Peach Blossom Spring

Chapter 4: Forty minutes

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Qiu Shi parked the car next to the rock below the tunnel. If Li Feng really delivered the goods according to his list, he would need this car. Although the car made a clanking sound and shook every three steps, it was still very powerful. It was a high-powered truck they used to transport corpses.

However, this car can run on flat ground, but it is absolutely impossible to drive to the entrance of the tunnel. Only the transport vehicles in the inner city can do it, such as the one that will deliver the goods to him in a while, but the people there will not get off.

He had to carry it up and down himself.

Originally, this kind of thing could be dealt with by just calling anyone over, but his dealings with Li Feng were not entirely for "work", there were also many private transactions, and no one knew which ones would be unforeseen.

The sound of an engine was heard in the tunnel; a delivery truck had arrived.

Qiu Shi started to walk up. Today, there were refugees coming, and there were traces of people running up and sliding down on the gravel road. He walked very easily on this road. There was a slightly larger rock every few steps, which was specially cleared by Zhao Lu and his team. If he stepped on the first rock correctly, he could push all the way up.

At a normal speed, he would have seen the car coming out of the tunnel when he was halfway there, but this time he was almost at the top and the car hadn't come out yet.

As he sped up to see what was going on, the engine sound in the tunnel suddenly stopped.

He didn't even plan to leave the tunnel.

Qiu Shi suddenly got angry. These people from the Security Bureau were so arrogant just for delivering a piece of goods.

After hesitating for two seconds, he accelerated and rushed forward. Sure enough, he saw that the delivery truck was parked near the exit of the tunnel with the engine turned off.

The Security Bureau's vehicle was protected from all directions, top and bottom. From the outside, apart from a vague silhouette of a person, nothing else could be seen clearly.

After the man and the car confronted each other for a while, he could only ask: "Which bastard is it!"

The car door opened, but no one got out.

Qiu Shi didn't say anything else. He walked over quickly and kicked the car door back.

There was a loud bang.

He was about to walk to the back to get the goods, but he stopped after taking just one step.

When he turned around, he had already grasped the dagger that was stuck in his leg in his hand. The car window was open.

He could see from the rearview mirror that there was no one in the cab, and all he saw was a coat draped over the backrest.

Qiu Shi did not hesitate. He first quickly bent down to take a look under the car, then stood up and jumped up onto the roof.

The roof looks normal, no one on it, no dust, and it is well maintained.

He half-knelt on the roof and listened, but heard nothing unusual. He slowly stood up and walked around the roof, but still didn't see anyone.

The driver is missing.

He looked towards the other end of the tunnel, but saw no one.

In the short period of time from the time the car was turned off to now, an ordinary driver from the Security Bureau warehouse would not have been able to run out of the tunnel from the other end even if he was pointed at with a gun.

He actually encountered a disappearance incident himself.

The intercom on his waist rustled twice, and Zhao Lu's voice came out: "Brother Shi, something happened to Dayan."

Oiwa was the name of the pub they often went to. The owner treated the corpse collectors with all kinds of preferential treatment. Apart from wanting to cremate the dead, the owner also wanted them to help out when they encountered refugees causing trouble.

But now the driver is missing, and it only takes less than ten minutes to walk from here to Dayan Tavern...

"I'm in the tunnel, you and Xiaoling come here." Qiu Shi jumped from the roof of the car to the back, raised his elbow and hit the lock of the car. The metal elbow pad and the lock collided with a crisp sound, and the lock fell to the ground.

"What's going on with you?" Zhao Lu asked.

"Take the goods." Qiu Shi opened the door of the carriage and suddenly jumped back. After confirming that there was nothing unusual inside, he jumped into the back of the carriage. "The rest of you stay, two people in a group, with guns, to check the bunkers and the 500-meter radius outside the city for any abnormalities. Two more people will take the goods away from the tunnel."

"I understand." Zhao Lu replied.

