Chapter 45 Someone is Inside the Car

Leng Ying took a deep breath of fresh air and could smell the burnt, acrid scent of gunpowder.

Daring not to lower her guard, she only poked her head out like a groundhog, observing the movements around her.

In the distance, the tent was gone, replaced by a scene of utter devastation. Blackened earth was exposed abruptly amidst the pristine snow, looking as though it had been subjected to an aerial bombardment.

Leng Ying knew that must be the trace left behind yesterday when that gang of desperados blew up the盜洞 with explosives.

After a thorough sweep revealing no one in sight, Leng Ying crawled out of the subterranean passage. She scanned her surroundings vigilantly, and making sure it was safe, she descended back into the earth to make a hand gesture to Cheng Xiangru, who was waiting anxiously.

Cheng Xiangru nodded slightly, and just as he was about to climb up, he remembered Chen Shangke, who was still bound in the corner of the tomb chamber. He turned his gaze toward Chen Shangke, his brows tightly furrowed, momentarily at a loss for what to do.

Leng Ying lowered her voice and said, "Tie him up properly, and I'll pull him up first."

With that, the two of them worked together to drag Chen Shangke beneath the exit.

Suspecting he was about to be murdered, Chen Shangke struggled while letting out muffled, whimpering groans, until Leng Ying gave him a vicious kick to make him behave.

Cheng Xiangru felt a twinge of pity, and cast a slightly reproachful glance at Leng Ying.

Leng Ying blinked, completely unconcerned.

Afterward, Leng Ying climbed back up to the surface, pulled out a rope, tied a stone to one end, and dropped it back down into the hole.

Cheng Xiangru grabbed the rope, tied it securely around Chen Shangke’s waist, and gave it a firm downward tug to signal to Leng Ying above that he was ready.

Shortly after, the rope grew taut. Struggling all the way, Chen Shangke was hoisted up, ascending slowly.

Cheng Xiangru checked around to ensure nothing was left behind, paid a final respects to the shaman's remains within the tomb, and then climbed up the tree trunk. Pushing Chen Shangke from below, he gritted his teeth and climbed upward with all his might.

Emerging back onto the surface, a deep sense of surviving a catastrophe welled up from the bottom of Cheng Xiangru's heart. He couldn't help letting out a mighty roar, letting the sound echo through the valley and shake loose the accumulated snow on the tree branches. He felt an immense sense of release in his chest.

This sudden outburst gave both Leng Ying and Chen Shangke a violent start.

Leng Ying was worried that Cheng Xiangru might attract the bad guys with his shouting, while Chen Shangke was simply terrified out of his wits.

Leng Ying pulled Cheng Xiangru aside and asked in a low whisper, "What's the plan now? How should we deal with this creepy, laughing periot?"

Cheng Xiangru had no idea either and felt a massive headache coming on.

Ideally, he wanted to immediately interrogate Chen Shangke to find out where Boss Zhou and the others currently were.

However, if they were to untie Chen Shangke right now and face him openly, too many things would be impossible to explain.

Yet keeping Chen Shangke bound like this was not a viable solution either; surely they couldn't drag him around everywhere through the snowfields?

Cheng Xiangru spread his hands toward Leng Ying, indicating he was fresh out of ideas.

Leng Ying rolled her eyes and whispered a suggestion: "How about this? I'll pretend to beat him up, use the opportunity to untie him, and drop a few harsh threats to scare him. Then the two of us will hide. Once he unties himself, we can quietly tail him."

It was a plan, but it came with risks.

What if, after regaining his freedom, Chen Shangke didn't go looking for Boss Zhou and the others, but instead fled on his own? What if they ran into that gang of desperados again during this time? Furthermore, with the sky growing darker by the minute, what if they lost his trail?

Cheng Xiangru voiced his concerns, plunging Leng Ying into deep thought.

After a long while, neither of them could come up with a better plan. Seeing that Chen Shangke was shivering violently and curled up tightly in the snow from the cold, they both knew they could delay no longer.

Cheng Xiangru gritted his teeth and said, "Let's take a gamble, then. We'll do it your way. I'll hide first, and I'll leave the rest to you."

"Got it!" Leng Ying rolled up her sleeves, ready to spring into action.

Cheng Xiangru grabbed Leng Ying's arm and couldn't help whispering a final warning: "Make sure you pull your punches. Don't beat him into a cripple."

"Don't worry, I know my own limits. Make sure you hide properly and don't get spotted!" With that, Leng Ying marched toward Chen Shangke.

