“Where is the woman who was with you?” The woman suddenly shoved Xia Lei and said fiercely, “Talk!”
Xia Lei controlled himself. “She’s in Okinawa.”
“Bullshit!” The man spoke angrily, “You two are not Japanese! According to the route you were travelling on, there’s no way you would be in these parts if you sent her back to Okinawa. Talk. What is your mission?”
Xia Lei bowed his head and did not speak.
“Hold on, what are you hiding around your neck?” The woman abruptly pulled Xia Lei’s collar open, revealing the chain of ancient alloy pieces.
“What is this?” The man looked wary.
“Talk, you Chinese bastard!” The woman swung a hand at Xia Lei’s cheek.
Xia Lei suddenly raised his hand and caught the woman’s wrist.
Two Self Defence soldiers reacted. One pressed the muzzle of his assault rifle to Xia Lei’s back, and the other put his gun muzzle to the bend of Xia Lei’s leg. Xia Lei grunted, and fell to his knees.
The woman pulled Xia Lei’s face up by the chin with a finger and sneered, “You managed to pull the wool over our eyes last night, I’ll give you that. But we’re not that easy to feel. We are specialists. I am Winter’s Fang. You’ll remember my name, because you will be begging to die for the remainder of your life.”
So they were Japanese special agents.
The man grabbed Xia Lei’s hair and growled, “You’d better tell us everything right now, or you’ll get tortured. Winter’s Fang is a torture specialist. There has yet to be a person who can survive her beyond three days.”
“Tell me – is the incident in Oshino Hakkai related to you guys?” The woman pressed with her questions.
The man snarled, “Don’t deny it. We’ve already investigated. You used the fake identity of Katou Takasuke to check-in to the hotel in Oshino Hakkai. The woman with you is using the name Ooka Mika. Last night, this Katou Takasuke appeared in the military exercise zone of us Japanese and American troops. You dare say that you are not a Chinese spy?”
Xia Lei raised his head then, and a faint smile appeared in the corners of his lips. “All right, I’ll admit it. Your efficiency is quite good. You managed to find me and catch me.”
“Stop bullshitting!” Winter’s Fang snarled. “What is your mission?”
“To kill you,” said Xia Lei.
His words made everyone on the yacht pause, but just for two seconds, and it was followed by laughter.
“Okay, you punk. Looks like you won’t crack unless I torture you.” Winter’s Fang waved her hand, and a Self Defence soldier brought a combination-lock case to her. He put it in her hand.
Winter’s Fang opened the case. It was full of torture tools – scalpels, can-opener type knives, tongs, pliers and syringes filled with unknown liquids.
Winter’s Fang ran her fingers over these torture instruments like a pianist trailing fingers over piano keys, then stopped over a scalpel. She drew it out, and smiled as she asked Xia Lei, “Where would you like me to cut? Ear? Finger? Nose? Or your little thing?”
Xia Lei did not speak. The man laughed. “Winter’s Fang, you’re cruel as always.” After a pause, he issued an order to the soldiers. “What are you still standing around for? You, you, and you! Go search the yacht. Look for that woman, and anything suspicious on this yacht.”
The soldiers he had commanded made to start searching the yacht.
“Hold on!” Xia Lei suddenly called out. “My woman is in there sleeping. I don’t wish to disturb her.”
“Hahaha…”
The soldiers preparing to search the yacht laughed loudest this time.
Winter’s Fang was the only one who did not laugh. Her voice was cold. “I’ve got to admit that your Japanese is very good, but what you say is not funny at all. If you’re trying to buy time for someone outside to save you, then you are making a big mistake. This is the time period when the Japanese and American military are having a joint exercise. Ships from outside won’t dare to enter.”
Xia Lei spoke evenly, “I’m not waiting for our ship. I just don’t want to disturb her, that’s it. You want me to disclose my mission details, then fine, I’ll disclose them. I just request that you don’t disturb the rest of my woman. Additionally, give me a minute. I need to gather my thoughts. You guys will get the results you want.”
Don’t disturb the rest of his woman?
This was quite a puzzling condition.
Winter’s Fang and the man exchanged glances, and the man said, “One minute. You’ll regret any tricks.”
Winter’s Fang held the scalpel under Xia Lei’s eye and said coldly, “One minute. If you don’t disclose your mission details, I’ll carve out your eyes, then your little thing. Don’t worry, you won’t die. I’ll still want you to have a taste of my surgical skills. You’ll wish you were dead!”
