Chen Chao jumped into the police car, and Shen Xin slammed on the gas.

The tires screeched as they burned rubber on the asphalt, launching the car forward.

Even so, Chen Chao was still yelling, "Faster, faster, faster!"

Shen Xin flipped on the siren. The car wailed as it shot onto the road and sped away.

The moment he realized the tiger hadn’t been tranquilized and stolen but had simply escaped, Chen Chao’s first move was to call Lv Youwei.

At this hour, Lv Youwei probably wasn’t even up yet.

Chen Chao’s call must have scared the daylights out of him.

But that was nothing.

The real reason for Chen Chao’s frantic urgency was a call he received just as he hung up. It was from Xu Xuhao, the on-duty captain of the Public Security Brigade at the sub-bureau command center.

He knew Chen Chao had responded to a call in Houxia.

He called to tell Chen Chao they’d just received a public report: a tiger had been spotted in Daijiatang, right here in Houxia.

He had confirmed it repeatedly. It was a tiger, the kind with the "king" character on its head.

He told Chen Chao, being the closest unit, to head over and handle the situation. He added that he’d already notified the fire department, paramedics, and the Forestry Bureau to dispatch support immediately.

He was currently reviewing surveillance footage, looking for any trace of the tiger.

Hearing this, Chen Chao felt his scalp tingle. He had a sinking feeling that this was about to blow up into something huge.

This was a live tiger. Even after years of being raised in captivity, it could still go on a killing spree if provoked.

Take Tian Haoming, for example. The claw marks on his arm—it was obvious now that they must have come from this tiger.

Even Tian Haoming’s sudden heart attack was likely connected to the tiger.

The other police cars fell in line behind them. Shen Xin floored it, and a few minutes of frantic driving brought them to Daijiatang, only about two kilometers from Sanbao Temple.

The village wasn’t large, just a few scattered factories. Shen Xin had never been here before. He slammed on the brakes, realizing he’d overshot his destination.

He quickly threw the car into reverse.

It was a small factory called Xingda Packaging, or something like that.

A man stood at the factory gate, waving at their police car.

As soon as the car stopped, Shen Xin leaped out.

"Where’s the tiger?" Chen Chao asked urgently.

This must have been the security guard who called it in.

He was in his forties, wasn’t wearing a jacket, and only had one shoe on.

"Inside, inside."

He pointed toward the factory grounds, his voice still shaking with fear. "It scared me to death! I was dozing off when I heard a scratching on the glass. I opened my eyes and—holy hell—a tiger!"

"I was scared out of my wits, so I hid and called the police. The tiger kept scratching at the glass. After a while, it got quiet. I poked my head out and thought it had left, so I was about to open the door and make a run for it."

"But I only got the door halfway open when I saw it hiding behind a forklift. Just its tail was sticking out. It was trying to ambush me!"

"Good thing I’ve got sharp eyes, or I’d have been a goner. I had to jump out the window to get away."

The man rambled on.

Chen Chao held up a hand to cut him off. He hurried behind the guard post and peered out cautiously, but he didn’t see the tiger. "Where is it?"

The man also craned his neck to look, then shook his head.

Shen Xin didn’t see it either.

The entire factory complex wasn’t large; it was just a small plant.

Shen Xin noticed the workshop door was closed. That meant the tiger was probably still in the yard, hiding in some nook or cranny.

’Or has it already gotten out?’

Da Mei could scale a two-meter wall, so this big striped cat would have no problem.

The colleagues who had come with them to Sanbao Temple—Sun Jingyi and the others—had arrived, along with officers from the Houxia Police Station.

Chen Chao waved them over urgently, signaling for them to stay away from the main gate.

The officer from the Houxia Police Station was Wang Xin, and he had brought Lu Wenxue with him.

They skirted the area visible from the factory gate, nervously making their way behind the guard post.

"Captain Chen, is the tiger in there? What’s the plan?" Wang Xin asked, plastered against the outer wall of the guard post.

Chen Chao was at a loss, too.

’I’ve been a cop for over a decade, and I’ve never had to deal with anything like this.’

’If we were after a human suspect, we could spread out, cover the exits, and surround the place.’

’But this is a tiger. If we spread out, we’re just serving ourselves up on a platter.’

