Chapter 169: The Snipe and the Clam
Chapter 169: The Snipe and the Clam
Bang!
Countless tiny sounds rushed into Li Zian’s ears. Every sound within a few hundred meters was under his control.
A voice suddenly came from the eastern hillside: “Damn! Something’s wrong!”
Immediately followed by the sound of someone hitting the ground.
That was Old Qiang’s voice. The front yard was mostly lawn with a few small plants, but they were too small to block his view. The entire front yard was exposed to him.
Old Qiang was lying down. Li Zian knew exactly what would happen next. He raised the Bulletproof Shield over his head, crouched low, and shouted: “Duck down!”
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan copied his movements, crouching and lowering their heads.
Just as the father and daughter lowered their heads, the sound of a gunshot and a bullet flying through the air reached Li Zian’s ears. But by the time he heard the sound, a huge impact hit the Bulletproof Shield, numbing his hand.
The bullet from the rifle was faster than sound. By the time he heard the sound, the bullet had already hit the Bulletproof Shield. But if it were a Handgun bullet, he would hear the sound first in his Incense Burning State, and then the bullet would arrive.
So, in theory, he could dodge a Handgun bullet in his Incense Burning State.
Of course, just in theory.
He never wanted to Cultivation that kind of ability in his life.
“Go!” Li Zian held the Bulletproof Shield with one hand, leading Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan towards the front yard’s gate like a mother hen guiding her chicks.
Thump!
The sound of a rifle with a Silencer firing.
Whoosh—
The sound of a bullet flying.
Thud!
The sound of the bullet hitting the Bulletproof Shield.
All these sounds actually happened after the bullet hit the Bulletproof Shield.
Li Zian’s hand went numb again, but only for a second or two. His Zhenqi quickly healed the damage from the bullet’s impact.
He made a judgment in his mind. The gun Old Qiang was using was probably a light Sniper Rifle. It couldn’t fire continuously. It took two or three seconds between shots.
An Assault Rifle, like an AK or M4, could fire continuously, but from over a hundred meters away, accuracy was impossible. That Old Qiang wouldn’t use an AK or M4 to snipe him either, so it must be a light Assault Rifle. If it were a heavy Sniper Rifle, the Bulletproof Shield in his hand probably couldn’t block it. Even if Tang Qing’s skills were excellent and the shield didn’t break, he might not be able to hold onto it and could be knocked down.
Don’t ask him why he knew this.
Back in the day, he saved his lunch money his parents gave him and spent it playing CrossFire in internet cafes.
After the Bulletproof Shield blocked the second bullet, Li Zian roared: “Follow me and run!”
He ran towards the gate, holding the Bulletproof Shield high.
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan ran after him.
After running about three meters, Li Zian suddenly roared again: “Stop! Duck down!”
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan immediately stopped and lowered their heads.
Thud!
The Bulletproof Shield was hit by a bullet again.
“Run!” Li Zian lifted the Bulletproof Shield and continued running towards the gate.
He stopped again two seconds later.
This time, the bullet did not hit the Bulletproof Shield. Instead, it hit the iron fence. A spark shot out from the point of impact near the ground. It was clear that Old Qiang was aiming for his legs, but the bullet couldn’t penetrate the fence.
Li Zian pulled the gate open: “Run!”
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan followed Li Zian out through the gate and onto the road.
To the west was the road to the Dock and the city.
To the north was a dense, dark forest.
The forest was pitch black, had no paths, and the visible areas were overgrown with weeds.
On the hillside, Old Qiang’s lips curled into a cold smile. His left hand rested on the scope of an Austrian-made Steyr SSG 69 light Sniper Rifle, his right finger on the trigger, waiting for Li Zian to run towards the city.
However, after rushing out of the gate and onto the road, Li Zian kept moving sideways. Instead of heading towards the Dock and the city, he crossed the road, preparing to enter the forest.
“Damn, does that kid know there’s an ambush over there?” Old Qiang muttered. He grew impatient and pulled the trigger again.
The bullet hit the Bulletproof Shield a second later.
“Into the trees!” Li Zian said.
“Into the trees?” Kang Xin glanced back towards the city. She was curious why Li Zian wasn’t taking the road to the city but instead entering the forest, where there were clearly no paths and it was pitch black. But curiosity aside, when Li Zian moved, she instinctively followed him across the road towards the forest.
Old Qiang fired two more shots.
One hit the Bulletproof Shield.
One hit a tree by the roadside, tearing its bark open.
After two shots, he watched helplessly as Li Zian disappeared into the roadside forest with the two hostages.
“Damn it!” Old Qiang punched the rocky hill. The rock was hard and cut his knuckles. Blood seeped between his fingers, but he only felt anger and frustration, no pain.
He had failed.
Professor Huang and Da Chui still hadn’t shown up. He feared the worst.
