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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter One Hundred and Three: The Crisis of Jiang He
"Stop!" Cao Liang, crouched in the grass, raised his hand to halt the few people behind him. Squinting for a moment, he quickly turned around and shouted at Luci and the others, who looked confused, "Hurry back! Hurry back!"
"What happened?" Luci and An Zheng were supporting Toothless Kid, and upon seeing Cao Liang's anxious expression, they quickly turned around.
"It's out," Cao Liang said, hopping on one leg with a tree branch for support, his face a mix of joy and worry. "That vehicle has come out again, but something seems off."
"What do you mean?" Before Luci could finish speaking, a series of gunshots echoed through the night sky.
"That's what I mean."
The four hurried back to where they had parked. Inside the vehicle, Wheat panicked upon seeing their disheveled return.
"What happened?" Wheat switched seats with Luci and, without waiting for an answer, two blinding beams of light shot out from a distance. The roar of an engine followed as a Cherokee kicked up a cloud of dust and grass, speeding away as if fleeing. Behind it, hidden among the foliage, Iron Wall's team flickered their flashlights as they chased after it. They paused momentarily at the entrance before turning on their headlights.
"Follow them," An Zheng said as he opened the car window to look at the fleeing Cherokee. To his surprise, someone was clinging to the roof rack, struggling to hold on as the vehicle bounced along.
Luci buckled her seatbelt, yanked the steering wheel to turn the car around, and revved up to chase after them.
Toothless Kid remained silent throughout; he knew it was best not to speak now. Although he was unsure of what was happening ahead, judging by the gunfire earlier, it seemed they had gotten into trouble with Nantang's soldiers.
Behind Iron Wall, Chen Zhao Zhou ordered several young men to pursue in their vehicles while calling back the others. He picked up a soldier who had collapsed in the grass and returned to Iron Wall.
The soldier had been knocked eight meters away by the Cherokee and was now unconscious with blood covering his face. Chen Zhao Zhou checked for signs of breathing; there was more exhalation than inhalation.
"Take him to the medical room," Chen Zhao Zhou instructed two young men as he gazed at the two vehicles bouncing across the field. Spitting angrily, he said, "You four bring the cars in." With a grim expression, he ran toward Courtyard.
The gunfire had awakened many residents who had been peacefully asleep. People threw on clothes and rushed out of their doors, gathering in the empty streets to inquire about what was happening.
Chen Zhao Zhou pushed through the crowd and spotted Cheng Long standing at Su Lan's door from a distance.
The crowd tried to grab Chen Zhao Zhou to ask what was going on. Seeing him running frantically only heightened their fears. They speculated among themselves whether a horde of zombies had invaded and if they could withstand it.
"Quick, pack your things. If they can't hold them off, we need to run first." A middle-aged man with a large gold chain around his neck whispered a few words to his wife before hurriedly making his way back to the living room. Others began to realize what was happening, their faces filled with panic as they exchanged hurried goodbyes and rushed back to their rooms to gather their belongings.
Cheng Long remained expressionless, while Chen Zhao Zhou stood beside him, panting heavily, his face flushed from the exertion of running.
"Brother Long, something's happened," Chen Zhao Zhou said, taking a deep breath to stifle a violent cough. "Su Lan and Zeng Yadong are both with them, and Gu Yan has been kidnapped."
Cheng Long abruptly turned around, narrowing his eyes as he focused on Chen Zhao Zhou. "Su Lan and Zeng Yadong?" he asked slowly.
"Yes, I saw them together with the two guys we caught this afternoon. When I went to get the keys, they disappeared. Old Timer is dead," Chen Zhao Zhou replied, glancing up at Cheng Long. Seeing his unchanged expression made him uneasy. "I've already sent someone to chase after them."
"Weren't you saying that Su Lan was fine? How did Zeng Yadong end up being one of them?" Cheng Long remained calm despite the anger bubbling beneath the surface. He pinched the bridge of his nose and thought for a moment. "You take another team and make sure to intercept them halfway. The others don't need to worry about that; focus on the task at hand."
