Chapter 272: The Hero Saving the Day Gets Hurt (Fifth Update)

Jing Shu kicked the door open with a loud bang. The detonator was already sparking and crackling at high speed, and she could even see the electric arcs dancing along it.

“Boom!”

Just as the explosion was about to hit, Jing Shu arrived in the nick of time. “Get in here!” she shouted, and in an instant, all the explosives in the room were sucked into her space. However, the detonator had already activated, and in the fraction of a second before she could collect everything, a small amount of explosive material remained and triggered an explosion.

For the second time that day, Jing Shu was hurled across the room by a shockwave, only this time it was much worse. Her forehead struck something hard, splitting open, and blood trickled down her face, leaving her looking battered and beaten.

The entire conference room exploded with a resounding boom, but thanks to her efforts, the explosion was diminished by thousands of times!

Jing Shu lay on the ground for a moment, too exhausted to move. Every part of her body ached, and she thought to herself, "This day is just too intense. If there are more explosives around, I don’t know if I can handle it."

Suddenly, she heard the sound of boots marching in from outside. "Crap," she thought. "Of course they’d show up now, right when I’ve finished!"

Reluctantly, she pulled out the nearly four tons of TNT she had just collected, making it look like she had merely disabled the detonator and left the explosives intact. After all, the people outside were all sharp-eyed veterans.

For someone as familiar with TNT as Jing Shu, she knew how to stop a detonator from setting off explosives—just cut off the power. It sounded simple but was actually very risky. In her previous life, she had never dared to try it herself. This time, she had relied on her space ability to safely deal with the situation.

Suddenly, a bright floodlight was trained on her, and she raised her hand to shield her eyes from the glare.

“There’s someone alive in there!”

“Grab them!”

“Wait! Captain Wang, I know this person. She’s the one Mr. Su and Mr. Qian were looking for.”

Jing Shu glanced up and saw a familiar pair of military boots approaching. When she looked up further, she saw Yang Yang’s sharp but concerned face.

“Is that you, Jing Shu?” he asked.

Her ears were still ringing from the explosion, but she managed to hear him and nodded. “Yeah, it’s me.”

Yang Yang rushed over, the sound of his boots echoing as he hurried to help her up. “Are you hurt badly? Mr. Qian has an old doctor with him.”

Jing Shu shook her head. “It’s not too bad, but I should probably get bandaged up.”

Captain Wang frowned. “Yang Yang, what’s going on here?”

“Captain Wang, this is Jing Shu, the classmate who was with Su Mali throughout the incident. She’s the one who protected Su Mali and brought her here safely. Mr. Su was asking about her earlier. She suspected that Lin Yi was planning to blow up the castle, so she went off on her own to investigate.”

Captain Wang’s expression softened. “Alright, get her patched up. The rest of us will check the rubble for more explosives.”

Jing Shu pointed toward a direction. “There was a woman who was using a detonator to trigger TNT explosives. I managed to disarm most of it, but she still set off a small portion. Check to see if she’s still alive.”

Captain Wang’s eyes widened in surprise, gesturing toward the explosives nearby. “You disabled the explosives while the detonator was active?”

Jing Shu nodded. “I knew it was risky, but I figured if I didn’t act, we’d all be dead.”

“Good! Excellent! You’ve saved all of our lives! When we got here, we started disarming what we could, but we only managed to deal with two of the diversionary charges. We had no idea the real threat was here. Jing Shu, you’ve earned yourself a huge commendation!”

“I’ve disarmed several major charges already. Too bad I can’t take credit for everything.”

Jing Shu felt a pang of regret—four tons of TNT gone. In the post-apocalyptic world, explosives were highly valuable and had many uses. But she consoled herself with the fact that she still had fourteen tons of TNT stored in her space. "Guess I’m the real arms dealer now," she thought wryly.

“Report! The woman’s upper body was blown to pieces. Only her lower half remains.”

Captain Wang waved dismissively. “Take her back and run a DNA test to confirm her identity.”

Supported by Yang Yang, Jing Shu made her way back to the grand castle hall. The place was packed with people, but the atmosphere was tense and silent. Outside, the sounds of explosions gradually faded. Jing Shu figured the entire mountain had probably been blown to bits. From now on, rumors about the destruction of Xishan, the mountain that housed the richest man in town, would spread like wildfire.

As she leaned on Yang Yang, she couldn’t help but admire the extravagant castle. In the past, she had only seen it from a distance, marveling at its towering walls. But now, standing inside, her first impression was that it was massive. The ten-meter-high ceiling and the grand, open hall were a testament to understated luxury. Everything here was worth a fortune.

Ah, it must be nice to be rich. Even better to be rich in the apocalypse.

“Jing Shu! Jing Shu, are you alright? Don’t scare me like that!” Su Mali came rushing over, her voice trembling with emotion.

Jing Shu’s entrance drew everyone’s attention. After all, she was the one who had bravely ventured off to prevent the castle from being blown up. And she had succeeded—though the mountain had been rocked by explosions, the castle itself had been spared from complete destruction, save for one corner.

Qian Duo Duo, whose face had been livid moments earlier, now softened his expression. “Get her treated immediately,” he ordered, before turning to ask, “What’s the status of things?”

Earlier, Qian Duo Duo had claimed that his castle was the safest place around. But not long after, it had been proven that even the mighty fortress could be breached with explosives. When the search team entered, they discovered numerous vulnerabilities.

It was only then that Qian Duo Duo learned that a tunnel had been dug beneath his castle. Because of the reinforced materials used in the construction, the intruders had only been able to dig up to the entrance. But once Qian Duo Duo ordered the castle’s defenses to open up, the attackers had taken advantage of the situation to plant their explosives.

Yang Yang stepped forward. “We have succeeded, sir. Jing Shu managed to cut off the detonators for four tons of TNT, saving us all from a massive explosion.”

“Seriously? That’s incredible!” someone exclaimed.

“It must be true, look at the state she’s in,” another added.

“Thank the heavens for watching over us.”

Qian Duo Duo exhaled heavily, then gently patted Jing Shu’s shoulder. “Today, I owe you a great debt. You not only uncovered the plot but also saved us all from catastrophe. I, Qian Duo Duo, am deeply grateful to you.”

Su Xiangnan, whose grim expression had also softened, added, “I’m not as stingy as Qian Duo Duo. I owe you two debts, one for saving my daughter and another for saving me.”

“Then I’ll owe you four,” Qian Duo Duo snorted. “You saved all four members of my family.”

-- Author's Note --

This afternoon, I'll start adding three extra chapters to repay the rewards from my supporters.