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墨書 Inktalez
“Follow him, A-Yong. Tang Yumo is ahead waiting for you,” I said, pointing at the faint light that was Xiao Guolin.
As soon as A-Yong heard that Tang Yumo was in front, he took off running without a second thought. Those Hakka people are like rabbits; they sprint as if they’re flying, and once they start running together, it’s like entering a bend in the road.
He had already witnessed the strange way I and A San ran, so he wasn’t surprised by Xiao Guolin’s odd running style, nor did he stop to marvel at the centrifugal force propelling him forward.
Even though I didn’t particularly like this Hakka person who had once tried to assassinate me, Tang Yumo had instructed me to bring him back, so I felt a sense of responsibility.
Liu Squad Leader was still in a daze, not fully recovered from the shock of seeing something supernatural. I didn’t want to waste time talking to him, so I walked over and slapped him twice.
Liu Squad Leader stared at me blankly, tears streaming down his face. At least it wasn’t urine. If a grown man wet himself in front of me, I would have no choice but to deal with him harshly.
“Run! Stop being such a coward in front of me,” I said, reaching out to Cui Zhiqiang. “You take charge; I’ll stay back to cover the retreat.”
Cui Zhiqiang watched as A-Yong dashed away like a rabbit and started scratching his head anxiously. However, the discipline of a soldier compelled him to obey orders. Liu Squad Leader was still dazed; without anyone giving him a retreat order, he didn’t dare run off on his own and kept looking at me expectantly for instructions.
After all, Liu Squad Leader had given me the title of captain; my words—especially those that benefited him—were commands he would certainly follow.
Sure enough, Cui Zhiqiang immediately handed me his gun. “The bullets are already chambered.”
He gestured to another soldier. “Obey the captain’s orders; retreat!”
How hypocritical; if you’re going to run, just run—don’t pretend it’s about following orders.
Cui Zhiqiang and another soldier tried to drag Liu Squad Leader away, but he stubbornly refused to budge. With tears in his eyes, he asked me, “Brother Qiang, what was that thing just now? It looked like a skinning ghost—someone who was skinned before dying and now wants to skin us.”
"Dammit. That's Xiao Guolin, Captain Xiao."
When Liu Squad Leader heard this, his eyes lit up, and he immediately stopped crying. As he turned to run, he looked back at me and said, "Brother Qiang, get a grip."
I sighed. "Stop whining. You’re already limping on one leg. If we catch up to you, we catch up. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you; time is of the essence, and no one can help you now."
Liu Squad Leader's eyes turned red. "Then don’t rush me."
"I..."
Just as I was about to snap at him, Liu Squad Leader had already turned and ran off with two soldiers.
I turned around and thought for a moment. I fired my weapon in a pattern to signal a retreat through the dark corridor. I used the internationally recognized Morse code; Jack should understand.
It wasn’t long before I saw two bright spots emerging from the darkness. Jack and a soldier came running, panting heavily.
When I say it wasn’t long, I mean according to my watch; psychologically, my sense of time had already surpassed its limits. If it weren’t for some things that needed to be addressed face-to-face, I would have turned and run long ago. Every second spent standing here was a tremendous psychological torment for me.
As soon as I could see Jack’s face, I shouted loudly at him and the other soldier, "Drop all your gear and run with me!"
With that, I demonstratively tossed aside my Type 95 automatic rifle and turned to run forward.
"Zhang. The Mosquitoes have retreated; we should head back," I heard Jack shouting desperately behind me.
I ignored him. I believed he had been so frightened by the massive noise ahead that his logical judgment had faltered.
"Zhang! Zhang!! Can you wait a moment?!" Jack's voice was filled with anger.
"No!" I didn't turn back.
"Why?!" Jack's voice suddenly appeared right next to me.
It was astonishing; Jack and another warrior had actually caught up with me and were now running alongside.
"The Giant Mosquitoes are retreating! We need to run back if we want to survive. Are your ears broken or is your brain malfunctioning? You want to fight those things up ahead and you've even thrown away your gun. Do you think you can bite them?"
Jack shouted angrily, reaching out a hand to try and stop me.
I swatted his hand away and said to the other warrior, "Throw it all away. Don't carry any weight. Run forward as fast as you can. Xiao Ting and Tang Yumo are up ahead waiting for you."
Even though the warrior had caught up with me, he was still carrying a military backpack and an automatic rifle. I knew how heavy the backpack was; it might be manageable for a short time, but there was no way he could sustain it for long, especially when speed was crucial. Right now, every second was extremely precious.
"What about Lieutenant Liu and the other warriors?" the soldier asked, clearly worried.
"You'll catch up with them soon enough. If you don't, you're as good as dead."
As soon as he heard my words, the soldier immediately discarded his backpack and automatic rifle, zipping past me like the wind, his sturdy body disappearing from my sight like a light tank.
Damn, it seemed like everyone's will to survive was stronger than mine in moments like this.
"Why aren't we running back?" Jack no longer held onto me, but he still felt dissatisfied and confused by my decision.
"You’re being foolish. We can’t outrun it. You can tell just by the sound," I shot a glance at Jack.
"But we can’t fight it either, and there are a lot of those things ahead. Are you really okay with throwing two girls out there?"
"Someone will take care of them."
"Who?"
"Xiao Guolin."
"He's alive? You've seen him!?" Jack exclaimed.
I nodded, unable to say more.
I was too exhausted; I didn’t even have the strength to talk. No, I should say that speaking drained my energy and affected my speed. I could only try to minimize my energy expenditure.
"I need to see him," Jack said, and then he dashed ahead of me.
Jack's backpack had long since disappeared; he probably tossed it to someone while covering our retreat. Without the burden, and eager to see Xiao Guolin, Jack sprinted away with his long legs, moving incredibly fast.
I watched him vanish into the darkness, realizing I had fallen behind. The frustration welled up inside me.
At this point, my stamina didn’t give me much of an advantage either; I had already run back and forth several times without any time to rest, struggling to catch my breath.
I dared not think too much; just catching up with Liu Squad Leader would be good enough. That was the only way I could console myself.
My endurance advantage allowed me to catch up with Liu Squad Leader. He was running alone at the back, and his leg injury seemed to have worsened, causing his body to sway heavily.
"Liu Caozi, where are your warriors? Why is no one with you?" I gasped as I ran past him, teasing him.
"I let them go ahead. I didn't want to drag them down."
"Quite self-sacrificing, aren't you? Well, I won't wait for you then. I was hoping to run alongside you."
"Don't! Brother Qiang, I wouldn't mind if you stayed with me."
I glanced back at him and raised my middle finger. "I do mind."
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