In the darkness, the intense metallic taste of blood on Ye Que’s lips still lingered in Jiang Nuan’s breath.
She forced herself to pull away from the heartbeat that had nearly shaken her apart and gently pushed at the unsteady man in front of her. “We need to get out of here.”
Stay alive first.
Jiang Nuan’s fingers were still trembling faintly, but her movements had already become efficient as she began searching the three bodies.
A few months ago, she had been a college student who had to close her eyes even to gut a fish. Now, she could search corpses for supplies without batting an eye.
Being transported to another world had changed a person far more thoroughly than she had imagined.
She tore the ammunition pouches from the bodies. The sniper rifle was too heavy; after trying to lift it, she gave up.
The bullets, however, fit into her pockets. She also found two palm-sized electromagnetic grenades and three small magnetic bombs.
There was an entire box of syringes in the case. She had no idea which ones were ability suppressants and which were anesthetics, but taking all of them couldn’t hurt. She stuffed everything into the waterproof backpack.
She searched again, and a set of car keys, still warm from their owner’s body, slipped from one of the men’s pockets.
Those people had mentioned that the car was parked nearby.
Jiang Nuan quickly finished gathering the supplies and returned to Ye Que’s side.
Ye Que was half sitting against a pillar. Breaking free of the chains earlier had drained the last of his remaining strength.
His breathing was so shallow it was nearly inaudible, and the wound across his shoulder and back was deep enough to expose bone, still oozing blood.
Rainwater mixed with blood and ran down the pillar, gathering into a small, horrifying pool of dark red.
He couldn’t keep bleeding like this.
“Riiip—”
She tore off a strip of relatively clean fabric from the hem of her dress beneath her rain cape and tied it tightly around the worst of the bleeding.
Then she pulled out one of the ability stabilizers she had scavenged and injected it into the side of his neck.
Only after finishing did she dare crouch down again and gently pat his cold cheek.
“Ye Que, can you hear me?”
His eyelashes trembled, and he slowly opened his eyes.
Even in the darkness, those eyes were astonishingly bright.
“…Yes.”
“We have to leave now.” Jiang Nuan reached for his arm. “The Cleaners sent out a lot of people this time. Reinforcements could surround this place at any moment.”
Ye Que was covered in wounds. Jiang Nuan could barely find anywhere safe to support him.
In the end, she did her best to avoid the injuries on his back and draped his right arm over her shoulder.
He was a full head taller than her. Although he tried to support himself as much as possible, the weight he shifted onto her still made Jiang Nuan’s knees buckle.
He didn’t look excessively bulky, but his body was all muscle—solid muscle.
The two of them staggered out of the abandoned factory, one step deep and the next shallow.
Jiang Nuan stripped off her own rain cape and draped it over Ye Que as best she could. Squinting through the curtain of rain, she searched the area and finally spotted a dark-colored off-road vehicle in the corner of the industrial compound.
She struggled to pull open the rear door and was just about to help Ye Que inside when he spoke.
“…Take me to the front.” His voice was so weak that a gust of wind could have scattered it. “I’ll drive.”
Jiang Nuan lowered her eyes to the hand resting on her shoulder. His long fingers were trembling uncontrollably.
“You can’t even hold the steering wheel right now.” She immediately helped him into the back seat. “Sit tight. I’m about to show you what the Akina Mountain Drift King looks like.”
Ye Que sat down in the back. The movement tugged at the wounds on his back, and he let out a muffled groan.
He turned his head slightly to look at her. Rainwater dripped from his hair onto his eyelashes.
His soaked black hair clung to his pale profile, and confusion surfaced in his eyes.
“Akina Mountain?”
He paused.
“Is that your hometown?”
Jiang Nuan froze.
“No.” She offered a stiff explanation. “It’s the name of someone who’s really good at driving.”
Silence fell for two seconds.
When he spoke again, his weakened voice had somehow acquired a hint of murderous intent.
“You admire him?”
Jiang Nuan’s lips twitched.
Dude. I can see the bone through the wound in your shoulder.
Could you please activate your survival instincts?
She ignored him, walked around to the driver’s side, and pulled open the door.
