At the moment, a death-like silence engulfed the massive mall floor the madness burning within Youlang's eyes and
the bloodthirsty insanity on his face sends chils through every person hiding there
Wherever people were hiding, they sat frozen like stone, holding their breath.
The silence was so deep that even the sound of a needle falling could have echoed through the entire mall.
Yet beneath that silence, the heartbeats of the hidden people were racing like the engine of a speeding train. Every passing second felt like the final moment of their lives.
And then, in the middle of that suffocating fear... something happened that no one had expected.
One Fashion Consultant finally forced herself to overcome her trembling fear.
Her courage became stronger than the terror inside her. Taking a deep breath,
she glanced around and suddenly ran with all her strength. Her target was a large store across the hall.
She knew very well that she was playing with fire. If a ruthless monster like Youlang had noticed her even for a single second,
he wouldn't have thought twice before killing her. Turning her body into a corpse would take less than a moment for him.
Perhaps luck was on her side... or maybe she was simply too fast. Somehow, she safely made it inside the store.
But Youlang...
His senses were as sharp as a hunting hawk. Even while sitting on his chair, he faintly felt that a shadow had just rushed past him.
His piercing hawk-like eyes swept across the surroundings. Sitting there, he carefully observed every possible path around him.
Slowly, his hand moved toward his weapon. But fortunately, he saw nothing. The girl had already disappeared into the darkness of the store.
Meanwhile, in another part of the mall, the staff members and the manager hiding there felt their breaths getting stuck in their throats.
They were completely stunned. Their eyes widened in disbelief after witnessing such reckless courage from the girl who worked alongside them.
Just then, from the dim darkness, one of the staff girls spoke in a hesitant, trembling whisper,
"Wha... what did Senior just do? If... if that gangster had..seen her then...?"
Her throat had gone dry from fear, and she couldn't even finish her sentence.
The manager, who had been hiding in a corner all this time, still had his eyes fixed on the store where the Senior Fashion Consultant had gone.
He let out a deep, cold breath. His face was filled with mixed emotions of shame and admiration. In a low whisper, he said,
"I'm a man... and yet I'm this terrified...But she's just a girl... and she showed such incredible..courage."
A look of respect appeared in the manager's eyes as he continued,
"I'm proud of her... truly. Girls like her are the ones.. who succeed in life—the ones who refuse to..bow before fear."
Hearing the manager's words, an unusual silence spread among the entire staff. No one had anything to say anymore.
The fear inside them still remained, but along with that fear, a silent prayer and a strange new courage had also begun to rise in their hearts for their Senior.
Inside the dimly lit and cold corner of the store, the Fashion Consultant stood leaning against the wall, breathing heavily.
Her chest was rising and falling rapidly. While running here, only one fear had consumed her mind—if Youlang had seen her, he would never have spared her life.
Perhaps he wouldn't have even given her a chance to suffer before killing her. Her body was still trembling from that fear.
Seeing her condition, Alisha, Fangxi, and Younshu—who were already hiding there—fell silent for a moment. Alisha quickly stepped forward and said in a low but angry voice,
"Are you crazy?! If that Youlang had..seen you, all of us would've been.. killed!"
Hearing the anger in Alisha's voice, the Fashion Consultant quickly placed a hand on her chest and tried to steady her breathing before speaking in a panicked whisper,
"We... we need..help!"
Seeing her worsening condition and hearing those words, Alisha's expression softened.
She immediately held the girl's trembling shoulder for support and sat down beside her on the floor.
Looking into her eyes, Alisha asked in an extremely soft and calming voice,
"Are you okay? What kind of help..do you need? Calm down and speak.. slowly... you're safe here."
The Fashion Consultant took a deep breath and slowly raised her trembling eyes toward Alisha.
Her lips were shaking, but along with fear, there was also a strange hope shining in her eyes.
Stammering softly, she whispered,
"The girl... the one who was with you... the one who beat that.. gangster Youlang so badly... where is she?"
Hearing that question, Alisha froze for a moment. A look of surprise crossed her face. After pausing briefly, she replied,
"Her... her name is.. Sheyaan..."
Then Alisha quietly pointed toward Fangxi, who was standing in the corner, and continued,
"And she's..Fangxi's sister. But... why are you suddenly asking about her.. in the middle of all...this fear? What happened?"
