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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 124: An Eye for an Eye
In the southwest direction, a massive mushroom cloud rose into the sky, and everyone felt the earth tremble in an instant.
Shaoshan's face turned nearly frozen, his eyes filled with a fierce light that surged geometrically, threatening to burst from their sockets and fly toward the site of the incident. Old Ma sat in the passenger seat, silent for a long time, completely oblivious to Jiang He sneaking out of the car.
The mushroom cloud ascended high, transforming into a mass of dust that blotted out the sun, spreading in all directions with the wind.
Jiang He was speechless, feeling a sharp pain in his eardrums as the soldiers around him chattered incessantly, their voices blending into an incomprehensible noise. Without needing Shaoshan to say much, Jiang He realized that things had escalated dramatically. He decisively chose to escape amidst the chaos, but before he could weave through the crowd, he was yanked back by Shaoshan gripping his collar.
"Trying to run?" Shaoshan's brows twisted into a knot, and the scar winding behind his ear became even more menacing with his expression.
"No, no! I just needed to relieve myself..." Jiang He waved his hands repeatedly. Under Shaoshan's cold gaze, he obediently returned to the car.
Old Ma remained dazed in his seat, unaware as the cigarette burned down to his fingers. His eyes were lost in thought as he stared at the dissipating dust cloud, mumbling incoherently with a vacant expression.
"What did I say? Cheng Long is a man of action," Jiang He said with a hint of schadenfreude, feeling inexplicably relaxed. Although he had not yet arrived at the scene, he was already convinced that this commotion was caused by Cheng Long. Such a mushroom cloud was rare in the city; given today's power outage, Jiang He couldn't think of anything other than explosives in the Air Raid Shelter that could create such a thunderous sound.
As Shaoshan jumped into the car, he caught Jiang He's teasing remark and shot him a fierce glare before starting the engine and speeding away.
Jiang He shrugged nonchalantly, displaying an attitude of indifference. Your master might have already met his end; what more could you do to me?
Shaoshan ignored Jiang He's antics, pursing his thin lips as they sped along. Twenty minutes later, under the massive billboard at Technology Park, their two convoys unexpectedly crossed paths.
A black sedan stopped at the intersection, about ten meters away from the billboard, next to a blue van. Behind the two vehicles, flames shot up into the sky, surrounded by ruins. Concrete mixed with red bricks and steel bars was scattered everywhere, while dry leaves and shards of glass lay intertwined. Fresh or decaying corpses were strewn about, and the air was thick with the pungent smell of sulfur.
The position where Shaoshan and the others stood was no more than a hundred meters from the opposing convoy, their view directly facing the dazzling flames. Judging by the extent of the surrounding buildings' collapse, one could imagine the enormous quantity of explosives Cheng Long had ignited. The center of the explosion was engulfed in roaring flames, with the concrete ground and asphalt road displaying irregular cracks that spread for dozens of meters. The shockwave radiated from the 4S shop, sweeping through nearby buildings with devastating force, leaving only clusters of wildfires and widespread sorrow in its wake.
Hearing is deceiving, and seeing is believing. Having watched countless explosive scenes in movies, Jiang He, an ordinary person, found his understanding of explosions somewhat blurred. At this moment, Jiang He was completely stunned; amidst his shock, his gaze shifted from the distant towering flames to the black sedan nearby.
Cheng Long stood in faded military attire, gazing over at Shaoshan's side from a distance. He raised his arm lightly and waved. Beside him stood several robust soldiers, their firearms gleaming darkly as they pointed directly at Jiang He and the others.
Jiang He sensed an odd atmosphere; Shaoshan and Old Ma remained motionless, as if their physiological functions had crashed at the moment they heard the explosion. Apart from their trembling arms and vacant stares, there was nothing else. In the distance, Cheng Long showed no signs of movement either; daylight dimmed as a fierce wind howled. If a camera were to capture this scene at that moment, it would surely sweep all awards at this year's Pulitzer Prize with those proud soldiers standing tall.
Time seemed to stand still; at least in Jiang He's eyes, this scene had transformed into a silent film. His throat felt dry; he wanted to speak but didn't know where to start. Beside him, Yellow Dog and Tabby Cat seemed to sense the impending danger and timidly buried their heads into the crevice between seats, trembling in fear.
In the next second, Jiang He saw several flashes of fire across from them. Almost simultaneously, Shaoshan shouted "Get down!" The windshield of their vehicle shattered with a loud crash, blood splattering everywhere.
Jiang He felt dizzy as his body was thrown against the car door by the sudden turn of the Jeep. Immediately after, a barrage of gunfire shattered the brief silence.
"Old Ma!"
Shaoshan roared angrily as he yanked Jiang He down from the vehicle and shoved a gun into his hands before turning to return fire at the crowd across from them. Soldiers from inside the truck jumped out; after a brief moment of shock, they regained their discipline. Gunfire flashed continuously as yellow shells fell to the ground, quickly covering it like a layer of gold.
The atmosphere shifted dramatically; what had been a static scene instantly transformed into chaos. Bullets flew through trajectories nearly impossible to discern with the naked eye—piercing flesh, penetrating vehicles, drilling into the ground.
Jiang He was shielded by two soldiers behind the truck when one soldier cupped his hands like a trumpet and shouted something in Jiang He's ear. Before Jiang He could comprehend it, a bullet came hurtling through the air and struck the soldier squarely in the back of his head. The soldier's shouting abruptly ceased as part of his skull flew off far away; he let out a muffled groan before collapsing to the ground, brain matter spilling everywhere.
Jiang He felt a churn in his stomach, and a tightness in his throat made him lean to the side and vomit.
In his hand, he gripped the handgun that Shaoshan had given him. He didn’t understand what Shaoshan meant—was it a call for him to fight back? Or was it a suggestion to end it all? Perhaps it was an order to flee quickly? Jiang He wiped the filth from his mouth and, seizing a moment of silence between gunshots, crouched low and darted out from behind the truck, rolling and scrambling to reach the Jeep. Shaoshan and the soldiers were hidden behind small barricades, shouting curses as the gunfire erupted chaotically around them.
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