After eating the buns, Qin Xun leaned against the cave wall again.
By the light of the flashlight, he began to study Xu Chao and Dazhuang.
They both looked to be around twenty-four or twenty-five.
Xu Chao was indeed handsome, with delicate features and side-swept bangs. When he smiled, he had a distinctly roguish look, though his skin was a little dark.
Dazhuang was big and burly, with thick eyebrows and large eyes. He had an honest, simple-looking face and muscles bulging all over his body, stretching his white tank top tight.
On closer inspection, there was a long scar on his forehead, though it wasn't very noticeable.
"Can you tell me how you two met Brother Shui?"
"Well, it's complicated, but it's simple too..."
Xu Chao didn't mind the trouble and began telling Qin Xun how he had met Brother Shui.
In short, he had lived in Zone 101 and had a beautiful older sister who had caught the eye of a noble in the zone.
The old man was twisted. After having his way with her for a month, he had tortured her to death.
For the next month, Xu Chao had carried a knife everywhere he went, secretly keeping an eye on the man.
When he finally found the right chance to strike, he still failed.
The man's men took him to a deserted place, intending to kill him.
Brother Shui had appeared and saved him!
Having witnessed Brother Shui's strength, he begged Brother Shui to avenge him.
He had no money then, and nothing much to offer Brother Shui.
But Brother Shui had avenged him anyway.
From then on, he had followed Brother Shui, right up to the present.
Dazhuang's story of how he met Brother Shui was much the same as Xu Chao's.
He had grown up in Zone 102. Six years ago, when he was eighteen, his father offended a noble there.
Fearing it would bring death upon them, his father fled Zone 102 with him and his younger brother.
But when they reached the wilderness, they ran into a monster, and his father and younger brother were eaten.
Just as his turn was about to come, Brother Shui appeared, killed the monster, and saved him!
He had followed Brother Shui ever since.
He had followed Brother Shui a little longer than Xu Chao had.
"So, no matter the cost, we'll get you out safely and take you to Brother Shui!"
As Xu Chao finished speaking, he suddenly noticed that something was wrong with Qin Xun's expression.
Qin Xun's face was deathly pale, his head was covered in sweat, his eyes were half-open, and his breathing was as faint as a thread.
Realizing something was wrong, Dazhuang hurriedly put a hand on Qin Xun's forehead.
"He's burning up! He's got a fever!"
"The gunshot wound must be infected." Xu Chao inched over to Qin Xun and lifted his shirt. "There's a wound on his chest too!"
Qin Xun felt as though an invisible beast were devouring his consciousness bit by bit.
Everything before his eyes was blurry, and he couldn't even hear Xu Chao and Dazhuang speaking.
Finally, he passed out.
When he regained consciousness, it was another burst of excruciating pain that woke him!
Qin Xun glanced at Xu Chao's hand pinching his gunshot wound and no longer wanted to say anything.
"I'm going to take the bullet out now. Can you bear it?"
Xu Chao held a sharp dagger in his hand.
On the ground lay several bottles of medicine, some bandages, and alcohol.
Qin Xun nodded with difficulty.
Xu Chao sterilized the dagger over an alcohol lamp, then stuffed a towel into Qin Xun's mouth.
Before he began, he warned, "If you can't take it, I can stop, but you mustn't shout, or we'll all die!"
After Qin Xun signaled his agreement with his eyes, Xu Chao wasted no time. He used the tip of the blade to part the rotting flesh on Qin Xun's left arm and slowly pry out the bullet inside.
Qin Xun bit down hard on the towel, veins bulging on his face. In mere moments, cold sweat soaked his entire body.
The indescribable agony nearly made him pass out several times in succession!
Fortunately, everything went smoothly.
"You really can take the pain, kid!"
Xu Chao marveled once again at Qin Xun's ability to endure pain.
Forget shouting-the kid hadn't even grunted once throughout the whole procedure!
"I'm used to it..."
Qin Xun let out a long breath. Still, it was his first time experiencing the pain of having a bullet pried out with a knife.
What a rush!
Dazhuang carefully disinfected Qin Xun's wounds, then wrapped bandages around the wounds on his arm and chest.
He also fed him a few pills.
"When I went out just now, I took another look around. They're searching the whole city, and I reckon they'll reach us soon. We have to leave this cave after dark!" Xu Chao washed the blood off his hands with bottled water.
"Hopefully we can find another way out of the city after dark," Dazhuang said.
"Wait, I just had an idea!" Xu Chao snapped his fingers, a flash of wisdom in his eyes.
Qin Xun and Dazhuang both looked at him.
"The whole city is searching for us now, and the city gate is heavily guarded. Naturally, we'd look for another way out and avoid the gate!" Xu Chao smiled. "But what if we did the opposite? The Guard Team will surely think we wouldn't dare leave through the gate, but that's exactly the way we'll go. We won't even need disguises-we'll just swagger right out through the gate! They'll never expect us to dare do that! Even if they see us, we'll be so brazen that they'll probably think there's nothing wrong with us!"
Dazhuang was stunned!
Qin Xun was stunned too!
It wasn't that Xu Chao's idea was particularly good. They simply couldn't understand how he had come up with something so brain-dead.
Even Mengmeng, who was beside Xu Chao, seemed not to know what was going on and shook their head.
"I always thought you had a brain."
Dazhuang lowered his head, unwilling to meet Xu Chao's eyes. He was afraid Xu Chao's shining wisdom might affect him.
Then Qin Xun would be the only one left with a brain!
"Qin Xun, you know Zone 108 better than we do. Do you know any way out of the city?"
Dazhuang thought it was better to listen to the advice of a local!
"Zone 108 is surrounded by high walls and electric fences. There are a few exits, but if I know about them, the Guard Team definitely does too."
Qin Xun searched his mind for a way out.
He did have a way out of the city.
But he wasn't the only one who knew about it. The Guard Team knew too; they usually just couldn't be bothered to block it.
Now the whole city was on alert, so that place was almost certainly blocked off too!
"Wait, there's a way!" Qin Xun suddenly raised his head.
"What way?" Xu Chao looked at him expectantly.
"He Laowu!"
"He Laowu? The man in charge of the Killing Arena who harmed your sister?"
"Right!"
"You mean, take He Laowu hostage and make him take us out of the city?"
"Exactly. The guy values his life! As long as we take him hostage, he'll definitely have a way to get us out!" Qin Xun continued, "He's the District Chief's loyal lackey, so he has some privileges in Zone 108. I'm sure he'll have a way!"
Besides that, Qin Xun couldn't think of any other way.
"Sounds like a good plan. It's worth a try. Do you know where He Laowu is?"
"I can find him!"