Chapter 194
Chapter 194
The Xiao Lu trails twisted and crisscrossed through the woods. After walking for only three minutes, Zhang Bei’s expression turned grave.
There was a problem, a very serious problem!
He was lost!
Night had already fallen, and beneath the jungle canopy, he could barely make out the way ahead.
Zhang Bei glanced at the compass in his hand and let out a long sigh.
If only he could remember which direction he’d come from, he might have been able to find his way back.
He continued down the Xiao Lu trail ahead until a glimmer of light suddenly appeared in the distance.
Someone was there!
Just beyond the light, a young soldier stood guard.
The moment the soldier spotted the figure approaching, his eyes lit up with excitement.
Holy shit, he’s got a gun!
Holy shit, it’s a Mini!
After thinking for a moment, the soldier quickly reached a conclusion.
This had to be worth at least a Second-Class Merit!
He quietly concealed himself, then crept closer through the bushes off to the side.
Zhang Bei had already burned through most of his stamina, but his body’s instincts still allowed him to evade the sudden attack.
Palm met fist, and the two sprang apart the instant they made contact.
The soldier’s expression turned solemn. In a flash, he charged at Zhang Bei again.
The dim surroundings kept Boss Zhang from getting a clear look at the situation.
He silently marveled, Visitors are getting stronger and stronger these days!
Then the two began trading punch for punch and kick for kick.
While the fight raged on, Qingqing was negotiating with the owner of the Counter-Strike venue.
“Ten minutes! Just give us ten more minutes!”
“Come on, you’ve been playing all afternoon. How have you still not caught him?”
Qingqing’s expression darkened at the owner’s words.
Was it really that they couldn’t catch him?
Zhang Bei was as slippery as an eel. One wrong move, and the few of them still in the game would probably be wiped out on the spot.
The Commanding Officer patted Qingqing on the shoulder. “I’ve found him. We’ll finish this in ten minutes.”
At that, Qingqing abandoned the negotiation and hurried after the main group.
Meanwhile, Zhang Bei was facing the greatest crisis of his life.
He was surrounded by more than a dozen rifles, all with their safeties engaged.
“Release the hostage and surrender your weapons!”
At the barked command, Zhang Bei immediately raised both hands.
By now, the situation was perfectly clear.
These men were field troops from an army company that had been conducting outdoor training in the area for the past few days.
The Company Commander dragged the unconscious young soldier over to his side. Seeing that he was still alive, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
One minute earlier, the Company Commander had been happily eating instant noodles when an alarm suddenly blared through the entire camp.
The moment he rushed outside, he saw a fully armed figure punch the young soldier square in the jaw.
Two soldiers nearby handed the Company Commander the two rifles.
He froze for a moment when he examined them.
“They’re fake?”
Zhang Bei gave a wry smile. “I’m playing Live-Action Counter-Strike. I think I took a wrong turn!”
The Company Commander waved a hand, and the soldiers lowered their weapons.
Zhang Bei dusted himself off, only for two grenades to tumble from his clothes.
The switch on one of them had even been triggered, and it was now spewing white smoke.
The air went dead silent for two seconds before the Company Commander’s furious roar split the sky.
“Get down!”
Zhang Bei stared at the soldiers who had all thrown themselves flat on the ground and fell silent for a long moment.
“Um… that’s a prop too.”
The Company Commander waited for a long time, but no explosion came. He rose to his feet with a face as black as thunder.
He, a Company Commander in the field army, was absolutely livid!
The soldiers’ faces were equally dark. The best fighter in their entire company had been knocked unconscious, and so many of them had just been scared into diving for cover by a fake grenade.
If word got out, their Spearhead Company would be laughed to death!
The Company Commander picked up the grenade and stared at its incredibly realistic markings for a long, silent moment.
“Brothers, charge!”
“Get the boss!”
“Steam the boss! Braise the boss!”
In the beam of light, figure after figure appeared with guns in hand, looking for all the world like a gang of bandits.
Zhang Bei was terrified that the high-strung Company Commander might order his men to open fire.
“They’re playing Counter-Strike too! Don’t panic!”
The Company Commander took a deep breath and forcibly suppressed his anger.
Was this ever going to end? Did they think this was fun?
“All personnel, hand-to-hand combat! Don’t hurt anyone! Get ’em!”
Zhang Bei watched the energetic soldiers rush toward the crowd and silently took two steps back.
How should he put it?
Well… those poor fools were in for a very bad time.
The fight was completely one-sided, with figure after figure taken down.
Two minutes later, the soldiers surrounded the last two people standing.
Zhang Bei and the Company Commander walked over as well.
Qingqing looked at Zhang Bei with a complicated mix of emotions in her eyes-humiliation, regret, and a trace of bewilderment.
The Commanding Officer stood ramrod straight as he faced Zhang Bei.
“Want to have a match?”
“Sure!”
Veins throbbed on the Company Commander’s forehead. This was a military camp. A military camp!
Were these two pretending he didn’t exist?!
But the two had already locked in and paid no attention to how the Company Commander felt. Their gazes met, and Zhang Bei struck first with a vicious roundhouse kick.
The Commanding Officer met him head-on, and the two traded blows for a full five minutes.
Everyone stared at them as if they were monsters.
The Company Commander swallowed, his eyes gleaming. These two were strong!
If he could get them into his company, wouldn’t the top two places in the next military competition be theirs for the taking?
The fight ended when Zhang Bei landed a kick squarely on the Commanding Officer’s chest.
The Commanding Officer dropped to one knee. Only after several heavy gasps did he rise to his feet again.
“Captain of Demon Court’s Kunpeng Squad, reporting to the Chairman!”
Zhang Bei’s expression stiffened for a moment.
“Heizi sent you?”
The Commanding Officer nodded. “Yes. President Qiu asked us to bring something over.”
Zhang Bei sighed. “Got it. Come find me at the Amusement Park tomorrow.”
The Company Commander rubbed his hands together. “Would you two be interested in experiencing life in the military?”
The Commanding Officer looked at him, then pulled a small booklet from inside his jacket.
“I’m already out of the military!”
The Company Commander glanced over it before turning his gaze to Zhang Bei.
After a moment of silence, Zhang Bei pulled out a small booklet of his own.
The Company Commander accepted it in confusion, but the moment he saw the insignia on it, he fell silent.
“C… Commander?”
“It’s only an honorary title. I don’t have any actual authority.”
Zhang Bei put the booklet away and waved to the Company Commander.
“We’re leaving!”
“Safe travels, Commander!”
Qingqing followed Zhang Bei down the mountain with her head lowered. Only now did something belatedly occur to her.
When was the last time she’d screwed over the boss again?
Whatever the date, it hadn’t ended particularly well!
She was probably doomed this time!
As Zhang Bei chatted with the Commanding Officer, he suddenly sensed someone staring at him from behind.
“Right, Qingqing has a new project next month. All of you will be taking part!”
“Boss, I was wrong! Qingqing dragged me here!”
“That’s right, Boss! Qingqing forced us into it!”
“Boss, you only need to deal with Qingqing!”
Qingqing’s mouth fell open as she stared at her former teammates. “You…!”
“Ringleaders and accomplices get the same treatment. Qingqing, remember to send me the list.”
Seeing the fear on all their faces, Qingqing immediately broke into a grin.
“Hwahahaha! That’s what you get for selling me out! Not one of you is getting away this time!”