Chapter 143: Hiring New Recruits

These two were clearly not professional mercenaries.

Any mercenary with even a modicum of connections would know that a target from the Porcelain Country, coupled with an operational zone near the Porcelain Country itself, would be enough to deter eighty percent of them. The "Mercenary Forbidden Zone" is one thing, but the fact that people from the Porcelain Country were issuing protection missions near their own borders was a clear indicator of the difficulty involved.

It was obvious that the two in front of him were completely inexperienced.

Since they were here to protect Mo Fei, they were effectively on the same side. Long Er dragged the corpse away to hide it and asked them, "Newbies?"

Though it was a question, his tone was certain.

"Newbies or not—" the chatterbox doctor saw him working and instinctively stepped forward to help. The other one, who had been holding a gun, watched for a while before helplessly putting it away and pushing Officer Xiao’s wheelchair to follow alongside them.

Long Er hid the body in a corner and wiped away a smear of blood on the floor. Only after finishing did he look at the two doctors and ask, "Which mission is this for you?"

The chatterbox held up a finger. "One! But we’ve been in the business for a long time!"

Truly an answer that came as no surprise. The other one didn't even have time to stop him; he clenched his fists, frustrated by his companion’s foolish habit of answering whatever he was asked.

Long Er didn't know what to say. To call them incompetent greenhorns would be inaccurate, as they had managed to sneak onto the ship. To call them strong... that would be a lie he couldn't bring himself to tell.

"Just the two of you?"

The chatterbox was about to answer, but his partner finally caught him, slapped a hand over his mouth, and gave a decisive nod. "Yes!"

So, there were others.

Long Er opened his mouth to speak but swallowed his words. Finally, he pointed to Officer Xiao and said, "Keep an eye on him. I’m going to find someone."

"Senior, you took a protection mission too?" The chatterbox pried his partner's hand off and asked, "Is it the same person? The young actor from the Porcelain Country?"

He didn't blurt out the target's name directly—that was something, at least. But he was still green.

Long Er didn't answer him, continuing to weave through the cages. The guards he had killed earlier didn't matter, but if these two doctors didn't bring their charge back, everyone would immediately realize something was wrong. Still, he couldn't just let them take Officer Xiao back to be dissected.

Not in the second cabin. Where exactly had Li Momo been taken? Hopefully, he hadn't been carved up already. Long Er felt a sense of unease and quickened his pace. The two doctors stood there, looking lost.

The chatterbox asked the person beside him, "Qing, what should we do now?"

Dissecting people was out of the question—they could never commit such a monstrous act in their lives. But standing here like idiots made them feel useless. However, if they left their post to go looking for someone, they would be too conspicuous, and the police officer would be left unprotected. He was, after all, the "chosen one" specifically marked to be the first one taken for vivisection.

"Leave this cabin first," the one called Qing thought for a moment. "We’ll steal the guards’ uniforms and blend in."

Qing’s line of reasoning matched Long Er’s. If they didn't return and had taken the person the others were looking for, chaos was inevitable. Under those circumstances, wearing doctors' coats was no longer safe.

The chatterbox tentatively asked, "The two you just killed?"

Qing shook his head. "Kill fresh ones." He pointed to the unconscious Officer Xiao. "Get him one, too."

"Makes sense."

Once they agreed, the pair pushed the wheelchair and left the second cabin.

The twelfth and thirteenth operating rooms had been waiting for their subjects for too long, and the rest of the ship began to sense that something was wrong. Several armed men arrived at the second cabin to investigate, only to find the cage empty. They searched the surrounding area and discovered the guards' corpses in the corner, realizing the severity of the situation and reporting it via walkie-talkie.

The ship’s alarm system blared into action.

Long Er, wearing a guard’s uniform, naturally carried the standard-issue walkie-talkie. Knowing the secret was out, he had to speed up his search. There were over two thousand "pigs" on board, with a hundred crammed into each of the twenty-some cabins; he had to check them one by one. Time was of the essence.

He spoke into the walkie-talkie in English: "Corpses found in Zone E on the second deck!"

The second deck was where the surgical equipment was kept, while the "pigs" were held on the third. He had to buy time however he could. The guards, hearing Long Er’s message, quickly assembled toward the second floor.

Meanwhile, the two newcomers stood over the corpses, having just changed into the guards' uniforms, feeling helpless regarding Officer Xiao.

"What do we do? I can't handle delicate work; I'll end up hurting him. Qing, you change him?" The chatterbox gestured vaguely.

Since the man was unconscious, they had no choice but to help him. Qing pursed his lips and shook his head. "You really are stupid."

He raised his hand and slapped Officer Xiao across the cheek. A crisp, loud *crack* echoed.

The chatterbox instinctively covered his own face, watching in horror. Officer Xiao’s cheek turned red instantly, his brows furrowed in discomfort, but he didn't wake up.

Qing gathered himself and slapped him again with the back of his hand. Now it was symmetrical. Still, the man didn't wake up.

The chatterbox cupped his face with both hands. "Qing, you’re assaulting an officer!"

"I'll just say you did it later," Qing said, rolling up his sleeves and flexing his wrists. He studied Officer Xiao. Slapping him one by one was too much effort and inefficient. Pain was a stimulus, but the threat of death was just as effective.

Qing gripped Officer Xiao’s throat with one hand and slowly tightened his hold. The sensation of suffocation was far harder to endure and more stimulating than mere pain. As Officer Xiao’s expression grew increasingly pained and his limbs began to flail, Qing showed no sign of letting go.

He wasn't awake yet. It was now a choice between waking up or dying.

Seeing Officer Xiao’s face turn purple, his expression growing more terrified, the chatterbox cried, "Are you trying to kill a cop?"

Qing ignored him, focusing intently on the officer beneath his hand. At the final moment, Officer Xiao finally opened his eyes, his face suffused with purple, the veins on his forehead bulging. Qing released his grip, and Officer Xiao began to cough violently. He had truly almost choked him to death.

The chatterbox stepped forward to pat his back. "Officer, are you okay? We were forced into this, please don't arrest us."

Officer Xiao waved his hand while coughing. Why talk about that now? After he had been knocked unconscious and brought aboard, he never imagined he would open his eyes again. Now that he was awake, let alone choking him, they could punch him half to death and he wouldn't care.

"This is no time for explanations. Change your clothes."

Qing handed him the uniform, the walkie-talkie blaring with orders for the entire ship to go on high alert and hunt for intruders.

"The jig is up," the chatterbox said, eyes wide as he gripped his gun. "What do we do now? Are we going to go on a killing spree? If we kill everyone on this ship, can we actually sail it back? Qing, do you know how to sail a ship?"

Officer Xiao hadn't fully grasped the situation, but he followed their instructions and changed into the guard’s uniform. Before they could answer, a second report from Long Er came over the walkie-talkie.

Qing breathed a sigh of relief. "There’s still a chance. Get rid of the clothes we changed out of, and you—follow us."