’Besides, I’m probably the only one here with a gun.’

’If it threatens someone’s life, I can fire in self-defense, no problem.’

’But I’m afraid I’ll miss.’

’I can’t even guarantee I’d hit a human suspect, let alone a tiger that moves like the wind.’

’And even if I do hit it, a beast that size won’t go down right away. It could still leap, pin you to the ground, and kill you with a single bite.’

’What an absolute nightmare.’

He didn’t rush to act. In this situation, the best thing to do was wait for backup.

Wait for animal experts, for the SWAT team.

Still, before they arrived, Chen Chao turned to Lu Wenxue. He asked if he knew the tiger well enough to possibly bring it under control.

He recalled that during circus performances, the tiger wasn’t on a leash, yet it was perfectly obedient, doing whatever it was told.

This wasn’t a wild tiger, after all. It was raised in captivity.

But to his surprise, Lu Wenxue frantically shook his head and waved his hands in refusal. "Officer, Da Chun has clearly gone berserk! I wouldn’t dare go near him."

’If he hadn’t gone berserk, he wouldn’t have escaped in the first place,’ he thought.

Shen Xin said, "Captain Chen, let’s just wait for backup."

That was the safest option.

After all, the tiger was trapped inside the factory grounds. As long as it didn’t get out and didn’t hurt anyone, there was no immediate crisis.

Once the professionals from the Forestry Bureau or the zoo arrived, they could hit it with a few tranquilizer darts, and the problem would be solved.

Chen Chao nodded.

Indeed, that was the most prudent course of action.

He peered out again, using the slowly brightening morning light to scan for any sign of the tiger.

"Where did it go?" Chen Chao frowned.

There wasn’t that much clutter in the yard, really. No obvious place for a tiger to hide.

Shen Xin found it strange, too.

’The yard contained a forklift, some plastic barrels, and wooden pallets, all scattered about. A tiger is huge; how could it possibly hide here?’

Just then, he felt a tug on his sleeve.

Shen Xin instinctively turned his head. His eyes flew wide open.

Right behind them, from the far end of the courtyard wall, a tiger was slowly emerging.

It must have spotted them. It stopped and turned its head in their direction.

In the morning light, it looked majestic and powerful. Its mouth was slightly agape, releasing puffs of warm breath, its long canines clearly visible.

"Shen Xin... is the tiger... behind us?"

Sun Jingyi asked in a voice barely above a whisper, not daring to turn his head.

Shen Xin gave a slight nod and nudged Chen Chao beside him with his elbow.

Sun Jingyi was so terrified his cheek began to twitch.

When Chen Chao turned, he was so startled the hair on his arms stood straight up.

’Who would’ve thought? While we were busy planning, the tiger flanked us.’

Wang Xin nudged Lu Wenxue with his arm.

Lu Wenxue was frozen stiff, his eyes asking if they should make a run for it.

Da Chun just stood there, watching them without moving a muscle.

No one dared to move.

In that instant, Shen Xin frantically tried to recall every nature documentary he had ever watched.

’With a bear, you’re supposed to lie down and play dead, right?’

’But what about a tiger?’

’I can’t remember.’

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Chen Chao slowly unfastening his holster and drawing his pistol.

Right in the middle of the standoff, a sedan appeared, driving down the road into the village.

The police car was blocking the narrow village road, so the sedan stopped and let out a short BEEP from its horn.

In the quiet of the early morning, the sound of the horn was incredibly shrill.

It was as if a battle horn had been sounded.

Shen Xin saw it clearly: the tiger was visibly startled by the sound.

The tiger’s shock sent a wave of pure terror through Shen Xin.

"Run!"

Chen Chao roared next to him, grabbing Shen Xin’s shoulder as he bolted.

The group scattered like frightened birds.

Shen Xin followed Chen Chao, sprinting behind the police car without taking a breath, his heart hammering in his chest.

He glanced back.

The tiger hadn’t charged. It had vanished behind the wall.

"Get in the car, get in the car!"

Chen Chao yelled for everyone to get in the cars.

Shen Xin yanked his door open and scrambled inside. Even after slamming it shut, his scalp was still crawling with fear.

The feeling was exactly the same as the shootout back in Huibei Village.