Chapter 19: The Subway Incident

Once inside the car, Shen Xin couldn’t help but ask, “Uncle Mo, what’s our mission this time?”

“To kill vampires.”

“What?”

Shen Xin felt a buzzing in his head.

“Why are you so surprised?”

“It’s nothing. So, what’s the name of this vampire?”

Uncle Mo shook his head. “It’s not just one. It’s probably a group, but I don’t know exactly how many. We’ll have to check it out when we get there. The location is the Niulan Street subway.”

“No way, an entire train car full of vampires? Can just the few of us handle that?”

“It’s not just us four. There are other bounty teams as well.”

Shen Xin glanced at Tang Ziran and asked, “Ziran, what kind of beast did you bring?”

“Ironclad Beast.”

Tang Ziran, as a summoner, possessed a mysterious space that allowed her to bring one or two summoned beasts at a time, depending on their size.

Shen Xin nodded. The Ironclad Beast was actually a mutated rhinoceros, armored with thick plates that no vampire could bite through. It was the perfect weapon against vampires.

“Stay sharp when the time comes. Don’t get bitten by a vampire.”

Tang Ziran zipped up her jacket to protect her neck and smiled. “Sister Dan said our combat uniforms are vampire-proof.”

“Still, better be careful. Our heads are still exposed.”

A dozen minutes later, they arrived at the Niulan Street subway entrance. As they stepped out, they saw that many police officers had already set up barricades, sealing off the subway.

After Uncle Mo negotiated with the officers, they entered the subway.

Only about thirty people were in the subway hall. The other bounty teams glanced at Shen Xin’s group, checked their watches, then moved toward the halted subway train.

Once everyone chose their train car, they almost shouted in unison, “Break the door!”

Uncle Mo instructed, “Everyone, turn on your cameras. Ziran, you handle the door.”

Tang Ziran released the Ironclad Beast and directed it to break open the train door.

The Ironclad Beast let out a low roar, lowered its head, and charged the train’s door.

With a thunderous crash, the train door was blown off, and the Ironclad Beast barreled inside.

Shen Xin and the others followed closely. Once aboard, they were greeted by the stench of blood. The passengers were sprawled across the floor and seats, lifeless.

But as soon as they heard movement, they began to snarl and tried to get up.

“Uncle Mo, what should we do?” Shen Xin hesitated, unable to bring himself to attack—these people still looked human.

“Kill them all.”

The moment the words left his mouth, he raised his twin blades and cut down the vampires trying to rise.

Chen Jiawang took a deep breath, his steel claws snapping out as he charged at the vampires on the verge of mutation.

Shen Xin sighed and hurled his throwing knives. Guided by his gaze, the knives darted through the air, swiftly harvesting lives.

Tang Ziran didn’t join the fight herself. Instead, she kept the Ironclad Beast close, quietly observing everything.

Nearly a hundred people in that train car, and in just two or three minutes, all were sent to the afterlife.

Uncle Mo checked carefully, making sure none were left, before instructing Tang Ziran to break open the next car.

This time, as the Ironclad Beast smashed through the door, a horde of vampires surged out.

Within just a few minutes, those who had been bitten were completely mutated.

Shen Xin controlled his throwing knives, which flashed like lightning, piercing the vampires’ foreheads in an instant, then shooting out the back of their skulls and flying on to the next target.

In a blink, the dozen or so vampires charging out fell into pools of blood.

“Incredible!” Chen Jiawang gave a thumbs-up. “Uncle Mo, we can’t let the rookie outshine us.”

With that, the two of them charged into the train car.

Shen Xin followed. Inside, it was crawling with vampires. As soon as they saw Shen Xin’s group, they bared their fangs and claws, attacking at blinding speed.

Fortunately, Uncle Mo and Chen Jiawang were formidable, making short work of the vampires that lunged at them.

With Shen Xin’s uncanny throwing knives, even a hundred vampires in the car were no match.

In less than three minutes, the battle was over.

But by then, the three were splattered with blood, the stench so strong it stung their noses.

Shen Xin’s stomach churned, and he rushed off the train, doubled over and retching violently, tears and snot streaming down his face.

Chen Jiawang wasn’t much better, vomiting until he was dizzy.

Uncle Mo and Tang Ziran stood guard, alert for any sudden danger.

After a while, Shen Xin finally started to feel better.

“We should leave now.”

Chen Jiawang wanted to stay—these vampires weren’t strong, and with a bounty of twenty thousand for each, it was money faster than printing it.

Uncle Mo pointed to a five-person team not far away. “Some teams are already leaving. The longer we stay, the more dangerous it gets.”

Shen Xin followed his gaze and saw a squad in similar combat gear making their way out. He couldn’t help but feel curious—how come their uniforms looked just like theirs? The only difference was the armband: theirs bore a yellow fox and the words ‘Spirit Fox.’

“That’s the Spirit Fox squad. All the members are women!” Chen Jiawang shook blood from his hair and let out a loud whistle.

“Uncle Mo, I noticed all the other teams have armbands. Why doesn’t ours?”

Shen Xin had noticed this back in the subway hall, but hadn’t asked until now.

Uncle Mo sighed and said slowly, “Our team used to have armbands. We were called the Danqing Squad.”

“Danqing? Isn’t that a bit too artsy?”

Uncle Mo explained, “Dan refers to Xu Dan—your ‘Sister Dan.’ Qing is Qin Qing. The two of them came from the Holy City to Ox City and founded the Danqing Squad together.”

Just then, Chen Jiawang grew excited. To his surprise, his whistle had made the Spirit Fox squad stop and walk over.

As he looked on expectantly, the leader took off her full-face helmet, revealing a face of classical beauty.

“Uncle Mo, it’s been a long time.”

“A long time, Willow Brows.”

Uncle Mo nodded. “Looks like you’re doing well, forming your own squad.”

“It’s just a way to make a living. We’ll catch up properly another time. Today isn’t convenient.” Willow Brows pointed at her blood-stained clothes.

“Alright. Let’s go.”

The two squads left the subway together.

They hadn’t expected to be greeted by high-pressure water jets.

Shen Xin closed his eyes and wrinkled his nose at the smell of disinfectant.

After about a minute of hosing down, several people in protective suits carefully checked them for injuries. Only when they found none were they allowed to leave.

Soaked to the skin, the four of them had no energy for conversation on the drive back. They took thorough showers at headquarters before gathering in the hall to talk.

Uncle Mo brewed tea as usual. Shen Xin and Jiawang drank beer, while Tang Ziran sipped orange juice from a little pouch.

Once the tea was ready, Uncle Mo spoke with concern. “The next few days might be rough.”

Shen Xin nodded. “There must have been over a thousand people on that subway. With casualties on this scale, it’s bound to cause a huge uproar.”

Chen Jiawang said, “It’s the vampires’ transmission rate. I bet the city will be locked down.”

“I doubt it,” Shen Xin replied skeptically.

Uncle Mo took a sip of tea. “At the very least, there’ll be a curfew at night. If so, I’ll have to bring Mo Ying over.”

Shen Xin knew Uncle Mo had a daughter in elementary school, though he’d never met her. Looking at Uncle Mo’s broad frame and stern, rugged face, he wondered if his daughter was just as striking, maybe even a bit like Tang Ziran.

At noon, the five of them ate lunch while watching the local news. Sure enough, just as Uncle Mo predicted, the broadcast announced a citywide lockdown. After 7 p.m. each day, unless absolutely necessary, all citizens were forbidden from going out. The curfew would last a month.