The two agents had come to a shared agreement, and the soldiers who’d been ordered to search the yacht were temporarily stopped. They looked mockingly down at Xia Lei, who was lying on the deck.
All the Japanese people on the yacht could see Xia Lei’s end, and it was not a pretty end. Whether in history or in modern times, the result for Chinese spies who were caught were the same. Mercy? That did not exist in their dictionary.
Under the glares of an audience, Xia Lei bowed his head once again, and looked at the chain of alloy pieces around his neck. His gaze was strange, full of an unexplained terror, and he looked to be in pain.
“What is that? I’m asking you a question. Answer!” Winter’s Fang was confused.
Xia Lei did not respond.
“Bastard!” Winter’s Fang swung her hand, and slapped Xia Lei across the cheek.
Xia Lei still did not respond.
The man caught her hand and said, “Give him a minute. It’s just one minute. Would the Chinese troops appear in front of us in one minute? He’s already in our hands, and his fate is for us to decide. There’s no difference, be it one minute earlier or later.”
“Fine.” Winter’s Fang looked at the watch on her wrist to wait for a minute to pass.
That one minute had actually already passed when Winter’s Fang spoke.
“All right, no more wasting time. Spit it out!” Winter’s Fang shoved Xia Lei.
Xia Lei raised his head and said, “I know you hate me, but I have my reasons for doing so. I promise you, I’ll give you a very satisfactory explanation. It’s just… You can see it too, right? I’m in a very bad situation right now.”
What were these strange words about?
The man and Winter’s Fang couldn’t help exchanging glances. The two special agents were filled with surprise and wariness. The soldiers keeping watch on Xia Lei looked at him oddly too. All of them seemed to have the same question in their heads – had this punk gone mad?
Xia Lei was not mad, of course. He was talking to someone, only that someone was Princess Yongmei. He was the only one on Earth who could see her.
Princess Yongmei’s eyes were glued to the chain of alloy pieces around Xia Lei’s neck as soon as she was released. She was not thirsting after the AE capsule around his neck at all. She was full of anger towards Xia Lei, and he could see it right away from the way she looked at him. If she could harm Xia Lei, she would probably have rushed at him and punched him right then and there.
Xia Lei looked straight at Princess Yongmei too, ignoring everyone else. He spoke calmly, “You said you’ve waited for me for a long time. I’ve counted from the era you were born. It’s been hundreds of years, hasn’t it? You were imprisoned in there for hundreds of years and it was I who released you. Do you still have complaints about me?”
“You released me, but why did you imprison me again! I’ve said that I don’t want to go in! Never!” Princess Yongmei shouted at Xia Lei.
Her body was energy, and her voice was also energy, but Xia Lei was the only one who could decipher this energy. Her voice formed only in his head, and no one else could hear it.
This was all very strange to the Japanese people on the yacht. They could hear Xia Lei’s voice, but not Princess Yongmei’s.
“Bastard! Are you trying to play dumb?” The man was angered, and he kicked Xia Lei in the chest.
This was a vicious kick, and Xia Lei lost his balance. He fell to the deck.
At almost the same instant, Princess Yongmei screamed, “NO–”
‘Why is she so concerned about me?’ Xia Lei had been hit, but he did not mind it at all. His was only thinking about things related to Princess Yongmei.
He had made a decision to have a good talk with Princess Yongmei, but he had not expected for the talk to take place in this place, and in this situation.
“Forget it, this punk is beyond saving,” said Winter’s Fang. “You guys go drag that woman out. I’m going to skin her in front of him. I’ll see how much longer he can keep his mouth shut!”
Xia Lei suddenly spoke. “Zhu Xuanyue, kill these people immediately, or I’ll close you up forever in that void. These people will kill me, and then there will be no one to release you.”
Princess Yongmei grew anxious. “Y, You can’t do this to me! You are my ‘One’!”
“Kill them!” Xia Lei roared at Princess Yongmei.
PAH! Winter’s Fang slapped Xia Lei across the cheek. “What’s with the crazy act? You think I don’t understand Chinese? Who is Zhu Xuanyue?”
At that moment, Princess Yongmei made her move. Her elegant, jade-white hands plunged noiselessly into Winter’s Fang’s head. And in that instant, the fierce Winter’s Fang was abruptly quieted. She had no expression. Her eyes were blank – there was nothing. It looked like her soul had gone to another world in that second, leaving just an empty husk behind.
What was stranger was that though it looked like Winter’s Fang’s soul had left her body, she was still in her standing position, and she did not fall down.
No one had noticed anything weird happening to Winter’s Fang. All their gazes were still on Xia Lei.