Chapter 925: Evil? Evil Deeds Will Be Retributed!
“Hurry up, hurry up! Run, run!”
“If you want to survive, run as fast as you can!”
In the dense forest, nearly 1000 naked and starving people were running wild with bare feet as everyone scrambled to the front. Even the dozens of mercenaries who were wearing shoes and were responsible for maintaining order between the people, were also caught in the mess. The captain of the mercenary group was covered in blood. He was carrying a giant axe as he waved his hand continuously, indicating for the exhausted horde of people to run faster without even stopping for a moment.
Faintly, in the dense forest they left behind, there was a kind of Red Wolf with red eyes and a huge body.
As long as the mercenaries in charge of guarding the people didn’t pay attention to their surroundings, the wolves would jump out of their hiding places and attack at lightning speed. With their huge mouths, they could easily grab the skinny prey and drag them away as food.
Their numbers were as large as 20 to 30.
And they were very cunning.
Naturally, they knew how to deal with mercenaries. The moment any mercenary that was responsible for taking care of the people started to relax briefly, they would start their attack!
“Beast, get out of here!” The mercenary captain was the only one who could fight against this kind of Red Wolf alone, but even his giant axe wasn’t able to kill this kind of greedy and thick-skinned wolf that was blinded with hunger.
A silver axe cut through the air and slashed down.
There was a starving villager that was clamped in the wolf’s mouth. His head and neck were wounded and the skin around his neck was split as well. The man’s blood splashed all over the scene.
It cried out and reluctantly dropped the prey in its mouth. Then, it flattened its tail and quickly fled into the forest.
The starving man who was thrown on the ground was already dead. His head was completely ripped, causing his brain matter to gurgle out. Although his hands and feet were still twitching slightly, the situation was absolutely hopeless. The mercenary captain didn’t need to look at the corpse to know that this Red Wolf was extremely cruel. Even if it had to throw away the food in its mouth, it would kill the enemy first. Unless one’s strength was above the Red Wolf, no one would be able to survive being in the jaws of this canine.
He shook his head as he turned around and waved his arms vigorously, “Run, everyone! Run faster, you’ll run out of the Red Wolf Forest in no time, so run as fast as you can!”
After he ran a few steps away from the scene, the wounded Red Wolf stuck its head out again.
It cunningly observed the situation and in an instant, it dragged the corpse of the once-starving man who gritted his teeth into the bushes. It didn’t give up at all; it was just that the opponent was very strong and could not be matched, so it had to give in a little.
While this Red Wolf was tearing at the body, more Red Wolves were still sauntering behind, looking for opportunities to attack.
Usually there was a shortage of food in the forest. This time, as a large number of prey pa.s.sed by, they naturally did not want to miss it.
Plop, plop!
More than a dozen vines hanging in the forest caused the hungry citizens, who were running for their lives in a panic, to trip over.
At first, only a few people fell to the ground.
But the people in the back merely followed their lead and didn’t observe the front terrain clearly. Even if they did, they couldn’t hold back their pace. The vines made them trip, and they made their companions trip— becoming a never-ending chain reaction. Except for a few people who still maintained a sliver of strength who were able to cross, the rest of the starving people who stumbled and fled, all fell to the ground like a pile of collapsing dominoes.
When the mercenary captain found out and rushed over to deal with the situation, the ground was already full of the fatigued people.
There were also some people who didn’t stumble and fall, but they were worried that they would fall into the wolves’ jaws if they left the team.
They dared not run any more, so they stayed by their companions in fear.
Even the group of people who ran past the area where the vines had already ended started to look back. Even upon seeing this situation, they didn’t know what to do. Should they continue to escape or go back? If they continued to run away, then a few people would not be enough to fight the wolves. If they went back to the team, they might be safe for the time being, but there were definitely even more terrifying creatures lurking behind the wolves! If those enemies were able to catch up to them, it would definitely be more tragic than dying in the mouths of the wolves. Now, what should they do? Keep running, or stop and take a breath?
