The heavy rain had lasted all night.
Wu Quan had also stood nearby in silence all night.
He watched with his own eyes as Old Dog Wu poured one mouthful of baijiu after another down his throat. He watched him laugh and chat with the seven cold corpses, watched him punch savage cracks into the helipad, watched him break down and weep in the downpour, watched him sit stiffly on that stool like a soul-less statue until dawn...
The rain had gradually stopped, but the faint light of dawn still could not pierce the thick clouds. The world remained dim and gloomy.
Drizzle trickled down the edges of the tarpaulin. The dishes on the table had long gone cold. Old Dog Wu, who had been sitting silently on the stool, finally slowly came back to himself and staggered to his feet...
"The banquet is over..."
Old Dog Wu looked at the barely touched food on the table and murmured, "We should get going."
Creak—
Several stools scraped backward, and the seven corpses slowly rose to their feet, their tattered black cloaks swaying in the breeze.
Old Dog Wu turned and walked out of the crude tarpaulin shelter. The seven figures followed closely behind him, their black silhouettes and pale faces reflected in the mirror-smooth water.
Dr. Li, dressed in a white coat, walked out of the Abstinence Hall.
He first glanced at Wu Quan beside him, then looked at Old Dog Wu's bloodshot eyes and spoke with a complicated expression.
"You're leaving already?"
"Mm." Old Dog Wu spoke calmly. "The situation at Chennan Pass is still very tense. We can't waste any more time here."
"Wu Tongxuan, have you... truly prepared yourself?"
Old Dog Wu gazed quietly at Dr. Li without speaking. He merely slowly closed his eyes.
The next