In a quiet and elegant villa halfway up a mountain on the outskirts of Qinggu City.
A young man, not yet twenty, rushed into the villa's basement and knocked on a door.
The young man's name was Zhao Qiang. He had been adopted by the Zhao Family as a child and grew up alongside Zhao Lingxiao, earning the deep trust of both the father and son, Zhao Yuanyi and Zhao Lingxiao.
Inside the room, on a soft, large bed, Zhao Lingxiao casually pushed away a young woman nestled between his legs. He threw on a robe, opened the door, and looked at Zhao Qiang.
"What is it?"
Zhao Qiang said, catching his breath, "The one in Pan Shi Prison... that fake young master sent a message to me."
"Oh? He probably wants to beg the family for help," Zhao Lingxiao asked nonchalantly. "Where's the messenger?"
"I had someone give him half a million and sent him away."
Zhao Lingxiao nodded and asked again, "What exactly did that knock-off say?"
"He said he wanted a full meal before he died, and he said something I didn't understand."
"What was it?"
"He asked, 'Where did the doll go?'"
The moment Zhao Qiang spoke, Zhao Lingxiao's expression changed dramatically. A mix of complex emotions flickered across his handsome face.
Zhao Lingxiao slammed the door behind him. He took a few deep breaths before regaining his composure.
His brow was tightly furrowed, his mind racing. After a long moment, he asked, "Besides me, have you told anyone else about this?"
"No." Zhao Qiang shook his head. "Not even the Minister knows."
"Good. You don't need to say anything more, I'll talk to him," Zhao Lingxiao said, sighing in relief. "It looks like I'll have to make a trip to Pan Shi Prison."
"Young Master, your position is sensitive right now. If something needs to be done, you can just arrange for someone else to do it. Why take the risk?"
"No, this is something I have to do myself!"
A murderous glint flashed in Zhao Lingxiao's eyes.
Everyone thought he was Zhao Yuanyi's only son, but few people knew he once had a younger brother, eight years his junior.
Before his brother was born, Zhao Lingxiao's considerable talent had made him the hope of the Zhao Family. Zhao Yuanyi saw him as the key to elevating the family's status and poured all available resources into his development.
But when his brother was born, he possessed a dense evolutionary power, a talent that surpassed his own. He was doted on by Zhao Yuanyi and became the family's greatest hope.
Unfortunately, this young genius of the Zhao Family met an untimely end just after his third birthday, accidentally falling into a well and dying.
No one knew that he had fallen into the well trying to retrieve a doll that had dropped to the bottom.
And no one knew that it was Zhao Lingxiao who had thrown the doll in.
After all, who would suspect an eleven-year-old child?
This had always been Zhao Lingxiao's most deeply buried secret, known only to him.
'Where did the doll go?'
The moment Zhao Lingxiao heard those words, he understood. The scapegoat in Pan Shi Prison knew he was a clone and was threatening him with the dirtiest secret of his past.
If he did nothing, the man would surely reveal everything during the identity verification before the execution tomorrow. The consequences would be more than he could bear.
Zhao Lingxiao didn't know what Su Ze's ultimate goal was, but he had no choice. He had to kill his other self in the prison before the execution to silence him, and he had to do it himself.
If the fact that he and his father had used a clone as a fall guy was exposed, Zhao Yuanyi would be held accountable, he himself would become a wanted man, and the Zhao Family would be finished.
If he asked Zhao Yuanyi to send an expert to kill Su Ze in prison, Su Ze would definitely reveal that he had murdered his own brother. The news would inevitably reach Zhao Yuanyi's ears.
Zhao Lingxiao had no idea how his calculating father would deal with him after learning that he had killed his own flesh and blood.
Therefore, his only option now was to personally enter Pan Shi Prison and kill Su Ze!
Zhao Lingxiao called Zhao Yuanyi.
"Hey, Dad."
"There's a problem. The impostor in prison knows his identity now."
"I plan to go there myself tonight. I'll need you to take care of things on the Pan Shi Prison side."
"I suspect he also knows about the 'princess' matter. I don't trust sending anyone else, so it's best if I handle it myself."
"Don't worry, I've already completed my first evolution and have a Tier 2 wondrous object. Nothing will go wrong."
...
「Pan Shi Prison.」
It was just after dinnertime. Su Ze leaned back on his bed, wiped the grease from the corner of his mouth, and let out a satisfied burp.
His two cellmates didn't like chicken legs, so the ever-helpful Su Ze had no choice but to help them digest their dinner, lest the food go to waste.
In contrast to Su Ze's relaxation, "Vampire" and "Sickly" were on edge, fretting over the outcome.
Su Ze's escape plan had given the two death row inmates a glimmer of hope, but now they were starting to suspect his so-called plan was just a ploy to trick them out of their chicken legs.
"Kid, if you're scamming me, I swear, I'll beat the shit out of you before the execution tomorrow!" Vampire said coldly.
Sickly added sinisterly, "That's right. You can't just get away with eating our chicken legs. Even if they've turned to shit, you'll puke them out the same way they went in."
"Relax, relax. Just wait patiently until late tonight, and don't fall asleep."
Su Ze sounded nonchalant, but a dangerous light flickered in his eyes.
'The best salvation always arrives in the dead of night.'
...
Su Ze probably understood Zhao Lingxiao better than Zhao Lingxiao understood himself.
He knew Zhao Lingxiao would definitely come tonight, and that he would choose the dead of night, when it was quietest.
Therefore, he kept his eyes closed, conserving his energy and maintaining a sharp mental state.
His two cellmates, however, were gradually losing patience.
"It's fucking past midnight, and we haven't seen a damn thing! Are you messing with me?"
"Shut up!" Su Ze snapped, then whispered, "Listen."
The three of them focused, and faintly, they could hear the sound of the prison's main gate opening.
Vampire and Sickly stiffened, immediately holding their breath.
'He's here!'
Su Ze also took a deep breath, preparing himself.
At that moment, the outermost iron gate of Pan Shi Prison slowly swung open. A figure wearing a black hoodie, sunglasses, and a mask—completely shrouded in shadow—walked slowly into the courtyard.
It was, of course, Zhao Lingxiao.
Before him was a massive, metal, box-like structure—the confinement area where prisoners were held. To the side stood a three-story concrete building, which served as the administrative offices for Pan Shi Prison.
Zhao Lingxiao headed straight for the confinement area. The entire structure was built from Super Alloy. Its only entrance was guarded by three Prison Guards even in the dead of night, including a Prison Guard captain who was at the Cocoon Stage.
However, when the three Prison Guards saw the suspicious-looking Zhao Lingxiao, they acted as if they hadn't seen him at all, remaining silent.
The Prison Guard captain turned, glanced through the small glass window on the confinement area's gate to check the situation behind it, and then entered the code, opening the heavy door.
Zhao Lingxiao walked straight in. No words were exchanged between them.
Meanwhile, in the surveillance room of the administrative building, the Prison Guard in charge of monitoring the cameras suddenly stood up, picked up his phone, lit a cigarette, and walked into the restroom.
The surveillance monitor was looping footage from an hour ago. Zhao Lingxiao's figure was nowhere to be seen.
The power of money was truly terrifying!