The electric baton slammed hard against the iron bars, accompanied by a deafening clang, with arcs of electricity shooting in all directions, and the air filled with the crackling sound of current.

Two prisoners, leaning against the railing and sneaking a smoke during their break, suddenly convulsed violently at that moment.

Their hair stood on end, their bodies lost balance and they fell heavily to the ground. Their eyelids rolled back rapidly, and white foam spilled from the corners of their mouths as they jerked on the ground.

The surrounding prisoners were so shocked by the sudden change that their hearts raced, and they collectively twisted their necks to look in this direction.

Once they recognized the assailant as Prison Chief Zhou Hu, each one immediately lowered their head, showing expressions of terror, and hurriedly scattered, as if afraid of being caught in Zhou Hu's rage.

"Brother, what happened?" Ma Xuan hurried forward, frowning in inquiry, with Chang Wei close behind, appearing equally grave.

Zhou Hu remained silent, but his eyes flickered with a dark, cold light as he stared intently at Chang Wei, as if trying to see through his thoughts.

Chang Wei, already preoccupied, was instantly startled awake by Zhou Hu's sharp gaze. His heartbeat involuntarily quickened and he nervously asked, "Brother, what on earth happened?"

Zhou Hu's lips curled into a cold smile, and his tone carried an indisputable questioning: "You actually dared to go behind my back and side with the prison warden?"

Chang Wei's face immediately turned pale, a mix of terror and incredulity: "Brother, are you joking? How could I ever betray you? I've always been loyal to you."

Zhou Hu's brows knitted tightly, revealing deep suspicion in his eyes, and he let out a cold snort, his tone frosty:

"Did you not know? Your nephew rejected joining the job, he won't report to the prison anymore. Is this your secret doing?"

With that, Zhou Hu suddenly waved his hand, slamming the sheet in his hand onto Chang Wei's chest with such force that Chang Wei staggered and nearly fell.

Chang Wei hurriedly picked up the sheet; it was the job application he had submitted for his nephew, where the space for the warden's approval, which was previously signed, was crossed with a bold X.

In its place were two large red characters—"Rejected."

The glaring red, like two sharp blades, stung Chang Wei's eyes. The reason for rejection clearly stated: The applicant voluntarily withdrew for personal reasons.

Chang Wei's face was full of shock as he tightly clutched the application, his hands trembling uncontrollably from agitation.

"Impossible, my nephew couldn't have given up the job, he..."

Chang Wei took a few deep breaths, widening his eyes as he looked at Zhou Hu, his expression of shock gradually replaced by fear, and in a trembling voice, he said,

"My nephew went out the night before last and hasn't returned home. His phone can't be reached, and he's been missing for two days. My sister is already worried and has reported it to the Patrol Office."

Chang Wei clutched the application hard enough to make it creak, with bloodshot eyes, earnestly stated: "My nephew is missing, how could a missing person voluntarily give up the job?"

Zhou Hu was stunned: "Missing?"

Ma Xuan, listening from the side, had a thoughtful expression.

Chang Wei quickly nodded: "I've asked a friend in the Patrol Office to investigate, but they don't have the manpower recently, so the case is shelved. However, the people in the Patrol Office told me that Zone 9 has frequent missing cases recently. Based on their experience, people missing for more than two days are likely in grave danger."

Chang Wei's eyes fell back on the application, the words "voluntarily withdrew" seeming to ignite his fury. He raised his head, his eyes flickering with sparks of anger, and heightened his voice:

"Brother, there must be a connection between my nephew's disappearance and the prison warden. He's my only nephew, you must help me."

Zhou Hu's little bit of anger was instantly extinguished by Chang Wei's stronger fury, calming him down completely.

His pupils contracted sharply twice, a trace of hesitation flashed across his face, then he slowly said:

"Just for an insignificant job position, the warden wouldn't go to such lengths, would he?"

Chang Wei gritted his teeth, rationality also told him that the warden wouldn't be so impulsive and foolish, but emotionally, the missing person is his nephew.

Ma Xuan suddenly interrupted from the side: "Brother, this matter is strange, but since it concerns Chang Wei's nephew, let's go and ask the warden for an explanation."

Zhou Hu pondered for three seconds. Even though he constantly showed a defiant attitude towards the newly appointed warden, as if intending to isolate him with other Prison Chiefs.

But, the thought of going to the warden's office alone and facing Qian Huan made him feel a slight chill.

It wasn't just because the other party bore the warden's title, but also the terrifying oppressive sense brought by the dozens of meters long laser corridor leading to the warden's office.

Yet Zhou Hu finally went with the application.

In the warden's office.

Zhou Hu knocked and entered. Seeing the explosion-proof glass wall, Zhou Hu felt a sense of disdain: "This warden is really afraid of dying."

He completely forgot how drenched in cold sweat his back was when he walked through the laser corridor just moments before.

"Anything you need?" Qian Huan asked knowingly.

Zhou Hu reorganized his words, forced an unnatural smile, and asked:

"Warden, I'd like to inquire what 'voluntarily withdrew' marked on the list for the candidate I recommended really means?"

Qian Huan smiled slightly and replied nonchalantly: "As it says."

Zhou Hu pressed further: "Forgive me for my ignorance, could you please clarify a bit more, Warden?"

Qian Huan fixed his gaze on Zhou Hu, enunciating slowly: "It means he's not coming."

Zhou Hu frowned, uncertainly asking again: "Did he personally call our prison, or..."

Qian Huan cut off Zhou Hu's probing, honestly saying: "No, I've never met this person, nor have I had any contact with him, but I know he's not joining our prison."

Zhou Hu felt as if the warden had admitted something, yet also nothing, giving him a very uneasy feeling.

He irritably asked: "Is it 'can't come', or 'won't come'?"

Qian Huan leisurely unscrewed his water cup, took a sip, then, with a slight smirk, said: "Does it matter? The result is the same: he's not coming, so in my book, it's considered as him voluntarily withdrawing from the position, and I'll naturally allocate the vacant position to someone else."

Zhou Hu's face was dark. He wanted to continue digging deeper but saw that Qian Huan had already lowered his head, pretending to be busy with work.

He still refused to give up and asked: "Then who told you that Cang Qingsen voluntarily withdrew?"

Zhou Hu emphasized the words "voluntarily withdrew" heavily.

Qian Huan was quite pleased with Zhou Hu's anxious demeanor. That's precisely why he intentionally wrote the rejection reason that way, to provoke Zhou Hu's anger, anxiety, and subtly increase his wariness towards him.

Without lifting his head, Qian Huan carelessly said: "I can't quite remember, you know, I'm the warden, and I have many subordinates reporting on the internal and external workings of the prison every day, maybe someone just mentioned it to me and I remembered."

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