Embers Ad Infinitum
chapter-454

When Old Reggie saw the photo, Han Wanghuo—who was wearing a hat and glasses—also realized that it was him. His body couldn’t help but tense up as his right hand—which was leaning against the inside of the shop—stealthily reached for his waist.

There was a pistol hidden there. Han Wanghuo planned to fire at the pursuers as soon as Old Reggie pointed him out.

He didn’t believe Old Reggie would cover up for him. They weren’t even close, and selling him out was a reasonable development.

As far as he was concerned, the only reason Old Reggie would keep his mouth shut was that he was there and that he would die with him if things went into a tailspin.

In fact, Han Wanghuo wouldn’t blame him at all if such a situation really happened. He believed that the other party had only made a choice the average person would make. Therefore, he only wanted to attack the pursuers and pave a way out.

Old Reggie’s eyes were fixed on the picture as if wondering where he had seen it before.

At this moment, Zeng Duo’s heart stirred. She approached Theodore and the others and said with uncertainty, “I think I’ve seen the person in the photo before.”

She noticed that the pursuer had only taken out Han Wanghuo’s photo to make an inquiry.

Han Wanghuo stiffened and subconsciously looked at Zeng Duo. The next second, he realized that this would expose him to the pursuers.

At this moment, it would be too obvious to turn his head back in a hurry—it would be suspicious. Han Wanghuo could only forcefully maintain his current state.

Fortunately, Theodore and his subordinates were attracted by Zeng Duo’s words and ignored the other customer in the gun shop.

“Where have you seen him?” Theodore turned his gaze to Zeng Duo.

Zeng Duo recalled and said, “Over at Hammer Street, very close to here. The scars on his face left a deep impression on me.”

Hammer Street was where Han Wanghuo had a rental previously.

Upon hearing this, Han Wanghuo resisted the urge to touch the scar on his face. It was covered by a thick layer of powder and a liquid that deepened one’s skin color. It was impossible to notice without looking carefully.

Theodore nodded, took out a phone, and dialed a number. He contacted his colleagues at Hammer Street and informed them that their target was likely in that area.

After hanging up, Theodore said to his subordinates, “We’ll split into two groups. One group will go over to help, and the other will stay here and continue investigating.”

As he divided the teams, he frowned slightly. He had a nagging feeling that something was amiss—there was a certain level of illogicality.

Upon seeing this, Zeng Duo probed, “Will I get a payment for giving you clues? You should’ve issued missions at the Hunter’s Guild, right?”

Theodore’s brows relaxed, and he had no other doubts. He took out a notepad and a fountain pen that he carried with him and wrote a paragraph. “Take this to the Hunter’s Guild and tell them what clues you’ve provided. If it’s effective in the future, we’ll give you the bounty through the Hunter’s Guild. I think you can trust the Hunter’s Guild’s credibility.”

Theodore handed Zeng Duo the note he had written. He already understood why he had felt that something was amiss.

There was no way people who frequented the black market on Antanna Street would actually give clues without asking for any compensation!

That didn’t make sense!

As Zeng Duo accepted the note, Theodore arranged a team and led his two subordinates out of Old Reggie’s gun shop and rushed toward Hammer Street.

His other subordinates began investigating the nearby shops.

They had forgotten that Old Reggie hadn’t answered.

As they walked quickly, one of Theodore’s subordinates hesitantly said, “Boss, the reaction of the customer in the gun shop seemed problematic. He was a little nervous.”

Theodore nodded. “I noticed it too, but that’s very normal. I can’t say that every person who appears on Antanna Street has a problem, but 99% of them have committed crimes. It’s understandable for them to be nervous when they see us and recognize us.”

“Yes.” His subordinate made it known that he shared the same thoughts.

He smiled and said, “If we lack a criminal quota in the future, we can just come here to arrest people.”

As they chatted, they heard someone shout from behind them. “Sir! Sir!”

Theodore turned around and saw that the person who had shouted was the gun shop’s owner.

Old Reggie said loudly, “I have clues!”

Theodore frowned and vaguely sensed that something was amiss. He quickly jogged back to the gun shop.

“What took you so long to come up with something? Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” he asked.

Old Reggie spread his hands and said helplessly, “That person was right in front of me, quietly pointing a gun at me. How dare I say that?”

“That person…” Theodore’s pupils dilated. “The person in the hat?”

That was the target!

“Yes.” Old Reggie sighed and rambled. “I thought that since you didn’t notice, I’d pretend not to know. However, I felt that such actions were wrong after some consideration.”

You actually realize that it’s wrong… Theodore muttered inwardly.

Before he could question the target, Old Reggie continued, “When you gain something and discover that the target came to me, but I didn’t say anything, won’t I become an accomplice?”

