Screech!
A piercing sound of friction rang out as the tail of the off-road vehicle swung violently under inertia, sending clouds of yellow dust exploding in all directions, leaving several charred tire marks on the ground.
Bai Ye narrowed his eyes slightly, looking at Tan Jie and his five underlings stepping out of the vehicle.
They wielded machetes, their expressions fierce and menacing. Their guns were out of bullets, so they had abandoned them in favor of the blades.
The rust-covered machetes glinted coldly in the sunlight, enchanted with magical damage. Even if they didn't hit a vital spot, any wound in this medicine-scarce Wasteland was almost a death sentence.
Seeing Tan Jie and his men approaching aggressively, Bai Ye knew there would be no peaceful resolution today.
Li You was practically incapacitated, and staying would only be a burden, so Bai Ye didn't plan on having Li You fight.
"Li Zuo, they're after me. You should go... huh!?"
"Bai Ye, I will avenge you!" Li You's voice drifted from afar, leaving a trail of dust on the yellow earth as he sprinted away, disappearing in a puff of smoke.
Bai Ye: "......."
Watching Li You flee, Bai Ye didn't blame him. The man had risked himself to help earlier, which was already more than enough. Now, realizing the situation was hopeless, running away was only natural.
Besides, when they teamed up, Li You had mentioned he would help, but if faced with insurmountable danger, he wouldn't save him because he had a mother waiting for him.
But... did he have to run so fast?
Just as Bai Ye was thinking this, who would have thought Li You would come sprinting back.
"Why did you come back?" Bai Ye asked in surprise.
Li You was panting heavily, but his eyes were filled with determination. "I may be a coward, but I'm more afraid of living the rest of my life in regret and guilt for abandoning a friend."
Bai Ye looked deeply at Li You.
At that moment, Li You's face was pale, trembling like a leaf, yet he stood firmly by Bai Ye's side, as if after a fierce internal struggle.
Bai Ye smiled, patting Li You's trembling shoulder.
"Don't worry, with me here, you won't die."
Although Li You initially fled in fear, then returned, wavering between courage and fear.
But precisely because of this, such courage was all the more precious, wasn't it?
The bravery of the strong is indeed awe-inspiring, but the turnaround of the weak is equally moving.
When instinct screams to retreat, yet courage insists on carving a path through the cries.
That is the essence of courage... huh!?
Rumble...
The roar of an off-road vehicle interrupted Bai Ye's thoughts. He looked towards the sound and saw a vehicle coming from the direction Li You had just fled.
Screech!
The vehicle came to a sudden halt, and Wang She, with a cold smile, stepped out with his underlings.
He sneered at Li You, "Li You, why don't you keep running? Haha... I knew you'd split up, so I blocked your escape route in advance, or you might have gotten away!"
Li You wore a polite yet awkward smile.
Bai Ye: "......."
"Bai Ye, let me expla... explain, actually..."
"Stop, saying more would be impolite."
Bai Ye felt like hitting someone now. Damn, he was almost fooled by Li You's sweet talk.
I may be a coward, but I'm more afraid of living the rest of my life in regret and guilt for abandoning a friend.
Fuck! Clearly, he was chased back by Wang She, yet he pretended to be selfless, ready to sacrifice for a friend.
"Bai Vice Comman... uh! Bai Ye, hand over the Forbidden Item, and I might spare your life!" Tan Jie shouted, brandishing his machete.
"Bai Ye, blame yourself for being foolish. You had the chance to join the Silent Court, but you refused. If you had joined, we wouldn't dare trouble you. Too bad you cut off your own escape route," Wang She sneered.
"So, you're quite afraid of the Silent Court?" Bai Ye's expression remained unchanged, even taking the time to gather more intelligence.
Wang She didn't intend to say much, but Tan Jie, feeling confident in victory, couldn't resist the urge to taunt. Most people find it hard to resist the pleasure of mocking an enemy when they believe they have the upper hand.
"A lowlife who got lucky being chosen by a Forbidden Item, it's normal not to know about the Silent Court, otherwise you wouldn't have refused to join.
The Silent Court is an extreme Transcendent organization. Anyone who's been in the Transcendent circle knows about it. They claim justice but actually abuse lynching, slaughtering in the Wasteland in the name of justice. Anyone they label a criminal doesn't live to see the next day.
Heh... just a bunch of lunatics. In this day and age, who still pursues justice? By their standards, everyone in the Wasteland deserves to die! All crows under heaven are equally black!"
Bai Ye understood. No wonder Tan Jie and his group feared the Silent Court so much. If that girl knew what they did in Graysoil Town, they would have been judged long ago.
Silent Court... Court... so it means judging evil, but why the name "Silent"?
"Enough, less talk, let's get on with it. We can't let Li You, the Extraordinary Being, recover," the cautious Wang She couldn't hold back any longer. He didn't want any unexpected complications.
However, he didn't act himself but ordered his men to test the waters first, and Tan Jie made the same choice.
At the command of the two leaders, over a dozen underlings, wielding rusty machetes, advanced step by step towards Bai Ye and Li You, forming a pincer attack.
They couldn't be sure if Bai Ye's gun was empty or if Li You could still use his Extraordinary Ability, so every step was taken with extreme caution.
"Sigh." A long sigh broke the tense atmosphere.
"Actually..." Bai Ye began slowly, drawing everyone's attention.
"We got along decently before, no need to fight to the death. I really don't want to waste time killing you. How about this, you kneel and beg me, and we'll let this go, okay?"
Tan Jie and the others almost burst out laughing.
"Do you hear yourself? We beg you? Bai Ye, I thought you were pretending to be crazy, but you're truly insane. Do you even know who's in control here?" Tan Jie sneered.
The underlings laughed along, mocking Bai Ye's overestimation of himself.
Bai Ye ignored their ridicule and spoke in a serious tone, "Really, just kneel and beg me. I hate wasting time the most in my life."