Xia Ji and Chu You huddled together, whispering and scheming for quite some time.
In the end, they decided to try out what was considered the most thrilling attraction in the amusement park—the Carousel!
With melodious music playing, Chu You and Xia Ji rode two rainbow ponies, one in front of the other.
As they passed by Lin Mo, Chu You even exaggeratedly made a funny face.
Seeing this, the corners of Lin Mo’s mouth relaxed into a faint smile.
He stood outside the railing, his gaze lingering on Chu You’s rarely relaxed profile, when suddenly he felt a vibration in the pocket of his pants.
Lin Mo casually took out his phone.
Before he could see the caller ID, his fingers had already, out of habit, swiped to answer.
“Minister!”
The moment the call connected, Zhao Dongyuan’s voice, usually steady as a rock, now carried an urgency he could barely conceal, even sounding a bit strained.
“Where are you? Something terrible has happened!”
As soon as the words landed, the leisure on Lin Mo’s face vanished.
His steps came to an abrupt halt, and a cold, sharp aura swept over him.
“I’m at the amusement park in the north of the city… What happened? Calm down and explain!” His voice instinctively lowered, his expression turning grave.
On the other end, the background noise was chaotic.
Zhao Dongyuan spoke rapidly, trying to relay the key information as quickly as possible: “The G101 railway line to the Provincial Capital was attacked twenty kilometers out at the Eastern Outskirts! In the footage from the scene, the terminal identified a high-priority target—”
He paused to take a deep breath, then spat out a name that made Lin Mo’s pupils contract sharply: “S-class wanted criminal, demon clan spy—Mirror Lake!”
Mirror Lake?!
Those two words stabbed into Lin Mo’s ears like ice picks.
His grip on the phone unconsciously tightened.
He jerked his head around, eyes slicing through the spinning carousel and the laughing crowd to lock precisely onto Chu You, who happened to be glancing his way.
Chu You seemed to sense the sudden shift in his demeanor, her smile faltering as she sent him a questioning look.
Lin Mo quickly withdrew his gaze, turned away, and lowered his voice to a near-whisper squeezed through clenched teeth: “What exactly happened? Tell me in detail.”
Zhao Dongyuan’s voice came through, heavy with disbelief: “The railway was attacked by a large number of suddenly appearing aberrations.
They broke through the outer defense line, but the strange thing is… Minister, these aberrations aren’t like any known species common to our region. Instead, they resemble… the aberration populations active in Eastern Europe.”
He paused, confusion deepening in his tone: “What’s even more unbelievable is that these aberrations, which came out of nowhere, seem to be following Mirror Lake’s orders!”
“I’ve already reported to headquarters immediately and contacted the Provincial Capital garrison for urgent support… Oh, and Investigator Gu Qiancheng from the investigation team has already set off toward the incident site outside the city after receiving the news.”
“I’m mobilizing all available combat personnel from our division for emergency reinforcement at the scene!”
As Lin Mo listened to the report, his brow furrowed tightly.
Mirror Lake, Eastern European aberrations, railway attack… The combination of these factors stank of conspiracy.
He cast a final glance toward the carousel; Chu You was already pulling Xia Ji out through the exit, watching him with obvious concern.
“I understand.” Lin Mo’s voice regained a cold steadiness. “Keep the line open. I’ll be back immediately.”
“Until I arrive, scene command is handed over to Head Investigator Gu Qiancheng. Your job is to assist and record. Call the Law Enforcement Bureau and the Municipal Administration Department at once, and mobilize personnel to set up three defensive lines in the Eastern Outskirts.”
Lin Mo calmly issued orders with rapid efficiency: “Use a curved formation to repel the aberrations’ advance.
Have the Municipal Administration Department bring out all the heavy firepower from the warehouses and place it at high points near the defensive lines.
Before the Provincial Capital garrison reinforcements arrive, not a single aberration is to enter the city. The rest, we’ll discuss when I get there.”
Zhao Dongyuan’s reply was decisive after hearing Lin Mo’s arrangements: “Yes, Minister!”
After hanging up, Lin Mo turned to face Chu You and a bewildered Xia Ji, who were both hurrying over.
His grave expression softened just a bit, but the sharp light in his eyes was impossible to hide.
