Interception

Qu Jianlei wasn't surprised by Xiao Jing's answer. He was still just a child—what could he understand?

"Come drive. I'll go check what's happening in the back... Why are so many vehicles chasing us?"

Switching riders on a speeding motorcycle wasn't easy, but fortunately, a flatbed cart was tied behind the bike.

The Hairless Freak was small, and the two riders switched places with barely any noticeable deceleration.

Qu Jianlei climbed onto the flatbed cart. The terrain was rough, and the cart jolted constantly.

Even so, he could see clearly. "About three kilometers... Huh, are they about to open fire?"

Among the six pursuing vehicles was one resembling an Open-Top Light Truck, with a Vehicle-Mounted Machine Gun mounted on it.

The gunner manning the machine gun had already begun aiming. At a mere three kilometers, even an ordinary Gauss Automatic Rifle could reach them.

Perhaps because the weather had turned colder, visibility was excellent today.

Qu Jianlei's vehicle sped along ahead, kicking up thick clouds of dust that would somewhat obstruct the pursuers' view.

But that was a Vehicle-Mounted Machine Gun, meant for sweeping fire. A little dust probably wouldn't bother it.

The gunner had yet to fire, most likely because the Open-Top Light Truck was moving too, jolting too badly for proper aim.

Guns were everywhere in the Wasteland, but ammunition was precious.

After thinking it over, Qu Jianlei untied a loudspeaker from the bundled supplies. "Why are you people chasing us so closely?"

The Open-Top Light Truck had a loudspeaker as well, and a faint voice carried over.

"Stop... Otherwise... destroy the vehicle... turn you into mush."

"Iron Palm Gang... compensation... only two of you... behave... spare your lives."

So they were after the loot? Qu Jianlei frowned, then sighed.

His motorcycle had been modified and was quite powerful, but the flatbed cart behind it severely hindered its speed.

If they kept fleeing, then in another ten minutes or so, they would enter the enemy's effective killing range.

But... did they think they could bully him just because they had more people? Qu Jianlei frowned. They were only this sort of trash.

If they truly had battle-hardened veterans, or even a sniper, he would definitely have needed to consider how to escape.

But if they were merely relying on numbers to bully others, then there was still a fight to be had.

Having made up his mind, he loaded the Laser Rifle and Gauss Machine Gun, then slung ammunition belts over himself.

When it was time to fight, he had to fight. "Hairless... Xiao Jing, I'm getting down to intercept them. Keep moving."

"Okay," Xiao Jing answered without hesitation. "Be careful!"

With a gun in each hand, Qu Jianlei jumped straight off the flatbed cart.

He set down the Gauss Machine Gun in his left hand and smoothly raised the Laser Rifle in his right.

After aiming from one knee for about two seconds, he decisively fired at the gunner operating the Vehicle-Mounted Machine Gun.

A Laser Gun was almost unaffected by gravity or wind. Only dust and sand could interfere with it.

The next instant, a hole appeared in the gunner's forehead. His body went limp, and he collapsed.

His finger was still on the trigger. Tuk-tuk-tuk! The Vehicle-Mounted Machine Gun fired a long burst into the sky.

"They're using a Laser Gun!" someone shouted.

The next moment, a motorcycle rider's body jolted violently, and a hole appeared in his chest.

The motorcycle traveling at full speed immediately flipped over, throwing the rear-seat gunner into the air.

The gunner had already suffered a penetrating Laser Gun wound. Fortunately, the alloy plate over his chest had blocked most of the force.

But when he crashed heavily from the air, he was unable to get up, coughing blood in great mouthfuls. "A... a sharpshooter!"

"They have a sniper!" the others shouted as well, their expressions turning exceptionally grim.

Of the five motorcycles, one was a sidecar tricycle. Together with the Open-Top Light Truck, there were sixteen people in pursuit.

They had thought that with only two people on the other side, and only one of them capable of fighting, victory would be effortless. Who could have expected the enemy not only to have a Laser Gun, but also a sharpshooter? This battle... had become difficult.

Qu Jianlei wanted to take out the sidecar tricycle's rider as well, but the rider was extremely alert and began driving in a zigzag pattern.

The other three motorcycles followed suit, and even the Open-Top Light Truck started moving like that.

One man tried to take control of the Vehicle-Mounted Machine Gun, but the truck tossed him back and forth, and he was struggling just to keep his balance.

Qu Jianlei gave a soft snort, lowered the Laser Gun in his hand, and picked up the Gauss Machine Gun at his left.

His Gauss Machine Gun was a single-soldier model. It was slightly less powerful than a vehicle-mounted Gauss machine gun, but far stronger than a Laser Gun.

He aimed at the truck driver and unleashed a burst.

The truck was zigzagging, but the machine gun fired continuously. The next instant, the bulletproof windshield turned into a spiderweb of cracks.

"Bastard!" The truck driver hurriedly slowed down and jerked the wheel hard.

He was furious, roaring again and again, "How dare he? How dare he!"

That sort of bandit logic had no shortage of believers in the Wasteland: it was only natural for the strong to bully the weak, while resistance meant the victim was in the wrong.

