Achoo!
Deep within the Blackwater Forest, thousands of miles from Qingyun, a king, curled into a ball and hidden in a nest of grass, let out a sudden sneeze and opened his eyes.
Snow was falling from the sky.
Big, fluffy snowflakes. If they fell in the king's hometown, many children would surely be cheering and running in the snow.
But here—
The king didn't know that Big Stone had been sacrificed days ago.
He didn't even know if it was day or night!
Because after the operation began, except for their essential weapons, all their electronic communication devices and anything that could prove their identity had been destroyed.
And ever since Big Stone was sacrificed, the snowflakes had started to fall and hadn't stopped.
In the forest where heavy snow perpetually fell, it was hard to distinguish between day and night.
The only thing the king could be sure of was that he was cold, tired, hungry, and sleepy.
"Scissors."
A weak voice came from beside him: "Did you hear gunshots?"
The king looked back.
In the grass behind him, there were six other people.
Five men and one woman.
In the days following Big Stone's sacrifice, the king had met them one by one.
These were likely the only seven survivors out of the twenty-odd people on the front lines of the "Slay Hu" task force.
This was also "thanks to" the pursuers not entering to hunt them down.
The person awakened from his slumber by the king's sneeze was codenamed Hammer.
"No."
The king shook his head and said, "I wish there were no more gunshots."
After the king and the others gathered, they quickly analyzed that the enemy had paused their pursuit because they were using them as bait to lure people to rescue them.
They both hoped for rescuers to come and feared them!
Hoping for rescuers meant they didn't want to die.
Fearing rescuers meant they didn't want more brothers and sisters to be permanently left behind trying to save them!
"I think we should fight the enemy to the death."
The speaker was codenamed Rabbit, with an arm in a sling: "If we all die, no one will come to save us anymore. Their damned schemes will fail."
"It's futile."
The king coughed violently and said, "Unless the people back home know we're all dead. Otherwise, even if we truly all die, those bastards will create a false impression that we're still alive. They might even send people to impersonate us to lure our people to come to our rescue in an endless stream."
He was right.
This was the enemy's predetermined strategy.
In any case, the king and the others couldn't transmit any information outward.
"Are we just going to be trapped and die here, obediently serving as bait for the enemy?"
The fourth person to join the conversation was the only woman among the seven, codenamed Star.
The king suddenly asked, "Do you regret participating in this operation?"
"We regret it!"
Rabbit replied, "We regret rushing in without figuring out if it was a trap. We implicated so many brothers who came to our rescue, causing them to die in vain! But I never regret participating in the 'Slay Hu' task force."
Hammer and the others nodded in agreement.
"That's the only thing I regret."
The king sat cross-legged, scooped up some snow, and ate it slowly, "Actually, before coming here, a brother advised me not to. He said there were many things ordinary people couldn't see through. Unfortunately, I didn't listen then."
Someone asked, "Who was that brother?"
"His name is Li Qianfan."
The king's eyes brightened slightly, "He's only 21 this year, but he's far more capable than me. If he had participated in this operation too, I dare say the damage caused to the enemy would have been much greater. And the woman he found, tsk tsk. Her face, her figure, her legs, her aura. Damn it, a good cabbage was indeed eaten by a pig. But I'm not envious, because I also have a girl I like."
Zhu Hui's image quickly floated into his mind.
When men gather, women are an eternal topic.
Even though they were trapped in helpless despair and could die at any moment.
Star, being a woman, was also very interested: "Scissors, tell us about the girl you like. Hey, if we can make it back alive, we'll definitely go see your goddess."
"Scissors, tell us about your brother's wife instead."
Hammer wiped the corner of his mouth, "Her face, her figure, her legs! Talking about this kind of thing is really invigorating."
"How can we casually discuss my brother's wife?"
The king gave Hammer a look and said, "Let's talk about the girl I have a crush on."
"Holy crap!"
Rabbit was surprised, "So you're in love with her from afar?"
"Is secret admiration against the law?"
The king's retort left Rabbit speechless.
For the next half hour, the seven of them chattered away, their spirits soaring.
They had the air of being able to jump up at any moment and run home at a hundred-meter sprint.
But with a gust of wind sweeping through the forest—
Their spirits quickly waned.
No one spoke anymore.
Their eyes glazed over as they looked up at the falling snow, recalling their most cherished moments.
Star suddenly said, "I don't think I can hold on any longer."
"Nonsense!"
The king was startled and said in a low voice, "We must not give up until the last moment! Perhaps."
