Passerby: Secret Image of Ancient Scrolls

"Old Gu!" Shen Xun's roar was like a thunderclap in his ears, instantly pulling him back from his near-death daze.

The expected excruciating pain did not come; instead, a tremendous force slammed into my chest, and my heartbeat instantly stopped.

He slid down the bear-scale curtain and sat on the snow, still gripping the broken shield handle tightly. His vision blurred, but he could clearly feel that the bullets had not penetrated his flesh.

In a flash, Shen Xun, using the cover of gunfire, swept his peach wood staff to deflect the last few crossbow bolts, roaring, "Charge! Back to the vehicle!"

The two vehicles are their only means of survival right now: the front vehicle is Ye Zhuo's 2045, which he drove from Hangzhou, and the rear vehicle is Lao Gu's four-wheel drive pickup truck.

Ao Luya paused for only half a second, her hands tightly gripping the white deer's neck, as if afraid it would tear off the bear scales. Her eyes were fixed on the two vehicles. Lin Jian exerted all his strength to push the rotating armor plates. Ye Zhuo bit her tongue, forcibly suppressing the dizziness.

In just two seconds, Xiong Linmu, propelled by inertia, crashed heavily into the height difference between the ice surface and the roadbed, producing a dull thud.

Ao Luya and the other two quickly emerged from the bear-scale curtain. Using the armor plates and the vehicle body as cover, they swiftly climbed onto the roadbed, keeping their bodies low to the ground, fearing a sneak attack from assassins lurking in the shadows.

After everyone had safely climbed onto the roadbed, Ao Luya immediately called Lin Jian for help. The two of them worked together to loosen the buckle on the leather rope inside the bear scale door panel, and spread out most of the twelve bear scale armor plates towards the inside of the two vehicles, forming a semi-circular barrier against the side of the 2045 vehicle body towards the snow slope.

The deployed armor plates blocked most of the firing angle from the side of the snow slope, while the two vehicles blocked the direct fire route of the windbreak forest, together creating a closed safe zone.

After finishing all that, Ao Luya still frowned, her gaze fixed on the jagged gaps in the upper half of the bear scale screen.

Those were the gaps left by the triangular structure of the upper part of the armor plates after they were unfolded. Although they were not large, they posed a risk that a gunman in the shadows could see what was happening inside. If an assassin fired a shot at these gaps, everyone would still be in danger.

She was still very worried, so she quickly untied the large deer-skin bag on the side of the white deer saddle and took out two thick animal hides. These were the animal hides she used to sleep on the ground inside the bear-scale tent for warmth. They were tanned tightly and were tough enough to not only keep her warm but also protect her from light stray arrows.

"I'll go and cover these gaps to prevent assassins from taking advantage of them and firing shots," Ao Luya whispered to Shen Xun beside her. Then, carrying the animal hides, she quickly walked to the bear scale barrier, placed the two hides over the serrated gaps, tucked the two corners of the hides into the leather rope loops inside the bear scale barrier, and then tightened them securely.

The thick hide, once concealed, not only completely blocked the view of the gunman in the shadows, but also added an extra layer of protection to the gap in the armor plates. Furthermore, it completely covered the tiny holes in the damaged bear scales that had been shot through, making it impossible to see from the outside.

Ao Luya's tense expression eased slightly, and she felt much more at ease.

"I...I'm fine..." Old Gu's voice was hoarse from a violent cough, almost inaudible. After a long while, he shakily touched his chest. His coat and inner layer were torn by the impact, and there was a large bruise on his chest. The peach wood pendant that Shen Xun had given him a few years ago was firmly embedded in his inner pocket.

The bullet was deeply embedded in the wooden plaque, its tip piercing through the wood, just a hair's breadth from his flesh. The nearly unusable shield absorbed more than 90% of the bullet's impact, and the remaining force was entirely absorbed by the peach wood plaque.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness." Old Gu's hands were still trembling, but tears fell without warning.

The hearts that had been in everyone's throats finally settled down. Shen Xun quickly walked over, bent down to confirm that he had only suffered internal injuries and was not in mortal danger. Only then did his tense body relax a little, and he said in a deep voice, "It's good that you're alright. I told you, this token can protect you from a life-or-death ordeal once."

