"Ye Zixiao, you just wait."
Shan Mao, who had been watching, suddenly spoke.
Ye Zixiao turned his head and saw Shan Mao leap up, curling into a ball in mid-air, and then landing on the ground, he truly rolled away like a ball, at high speed.
"Trying to run?"
Ye Zixiao took off in pursuit.
"Fire, fire."
"Take down that monster."
"Oh my god, it turned into a ball?"
The nearby brothers immediately exclaimed.
Ye Zixiao was incredibly fast, but he couldn't catch up to the ball? Under the barrage of gunfire, the ball was clearly hit many times, yet not only did it not slow down, it accelerated and rolled further away.
At this moment, Shan Mao's transformed ball was
like a tire traveling over 100 mph.
It zipped away...
and disappeared?!
"Chase him!"
"Quick, quick, chase him by car."
"What the heck is that thing?"
The nearby brothers were filled with curiosity and excitement.
"Alright, stop chasing!"
Ye Zixiao raised his hand, signaling for everyone to give up the pursuit. The monstrous ball had already vanished. If they went after it and fell into an ambush, losing a few more men would be too great a loss.
Moreover,
Shan Mao couldn't escape.
Even if Ye Zixiao didn't go looking for him,
he would surely retaliate against Ye Zixiao...
The battle was over, our army had won, the mutated wild dogs were dead, only Shan Mao had escaped. Amidst the surprised exclamations of his brothers, they began to clear the battlefield. After all, it was a victory, and everyone was very happy.
Upon returning to the villa,
Ye Zixiao's expression was somewhat grim.
"What's wrong?"
Tang Keke asked with concern.
"I've been thinking, this strange mutated weapon must not have been done by the people of Wuguo, but its appearance in Wuguo suggests a major conspiracy, likely targeting Longguo."
Ye Zixiao sat on the sofa and lit a cigarette.
"Are you worried it was done by allied countries?"
"Yes!"
Ye Zixiao took a drag of his cigarette and said sternly, "The allied countries always want to attack us, but they are too far away, so they always incite our neighboring countries to harass us."
"Like Wuguo?"
"Yes, but Wuguo is too small, its military is too weak, and it doesn't have any decent superweapons. Therefore, under normal circumstances, Wuguo would not attack Longguo alone, unless..."
"Unless they have special weapons?"
"Like, mutated people!"
Ye Zixiao voiced his ultimate concern.
Silence fell upon the room.
Lin Bin, Bai Ling'er, Leng Shao, and Shan Ge, these people remained calm. Their consistent approach was to obey orders. Whatever Ye Zixiao instructed, they would do.
Only Grandpa Dog frowned.
"Do you have any ideas?"
Ye Zixiao looked up and asked Grandpa Dog.
"This..."
Grandpa Dog scratched his head, thought for a moment, and said, "A while ago, a group of sick people came to the slum. They were covered in blisters and looked miserable, and very frightening!"
"And then?"
"We were worried their illness was contagious, so we locked them in a dilapidated house. Some kind-hearted people would give them food, but within three days, all of them died."
"Died?"
"Yes, they all died overnight."
"What exactly are you trying to say?"
"Boss Ye, it's like this!"
Grandpa Dog thought again and continued, "Someone who delivered food to them said that those patients were like lunatics, always mentioning one phrase – Daheishan Death Valley."
"Daheishan Death Valley?"
"I think it's a place name."
"And then?"
"And then nothing else."
Grandpa Dog finished, looking nervously at Ye Zixiao.
"Grandpa Dog, are you implying that those patients escaped from Daheishan Death Valley, and that strange place might hide some unspeakable secret?"
Ye Zixiao also frowned and asked.
"I, I'm just guessing!"
"Have you heard of Daheishan?"
"No, I haven't."
"Alright, go and rally your subordinates. I don't care how you do it, you need to find out what Daheishan is, and what that Death Valley is all about. The sooner the better."
