Entering the TV station’s ground floor lobby, everything appeared normal. Two receptionists were still busy at the front desk, some people were leaving work, while dedicated staff hurriedly guided audience members to the elevators.

You Mingxu and Yin Feng blended into the crowd. Their striking features were well-disguised, they didn’t draw attention.

Tu Ya continued wandering on the periphery, unnoticed.

As people crowded into the elevator, You Mingxu and Yin Feng were pushed against the outer wall. Yin Feng braced one hand against it, his other arm around her waist.

You Mingxu gazed at him, her phoenix eyes reflecting the cascading light, mysteriously bright.

Yin Feng bent down to kiss her eyes, indifferent to others’ presence.

After a moment, he squeezed her waist, signaling her to turn around. You Mingxu did so, realizing this was a high-speed observation elevator. The city’s vast sea of lights suddenly fell beneath their feet, Xiang City becoming a wide ribbon, silently entwining them.

No wonder that person had spoken of standing at the city’s highest point.

“Coming here, do they feel like they’re stepping on the entire city? Or has the whole city become their stage?”

Surrounded by people, You Mingxu could only whisper to Yin Feng.

A faint smile crossed his eyes as he said, “You’re improving, thinking like me.”

You Mingxu smiled – indeed, that should have been his line.

Perhaps because the elevator climbed so quickly, or because the surrounding people were too excited and noisy, oblivious to everything. Only the two of them, looking into each other’s eyes, simultaneously sensed the stillness in each other’s gaze. Though the Punishers might be right above them, You Mingxu suddenly felt there was nothing to fear. Not as long as they were together.

“Afterward…” she said slowly, “your place or mine?”

Yin Feng’s gaze deepened.

The implication was clear: after the battle, sleep at your place or mine?

Her courage was truly matchless.

“Your place,” Yin Feng answered. His home was still sealed off; they’d have to climb walls to get in.

You Mingxu smiled: “Good.”

Yin Feng bent to kiss her, completely disregarding the amused glances of others. He thought she truly was his antidote – at any time, in any situation, as long as she was beside him, Yin Feng remained Yin Feng, nothing else.

“Ding—” The elevator doors opened at the 50th floor.

The audience filed out.

Though You Mingxu had maintained a light tone throughout, upon exiting the elevator, she was instantly alert, quickly surveying their surroundings. Yin Feng did the same.

Before them was a small hall, with staff maintaining order and guiding people to their seats.

Besides the elevator, this floor had another access point – the stairwell. You Mingxu pulled Yin Feng back a few steps, allowing them to see the fire door on the side where two security guards stood, unnoticed by others.

You Mingxu froze.

Whether sensing her gaze or not, one guard suddenly looked up. Yin Feng had already pressed down on You Mingxu’s shoulder, lowering his head. To observers, they appeared to be just another couple whispering intimately.

The guard looked away, both guards lowering their heads without speaking. They remained at the stairwell, almost invisible.

By now Yin Feng had his arm around You Mingxu, moving forward with the crowd. You Mingxu whispered, “Those two were handling security downstairs earlier. Only they’ve come up here.”

Yin Feng’s eyes narrowed slightly.

It might be a coincidence – security guards from downstairs were reassigned to the studio. But if Yin Feng were planning today’s attack, he would have arranged exactly such people to infiltrate: first to coordinate inside and out, facilitating other Punishers’ entry; second to appear casual while controlling key access points.

They entered the studio.

Following Yin Feng’s instructions, Tu Ya had hidden himself out of sight.

The lights blazed brilliantly, fluorescents flickering.

This indoor studio could hold 200 people, with a stage at the center, its background dazzling. Audience seats encircled it.

You Mingxu and Yin Feng stopped in place.

Yin Feng first noted the studio’s spatial layout – vertically equivalent to about six floors, quite magnificent and spacious. Perhaps for recording purposes, the surrounding white walls were elaborately decorated, completely blocking the outside view. Naturally, the interior was equally invisible from the outside.

At first glance, there was only one entrance. However, two small doors flanked the stage’s rear, their lights on and shadows moving inside – the backstage area. Whether there were other exits remained unclear.

Yin Feng looked up toward the studio’s dome, typical industrial style, hung with many lights, prop frames, and camera booms. Above the stage was a suspended steel platform, currently empty.

But if someone stood there with a machine gun, sweeping below, they could easily terrorize the entire venue – this image flashed through Yin Feng’s mind.

After entering, You Mingxu noticed different things than Yin Feng.

Because of those two security guards, she first focused on people.

Guarding the crucial point. She looked toward the seats near the entrance, not particularly good spots – far from the stage and off-center. Even audience members assigned to this area first tried moving toward the front rows. But in the third row from the back near the door sat two solitary men.

While other audience members entered noisily, excited, chatting, or picking through seats – tickets had no assigned numbers, first come first served – these two were markedly different.

Both sat very straight, heads slightly lowered. Unlike others, they neither conversed nor looked around curiously. From You Mingxu’s angle, she could see their hard facial profiles.

It was a familiar quality.

You Mingxu touched Yin Feng’s arm, signaling with her eyes. Yin Feng had noticed the pair too, nodding almost imperceptibly.

But still, there was no concrete evidence these people were Punishers, or that this was their target. So they couldn’t notify the police yet. But noting these suspicious individuals was essential.

You Mingxu scanned the venue again, quickly identifying four or five similar individuals in different positions among the crowd. But even she couldn’t be certain – some might simply happen to look similar.

As the audience filled in and seats were nearly taken, a female staff member took up a microphone at the stage’s foot, saying, “Please be seated quickly, the show is about to begin. Set phones to silent or airplane mode.” She repeated this twice.

Yin Feng led You Mingxu to two inconspicuous empty seats in the last row. Several staff members left, leaving only two, including that woman, maintaining order, and appearing practiced and composed.

You Mingxu studied these two – TV station employees, or they’d have been discovered already. But whether they might be Punisher collaborators was another question entirely.