“Something’s happened…” he told Chu You succinctly, not mentioning Mirror Lake by name. “We’ll have to end today’s plans early.”
At this, Chu You’s brows knit slightly, her lips parting to ask for details.
But before she could speak, disaster struck!
“Boom—!!!”
A deafening explosion tore through the joyous noise above the amusement park without warning.
Lin Mo and Chu You both snapped their heads around, following the sound—at the northeast corner of the park, the iconic giant Ferris wheel was engulfed by a pillar of fire and billowing black smoke!
The shockwave from the blast swept out with scorching heat.
Even from a distance, the gut-wrenching tremor could be felt.
Countless terrified eyes watched as the fatally damaged Ferris wheel let out a teeth-grinding metallic screech.
The massive steel structure, like a giant stripped of its bones and blood, slowly and irreversibly tilted.
Finally, with an even more violent series of snaps, it crashed down to earth, sending up a skyful of dust and smoke.
“……”
Chu You’s pupils shrank violently, her heart gripped by an invisible hand.
A single, chilling thought exploded in her mind—something catastrophic had happened!
In the next instant, as if a drop of water had splashed into boiling oil, the entire amusement park descended into chaos!
Fear spread like the plague.
Those who had just moments ago been immersed in happiness were now petrified by the nearby terror attack, souls nearly fleeing their bodies.
Screams, cries, and curses merged into a sea of despair.
Panic instantly overrode reason as the crowd surged madly toward every exit, shoving and trampling each other.
Chaos and conflict erupted in every inch of space, transforming the once fairy-tale playground into a living hell in the blink of an eye.
As if to intensify the chaos, every still-operating amusement ride came to a sudden halt at the exact same time.
The spinning carousel froze in place, the roaring roller coaster stalled in midair, the rousing music cut off abruptly.
The amusement park had lost power.
Lin Mo’s expression darkened like storm clouds, a dreadful foreboding swelling within him to its peak.
A railway attack outside the city, an explosion and power outage targeting the amusement park inside the city at the same time… This was no coincidence!
Someone had to be orchestrating these nearly simultaneous events!
He spun around to Chu You at his side, eyes filled with unprecedented anxiety and worry.
His lips parted, as if to warn her or urge her to get Xia Ji to safety first.
Yet Chu You was faster.
Before he could speak, Chu You took the initiative: “Go where you’re needed, Lin Mo.”
Her tone carried an undeniable authority, making Lin Mo momentarily dazed—it wasn’t at all like how she’d acted after their reunion, but rather like the senior he remembered from before.
“Before you go, leave me your Swordbearer credentials…” Under Xia Ji’s terrified gaze and Lin Mo’s deep eyes, Chu You swiftly took off the backpack she’d been carrying, unzipped it, drew out a Glock 18 and a stun baton, then deftly tucked them behind her waist and thigh for easy access.
She looked to Xia Ji and commanded without room for argument: “Take Xia Ji away and put her somewhere safe.”
While rapidly checking her gear, she spoke to Lin Mo in a rapid-fire, decisive tone: “Call the Firefighting Department first, get them to dispatch every available unit here for rescue!”
“Tell the Emergency Response Department to contact the Amusement Park Management and initiate the highest-level emergency plan. Evacuate the crowds immediately and bring order, or at this rate…”
“Who knows how many will die!”
After finishing, Chu You stood up straight, eyes like ice as she met Lin Mo’s gaze, her voice low and brimming with killing intent.
“As for the rats lurking in the shadows…”
“I’ll handle them!”
Lin Mo was never one for unnecessary hesitation.
He deliberated for just a moment before making a swift decision.
He handed his Swordbearer credentials to Chu You and said, “Alright. Be careful.”
The two exchanged a heavy glance, about to move out separately.
Just then, Lin Mo’s phone buzzed urgently in his pocket once again.
He paused, quickly pulled it out, and glanced at the screen—the caller was [Zhao Dongyuan].
He pressed to answer, and before Lin Mo could speak, Zhao Dongyuan’s voice, now trembling and utterly lost, burst through the receiver, his usual calm gone:
“Minister! I just got word… the northern, the northern amusement park, something happened there, didn’t it?!”
His breathing was chaotic, his voice choked with irrepressible panic and helplessness, nearly sobbing as he spoke.
“My wife and daughter… they, they…”
“Are also…”
“In the amusement park…”