Chapter 23: Zhou Mo, Run!

Zhou Mo hung up the phone just as the brain finished its glucose bath.

Having soaked in the glucose, the brain seemed to regain its vitality. It wiped the moisture from its surface with its eyeballs, then gestured toward Zhou Mo with them, looking every bit like an old man.

"Go put the rest of the glucose in the kitchen and Liao Feng’s brain into the refrigerator."

Zhou Mo didn't know how he managed to interpret these "glances," but he glared helplessly at the two empty eye sockets and muttered, "You really are a demanding master. Have I been demoted to your personal assistant?"

Despite his ten thousand reservations, the work had to be done. With a complex expression, Zhou Mo carried the pot of brain-mush and Liao Feng’s brain, placing them both inside the refrigerator.

He had barely closed the fridge door when he noticed something wrong.

"That was my brand-new pot!"

The brain acted as if it had heard nothing. Carefree, it crawled up Zhou Mo’s trouser leg, reached his head, and pointed urgently toward the window.

Urged by the brain, Zhou Mo hurried to the window, only to see the stalker climbing over the residential complex wall, sneaking in while carrying a large bag.

Oh no! Why did he move ahead of schedule? Wasn't it supposed to be two hours later?

Though he didn't know what had happened, Zhou Mo immediately took out his phone to report the situation to Xia An. Just then, a call came in from Zhang Huai'an.

"Zhou Mo, I live right next door to you. Come to my place immediately, and be quiet about it."

Zhang Huai'an lives across from me?

Zhou Mo’s heart skipped a beat; he had no idea! Had Liao Feng’s brain been spotted crawling out earlier? Though panicked, Zhou Mo replied, "Understood, I’m coming over."

"Good, hurry. The person tracking you has entered the compound; it looks like they are coming for you."

Zhou Mo hung up. After a two-second pause to think, he ran to the kitchen, grabbed the lid, opened the fridge, and spoke to Liao Feng’s brain inside: "Don't move around, and don't let anyone discover you. If anyone opens the lid, run immediately. Understand?"

Liao Feng’s brain flicked its eyeballs, as if to say it understood.

Zhou Mo quickly covered the pot, shut the fridge door, and with a heavy heart, stepped out and opened his front door gingerly. He spotted Zhang Huai'an across the hall, who was listening to the sounds from downstairs and beckoning him over with a "hurry" gesture.

Zhou Mo closed his door softly and slipped into the apartment across the hall. Zhang Huai'an checked the stairwell for movement before carefully locking his own door.

Zhou Mo found the table inside covered with various monitors, all displaying surveillance feeds of the complex and the surrounding roads.

Fearing a misunderstanding, Zhang Huai'an whispered, "The Captain sent me to protect you. I only arrived this evening; I didn't expect the Brain-Eaters to react so quickly."

Seeing Zhang Huai'an’s expression, Zhou Mo felt a slight sense of relief. It seemed Zhang Huai'an hadn't discovered that Liao Feng’s brain had been out and about. Still, Zhou Mo couldn't help but remark, "Your captain is quite efficient."

Work was assigned one moment, and surveillance was in place the next. Zhou Mo suspected that if he hadn't returned home fast enough, his own apartment would have been bugged already. It wasn't so much protection as it was that he was the primary target of surveillance.

Zhang Huai'an wanted to defend Xia An, but standing by the door, he suddenly heard footsteps in the hall. He gestured for silence, drew his pistol from his waist, pressed himself against the door, and peered through the peephole.

The relaxed atmosphere turned tense instantly. As Zhang Huai'an looked through the peephole, he was suddenly overcome by a sense of terrifying pressure. Each footstep in the hall seemed to land directly on his own heartbeat!

Damn it! What is this?

Zhang Huai'an realized his hand holding the gun was trembling; a feeling of pure terror washed over him.

Soon, a man wearing a hat appeared in the peephole. The moment he saw him, Zhang Huai'an’s heart tightened. Normally, he would have opened the door without hesitation to confront the man, but for some reason, he felt only dread. He hoped the man would realize no one was in Zhou Mo’s room and simply leave.

Zhang Huai'an held his chest to steady his heart, his finger resting on the trigger of his pistol.

In the peephole, the man slowly reached for the handle of Zhou Mo’s door. Zhang Huai'an considered whether to ambush him while he picked the lock, but the man suddenly stopped and turned his head, staring directly back at Zhang Huai'an through the peephole!

Standing in the corner of the living room, Zhou Mo could sense Zhang Huai'an’s tension from afar, though he still didn't know what was happening. Just then, he saw Zhang Huai'an’s pistol knock against the door!

*Thump.*

The slight sound was deafening in that moment.

Oh no!

Zhang Huai'an prepared to open the door and fire; discipline no longer mattered. He sensed an incredibly dangerous aura from the man, and his experience told him: if he didn't shoot first, he would die!

But just as his hand touched the doorknob, the stalker pulled a silenced pistol from under his coat and aimed it squarely at the door where Zhang Huai'an was standing.

Realizing the danger, Zhang Huai'an shouted to Zhou Mo, "Get down!"

The words were barely out when five sharp, muffled gunshots rang out.

*Pop-pop-pop-pop-pop!*

The sudden gunfire startled Zhou Mo, who ducked and covered his head.

*Why did he start shooting? This is completely different from what I expected! Weren't we supposed to take him alive?*

But there was no time to think, because the stalker wasn't aiming at Zhang Huai'an; he was aiming at the door lock. The old-fashioned security lock wasn't sturdy, and it shattered under the five bullets. The man kicked the door open.

Zhang Huai'an was stunned; he hadn't expected the stalker to be so ruthless! This wasn't surveillance; this was an execution! And this stalker was likely a "Deep Diver"!

Damn it! The City Guard underestimated the Brain-Eaters' resolve to silence witnesses! The Captain must have guessed wrong this time...

By the time Zhang Huai'an saw the stalker storm in and tried to raise his gun, it was too late. The gunman, anticipating the move, fired twice at Zhang Huai'an the moment he entered.

Zhang Huai'an clutched his chest and let out a scream.

"Zhou Mo, run!"