Chapter 817: Too Late
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
It was getting dark. Although it was unwise to rush forward in such conditions, the mission was urgent. They only briefly stopped to rest before continuing onward. They had to find the intruders as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, the people they were seeking were confused that their traps had not worked.
“Not one of them is dead? What is going on?” a man asked.
“Are you sure?” the white man leading the group asked.
“I am sure,” the man said. “There must be a tough character on their team.”
“Could it be possible that the army troops have arrived?” another man asked.
“Troops? No way!” the first man replied.
“Let’s hurry up,” the leader worriedly said. “If it is really them, there’s going to be trouble.”
As w.a.n.g Yao walked, he recognized many of the plants around him. Their relevant information constantly appeared in his mind.
This one can be used as medicine. This one is slightly poisonous. This one is highly poisonous…
It was indeed more dangerous to continue the journey at night. Along the way, they had triggered several traps. A soldier was shot in his arm by a hidden weapon, which was poisonous. Fortunately, w.a.n.g Yao was there and treated the wound in time. After he had detoxified it, the soldier wasn’t in danger. The injury did not affect his mobility. Only his combat effectiveness was affected.
Boom! There was a sudden explosion.
“Huh, what was that?” w.a.n.g Yao asked.
“There is fighting ahead,” Su Zhixing said. “Let’s speed up.”
“Shall I go ahead?” w.a.n.g Yao asked.
“Huh?” Su Zhixing was stunned.
“Trust me.” w.a.n.g Yao took the initiative to walk in front of the team. His speed was much faster. He soon found a trap “There’s a trap! Walk around!”
They continued walking and discovered another mine. w.a.n.g Yao stopped. There was a man collapsed on the ground.
“Is he dead?” a soldier asked.
“He is dead,” w.a.n.g Yao said.
Upon closer inspection, they discovered the man was a soldier. A dagger had been plunged into his eye socket.
“There are two groups,” Su Zhixing said.
Gunshots suddenly sounded.
“Prepare to engage in combat!” Su Zhixing yelled.
They soon found another body. The man’s attire indicated that he was not a trained soldier. He was dressed in a special homespun cloth that had a special smell.
“What is the smell?” Su Zhixing asked.
“It is the smell of medicine,” w.a.n.g Yao said. “It keeps them from being attacked by snakes, insects, rats, and ants in the jungle.”
This man was carrying a bow and arrow, as well as a short knife shaped like a seedling. It was about two feet long and extremely sharp.
“Who are these people?” Su Zhixing murmured in disbelief.
They hadn’t met this group of people when they were fighting with the invading armed on previous missions.
“Could they be the guardians of this jungle?” w.a.n.g Yao asked.
“Guardians? How come they didn’t show up the last few times then? Didn’t they get the news?” a soldier asked.
“Well, I don’t think that can be ruled out,” Su Zhixing replied. “Let’s go. No matter who they are, be careful.”
It was already very dark. Two waves of people were fighting in the jungle.
“These foreigners dare to come here and find trouble,” a man said. “Keep them here for me!”
“Be careful,” another man said. “Two good fighters have already been killed. Release the insects!”
Buzz! Numerous insects were unleashed and buzzed around the jungle.
In the dark, a man used a flame thrower to set the trees ablaze. In this kind of jungle, once it started burning, it could cause a very big fire that would be difficult to control and put out. No one could estimate how much loss it would cause.
“What is happening?” Su Zhixing stopped and looked up at the sky.
In the dark of the night, fire shot toward the sky.
“We don’t have time to deal with that,” Su Zhixing said. “That’s the direction. Everyone be ready to engage in battle at any time.”
There was still some distance from their present position and where the fire was blazing.
“We should take the nearest route,” w.a.n.g Yao said.
“The nearest?” Su Zhixing asked.
“The line segment is the shortest between two points,” w.a.n.g Yao replied.
