"Shit!" Yu Yan cursed into the receiver. "He can still escape in this situation, what the hell are you guys doing!"

The few officers who were "fucking things up" upstairs felt that it was terribly unjust. When they heard this criticism, they only wanted to shout back downstairs, "Do it yourself if you can!" They didn't dare fight back, while the elderly army was brimming with fighting spirit and was not holding back at all. An elderly man lifted a large broom and smashed it down on them.

"Do you officers do anything proper at all the whole day? If you're so great, go arrest Osama bin Laden! You officers only know how to persecute the people!"

"Sir, please put down your weapon, let us talk properly… Stop hitting! You guys are the one persecuting the police!"

The suspect who escaped through the window was scraggly and unkempt. His face was wrinkled and he looked around the age of sixty, yet his movements were abnormally nimble.

He didn't free-fall to the ground; instead, he grabbed the window frame and swung like a monkey, swinging himself to the top of a tree in the residential area. His limbs curled in and he protected his face with his hands. The dried branches buffered his landing. Before he reached the ground, his body was already unfolding swiftly in midair. Both his hands caught on to a tree branch and with a swing, he leaped directly over the heads of the landbound police officers!

"After him!" Yu Yan picked up his police baton. "Detour to the front and arrest him!"

This scene wasn't like the time when they went after the qigong master. There weren't many little alleys here. Once they were out of the residential area, it was a wide and flat road.

He silently thanked modern technology. No matter how good that person's qinggong was, as long as there were no cracks for him to slip into, he definitely could not outrun cars.

A few police cars responded and drove ahead, their sirens piercing through the air. Ahead was a blockade; behind were pursuers.

A sinister expression flashed past the fleeing suspect's face. Suddenly, he turned his body in the air and swiftly threw something at the relentlessly pursuing Yu Yan.

Yu Yan only saw him move and didn't see clearly what he had thrown. But in that instant, he was attacked by a sense of danger that he had never felt before. The hairs on the back of his neck stood up and there was only a single thought left in his mind: Shit, I'm dead.

Right at that moment, a hand pressed on his back, forcefully pushing him down. Yu Yan had been rushing forwards and he lost his balance and nearly sprawled on the ground. At the same time, something brushed past the back of his head and a clink rang out!

Yu Yan stumbled a few steps. His knees weakened and he fell kneeling on the ground. Barely over the shock, he turned his head back to look.

What he saw was that the person who had pushed him down with a hand was Yan Hao and in Yan Hao's hand was a dull black metal rod. A few small throwing knives were stuck to the metal rod, their blades reflecting a cold light. They had all been thrown at him just now by the suspect!

Yan Hao didn't have time to speak to him. With a few leaps, he chased after the suspect. The other person repeated his old tricks; his hands opened and there was a sharp, whistling sound carried by the wind. It was another batch of throwing knives!

Yan Hao brandished the strange metal rod in his hands like a windshield wiper, swinging it around so fiercely that even the wind could not pass through and only a blur could be seen. Those small throwing knives were again drawn towards that strange metal rod. Yan Hao went forward a couple of steps, catching up with the suspect, and turned his body, his leg sweeping out. The suspect's face changed and he leaped abruptly to dodge. But he didn't realise that there was a thick and sturdy tree branch right above his head.

With this leap, his head collided directly against the branch and he gave himself a concussion on the spot. Without making a single sound, he fell unconscious to the ground.

The police officers who had caught up, "..."

The large tree shook slightly.

Traditional qinggong was said to be unscientific precisely because of this—before studying, there were no systematic rules and training, and no one taught the students the fundamental safety rule of "Open your eyes and ears." If a person ran so fast and even climbed up high for no reason, how could there not be an "accident"?

Who among those experts who flew here and there with their qinggong hadn't banged their heads a few times? Everyone was just united in keeping it a secret from outsiders for the sake of preserving their immortal-like image.

The police officers swarmed up and put handcuffs on the suspect.

"There's something in his pocket… Wait a minute, this is… Oh my god!" A few officers searched the suspect's body and found the blades of a dozen surgical knives, all fixed to a projectile launcher that looked like a children's toy. When the switch was pressed, the sharp blades would be fired out. At a short distance, it was extremely lethal. "Old Yu, you're lucky to be alive."