Qiu Shi quickly found a weapons box from a pile of goods and took out a stun gun.

At the bottom of the box was the gun he wanted, but he didn't know the situation at the tavern, so he couldn't take the weapon that Li Feng gave him in violation of regulations to the scene.

After locking the box and throwing it out of the car, Qiu Shi jumped into the driver's seat, turned the car around and drove towards the pub.

The lights in the pub were on, but from a distance one could see someone lying on the ground at the door.

As soon as Qiu Shi jumped out of the car, he saw clearly that the man was a bartender. With his experience, he could tell at a glance that the young man was dead.

When I looked inside through the window, I saw seven people lying in all directions in the room, including the boss who was lying outside the bar.

Qiu Shi took a breath, calmed down and listened, and after making sure that it was dead silent inside, he rushed in.

There is no one alive.

All dead.

Qiu Shi reached out and touched the boss's body, which was still warm.

He didn't have time to check the cause of death. The thing that killed these people should still be there, and it was very likely upstairs.

As for the old man upstairs, he didn't know whether he was dead or alive, and his heart suddenly tightened.

"Zhao Lu Xiaoling, don't come to Dayan. Let Xiao Lei go find Li Feng," Qiu Shi said as he took the intercom, took out his pet, and gave instructions, "Open the source, and follow remotely."

Then he threw the pet out of the window and quickly went upstairs with the stun gun.

The second floor was equally quiet, but the corpse collector's years of experience outside the city still made him feel the danger. If it were someone else, he might not have gone any further in.

But the old man was none other than him.

He turned into the room on the second floor.

The old man is still here, and alive.

But someone grabbed his feet and lifted him up in the air, so he couldn't make any sound.

The man holding him was dressed in black, his face hidden in the darkness, but it was obvious that this was not one of the infected people they occasionally encountered.

The infected have no such power.

When he saw him come in, the old man's eyes suddenly widened, and his eyes were full of "get out of here, idiot".

"Let him go." Qiu Shi pointed a gun at the man, but did not give him time to think. He shot him while speaking.

The blue electric current hit the man's neck.

There seemed to be no damage done.

There are two possibilities: Li Feng used a fake product to cheat him, or the person on the other side was not a human being.

The old man's eyes widened again.

Qiu Shi suddenly bent down to avoid an arm sweeping from behind, and the dagger in his hand stabbed backwards into the thigh of someone behind him.

But the owner of the thigh did not react at all.

Sure enough, he is not a human.

Qiu Shi only felt a sharp pain on his back, and then his whole body was pulled into the air and crashed out of the skylight on the second floor.

Li Feng leaned back in his chair, resting his legs on an unknown instrument on the table, and looked at Director Zhang: "There is no time to waste. Ten minutes will be enough. If you delay any longer, you will not be able to catch up."

"Don't be too crazy," Director Zhang said coldly, "It's outrageous that I can agree with you to send two level 3 submersibles out to look for him! The Security Bureau should just take care of the internal affairs, and you'd better not express your opinions on external defense matters."

Li Feng looked much calmer than Director Zhang. Only the tapping of his fingers on his arm revealed something of his inner thoughts. He continued to express his opinions without haste: "It is not necessary, and there is no need to waste two level 3 weapons. Qiu Shi gave the accurate positioning. We only need to..."

He turned his head and glanced at the glass cover: "Just send Xing Bi to the place, release him, find him, and bring him back. It's just like putting an elephant in a refrigerator."

Director Zhang turned to look at Director Wu: "Old Wu?"

“I don’t have much to say,” said Director Wu. “I’m only responsible for the technology.”

"Okay, you two are on the same side," Director Zhang walked to the side of the table and pushed Li Feng's legs away, "This is impossible."

"Qiu Shi is not a fool. He has a backup of the video in his hand. No one knows who has it," Li Feng stood up and spoke to Director Zhang nose to nose, word by word, "He found me first, and then something went wrong. The person who has the backup will blame us for this."