“Wow, you’re even talking about mathematical theorems now,” Su Zhixing said. “Let’s go.”
w.a.n.g Yao cleared the road in front of them. At this time, he didn’t have time for many considerations. He released his Qi to communicate with his surroundings. He seemed to have countless eyes. He looked all around, even taking in how the wind was blowing and the gra.s.s was moving. The birds, animals, snakes, and insects were all seen by him. He saw everything clearly. He could eliminate any movement or danger at the front. Their journey forward was extremely speedy.
A scream suddenly rang out.
“d.a.m.n, I’m poisoned!” a man yelled.
“Withdraw!” the leader called out.
“What?” The other man was shocked.
“I said to withdraw,” the leader said. “These are rare local people who are very good with poisonous insects, and this is their territory. They’re more familiar with it than us. We don’t have any advantages here. If we go on like this, we will all die here.”
In the darkness came a voice that was like a ghost. “You can no longer leave!”
“Who is there!?” the leader asked.
Whoos.h.!.+
The leader covered his stomach. With his other hand, he shot his gun toward the voice.
A figure suddenly appeared behind him. “Too slow!”
The figure’s hands reached out. With a crack, blood spewed three feet high. The leader’s head had been torn off. The scene was extremely terrifying.
The man left was trembling, obviously scared out of his wits. “Who are you?”
“I was wondering how they were able to enter so smoothly,” the shadow said. His voice was a little hoa.r.s.e. “It turns out there’s a traitor. We can deal with our internal affairs in any way. Even if we have to fight to the death, I’d accept it even if I lost and died. But to collude with outsiders to try to steal the treasures, that is treason with the enemy. You are a traitor and deserve to die a hundred times over!”
“No, no, no…” The only man left seemed to have thought of something terrible. He was still trembling as he ran into the jungle without looking back.
“Running away?” In a flash, the shadow disappeared and appeared behind the man trying to escape. The man had only made it about 30 feet. “Since you have stayed there before, you know their rules.”
“I was wrong,” the man begged. “I was wrong. Please give me another chance!”
“Four of us have died and a large area of the jungle has been destroyed, yet you want me to give you a chance,” the shadow said. “Do you think that is possible?”
“I…”
The shadow pinched the man’s mouth open and forced something into it before releasing him.
“No, no, no…” The man struggled, trying to dig out the thing that was in his mouth.
He suddenly held his abdomen and fell to the ground loudly howling. He trembled as he took out his gun and pointed it at his forehead. He wanted to pull the trigger but found that his body was not under his control. Suddenly, his fingers had turned so stiff that he could not bend them. With a click, the pistol fell from his hands into the gra.s.s.
“Ah!”
The cry of pain sounded especially harsh and insidious in the middle of the night.
Su Zhixing and his team stopped when they heard the cry. He said, “That sounds painful.”
“It’s not far away,” w.a.n.g Yao said.
“We need to be careful,” Su Zhixing said. “I don’t think you should take the lead anymore.”
“It will be fine,” w.a.n.g Yao said. “Let me do it. Let’s go.”
If he were to be replaced with another soldier, their progress would be slower. If he did not have others with him, he would have arrived at that location in an instant. He might have been able to catch someone alive and interrogate them.
It was not long before they came to the place where the battle had just happened. They saw bodies on the ground. Four armed soldiers were collapsed in different positions. They had died in different ways. One was shot with poisoned arrows, and another had been split apart. One of the men was still alive. His face was b.l.o.o.d.y and mangled. They could see insects weaving through the sinews and muscles on his face, constantly nibbling at his body.
The man wanted to make a sound and say something, but his throat had already been mostly eaten by the insects.
“What is this?” Su Zhixing s.h.i.+vered all over when he saw it.
“It is the poisonous insect. Stay back,” w.a.n.g Yao said.
He was not afraid of the insect, but these soldiers would not be able to handle them. Once they got infected, they would suffer greatly.