“Dammit, that guy said he would work with us. Where is he? Bastard!” Old Qiang cursed angrily.
What did this mission failure mean? It meant death!
What should he do next?
Old Qiang stood up from behind the rock, picked up the light Sniper Rifle placed on it, and prepared to enter the northern forest to hunt down Li Zian.
But before he could take a step.
A thin line of fire appeared in the night sky.
Old Qiang’s pupils shrank sharply. He saw it, but it was too late to react.
Thump!
A bullet pierced Old Qiang’s forehead. The back of his head burst open, leaving a fist-sized hole. Brain matter and blood sprayed out like a gush of water.
Old Qiang’s body stiffened for a moment, then fell straight backward.
In fact, the line of fire he saw was the afterimage of the bullet that had already hit him.
He knew mission failure meant death, but he didn’t expect it to come this quickly.
In the forest.
Li Zian suddenly stopped and looked towards the west.
The sandalwood incense stuck in the Bulletproof Shield was still smoking. He was still in his Incense Burning State.
Earlier, there was no movement from the west, only natural sounds. But now he heard footsteps and the roar of motorcycle engines.
Based on the sounds, a picture formed in his mind: four people were moving towards them from the western woods. On the road they came from, two motorcycles were speeding towards the Villa.
The sparrow had arrived.
Who could it be?
Li Zian really wanted to know, but he had no clue where to even start guessing.
Slap!
A crisp sound rang out.
Li Zian looked over. It was Kang Xin slapping a mosquito.
That mosquito had bitten her right on the chest. When she slapped it, it caused quite a shake.
Kang Xin said: “Uncle, should we…”
Li Zian suddenly reached out and covered her mouth: “Shh.”
Kang Xin immediately froze.
Li Zian looked west again.
The four people were still moving towards them, spread out in a line and moving fast.
Suddenly, a voice speaking English reached his ears.
“Did you take care of that trash?”
Li Zian was stunned for a moment. The voice sounded familiar, as if he had heard it somewhere before.
“It’s done,” another voice said.
“Huang Bo’s stupidity put us in a bad spot. He took an old man and a female student. They can’t have gone far. Kill the old man and the student first when we catch up.” It was that familiar-sounding voice again.
Li Zian’s English was quite limited. He only understood bits and pieces, guessing the meaning from the words he recognized.
But he could guess most of it.
They were also after the Celestial Incense. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have had Huang Bo set the trap first, using hostages to lure him in. The two killers hiding in the water with spear guns were likely from the sparrow’s side. One died from a cut neck artery, the other had his shoulder pierced by a spear. He probably survived. It was likely that surviving white killer who reported that Huang Bo had failed, so they came from their ambush point.
If that sparrow just wanted him dead, they wouldn’t have waited for him to enter the Villa. They could have ambushed him while he was still in the Ride-Hailing Car, rushing out from the roadside with seven or eight gunmen spraying bullets. Even with his Bulletproof Shield, it would have been useless.
So, it seemed the Celestial Incense really did exist.
They just didn’t know that he didn’t have the Celestial Incense, but he had the incense burner.
Li Zian removed his hand from Kang Xin’s lips and whispered: “There are still people chasing us. We need to keep moving north. Stay close to me.”
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan nodded.
“Xiao Li, who are those people?” Kang Haichuan asked.
Li Zian replied briefly: “They are working with Huang Bo.”
He continued north, folding the Bulletproof Shield as he walked, turning it back into the alloy toolbox. Moving through the forest, the Bulletproof Shield was cumbersome and slowed them down.
The light in the forest was dim, making it hard to see clearly. The alloy toolbox, which usually took only seconds to fold, took over a minute this time to revert to its box form.
He also took the sandalwood incense stick and held it in his hand.
“Ouch!” Kang Haichuan slipped and fell to the ground.
Li Zian helped Kang Haichuan up, feeling anxious. He crouched in front of Kang Haichuan: “Professor Kang, climb onto my back. I’ll carry you.”
“This… this won’t do. I can still walk. Xiao Li, please get up. You must be tired too,” Kang Haichuan said.
Li Zian said: “We need to speed up, or we’ll be caught soon. No more talking, quickly!”
“This…” Kang Haichuan didn’t know what to do.
Li Zian didn’t bother arguing further. He reached back, hooked his arms under Kang Haichuan’s thighs, and hoisted him onto his back.
Without waiting for Li Zian to ask, Kang Xin picked up the alloy toolbox he had placed on the ground.
“Follow me. Don’t fall behind,” Li Zian said, then suddenly broke into a run with long strides, heading deep into the forest with Kang Haichuan on his back.
Kang Xin stared in disbelief for a second, then quickly ran after him.
If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn’t have believed that Li Zian, carrying her father, could run as fast as a rabbit.
Was Uncle some kind of forest hero?
The female college student quietly wondered to herself.