But even some of their companions could not necessarily accept such words.

A masked woman sat in the sidecar. Hearing that, she snorted coldly.

"They're already trying to kill us, and you're still raging uselessly? Slow down!"

The rider shuddered. "S-slow down?"

The enemy had a Gauss Machine Gun, and she wanted him to slow down? "Don't we have a machine gun too?"

A Gauss Machine Gun was indeed mounted on the sidecar, also a single-soldier model.

"We have to slow down," the woman said coldly. "The machine gun won't be effective. It'll only draw their fire."

"The enemy is attacking from a fixed position. We can only take a risk and try the Laser Gun."

The rider was stunned again. He did reduce his speed, but he still did not quite understand. "Take a risk?"

"We're the disadvantaged side now," the woman answered coldly, taking a Laser Rifle off her back.

"Once the dust clears, I'll pick him off. This is our only chance."

The woman was a Hunter invited for the job, not a member of the Iron Palm Gang. Her instincts were sharp, and her marksmanship was astonishing.

Yet she did not have the right to ride in the truck, even though that would have allowed her to make better use of her combat ability.

The next moment, a stream of bullets struck the ground ahead of the sidecar tricycle.

If the sidecar tricycle had not slowed down, they would have been hit dead-on.

"You really were right," the rider said, breaking out in a cold sweat. "That guy's shooting is incredible."

The woman braced the Laser Rifle and replied impassively, "If he doesn't run now, he won't get another chance."

Of course Qu Jianlei knew why his sneak attack had succeeded.

The motorcycle and flatbed cart had churned up enormous amounts of dust, concealing his figure.

Now Xiao Jing's motorcycle had gone farther away, and the dust was gradually settling.

He fired another half belt from the Gauss Machine Gun, grabbed both weapons, turned, and sprinted away in a zigzag.

"He used suppressing fire to cover his retreat," the woman accurately judged. "He's relocating. Chase him!"

The rider immediately perked up. "Chase... in a straight line?"

"Zigzag," the woman said coldly. "He could turn around and attack at any moment."

She kept the Laser Gun braced steadily. After a brief pause, she raised her voice.

"This is a rare opportunity... Close the distance! He can't possibly be faster than that motorcycle!"

Everyone accepted her judgment. The battle had lasted for over a minute.

In one minute, the motorcycle ahead could have traveled four to five hundred meters.

Unless the motorcycle stopped to wait for him, there was no way Black Sky could catch up.

And Xiao Jing had no intention of stopping to wait. He knew how fast Qu Jianlei could run.

What happened next left the pursuers somewhat dumbfounded.

Logically speaking, a person could not run faster than a motorcycle, so shouldn't his figure have become clearer and clearer?

They had chased for nearly a minute. Why was his silhouette becoming harder and harder to make out?

The truck driver raised a hand and pushed aside the cracked windshield. Through gritted teeth, he said, "Let's see how long you can keep this up!"

He believed the enemy was pushing himself into an explosive sprint, something that clearly could not last.

Many people thought the same way. Someone even shouted, "Go straight! It'll be easier to aim. How can he aim properly while he's gasping for breath?"

That logic... wasn't wrong either. Yet after another half minute of pursuit, someone sensed something amiss. "Could that guy have set up an ambush?"

The ground in this area was relatively flat, but not completely flat.

If the enemy found a depression, lay prone, draped himself in an earth-colored cloak, then ambushed them with a sudden attack, they had to guard against it.

"Wouldn't that be courting death?" someone shouted in rebuttal. "How would he escape after shooting us?"

"Does he need to escape?" someone else argued. "Lying prone... how many of us could even hit him?"

Hearing this, the woman on the sidecar tricycle silently switched the Laser Rifle back to firing mode.

Yet the next instant, a beam of light shot out from the dust and hit the truck driver dead-on.

The truck driver's body jerked violently, and he slumped onto the steering wheel.

The truck began spinning wildly.

"Damn it!" The woman's expression changed, and she decisively ordered, "Turn around and run!"

"R-run?" Though surprised, the rider decisively followed her advice.

The front of the tricycle swung around sharply. Because the turn was too abrupt, one wheel actually lifted off the ground.

The woman held tightly onto the sidecar, but the Laser Gun's sling whipped around and, by terrible luck, looped around her neck.

She was truly formidable. With one hand, she grabbed the sling and yanked it off her neck.

The Laser Rifle spun away through the air.

"Forget the gun," the woman said, her voice slightly hoarse. "Run!"

As the rider fled at full speed, he still asked, "We can't beat him?"

The woman answered bluntly, "I'm not done living yet."

At the same time, another flash of light streaked past, and the rider of another motorcycle was hit.

That motorcycle slammed on the brakes, toppled onto its side, and skidded twenty or thirty meters across the ground.

Qu Jianlei had originally aimed at the sidecar tricycle's rider, but the man had decisively turned around, so he could only switch targets.

The other two motorcycles were horrified and immediately continued driving in zigzags.

Yet someone roared, "Hua Xiezhi... Are you fleeing in the middle of battle?"

(New book period, please support.)