Ren Yi hurried to the surveillance room. Besides the security guards, Sun Dingyi, Liu Hui, the venue staff, and Zhang Zhong, the captain leading the police force assigned to security duty this time, were also there.
“What happened?” Ren Yi had done his best to adjust his emotions on the way there. Although Sun Dingyi usually liked to joke—they all liked to joke around normally—he was absolutely meticulous when it came to serious matters. Ren Yi could tell from Sun Dingyi’s tone just how serious the situation was.
Sun Dingyi pointed at the surveillance screen. “Play it again.”
The security guard opened a pop-up window and explained at the same time, “I was just on duty when suddenly all the screens went black, and then this video popped up.”
The pop-up window was pitch-black at first. A few seconds later, without warning, a strange, smiling bird mask appeared on the screen!
Ren Yi’s heart jolted. Could this mask be…?
The camera slowly pulled back, widening the field of view. The person wearing the bird mask was a man dressed in a long black robe. He sat barefoot in a chair. Within the camera’s field of vision, aside from the man and the chair, there was only empty darkness.
The scene was extremely eerie.
“Dr. Gong, Captain Ren, hello.” The man spoke, his voice processed through a voice changer, making it even more sinister and terrifying.
Ren Yi merely looked at the screen, yet the hairs all over his body had already stood on end.
“I imagine you can guess who I am, but out of courtesy, I’ll introduce myself anyway.” He said, “My name is Purple Flame. I am the humble messenger closest to the God of Light, a devout believer.”
Purple Flame!
“All the unpleasant experiences that happened before have made me feel deeply regretful. In fact, we are doing the same thing. We are both trying to save others; we simply use different methods. You may say that we are evil, that we are criminals, but such a view is narrow-minded. You, too, would abandon someone else’s life in order to save another, such as Red Flame.” The man spoke in a tone of praise. “Red Flame proved his loyalty and courage. He will forever be remembered by his brothers and sisters.”
Ren Yi clenched his fists.
“Have you ever thought about whether fire descending from the heavens is a reward or a punishment for humanity? Fire allowed mankind to enter the agricultural age and opened the era of civilization, but fire has also taken countless lives and erased the traces of civilizations. In Greek mythology, Prometheus stole fire and brought it to the human world. Unfortunately, people have misunderstood his intentions. He was not a savior; he was merely a missionary, because fire is the will of God. Fire has no distinction between good and evil, righteousness and wickedness. Just like thunder, sunlight, gentle wind, and rain, everything that comes from the gods has no will of its own—or at least not in the way humans sentimentally interpret it. They simply treat every blade of grass and every person and thing in this world fairly. Thus, water irrigates farmland, yet also floods villages; fire scorches grasslands, yet nourishes the soil; then the spring breeze sweeps across the land, and all things are reborn. Thus, all things cycle endlessly, living and flourishing without end.”
Everyone was stunned.
The man continued in that extremely seductive, persuasive tone, “God does not descend into the human world. Fire represents God’s will descending into the human world. Therefore, reward and punishment, prosperity and decline, life and death are all the laws of Heaven. Those who have received divine enlightenment will use different methods to treat fire, in order to convey God’s will. Housewives use fire to cook food, hunters use fire for warmth, those in power use fire to conquer cities and seize territory, and scientists use fire to advance the progress of the age. You, Captain Ren.” The man suddenly pointed toward the camera.
Ren Yi stared rigidly at the screen.
“You battle fire with wisdom and courage, rescuing people and things trapped within it. And you, Dr. Gong, watched your own family perish in a sea of fire. Your entire life, you have sought a way out from the confinement of great fires. And I—I use fire to purify evil, allowing those guilty souls to gain new life through the flames. How interesting. The two of us share an inextricable connection. Perhaps this, too, is the guidance of God in the unseen world.”
Ren Yi thought to himself that this cult leader’s ability to brainwash people was truly extraordinary. He said, “Captain Zhang, have you notified Captain Qiu?”
The police officers participating in security for civilian events were all community police officers, not criminal investigators. This was not something they could handle.
“Yes. Captain Qiu is on her way.”
Ren Yi thought that Qiu Yan would definitely tell Gong Yingsheng, so he stopped worrying about whether he should call Gong Yingsheng himself.
The camera zoomed in again, enlarging the bird mask step by step until it filled the entire screen.
