“Too late!”
The commander’s voice was helpless. Through the drone feed, the assassin had already closed in on the family, and the three of them had their backs turned to him.
Giving up was not in the Chinese playbook. The artist suddenly sprinted forward from behind, shouting as he ran, “James! Didn’t you say he had no target this time in China?”
The backpacker had already given up hope of stopping it in time, but he still forced himself to keep up with the artist. “Intel showed he had no target! After a hit in Mongolia he slipped across the border. I thought this was just his pre-planned escape route and he was sightseeing the Great Wall on the way!”
“Bullshit!” the artist roared. He was still too far even to reach Lu Zheng and Lin Wan, let alone the beacon tower.
Lu Zheng and Lin Wan also sped up, but unless they revealed superhuman ability, they would never reach the family in time.
Because in five seconds the assassin could slit all three throats and push the bodies over the wall. It wouldn’t destroy the evidence completely, but it would hide the crime for long enough.
By the time the bodies were found, he would already be out of the country. Of course, now that Interpol was on him, whether he could leave was another question. But this family was basically dead.
Lin Wan’s eyes hardened. She was about to shout her identity and try to startle the assassin, though whether it would work was up to fate.
But right then, she saw Lu Zheng form a hand seal beside her.
The next instant, the whole sky flickered and blazed white.
BOOM!
A bolt from the blue!
A golden streak of lightning crashed down from the clear sky and struck the top of the beacon tower in a blinding flash.
Lin Wan: (*°ω°*)ﾉ
Lu Zheng: ❛‿˂̵✧
Lin Wan silently mouthed, “Thunder art?”
Lu Zheng raised a smug eyebrow.
Lin Wan’s eyes widened. So he had this trick up his sleeve! She had worried for nothing.
The two slowed their pace, and the artist quickly caught up. Over the channel he asked urgently, “What just happened?”
Commander, “…”
“Well… good news. The assassin was just struck by lightning…” The commander sounded stunned.
“What?” The artist stumbled and nearly smashed face-first into the wall.
“A thunderbolt hit the target dead centre,” the commander said, still incredulous. “He’s down. Unknown if he still has vital signs. Move in fast and secure the family.”
“Roger!”
Lu Zheng, Lin Wan, and the artist all accelerated, leaping up hundreds of steps in moments and reaching the tower.
The backpacker’s legs clearly couldn’t match theirs. Having lagged far behind earlier, he had only reached halfway.
Lin Wan glanced at Lu Zheng, silently asking if the target was dead.
Lu Zheng nodded. That was genuine thunder art, designed to expel evil and destroy demons. Even at its weakest, no ordinary human could survive it.
The assassin was thoroughly cooked.
The three quickly entered the tower and rushed to the top platform. There they saw a blackened corpse still smoking and giving off a faint aroma of roasted meat, plus a terrified family of three huddled in the corner, frantically dialling the police.
Lin Wan immediately approached them, showed her credentials, and soothed them. “Don’t be scared. I’m police!”
On the other side, the artist cautiously stepped toward the body, face twisted in disgust at the charred, smoking, heat-radiating figure that smelled suspiciously like barbecue.
He tapped his earpiece. “Artist confirming target status. Fully cooked. Still hot. No salt applied, flavour uncertain.”
Lu Zheng, “…”
Commander, “…”
“Urk!” In the command vehicle, someone threw up.
The smell was overwhelming. The artist retreated two steps, then looked up at the clear sky in confusion. “How does thunder strike on a sunny day like this?”
“It’s rare, but not impossible. Ask the meteorological bureau for the scientific reason,” the commander replied, his tone much lighter now. They hadn’t taken the assassin alive, but the family was unharmed. No fault, only merit. No one would come looking for trouble now.
“How’s the family?”
“Scared, but calming down,” Lin Wan reported, gently stroking the hair of the eleven- or twelve-year-old girl while comforting the shaken parents.
“We’ll need the three of you to come back with us for statements,” she told the family.
“Statements? For what?” the husband asked blankly.
The wife was stunned. “Why us? The man was struck by lightning. What does that have to do with us?”
They had only been thinking of taking their daughter home and soothing her traumatised heart.
“Because he was an international assassin, and he was targeting you,” Lin Wan explained. “If not for that bolt from the blue…”
“What!? An international assassin? After us? Impossible!”
The wife was shocked. The husband’s pupils shrank. “International assassin!”
Lin Wan looked at him and nodded.
“Fuck his mother! Was it really worth sending an international killer!?” the man cursed furiously. Clearly he knew something.
But none of that concerned Lu Zheng, or even Lin Wan.
“Our people are at the entrance. Shall I escort you down?” Lin Wan offered.
“Yes, yes! Thank you, thank you!” The family nodded repeatedly, stood up, skirted the still-steaming corpse, and fled the tower as if escaping hell.
Then they saw the backpacker who had just arrived.
“Aaaah!!!”
The three screamed and hid behind Lu Zheng and Lin Wan. Lin Wan quickly reassured them, “He’s also Interpol. He’s been tracking this assassin. Don’t be afraid!”
Only then did the family relax, though they still clung to Lin Wan’s clothes.
Lin Wan shook her head. She had planned to hand them off to the backpacker so she and Lu Zheng could rejoin Zhao Xiaodao’s group and continue sightseeing.
Oh well. Escort duty first.
The rear commander had already contacted Beidu police. The artist stayed behind to secure the scene for follow-up units.
Lin Wan and Lu Zheng escorted the family all the way back to the entrance and handed them over to the commander.
To find out why the assassin had targeted them, the backpacker followed too, demanding to sit in on the interview.
But that was now business for Interpol’s Beidu liaison office. Lu Zheng and Lin Wan dusted off their hands, returned to the scenic area, and found Zhao Xiaodao’s group.
“How’d it go? How’d it go?” Zhao Xiaodao rushed over excitedly.
Lin Wan felt a little awkward. After thinking it over, she skipped the details and simply nodded. “All sorted.”
Her expression was calm, as if it had been the easiest thing in the world, everything under control.
“Hah, I knew it!” Zhao Xiaodao clapped and laughed. Zhang Weili also looked on in admiration. They didn’t press for details, knowing it might be classified.
If they ever learned that Lin Wan’s team had almost failed to stop the killer in time and that a lightning bolt had ultimately barbecued him, who knows what expressions they would make.