“Hold on tight.” She cleared her throat, trying to hide the guilt churning in her heart.
A very soft “Mm” came from the back seat.
Jiang Nuan took a deep breath.
Before being transported to this world, she had just passed her driving test. And by “just,” she meant extremely recently. Her only real experience on the road so far was the test itself.
But nobody needed to know that.
She inserted the key and started the engine.
She slammed her foot down on the accelerator.
“Rooar—vroom!”
The engine let out an earth-shaking roar, but…
The car didn’t move.
The cabin fell into a deathly silence. The only sound was the rain drumming against the roof.
Jiang Nuan’s palms were drenched in sweat.
What was going on?
She shot a quick glance at Ye Que through the rearview mirror. His eyes were closed, his brow faintly furrowed, and sweat had gathered at his temple.
“I’m not very familiar with this car. Give me a second.” Her heart tightened, and she immediately tried to cover up her panic.
Ye Que didn’t open his eyes. His voice was as faint as a dying breath.
“…You’re in neutral.”
“…………”
On her second attempt, the car finally moved, wobbling crookedly out of the abandoned compound.
The rain grew heavier.
Huge drops battered the windshield, quickly merging into a thick sheet of water that made the road ahead almost impossible to see.
She needed to turn on the windshield wipers.
Keeping her eyes on the road, Jiang Nuan steadied the steering wheel with one hand and reached for the lever beside it with the other.
She pushed it down decisively.
“Click… click… click…”
The crisp sound of the left turn signal rang out, jarringly loud in the quiet cabin.
A green arrow flashed on the dashboard, as if mocking her.
Jiang Nuan went rigid.
There was a slight movement in the back seat. In the rearview mirror, she saw that Ye Que had finally opened his eyes. His usually calm gaze now held nothing but a profound weariness with life.
He stared at the blinking turn-signal indicator ahead and was silent for several seconds.
Then, using what was probably the last remaining bit of strength in his entire body, he forced out a few words.
“Right side… down.”
Jiang Nuan silently moved the correct lever. At last, the windshield wipers swept across the glass.
After driving for about ten minutes, Jiang Nuan gradually found her rhythm.
The steering wheel no longer jerked from side to side, and she had become much gentler with the accelerator. The wipers moved back and forth at a steady pace, and the road ahead finally came into view.
So she really did have a talent for this!
Just then, Ye Que’s voice came from the back seat.
“You drive very well.”
Jiang Nuan seriously wondered whether Ye Que had injured his brain.
He had personally witnessed a series of disaster-level maneuvers just now, and yet he could say, completely straight-faced, “You drive very well.”
What was this? Encouragement-based education?
Still, the corners of her lips rose against her will.
At the same moment, a wave of soreness rose in her chest. This man was injured this badly, yet he was still trying to reassure her.
“What are you thinking about?” Ye Que asked, watching her through the rearview mirror.
“Nothing.” She swallowed both the ache and her smile. “I was thinking about the Akina Mountain Drift King. If he knew I had this much talent, he’d definitely take me on as his apprentice.”
The back seat fell silent for several seconds.
When Ye Que spoke again, his voice suddenly dropped, carrying a dangerous edge.
“Who exactly is he?”
Not this again.
“He’s just…” Jiang Nuan answered vaguely. “A legend.”
“He’s better than me?”
His tone was unnervingly calm.
But the hair on Jiang Nuan’s back stood straight up.
You’re bleeding.
You’re covered in injuries.
You’ve been drugged with an anesthetic.
Why are you still hung up on this, for crying out loud?!
She was just about to cobble together a few words to brush it off when she spotted the red lights flashing through the curtain of rain ahead—and the personnel in matching combat uniforms.
Warning lights.
A checkpoint. The Cleaners.
All the smile vanished from her face in an instant. Instinctively, she wanted to swing the wheel around and turn back, but her eyes flicked over the rearview mirror.
The huge black shadow of a heavy truck traveling normally loomed right behind her, its blinding high beams washing her and the surrounding cars in stark white light.
There was no way back.
There was no way through.
Cold sweat made the steering wheel slick beneath her palms.
All she could do was watch herself inch the car toward that field of red light.
