Red Hair's mind raced; she drew the pistol holstered on her thigh and aimed it at the door lock. The door was heavy metal; a gun wouldn't open it—the bullets would only ricochet back and harm her. Only the lock was the whole door's weakness.

Just as she prepared to fire, Lan Li suddenly grasped her hand.

She narrowed her eyes and turned her head. Lan Li’s expression was calm: "Go see if there's an empty room nearby. I'll handle this."

Red Hair’s hand remained still. "Why?"

Lan Li stated it as a matter of course: "Dangerous jobs are naturally left to the men."

Red Hair shot him a look as if he were an idiot and laughed silently.

—This was the first time someone had treated her like a woman needing protection. Was his brain broken, or was he just desperate for attention? She was certainly not the type of woman to hide behind a man!

Red Hair kicked him at the bend of his knee. "Move aside and go find an empty room or a safe spot."

Lan Li didn't budge, his hand still gripping hers, insisting on his way.

Sometimes Red Hair truly wondered if his head was stuffed with straw or paste. At a time like this, to be so hung up on that kind of thing—details didn't matter at all!

Though they had carefully avoided all surveillance cameras on their way in, there was no guarantee no one else would pass by.

She looked at Lan Li.

Lan Li was watching her too.

Their eyes met. Red Hair conceded in frustration, withdrawing her hand. It was just one pistol; if he wanted it, fine.

She didn't even want the gun. She pulled another from her thigh, attached a silencer, aimed at the camera ahead, and shot one down, then turned and shot the one behind it. Seeing him still standing in the same posture, she couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Kid, you're still green."

Lan Li slowly took hold of the gun.

Red Hair walked to the door diagonally opposite the hotel room where the sound had originated, strained her ear, and listened. It seemed quiet. She activated the light panel on the door lock—it was a keypad. She pulled out a universal hotel card and swiped it; the door opened. It was dark inside, lights off, no one there.

She stepped in, turned back to Lan Li, and raised an eyebrow. "My task is done. Yours?"

Lan Li slowly retreated into the room, stood beside her, and extended only his pistol, aiming at the keypad. He fired three shots consecutively.

Bang, bang, bang—

To maximize the chaos, the pistol had no silencer. The sound of the bullets hitting the lock was terrifyingly loud in the relatively narrow corridor.

The light panel was pierced, and the bullets shot straight into the room.

Almost simultaneously, Lan Li retracted his pistol and quickly pulled the door shut.

"Who!"

Inside the room, Ilya and Rainer woke up at once.

Ilya dropped the prop and stood up straight. Her legs were weak, but she was a person capable of enduring; she acted as if nothing had happened, letting the robot untie Rainer from the chair.

Rainer collapsed weakly onto the floor. Ilya had already drawn her laser pistol and moved silently toward the door.

The light panel was broken; she couldn't see if anyone was outside.

She turned around, the lustful flush gone from her face, leaving only coldness. "Someone's here. Aren't you supposed to protect the President? Hurry up, before more complications arise!"

Rainer witnessed yet again the speed at which a woman could change her demeanor.

—Ilya was even worse, perhaps surpassing Bai Lanxue!

On the other side, in the doorway, Red Hair did not turn on the light. The two stood silently behind the door. For a moment, the silence was so profound that only the sound of each other's breathing could be heard.

After a while, Lan Li felt secure enough. He quietly slipped outside the door, put on gloves, and firmly pressed the red indicator of the alarm.

The alarm immediately erupted like a burst water main, emitting a piercing, ear-splitting shriek.

Lan Li quickly retreated back inside. Red Hair glanced sideways at him, humming inwardly—he actually had some tricks up his sleeve.

Lan Li grinned, waving his hand in front of her eyes. "Come back to life, beautiful Zihong. Are you wondering who inside is having a baby?"

Red Hair snapped back to attention and reflexively grabbed the "pig's paw" he was extending, intending to throw him over her shoulder. But as she moved, Lan Li used his other hand to hold fast. "Your hands are so soft. Hands like these shouldn't be used for guns."

Red Hair's expression darkened abruptly. She swiftly reversed her grip, pressing her pistol against his waist. "Hmm?"

Sometimes, the shorter the words, the more they represented a person's mood.

Red Hair’s slightly elevated tone conveyed a deep threat.

Her pistol was fitted with a silencer. Even if a crowd stood outside the door, if she killed him, not a whisper would be heard.

Lan Li innocently raised his hands. "I just meant that from now on, leave the shooting to me."

Red Hair kept a stern face, put away her gun, and turned her back, huffing—such a ridiculous man!