"Why, thank you." Yu Yan's legs were still a little weak. He limped over and forced a laugh as he patted Yan Hao on the shoulder. "Why are you here?"

Yan Hao spoke like the buzz of a mosquito. "Sect Leader Yang asked me to come here. He said that these people might be related to demonic sects and was worried that you guys would be in danger."

Yu Yan exhaled. After a close brush with death, he was still feeling the fear now and was a little out of breath. He rested his hands on his knees, bending at the waist, and tilted his head to study the metal rod in Yan Hao's hand. "What kind of martial arts skills is it that you have, is it internal energy? You can even attract those small knives?"

The expert walks among the common people, the wise man does not reveal his face!

Yu Yan couldn't help feeling deeply respectful.

Yan Hao answered shyly, "Magnet."

Yu Yan, "..."

"It's specially for defending against hidden weapons," Yan Hao said awkwardly. "I have a bit of myopia and also astigmatism… It's from looking at the computer screen too much. I can't see clearly if other people use hidden weapons."

Officer Yu's head which was looking up from between his arms dropped back down. He thought, It's game over for you righteous sects.

A colleague ran over. "Yu-ge! Are you all right? Ai, how should we handle this suspect? He gave himself a concussion, do we put him in custody or take him to the hospital?"

Oh well, Yu Yan straightened up painfully and thought, it's good enough anyway. The evil sects are about the same level as them.

"First…" Yu Yan shot a glance downwards and was suddenly stunned. "Wait."

He drew near the unconscious suspect and realised that there was a very small bump on the person's temples. It was like the wrinkles on a person's finger pads when they had soaked in the water for too long.

Yu Yan drew closer and examined it for a few seconds. He put on gloves and carefully pulled that piece of skin, and unexpectedly pulled off a layer of skin from the suspect's face!

It was a very thin layer of film. It seemed to be made of something like plastic or silicon. On top, it was moulded with very realistic age spots and wrinkles. But unlike the "human-skin masks" in television series which could be peeled off in one piece, this was like spring pancakes. It was put together piece by tiny piece, the shape of each piece tailored and trimmed with meticulous detail. The places where they were affixed to were all the areas on a person's face that easily wrinkled and where the flesh was not smooth, so that there was a natural contour and even by touch, nothing strange could be detected!

Beneath the mask was the face of a man in the prime of his life. His skin was a little red from being tugged on by the mask and his features looked fierce.

With this face, even if he were to ask for directions on the streets it was likely that no one would dare give him a detailed answer. But once the mask was on, in a flash he transformed into a kindly and friendly old man who could very easily gain the trust of his "peers."

"Go back and check whether this man has a criminal record." Yu Yan breathed out lightly. "These demonic sect people sure have lots of tricks."

At the same time, in another residential area in Yanning City, a small bus stopped under the shade of the trees. A young man came down from the bus—it was the man who had taken Old Mr. Zhou away, Xu Shaowen.

This time, he was clearly being more careful. The medium-sized bus had been switched to a low-key small bus, he didn't dare stop at a busy spot, and the body of the bus was even marked with the logo of a fake tour group to fool any onlookers.

The bus driver pulled down the brim of his cap and said behind Xu Shaowen, "I've already said before, slender streams flow the longest. Don't be too greedy, be more careful when you pick your targets and pick less people. Wait until these people have been groomed, then let them run errands and cast the net on our behalf. Don't bring so many people to the operations base, the base is where we train our core members. But you guys just had to scheme to make some quick money and took away so many people in one go! Now, great, you've alerted the police, haven't you?"

"You think I want to entertain so many old men and old ladies at the same time? It's all because we haven't met the quota for this year! It's already the end of the year, what else can we do?" Xu Shaowen's face turned cold. "Those who conduct their operations in the rural areas can easily increase their followers by converting a whole village at a time, what would they know about the competition we face in the big city? Just one district alone already has two groups selling health supplements, one for practicing qigong, and even the ones for acupuncture, moxibustion and weight loss are starting to shout slogans and form cliques. And the rent is also so damned expensive! I heard that that useless group of trash, the Chun division, were completely eliminated not long after they got to Yanning... Ai, it makes me want to switch branches. This is the last batch for the year. I've calculated it, if we fill up the bus this round, our mission is done… Someone's here!"

