When the Wild Beast is Trapped in the Nightmare Cycle (BL)
Chapter 629: Catch the Culprit

Chapter 629: Catch the Culprit

"Is it here?" Shen Nianzu asked, craning his neck to study the old, dingy apartment before him.

"Uh-huh, it should be this place," Jin Jiuchi remarked, squinting at the location shared to him by his subordinates.

After the tragedy that had befallen Prince Kaivia, Shen Nianzu calculated that it would be useless for Jin Jiuchi to report back to Master Nasser by himself. Not only would he incur the man’s wrath and be beaten up half to death for messing up a single mission, the two of them would also be separated again since it would be impossible to bring Shen Nianzu, a full-fledged siren, straight into the human’s territory.

It was, crudely speaking, a very idiotic move.

And hence, after dumping the crucial task of delivering the news to one of the Second Young Master’s men, the two of them set off once more—this time, to search for the culprit behind Prince Kaivia’s death.

Shen Nianzu had to admit, Jin Jiuchi’s identity was truly convenient and came with a lot of benefits.

As the Second Young Master, he was not the direct heir to the throne and thus wasn’t burdened with as much responsibility as his elder brother Noir, giving him ample room to move around as he pleased. Plus, he had a legion of soldiers trained under his command who would execute any task he issued. It was with this manpower that they managed to locate the original poster who had spread the gruesome picture of Prince Kaivia’s death scene—within quite a short period to boot!

That’s right, Shen Nianzu decided to start from this point after considering all angles of approach.

No matter how widely the picture had spread, there had to be an original starting point. Finding it might even lead them straight to the culprit who had escaped from Jin Jiuchi’s chase—or an accomplice, at the very least.

For any ordinary person, searching for this source point was an insurmountable task that was akin to finding a needle in a haystack. Not only would it be a waste of time and effort, there was no guarantee of the results either! Had Shen Nianzu been working alone, he also wouldn’t have thought of this because it was too cumbersome. But things became different when it came to Jin Jiuchi. He was the Second Young Master of the Land, and the city beneath their feet was considered his territory. All he had to do was give his word, and countless people would scramble to obey his words.

Wouldn’t it be foolish not to make use of such golden resources??

—And that’s how they found themselves in this place they wouldn’t have stepped foot in otherwise.

Such an old five-story apartment building was a dime a dozen in this district. Located far from the city center, it had long been overlooked by land developers and left to decay. It was a place that housed the bottom rung of society; perfect for a criminal to hide in. To top it off, it was in the opposite direction of the sea where the flames of ear had yet to reach, resulting in an oddly peaceful atmosphere.

The more Shen Nianzu observed, the more he was certain they had come to the right place.

Without delay, he gestured forward decisively, "Let’s go."

But the soldiers behind them remained unmoved, prompting Jin Jiuchi to click his tongue. "Did you not hear what he said? Go, go, go! Surround this place and don’t let anyone escape, not even a mouse or a cockroach!"

Only then did they snap into attention, saluting, "Yes, Sir!"

Jin Jiuchi harrumphed in slight dissatisfaction as he watched the soldiers pour into the building through the dim, narrow entrance.

Sensing a persistent gaze on his cheek, he turned to find Shen Nianzu staring at him with an unreadable look, causing him to arch his brow.

"What? It’s not my fault they didn’t listen to you, okay?" He immediately defended himself without giving a chance for Shen Nianzu to complain, and just as he was about to put on a pitiful act, he was caught off guard when Shen Nianzu abruptly yanked him down by the collar and... planted a smooch right on his lips.

A stunning smile graced Shen Nianzu’s lips. "I know it’s not your fault. Just want to say that you look cool... for once." Clearing his throat, he averted his gaze, muttering, "Let’s go in and catch the culprit."

Then he marched forward without looking back, leaving Jin Jiuchi blanking out on the spot still with his torso bent.

Jin Jiuchi blinked once, twice, before a silly grin spread hugely across his face. Though on the surface, he pretended to complain, "Augh, Nian’er, you’re playing unfair! How can you run away after eating my tofu?!"

He hurried to chase the jade doll into the apartment building.

***

Inside a certain room on the fourth floor.

The fight had ceased when Shen Nianzu and Jin Jiuchi stepped in. Rather than a fight, it was more accurate to call it a one-way apprehension. The people inside must have never expected a group of big, tough soldiers to ambush them so suddenly, making it easy to round them all up in one fell swoop.

There were five people in total—three humans, one garuda, and one siren—still with a trace of shock and embarrassment on their faces.

"W-What are you doing?!" one of the humans shrieked as he struggled against the constraints around his body to no avail. Of course, any attempt to resist would be futile because it was a special device made to capture dangerous criminals. "Let us go! You... you can’t do this to us all of a sudden!"

"Mmpph—!" The siren tried to speak, only for a sharp-eyed soldier to seal her mouth shut with tape before she could get a word out.

Meanwhile, the garuda was pinned to the ground, his wings flapping angrily. The remaining two humans were shrinking back with pale faces as the muzzle of the guns were pointed menacingly at their heads.

Shen Nianzu surveyed the cramped room before smiling, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. "Why can’t I do this? Surely you must have been prepared for the consequences before you started the chaos, right?"

Then his voice dropped, laced with an unmistakable hint of threat, "Who is the mastermind among you? Tell me. As long as I find the person I’m looking for, I will let you go without harm. Of course, it’s another case altogether if you’re all in this together..." he trailed off with an eerie chuckle.