Escape

Suddenly, Wang Ning dropped his pistol to the ground. "I must've been out of my mind. Even if I killed him, I'd only shave ten years off his life. Why do something so stupid? Still, this guy is really dangerous. You'd never guess it from his usual behavior, but when he loses it, he's like a rabid dog. He's a serious liability."

Just then, Zeng Fei appeared, having left the building at some point. "Wang Ning..."

Wang Ning had actually noticed Zeng Fei leave the building long ago.

After killing William, the Umbrella Corporation men had already fled far away, so there was little point in staying hidden. Zeng Fei had stopped sniping.

He left the other two to Yin Kuang and Wang Ning. He didn't want anyone accusing him of stealing their kills. He'd already earned 300 Study Points, which was enough. Of course, whether Yin Kuang and Wang Ning managed to earn any Study Points was none of his concern.

Until he was sure Zeng Fei had left, Wang Ning hadn't dared act rashly. He didn't want to reveal himself so soon. In this strange place, the more deeply he stayed hidden, the better his chances of survival. Quietly and discreetly improving himself was the way to go!

Wang Ning had to be cautious—more cautious still, trembling like someone walking a tightrope.

Because he had only 27 years to live!

But so what if he had only 27 years? Wang Ning was confident that with his own strength and cunning, he could still live well and enjoy a comfortable life.

At the sight of Zeng Fei, Wang Ning's icy expression melted like snow in the spring sun. At the same time, he forced out a cold sweat. His face was pale, his breathing shallow, and he looked frightened and uneasy. He pointed at Yin Kuang, who was still raging. "Look..."

Even a master of Sichuan opera face-changing couldn't have changed expressions as skillfully as he did.

"Yikes!" Zeng Fei stumbled back in fright. "Wh-what happened?"

"I don't know either." Wang Ning shook his head. "After ambushing one of the elite mercenaries, I hurried over to help him, but... I found him like this. Yin Kuang seemed to have been provoked by something. He attacked that guy like a madman, and even after he died, he wouldn't let up."

Zeng Fei swallowed. The strong smell of blood in the air made him gag again, and he was so dizzy he could barely stand.

"Are you okay?" Wang Ning asked.

Zeng Fei waved a hand. "I'm... I'm fine. I'll get used to it. I'll get used to it. Ugh!"

"What should we do about Yin Kuang? We can't just let him keep going like this," Wang Ning said worriedly. "All this noise might attract a horde of Zombies. And the Umbrella Corporation men who escaped definitely won't let us go. We need to leave as soon as possible."

"Damn it. In the end, we still let them get away," Zeng Fei said. "We have to leave right now." He glanced at Yin Kuang. "I found a Hummer that still runs. Li Shuangmu is already in it. You and Yin Kuang are all that's left."

"But he's like this... What are you doing?" Wang Ning suddenly stepped back and asked in alarm.

Zeng Fei had suddenly raised his sniper rifle, loaded a bullet, and aimed it at Yin Kuang.

"Don't get the wrong idea," Zeng Fei hurriedly said. "It's a tranquilizer dart."

"A tranquilizer dart? Why did you even exchange for one of those?" Wang Ning asked curiously.

"Heh, old habits," Zeng Fei said. He aimed at Yin Kuang and fired. "I used to go hunting with my dad all the time, and we always used tranquilizer darts. So I couldn't resist exchanging for a few. They weren't expensive anyway. I didn't expect one to come in handy now. See? He's down."

Sure enough, Yin Kuang, who had still been raging, suddenly collapsed limply to the ground.

"By the way, did you take that dog down too?"

As Wang Ning and Zeng Fei lifted the unconscious Yin Kuang, Wang Ning suddenly asked.

"Yeah," Zeng Fei replied. "After that intense gunfight, I nearly forgot about the mission. I only remembered when I heard the dog barking just now. Then I went to catch it, but it nearly bit me. So I hit it with a tranquilizer dart and tossed it into the car."

"Oh," Wang Ning said.

Zeng Fei continued, "Turns out that dog really is special. No wonder the Umbrella Corporation sent an elite mercenary squad to capture it. We've really struck gold this time... It's just a shame we'll have to hide like rats for the next four hours. One slipup, and we're dead. Sigh."

Wang Ning's eyes lit up. "What's so special about the dog?"

"I'll tell you later," Zeng Fei said. "We need to get out of here. I can almost smell the stench of the Zombies. I knew the Headmaster wouldn't let us earn rewards so easily. Damn, he doesn't look big or tall, but this guy's heavy."

At last, they tossed Yin Kuang into the trunk of a convertible Hummer and climbed into the vehicle.