Seeing her back rigid, Lan Li suddenly felt an intense urge to walk up and gently embrace her. But he knew clearly that if he actually did, Red Hair would undoubtedly kick him to the floor and start shooting loudly.

He could foresee himself falling lifelessly on the ground, regretting it eternally.

Sigh!

Lan Li felt helpless about his own thoughts.

Sometimes, when Chen Yin stood before him looking pitifully fragile, tugging at his coat sleeve, he wouldn't soften his heart. But facing Red Hair, he invariably felt that her strength and coldness were just protective colors; deep down, she was a girl who truly needed affection...

"Please move aside."

Red Hair’s emotionless voice pulled his thoughts back to reality. She crouched down in front of him and activated the light panel of the door lock.

This panel consisted of two parts: one outside the door for iris recognition or password entry, and one inside for viewing the outside.

Its visibility wasn't wide; it only allowed a small section of the doorway to be seen.

She simply squatted down, adjusting the panel’s angle to look up from below, barely catching a glimpse of the door opposite. Just as she adjusted the angle, the door opposite opened, and Ilya stumbled out wearing a black dress with a torn front.

The flush of desire hadn't faded from her face, and her short silk skirt couldn't hide the slight stiffness in her legs as she walked—clearly, they had been engaged in intense activity.

Red Hair couldn't help but let out an "Eh?"

She was quite knowledgeable about such matters. However, even though today was Ilya's wedding, after the venue was sealed off, to still have the energy for that seemed very strange.

She reached out and touched Lan Li’s hand, whispering, "Don't you think this is odd?"

To see the outside view, Lan Li also crouched down, and they stared out with one eye each, their faces so close their noses almost touched. Lan Li deliberately avoided looking at her, focusing his attention outside, and murmured, "She shouldn't be wearing a black dress."

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned his head just as Red Hair turned hers. Their eyes met, conveying a shared message: Ilya was definitely up to something!

"Let's go out and follow her."

"No rush," Lan Li pressed her shoulder. "The alarm is still blaring. Personnel are heading this way. If we leave now, we might run into them."

Red Hair countered, "Why isn't Ilya worried about running into anyone?"

That was an excellent question.

Because Ilya looked exactly like a victim, showing no concern at all!

Just as Red Hair and Lan Li predicted, shortly after leaving, Ilya encountered the first group rushing over—hotel security guards.

The guards were practically a comedy act. After being inexplicably beaten up by Pei Zhe, before they could react, the hotel was sealed off. This group of emergency responders didn't know where to go, sometimes comforting the frightened legion leaders as service staff, other times serving buffet food to those who were hungry.

When they rushed over upon hearing the alarm, Ilya collapsed onto the ground, crying out.

The desire had faded from her face, leaving only exhaustion and pallor. Holding one hand to her chest, she lay on the floor, possessing a faint, sickly beauty reminiscent of Xi Shi.

The guards instantly categorized her as a victim. Unwilling to rush forward and help her up, they quickly had a robot attendant lift her and asked with concern, "Miss, what's wrong?"

Ilya pointed behind her. "There are bad people back there."

The security captain immediately dispatched the four guards positioned at the rear to check the area. The remaining four went near the alarm. He and the last four asked, "Can you describe them? Did they do anything to you?"

Ilya covered her face and shook her head. "I don't know, I don't know! Please don't ask me!"

Seeing her disheveled state, the security captain guessed she had been assaulted and dared not ask more, fearing it would distress her further. "Which room are you in? We will escort you back."

Ilya stood up, legs trembling, and under the support of the robot and the escort of the security team, returned to the room full of surveillance panels.

Meanwhile, various parties, including certain legion leaders, rushed down to see what the commotion was about.

Gunshots were what they feared most.

Because gunfire meant assailants.

Being inexplicably drugged was unpleasant for anyone; if there were injuries or deaths, it would be utter chaos!

The strangest part was that many people didn't even know what drug they had taken.

Some were vomiting violently, unable to stand steadily; others were acting crazily, engaging in unreasonable behavior like stripping off their clothes and laughing maniacally; still others showed no reaction at all.

Thus, they unanimously concluded that someone had placed different types of drugs on the rims of different glasses, and those exhibiting symptoms had reacted, while those without symptoms were in the incubation period.

Those whose drug effects were latent rushed downstairs. Seeing no assailants, they only found a crushed robot lying in a corner by the wall.

They proceeded even more cautiously. As they moved forward again, they spotted two security guards unconscious in another corner...

Some of the more timid ones had their legs turn to jelly, terrified that the next thing they would see would be a bloody corpse!

Red Hair watched the group pass by with varied thoughts and quietly asked, "Shall we go add more fuel to the fire?"

-RS