Inside the hospital ward.
On the pristine white hospital bed, the female patrol officer slowly awakened. After struggling to open her eyes, she saw an unfamiliar ceiling and suddenly opened her eyes wide, bolting upright in bed.
Next to the hospital bed, her assistant had already awoken and was sitting beside her, looking at her phone. Seeing her boss wake up, she couldn't help but express her surprise, "Captain Xu, you're awake."
Xu Qiu murmured to herself, then suddenly, with a jolt of realization, looked toward her assistant, wanting to inquire about Lin Qing's condition. But after opening her mouth, she didn't manage to ask anything.
Was there any need to ask?
The General Captain wasn't in Lin'an, and Lin Qing had been attacked by that lunatic Chu Tianyao. Wasn't the outcome certain death?
"Captain Xu." Her assistant spoke with some excitement, "I just received an outrageous piece of news, you'll definitely be—"
"I'm not in the mood right now."
Xu Qiu interrupted her, paused for a moment, and then gently shook her head, "First, take me to Lin Qing; there are a few things I want to say to him."
"Say? Now?" The assistant asked with some confusion.
She had been so shocked when she received the message, how did Captain Xu guess this immediately after waking up?
Xu Qiu looked at the clean white sheets, took a deep breath, and slowly said, "If I had earnestly persuaded him, moved with him, or had him wait until headquarters arrived, perhaps it wouldn't have come to this—it's partially my fault too..."
The assistant was taken aback, then suddenly realized that Captain Xu must have misunderstood something.
"This time my aunt came to Lin'an; she mentioned she wanted to see him, but now..." Xu Qiu shook her head slightly, and with a somber tone said, "His body is still here, right? Take me to see him."
"No, Captain Xu, it's not that... Lin Qing, he..."
The assistant was about to explain when suddenly the door to the ward was pushed open. Lin Qing walked in from outside.
Xu Qiu was taken aback, "You...didn't die?"
"Why does Captain Xu hope for my death as soon as you see me?" Lin Qing glanced at her and asked, "How are you doing?"
"I'm fine…" Xu Qiu couldn't quite believe it and couldn't help but ask, "What about Chu Tianyao? You really didn't get hurt at all?"
"Of course, he's dead." Lin Qing said, "Chu Tianyao's body is at the City Bureau."
"Chu Tianyao is dead?" Xu Qiu was stunned, "How did he die?"
Lin Qing casually explained, not wanting to elaborate, and shook his head, "Captain Xu, you can slowly find out about the specifics. For now, get ready. The City Bureau has issued an order for all active patrol officers to head to Lin'an International Airport."
"Shot by a bullet?" Xu Qiu found it hard to believe. How could someone as tough as Chu Tianyao be killed by a bullet?
She suppressed the doubt in her heart and said, "Okay, wait a moment for me. I'll be ready shortly."
"I'll wait for you on the first floor."
Lin Qing acknowledged with a "Hmm" and without further ado, left the ward.
"Seventh, how exactly did Chu Tianyao die?" Xu Qiu couldn't resist asking her assistant.
"I was just about to tell you about it. You were the one who didn't let me talk..." The female assistant mumbled, before explaining, "Chu Tianyao was killed by Captain Lin."
"He killed him?" Xu Qiu was taken aback, "How is that possible? Explain it to me properly."
"I'm also not very clear, the message said..."
After Xu Qiu finished tidying up her hair and uniform, and met Lin Qing again on the hospital's first floor, she couldn't help but take several more glances at him.
Lin Qing could guess her thoughts and naturally didn't mind, simply asking, "Captain Xu, your patrol car was destroyed, want to ride in the same one as me?"
"...Okay." Xu Qiu nodded gently.
After getting in the car, Xu Qiu finally couldn't hold back and asked, "Did you really kill Chu Tianyao?"
"He underestimated me; I took the opportunity to strike him from the shadows." Lin Qing shook his head slightly, "I wouldn't stand a chance against him in a direct fight."
"I heard from Seventh..." Xu Qiu looked at him oddly, "I heard you defended yourself in full with the 'Steel' and 'Soft' Combat Skill states and let the drone shoot him dead."
"That's right," Lin Qing nodded in confirmation.
"But that doesn't make sense." Xu Qiu stared at him, "The Combat Skill I practice is also from the Free Body series; I'm well aware that even the full defense state has a limit. Logically, you shouldn't have been able to withstand Chu Tianyao, unless..."
"Unless what?" Lin Qing looked at her with an almost smiling gaze.
"You must have mastered the Original Sunrise Training Method, right?" Xu Qiu asked incredulously.
"Right, I was lucky. I made a breakthrough just a few days ago." Lin Qing nodded slightly, "Captain Xu, you guessed pretty accurately."
"That's the only possibility," Xu Qiu took a deep breath, "There are no shortcuts in Combat Skill training, only gradual progression. Even for a genius, it would take at least three months; it can only be the Original Sunrise Training Method."
She looked at Lin Qing somewhat in disbelief, "Your version of the Practice Method succeeded only two months ago, right? You mastered the original version so quickly?"
"With a daily supply of High Energy Release Liquid from the EPS series and Super Sensing Liquid, it'd be strange if I didn't make it," Lin Qing shook his head.
"Super Sensing Liquid?" Xu Qiu was taken aback, "Where did you get the Super Sensing Liquid from?"
"I found it by chance at the Underground Boxing Arena." Lin Qing spoke casually, "I didn't turn it in at the time. I verified it when I got home and injected it."
This type of thing was common among patrol officers.
If someone discovered a treasure like Super Sensing Liquid, who would turn it in?
After all, he had already used it, and it was not from official resources. Instead, having made a breakthrough with it, the Patrol wouldn't care about such a minor issue but would praise him for his good fortune and cautious actions.
"Super Sensing Liquid...I see..."
Xu Qiu murmured and then said, "Even so, Super Sensing Liquid can only help you get started. That you could master the Original Chaoyang Method so quickly is also quite fast."
"Indeed. I was quite lucky," Lin Qing nodded slightly.