Chapter 259: Fire

That evening, just as Li Mochen's consciousness awakened from his body, he saw through the glass window a great deal of red and blue light flashing.

At that moment, it seemed all the police cars in Atlanta were converging on the Gerald Refinery, the glow of their lights turning a patch of clouds over there red and blue.

But at this time, Li Mochen's mind was already drowsy and exhausted beyond measure.

To seal Hazel's power, he had not only poured all the merit energy from the 'Divine Sky Spirit Fortune Purple Gold Pagoda' into it, but also sacrificed one of his external elixirs. In addition, the depletion of his soul force had left his spirit extremely weak.

So Li Mochen paid no attention to what was happening over there, nor could he muster the energy to care. He waited until Danienne Stacy and Eliza had sent Hazel back to his apartment, then lay down in his bedroom and slept soundly. It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky the next day that he woke up, but even then, he still felt a dull ache in both temples.

When Li Mochen walked out of the bedroom, his living room was already quite lively.

William Jacques, Angela, Danienne Stacy, Eliza, and Carl Holton were all sitting on the sofa, intently watching TV. It was a news program on a Georgia public television station, reporting on yesterday's match.

"——Yesterday's incident regarding Cadio Rhodes's use of prohibited substances continues to escalate. Sources have revealed that this high school fighting star from a prestigious school has been confirmed to have implanted seven 'Crete Black Blood Stones' in his body, using them to condense the residual consciousness of the demigod Minotaur as a fake battle soul."

"The NHSAA Competition Committee has intervened. If Cadio's guilt is confirmed, he and his coach will not only be permanently banned, but his school, Cadillen High, will also face a fine of over 300,000 gold shields."

"Nevertheless, many still believe this match was manipulated by betting companies. Last night, over two thousand people gathered to protest in front of the Parliament building. As of 9 a.m. today, the number of protesters has reached 20,000."

"Mr. Folkes, chairman of the Betting Regulatory Commission, stated in a previous interview that the commission will order the FBI to set up a special task force for investigation. However, he also indicated that the NHSAA Competition Committee's investigation is open, transparent, fair, and lawful, and he does not believe this investigation will yield any different results—"

"Ladies and gentlemen, let's turn the camera to the Gerald Refinery in East Atlanta. In the early hours of yesterday, a large fire broke out here, reducing the entire factory to ashes. According to police findings, it was caused by a fuel leak, which allowed the fire to sweep through all areas of the plant in less than three minutes. So far, police have found 37 bodies inside the factory, with 14 others missing."

"Meanwhile, the Fire Club, over a hundred meters from the Gerald Refinery, also caught fire. Experts say it was likely triggered by the refinery fire, as burning debris was carried by the strong winds that night and fell onto the club's roof. Fortunately, the club was not open that evening."

Li Mochen wanted to keep watching, but William impatiently grabbed the remote and switched to another channel: "These sore losers. The NHSAA Competition Committee has already investigated and confirmed that Cadio Rhodes used prohibited items and spells. That guy did all that and still lost to Amo—isn't the truth obvious? They just refuse to accept reality."

Next came Atlanta Metropolitan Television, which was airing a talk show also discussing yesterday's match.

"So, Mr. Cavanagh, do you think that under certain special circumstances, it is still possible to defeat Cadio Rhodes with one sword strike? Even though he used Ancient Recall and condensed the consciousness of the demigod Minotaur."

"Yes, host. After all, this Mr. Wiltonsen has already demonstrated his personal fighting ability. His performance in the first two rounds was stunning; he perfectly utilized his agility and speed. I suspect that Cadio Rhodes's condition at the time was not perfect, allowing Mr. Wiltonsen to seize a winning opportunity."

"I agree with Mr. Cavanagh's opinion. It's possible. According to inside information from the NHSAA Competition Committee, Cadio Rhodes prepared this forbidden secret technique only 4 to 5 days ago, which was very rushed."

"If that's the case, then this lucky Andre truly lives up to the word 'lucky.' However, I insist that the NHSAA Competition Committee should release Andre Lee Wiltonsen's test results to respond to public doubts."

Li Mochen watched for a bit, then lost interest. He walked over to the two police officers sitting in the dining area. Both were old acquaintances: Colin Damon, head of the East District Police Major Crimes Unit, and Edmund Bederman, special agent in charge of the FBI Atlanta Urban Security Group.

The two had come about yesterday's case at the Gerald Refinery, so Mike Ross, the lawyer, was also present.

But this time, neither of them seemed intent on digging into the matter. After Li Mochen led them to the meeting room, they simply asked a few brief questions and then took their leave.

They had no grounds to press him. On the surface, the Gerald Refinery incident had nothing to do with Li Mochen.

Due to the previous 'War' that had caused hundreds of casualties and the heat surrounding the Atlanta NHSAA quarterfinals, Li Mochen had been under constant surveillance by the police and FBI since leaving the Unicorn Apartment for the match yesterday.

After the remote sniper assassination attempt yesterday, both sides had increased their police presence. And from the time Li Mochen returned to his apartment until 9:30 this morning, they had not seen him leave the Unicorn Apartment.

——As for phone surveillance, they did not yet have that authority.

The key point was that the Gerald Refinery incident had been officially classified as a fire, which stripped the Atlanta police and FBI of any reason to conduct a deeper investigation.

After the two left, Li Mochen asked Mike Ross, "How are Sampson and the others doing?"

He knew that after the battle at the Gerald Refinery ended, Sampson Brut was planning to lead his men to the police station to turn themselves in.

Over the past two weeks, the police had not been able to gather decisive evidence to convict Sampson and his men, but they had plenty of eyewitnesses, along with some fragmented evidence chains. The Atlanta East District Police and FBI had issued summonses to Sampson and the others, and had also released as many as twelve arrest warrants to the public.

Previously, Sampson and his men had been delaying contact with the police to maintain their combat effectiveness. But now that the battle was over, it was time to deal with the aftermath.

"Things are fine. Mr. Sampson Brut and Major Adams left safely after answering the police's questions. Among your subordinates, only nine were found to be involved in the shooting case after police interrogation, but we have bailed them all out. The total bail amount is 2.4 million gold shields."

Mike Ross said with a smile, "You should thank my colleagues. Last night, our entire law firm was busy with your case until seven in the morning. Many of them didn't sleep a wink."