Drifting to Cover the Retreat, Real Men Don't Look Back

Sing Sing stubbed out his cigarette in the car ashtray.

"Listen to me, there's a fork in the road three kilometers ahead at a viewpoint. You lead them first, I'll cover the rear."

Are you alone?

The Guardian quickly answered, "Let me correct you. Mr. Zhou is currently alone, in a car, with two serious external injuries, a second dislocated right shoulder, and a heart that lacks reverence for death."

"Are you my car or my mom? Shut up!"

Li Qianhuan's voice followed immediately. "Hey! Used car dealer! Do you even think you can beat him?"

"That's a very good question. Little Fireworks, let me teach you a lesson."

Sing Sing, steering with one hand, said, "When driving long distances, the worst thing isn't the car breaking down, it's the tail. If you don't cut off the tail, you'll be blocked at the gate even in Canada."

Silver Fox's voice was chilling. "If you're dead, who told me about Logan?"

"Don't worry, I'm tough. The fortune teller in my hometown said I'd live to be 120, but I ended up killing myself by scratching myself to death."

"..."

"Execute the order, driver. Over."

After saying that, he slammed on the brakes, causing the Guardian to lurch forward and smoothly swerve into the right lane.

In the rearview mirror, a white RV roared closer.

In the half-second it took for the two cars to pass each other, Sing Sing rolled down his window and met the eyes of Silver Fox in the driver's seat.

He grinned, gave a thumbs-up, and gave it a big thumbs-up.

He mouthed three words: "Drive with confidence."

Silver Fox stepped on the gas without expression, and the RV shot off.

Sing Sing slammed the steering wheel all the way to the floor, simultaneously pressing and releasing the accelerator and brake pedals.

The Guardian emitted an excited electronic voice. "Drifting intent detected! Sport mode switched for you! Suspension stiffened! Torque distribution! Woohoo!"

The car body traced an arc on the empty interstate highway, then steadily turned 180 degrees to face the oncoming traffic.

Stop here.

Sing Sing pushed open the car door, got out, leaned against the hood, took out a cigarette from his pack, and put it in his mouth.

There's a fire this time.

He lit it slowly, took a deep breath, and exhaled smoke that dissipated into a small patch of ash in the dim light of dawn.

The most important thing in life is to be happy.

He blew a smoke ring at the dark purple-black mist in the distance. "It's just that this mist doesn't look very pleasant. Guardian, what's this stuff made of?"

"Sampling and analysis in progress. High concentration of unknown biopheromones detected. Database comparison in progress, similarity calculation in progress..."

"Hurry up and calculate, is that a fusion core or an abacus?"

"The abacus is also a traditional China calculating tool, Mr. Zhou, are you complimenting me? (◕‿◕)"

"... Okay, find a place to hide first, then keep an eye on the battlefield and look for opportunities to provide long-range fire support."

"Received, Mr. Zhou."

Old Zhou could actually hear a sense of relief in the Guardian's voice.

"To be honest, my fusion core is shaking. I'm just a kid, only three months old!"

"Forget it. I remember you have a Bluetooth headset in your car, give me one, it'll make communication easier."

An earphone popped out from the center console with a "click".

Sing Sing plugged his ear, and the Guardian's voice rang out. "A concealed position has been planned, 400 meters to the southeast on a slope, good firing range."

The Guardian's gull-wing gate closed silently.

"Furthermore, Mr. Zhou, according to my database analysis, the estimated mortality rate for your current 'lone hero highway stop' tactic is --"

"Shut up!"

"Okay. Good luck in battle. If you are killed in action, I will edit your battle footage into a highlight reel, set to 'See You Again,' and play it on a loop at your memorial service."

"Thank you and your whole family."

"I'm the only one in my family, so you're welcome (◕‿◕)"

The Guardian silently slipped into the coniferous forest, its rust-colored paint job switching to the dark green of the forest, and in the blink of an eye, it blended into the shadows of the trees.

Only one person, one cigarette, and the rolling, dark purple fog on the horizon remained on the highway.

Sing Sing squinted at the cloud of fog, the roar of an engine interrupting his thoughts.

At the end of the road, a modified Jeep sped out, its chassis raised, a steel crash bar welded to the front, and the accelerator was slammed into the floor as it headed straight for him.

One hundred meters.

"Mr. Zhou, the other vehicle is traveling at 180 kilometers per hour and shows no signs of slowing down."

"Still using that highway assault tactic?"

Sing Sing stood motionless, a cigarette dangling from his lips.

"Did you waste your time learning the driving test? Didn't your instructor teach you to slow down and yield to pedestrians?"

Eighty meters.

"Mr. Zhou, a friendly reminder: you are standing in the motor vehicle lane, which is technically considered illegal lane occupation."

"Whose side are you on anyway?"

"I'm standing on the slope 400 meters away, I'm safe (￣▽￣)"

Sixty meters.

Sing Sing, with a cigarette stubbed out, slowly raised his left hand.

Fifty meters, with a flick of the wrist, a silver light shot out, skimming the ground.

"Pfft!"

The throwing knife pierced the front left tire of the jeep, and the Inner Qi on the knife exploded inside the tire, shattering the entire tire on the spot.

The front left wheel of the Jeep, which was traveling at high speed, locked up instantly. The front of the vehicle veered to one side, and the bumper scraped the ground, sending sparks flying.

The entire vehicle overturned and slid for more than ten meters on the asphalt road.

Sing Sing swung his knife again, this time aiming for the gas tank.

"Boom!!"

Flames shot into the sky, and a plume of black smoke billowed upwards.

Sing Sing stood there, a cigarette still dangling from his lips.

"Oh, what a tragedy."

He sighed at the fire, "This car was modified quite meticulously; the crash bars were welded stronger than the socks I sewed, and now it's all gone."

The Guardian's voice came through the Bluetooth headset. "Mr. Zhou, your two stabs have been uploaded to the cloud. I've already come up with the title: 'Shocking! Middle-aged man stops car on highway, the reason behind it is heartwarming.'"

"Heartwarming my foot! Delete 'shocking,' that's so lame."

"Edited to: 'Mature Man Stops Car on Highway, Heartwarming Reason Behind It'"

"... it would have been better not to change it at all."

Sing Sing Chow was arguing with the Guardian when he suddenly noticed two figures emerging from the distant firelight.

Flames crackled and burned on their bodies as the two men strolled out from the epicenter of the explosion.

The one on the left is dressed in a black, tight-fitting combat suit, with ten long, gleaming metal claws protruding from his fingertips.

The one on the right is two meters tall, with grayish-white skin tinged with dark red, and several wriggling carbon-tungsten alloy tentacles wrapped around its thick arms.

"Lady Deathstrike?!" His eyes widened. "Omega Red?!"

How did those two end up together?!

The cigarette in Sing Sing's mouth fell to the ground.

These two completely unrelated guys actually teamed up to kill him?

What an honor...

Similarity calculation complete.

The Guardian reported belatedly:

"The purplish-black fog has a 100% similarity to the 'Omega Red Death Factor' sample in the database."