You, a living person, are telling me I've served in the underworld for ten years?

Footsteps echoed on the gravel, approaching from afar.

The two immediately picked up the long, narrow object wrapped in rags from their arms, their knuckles turning white from the force.

"Who?!"

Wang Shengxiong's low growl had a metallic tremor, and his eyes were like those of an eagle.

"I."

Chen Yang's voice came steadily from the shadows behind the rocks. He walked out slowly, his clothes covered in dust and a few inconspicuous scratches, but he was calm and composed, as if he had just gone for a walk.

"What about people?"

Wang Shengxiong's eyes swept across Chen Yang's back like searchlights, but there was nothing there except yellow sand and sparse thorns.

The doubt in his eyes quickly turned into annoyance and disappointment.

"Chen Yang! Are you fucking kidding me? We're all here risking our lives..."

He slightly raised the cloth in his hand, revealing the dark edge of the gun barrel inside.

Although Zhao Fabo didn't speak, his eyes revealed the same doubt, and his brows were furrowed.

Chen Yang's lips seemed to curve slightly, but he didn't explain, only saying calmly.

"Don't worry, I've done what I promised. The person has been rescued."

His gaze swept over the increasingly chaotic and noisy lights and shadows in the direction of the base in the distance, and his tone left no room for doubt.

"We shouldn't stay here any longer. Let's go back to where you're staying and discuss the details then. Let's go!"

His aura emanated subtly, calm and steady as a mountain, suppressing Wang Shengxiong's irritability and Zhao Fabai's doubts.

The two exchanged a glance, full of suspicion, but they knew that this was not the time to press for answers.

The three quickly climbed into the jeep.

The engine roared low, bursting out of the valley, crushing the wild grass, and speeding away from the eye of the storm, leaving only a trail of dust that quickly dissipated into the night.

***

We sped along, bumping and jolting in the gray pre-dawn sky, until we entered a chaotic and mixed border town on the frontier.

Most of the houses here are dilapidated, the roads are full of potholes, and the air is filled with the smell of cheap tobacco, spices, and livestock.

Wang Shengxiong skillfully turned the jeep into a stinking back alley and parked it at the back door of a low, earthen house with a tattered cloth hanging as a curtain.

The room was dirty and cramped, containing only a wooden bed covered with a tattered blanket, a rickety table, and a dim oil lamp emitting pungent fumes.

The air was extremely polluted.

"Tell me! What exactly happened? Where did you hide him? Let me tell you, Chen Yang, this is no joke!"

As soon as Wang Shengxiong entered the room, he threw himself heavily onto the only broken stool, which groaned under the weight.

He slammed the AK he was carrying onto the corner of the table with a bang, staring intently at Chen Yang with bloodshot eyes, as if he wanted to burn holes in his face.

"That damned base is acting like it's gone mad; they'd probably shoot down even a bird that's hundreds of miles away!"

Zhao Fabai silently closed the creaking, flimsy wooden door, leaned against it with his hands in his pockets, clearly remaining vigilant, his gaze darting back and forth between Chen Yang and the only window.

Chen Yang did not sit down.

He walked to the only small window, gently lifted a corner of the greasy curtain, and looked out at the gloomy sky and the desolate, dirty street.

"The person is a woman who is imprisoned."

Chen Yang lowered the curtain, turned around, and looked calmly at Wang Shengxiong. His voice was not loud, but it clearly reached their ears.

"Including Lei Ting."

Wang Shengxiong jumped up, knocking the stool to the ground with a loud crash.

"Lei Ting?!"

"Where is she?! You said you rescued her!"

"Does the Living Yama just need to confirm this news?"

Chen Yang did not directly answer Wang Shengxiong's roar, but turned his gaze to Zhao Fabai, whose body was also tense.

"Brother Zhao, the person is safe. I can guarantee that with my life."

However, the rescue process was somewhat...unusual; they are temporarily recuperating in an extremely safe place, a place no outsider could possibly find. The Living Yama will soon be able to see his daughter.

He used the word "rest and recuperation" in a veiled way, temporarily avoiding any mention of the Li Rouhe Qingwei faction.

Zhao Fabai stared into Chen Yang's eyes for a full ten seconds.

He saw not a trace of lying or wavering in those deep, calm eyes.

As an intelligence broker who lived on the edge of a knife, he had his own way of judging people. Finally, he slowly exhaled, and the hand that had been tucked into his robes was slowly withdrawn, leaving it empty.

"I believe Mr. Chen's promise."

Zhao Fabai's voice was hoarse.

“But… this ‘safe place’ sounds…”

"Security beyond the comprehension of the ordinary."