“Fools! If you don’t run fast and allow the enemy to catch up, it will be over!” A few daring but hungry people spread their feet and continued to move forward.
They were all men. Although they were thin, they were still men. Hence, they were better than women in terms of decision-making.
T/L Note: Ouch author, I feel insulted. Thanks?
Among the thousands of people, most of them were the elderly, the weak, the women and the children.
They couldn’t make a decision at all, so they could only look at the mercenary captain who was in charge of everyone’s safety. They hoped that he could come up with a good idea!
“Ah!!!” Several men that ran in front were thrown down by the Red Wolves who circled to the front as they screamed in pain.
The situation shocked the entire team.
There were wolves in front of them as well; what should they do?
“Run, and don’t care about the wolves. We’ll deal with them, so just keep running! The real enemy is searching for us, and if they catch up, all of us will die!” The mercenary captain ordered five team members to quickly catch up and protect the front crowd. He yelled anxiously, signalling the people to not stop for even a second, let alone rest. They must run with all their strength; otherwise, they would not be able to survive at all.
“Save me, save me…”
An old man was knocked over by a wolf as he grabbed a vine and cried out for help.
The Red Wolf pulled hard, but it couldn’t move the man. Annoyed, it tore the old man’s body in half with his front paws.
The old man hadn’t died yet, but half of his body fell to the ground. Rolling over and over, his final whimpers were utterly tragic. The mercenary captain closed his eyes— he had seen too many lives gone in such scenarios.
When they set off, there were nearly 10,000 people fleeing for their lives.
Now, there were less than a thousand people left.
He waved his hand vigorously and shouted loudly, “Everyone can huddle closer, but you must keep moving forward, I will not wait for those who stay, so if any of you can’t go forward, then I will definitely leave you behind. If you want to survive, then run as fast as you can. This place is not far from the Golden Sun City. If you run there, everyone will be able to survive. You have all run thousands of kilometres already, do you want to just give up here? Those who are physically fit, take the children; for those who have no strength, grit your teeth and hold on! We just need to pa.s.s the Red Wolf Forest and there are almost no beasts behind anymore. If we get to a safe place, we will rest for a while, but now is not the time for a break!”
“Hold him! Hua Er, remember to take good care of your brother, understand?” An old woman suddenly handed the baby in her arms to the thin little girl beside her.
“Grandma…” The little girl trembled and s.h.i.+vered, but her little blackened hands tightly hugged the baby.
“You’re a big girl already, so you need to be sensible and take care of your younger brother. Grandma can’t walk anymore, so you have to live well in the future,” The old woman smiled before she leaned towards the little girl and kissed her on the forehead lightly, “I My dear, you must live; the merciful G.o.ds will take care of you from the sky. At any time, don’t give up hope! The hope of our family falls on you, so you have to work hard to live, Hua Er!”
The little girl burst into tears and nodded desperately.
She matured early, which was why she knew what was going to happen next.
It was not only one old woman who resorted to such desperate measures, but dozens of old people entrusted the baby in their arms or their relatives to others, before staying behind themselves to be fed to the wolves with their bodies.
As in previous adventures, through dangerous areas infested by ferocious beasts, sacrifices must be made to allow the rest to escape.
There were only 20 or 30 Red Wolves, which was a relatively small number.
A few dozen people could fill their bellies, at least, to the point where they would temporarily stop chasing the fleeing crowd and concentrate on feasting on the blood and meat. Seeing a group of hungry people stay behind, the mercenary captain did not refuse or retort. In fact, he had no better way— this sacrifice was already the best way! He didn’t have a strong ability as he couldn’t even kill a Red Wolf, so he wasn’t capable of stopping this kind of tragedy from happening at all.
Along the way, he didn’t know how many people volunteered and sacrificed for their loved ones— an act of exchanging their lives for the survivors.
Because of the lack of adult men, it was the wounded who stayed behind at the beginning.
Then, the elderly without relatives volunteered.
