Qiu Meng opened his mouth and spat blood on the floor. "I am by no means a man afraid of death. If you have any means of torture, go ahead!"

Then Ning Tao kicked him in the waist.

Qiu Meng grunted and moved over three meters sideways. Yet he still acted tough, gritting his teeth without letting out a scream, let alone begging for mercy.

Ning Tao took the knife for cutting herbs, put it against Qiu Meng's neck, and said fiercely, "Do you believe I'll kill you right now?"

Qiu Meng, suppressing the pain, croaked, "You're a doctor, not a killer. Are you willing to commit a crime because of someone like me? Don't lie!"

Ning Tao was a little helpless. It was true that he wouldn't kill Qiu Meng anyway, because that was against the law. Qiu Meng had committed unforgivable sins, but Ning Tao had got him now. The judge would sentence him to death even if Ning Tao didn't do anything to him. So why did Ning Tao bother to handle him himself? However, if he continued to torment Qiu Meng, whose right hand and left knee were already broken, Qiu Meng would most likely die here. By then, it would be hard for him to explain.

While Ning Tao was secretly freaking out about him, Qiu Meng cried, "You caught me today, but if you think this is the end, you're dead wrong! They'll kill you! You can't escape either!"

"Who are they?"

"I'll never tell you!"

Ning Tao suddenly remembered something and frisked Qiu Meng, but only found a few hundred in cash, no phone or wallet.

Qiu Meng snorted and said, "Are you trying to get a clue from my phone? I never carry my cell phone with me on a mission. Don't waste your time."

Then Ning Tao's gaze fell on Qiu Meng's s.h.i.+rt. His chest was partially exposed because of the loss of two b.u.t.tons from his s.h.i.+rt. He had scars on his chest and a tattoo, not a tattoo of a tiger or dragon or the like, but of a head of a person.

Ning Tao had a brainwave and removed Qiu Meng's s.h.i.+rt.

Qiu Meng's chest was completely exposed. A girl's head was tattooed on his left breast. The tattoo was delicate and the girl's face was clearly visible. She was about Li Xiaoyu's age.

"What are you doing?" Qiu Meng got a little nervous.

Ning Tao took out his phone and took two pictures of Qiu Meng's tattoo on his chest.

"You son of a b*tch!" Qiu Meng raised his left hand to remove the rag that covered his eyes.

Ning Tao trampled his left hand under his feet and asked in a frosty voice, "Are you scared? Is that your daughter tattooed on your chest?"

"No!"

"If she isn't your daughter, why did you tattoo her on your chest?" Ning Tao asked.

Qiu Meng closed his mouth and refused to answer.

Ning Tao went on, "I know you're a tough guy, but have you ever thought about your daughter? Who's going to take care of her when you're dead?"

"You shut up!" Qiu Meng lost his cool.

Ning Tao sneered and said, "Do you think your daughter will be safe if you keep a secret for those people? As soon as the news of your arrest gets out, I think those people will immediately do something to your daughter in order to threaten you. What will those people do to your daughter if you die? Sell her or train her to be a person like you?"

"Shut up! I don't want to hear that!" Qiu Meng appeared miserable.

Ning Tao went on, "I'm sure you know what I'm saying is true, or you wouldn't be reacting like this. You can't avoid it. Well, I can give you a better choice. Tell me all you know, and I will take her to Suns.h.i.+ne Orphanage and take care of her."

Qiu Meng's lips quivered, as if he wanted to say something, but he didn't.

"I can also find her a good family to adopt her and give her a normal life. She will be able to go to school and get into a good university in the future. She can also marry a man who loves her and have a very happy life."

"If..." Qiu Meng came down a bit. He paused for a moment before saying, "What if you're lying to me?"

"I can take care of the kids that have nothing to do with me, not to mention my commitment to you," Ning Tao replied, "I can't prove anything to you, but I'm a man of my word. I can only tell you that you can trust me."

Qiu Meng pondered for at least two more minutes. Then he said, "I trust you. I can tell that you are not a perfidious man from the fact that you risked your life to save the girl thief. Go ahead, what do you want to know?"

"First tell me where your daughter is, and I'll arrange for someone to pick her up right away," Ning Tao said, "Then you can meet her."

"No! I am too ashamed to see her. I don't want her to see me like this either... Just let her forget me. I don't deserve to be her father..." Qiu Meng was in tears, and there was noticeable wetness on the rag. Although he was a cold-blooded killer, he also had a soft part inside.

"Well, then, tell me where she is?"

"Her name is Qiu Li, and she's at a friend's house in the Red Canyon of Mount Liang. My friend, Pan Dong, is taking care of her for me. I was going to take her to retire to Thailand after this a.s.signment, but..." Qiu Meng could not go on.

Ning Tao pulled out his phone and dialed Jiang Hao's number.

