This thought was so insane, yet like the only spark in the sudden darkness, it illuminated his heart. Surging anger and pain drove him to clamp his hand around Li Mingdi's neck. He felt Li Mingdi's struggle and the gradual fading of life force, while an eerie joy and the sensation of impending liberation silently grew within him. Though he stood in place, it felt as if he had suddenly fallen back more than ten meters, about to plunge into a silent, empty world.
Until the commotion behind him and Xu Mengshan's shouts jolted him awake. When he turned around, the irreparable mistake had already been made, the outcome set before his eyes.
Yet, there are places that, once your heart has reached, it can never truly leave.
There are things that, once you finally do, you will forever remember the trembling sensation in your fingertips.
These days of life on the run—the anxiety and desperation of his subordinates, the police pursuit, the hardships of the journey—left Yin Feng both agitated and filled with unprecedented shame. He remained silent, letting them take him wherever they wished. But that quiet thought kept creeping into his mind unexpectedly. It had haunted him before, but never as stubbornly and tenaciously as now, as if it had been reborn.
It whispered: Just like this, admit it, surrender. Since it's already done, since you can never escape the guilt, why keep resisting? Like a heavy shackle carried for thirty years, it was finally time to lay it down. What kind of person you are is what you should become. When you killed, when you let go of your true nature, you clearly felt a long-lost joy and another kind of freedom—though these feelings were accompanied by bone-deep pain.
If only there were no You Mingxu.
If there were no past days.
No Tuya, Xiao Yan, Guan Jun, Chen Feng, and Lao Jiu, who wholeheartedly followed him to prove the righteous path.
He might truly have wanted to give up.
These were his lights. That night, they almost all extinguished at his fingertips. His Soul was interrogating him: to fall easily into darkness, or to endure greater torment and climb back from the swamp buried with bones to the warm, bright human world.
In truth, he had never had any other choice.
Never had any other answer.
Yin Feng's nose tingled with sourness, but his heart seemed to return to those tranquil nights lit by orange lamps, speaking with You Mingxu. Just this brief exchange with her, even through text without meeting, strangely restored him to his former self. Those evil thoughts, those long-suppressed desires, gradually sank into icy depths in her presence.
He said, "I won't make things difficult for you. If the final investigation still proves the true culprit to be my second personality, we haven't really taken any detours. We'll treat him as our opponent and send him to prison or death."
You Mingxu had felt somewhat relieved hearing him assume the second personality might not exist. But now he circled back, his tone so calm and ruthless, and she suddenly felt piercing chills creeping over her again.
So he wasn't very confident either.
You Mingxu said, "Alright, I understand."
Yin Feng's fingers paused above the keyboard.
Usually, the two of them always had endless trivial chatter, but now they were often left speechless, choked with emotion.On the other end, Yin Feng composed himself and looked at the densely packed chat logs on the screen. Suddenly, his previously empty heart seemed to be silently filled with something. He smiled, and in that instant, his handsome face and profound eyes seemed to regain their usual cold, deep gleam.
He said, "A Xu and I have teamed up many times. This time, we'll cut down gods if we meet them, and slay demons if we encounter them. Now, both you and I have been singled out by the Punisher as obstacles to be eliminated. I think this confirms my original assumption—they are about to act. It's not as simple as nurturing a few seeds or hunting down a few criminals. The move they made against me was planned for so long, and they were even willing to sacrifice it. This indicates they are preparing for a major operation. If I were the leader of the Punisher, it would be something that could fully express my will, something that could influence many people, even make the world aware of the Punisher's purpose. Only then would their desperate, final struggle be without regret and worthwhile. I believe he must be thinking the same way.
Moreover, if this plan ultimately succeeds, they can pin it on me—am I not a fugitive? And the true leader of the Punisher has never revealed himself. In this way, their organization can continue indefinitely. In a few years, he can cultivate new Punishers."
His tone was calm, but You Mingxu felt her heart racing as she listened. She had to admit that Yin Feng's reasoning made sense. The other side was willing to sacrifice Su Ziyi and Li Mingdi, which was like revealing the dagger at the end of the map—a clear sign that they were about to launch their final counterattack. However, even if they could guess the enemy's intentions, they were in the open while the enemy remained hidden. As the saying goes, "A thief may operate for a hundred days, but no one can guard against a thief for a thousand days." In this vast world, the city's ten million residents could all be potential targets of the Punisher. Not even a deity could predict the specifics of their criminal plan.
At this thought, You Mingxu's heart sank. Yin Feng had sought her out today and spoken to this extent, which meant he must already have a plan in mind.
She immediately asked, "What do you plan to do?"
On the other end, Yin Feng remained silent for half a minute before replying, "There is a way to uncover their plan."
You Mingxu said, "No! I don't agree! If the existence of the second personality is truly just a frame-up, they will be even less likely to trust you. It's even possible that your actions are part of their plan, and you'll end up sacrificing yourself! Don't forget how much Yin Chen wants to destroy you!"
Yin Feng fell silent.
You Mingxu's mind raced. If no other solution could be found, given Yin Feng's arrogant nature and the torment he had endured from the Punisher, he might truly resort to throwing himself into the tiger's den. Whether through pretense or deception, he would take immense risks to gain the Punisher's trust. He might even end up branded as a Punisher himself, becoming guilty even if he were innocent, with no way to clear his name. Perhaps he no longer cared. But how could she stand by and watch him walk a path of mutual destruction?
He was her Yin Feng. Even if he was shrouded in an aura of wickedness, she would fight to the death to protect the clearly pure heart within him, refusing to let it be tainted by filth and stench.
But now, with no clues to follow, how could they possibly counter the Punisher's plan?You Mingxu was the type of person who, when pushed to the brink, would instead summon extraordinary courage. A saying suddenly flashed through her mind—one her mentors often repeated when she first entered the profession: "Sometimes, when a case seems completely baffling and you have no idea where to start, you must return to the source. Often, the root of the crime lies hidden right where it all began."
Feeling a sudden insight, she persuaded, "Yin Feng, don’t rush to throw your life away just yet. Let’s first figure out how they managed to get to you in the first place."
Yin Feng on the other end remained silent.
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