Free Web NovelChapter 1774: Chapter 1017: Faith_2
Seeing an opportunity, the scar-faced man immediately ordered his men to drag Takeuchi Tomoya out, and without hesitation, unleashed a flurry of punches and kicks, then hauled him into the white cargo van that had pulled up. The door slammed shut, and gut-wrenching screams echoed from within.
Faced with the brutal interrogation by these thugs, Yang Xiao and his companions were utterly helpless. The scar-faced man, having learned from the last encounter, brought three guns this time. Gun-wielding subordinates stood behind those armed with knives and baseball bats, each with a fierce look that clearly sought revenge.
Yang Xiao and his group were in deep distress; they were uncertain if Takeuchi Tomoya could withstand the torture. He believed there was a high chance he couldn’t, so they had to prepare for the worst.
Beiyu Ye cursed Qingshui Cangjie inwardly, thinking that this time the old fellow would likely mess up. Why complicate things so much? Directly forcing Hasegawa Hideji to jump off the building would have worked better, or to hang himself like Takagi Sayo; dead is dead, the manner of death doesn’t matter.
The screams persisted for a few minutes, then the van door opened, and a blood-soaked subordinate rushed out, reporting to the scar-faced man with a wicked grin and a loud voice, which allowed Yang Xiao and the others to overhear.
He said the guy confessed everything; these people were tricking him. Upon hearing this, Hasegawa Hideji, who was sitting paralyzed on the ground, seemed to have received a pardon, opening his blood-foamed mouth to let out a bizarre wheezing laugh, then desperately pointed at Qingshui Cangjie, Heize Lin, Tong Han, and Yang Xiao, indicating that these were the real culprits.
By now, Hasegawa Hideji’s chances of surviving the nightmare task were slim, but he couldn’t let these people off the hook. If he were to die, he would drag them down with him.
These people were all core veteran players; once they died, the task could be declared a failure. But by now, Hasegawa Hideji didn’t care about anything anymore.
"What... what should we do?" Sato Shouta, standing behind, was also panicked. These guys were inhuman; being caught by them was worse than ending things himself.
"It’s a trick; it’s their usual tactic," Jiu Shan Shayue whispered, familiar with gang behavior, considering that her family was a formidable presence in Japan’s underworld.
"Mr. Yang..." But Sato Shouta ignored her, thinking what would a girl know; he only trusted Yang Xiao, seeming to forget that not long ago, this girl’s knife had severed Hasegawa Hideji’s hand.
"It should be fake, and... could you please shut up?" Yang Xiao was also very annoyed now.
"Okay." Sato Shouta, satisfied with the answer, fell silent.
The following events indeed proved Shayue’s words correct. Realizing his tactics hadn’t worked, the scar-faced man no longer troubled them; instead, he seemed relieved, signaling for his henchmen surrounding the group to disperse, and the atmosphere relaxed considerably.
At this moment, Takeuchi Tomoya was also released from the van, sobbing as he returned to the group’s embrace, covered in minor wounds that clearly indicated he had endured much suffering.
Takeuchi Tomoya threw himself into Shibuki Naoko’s arms, tears and snot flowing freely as Shibuki Naoko, like an elder sister, comforted him.
"They beat me, but I didn’t say anything..." Takeuchi Tomoya whispered in Shibuki Naoko’s ear.
"I know." They knew once Takeuchi Tomoya was released.
Takeuchi Tomoya not only saved them but also saved himself. Yang Xiao was relieved that Takeuchi Tomoya retained basic rationality and hadn’t completely lost hope.
Otherwise, he might have self-destructed, dragging everyone down with him.
Seeing this scene, Hasegawa Hideji was dumbfounded, starting to open his mouth and "wah-wah" question something, but no one paid him any attention.
As the scar-faced man issued orders, several club-wielding subordinates surrounded Hasegawa Hideji, their clubs falling like raindrops, beating him to death in a process that lasted nearly two minutes, with Yang Xiao and the others forced to watch.