"Yes!"
Grandpa Dog turned and ran off.
The remaining people in the room exchanged glances.
"Everyone go and rest!"
Ye Zixiao lit another cigarette.
Everyone else left.
Only Tang Keke remained.
"Daheishan, Death Valley?"
Ye Zixiao murmured to himself, frowning.
"Are you thinking there might be a laboratory there? You suspect that Shan Mao and the wild dogs, as well as those strange mutated people, might be products of that laboratory?"
The intelligent Tang Keke prompted seriously.
"Keke, do you think it's possible?"
"I think it's possible!"
"Mmm, so we must go."
At this moment, Ye Zixiao was like a savior.
The night passed uneventfully...
The next morning, around nine o'clock, Grandpa Dog burst into Ye Zixiao's room. Behind him, two young men carried a tattered old man on a stretcher; he looked like a beggar.
"You found out?"
Ye Zixiao immediately asked.
"Boss, this old man knows."
Grandpa Dog stepped aside, revealing the old man.
"Greetings to Boss Ye, may Boss Ye be auspicious!"
The old man with a limp even knew how to flatter.
"Sir, please don't be so formal. I just want to know, what is Daheishan? Daheishan Death Valley, is there such a place name in Wuguo?"
"Replying to Boss Ye, about three hundred kilometers north of Wuwang City, in the snowy region, there is a mountain with a exposed black boulder. The local people there call that mountain Daheishan."
"Snowy region?"
Ye Zixiao seemed a little surprised.
"That's right, in the no-man's-land of the snowy region."
The old man replied clearly and firmly.
"Then, Death Valley?"
"Replying to Boss Ye, this old beggar comes from the border of the snowy region. I've only heard of Maigou (Burial Gully), but I've never heard of any Death Valley! However, Maigou is the only way to reach Daheishan."
"Maigou? What does that mean?"
"Legend has it that the gully is haunted, and every year countless wild beasts jump into the gully from the high mountains. Over time, the gully became filled with bones, and that's how it got its name."
"Mmm, it should be it!"
Ye Zixiao nodded heavily after hearing this.
Ye Zixiao didn't care about the specifics of Maigou, but a legendary haunted gully in the no-man's-land was the best natural barrier. Just hearing the name, no one would dare to enter.
If there was a laboratory,
it would surely be built in the most hidden location.
The no-man's-land made sense.
Daheishan made sense.
Maigou made sense.
"Sir, can you lead the way?"
Ye Zixiao asked somewhat apologetically.
"Boss Ye, this old beggar wishes he could serve you, but I am disabled. However, it's alright, I still have a young beggar at home. Back in the day, I took him near Maigou."
"Sir, thank you!"
Ye Zixiao clasped the old beggar's hand.
Grandpa Dog gave the old beggar some money and had him sent back. An hour later, a small beggar, dressed in tattered clothes and covered in mud, was brought, trembling, before Ye Zixiao.
"Can you find Daheishan?"
Ye Zixiao asked, feigning gentleness.
"I can, definitely can."
The little beggar confidently patted his chest.
"Are you willing to take me there?"
"You, you, you, will you give me money?"
The little beggar asked nervously, lowering his head.
"How much money do you want?"
"Two yuan, is that okay?"
"What do you need money for?"
"To buy my dad two eggs to eat."
"What a good child!"
Ye Zixiao's eyes welled up with tears.
He had never truly experienced hardship in his life. Cultivating on the mountain was hard, but he never lacked food or drink. This boy, who looked no older than a teenager, was willing to lead the way for two yuan; it was not easy!
"Little beggar, are you silly?"
Grandpa Dog nudged the little beggar and said with a smile, "This is Boss Ye, the boss of the entire city. As long as you lead the way properly, forget about eggs, Boss Ye can buy you a hundred chickens!"
"Alright, alright, one chicken is fine too!"
Upon hearing this, the little beggar's eyes lit up.