"Perhaps what?"
Star asked.
"Perhaps—"
The king's voice was uncertain, "My brother will suddenly appear before me and tell me he's here to take us home?"
Heh heh.
Star smiled, then slowly stood up, took out her military knife, and swayed as she walked out of the grass.
"Star!"
The king and the others cried out in unison, "Where are you going?"
"If the snow stops and you see a star twinkling in the sky, that might be me."
Star looked back at the king and the others, smiling brightly, "We haven't eaten anything for days. If we wait any longer, even if we're not found by the enemy, we'll be snatched away by wild beasts looking for food after the snow stops. I don't want to wait anymore."
"Brothers, I'll go first!"
After saying this, Star lowered her head and quickly dashed into the heavy snowfall.
Two hours later—
As Star was being tortured by an enemy, her pupils gradually dilated.
She, it seemed, really saw stars!
Under the dark blue sky, Star looked down at her brothers still hidden in the grass and whispered to them.
"I saw it!"
"I see many people coming this way from our home!"
"There are men and women."
"You must persevere!"
"Don't give up until the very last moment."
"I believe you will definitely be taken home."
Whoosh—
A gust of white wind swept by, lifting Star's long hair and obscuring her forever-fixed eyes.
"We should have given this bitch something to eat to regain some energy before playing."
Smith tied his belt, regretfully cursing his companion, "Damn it, you guys were too brutal. Otherwise, she wouldn't have died so quickly."
Tanaka Gen, whose face bore a bleeding scar, was an American of Japanese descent.
This knife scar on his face was left by Star using all her strength.
He exchanged a look with another black companion, James, and chuckled, "Heh heh, don't worry. The fish will keep coming in waves anyway, are we afraid there won't be any women from the East to enjoy?"
James lit a cigarette and asked Star, "Want to hang her up?"
Tanaka Gen said, "Hang her up. When those people see her tragic state, even more fish will swim over."
More than ten minutes later.
Star's head dangled gently in the wind, feet up.
Drip.
The last drop of flowing blood fell onto the accumulated snow.
It quickly turned into red frozen spots.
The sky grew dark.
This is Dongtu!!!
Li Qianfan accompanied Zhu Hui to the location designated by the king and successfully obtained the inheritance he left behind.
"Li Qianfan, if you can contact Wang Zhe, please tell him to come back alive. I will wait for him."
Before leaving, Zhu Hui said this to Li Qianfan with extreme seriousness.
She took Wang Zhe's ID card and other items but did not take the five million yuan he had left her.
She said she would only accept the five million yuan if Wang Zhe personally gave it to her!
After watching Zhu Hui leave by taxi, Li Qianfan's mood was heavy.
But he couldn't help but admire the king's discerning taste in women, which was indeed high.
Rumble rumble.
Li Qianfan's phone rang.
It was his father, Li Xiao: "You're still in Tiandong, right?"
"Mm."
Li Qianfan said, "Don't worry, I won't go to the Blackwater Forest."
Li Xiao said, "Your mother called me and said that if you dare to go, she'll abandon everything and go with you immediately."
"Women, they're just dramatic," Li Qianfan said, sounding particularly annoying, and then asked, "Dad, do you know who went there?"
"Gao family from the Northwest, Shen family from Lingnan, Qin family from Hong Kong, Tie family from Tianliao, Chu family from Xincheng, Lou family from Jinling."
Li Xiao listed more than a dozen families in a row.
Most of these families had very good relations with the Li family.
Li Qianfan asked, "Did anyone from the Shen family, known as the number one luxury family, go?"
Li Xiao chuckled, "Their lives are as precious as yours."
"But they were the most vocal."
Li Qianfan asked again, "What about our Li family? We're not involved?"
"No one can touch anyone outside the territory; this is a strict rule."
Li Xiao said calmly, "But among the 19 known casualties, two are from Li Village, and one is from Emperor Valley. Emperor Valley also has three severely injured, and Li Village has one. Our Li family has done its best! Therefore, you absolutely cannot act. A gentleman's revenge is never too late."
"I understand."
Li Qianfan fell silent for a while, replied softly, and ended the call.
He didn't get into the car but leaned against the front of it, looking up at the sky.
Gradually, stars began to twinkle in the sky.
Li Qianfan felt a sudden illusion of growing power, as if one of the stars was speaking to him.
The phone rang again.
Glancing at the caller ID, Li Qianfan picked up the phone, "Grandmother."
"Come to Victoria tonight," Yang Xiao said in a soft voice, "I have something good for you."