Old Wang scrambled out the door, rolling and crawling, landing face-first into the dirt, half his body covered in dust. His terrified eyes darted around, desperately searching for Bai Ye.
But at that moment, the gunfire ceased.
Old Wang was instantly filled with dread. The gunfire had stopped—Bai Ye was dead!?
"Ah! Help! Help!"
As Old Wang searched, the Gray Sparrow followed him out of the house, its claws gleaming with a metallic coldness as they pierced into the flesh of his arm.
Old Wang struggled violently, his eyes filled with a terror that was almost palpable.
Just then, footsteps suddenly echoed from the alley beside him.
A glimmer of wild joy appeared in Old Wang's terrified eyes. He looked towards the sound and saw a young man stepping out of the alley, leaving bloody footprints behind him, a revolver in hand.
The moment he saw the young man, Old Wang screamed frantically, as if grasping at a lifeline: "Bai..."
His words were cut off by the young man's leisurely voice: "Yo, isn't this Old Wang?"
"Bai Ye, save me! Please save me..." Old Wang desperately clutched the Gray Sparrow's claws, his eyes filled with a dying plea.
Bai Ye slowly opened the revolver's cylinder, flicking it gently. Six golden shells fell to the ground with a crisp sound.
"Call me Deputy Commander Bai," he said, loading the remaining few bullets one by one.
"Bai... Deputy Commander Bai, please, save me..." Old Wang's face twisted with exertion, capillaries bursting, making him look grotesque.
Bai Ye casually flicked the revolver, snapping the cylinder back into place, then slowly raised the gun, aiming at the Gray Sparrow in Old Wang's expectant gaze... twirling the gun before tucking it into his waistband.
The excitement on Old Wang's face froze instantly.
Bai Ye tilted his head slightly, the Gray Sparrow's blood dripping down his rugged jawline, sketching a sinister smile on his face.
He shrugged, unapologetically saying, "Old Wang, don't blame me for not saving you. After all... I have no obligation to do so."
"No! You can't... save me, I know I was wrong! I know I was wrong, ahhh!!"
Old Wang's cries gradually turned into agonized screams as the Gray Sparrow's claws continued to tear into him, then it lowered its beak, pecking at his innards like a chick at grain.
"Are you really not going to save him? He already knows he was wrong..." Li You, looking exhausted, emerged from the alley, clutching his right hand.
Bai Ye shook his head slightly: "He doesn't know he was wrong; he knows he's about to die."
"Sigh, I always thought Old Wang was one of the few good people in Graysoil Town. After all, he was educated, understood reason, and yearned for the Civilization Era. But alas..." Li You sighed.
"Being educated doesn't make someone a good person. There's an old saying: 'The righteous are often butchers, the heartless are often scholars.' Yearning for civilization doesn't mean one is civilized."
Li You was taken aback, not quite understanding the meaning of the words, but he had a feeling... Bai Ye was insulting him.
"What do you mean by butchers? Clearly, you're the one who kills more Hyenas."
"You'll understand in time, Li Zuo." Bai Ye pulled out the Breath of Bones, aiming at the Gray Sparrow feasting on Old Wang's corpse.
Bang!
The Gray Sparrow died, perishing in Old Wang's embrace.
"My name is Li You!" Li You shouted angrily.
"Alright, Li Zuo."
"You damn... forget it, what do we do next? The gunfire over there has stopped, it seems Wang She and the others are out of bullets too. How many do you have left?"
"Three rounds." Bai Ye weighed the gun in his hand, glancing up at the Gray Sparrows circling over the West District. Even if Wang She and the others had run out of bullets, there were still hundreds of Gray Sparrows.
The remaining Gray Sparrows were furiously attacking the buildings, trying to devour the people inside.
And the Gray Sparrows near the Tire Tavern had all been dealt with. Because there were fewer people here, fewer Gray Sparrows came to feed, which was why Bai Ye insisted on coming here, away from the crowd.
"You only have three bullets left, how will you save them?" Li You asked.
Li You was taken aback. Wait, weren't you the one always shouting about protecting Graysoil Town more enthusiastically than anyone else? Now you're not saving them?
Bai Ye was already planning to retreat. His recent spree of hunting Gray Sparrows was primarily to plunder qi and blood to enhance his own strength. Now that he only had three bullets left, there was no need to plunder qi and blood anymore.
The most crucial point was that he only had one minute and nineteen seconds left. He had spent too much time hunting Gray Sparrows and heading to the Tire Tavern.
One minute was his psychological threshold; if the time dropped below a minute, he couldn't sleep peacefully.
Although he had spent a lot of time, the gains were substantial. His physical fitness had improved again, now comparable to Tan Jie, who had injected the Gene Serum.
Of course, in a real fight, without using weapons, he would still struggle to defeat Tan Jie, because besides strength, Tan Jie also had a body covered in bristles.
Now that his physical fitness had reached this level, the qi and blood provided by hunting Gray Sparrows could hardly improve him anymore. He needed to hunt more powerful Mutant Beasts!
"If you're not planning to save them, then let's hurry and escape!" Li You suggested. He had long wanted to run; the prolonged battle had pushed his spirit and body to their limits.
Bai Ye shook his head: "Running is the most foolish choice. We can't outrun the Gray Sparrows. Once we reach the open wasteland, we'll be sitting ducks. The best choice is to hide in a sturdy building and wait for the Gray Sparrows to leave."
"Alright, I'll listen to you." Li You knew Bai Ye was an experienced Wasteland Hunter, so he decisively trusted Bai Ye's judgment.
They didn't choose the Tire Tavern. Although it was sturdy, it had too many windows, and some were already damaged.
They set their sights on a brick house in the northwest corner, but they needed to cross the street.
Without much hesitation, they dashed towards the brick house.
Several nearby Gray Sparrows noticed the two running and immediately flapped their wings, turning to charge at them.
Li You struggled to lift his right hand, an invisible force blocking the Gray Sparrows' path. They collided with what seemed like an air wall, each one falling from the sky, flapping their wings to steady themselves.
Taking advantage of this gap, Bai Ye fired his gun. Bang, bang, bang—three shots later, three bodies lay on the ground.
The two had developed a bit of a rhythm in their cooperation.
With the bullets completely spent, two Gray Sparrows still remained. Bai Ye put away his gun, pulling out a dagger, intending to deal with them before entering the building. Otherwise, their continuous attacks on the building could cause significant damage.
"Fuck! It hurts like hell!" Li You suddenly screamed, his right hand falling limp, his remaining left hand clutching his head tightly.