Chapter 28: The Cleaner

Tap! Tap-tap!

Just before the gunfire erupted, Lu Xiao had already abandoned the idea of drawing his bone spurs.

Squish, squish, squish!

The soldier with the bone spur lodged in his chest was shredded into pieces by the dense hail of bullets. At that moment, Lu Xiao held a vibrant red heart in his hand, still pulsing rhythmically. After crushing it casually, he lunged toward the next target.

After all, those controlled by the marionette were merely human. And for humans, causing effective damage to Lu Xiao was incredibly difficult. During his three years of survival in the Dark Prison, Lu Xiao had faced all manner of monsters and bizarre entities, creatures whose abilities were far more unfathomable. Yet, in those three years, the areas Lu Xiao had explored were but a drop in the ocean of the Dark Prison. There were countless places he had yet to set foot in, places home to even more terrifying and grotesque existences.

Flesh and blood flew across the scene; the seven Prison Guard soldiers of J01 did not even last two minutes in Lu Xiao’s hands. Even with their skulls shattered, they were still driven by the marionette to attack him.

After disposing of the J01 soldiers, Lu Xiao kicked the half-meter-long wooden coffin. Its contents were revealed: a dirty, dilapidated, and eerie-looking puppet. Lu Xiao grabbed the puppet and bolted a hundred meters away. Of course, he did not forget the nature of the marionette; his hands never stopped moving.

Once Lu Xiao had left with the puppet, the seven members of the City Fire squad regained their lucidity. They collapsed to the ground, retching. Dart was the first to steady himself. A mere glance at the scene was enough for him to grasp the situation.

"All units, prepare countermeasures for S137—The Marionette!"

As he spoke, his hands began to move mechanically. Simultaneously, he spoke into his microphone: "Doctor! The mission is complete! Additionally, S137 has appeared on-site; how should we handle him?"

The Doctor’s cold voice came through the earpiece: "Bring S137 back to the containment facility!"

Dart nodded, then remembered something else. "Slider, go into the villa and see if there are any survivors!"

Slider waved his arms as he entered the villa. Not long after, his voice came through the microphone.

"Captain, Liu Mingsheng is still alive! He wants me to shoot him. What should I do, Captain?"

Liu Mingsheng was the owner of the villa and the most powerful hidden tycoon in the city. Dart’s eyes darkened, and he said coldly, "That would be letting him off too easily! Keep an eye on him. We’ll let the Cleaners handle him when they arrive; we’ll turn him into a consumable resource at our facility."

Although Dart did not know exactly what Liu Mingsheng had done, he knew well that those who traded with the anomalous rarely had clean hands. Most anomalies demanded human sacrifice as the price for a deal. Someone like the Prison Doctor, who actually chased after people to treat their illnesses, was a rare, refreshing exception among the anomalies.

Once the squad members had recovered, Dart spoke into the microphone: "Mr. Lu Xiao, you can come back now."

On the other side, hearing Dart’s command, Lu Xiao hurried back, still clutching the marionette. At this point, the members of the City Fire squad were all dancing and waving their arms, looking utterly ridiculous.

Stream sighed, "It’s a good thing S292 was here, otherwise we might have been finished today!"

Lu Xiao waved his arms as well, his mouth stretching into a grin. "No, no, no! I was caught in it too; it was all thanks to Little Rain!"

The squad members turned their gazes toward Little Rain. Under their scrutiny, she looked somewhat shy. "It was the Captain's quick thinking. If he hadn't warned me at the end, I wouldn't have even thought about the marionette!"

For a moment, they began to flatter one another.

...

An ambulance marked "City First Psychiatric Hospital" sped along a secluded road, rocking side to side. Stream waved his arms, his voice raspy, "Captain, could you sway a little less? I think I’m getting motion sickness!"

The others nodded in agreement. Dart curled his lips, helpless. "I don't want to either! But my hands don't dare stop moving for even a second!"

In the vehicle, the filthy, broken doll lay at their feet, along with a mirror featuring antique patterns. Lu Xiao’s hands kept moving as he stared out the window, lost in thought.

Elsewhere, Slider was handing over the scene to a group of people dressed as sanitation workers. He pointed at Liu Mingsheng, who was slumped on the sofa, and said to one of the workers, "Take this man back to the facility as a consumable."

The person in the sanitation uniform was the "Cleaner" Dart had mentioned. They were responsible for handling the aftermath for the Prison Guard organization. After the leader of the Cleaners and Slider circled the villa, the scenes they witnessed left them both trembling. The most horrifying sight was the scattered, dismembered corpses covering the floor.

"Cough, cough! Did you deploy a D-class containment object?" Because the Cleaners had not yet received the detailed mission report, they were unaware of what had occurred. However, the carnage on the floor was clearly not something this squad could have caused.

Slider scratched his head. "According to the Prison Guard regulations, D-class objects are not allowed to be taken out of the facility!"

The Cleaner rolled his eyes at him. "I know that!"

Slider gave a sheepish grin. "Our captain will provide a detailed report later! You should clean up the mess here first!"

The Cleaner waved his hand. "Fine. Once your report is out, we’ll know how to handle the potential aftereffects. Also, Liu Mingsheng will be sent to the base within two days; just be prepared to receive him."

With that, he performed a Prison Guard salute to Slider—right hand clenched in a fist, pressed against his heart. Slider returned the salute.

After Slider left, the Cleaners began processing the scene. They first gathered the body parts. In some places, they even had to use shovels to scrape up the blood and gore. They then poured a special liquid over the remains. The moment the liquid touched the flesh, it dissolved at a visible speed, leaving behind nothing but black ash.

Subsequently, the Cleaners repaired the damaged parts of the villa, restoring it to its original appearance. By the end, the estate showed no signs that a battle had ever taken place. Inside, it remained opulent and grand; outside, it was as luxurious as ever.

Finally, the Cleaners produced a written confession, placed it before Liu Mingsheng, and took his finger to press his thumbprint onto the paper.