Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
My mind was a bit chaotic, primarily because I was shocked by this information, unable to accept or digest it for a moment. Fortunately, it did not affect my ability to think and judge. Jack's words had loopholes; they seemed to answer my question positively, but the answers were not entirely accurate and even quite forced.
They collected biological samples from a piece of clothing. But whose clothing was it? Only five people entered the Underground Passage and came out alive: myself, Xiao Guolin, Cao Mingzhe, Liu Squad Leader, and Hu Aiguo. Xiao Guolin and I had changed into sleeping bags early on because our clothes were soaked with Liu Squad Leader's blood. This meant that only Cao Mingzhe, Liu Squad Leader, and Hu Aiguo were still wearing their clothes. Therefore, the biological samples they collected could only come from these three individuals.
That accidental escape from the Underground Passage—I have always believed it was an accident. When I woke up, I found myself in a military medical facility in the desert, knowing only that I had seen Liu Squad Leader in the same place; I had no information about the others' whereabouts. Given the situation at that time, Liu Squad Leader's injuries were more severe than mine; he would need to be treated there for several months, and the dirty clothes he changed out of might not be kept for him. More importantly, I had been with him the entire time; I could be certain that we had not seen or come into contact with any plants. We had seen insects, though—indeed, we had even eaten roasted insects.
This left only Cao Mingzhe and Hu Aiguo as possible sources for providing them with biological samples. After Xiao Guolin went missing at the Embankment, they lost contact with us for a long time—especially Cao Mingzhe and Xiao Guolin, who only met up with us at the last moment. I had no idea what they did or where they went during that time. Even after escaping the Underground Passage, their whereabouts remained a mystery to me. I didn't believe that Cao Mingzhe and Hu Aiguo could recover physically and regain their freedom in such a short time. This incident had been investigated for a long time, and I had been isolated for several years; of course, my situation was somewhat special.
During this time, it was impossible for them to obtain what they wanted, including clothing with biological samples. So how could they guarantee that these samples came from the Underground Passage? Who provided them with the clothing? I didn't believe that it was either Cao Mingzhe or Hu Aiguo who supplied them with clothes. If one of them did, my role would be significantly diminished; AE wouldn't even need to cooperate with me—it would be more convenient to work with whoever provided the clothing. Moreover, this person knew more than I did; at least they knew where those plants were.
These questions were quite chaotic in my mind as various uncertain pieces of information bombarded me. The nature of AE increasingly filled me with doubt. What was their purpose? To obtain clothing containing biological samples required an incredibly powerful network of information and operational capabilities.
At that moment, Jack's voice pulled me back to reality as he called my name. "Zhang, it's your turn to show some sincerity. What are you hiding? Please tell me."
"Alright," I took a deep breath. "You guessed right; I encountered insects in the Underground Passage."
"Was it this kind of Scorpion?" Jack pointed at the shore.
"No," I shook my head. "Something far worse."
Jack's eyes widened in shock as he asked, "What is it?"
I shook my head again. "Let's leave this place first; I can't concentrate here. Looking at these things makes me feel nauseous."
I turned around and walked towards the thicket I remembered. I didn't want to stay in the water any longer; I needed to find Ah Xiang and the others. However, the key factor pushing me to leave quickly was Jack's gaze. I felt he was constantly thinking about catching a Scorpion, his greedy eyes resembling those of a lecherous man staring at a beautiful woman. I couldn't stop him from going to his death, but I didn't want to be dragged down with him. I thought about trading myself for a Scorpion; he could certainly do that.
Jack's dissatisfied voice sounded behind me, followed by the splashing of water. It seemed that without support, he couldn't get close to the shore to catch a Scorpion and had no choice but to give up.
I could only rely on my memory to navigate this path. The thicket wasn't large, and if I missed it, I'd have to walk quite far before reaching a hill. I was worried about whether I'd make it to that hill; if I fell into the water like before and got covered in Leeches, this journey could be deadly.
I stopped and waited for a moment, then called out to Jack as he approached, "Light up a Glow Stick and walk side by side every ten meters. If we can't find that thicket, we're in danger."
Jack caught up with me, clearly wanting to ask something, but upon seeing the current situation, he had no choice but to hold back his words. He lit up a Glow Stick and walked alongside me. After a short while, I saw light ahead, followed by a bright Flashlight shining in my face, making it hard for me to open my eyes. I waved my hand towards the Flashlight to signal that I understood. The Flashlight turned off, and Jack and I walked towards the light for over ten meters until we finally spotted the thicket.
The thicket grew on solid ground covered with thick layers of dead branches and leaves; it was damp but thankfully didn’t require standing in water. We could lay down a Rain Cover to rest. Once on shore, I checked my leg bindings; fortunately, they were still secure. My efforts hadn’t been in vain; the protective work was thorough enough that no Leeches had found any gaps.
Ah Xiang and the others had laid out a Rain Cover on a relatively flat piece of land and piled their backpacks together for support as they rested. When they saw Jack and me arrive, they made space for us. I glanced around and noticed that Buasong was missing. Looking at another Lao Mountain Person whose face resembled someone who had just lost their father made my heart skip a beat.
“Where’s Buasong?” I asked Ah Xiang.
“Don’t mention it,” Ah Xiang said angrily, pointing in one direction. “That bastard wouldn’t listen no matter how much we shouted; he just walked off like he was possessed.”
“Why didn’t you stop him? He’ll die out there alone!” I exclaimed angrily.
Ah Xiang was half sitting, half lying against his backpack, mud dripping from his legs onto the ground. His body and face were still covered in broken branches and rotten leaves. The frantic running and trudging through the swamp had drained much of his energy; his chest was still heaving heavily. He scoffed at my question. “It’s not that I didn’t try to stop him; he was at the front, too fast for us to catch up. We shouted until our voices broke, but it was like he didn’t hear us at all. What do you want me to do? Shoot him?”
“What happened between you two? Why did it take you so long to get here? And what exactly is up on the mountain? Did you see it clearly?” Ah Xiang turned the questions back on me.
I looked at Jack, who had no expression on his face. I felt there was no need to hide this from them. "It's the Scorpion. It's huge, about this big." I gestured with my hands.
Ah Xiang and A San both let out a gasp at the same time.
I ignored them and didn't sit down to rest. "I'm going to find Buasong. Who's coming with me?"
"Are you crazy!? I'm not going to die with you." At that moment, Ah Xiang's voice rang out, and A San predictably stood by Ah Xiang's side.
Sanjiang's recommendation didn't seem as helpful as I had imagined. Click had failed.
Comment 0 Comment Count