"Here's a news report. Yesterday, a source revealed that a horrific incident occurred at Mount Mega Hospital, the largest mental health facility in California…"
"Yeah, Tony. After hearing about it, I couldn't even sleep last night. My God… it was a human tragedy."
"Millie, I feel the same. Apparently, on the night of the 10th, the signal tower at Mount Mega Hospital was blown down by strong winds. Shortly after, the patients staged what they called an uprising. The main perpetrator was Doflamingo Campbell, who used his knowledge of chemicals to easily concoct a powerful tranquilizer and carry out attacks inside the hospital. By the time the police received the report, all the guards, doctors, and nurses had been killed.
But after taking over the hospital, the patients didn't flee. Instead, they impersonated guards, doctors, and nurses—still acting out their roles even when the police stormed the facility."
"Perhaps in their eyes, they really are the staff here. Now, here are some images from the scene."
On the television, a brief clip flashed by. A young man with a painted bullseye on his face grabbed a gun and fired wildly. Fifteen shots rang out before the gun clicked empty, yet he kept pulling the trigger.
Seeing this, the others in the room chuckled. It wasn't the first time he had lost control like this.
In fact, this news had already aired yesterday. Today was just a rerun. One of the televisions was broken anyway, but for them, TVs weren't particularly important.
"Alright, alright, calm down. You'll get your chance for revenge."
A man wearing a cowboy hat walked over gently, patted the young man on the shoulder, and spoke with a faint smile.
"Do I really… have a chance?"
The young man slumped back onto the sofa, a bitter smile on his face.
The cowboy chuckled and rubbed his head.
"If you believe you can get revenge, then even a tiny chance is still a chance. But if you don't believe in it, even if he's standing right in front of you, you still won't have one."
The young man took a deep breath and nodded seriously. The fighting spirit slowly returned to his eyes.
"We've got news," a man sitting in the corner suddenly said, standing up. "Jiang Hai and his group have left Beverly Hills. Their route heads toward Nevada, but the destination's unclear. They might be going to Yosemite National Park… or Death Valley."
The cowboy's smile widened, a fierce glint flashing across his eyes.
"See? The opportunity's come."
Everyone here held a grudge against Jiang Hai—especially him.
"Get ready. We leave in five minutes."
He checked the time and walked out first. The others immediately began inspecting their gear, loading guns, and checking ammunition.
Five minutes later, four SUVs rolled out of the slums and sped off in the same direction Jiang Hai had taken.
Meanwhile, Jiang Hai remained completely unaware of the drone quietly trailing behind him.
Had he known, he would probably have regretted not bringing Qiuqiu. With the king of the skies around, even a bald little drone wouldn't stand a chance.
But Jiang Hai knew nothing.
He simply sat in the driver's seat, listening to music as he drove. Qi Jie sat beside him. Xiao Huang and Xiao Bai occupied the back seat, staring out the window, occasionally sticking their heads out to feel the wind, drooling everywhere.
Between them, Hua Lisi–Shelley studied their exact position using a military-grade GPS tracker.
About ten meters behind them, another identical vehicle followed, carrying Azalina, Aller Sara, Valentina Balalekaya, Belyak, and Relis Carter.
The five women sat fully armed—chewing gum, driving, or casually fiddling with their gadgets. But those innocent-looking devices were deadly weapons in their hands.
"Boss, the location's basically confirmed," Wylie Shelley said with a smile while checking the GPS. "We'll cross Yosemite National Park and enter the border area between California and Nevada. Desert ahead, Sierra Nevada forest behind. Honestly… we're pretty lucky."
Jiang Hai chuckled.
"Americans are really something else," Qi Jie muttered with a frown. "What gold could possibly be in a place that desolate?"
"Hey, don't say that," Walter Shelley laughed. "It's not extremely rich, but it did produce a decent amount of gold. The output was just too low, which is why it got abandoned."
Historically, California's gold rush had been heavily promoted by the government. To open up the West, they needed incentive—something powerful enough to draw people across barren land.
Stories of striking gold overnight worked perfectly.
Texas had oil. California had gold.
That was how those states developed.
Of course, not everyone struck it rich—but many did. For individuals, even a modest gold deposit could mean a lifetime fortune. In the end, it was mostly luck, like buying a lottery ticket.
By noon, Jiang Hai and his group reached the entrance to Yosemite National Park.
Normally, vehicles were inspected before entry, but Jiang Hai had already obtained special permits, allowing them to pass without a search.
To be honest, Yosemite wasn't particularly large—just over 1,100 square kilometers—and there wasn't much to see besides forests. Compared to Death Valley's dramatic landscapes—salt flats, dunes, craters, canyons, and snow-capped peaks—it felt rather plain.
Most tourists only spent a day here, while Death Valley often required four.
For many Americans, Yosemite was just a picnic spot.
Nevada? The Sierra Nevada mountains?
Too remote. Too barren. Nothing fun.
It really was as Qi Jie described—a place where even birds wouldn't bother stopping.
After confirming with the rangers, they entered the park and rested briefly at the gate, buying extra food. Their backpacks were already stuffed with supplies: compressed biscuits, beef jerky, sausages, self-heating pasta.
But Jiang Hai wasn't interested in that yet.
He happily bought hamburgers, hot dogs, tortillas, and pizzas before driving deeper into the park.
About an hour later, the people tracking him with drones arrived at the entrance.
Unfortunately, they didn't have tickets, so they were forced to take a longer route. If Jiang Hai's destination had been inside the park, they would have lost him completely.
But luck wasn't on their side.
His target lay in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Even with the detour, they would eventually catch up.
Of course, Jiang Hai and his group were still unaware of any of this.
They simply continued driving deeper into the forest.
(To be continued.)