The man slowly said, “This connection allowed you, each other, and me to become connected eighteen years ago. Only the will of God can explain all these coincidences. But even though I often admire the holy light of divinity, I have not yet completely broken free from the constraints of human nature. So in the past, I instinctively avoided you, just as a criminal flees from the police. This was wrong. It is even more wrong to define our relationship as one between justice and evil. Just like that raging wildfire—although it burns down the grassland, it also enriches the soil and leaves behind vast expanses of farmland. Before the great fire has burned everything away, who can truly say what is right and what is wrong? So, I have decided to obey the will of God, ignite this fire, and see what kind of result the bond between us will ultimately lead to.”
Ren Yi frowned deeply. He had a very bad feeling about what this man was about to say.
Suddenly, the surveillance room door was violently pushed open. Ren Yi turned his head, and his breathing instantly caught.
The person who had arrived was Gong Yingsheng.
Although he knew Gong Yingsheng would appear soon, and although he thought he had already adjusted his emotions and prepared himself to face him, when Gong Yingsheng actually stood before him, he realized that he had not been prepared at all.
Gong Yingsheng saw him too. Their eyes collided in the air.
Gong Yingsheng’s expression was complicated. He looked away, and Ren Yi lowered his eyes painfully as well.
“Dr. Gong!” Captain Zhang said. “You got here really quickly.”
“…I was nearby.”
At that moment, the man’s low laughter came from the screen. “The Honglin Stadium where you are currently located is holding a New Year’s Eve charity concert. I have decided to give you a New Year’s gift. Now, listen carefully.”
Gong Yingsheng followed the sound and looked toward the screen. His expression suddenly changed drastically. That familiar bird mask stabbed into his heart like a knife.
“There is still one hour until the new year. I have placed six bombs inside the venue. They will detonate on the hour.”
Gasps sounded throughout the room.
“You can find them before the countdown ends, but if you attempt to evacuate the crowd, I will detonate them early. If you try to stop the concert from going ahead, I will detonate them early.” The man laughed. “After all, I also want to listen to Song Juhan sing together with the fans.”
Sun Dingyi looked at Ren Yi with a pale face. “Captain Ren, could he… could he just be trying to scare us? We already inspected the venue.”
“Whether you believe me or not, you will bear the consequences.” The man spread his arms. “Go and save them, brave firefighters and police officers.”
The video abruptly ended here. Only the bird mask remained frozen in the very center of the screen, the eye holes carved into it pitch-black and bottomless.
Gong Yingsheng, who had only heard the final segment, pointed at the screen with a trembling voice. “What is going on?!”
Ren Yi hurriedly glanced at Gong Yingsheng. “Is that the mask?”
“…Yes.”
Zhang Zhong said, “The security guard was on duty in the surveillance room when the system was hacked and this video was played.”
“Play it again,” Gong Yingsheng said.
When the video began playing again, Ren Yi glanced at his watch. From the time he had left the lounge and rushed to the surveillance room to watching the recording, seven minutes had already passed. They now had only fifty-three minutes left to find the bombs.
He had not the slightest doubt about the truth of Purple Flame’s words, because he had personally witnessed and experienced the madness and brutality of this organization.
After watching the video, Gong Yingsheng’s face was almost completely devoid of color. “Captain Zhang, how many people do you have right now?”
“Fifteen.”
“Captain Qiu will be here soon. She’s bringing equipment and a bomb-disposal expert. But Purple Flame is so confident, which means the bombs definitely won’t be easy to find. I need you to mobilize all your people and watch all the surveillance footage from inside and outside the venue over the past week at the highest speed. Pick out anything suspicious.”
“Understood.”
“Ren Yi, I need the architectural blueprints.”
“I already brought them.” Sun Dingyi immediately handed the blueprints to Gong Yingsheng.
The blueprints were more than a hundred pages thick. They were obviously not something that could be examined in a short time.
Gong Yingsheng held the blueprints and closed his eyes, silently repeating to himself: Calm down. Calm down. Calm down.
When he opened his eyes again, he said, “The venue is too large. Searching blindly won’t work. We have to analyze his motives and intentions and deduce where he might have placed the bombs.”
“No matter where he puts them, there are more than thirty thousand people inside the venue right now. Anywhere could cause massive casualties.” Sun Dingyi said anxiously, “Let’s gather every available person and conduct a carpet search immediately.”
Ren Yi shook his head. “There isn’t enough time. Besides, we can’t evacuate the crowd. What if he planted the bombs among the people?”