After that, no one could really be sacrificed, but there were still people who stood up and gave themselves up. In the entire team, the ones with the highest survival rate were the babies and the little girl because they were the last hope of the entire fleeing team.
If they died as well, there would be no point in fleeing!
“Grandma’s got to go!” The old woman took out a dagger as the Red Wolf, who probed into the distance, approached with all its strength to pounce on the woman. When the Red Wolf wanted to knock her onto the ground with one claw, she raised her last strength and stabbed it in the eye with a dagger. Then, she straightened her limbs with a smile. On her chest and abdomen, a deep claw mark smashed all the internal organs.
She had never thought of successfully killing a Red Wolf, but she hoped that she could do her last bit in exchange for her granddaughter and grandson’s escape.
Of the dozens of starving people who remained to sacrifice themselves, very few of them succeeded in injuring the Red Wolves.
On the contrary, these people allowed the Red Wolves to hunt them as they were torn to shreds.
The fleeing crowd, with tears in their eyes, hit the road again. In the middle of the crowd, the little girl’s dirty face was cleansed with the white trails of her tears, but she didn’t allow herself to cry. The girl gritted her teeth desperately and hugged her brother tightly as she staggered but continued to run amidst the crowd.
She didn’t know how long this escape would last, but her survival instincts made her go beyond her limits again and again.
“While the Red Wolf is eating, we must leave the Red Wolf Forest as soon as possible. We will be safe once we get to the City, so we have to hurry up and run!” The mercenary captain was very anxious— the truly terrifying enemy were not the Red Wolves, but an existence that was a hundred times more terrifying than a Red Wolf. If those enemies caught up with them, the entire crowd would definitely be wiped out as it was impossible to pa.s.s by because the tactic of leaving a few hundred people wouldn’t work.
“How touching, I almost cried,” A sharp voice came from the depths of the forest.
“That was a good parting of life and death; I too, appreciate this play very much. If only a few more people could die, it would be a little more touching!” Another deep voice sounded as the timbre of the voice resembled m.u.f.fled thunder.
Hearing this voice, all the hungry people who were desperately fleeing felt their knees go weak.
In an even more exaggerated scene than stumbling over the vines, one by one, the people fell to the ground as they trembled with fear.
In panic, their eyes reflected a fear that was more stricken than seeing the supernatural!
Before even mentioning the states of the old, weak women and the children, even the mercenary captain who had been calm the entire time, felt his face become ashen.
It turned out that dozens of mercenaries, who had been protecting the fleeing and starved people, were dumbfounded. Some weapons fell off their hands and some even knelt on their knees to beg for mercy. A few mercenaries left the hungry people and tried their best to escape, but a few leaves of the surrounding trees snapped off and flew like darts, pa.s.sing through the necks of the fleeing mercenaries in a rush.
When those mercenaries fell back to the ground, they were already dead.
In a split second!
They did not even have the strength to resist— just a few leaves could instantly kill these mercenaries who had the strengths of 5th Level Earth Rankers.
“I’m so disappointed. I thought there would be a few people who would rush to resist and make great self-sacrifices, but I didn’t expect there to be no one,” The man, who sounded like a night owl, floated out in the form that was similar to a bat. Seeing this person appear, the greedy Red Wolves were also frightened as they scattered. They didn’t care to s.n.a.t.c.h the flesh and blood on the ground any more as they fled frantically with their tails between their paws.
Of course, their results were the same as a few fleeing mercenaries.
They couldn’t see the strange man taking action at all. It seemed that there was a whirlwind around him as dozens of fallen leaves flew out, killing the Red Wolves that even the mercenary captain couldn’t, in a split second.
The Red Wolves’ entire bodies were slashed without mercy.
What seemed to be predators turned into corpses at this moment!
The mercenary captain was desperate. This man’s strength was stronger and weirder than the rumours that circulated, so he didn’t have any chance at all!