Chen Yang offered a vague yet weighty definition.

That's all I can explain.

If you believe me, we need to leave Africa immediately; it's a powder keg.

Zhao Fabo nodded silently, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

Chen Yang's various unconventional abilities had long since made him dare not use common sense to judge this young man in front of him.

He bent down and helped the fallen stool up.

Wang Shengxiong irritably grabbed his short, needle-like hair, like a brown bear trapped in a cage.

"Safe? Good! As long as it's safe!"

He seemed to reluctantly accept this explanation and slumped back onto the stool.

"Damn it! At least I can finally give the boss an explanation!"

What are we waiting for? Let's go!

I don't want to stay in this godforsaken place for another second!

“We can’t leave now.” Zhao Fabai took out his dirty phone with a slightly cracked screen and looked at it.

"The nearest international flight is at the Capital Airport. We'll stay in this small town for a day and then take a black cab to the capital at night. The earliest flight tomorrow is at nine o'clock."

"Do I have to endure another day?"

Wang Shengxiong's face twitched. Looking at the only broken bed in the mud house and the cockroach in the corner, he felt his temples throbbing.

"Alright, alright!"
Damn it! It's better than being blocked on the road by that pack of mad dogs.

Chen Yang nodded.

"Safety first. Let's conserve our energy."

***

All day long, the three of them squeezed into the smelly mud house, taking turns to rest and remaining vigilant.

The atmosphere of the small town outside the window was also changing. Starting in the afternoon, the checks were significantly intensified, and armed police and soldiers patrolled the streets from time to time, their fierce eyes scanning every pedestrian.

The air was so tense it felt like it could drip water.

Wang Shengxiong and Zhao Fabai were also on tenterhooks, glancing from time to time at Chen Yang, whose expression remained as calm as a deep pool.

The nerve-wracking 24 hours finally came to an end.

As the darkest hour before dawn arrived, an equally old van, with peeling paint and an illegible license plate, pulled up as promised at the back alley entrance.

A skinny, sleazy-looking Black man poked his head out and mumbled a few words hurriedly in the local dialect.

Zhao Fabai responded in broken local dialect and stuffed a thick roll of old banknotes into his hand. The skinny black man quickly glanced at Wang Shengxiong and Chen Yang, who were fully armed and looked unfriendly inside the car, and without saying much, simply gestured for them to get in the car quickly.

The dilapidated van made a coughing sound like an asthmatic patient as it wobbled and continued on its way.

Along the way, he was checked at least three times, but Zhao Fabai managed to get away with it by talking about money and speaking fluent local dialect.

When the capital's somewhat dilapidated but still bustling international airport came into view, the three of them finally relaxed a little.

Zhao Fabo skillfully obtained two plane tickets for the two of them—one for Wang Shengxiong's fake identity, and the other for Chen Yang to obtain a temporary identity as a cover through his own channels.

He himself had other ways to leave.

"Mr. Chen, Mr. Wang, have a safe journey!"

On the edge of the noisy and chaotic crowd outside the airport security checkpoint, Zhao Fabai reached out and shook hands with Chen Yang and Wang Shengxiong respectively, his eyes showing a kind of weariness after completing a mission and worry about the future.

"I hope you return to your motherland safely."

He added a sentence.

"Thanks, Brother Zhao! I'll find you for a drink when I get back to China!"

Wang Shengxiong patted Zhao Fabai on the back, his tone unusually sincere.

Take care, see you later.

Chen Yang said in a deep voice.

Watching the two pass through security and blend into the queue, Zhao Fabai turned around and quickly disappeared into the surging crowd like a fish.

I thought I could finally relax after getting through the last hurdle of airport security.

However, just as Chen Yang and Wang Shengxiong were dragging their feet out of the baggage carousel area and were about to reach the airport exit in victory, a sudden change occurred!
"That's them! Black leather jackets, Asian faces! Grab them!!"

A sharp, piercing roar suddenly erupted from the direction of the arrival gate! Instantly tearing apart the noise of the airport terminal!
Then, a series of heart-stopping gunshots rang out! Bullets struck the gleaming tiles and marble pillars, sparks flying and shrapnel flying everywhere! The terrified screams of the passengers instantly merged into a deafening sea, the crowd erupting like a flock of startled birds, screaming and shoving as they scattered and fled in all directions, the scene instantly spiraling out of control!

"Hold!"

Wang Shengxiong reacted extremely quickly, suddenly swinging the duffel bag he had just received and smashing it hard at the two gangsters in the front who were wearing flashy shirts and had menacing tattoos. At the same time, he roared and lunged at a huge marble pillar next to him for cover.