Director Zhang didn't say anything.

"Everyone knows what the consequences of this video being exposed are," Li Feng said. "Not to mention what will happen to your son, or you as the director, but Yuncheng, which does not allow biochemical bodies to exist as a principle, is not only unable to guarantee human safety, but it even has hidden guards. Do you think those radical elements are looking forward to such an opportunity?"

"The existence of undercover guards is also for the safety of this city," said Director Zhang.

"Does it still matter?" Li Feng said, "People thought so at the beginning, but what about now? People who come here want a world without biochemical bodies, a world with only humans. No matter what your reasons are, it doesn't matter anymore. What matters is that people are easily instigated. Once they find that this is not the paradise they want, once someone stirs up trouble, once the situation is out of control..."

"What do you want to say?" Director Zhang stared at him.

"The general will kill you first," Li Feng said, "you are the sinner."

"Li Feng is really good at putting accusations on others," Director Zhang was silent for a long time, then sighed, "You are worthy of being the youngest director in the history of Yuncheng."

"No big deal," Li Feng fell back into his chair, "It's all the potential that was forced out."

"If I let Xing Bi go out to find someone now, what difference will it make to you?" Director Zhang had already leaned slightly towards the door, where there was a confidential hotline, but he did not waver in his words.

"Xing will not be seen, let alone photographed," Li Feng replied simply, "Speed and accuracy, efficiency are the differences."

Director Zhang said nothing and walked out the door.

"If anything goes wrong here, all three of us will be finished," said Director Wu.

"So now the pressure is on you," Li Feng said, "Nothing can go wrong. Make sure he is just a mindless tool within an hour, a tool to bring back Qiu Shi."

"Old Zhang and I are under a lot of pressure," Director Wu stood up. "How about you, do you feel any pressure?"

"I don't have any," Li Feng said, "You two will accompany me even when I die, so why should I feel any pressure?"

Director Wu smiled and shook his head, then picked up the phone at hand: "Group One, come over here. Confidentiality level red."

"Why don't we wait and see whether the general will approve it?" Li Feng asked.

"You've forced Lao Zhang into a corner," Director Wu said. "He must get the general's approval."

Li Feng smiled and said nothing more. While Director Wu was getting ready, he looked down at his hands, which were shaking violently.

He took a breath, closed his eyes and exhaled slowly, then stood up and slowly walked to the glass cover.

Xing Bi, who was sitting on the chair inside, still had his head down. He had been here for several hours. He had been in this state since he greeted them.

Li Feng felt that if this were him, he would be locked up here under control for who knows how many years. Once he got out, the first thing he would do would be to kill everyone here. He would never allow himself to be 100% under control.

But this is his idea as a human being, Xing must not be a human being.

So why is it so uncontrollable

Xing Bi, who had been keeping his head down, slowly raised his head, his eyes still looking in the direction of Li Feng.

"Old Wu," Li Feng looked into Xing Bi's eyes. To be honest, it was completely different from the strong sense of oppression he felt. From Xing Bi's eyes to his tone, there was no murderous intent. "Can he hear us talking?"

"No," said Director Wu, "You can't hear the sound and you can't see outside."

"Really?" Li Feng asked.

"The subterraneans are biological organisms, not aliens, and they don't have special powers." Director Wu said, "Don't forget, they were originally created by humans."

"Then how did he know it was night time," Li Feng said, "and how did he know you were not the only one outside?"

"They have a precise sense of time. Even if they were locked up for another 100 years, they would still be able to tell the difference between day and night. They would even know what time it was," said Director Wu. "As for knowing there were more than one of us, you can only say that you underestimated their intelligence."

A secret guard who knows exactly how long he has been locked up here, down to the exact time and minute... Only a secret guard can endure such pain.

"I'm going to take care of things at the tavern," Li Feng turned around, "The corpse collector is still waiting for my news. If he's not appeased for a while, I'm afraid something bad will happen."