There was now both concern and curiosity in Alisha's voice, because she had already realized that this girl hadn't risked her life and come here for some ordinary reason.
Hearing Alisha's question, the Fashion Consultant became visible nervous. swallowing hard she spoke with trembling lips,
"She... Sheyaan seems like a really...brave girl to me. I thought maybe... she could help us in..this situation!
Because this Youlang... he's not going to leave this place so.. easily. He'll continue creating destruction... here until the owner of the mall... personally arrives."
She looked toward Fangxi and Younshu sitting nearby. Tears were visible in her eyes.
"But... but Boss can't come.. right now. It will take him at least..two or three days to get.. here!
Please... please help us, so that all the...innocent people trapped inside this mall can return... safely to their homes.."
"Otherwise, if anything goes.. wrong here... our mall and the owner's... reputation will be...completely ruined!"
Fangxi, Younshu, and Alisha listened to the Fashion Consultant's fearful and emotional words without even breathing properly. The silence in the atmosphere became even heavier.
Just then, Fangxi—who was sitting on the floor while leaning against a large rack in the corner—spoke in a flat yet anger-filled voice,
"What exactly does this...Youlang want?! Why has he come... here?!"
His fist tightened with anger as he spoke.
Hearing Fangxi's question, the Fashion Consultant looked at the three of them.
There was now a horrifying truth on her face, one that no one was prepared to hear.
In a very low and trembling voice, she said,
"I... I'll tell you everything. But first... first we need to find Sheyaan... Because...Youlang has planted bombs all over...the mall! We don't have much time...left at all!"
The moment Younshu heard that, his expression instantly turned serious. Sweat appeared on his forehead as he quickly stepped forward and said,
"Yeah! If that's true, then maybe the first... thing we should do is find... Sheyaan and Zavian. We seriously don't have...much time!"
After hearing Younshu's words, Alisha and Fangxi looked at each other. There was no longer just fear in their eyes anymore—
there was fire now. The fire of a battle against time... a battle that had finally begun.
Hearing Younshu's words, Alisha and Fangxi silently nodded. Their faces were filled with heavy silence, but inside their minds, a storm was raging.
Just then, the Fashion Consultant spoke in an extremely low whisper, creating a wall of hopelessness none of them had an answer for:
"But... Youlang is sitting right..outside. How are we supposed to get out... of here? We can't go.. outside!"
Her words had barely settled into the air when suddenly, a heavy, bloodthirsty voice echoed from outside.
It sounded like the decree of an executioner cutting straight through the deadly silence of the mall.
"Everyone's countdown..has begun...!"
There was a wolf-like laughter hidden in Youlang's voice.
"I'll only...count to ten... the countdown... starts now... 10! 9...!"
Youlang had truly begun the countdown like a savage predator.
Each number struck the walls of the mall like a giant hammer. The moment the hidden innocent people heard that first
"Ten" and "Nine," their breaths got stuck in their throats. Inside the store, Fangxi, Younshu, Alisha, and the Fashion Consultant stared in absolute horror.
Their bodies were slowly turning cold. Just imagining what could happen after ten seconds was enough to make their souls tremble.
But in the middle of this destruction... the story had already shifted elsewhere.
On the second floor of the mall, inside a dimly lit store, Sheyaan and Zavian were hiding together.
The moment Youlang's terrifying countdown reached their ears, Sheyaan finally snapped.
She abandoned every attempt to stay quiet and, with a mixture of fear and anger, shouted at Zavian—
"Zayan, do something...! How can you be this ruthless? Don't you have even a little bit mercy?!"
both anger and desperation filled Sheyaan's voice. At that moment, she was sitting on top of a counter some distance away, shouting at Zavian from there.
But Zavian? It was as if the destruction around him meant absolutely nothing.
Leaning casually against another counter, he simply stood there quietly, staring only at Sheyaan with his deep eyes. Not a single word came from his lips.
Downstairs, everyone was trembling in fear of death, their breaths trapped in their throats.
But here, on the second floor, Sheyaan and Zavian sat fearlessly—as if Youlang's terrifying countdown echoing outside held no meaning for them at all.
When Zavian still gave no response this time, Sheyaan finally lost her patience.
