Chapter 448: Stratagem
Zhang Jingxu’s exchange with Alice was evidently intended for the two men in black to hear. Upon learning that Alice and her companions would arrive at the Intensive Care Unit, the two men in black promptly chose to retreat.
Despite their firepower advantage, they understood the principle that ants could overwhelm an elephant. Continuing the fight now would not be in their favor.
Thus, while maintaining suppressive fire on Liu Xing’s group, the two men withdrew to the elevator.
Although Liu Xing’s group wanted to intercept the two men, their inferiority in firearms rendered them powerless, only able to watch helplessly as the two men descended in the elevator.
Zhang Jingxu took out his walkie-talkie and said, "Alice, we just encountered two men armed with submachine guns. They are likely the assassins targeting William. They’ve already taken the middle elevator downstairs. Send someone to watch the elevator now. We must seize the opportunity to apprehend them."
"OK," Alice replied briskly before ending the transmission.
Meanwhile, Jack successfully contacted other police officers in the Royal Hospital and informed them of the recent events in the Intensive Care Unit.
As the right elevator door opened, Ling Ishikawa emerged, stating, "The two killers have left the elevator on the third floor. According to information from medical staff on the third floor, they’re likely planning to escape to the parking lot through the fire escape route."
Zhang Jingxu nodded and entered the elevator, saying, "Then let’s hurry downstairs and try to intercept these killers. We cannot let them escape."
However, Jack shook his head, saying, "I’ll stay here in the Intensive Care Unit for now. While we’re not entirely sure if William is here, leaving now might make us susceptible to accusations of dereliction of duty. Besides, staying here can prevent those killers from making a surprise return."
Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, realizing that although the killers had fled through the fire escape route and one was injured in the leg, limiting their mobility, it didn’t necessarily mean they intended to escape Royal Hospital. They might indeed, as Jack suggested, attempt a counterattack and return to the Intensive Care Unit to continue their assassination plan.
So, should they pursue the killers or stay in the Intensive Care Unit and observe the situation, waiting to confirm the killers’ whereabouts before deciding?
Before Liu Xing and his group could dwell on it, Alice’s voice came over the walkie-talkie, "The killers are heading towards the parking lot now. However, other police officers outside have begun attacking and besieging them... Damn, they’ve been forced into the conference room!"
Hearing this, Liu Xing immediately entered the elevator, pressing the button for the first floor, as Tian Qing was still in the conference room!
Ling Ishikawa and Zhang Jingxu understood this and said nothing more.
Thus, Liu Xing’s group descended in the elevator.
However, just as the elevator doors closed, Liu Xing heard the sound of dice rolling.
Frowning, Liu Xing couldn’t help but wonder if this ongoing judgment was related to Jack and William. Was Jack also an assassin?
Nevertheless, at this point, Liu Xing and his group had no reason to return to the Intensive Care Unit. They could only proceed to the conference room with doubts and unease.
Outside the conference room, dozens of police officers had blocked all exits, ready to shoot down the killers the moment they stepped out.
Liu Xing approached Alice anxiously, asking, "Alice, what’s the situation now?"
Alice shook her head, sighing, "After entering the conference room, the killers seized control of the foreign tourists inside and refused any communication with us. We can’t enter the conference room to arrest them. So, we’re at a standstill."
A stalemate.
This was the last thing Liu Xing and his team wanted. Time was precious, and further delay could jeopardize their evacuation from Scotland back to England.
"By the way, don’t you find it strange? Why haven’t the Cult of the Cadaver and the Deep Diving Society shown up yet?" Yis People surveyed the surroundings, questioning.
Hu Li, beside him, shook her head, pointing at the conference room. "No, these two killers are from the Cult of the Cadaver. I can sense a distinct corpse odor on them, the kind that only appears on those who have consumed human flesh."
Since Hu Li confirmed it, it was conclusive that the two killers were from the Cult of the Cadaver.
Liu Xing nodded and said, "So it seems the Cult of the Cadaver isn’t just focused on high-level operations as we thought. Their influence has already infiltrated the lower ranks of police officers."
Just then, a black-clad figure emerged from the conference room, shouting loudly, "Prepare a fully fueled armored vehicle for us within twenty minutes! Otherwise, we’ll kill everyone in the conference room. Remember, everyone. We won’t hesitate to kill each and every one of them."
After speaking, the figure turned and went back into the conference room, not worried in the slightest that the police officers behind might open fire.
"Damn, is this killer doing this deliberately? His strong London accent has exposed his identity. Now, this blame will squarely fall on us, the English," Alice lamented with frustration.
Old habits die hard.
For police officers, a criminal’s accent could reveal a lot of information. Experienced officers were familiar with various regional dialects and accents. So, the Scottish police officers present also recognized the accent of the black-clad figure.
Thus, Liu Xing heard the Scottish police officers around him cursing England. In the current situation, even if the two black-clad figures weren’t from England, the Scots would still assume they were English.
Regardless, the objectives of the two black-clad figures had been achieved. They had successfully shifted blame onto England once again.
But for Liu Xing at that moment, these matters were not important. What mattered was how to rescue Tian Qing, who was trapped in the conference room.
Because the Glasgow Royal Hospital had a stellar reputation, boasting world-leading departments, it often hosted various medical forums and conferences. Therefore, the conference room at the Glasgow Royal Hospital was a massive auditorium capable of accommodating hundreds of people, which also contributed to why it became a temporary shelter.