"Ye Zhuo, treat everyone's wounds." Shen Xun made a decisive arrangement, his tone calm and firm. "I'll guard the front of the vehicle and keep an eye on Feng Lin and Xue Po; Ao Luya will guard the rear of the vehicle to prevent the enemy from flanking us; Lao Gu and Lin Jian, catch your breath and rest for a bit."

Ye Zhuo nodded, immediately opened the passenger door of 2045, and as soon as he got in the car, he pulled all the blackout curtains closed, completely blocking all prying eyes from the direction of the windbreak forest.

She first took out the first aid kit, which contained iodine, gauze, tourniquet, anti-inflammatory drugs, and antitoxin serum. However, the source of the toxin on the arrow was unknown, and she was unsure whether the serum would be effective.

She first treated her arrow wound by leaning against the car door, then leaned out and called to Lin Jian, "Lin Jian, there's food and drink in the cabinet. Take it all out and distribute it to everyone to replenish their strength. There's a hand axe at the bottom; take it out and carry it for self-defense. Those assassins won't let this go."

Lin Jian immediately responded and strode forward. The moment he opened the storage cabinet door on the side of the car, his breath caught in his throat.

Several crossbow bolts pierced through the metal of the vehicle and the rear panel of the cabinet, their tips protruding straight into the cabinet. One of them even pierced through an entire box of instant noodles, the dark blue venom on its tip still glistening slightly.

She composed herself, suppressing her fear, and carried out all the items as instructed, distributing them to everyone one by one. She then gripped the hand axe tightly in her hand.

In the freezing cold, everyone was exhausted and dehydrated. The icy electrolyte solution slid down their throats, pulling them back from the brink of collapse. Old Gu, his hands trembling, unwrapped a chocolate bar and stuffed it into his mouth, which slightly suppressed his near-death struggle.

Ao Luya reached into the small suede pouch on the side of the white deer's saddle, took out a metal box at the bottom, and retrieved deer crackers and a small piece of salt. She then took out a soft-folding bucket from the pack. This bucket, normally folded to the size of a small washbasin, took up very little space when stored, but its capacity was surprisingly large when unfolded. She took out a thermos, drank a few sips herself, poured the remaining water into the folded container, and then broke the deer crackers into pieces and offered them to the deer. The white deer snorted uneasily, lowered its head, and licked up the water and crackers. Its tense back gradually relaxed, its previously trembling limbs steadied, and it finally regained some strength.

Shen Xun took the energy drink Lin Jian handed him and said only one word in a deep voice, "Okay." He then unscrewed the cap and gulped it down. He then took out a small bag of ready-to-eat hawthorn preserves from his other pocket, pinched two pieces, and put them in his mouth. The sweet and sour taste melted in his mouth, quickly stabilizing his depleted energy, and his face finally regained some color.

While the supplies were being distributed, Ye Zhuo quickly got out of the car to treat the wounds. His movements were swift and efficient: first, he cleaned and stitched up the wound on Shen Xun's shoulder, then he bandaged the arrow wound on Lin Jian, and finally he applied anti-swelling ointment to Lao Gu. He finished treating the wounds in just over ten minutes.

After treating the last wound, Ye Zhuo didn't linger. She turned and quickly returned to the car, getting out with three tubes of aluminum putty in her hand. She glanced at everyone and ordered in a deep voice, "Take this opportunity to rest and recover your strength. Don't let your guard down."

As soon as she finished speaking, she knelt down and took the tattered shield from Old Gu. She unscrewed the tube and precisely squeezed the grayish-white paste onto the holes and cracks. This was her prepared metal glue, originally used to repair metal damage. It needed 12 hours to initially solidify and 24 hours to become fully hard. She first sealed the through-holes and then focused on applying it to the areas with dense cracks.

Ao Luya's gaze swept over the mud-iron glue, and she asked in a low voice, "Can this stuff be used to repair bear scales?"

Ye Zhuo continued working: "This is mud-iron glue. It's extremely hard after hardening, but also quite brittle. It's easily broken by a strong impact. Repairing the shield is only a temporary emergency. The Bear Scale Curtain is a treasure. If it breaks again after being repaired with this, it can never be fully restored."

The hope in Ao Luya's eyes faded, and she nodded silently.