She jumped down from the counter in one swift motion and walked straight toward him.
Pointing her finger at him angrily, she said,
"Can't you.. hear me?! I've been talking to you...for so long!"
Seeing her outburst, Zavian finally moved slightly from his place. He slowly swept his cold gaze around,
took a deep breath, and then spoke in an extremely casual, attitude-filled tone...
"Sheyaan, I'm honestly... getting bored here... Why don't we just go... home?"
"What?!"
Hearing that, Sheyaan was completely shocked. The entire mall was filled with bombs,
people were about to die, and this guy was talking about going home! Her shock instantly turned into irritation as she spoke—
"What... you want to go...home?! And what about the disaster... happening here?!"
Sheyaan's temper shot through the roof. Pointing angrily toward the lower floor, she snapped,
"That bastard sitting... downstairs has already started the... countdown! Everyone down there is... terrified for their lives, and you... you're talking so casually about...wanting to go home?!"
After listening to Sheyaan's long rant and irritation, Zavian made a bored face. Holding his head, he muttered in a low voice,
"You talk too much... you're giving me a headache. Just stay... quiet, will you?"
Seeing his shameless attitude, anger blazed through Sheyaan's entire body. She stood there stiffly, glaring at Zavian with fiery eyes.
In the tense silence, even the sound of their breathing could be heard clearly.
Then, in anger, Sheyaan made a final decision and turned away.
"Fine! You go home... and don't ever show me your... face again. I'll handle everything...here myself."
Zavian looked at her in surprise, but Sheyaan had no intention of stopping. Walking quickly toward the exit, she continued,
"I'm going to talk to.. that Youlang! I'll ask him what he... actually wants... If I can talk things out with... him, maybe everyone in this mall... can survive. Otherwise... otherwise everyone...will die!"
The moment those words left Sheyaan's mouth... the carefree and cold expression on Zavian's face changed instantly.
It was as if something had struck his mind like a shockwave. He was completely stunned.
He never expected that, in her anger, Sheyaan would take such a dangerous and life-threatening step.
Leaning casually against the counter was no longer possible for Zavian.
In one swift motion, he pushed himself away from it, stood completely straight, and adjusted his coat.
The playful mood around him had completely disappeared, and a deep seriousness filled his eyes now... the kind of seriousness that only settled when someone was about to face death.
Zavian spoke from behind in a calm, flat voice,
"Sheyaan! How can you talk to..me like this?! Saying that I should... never show you..my face again?!"
There was a strange mix of authority and concern in his tone this time.He stepped forward, trying to block her path.
"And you are absolutely not..going near that Youlang! That bastard is a... wolf... he can do something horrible.... to you!"
But Sheyaan was completely stubborn right now. She threw a cold, emotionless glance at him and simply said,
"You should.. just go home... and rest!"
There was pure sarcasm in her voice. Without stopping for even a second, she turned around and stormed out of the store angrily.
The moment Zavian saw her leaving, he froze in place for a split second.
His mind went blank. But the very next moment, he rushed after her. This time, he didn't even try to stay hidden. Instead, he shouted at the top of his voice,
"Sheyaan! Are you taunting... me?! But remember this... I am never leaving you... behind!"
Zavian's loud and echoing shout reached all the way down to the lower floor.
The voice ripped through the deadly silence and struck directly into Youlang's ears.
All the people hiding around the mall were stunned after hearing such a loud voice.
Even Fangxi, Younshu, Alisha, and the Fashion Consultant hiding inside the store looked completely shocked.
Youlang suddenly jerked his head upward toward the second floor. His vicious gaze instantly locked onto Sheyaan and Zavian, who were now stepping out near the railing above.
Sheyaan's face was burning with cute anger as she walked forward quickly. And Zavian?
He looked completely fearless, both hands tucked casually inside his pant pockets,
walking right behind her like a cold and deadly bodyguard. A dangerous aura surrounded him—something impossible to ignore.
Sitting below, Youlang stared at the two of them approaching from above. A slow, cunning smirk spread across his face.
In a proud, mocking tone, he muttered,
"Looks like my threat... finally got into their..heads."
Youlang sat there proudly enjoying what he believe was he victory whoever the unfortunate fool had no idea that his death--along with the real destruction inside the mall was about to begin