heart pounding like thunder, his mind blank. His next actions were purely instinctive. He drew his gun, aimed at Yin Feng, and shouted sharply: "Yin Feng! Stop! Let go of Li Mingdi now! Or I'll shoot!"
Only then did Yin Feng's movements freeze abruptly.
As for You Mingxu, watching this scene, she felt only a dazed, dreamlike confusion.It was only a short while ago that she woke up with a dry mouth and realized there was no one beside her. Feeling uneasy, she got up to search and noticed that the clothes Yin Feng had worn today were gone—he had left in the middle of the night.
You Mingxu immediately woke everyone in the house, only to discover that Chen Feng was also missing. Moreover, Guan Jun reported that two pistols and one tranquilizer gun were missing from the house.
What were Yin Feng and Chen Feng planning to do?
You Mingxu immediately tried calling both of them, but neither answered. Her unease grew stronger. She wondered if something had happened to Yin Feng, or if he was simply making preparations ahead of time, just like when they had captured Wei Lan. But then she thought again—it didn’t make sense. They had agreed to move forward together, so why would he act alone without even a word?
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