Cheng Xiangru looked around, found a thick tree to use as cover, and hid temporarily while keeping a watchful eye on Leng Ying from a distance.

Reaching Chen Shangke's side, Leng Ying immediately subjected him to a barrage of punches and kicks. Muffled thuds echoed continuously, making Cheng Xiangru's heart leap into his throat.

After the beating, Leng Ying put on a gruff voice and sneered viciously at the empty air nearby, "Let's go! Leave him here to feed the wolves, nobody will ever know!"

Having dropped her fierce threat, Leng Ying walked a short distance away at a slow pace before suddenly breaking into a sprint, dashing to the spot where Cheng Xiangru was hiding to observe Chen Shangke's next move together.

Cheng Xiangru cast a resentful look at Leng Ying and complained, "Didn't I tell you to go easy on him?"

Leng Ying looked slightly aggrieved. "If I went any lighter, it wouldn't look real, and he'd be suspicious. Don't worry, the blows sounded heavy, but it didn't actually hurt that much."

After waiting for quite a while, the two saw Chen Shangke finally break free from his bonds, rip away the rags covering his eyes and mouth, and stagger to his feet, shivering uncontrollably.

Cheng Xiangru's heart leapt straight into his throat. Having no idea what choice Chen Shangke would make next, he could only wait quietly, pinning his hopes on this gamble.

They watched as Chen Shangke scanned his surroundings, turned to steady himself against a tree trunk, and began walking in a particular direction with labored steps.

By now, the sun had dipped below the western mountains, and darkness was falling at an accelerated pace. While this aided Cheng Xiangru and Leng Ying in remaining concealed, it also increased the difficulty of their pursuit, forcing them to close the distance between themselves and Chen Shangke.

Whether he sensed he was being followed or not, Chen Shangke grew visibly panicked and began to run in a clumsy, stumbling dash. However, he was severely injured, and having gone nearly a day and a night without food, his body was appallingly weak. He tumbled and fell every short distance he ran, a sight that tugged painfully at Cheng Xiangru's sympathy.

"Forget it, I'm going to help him," Cheng Xiangru said, seeing Chen Shangke collapse onto the snow and remain there for a long time, gasping out massive plumes of white vapor while unable to get up. His heart simply couldn't bear it anymore.

Leng Ying quickly grabbed him. "I have a plan, leave it to me!"

With that, Leng Ying turned away, lowered her body, and darted off into the distance, using the trees for cover. Cupping her hands around her cheeks like a megaphone, she let out a piercing howl: "Awoooo!"

The trick actually worked. Deeply terrified, Chen Shangke bolted upright and, finding a surge of strength from nowhere, resumed his frantic sprint.

Leng Ying quickly caught up to Cheng Xiangru, asking in a low whisper as they ran, "Well? Aren't I brilliant?"

Cheng Xiangru laughed despite himself. "Just how vicious can you be?"

Leng Ying didn't care in the least. "As long as it works, that's all that matters. Don't worry, he won't die."

The two trailed Chen Shangke across two mountain ridges, running until the surrounding scenery began to look increasingly familiar, even spotting numerous tracks left behind by other people in the snow.

Utilizing the dim, bluish twilight, Leng Ying suddenly raised a hand and pointed toward the base of a distant slope. "Look, isn't that your car?"

Cheng Xiangru squinted and focused his gaze. Sure enough, far off in the distance, a dark shape rested by the edge of a wide, winding road—it truly looked like the vehicle Boss Zhou and the others had driven here.

He had no idea how Chen Shangke had managed to navigate back in this direction.

Cheng Xiangru felt a pang of disappointment toward Chen Shangke, never expecting that the man would care only about his own escape rather than looking for Boss Zhou and the others.

Leng Ying lowered her voice to suggest, "Since we know where he's heading, things are simple. How about this: I'll keep tailing him, while you wash your face clean with snow, change your clothes, and circle around to wait by the car. Once he arrives, you can pretend you have no idea what happened and demand answers straight from him."

Thinking this was indeed a sound strategy, Cheng Xiangru nodded in agreement. True to Leng Ying's suggestion, he stripped off the blue burial garments, put on an outer jacket, took off his mask, and enduring the freezing cold, washed his hands and face clean with snow before circling around toward the vehicle from a different direction.

To his utter astonishment, however, just as he was about to reach the vicinity of the car, the black sedan suddenly roared to life in the pitch-black night, its headlights snapping on to pierce the dark.

There was someone inside the car!