"What about Su Lan and Zeng Yadong?" Chen Zhao Zhou raised an eyebrow but nodded silently.
"Don't worry about them for now; handle the main issue first and we'll deal with them later," Cheng Long said, extinguishing his cigarette and waving his hand dismissively. "You go ahead; I need to calm these fools down."
Chen Zhao Zhou turned to look around; many residents were already packing their things in large bundles, standing at their doorsteps pretending to chat while stealing glances at Cheng Long.
"I understand," Chen Zhao Zhou nodded and left.
Cheng Long watched him run off, rubbing his somewhat numb face vigorously before forcing a friendly smile as he approached the crowd.
Meanwhile, three vehicles sped through the wilderness.
Jiang He slammed on the gas, sending one person flying. The vehicle bounced violently before finally hitting a dirt road. Just as he was about to breathe a sigh of relief, a loud bang echoed above him, followed by a sharp pain in his shoulder. The steering wheel jerked away from him as he lost control; the Cherokee swerved like a drunken driver before crashing into a large pit in the grass.
The passengers inside were thrown around chaotically, crying out in pain as they tried to get back on their feet. Jiang He hadn't buckled his seatbelt; the front of the vehicle flipped into the dirt pit, shattering glass everywhere while he was thrown out by inertia, slamming against a wall before landing back on the hood of the car. He felt as if his insides had shifted places; just as he attempted to move, an intense pain shot through his shoulder as he reached up to feel it—wet and warm.
"Damn it, is everyone okay?" Jiang He guessed he had been hit and struggled to rise. Just as he was about to help those trapped inside the car, he suddenly heard a rush of wind beside him before something hard struck him in the eye.
Jiang He cried out in pain and rolled into a gap nearby. Before he could get back up, he heard movement on the hood of the car; someone stumbled over and pressed the barrel of a five-shot gun against Jiang He's face. "Don't move! One at a time out of there, or I'll blow his head off!"
Jiang He covered his injured eye with one hand while peeking through a narrow slit with the other. He saw one of the soldiers who had previously forced them to stop now lying bloodied across the hood. Realization struck him—he had knocked one soldier away but there was another one left behind? Had that guy managed to climb onto the car at such a critical moment? And then fired a shot from atop? Jiang He felt sharp pains in his right shoulder; it seemed like just a graze—if he had been hit directly by that five-shot gun, half of his arm would likely be gone by now. With so many people crammed inside, surely someone else must have been hit too?
The pit was not large, and the Cherokee flipped over, its front end crashing down while the rear remained elevated. Jiang He remembered that Su Lan and the little boy were sitting beside him, while Jin Bo held a knife to Gu Yan, seated in the back row with Zeng Yadong. The windshield was shattered into countless pieces, yet Su Lan was nowhere to be seen; from their angle, all that remained in the back seat was a mass of darkness.
Jiang He felt a surge of panic, wondering if they might all be dead. He said, "Soldier, can you check? They might be dead in the car."
"Shut up!" Soldier jabbed the gun barrel forcefully, his gaze filled with a murderous intent that seemed ready to devour Jiang He whole.
The two were at a standstill in the bottom of the pit when suddenly, they heard the screech of brakes from above. Soldier's face lit up with joy as he shouted, "I got one!"
Jiang He cursed silently at the foolishness and tried to open his right eye, which had been struck; it stung and teared up, but thankfully it wasn't blind. They both looked up at the opening of the pit and saw Cao Liang peering down with an innocent expression. Upon seeing Jiang He's disheveled state, his face transformed into a myriad of emotions.
"…"
Soldier was momentarily stunned, unable to react.
"Get down!" Cao Liang suddenly shouted, throwing something down.
Jiang He and Soldier were startled; Jiang He instinctively dove into the bottom of the pit while Soldier rolled aside.
With a thunderous explosion, steel balls and shards of glass flew everywhere, embedding themselves in Soldier's face. He let out a scream and fell against the front of the car, motionless thereafter.
"Old Cao!?" Jiang He exclaimed in shock as he urged Cao Liang to pull him up. He then saw An Zheng, Luci, and Wheat emerging from another Cherokee.
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