"Well... that's true, brother, what should we do next?"
"When it hits midnight, I'll go get the firestone, and you grab the jerky. No need to fetch water, there's snow, we won't die of thirst. We'll sneak away from here; there's a forest not far off where we can escape," the triangular-eyed man instructed.
"Alright."
The moonlight was hazy.
The indifferent moonlight spilled over the snow-covered wilderness.
The glistening snow reflected a cold, clear sheen.
The earth was silent.
In the campfire surrounded by stones, the flames had died out, and the glowing embers cast a faint red glow in the dimness.
From the unburned charcoal came a crackling sound, sparks flew out, landing on the snow with a sizzle, leaving a shallow hole.
At this moment.
Two figures with guns slung over their shoulders emerged from a tent.
Creak.
The young man's footsteps crunched on the snow.
The triangular-eyed man glanced at him expressionlessly, then pointed at his feet.
He signaled the young man to tread on the untouched snow.
The young man nodded quickly.
The two tiptoed to the vehicles, gathering supplies.
Just as they were about to leave.
A voice sounded behind them.
"Where are you two planning to go?"
The triangular-eyed man turned to look.
A burly man with a bushy beard, like a black bear, stood in the snow, the dark muzzle of his gun aimed at them.
"Captain Zhou... we were just... taking a walk."
"Taking a walk with all those supplies?" Zhou Yuan gestured with his mouth towards the backpack slung over the man's shoulder.
The triangular-eyed man gave an awkward smile, saying nothing.
"If you can't give me a reason, I can't just let you go," Zhou Yuan sneered.
Hearing this, the triangular-eyed man's face showed uncertainty, his hand on the gun lacked the courage to raise it.
Firing would surely wake the others, making escape impossible.
Besides, neither of them had handled a gun before, their aim was poor. Although a Qi-Blood Realm Origin Cultivator couldn't completely resist bullets, their enhanced physical and neural responses made them a threat to these amateur gunmen. New chapters come out on novelping(.)com first.
Provoking Zhou Yuan would be even more disastrous.
"Captain Zhou, I'll tell you a secret, but you must promise to let us go," the triangular-eyed man gritted his teeth.
Zhou Yuan was with the consortium, capturing Du Xiu and these fugitive slaves would be an achievement.
"Let's hear it. If it's valuable, maybe I'll let you go," Zhou Yuan raised an eyebrow.
"Actually, we're from the mine..."
Just as the triangular-eyed man was about to speak.
Two people suddenly burst out of a tent.
Their submachine guns spewed two scorching tongues of fire, aiming at the triangular-eyed man.
The moment he heard the gunfire, Zhou Yuan reacted swiftly, dropping to the snow and rolling into a low-lying hollow to hide.
Opposite Zhou Yuan, the triangular-eyed man and the young man beside him were instantly riddled with bullets.
The bullets even ignited the firestone in their backpack.
Suddenly, two burning corpses lay in the snow.
The killers were Du Xiu and Lian Ruofei.
Seeing the dead, Zhou Yuan's face turned black with anger.
The sudden gunfire startled him, and he couldn't shake the feeling that some bullets were aimed at him.
Were those two trying to kill the escapees, or him as well?
Hearing the gunfire, those resting were awakened, hurriedly grabbing weapons and exiting their tents to check the situation.
Big Python and the others instinctively gathered around Du Xiu, holding guns obtained from the mine.
But their posture and demeanor clearly showed their unease.
In contrast, Zhou Yuan's men were more professional. With a quick assessment of the scene, they followed their squad's division, each grabbing heavy weapons, finding cover, and aiming their guns at Du Xiu's group.
Zhou Yuan rose from the snow, looked back to see his men had set up fire points, and stormed over to Du Xiu.
He slapped Du Xiu across the face.
"You little brat, what are you trying to do?"
"We're dealing with deserters, what's it to you?" Du Xiu's face flushed with anger.
"That guy was about to tell me a secret, and you shot him before he could speak. What's the shady business between you?"
"Ask our captain when he arrives!"
Zhou Yuan grabbed Du Xiu by the collar, his eyes cold. "Kid, don't try to scare me with your captain. If you keep pushing, I'll kill you myself, and whether your captain can find me is another matter." Find the original chapter at g.com.
Du Xiu was silent for a moment, a flicker of fear in his eyes, his face showing humiliation.
"We're actually... from the mine's transport team."
"Transport team? Why so secretive?"
"Transporting military-controlled ore."
The words from Du Xiu's mouth left Zhou Yuan momentarily stunned, then a chill ran down his spine.
Involving military-controlled goods meant a heap of trouble.
The consortium might dominate locally.
But that didn't mean they could recklessly trade military-controlled goods.
In this era of war, all ideologies had to align with warfare.
Involving military-controlled goods was definitely a core secret of the Empire and the consortium, touching it meant trouble.
Du Xiu turned to Lian Ruofei, "Go to the vehicle and bring down the ore for Captain Zhou to inspect."
Lian Ruofei turned to leave.
"Forget it, let's pretend I don't know about this!" Zhou Yuan felt unlucky, waving his hands repeatedly.
Joking aside, military-controlled goods were a hot potato.
Getting involved would bring no benefit.
No wonder with this group's quality, they had an Aperture Opening Realm leader. It was to escort military-controlled ore.
Moreover, these people were likely the consortium's expendables.
The kind to be disposed of after transport.
As the two fell silent, a "thump, thump, thump" sound suddenly came.
The sound came from Zhou Yuan's convoy.
All the other vehicles were off-road, except the one making noise, which had a closed compartment at the back.
There was someone inside.
The strange noise during the standoff.
Everyone present instinctively turned their gaze to the compartment.
In an instant, the atmosphere tightened again.
"In that case, Captain Zhou, can you let go?" Du Xiu withdrew his gaze from the compartment, snorting coldly.
"Heh, little brother, it's all a misunderstanding. Also, I just realized tonight, the route's off, this isn't the road to Bote City, but it's too late to turn back now, we're low on supplies and fuel. There's a hunter's town ahead, we should reach it by tomorrow afternoon. Let's rest there, then go our separate ways, how about it?"
Zhou Yuan released his grip, forcing a smile.