Li Shuangmu sat weakly in the Hummer's back seat, covered in blood from head to toe. He had his eyes closed, trying to rest, and seemed too exhausted even to speak. He merely opened his eyes and glanced at Wang Ning. Qian Qianqian, her lovely, innocent face streaked with tears and her large eyes red, was wiping the blood from Li Shuangmu with a towel.

Fortunately, the rules of this strange, special place seemed unusual too. Though Li Shuangmu was badly injured, after they removed the bullets, he ate a few Secret Recipe Goubuli Buns and had his wounds wrapped in Hemostatic Bandages. Once his health recovered, granulation tissue miraculously began growing in his wounds, and they slowly started to heal.

In the real world, even if Li Shuangmu didn't die, he would have lost enough blood to kill him. Never mind the damage to his muscles and bones—he'd have been bedridden for at least half a year. There was no way he could lounge so comfortably against the seat, being looked after by a pretty young woman.

Zeng Fei sat in the driver's seat. "Hold on. I'm starting the car."

The engine roared to life with a wild, deep growl. The Hummer swung around and drove from the slightly wider road on the left into the darkness.

The streets in the middle and on the right were scarred with destruction, with flames still burning and smoke lingering, as if telling the story of the fierce battle that had just taken place. Farther away, dark shapes could be seen swaying and shuffling slowly toward them. They were obviously Zombies drawn by the loud gunfire and explosions. And even nearby, a few scattered Zombies were staggering out of buildings.

Of course, one could also say the Headmaster had "spawned" them to make things harder for Yin Kuang and the others.

In the car.

"By the way, Zeng Fei, you still haven't told me what's so special about that dog," Wang Ning asked from the passenger seat.

"Well..." Zeng Fei said. "I think we should wait until Yin Kuang wakes up before talking about it... I controlled the dose of the tranquilizer dart I gave him. He should be up in about ten minutes. Hey, Qian Qianqian, don't play favorites. Yin Kuang may not be as handsome as Li Shuangmu, but he's still our teammate."

"Ah," Qian Qianqian said, then quickly added, "Oh, right..."

But the towel in her hand kept wiping Li Shuangmu's face.

Li Shuangmu opened his eyes. He couldn't be bothered to keep up his warm smile anymore. "I'm fine now. Go check on Yin Kuang."

Qian Qianqian pressed her lips together and nodded.

The convertible Hummer's trunk was spacious enough to fit several people. Yin Kuang was lying in it now. Beside him was a black Labrador. Perhaps to keep it quiet if it woke up, they had tied all four of its legs together and even wrapped a roll of bandages around its muzzle.

Yin Kuang, covered in blood, gave the timid Qian Qianqian quite a shock. Though Li Shuangmu was just as bloody, he gave her a different feeling. Looking at his face always made her heart race. Compared to Yin Kuang, she'd rather take care of Li Shuangmu.

"Sigh." Qian Qianqian let out a soft sigh, though it was hard to say what she was lamenting. Then she used an alcohol-soaked towel to clean Yin Kuang's wounds and took out a Hemostatic Bandage to wrap them skillfully.

As for the bullet wound in his back, she forced herself to endure her discomfort. She disinfected it first, then used a small knife to dig out the bullet before skillfully bandaging the wound. Luckily, Yin Kuang was unconscious from the tranquilizer. Given Qian Qianqian's clumsy way of digging out bullets, otherwise he would have been in enough pain to scream.

Watching her, Wang Ning couldn't help asking, "Did Qian Qianqian study medicine?"

"She said she went to a medical school," Zeng Fei replied. "Who knows? She went to medical school and still took the college entrance exam... and ended up here."

Wang Ning nodded without comment.

"Where are we going next?" Li Shuangmu suddenly asked.

"Senior Xiong Ba left along this road," Zeng Fei said. "If we speed up, we might catch up with him. It's not like he'll protect us... but if we want to survive, we have no choice but to drag him into this too. The Umbrella Corporation will definitely assume he was the one who told us to do this. Then he'll have no choice but to act."

"But..." Wang Ning said. "Won't that upset our senior? He... isn't someone you want to mess with."

"So what if he's upset?" Zeng Fei said. "Unless you're confident you can handle that elite mercenary squad. I, for one, don't want to face them again. Besides, with Senior Xiong Ba's strength, I doubt he'd even take them seriously. He could rip someone's arm off with ease. Xiong Ba has to be strong!"

As if to convince himself, Zeng Fei added, "Don't forget, he claims to have a Second-Year Werewolf Lineage. I don't know how powerful a second-year enhancement is, but werewolves... they're the stuff of legends!"

"Fine," Wang Ning said with a bitter smile and a shake of his head. "Let's hope so..."