He sighed, raising the giant axe in his hand and prepared to kill himself. He knew that if he fell into the hands of this man, he would definitely regret living in this world. Rather than living only to yearn for the embrace of death, it would be better to end it early and not suffer from that torture!
“I don’t remember agreeing to allow you to die? Do you think my ‘Hand of Manipulation’ is just a fluke? My Hand of Manipulation can not only manipulate the life of the enemy, but also the death of the enemy,” A strange man with the shape of a night owl and a bat flicked his finger. Soon, a piece of fallen leaf floated up silently, cutting the giant axe in the hands of the mercenary captain in half.
“You have all fled so far— if you give up like this, it will be way too boring, so let me play a game with you. I’m going to count to 100, so if any of you can escape my sight, then this City Lord will let you go. So stand up and run away, all of you! Hahaha, how merciful I am!” The man who had a loud voice that sounded like a broken gong appeared. Out revealed a n.o.ble man who was jointly carried by the shoulders of 18 slaves as he sat on the golden throne. Dressed in a set of treasured armour and holding a gla.s.s of wine, his blood-red cloak was ruffling against the wind. Between his knees, there was even a naked slave girl who poured his wine and she remained by his feet.
“…” Seeing this man appear, the hearts of all the fugitives felt entirely desolated.
This man who claimed to be very kind was ten times more vicious than the guy who liked to manipulate other people’s lives and death just now. No one would object if he were to be named as the most cruel and vile person in the entire Heavenly Splendour Territory.
No one made a move because everyone knew what the outcome was.
It’s no use running away.
Not to mention the fact of being able to get out of his sight after a hundred counts; even if they could, this b.a.s.t.a.r.d would never keep his word!
There was a dead silence in the crowd, only the little girl holding her brother, bowed her head and squeezed out of the crowd as she rushed forward desperately. “Yes, yes, that’s it! Run faster, faster! I’ll start counting soon, don’t you all want to survive like her? I’ll give you this chance! Everyone, run away! I’m only counting 1 now; pay attention, I’m only counting 1 now! When I count to one hundred, whoever among you can escape out of my sight, I will set you free… How pathetic, none of you responded to my proposal! This City Lord is too annoyed; can’t you guys struggle a bit to give me pleasure? Fortunately, there is still a little girl partic.i.p.ating in my game, haha! Yes, I really like people who always hold on to hope in their hearts. It is such a gloriously happy thing to kill the hope in someone’s heart. Well, it’s time to count! 2… 3, 4, 5, 6, little girl, you have to run faster, faster, haha! Next, after that is 7, 8, 9? And after that? Of course, it is 100! Well, little girl, you know my maths is not very good, so it’s a pity that you haven’t run out of sight when I counted to 100— you should have been faster!”
“Ah, ah, let go!” In a flash, a slave grabbed the little girl and threw her under the golden throne like a cooped up chicken.
The starving citizens hid their faces and couldn’t bear to look up.
They knew this guy couldn’t be trusted, but so what? Without power, there was no right or wrong!
The little girl cried as she hugged her younger brother tightly and sobbed, “9 is followed by 10, not 100…” Even now, she remains serious. Although she was sensible, she was but a child after all; she didn’t understand why the other party would break a promise just like that.
The middle-aged man sitting on the golden seat laughed so hard that tears were splas.h.i.+ng out.
He patted the armrest of the throne, “Yes, 10 comes after 9 and not 100, but I like to call 100 in advance, can’t I? I didn’t say that I must count them all, hahaha! Do you think this City Lord is particularly hateful? Do you feel particularly aggrieved? Be a little more sad or be a little more angry; I like to see your eyes that dare not speak out! Haha, poor little b.a.s.t.a.r.ds, pathetic… Seeing you all helpless is my greatest pleasure as a City Lord. You will never understand; this is a kind of fulfilment that is unique to the strong. But what is the strong? It means that you can’t dominate and manipulate the fate of everyone else!”
“Do you still want to play?” The strange man with the voice of a night owl and the shape of a bat almost frowned as his eyebrows furrowed.