"Yes." Director Wu nodded, "That... Qiu Shi."

"Hmm?" Li Feng looked at him.

"It's okay as long as he doesn't die, right?" Director Wu asked. "If we go as fast as possible, we may not be able to guarantee that he won't get hurt."

Qiu Shi is very smart. Xiao Chong opened the source of information, and from the follow-up footage he obtained, he could see that the third-level biochemical body could not kill Qiu Shi instantly, and Qiu Shi could even fight back.

"It's OK as long as he doesn't die," Li Feng said, "He can handle it."

"Just tell me," Zhao Lu, who had seven or eight guns hanging on his legs and waist, stood in front of him like a gun dealer, "Is Qiu Shi still alive right now, at this moment, when I'm talking to you?"

"Alive." Li Feng looked around and decided that it was the right decision to meet him in the corpse cave. As for Zhao Lu's reckless attitude, he added, "His pet has been following him. It has a life check."

"We..." Brigade Zhao touched his gun.

"No need," Li Feng immediately pointed at his hand that was touching the gun, "Don't make any moves, don't go anywhere, stay here, I said I would get him back and I will do it, don't make trouble for me."

"Okay," Zhao Lu gritted his teeth and responded, "Just because you are such a high-ranking official, I will come here in person."

"Tell Xiao Lei about the incident at Dayan Tavern," Li Feng said, "Qiu Shi was taken away for investigation."

"Got it." Once threatened, people will become very efficient. I don't know what method Director Zhang used to make the general approve Xing Bi's temporary use within fifteen minutes.

Director Wu used the most direct method. He sealed all of Xing Bi's memories before one hour ago and forced him to execute a single instruction: track down and bring back the target Qiu Shi within forty minutes, ensuring that the target had vital signs. If the mission failed, he must return within forty minutes.

This rough method would at least cause damage to the submerged guards below level 2, and the self-awareness of the biochemical body could also break through the closed shackles. The control plan for Xing Bi had not yet been completed, so regardless of success or failure, if he did not return within the specified time for any reason...

The time is accurate to the minute.

When Li Feng arrived at the departure point, the people from the City Defense Bureau had already completed the blockade work. It looked like a normal key inspection and security operation.

Under normal circumstances, no one would come here. Refugees could not get here, and residents from other cities would not come here.

Qiu Shi's signal was in the dense forest east of the tunnel. Because the level of the biological body that took him away was not high, the dense Yuncheng defense system in the forest could greatly slow down the speed.

However, in order to prevent the pet from being discovered, Qiu Shi set up a long-distance follow-up. In the dense forest, the pet could no longer take pictures of him and the biological creature.

A large black truck without any markings was surrounded by three vehicles from the City Defense Department. When the door opened, Li Feng saw various equipments arranged with flashing lights inside, as well as Xing Bi, who was wearing the uniform of the City Defense Department.

After leaving the cover that isolated everything and changing his clothes, Xing Bi still seemed to be in the cover, and seemed unaware of any movement around him.

"Determine the content of the task." A laboratory worker stood in front of him.

"Bring the target back within forty minutes and ensure vital signs," Xing Bi said, "If the mission fails, return within forty minutes."

"Check the target location." Director Wu said on the side.

The worker looked at the coordinates on Xing Bi's wrist and said, "It's verified."

Director Wu turned his head and glanced at Director Zhang who was sitting in the car next to him.

"Let's go." Director Zhang's face was gloomy.

"Set off."

Xing Bi got off the car, and when everyone was waiting for him to set off, he suddenly raised his head and looked at the sky.

Li Feng quickly looked at Director Wu. Director Wu was obviously not sure whether this was a normal reaction. He just looked at him, and the amount of information he got was zero.

But before they could think any more, Xing Bi had already jumped off the rock wall, drew an arc in the air, and disappeared into the dense forest without making any sound.

When Qiu Shi woke up, he found himself stuffed in a box. The word "stuffed" was not an exaggeration at all. If he was two centimeters taller, the box would not have been able to fit him.

