The noise soon woke the pursuers, who scrambled out of their tents.
Their guns were already cocked. Though they were only the Compound's security force, they had some combat training—anyone without a few tricks up their sleeve would have been killed in a turf war long ago in a place like this. Yet when they saw who stood before them, they froze.
They had assumed some wild animal had come charging out of the mountains, or that those fugitives had gotten the crazy idea of launching a counterattack.
But...
None of them had expected to find a frail young man who looked as though a gust of wind could knock him over.
...Was it a trap, or what?
Their leader discreetly signaled, and someone immediately checked the surroundings—but a moment later, the man merely shook his head in bewilderment.
No ambush. No backup. This bastard really had come alone.
Had this guy lost his mind? Even if he couldn't run anymore and wanted to give up, hanging himself from a tall tree would be better than coming back to the Compound with them. They all knew Manager Chun's methods. He specialized in making people wish they were dead.
Zhou You could more or less guess what they were thinking. He simply smiled and spoke.
"Good evening, gentlemen."
"..."
Nobody answered. Their leader stared coldly at him for a long while before speaking.
"What's this supposed to mean? Are you coming back, or are you planning to sell out your friends so Manager Chun will spare you this once?"
After thinking it over, that was the only explanation he could come up with.
But...
Zhou You merely smiled.
"You've got me wrong, brother. I never intended to sell anyone out. I'm just curious. So many people escaping from the