“Don’t be nervous, no one will come here. Besides, the Country Lord has long since abandoned this area and it has become an abandoned place. Who’ll give a d.a.m.n even if these weak ants die? It’s rare for us to come out for a breather anyways, so going back immediately without having some fun is too much of a wasted chance. You should know that it has been so long since anyone dared to make a break for it!” The middle-aged man sitting on the golden seat laughed loudly.
“Then, do as you like…” The man with a voice like a night owl and the shape of a bat shook his head as he fluttered to the side.
“Men, peel off this little girl’s skin first. But be careful, don’t damage it because it must be intact. As for the baby, it’s too thin and there’s nothing to eat. Hmm, dig out his heart and bake it. Also, I want to have some sweet and delicious brain fluids, don’t make them salty like the last time,” The middle-aged man sitting on the golden seat gave orders at will.
“Don’t kill me! Please, spare us!” The little girl was so frightened that she slumped on the ground. A slave approached her directly, wanting to dig the baby’s heart. The little girl screamed and pounced on the slave as she opened her mouth, her only weapon, and gnawed at the enemy with her teeth.
This was her only resistance.
Although it was futile, it was a form of resistance after all, unlike the starved people and mercenaries who waited numbly to die.
The mercenary captain secretly took out a dagger, but before he could commit suicide, he found that his entire body was paralyzed and he was standing stiffly, unable to blink.
Sure enough, in front of the enemy who has the ability to ‘manipulate with his hands’, it was impossible to commit suicide. If he couldn’t die, then his ending might not be better than that of the skinned little girl… It’s over, everything is over!
“I appreciate this kind of resistance. If everyone behaved as such, then this CIty Lord wouldn’t be this bored. Before peeling off her skin, let’s pry off her teeth one by one. Note that you shouldn’t break the roots of her teeth. You must pry it out in one piece and make sure it’s intact. I repeat, make sure it is intact because I want to save it for my collection!” The middle-aged man sitting on the golden seat drank a gla.s.s of wine with satisfaction as he made up his mind— first, he would pull out her teeth and then skin her; that way, he would be able to have two forms of collectibles.
Just when the slave took out her sharp knife to pull out the girl’s teeth, the slave’s body shook slightly.
And then, she suddenly fell to the ground.
After a few seconds, the body split into two halves from top to the bottom.
“What’s happened?” The middle-aged man sitting on the golden seat was stunned. The wine in his hand was spilled— who did it? Who was it that was capable of killing someone in front of him, yet still managed to conceal themselves? The kill was so quick and stealthy, and it left not a trace of a clue!
A shadow flew past from afar, landing beside the little girl in plain sight as the figure reached out to hug the little girl, “Fortunately, she’s not hurt. This d.a.m.ned place is so annoying, I can’t believe teleportation didn’t work! Idiot, we nearly couldn’t make it. Why are you still standing there? Move it and kill every single one of them! No, actually, take them down first but pry out their teeth! I’m so angry!!”
The person who came was, of course, Princess Qian Qian, and the angry Tigress was definitely not to be provoked.
Now, it could be said that she was very angry!
The shadow that appeared behind her was not Yue Yang. Instead, it was Feng Ji, the poor thief who claimed to be unparalleled in speed but couldn’t keep up with Princess Qian Qian’s flight.
As for Yue Yang, he had already sat on the back of the golden seat at some point. It didn’t matter to him if he sat on the back of someone else’s chair; he even stretched his legs and directly placed his big foot on the shoulder of the middle-aged man, “You used a s.p.a.ce-Imprisoning treasure, didn’t you? In my entire life, this is the first time that this Young Master arrived late, so how are you going to compensate for that? Teeth and human skin are useless as the n.o.ble taste of this Young Master is not something that can be directly compared with a piece of garbage like you!”
“What?” The middle-aged man was immediately enraged. Someone dared to step on his shoulders? They’re just asking for death!
He jumped up with all his strength and lunged at Yue Yang.