But at this moment, the steam locomotive suddenly started shaking when something exploded in front of the train. Yang Xiaojin stood up and said, “Land mines, this spot is covered with land mines!”
It seemed that Zong Cheng had not only sent a large force to ambush them with artillery fire, but also made sure to plant land mines at any possible escape route they might take.
Ren Xiaosu immediately paled when the land mines loaded with TNT exploded one after another in the wilderness, bombarding the steam locomotive as it went past them. Even the train started turning a little more translucent, as though it would disappear at any moment.
Each time the steam locomotive set off a land mine, Ren Xiaosu felt like his vitals were being torn apart.
Everyone saw Ren Xiaosu suddenly curl up on the ground in pain. It was so painful that large beads of sweat started rolling down his forehead. But then, everyone realized there were two gunshot wounds on Ren Xiaosu’s side!
As it turned out, Ren Xiaosu’s nanomachines were no longer fully protecting him while he was escaping earlier. However, Ren Xiaosu was forced to remain composed and not treat his wounds immediately since he had to deal with the spy first.
Everyone watched Ren Xiaosu put his right index finger and middle finger into his wound. Then, he forcefully plucked out the first bullet before doing the same for the second bullet!
Jin Lan and the others looked on in a daze. They had never met anyone so brave as to extract bullets out of their own wounds.
Ren Xiaosu had his eyes closed, and every last strand of hair on his body looked to be trembling
Only then did Yan Liuyuan finally react. He quickly took out the black medicine Ren Xiaosu had given to him and applied it onto his wound.
But even though the wounds had been treated, the pain of the backlash from the attacks on the steam locomotive did not lessen.
Ren Xiaosu was trembling as Yang Xiaojin hugged him tightly in her arms. She said, “Put away the steam locomotive and let everyone walk on foot.”
But Ren Xiaosu roared angrily as though he did not hear it. The steam locomotive that had started turning a little translucent “solidified” once more!
Yang Xiaojin whispered, “You’ve already done enough. Ren Xiaosu, I won’t have any regrets if we die together today.”
Ren Xiaosu wanted to give up as well, but he had to hold on. If the steam locomotive were to disappear at this moment, everyone would fall into the minefield. If that happened, all of them would die!
Jin Lan probably understood what Ren Xiaosu was doing. He said in a daze, “Boss, just give up. Let’s die together.”
Ren Xiaosu continued to keep his eyes closed and did not respond, but the steam locomotive “solidified” once more.
It wasn’t until the train drove for a further three kilometers before they finally got out of the wilderness zone that was filled with land mines.
Ren Xiaosu could take it no more. The steam locomotive started to rapidly slow, but it suddenly disappeared before it could fully stop, forcing everyone to roll to the ground.
Jin Lan heard motorcycle engines in the distance. It sounded like a large number of bandits were heading for them!
“What should we do?” Zhang Yiheng asked with a frown. He could already see over a 1,000 bandits in front of him.
It was impossible for Ren Xiaosu to participate in such high-intensity battles. At this moment, Ren Xiaosu looked extremely pale, so it was difficult to say if he still had any strength left to put up a fight or not.
The pain was like millions of ants biting into every nerve of Ren Xiaosu. It was so painful it could make him lose his mobility. Ren Xiaosu clenched his teeth with his eyes closed without saying a word.
They were at a dead end.
Everyone could only watch in silence. No one could bear the burden for Ren Xiaosu.
Some people in the group suddenly started fleeing northwest without saying anything. They stopped caring as they treasured their lives more!
Everyone was fine with not going to Stronghold 178 and happily continuing to earn their bullets at a new settlement. But if they died here? There would be nothing left if they died here!
Ren Xiaosu had already planted a seed of faith in their minds. Given time, the seed might even have grown into a towering tree someday.
But there was no time anymore.
Just as Ren Xiaosu had understood it, there was no hope when the world came to an end.