Currently, there were over two hundred foreign tourists trapped inside the conference room.
Liu Xing rubbed his temples. Though there were only two enemies in the conference room, they were armed with submachine guns, posing a serious threat. If Liu Xing’s team launched a frontal assault, the two men in black would undoubtedly harm the hostages.
After all, the true identities of these two men in black were members of the Cult of the Cadaver, who were even more terrifying than extremists.
Therefore, Liu Xing began to suspect that the true targets of these two members of the Cult of the Cadaver might be the foreign tourists in the conference room.
At this moment, Alice spoke up, "Damn it, I knew the Scotland side had colluded with the Cult of the Cadaver. The special police in Glasgow will take at least half an hour to reach here due to roadblocks. As for the armored vehicle the killer demanded, it’s impossible to deliver it here within twenty minutes."
Liu Xing frowned. Things were getting troublesome indeed.
Meanwhile, the surrounding Scottish police officers were in tense discussion.
After all, there were over two hundred foreign tourists in the conference room. If the two men in black started slaughtering them, there would undoubtedly be casualties in the double digits. Then, these Scottish police officers would also face severe consequences.
Therefore, a few representatives among the Scottish police officers present began intense discussions.
Suddenly, Liu Xing came up with a plan. "Since we only have two enemies, they can’t possibly guard all entrances to the conference room. Moreover, there are many windows in the conference room. So, we can ambush near the windows and entrances, waiting for the right moment to strike and kill the two men in black. Of course, this is quite risky. Unless we can ensure a clean kill before they react, casualties are inevitable."
The others nodded. Given the current situation, Liu Xing’s plan was indeed the best solution.
"OK, I’ll go talk to the Scottish police officers now. If they agree to support our plan, we should be good to go," Alice said, heading to find the officers who were discussing.
One minute later, Alice returned, saying, "OK, they’ve agreed to our plan. We’ve been assigned to the rear door of the conference room. Once the operation begins, we’ll enter through the rear door."
Due to the urgency of the situation, Liu Xing and his team immediately began their operation, making their way to the rear door of the conference room without any pressure.
Unfortunately, the curtains in the conference room were drawn, so to avoid alerting the suspects, Liu Xing and his team didn’t dare to open them to observe the situation inside. Thus, Liu Xing could only eavesdrop on the conference room’s activities from the rear door.
However, to Liu Xing’s surprise, the conference room was eerily silent, with not even a whisper heard.
This was highly unusual.
After all, there were over two hundred foreign tourists in the conference room. It was unlikely for there to be complete silence.
Could it be...?
Liu Xing frowned, switched his mobile phone to recording mode, and slipped it through the door crack into the conference room.
Thirty seconds later, Liu Xing retrieved his mobile phone, plugged in his earphones, and played back the recording at maximum volume.
To his shock, there was indeed no sound coming from the conference room!
Realizing something was amiss, Liu Xing directly opened the rear door and entered the conference room.
The conference room was empty!
Seeing Liu Xing’s sudden action, Zhang Jingxu and the others, along with the Scottish police officers, quickly entered the conference room and stared blankly at the empty space.
In the middle of the corridor to the right of the conference room, there was suddenly a large pit.
"Damn, we’ve been tricked," Liu Xing cursed.
Approaching the edge of the pit, Ling Ishikawa felt the mud and spoke, "From the traces inside the tunnel, it seems that the Ghoul dug this tunnel only a few minutes ago. Therefore, the Cult of the Cadaver probably intended to target the foreign tourists in the conference room from the beginning. It seems we’ve fallen into the Cult of the Cadaver’s trap."
Zhang Jingxu nodded helplessly. "If things go as expected, the Cult of the Cadaver initially planned to use a diversionary tactic to send the two killers to assassinate William, attracting the attention of the police officers in the hospital. When we unexpectedly ran into them, the Cult of the Cadaver decided to stick to their plan, making the two killers pretend to flee to the conference room. Then, using delaying tactics, they set forth some difficult conditions to prevent the police from acting rashly. In conjunction with the underground Cult of the Cadaver followers, they kidnapped all the foreign tourists in the conference room."
Liu Xing sighed. "So what do we do now? Should we follow this tunnel to pursue the Cult of the Cadaver’s people? After all, it’s only been about five or six minutes since they left, and with so many foreign tourists, they can’t move quickly."
"Yes, to be precise, the Cult of the Cadaver’s people should have opened this tunnel about ten minutes ago. Because ten minutes ago, I suddenly felt the atmosphere in the conference room become chaotic, making it impossible for me to discern the situation inside. So, we can still pursue them. However, it’s better for me to go alone. Once I confirm the whereabouts of the Cult of the Cadaver, I’ll contact you by phone," Hu Li said seriously.
Liu Xing nodded decisively, and Zhang Jingxu and Ling Ishikawa naturally agreed as well.
Thus, Liu Xing and the others surrounded the pit, blocking the view of the Scottish police officers, allowing Hu Li to transform back and enter the tunnel.
Then, Liu Xing and his team decided to leave the hospital and return to the cathedral. After all, high-ranking officials from the Glasgow police would arrive here shortly. If their identities were exposed, they might really be in trouble.
However, just as Liu Xing and his team were about to leave the conference room, they heard a barrage of gunfire erupting from the top floor of the hospital!
"Oh, not again," Yis People couldn’t help but exclaim.
Clearly, another assassin had arrived at the Intensive Care Unit to assassinate William, and a battle had ensued with Jack, who was guarding there.
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