Ye Zhuo handed the repaired shield to Old Gu. Old Gu took the shield, his eyes lighting up as he said, "By the way, I have a shovel in the back of my pickup truck. I'll go get it. More weapons mean more protection." Ye Zhuo nodded slightly, his tone carrying a hint of caution, "Go ahead. Take the shield, be careful at all times, and try to keep your body tucked up as much as possible so it's not exposed outside the shield."

Although the shield was covered in matte gray and temporarily stabilized, everyone knew that this was only a temporary measure.

Ao Luya gently traced the bear-scale armor plates and animal hide with her fingertips, her eyes filled with undisguised regret. She said in a low voice, "Most of the plates weren't pierced by arrows and are still relatively intact; two plates have several holes and need repair; and two others are riddled with holes and beyond repair." She secretly planned that once the current crisis subsided, if she had the chance, she would use Ye Zhuo's mud-iron glue to barely repair the damaged plates, at least preventing them from completely losing their protection. Once back in the tribe, she would work with her people to make new plates to replace them. Fortunately, only one plate was completely ruined; she quietly breathed a sigh of relief, her anxiety lessening slightly.

After repairing the shield, Ye Zhuo returned to the vehicle, retrieved the composite bow from behind the driver's seat, and took two matching quivers with straps. She quickly checked the bow and string, then slung the quivers and the composite bow over her back, ready to draw an arrow and fire back at any moment.

Old Gu had also safely returned with the shovel. He propped the shovel against the vehicle and occasionally opened a small gap in his armor plate, using his shield to protect his head and face. He held his breath and quickly scanned the ice and snow slopes, confirming there were no signs of assassins approaching before immediately retracting his hands and closing the armor plate tightly.

Inside the car, Lin Jian kept watch by the window, only opening the curtains a crack wide enough to see what was happening. He would sometimes open the front curtain, sometimes move to the back seat, and immediately close the curtains tightly after observing, leaving no fixed opening for any hidden spies to dart in. The two moved with extreme caution, even their breathing was extremely soft, and every slight movement in the wind and snow did not escape their notice.

Shen Xun leaned against the carriage, his peach wood staff held horizontally in front of him, and slowly closed his eyes, extending his perception of the power of reincarnation to its fullest extent.

Just then, in the silent snowstorm, the roar of an engine suddenly broke the silence.

The sound came from behind the snow slope, growing fainter and fainter as it moved away from the crowd until it was almost inaudible.

His senses clearly detected that the faint smell of gunpowder deep in the snow slope was slowly fading away with the sound of the engine, disappearing completely into the wind and snow.

But the next second, Shen Xun's brows furrowed suddenly. His keen senses, honed through centuries of martial arts training, were now as if covered by a thick, waterlogged cloth. The once clear aura of the assassins in the windbreak suddenly became chaotic, blurry, and scattered. He was completely unable to pinpoint their exact locations, and even their numbers became difficult to determine.

What made his heart sink even more was that a faint, eerie aura was silently creeping over with the wind and snow.

It wasn't the malevolent aura of the dead he was used to seeing, nor was it ordinary sinister energy. Instead, it carried an inexplicable, bone-chilling sense of unfamiliarity, yet deep within his memory, it stirred a faint, elusive sense of déjà vu. He knew in his heart that this eerie aura was the root cause of the interference with his senses.

The group, who had been on edge the whole way, breathed a sigh of relief as they heard the engine fading into the distance. Even Old Gu's trembling hands became a little steadier.

Only Shen Xun's eyes showed extreme vigilance. He raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, without revealing the loss of perception, and said in a deep voice, "The gunmen on the snow slope are gone, but the windbreak is still there, so don't let your guard down!"

The tension that everyone had just eased instantly returned to its peak.

The wind and snow continued to blow, and the ice surface was eerily still; even the howling wind was swallowed up by this silent killing intent.

Everyone held their breath, but no one knew that the early warning radar they relied on for survival had completely failed.

In the midst of this deathly silence, a sharp, piercing sound suddenly rang out!

"Bang!"

The arrow, carrying a strong gust of wind, shot out from the woods behind the pickup truck, instantly piercing the tailgate glass and shattering with a piercing sound, embedding itself deeply in the back seat back. The dark blue venom on the arrow tip seeped down the beige seat cover, instantly etching a shallow black mark.