After 10 seconds, Jiang Hao answered the phone. She didn't sound awake. "What's... ah... the matter?"

"I got Qiu Meng," Ning Tao said.

"Huh?" Jiang Hao immdiately sounded spirited. "Where are you? I will go to you at once!"

"I'm at the Suns.h.i.+ne Orphanage," Ning Tao answered.

"Got it, I'll be right over!" Jiang Hao said.

Ning Tao continued, "One more thing. Qiu Meng's daughter Qiu Li is at the home of a man named Pan Dong in the Red Canyon of Mount Liang. Please contact the police there immediately, pick up her and bring her here. I promised Qiu Meng to take care of his daughter."

"Did you make any deal with him?" There was a note of surprise in Jiang Hao's voice.

"Yes. He will tell us everything he knows. Besides, the child is innocent. His daughter is now in a very dangerous situation, so please be sure to protect her," Ning Tao then added, "Plus, call an ambulance when you come. He's got a little injury."

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

"Okay, I'll arrange for someone to pick up his daughter and get an ambulance right away. Watch him. Be careful. He is very cunning and dangerous," Jiang Hao said, and hung up.

Ning Tao put the phone away, turned to Qiu Meng and said, "Someone will be picking up your daughter soon. You can rest a.s.sured."

"Thank you," Qiu Meng said.

"I didn't ask for your thanks," Ning Tao said, "Let's start with Lin Qinghua's project of ancestor seeking. What do you know about this project?"

"My employer is an American, and I only know his name as Nicholas Conway, but I don't know if that's his true name. You know, people who work in my field never ask the ident.i.ty of the employer and the reason for the job. All I care about is money."

"I know, go on."

"Nicholas hired me to take that thing from w.a.n.g Yaoyang. I didn't know what I was going to take until w.a.n.g Yaoyang said it had been stolen and I was so angry I wanted to kill him. He told me it was the secret information for Lin Qinghua's project of ancestor seeking, and the important material for the production, which were worth tens of millions."

Ning Tao was filled with surprise. He was sure that the important material that Qiu Meng talked about was the bluish spiritual soil, but it mattered to pract.i.tioners. How could it be related to biological research projects?

Qiu Meng went on, "What Lin Qinghua studied is said to be a miracle in the field of biopharmaceuticals. It enables people to be strong, tireless, and can also improve people's motor skills and even thinking and a.n.a.lysis ability in a short period of time. w.a.n.g Yaoyang also said that if it were used in the military, even an ordinary soldier could become a very excellent special forces soldier."

Ning Tao thought of the Nirvana Elixir that Chen Pingdao gave him. Qiu Meng described the medicine that Lin Qinghua studied as magical, but it was nothing compared to the Nirvana Elixir. Therefore, he was not interested in the medicine at all, but rather in the origin of the two lumps of bluish spiritual soil.

"w.a.n.g Yaoyang did business with Blueprint Biotechnology Company, and he bought one of the members of Lin Qinghua's project of ancestor seeking. The man downloaded the project's secret materials onto a circuit board and stole the key materials for making the medicine. You know what happened later. That girl Su Ya stole what Nicholas wanted, and I found her on surveillance video..."

"Where is w.a.n.g Yaoyang hiding now?"

"A temple called Clean Water Temple," Qiu Meng responded, "He shaved his head and pretended to be a monk. He's waiting for Nicholas to send someone over to take him out of the country. You can catch him if you act fast enough. I've told you everything I know."

"Have you heard where the key materials Lin Qinghua used to make the medicine come from?" Ning Tao questioned.

Qiu Meng shook his head and replied, "I don't know. You have to ask Lin Qinghua about it. As I said, I've told you everything I know."

"Well, someone will ask you the same question later. Tell her everything you told me."

"No problem, but you must keep your promise! Otherwise I'll come back to haunt you even if I die!"

Ning Tao said, "I've told you that you can trust me. All right, you have to put up with it for the time being."

"What do you mean?"

Ning Tao lifted his hand and cut Qiu Meng's neck.

Qiu Meng let out a groan and fainted.

Ning Tao then picked Qiu Meng up, opened the blood lock with the key and went back to Su Ya's room.

Su Ya hadn't woken up yet. Perhaps because she felt hot under the quilt, her forehead was beaded with sweat.

Ning Tao put Qiu Meng on the ground next to the window, but he didn't remove the Sacred Needles that sealed the blood vessels in the wound. Thanks to him, the owner of the Sky Clinic, whose spiritual power had healing powers, otherwise Qiu Meng would be in a very danger situation.

After putting down Qiu Meng, Ning Tao came to the bed and pulled the quilt off Su Ya. He was doing it out of kindness in case Su Ya got sick from the heat. However, when he lifted the quilt, he got countless critical strikes. Su Ya's clothes made of very little cloth were all soaked with sweat...