The elderly were usually the type to fight to be the first rather than to be the last. Before the appointed time, most of them were already there.

Beaming from ear to ear, Xu Shaowen greeted them one by one. This time, he even gave each of them a small flag and a small red cap, and they looked completely like a proper tour group.

"Please go up slowly, there is water on the bus… I believe that our ten-day trip will be an extremely happy one. Not only can we enjoy the beautiful scenery, we can also nourish our souls… Ai, Sir, you are…"

Xu Shaowen helped the last old man up the bus and looked at the unfamiliar face with some misgivings. "Have you participated in our activities before?"

The old man was leaning on his walking stick, his body curled like a small lump. He looked at Xu Shaowen with a rather lost expression.

An old man who had gotten on the bus earlier quickly poked his head out. "I was the one who brought Old Yang along. In the past, we played weiqi together. He really can't stay at his home anymore, he's almost sleeping on the streets. I feel sorry for him so I brought him along."

Xu Shaowen's brows furrowed lightly.

"Xiao-Xu, just bring one more along. It's not like Old Yang doesn't have the money. He just doesn't have any other choice. He's over ninety already. He's too old, tour agencies all take a look at his identification and immediately ask where his family is. Once they hear that his family is not there, they'll either not dare to take him on or want to make a police report."

The moment Xu Shaowen heard the old man's age, he cursed in his heart. Tour agencies didn't want to take the old man in, their own demonic organisations also didn't want to take him in! If he just breathed the wrong way, he might cross to the other world just like that. What on earth were these old fools living so long for, were they cultivating to attain spiritual enlightenment?

He was just trying to find an excuse to refuse when Old Yang took out a paper packet with faltering hands and pushed it to his chest, saying anxiously, "I just went to the bank this morning to line up and withdraw it. Old Feng said I'm an extra person, I was afraid that you wouldn't want me so I withdrew a bit more. There's 100,000 in total. Young man, please take me along."

Xu Shaowen's ears twitched. He turned back to exchange a look with the driver.

The driver nodded slightly at him. There was an extra 60,000. The two of them could split it and treat it as overtime fees.

Xu Shaowen pretended to hesitate. After a long while, he reluctantly nodded. "This is not quite following the rules… Ai, I really feel sorry for you. All right, I'll bear the responsibility for this!'

Old Yang tottered up the bus, holding onto him for support.

"Ninety already." Xu Shaowen's hand was warm and strong. Like he was carrying something that wasn't very heavy, he easily helped Old Yang into the bus. Out of professional habit, he said without thinking, "If my grandfather was still alive, he would probably be the same age as you. In the past, I liked to listen to him talk. He lived for almost a century. He knew everything that had happened and I was never bored no matter how long I listened. Your family members really don't know how to appreciate you."

Old Yang was briefly stunned. For a moment, the faintly pleading expression on his face disappeared. His eyelids dropped down and his gaze was rather resigned.

The small bus full of red-capped elderly and bearing the logo saying "Red Sunset Tours" stealthily blended in with the traffic and left Yanning City. A rather rundown car quietly stuck close behind.

In his office, Yu Lanchuan was in a meeting to discuss a business contract and was expounding on the last risk management point. He saw his phone lit up with a message from Han Dongsheng: We're following them.

Got it. Yu Lanchuan raised his cup of coffee and with that as a cover, replied quickly: The location tracker is already in place. Beggars' Sect also has people keeping watch.

Han Dongsheng was a little worried. Little Master Yu, what if they happened to have an expert holding down the fort? Sect Leader Yang's age is so advanced and I really don't have the confidence to fight against other people right now. Can you really not release an Alliance Leader's Command?

Other than looking at his WeChat, Yu Lanchuan was multitasking and debating with his work colleagues. "Solving the problems is a job for the relevant departments. Risk Management Department only points out the risks. Concealing information from shareholders is a legal risk. Did I say anything wrong?"

His fingers were not idle. Under the conference table, he sent a message: I won't. This involves the law on disorderly conduct. You guys can release the command yourselves if you want to.

Han Dongsheng, "..."

Suddenly, Yu Lanchuan's phone vibrated again. He thought it was Han Dongsheng but when he glanced down, it turned out to be Gan Qing.