Yan Liuyuan quietly watched as hundreds of people started leaving their companions behind. He said to Ren Xiaosu, “Bro, I’ll stay with you.”
Ren Xiaosu’s trembling gradually lessened. It seemed that with the disappearance of the steam locomotive, the pain from the backlash had also rapidly dissipated.
Jin Lan slowly got up from the ground and dusted himself off. He unslung the automatic rifle from his back, disengaged the safety, and cocked the weapon.
Then he smiled at Zhang Yiheng and said, “At worst, I’ll go down to the Underworld to meet up with Xu Jinyuan. Those of you remaining from the 1st Squad, follow me and don’t disgrace Boss!”
The sound of guns being cocked rang out. Adrenaline suddenly rushed through the veins, bones, muscles, and hair of Jin Lan and the others.
Jin Lan laughed and said, “Boss, get some rest for now. We’ll go down first and wait there for you. Ptui, ptui, ptui, that sounds a little ominous…. I felt really happy during this period. In this chaotic world, it’s good enough to have felt happy just once.”
“2nd Squad, take the others and get out of here!” Saying that, Jin Lan suddenly rushed towards the oncoming bandits.
In the sunlight, Jin Lan’s back seemed to be glowing
“Stop acting like a hero.” Zhang Yiheng wiped away his tears and yelled, “Protect Boss, let’s head west!”
Yang Xiaojin glanced at Yan Liuyuan. “Carry him on your back.”
Yan Liuyuan was taken aback. “Sister-in-law, where are you going?”
But before he was done talking to her, Yang Xiaojin had already turned around and walked off into the wilderness. She wanted to create a last line of defense for Ren Xiaosu there. “Don’t you die.”
At this moment, Jin Lan’s group, who was standing behind the others, had found an ambush location behind a hill. They crouched on one knee to stabilize the gun with the method Yang Xiaojin had taught them.
Laughing, Jin Lan shouted, “Believe it or not, but I must’ve been a sniper in my previous life.”
Someone laughed heartily and said, “No, you’re not, I am!”
“Haha, come on, we were definitely all snipers in our previous lives!”
Then Jin Lan saw the enemy bandits finally entering their range. He shouted until the veins on his neck were protruding, “Open
fire!”
When the gunfire rang out, a large group of bandits right at the front of the motorcade suddenly fell to the ground.
But too many bandits had come this time. Previously, Qing Zhen’s men were holding them back in the north. But with his men deployed to the south, no one in the valley could keep these northern bandits in check anymore.
Jin Lan’s group had not undergone any formal military training before. They just imitated whatever firearms knowledge Yang Xiaojin had taught them and carried out the basics, like burst firing.
But they did not really manage to stop the bandits from advancing south even after they had finished firing all the rounds in their magazines.
Seeing that the motorcade was almost right in front of them now, Jin Lan’s group couldn’t reload amid their panic. Suddenly, he threw aside his gun in desperation and blocked the motorcycles in front of him with his body. “Motherfuckers, you’re not allowed to pass through me!”
In that instant, Jin Lan turned his body into a barricade. One of the enemy bandits riding at the front of the motorcade made an emergency turn when he saw someone rush out from behind the hill. But Jin Lan was reluctant to let the enemy speed past him, so he jumped at the motorcycle.
With this hijack, he actually pulled down the bandit from the motorcycle. Meanwhile, the fallen bike ended up blocking the path of the other bandits behind the rider. The bandits further back got up and started shooting mercilessly, killing Jin Lan and that fallen bandit together.
Jin Lan smiled as he closed his eyes. “Motherfucker.”
This was a chaotic world where the living had no choice, and the dead were forgotten.
Since the day they were born, there had been nothing to be happy about for them. All they received was suffering.
But on one day, someone suddenly appeared and let them see the light and learn what hope was. Because of that, they knew they had to let this person carry on living.
This person might very well be that ray of light.