As Hasegawa Hideji ceased struggling, his life reached its end. He was wronged, but once someone stood against everyone, the so-called truth was of no interest to anyone.
Finally, the scar-faced man took a solid iron bar handed to him by a subordinate, smashing Hasegawa Hideji’s head with several blows, causing his eyeballs to fall out, a truly horrific scene.
"This time it’s me; remember, next time no matter who it is you should say the same thing." The scar-faced man gave Qingshui Cangjie a warning look, then left with his men.
Being involved in the underworld himself, the scar-faced man could somewhat see that Hasegawa Hideji was unjustly killed, but couldn’t find evidence.
He didn’t care who died or was wronged; he wanted everyone to keep silent about the matter to avoid having his superiors think his work had errors, as he would be punished.
Moreover, if everyone insists on one truth, it becomes truth, whether true or false, especially since the only dissenter is now dead. freewёbnoνel.com
Before leaving, a subordinate of the scar-faced man left a suitcase, instructing them to internally handle any future defections without informing them.
Even if a defection truly happens, it doesn’t matter. After all, this area is large, and they have spies everywhere. A lost, foreign-accented stranger would stand out, making escape impossible; Sakurai Miyuki was a bloody example.
Once the others left, Heize Lin opened the suitcase. Inside were several vials of liquid and injectors. "It’s these things!" Heize Lin exclaimed, recognizing them immediately.
"What are these?" Nishimura Yuna asked curiously.
Qingshui Cangjie took out a vial, holding it up to the light, with the pinkish liquid inside, nodding, and said: "It’s a potent sedative; one shot will make a person lose consciousness and resistance. Injecting multiple shots in a short time can be fatal, usually three shots constitute a lethal dose, a painless death, seen as a merciful punishment."
"Friends, Hasegawa Hideji has been punished; now we must unite." Qingshui Cangjie’s voice had rallying power. "I, Qingshui Cangjie, swear here, I will never betray you. These injections won’t be used rashly unless someone acts like Hasegawa Hideji, harming teammates; we despise such people." ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom
"Whether veteran players or newcomers, gathering here is fate bestowed upon us by heaven; we must cooperate fully, trust each other; our families await us; we will survive!" Qingshui Cangjie called out loudly.
"With Mr. Qingshui’s leadership, we are bound to succeed!" Heize Lin, his head sycophant, raised a fist with cult-like fervor.
These rallying cries meant nothing to people like Yang Xiao, but their effect couldn’t be denied, providing encouragement, particularly for newcomers.
At crucial moments, the newcomers sorely lacked confidence and encouragement. Had someone helped Takagi Sayo in her most desperate hour, perhaps she wouldn’t have died.
Sakurai Miyuki might not have defected either, and their situation would have been far better.
But alas, the Nightmare World doesn’t deal in hypotheticals, only consequences and outcomes; the outcome is everything that already occurred; these lives that could have been saved have left completely, though they died long ago.
From last night until now, they lost three teammates in a row: Mitsuo Takeda, Takagi Sayo, and Hasegawa Hideji.
Only one was genuinely killed by a ghost; the other two deaths were avoidable, purely human-made tragedies.
In all fairness, these people weren’t weak: Qingshui Cangjie, Mitsuo Takeda, Heize Lin, Shibuki Naoko, even Hasegawa Hideji; all had rich experience, yet such a team met with complete defeat.
Now Yang Xiao somewhat understood why the last mission ended in annihilation; difficulty was one reason, but the severe infighting among these people was another.
Newcomers were subjected to meaningless consumption, while veteran players engaged in fierce internal struggle; annihilation wasn’t surprising, and Yang Xiao even suspected that the ones who took them out weren’t necessarily ghosts in the end.
They thought themselves important, but to those gangsters, these undocumented stowaways were mere expendables, sacrifices to be exact.
If the sacrifices went out of control, they’d all be slaughtered, and a new batch brought in.
