Chapter 347: Don’t Struggle, It’s Useless

Xiao Yu sprinted over eighty meters, leaving the two special agents behind by half the distance as he dashed into Building B. He stopped in front of the two elevators. Both were currently in use, one stopped on the 14th floor and the other on the 11th floor.

As the two agents approached, Xiao Yu gave a quick order, “You two guard the elevators.”

Without another word, he dashed into the stairwell and raced upward.

Now that there was no one around, he unleashed both Leopard’s Speed and Bear’s Strength skills.

Like a lightning bolt, Xiao Yu reached the fifth floor within a few breaths.

But then, Xiao Yu’s footsteps abruptly halted, and he frowned.

If the suspect wasn’t using the elevator or stairs, could they escape from above?

They could.

His expression darkened slightly. Without hesitation, he opened the stairwell window and stuck his head out to check.

“Shit,” he cursed under his breath.

A man was gripping a rope, rapidly sliding down the building’s exterior. He was already at the third floor.

‘Can I catch him if I run down? No, it’s too late.’

Xiao Yu didn’t hesitate. With one arm hooked onto the window frame, he vaulted out.

From this height—between the fifth and sixth floors—jumping straight down would be suicidal. Even with the system’s enhancements, if he didn’t die, he’d still be crippled.

But he wasn’t falling. The instant he leaped out, his palm clamped onto the edge of the windowsill, suspending his body outside the building. Then, he released his grip.

His hand caught the fourth-floor windowsill, breaking his fall.

Another release.

Smack— Third floor.

Another buffer.

A heart-stopping scene unfolded.

Floor by floor, Xiao Yu used the windowsills to slow his descent. In the blink of an eye, he landed on the ground.

His eyes, cold and sharp, locked onto the man who had just reached the ground by rope.

It wasn’t Wu Hanran.

But so what? Why was he tailing the police and the special agents?

The young man stood frozen, staring at Xiao Yu with wide, disbelieving eyes.

‘How how is this possible? How did he dare… Did he actually jump down from the fifth or sixth floor, bit by bit? Is that even humanly possible?!’

For an ordinary person—no. But for someone trained in extreme sports—yes. Like a skilled parkour runner. Or an expert climber. Or better yet, someone with a system ability: Movement Expert.

“Not running anymore?” Xiao Yu stepped toward him, one slow stride at a time.

The man looked about twenty-four or twenty-five, with an average face and a height of around 1.7 meters—one of those forgettable types who could easily disappear into a crowd. But his movements were quick and agile.

After all, how many ordinary people would dare rappel down from a dozen floors using just a single rope?

And more importantly—what’s worth risking your life like this unless it’s absolutely necessary?

As Xiao Yu approached, the young man spun on his heel to flee.

But before he could even take a step, a hand, heavy as a mountain, slammed down on his shoulder.

‘How… how is this possible…?’

The young man’s mind reeled.

‘We were at least seven or eight meters apart just now! How did he cross that distance in an instant?!’

His instincts kicked in. His arm shot up, elbow driving backward in a vicious strike. The blow landed solidly—right against Xiao Yu’s chest. A flicker of hope lit up the young man’s face.

But why wasn’t he falling?

Because of the system skill: Rhino Defense.

A cold voice, laced with chilling amusement, whispered from behind him, “Done struggling? So is it my turn now?”

Stiffening his neck, the young man slowly turned his head and saw Xiao Yu’s handsome yet cold face. He also saw the disdain on Xiao Yu’s face.

It was as if he was saying: I’ve already taken off my pants, and you’re playing this game with me?

The young man roared, twisted his waist, and swung his thigh up, aiming for Xiao Yu’s head.

But, Xiao Yu lunged forward, his hand shooting out to seize the young man by the neck. With a powerful lift, he hoisted the man high—then drove him straight into the ground. The young man’s body slammed into the floor, crashing down like a sack of bricks.

“Stop struggling. It’s useless.”

Squatting down, Xiao Yu stared coldly at the young man lying on the ground.

“Do you know Wu Hanran?”

He hadn’t gone for the kill, otherwise, the young man would already be a corpse. He didn’t use too much force, so the young man was still conscious.

Through the searing pain, the young man’s face twisted in fear, but he still raised his arm.

The young man’s arm snapped.

“Does it hurt?”

Watching the young man howl in agony, Xiao Yu grinned.

“I told you, it’s useless.”

Unfortunately, the young man seemed incapable of understanding human language. He raised his other arm.

Broken again.

The young man rolled on the ground, screaming in pain.

Xiao Yu slowly stood up, watching him silently, until two special operations officers rushed over.

Zhou Lie and Shen Mei arrived with a large group of operatives. Seeing the young man wailing on the ground, the two team leaders frowned. Not because of the young man’s misery, but because he wasn’t Wu Hanran.

“You didn’t find him, did you?” Xiao Yu said without turning his head.

The two group leaders exchanged glances and gave a bitter smile.

“He probably disguised himself as Wu Hanran to lure us here.” Xiao Yu pointed at the young man on the ground. “Make him talk.”

***

Half an hour later.

In a business suite within an office building, Zhou Lie stepped out of a room, his face grim. He approached Xiao Yu and Shen Mei, who were seated in the lounge, and said coldly, “Pawn.”

What was a pawn?

Someone used when they’re useful, then discarded without hesitation when they’re not. Sometimes, their disposal even serves as a useful distraction for the enemy. People like that are usually driven by money, selling their services to foreign intelligence agencies.

Another word for them: traitor.

And traitors never met a good end. They either rotted in prison for life or faced the firing squad. There was no third option.

“They threw a pawn to divert us and whisked Wu Hanran away?” Xiao Yu frowned.

“That’s likely it,” Shen Mei nodded. “A standard tactic.”

This kind of operation was Group Five’s specialty.

Using a pawn to cause a distraction was the most common decoy strategy, sometimes a lure to bait a bigger catch. And only special operatives could truly handle special operatives. Regular police or armed police could rarely stop a special operative from escaping.

Likewise, producing an elite special operative wasn’t easy.

The frustrating part?

Wu Hanran was one of those top-tier operatives.

“There’s something off about this,” Xiao Yu said, his tone laced with sarcasm. “Why are they helping Wu Hanran? Think about it. If these external forces only wanted the two hidden sites, they could search for them themselves once they got the blueprints. Why insist on having Wu Hanran find them? Does that make any sense to you?”

Shen Mei and Zhou Lie froze, their eyes wide with shock.

Indeed, that didn’t make sense.

With the blueprints, why risk turning Wu Hanran into a defector and provoking National Security’s involvement?

Wouldn’t it be smarter to slip in quietly and search for the sites undetected?

“Unless…” Xiao Yu’s eyes flashed coldly. “They need Wu Hanran to do it.”