Era of Magic and Martial Arts-Chapter 290 - 274: From Hell to Heaven and Back to Hell?

The glass shattered with a violent crash, startling Wang Nan into a rigid freeze on the spot.

He looked up abruptly, only to see two Chief Constables in blue and white uniforms crashing to the ground.

"Wang Nan, drop your weapon immediately and surrender."

Li Shang's feet touched the ground, but before he could steady himself, he let out a furious roar, moving swiftly towards Wang Nan to take him down.

At the same time, Chang Erbing rolled to the ground, pulled out a gun, aimed, and fired in one seamless motion, as if he had practiced countless times before.

Hou Wendong's scream abruptly stopped in his throat, his eyes bulging wide, every pore on his body trembling with fear, yet in an instant, he was filled with a desperate hope for life.

Wang Nan was shot in the stomach, and blood spurted out like a fountain. He let out a howl of pain, a sound filled with despair that utterly stirred the viciousness in his blood.

He roared madly, pulling at the wrench with reckless abandon.

Hou Wendong's belly was immediately shredded of large chunks of flesh; he too let out a terrified scream, sharp and heart-wrenching.

One was extremely terrified, the other excessively crazy, while Li Shang was the embodiment of justice. His roar echoed in the warehouse, creating a chaotic and thrilling symphony of three distinct sounds.

Li Shang charged forward with a roar, wrapping his arms around Wang Nan's waist, the veins in his arms bulging as he exerted force. The pressure nearly crushed Wang Nan's stomach inwards while his chest puffed out.

Wang Nan's mouth twisted in pain, opening as scalding blood mixed with fragments of his organs spattered out like a fountain, splattering all over Hou Wendong's face.

Hou Wendong's whole face twitched violently, his lips slick with wetness.

Wang Nan fell heavily to the ground, like a mass of mud that had lost its support, motionless.

His gaze towards Hou Wendong started to blur and scatter, looking at Hou Wendong but with the shadow of another person in his eyes.

His mouth opened with a "woo-woo," as if wanting to say something, but not a single word came out, only gushing blood continuously spurted from his mouth, swiftly taking away the lingering warmth of life and... secrets from memories.

It was probably about two weeks, maybe three weeks ago; Wang Nan couldn't quite remember.

He vaguely remembered that day, clutching tightly to that cold medical report, he walked out of the hospital hallway in a daze, as if the whole world were spinning.

When he stumbled home, reeking of alcohol like a soulless shell, he found a strange man quietly waiting for him at his door, as if he had been there for a long time.

To this day, he still doesn't know that man's name, only remembers with utter clarity the man's first words to him:

"You are Wang Nan, do you know your ex-wife Li Xiuyan is about to remarry? Would you like to offer her your most sincere wedding blessing?"

Wang Nan was not entirely unaware of his ex-wife's situation, knowing that Li Xiuyan seemed to have gotten quite close to a man named Hou Wendong in the past two years.

He had some thoughts of his own, but the medical report hidden in his chest felt like a huge stone crushing all his hopes. His mood was extremely chaotic, and he simply barked a word, "Scram," at the stranger in front of him.

Then, about a week ago, the man led him to this abandoned warehouse, where he saw Hou Wendong tied to a chair, hooded and unconscious.

The subsequent memories were a bit foggy, he only remembered that by the time he snapped out of his shock, he was already gripping a cold, hard wrench tightly in his hand.

And then, the man whispered encouragement and courage into his ear:

"You won't live long with your illness. After you die, your ex-wife will completely forget you and live a happy life with this man. Don't you want to give them a wedding blessing, to make sure they remember you for the rest of their lives?"

"But, don't accidentally kill him, otherwise your ex-wife will lose her husband, and your child will lose a stepfather..."

Subsequent to that, Wang Nan remembered meeting the man twice more, realizing by then that he had probably been drawn into some sort of conspiracy.

But what did it matter, as a dying man, who could offer his ex-wife one last blessing before departing, while also giving his child a preemptive lesson against their future stepfather, why not?

Thus,

The wrench missed Hou Wendong's head by a fraction at the last moment, finally crashing hard on his shoulder with a crisp sound of bone cracking.

Hou Wendong's shoulder caved in, and through the intense pain, he burst into tears, yet his mouth erupted in a hysterical laugh.

The next second, the laughter got stuck in his throat.

Hou Wendong stared blankly in terror at the Chief Constable who had just saved him, suddenly reaching out to clutch his throat tightly, the five fingers gradually tightening with increasing strength.

Hou Wendong's face quickly turned bluish-purple, he desperately opened his mouth wide, his eyes bulging nearly out of their sockets.

Chang Erbing quickly stepped forward, glanced at Wang Nan convulsing on the ground, ready to breathe his last at any moment, then turned to Li Shang, his brows furrowed in noticeable unease and asked:

"Captain Li, do we really have to listen to that person?"

Upon hearing these words, Li Shang hesitated, his grip slightly relaxed, allowing Hou Wendong to gasp for breath.

Hou Wendong couldn't understand what was happening, his heart had already turned to ash, seeking only a quick death, yet he never expected to be saved by the Chief Constable in front of him, only to now face death again at the same constable's hands.

Hou Wendong's mind was in chaos, practically shut down, he felt like he was on a roller coaster ride, thrilling enough to die for.

But now, he didn't want to die at all, as much as he wanted to die before, now he equally desperately wanted to live, the previous wish for death now transformed into a doubled desire for survival, an infinitely strong urge even.

As if leaping from the abyss of hell to the heavens only to fall back into hell again, Hou Wendong's current longing for life exceeded 99.99% of all living things throughout history.

That longing surged like a black tide, filling his soul.

At this moment, if anyone could save him again, he would give anything in return, even if it meant giving his soul to a devil, he wouldn't hesitate.

Li Shang glanced at Chang Erbing, then back at Hou Wendong, finally sighing as he said:

"Secretary Hou, don't blame us, we really wanted to save you, but you can't escape the fact that there's a bad person by your side who doesn't want you alive to be saved."

Hou Wendong paused, his voice hoarse and weak: "Who, who wants me dead?"

....