Gan Qing had sent him a photo of a beaded bracelet with the comment: Fortune beads for the new year, delivery on the way. Little Master Yu, remember to pay the bill.

Yu Lanchuan was puzzled. What did she mean, was she forcing him to buy her goods?

Daylight hours during the winter were always exceptionally short. Night fell very quickly, concealing the ulterior motives some people had in their hearts.

At ten p.m., Paradise turned off the lights on time, not wasting any bit of electricity. Old Mr. Zhou lay down for half an hour. His surroundings were pin drop silent. He pulled his bag out from under the bed, stealthily clambered up, and tiptoed his way out.

"Old Zhou?" Old Wu in the next bed woke up at the slightest noise and suddenly called out. "What are you doing?"

Old Mr. Zhou trembled. "I… I'm going to the toilet."

Old Wu looked at him in the darkness. "Bringing your bag with you to the toilet?"

Old Mr. Zhou stood at the door for a while, at a loss for what to do. He was used to being honest and could not do something like deceiving his companion and running away on his own. In his entire life, he had not been good at lying and he really did not know how to come up with lies. Hence, he gritted his teeth, walked to Old Wu's bed and, in a soft voice, told him everything he had noticed.

Old Wu fell silent for a while. "I also felt that I slept very deeply after the afternoon activity but when it's night time, I can't sleep."

Old Mr. Zhou said, "That's why there's something wrong! Let's leave together."

"But we've already paid…"

"Who cares about the money now," Old Mr. Zhou said urgently. "Let's leave first. We'll make a police report and get the money back."

Old Wu hesitated for a while. Finally, he was persuaded. Without even taking his things, he followed Old Mr. Zhou to slip out of the small building. The people there might have thought that these old people were all very foolish and didn't need to be monitored strictly; one guard at the door was asleep while the other one had left for a smoke break. Without much effort, the two old men reached the back door of the agricultural tourism chalet.

Old Mr. Zhou said, "I must escape today. Otherwise, they want to give me an individual 'additional class' tomorrow. If I'm alone, I'll have no choice but to drink that water, I won't be able to fool them…"

Right at that moment, there was a flash of vehicle lights before them. Following that, there was the sound of honking. Old Mr. Zhou nearly had a heart attack. He pulled Old Wu to crouch down in a corner.

They saw that it was a small bus with the logo of a tour group. The napping door guard heard the noise and came to the backyard to open the door for them, yawning all the while. "Doctor Xu" who had conned them into coming there was the first to get off. Close on his heels, a few swaying figures came down from the bus. From their appearance, they looked like elderly people whose movements were rather sluggish.

Old Mr. Zhou sighed. "Another batch. How much money do they want to make?"

Right then, Old Wu suddenly said beside him. "There's no bus stop nearby, how are we going to leave? Is there someone coming to pick you up?"

"No." Old Mr. Zhou's attention was still on the small bus and he spoke without thinking. "I know that the gate at the backyard faces north. If we walk out that way and walk for over ten miles, there's a long-distance transport hub. I saw it when we were on the way here. The two of us walk slow. At our pace, by the time we get there it should be daylight. We can get on a bus and leave."

"Oh." Old Wu nodded slowly. "No one's coming to pick you up."

"Wha-" All of a sudden, the person next to him gave him a hard push and Old Mr. Zhou fell sitting on the ground.

Right after that, he heard his "comrade-in-arms" who was escaping with him swiftly stand up, run out a few meters and shout, "There's someone here who wants to run away! He even wants to betray the advisor!"

The bus's headlights swept towards them abruptly. Old Mr. Zhou stood rooted to the spot, dumbstruck. With that one shout, Old Wu had awakened the sleeping little courtyard and the surrounding area was instantly lit up.

A few seconds later, a group of employees ran out of the building. Xu Shaowen's face was rather cold. He made a chopping motion with his hand at the driver next to him, then turned to face the batch of newly-arrived elderly. He quickly put on a pleasant expression. "This old sir's mental state isn't very good. It's all right, we will isolate him. When he has stabilised, we will send him home… It's late, come, everyone, please mind your step. Let us go in and rest."

"Wait a minute."

Old Yang, the last to get down from the bus, tapped on the ground lightly with his walking stick. Under Xu Shaowen's gaze, he slowly straightened his back that was curved like a question mark.