His other hand instantly lifted his jacket and reached for the holster under his arm.

Chen Yang's gaze suddenly turned icy, a cold glint flashing within it! Almost the instant the gun fired, his body slid to the side at an incredible angle, like a shadow without substance.

A scorching bullet grazed past the billboard behind where he had just been standing!

The attack was extremely fierce and organized! At least dozens of fierce-looking armed men, armed with long and short firearms, poured into the various exits of the airport terminal in an instant! Some were wearing tattered camouflage uniforms from the Blood Jackal base, while others were gang members dressed as street thugs.

Even more troublesome were the several burly men mixed in with them—genetically modified warriors—whose eyes were bloodshot, whose muscles were abnormally swollen and twisted, and who wore simple protective vests!
These desperate criminals showed no regard for the fact that this was a public place, unleashing a torrent of fire! The sounds of AKs firing and pistols exploding created a web of death!
Bullets bounced off the airport's gleaming floor, seats, check-in counters, and billboards; the sound of shattering glass was deafening; and everywhere there was flying gravel and wood dust! Screams of agony and desperate cries mingled together.

Damn it!
How can those bastards be so persistent?! The information has leaked like a sieve!

Wang Shengxiong was so overwhelmed by the intense firepower that he couldn't even lift his head. He could only lean against a pillar and occasionally return fire with a shot or two based on his instincts.

A bullet whizzed past his ear, the intense heat burning his skin.

He was in a terrible state.

Chen Yang's figure moved erratically amidst the hail of bullets, like a small boat in a storm, narrowly avoiding fatal bullets each time.

His eyes were no longer calm; instead, they burned with a cold, furious rage.

His relentless pursuit and inhumane killing of innocent people thoroughly enraged him.

"Since you all want to die..."

A cold light flashed in Chen Yang's eyes, and his killing intent materialized.

He abruptly stopped, no longer dodging, but instead took a step forward to face the barrage of bullets!
Om-!
An invisible, bone-chilling gust of wind suddenly erupted from Chen Yang, instantly sweeping through the chaotic airport terminal! The air, filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder and blood, was suddenly filled with a chilling, deathly silence that seemed to come from the deepest abyss, capable of freezing one's soul!
All the fleeing and screaming passengers, the armed men firing wildly, and even those few genetic warriors, all moved a beat slower than usual, or rather, felt their souls freeze for a moment by this icy coldness!
Chen Yang's hands moved swiftly, forming an ancient and sinister hand seal. Eerie, jet-black runes danced and flickered at his fingertips, swirling with a ghostly light, as if the surrounding light itself was collapsing towards him.

"Soul-binding and spirit-stealing... Imperial decree!"

A cold, emotionless character escaped his lips.

It was as if the gates of hell had silently opened behind him!

In an instant, all the blood jackals and gang members in the hall who were still firing their guns or trying to pounce, even the few genetically engineered warriors who were roaring and whose muscles were bulging as if they were about to burst their skin, froze at the same time! It was as if an invisible steel cable had suddenly tightened around their necks!
Their eyes suddenly bulged out, bloodshot! The ferocity, cruelty, and madness in their eyes were instantly replaced by an indescribable, extreme fear and pain!

"Uh... ah..."

An extremely short, painful scream was squeezed out of his throat, more like the sound of air leaking out due to obstructed airflow.

Immediately following, amidst the terrified gazes of the few passengers and airport staff who were unaffected by the chilling cold but were trembling with fear on the ground—

Pfft!Pfft!Pfft!
A dozen or so vicious armed men, along with several ferocious gene warriors, collapsed like tattered sacks stripped of their bones and souls in an instant. Their eyes were vacant, their expressions frozen in a moment of extreme pain and fear, before they fell straight down! They crashed heavily onto the cold floor! And then, without a sound!
Their bodies had no external injuries, and not even a drop of blood was shed.

But that dense aura of death, that utter sense of complete annihilation, instantly filled the entire space! The once bustling and frenzied corner of the airport suddenly fell into an eerie, chilling silence! Only the terrified cries of passengers stuck outside could be heard in the distance.

Wang Shengxiong lay behind the pillar, staring dumbfounded at the scene, completely unaware that the gun in his hand had slipped from his grasp and fallen to the ground.

A chill ran up his spine and instantly shot to the top of his head!
Airport security guards who witnessed this hellish scene from afar, and the remaining tourists hiding in their burrows, were among those who had lost control of their bladders; the sound of their teeth chattering could be clearly heard. (End of Chapter)