Gong Yingsheng also said, “There isn’t enough time. First, we need to use the process of elimination and rule out places where he could not have planted bombs.”
The head of security said, “I don’t think it’s very likely that they’re in densely crowded areas. Security checks were extremely strict this time. Not only did people and bags have to pass through machines, but bags were also manually inspected. The stage and audience seating facilities are simple, and both the area around the stage and the seating areas were checked with metal detectors. Under these circumstances, it would be almost impossible to bring a bomb in or plant one there in advance.”
Gong Yingsheng nodded. “We can rule out the open-air stage and audience seating areas.”
Ren Yi asked the venue manager, “Mr. Li, are you familiar with the venue’s design? We can’t get through all these blueprints. We need someone to help us identify which areas are suitable for planting bombs and which can be ruled out. Electrical circuits, heating, pipelines, ventilation, everything.”
Mr. Li said anxiously, “I was only transferred here two months ago. Old Chen, you’ve been here all along. You’re more familiar with it than I am, right?”
The head of security said, “I’m familiar with the venue, but I don’t understand things like the structural systems and electrical circuits. With something this serious, I really don’t dare say that I can be of much help.”
“Just do your best.”
“Ah!” He slapped his forehead. “I just remembered someone. He definitely knows the place better than I do.”
“Who?”
“The venue’s engineer.”
Gong Yingsheng immediately rejected the idea. “It’s too late to call the engineer here now.”
“He’s already inside the venue. I saw him. His surname is He. We’ve known each other since the venue was built a few years ago. He came with that big celebrity.”
Ren Yi froze for a moment. “Could it be He Gu?” He vaguely remembered the gossip news from back then mentioning He Gu’s profession. It seemed he was an engineer.
“Yes, Engineer He.”
Gong Yingsheng picked up the blueprints. “Let’s find him. Captain Zhang, don’t let this matter spread. Don’t cause a panic. Purple Flame must have some way of monitoring us. Wait for Captain Qiu.”
“Okay.”
Ren Yi also instructed, “Sun Dingyi, Liu Hui, notify the chief of staff immediately.”
“Yes.”
Gong Yingsheng and Ren Yi left the room and headed straight for Song Juhan’s lounge.
Song Juhan’s performance would begin in the final forty minutes and continue until midnight, so he was very likely still in the lounge.
The two of them walked in silence. It was not until they reached a fork in the corridor that Gong Yingsheng stopped. He was unsure which direction to take.
“Left,” Ren Yi said quietly.
But Gong Yingsheng did not move. His shoulders were heaving violently.
Ren Yi knew how great a shock that bird mask was to Gong Yingsheng. It was just that this was not the time to give in to his emotions. He desperately wanted to comfort Gong Yingsheng. Not long ago, he had still had the position and the right to comfort him. Now…
“Yingsheng, are you okay?”
Gong Yingsheng shook his head. “Go ahead.”
He was already emotionally sensitive because of what had happened with Ren Yi, and then, completely unprepared, he had seen the mask from his childhood nightmare.
When that mask appeared from within his dust-covered memories, he had desperately tried to see it clearly, yet it had never been clear enough. Just now, he had finally been forced to see it clearly, without any psychological preparation and without a mental-health professional there to guide him through it. The impact was extremely severe for him.
That hellish night associated with the mask, the raging flames, the terrified faces, the agonized screams—all of it surged into his mind.
His body swayed, and he hurriedly braced himself against the wall.
Ren Yi was extremely worried. Before he could think, he had already instinctively placed a hand on Gong Yingsheng’s shoulder. “Yingsheng, you…”
Gong Yingsheng’s entire body stiffened.
That heavy, warm, steady hand resting on his shoulder suddenly became an outlet for all his negative emotions. He roared, “Don’t touch me!” Then he violently knocked Ren Yi’s hand away.
Ren Yi stared rigidly at Gong Yingsheng. His heart was stabbed with pain, and his face felt burning hot as well. He instinctively raised both hands in a gesture of surrender and said in a trembling voice, “…I’m sorry.”
He and Gong Yingsheng had returned to the starting point again.
No, it was worse than the starting point, because now Gong Yingsheng truly hated him.
Gong Yingsheng looked at the dejected look in Ren Yi’s eyes, and his heart ached terribly. How much he wished that Ren Yi’s open arms had been meant to embrace him, and how much he wished he could accept it without any resentment.
He shook his head, steeled his heart, turned away, and strode off.
Ren Yi endured his sorrow and indescribable humiliation, then hurried after him.