Theodore was about to ask when a voice sounded from his pocket. He quickly picked up his phone and chose to answer.

“Sir, we’ve asked around. The target did appear on Hammer Street and seems to live in this area. Furthermore, he has a companion, a woman. She’s very short, no more than 1.6 meters.” The sheriff opposite him gave the latest information.

Female, very short, no more than 1.6 meters… Upon hearing these words, the blood vessels on Theodore’s forehead throbbed as he understood what the problem was. That group’s friends are equally bold and careful!

He quickly asked Old Reggie, “Did you see where they went?”

Old Reggie pointed ahead. “They entered that alley.”

“Go after them!” Theodore led his men and ran.

He chose to believe in Old Reggie because the more one had a certain status and property in a black market like Antanna Street, the more they didn’t dare to cross the Hand of Order.

They may not be able to find the target, but couldn’t they find him?

The running Theodore and the others attracted attention. Many of them were Ruin Hunters who had accepted missions to search for Han Wanghuo.

Their hearts stirred as they quietly followed behind Theodore and the others.

There had to be a reason for the abnormal situation. In the current situation, they reasonably suspected that the people running wildly had discovered the target’s whereabouts.

There were too many illegal buildings on Antanna Street, so the streets were set up narrowly. The alleys on the side were even more so. Coupled with the various items that protruded from above blocking the sunlight, this place appeared dark and gloomy.

With Han Wanghuo’s female companion’s height characteristics and their previous attire, Theodore could find a certain number of witnesses along the way to ensure that he didn’t deviate from his tracking.

Finally, they arrived in front of an old building. According to witnesses, the target had just entered.

“Go to the back and watch the exit,” Theodore instructed before rushing to the main door. As he ran, he suddenly took out his black leather wallet and threw it into the building’s lobby.

With a bang, the wallet was pierced by a bullet and rolled around, spilling its contents onto the ground.

Upon seeing this, Theodore sneered but was also shocked.

He didn’t expect his target’s marksmanship to be so accurate. If not for his rich experience and carefulness, he felt that he wouldn’t have been able to dodge in time and definitely would’ve been hit.

When the time came, whether he died on the spot depended on luck.

With the gunshot, Theodore locked onto a human consciousness inside.

There were too many people in the building, so he couldn’t identify the target based on their consciousness.

Han Wanghuo immediately knew that things were bad the moment he hit the wallet. He immediately put away his rifle and prepared to shift positions.

His and Zeng Duo’s plan was to find a place to counterattack and create an opening in the encirclement since there were pursuers behind and Ruin Hunters blocking the road ahead.

Just as Han Wanghuo bent down and walked quickly, his chest suddenly felt heavy. Then, he heard his heart beating like it couldn’t bear the burden.

The next second, his vision turned black as he went into shock.

Upon seeing this, Zeng Duo quickly stopped in her tracks and tried to support Han Wanghuo. However, she quickly realized that her heart was beating abnormally.

She couldn’t escape the untenable situation and quickly went into shock.

…

“Many people are rushing toward that region…” Jiang Baimian looked at the people walking in a hurry on Antanna street and thoughtfully said, “Did they discover Old Han?”

Without needing any instructions, Shang Jianyao—who was wearing a baseball cap—turned the steering wheel and made the car drive into the narrow alley with the crowd.

The road ahead widened after a while, and they saw a rather old building.

Two people were carried out of the building’s main entrance.

Although the other party had disguised himself, Jiang Baimian still recognized one of them to be Han Wanghuo.

“His bioelectric signal is still there. He should be fine.” Jiang Baimian cast her gaze at the leader of the pursuers. She immediately noticed Theodore’s wooden eyes.

This… Jiang Baimian felt that she had seen or heard of such an anomaly somewhere.

Shang Jianyao looked at the same spot and laughed. “An Awakened in the Arbiter of Fate domain.”

Yes! The Arbiter of Fate-domain Awakened captured by the company had similar abnormalities in his eyes. His name was Xiong Ming… Jiang Baimian instantly recalled the relevant details.

She quickly scanned and observed the area.

“Do we save him?” Jiang Baimian asked.

“Yes!” Shang Jianyao replied without hesitation.

…

Theodore informed the higher-ups that the target had been captured.

Next, it’s time to organize the manpower and interrogate this man and woman about the whereabouts of October Xue’s team… As he thought, he walked down the stairs, left the building, and returned to Antanna Street.

Their car was still parked there.

Suddenly, Theodore’s vision turned black, and he could no longer see anything.

Not good! Leveraging his memory, he threw himself to the side.

He remembered a stone statue there. This was also one of First City’s unique characteristics.