Curled up in a ball, nothing could move except the five senses.

The person who took him away was a biological being, and he was not sure whether he was a hidden guard or not, because to be honest, the other party's fighting ability was not too strong. Apart from that, he could not guess anything else.

He didn't even dare to guess whether Li Feng would come to rescue him after receiving the news.

The only thing I can do now is to listen to the noise outside and calculate the time.

But no one spoke outside. Apart from knowing that he was probably in a dense forest, that the people dragging him encountered two defensive attacks, and that the box bumped alternately against rocks and mud, he couldn't even calculate the time. He felt dizzy and had difficulty breathing.

But it shouldn't have lasted long, as the person dragging the box suddenly let go.

Then there were two dull sounds of something hitting a tree.

somebody is coming.

Li Feng finally became a human being!

"Open the box!" Qiu Shi yelled.

In order to ensure that the sound could be heard by someone outside the box, he took a deep breath. When he was about to roar again, the box was suddenly opened. Qiu Shi even saw the lock on the outside of the box being pulled apart and flying away.

Then a hand passed in front of his eyes and pressed on the side of his neck.

"Alive!" Qiu Shi struggled to roll out of the box, pulled out the knife hidden in his boots, and then looked back.

A man about his height was standing with his back to him, wearing the white uniform of the City Defense Department.

Unarmed.

Are you here to die

Li Feng’s enemy.

Qiu Shi didn't know where the injury on his back was and it was hurting a lot, but he still jumped up and prepared to try to fight with this man.

But when he saw that there were still five biological creatures in black clothes around him, he changed his mind.

"Fuck you," he turned and ran away, "Run!"

A man in black rushed over and blocked his way.

Without even thinking, Qiu Shi jumped up using inertia and kicked the man.

But at the same time, a white shadow had already circled behind the man in black and slapped him on the back of his neck.

The man in black seemed to be swung up by something and flew towards Qiu Shi's legs, then collided with him.

The impact was so powerful that it was beyond Qiu Shi’s imagination. He was knocked back to the ground by the man in black.

As he fell heavily, Qiu Shi felt a pain in his chest and even heard a cracking sound.

It looks like he has broken ribs.

What a fucking force.

When he turned his head in pain, he saw two men in black lying not far away. They were motionless, just like the one on him.

Qiu Shi reacted and realized that this should be the person who made the two noises of hitting the tree at the beginning.

One move, one kill.

This person is not from the City Defense Department.

This is a stealth guard.

Yuncheng really does have hidden guards.

He gritted his teeth and endured the severe pain in his chest and back, and lifted the black-clothed man on his body, wanting to see the appearance of the undercover guard clearly.

Just as he got half of his body up, another man in black flew over and bumped into him.

"I..." Qiu Shi only felt that his eyes were dark and he could hardly breathe.

"Don't run." the man said.

"Your name is..." Qiu Shi felt himself getting angry. It was the first time he knew that there were people who would use this method to stop others from escaping. "Do you have a name?"

"Xing Bi." Xing Bi had finished the fight by now. He walked in front of him and used his toes to push away the person who was pressing on him.

"Xing Bi," Qiu Shi repeated, closing his eyes and taking a breath, gritting his teeth and cursing, "Fuck your ancestors."

Xing Bi didn't react to this sentence, and his expression didn't change at all. He just stepped on the back of the neck of the biochemical creature next to him. Qiu Shi heard the sound of something breaking.

Then Xing Bi bent down and pinched his wrist, pressing the side of his neck again.

"Not dead!" Qiu Shi became impatient and, ignoring the severe pain in his chest, he raised his hand and pressed it on the side of Xing Bi's neck.

…no pulse.

That's natural, where does the pulse come from in a biological body

Xing Bi looked at him.

Qiu Shi withdrew his hand and lay flat. Only then did he realize that he was in so much pain in his chest and back that he could hardly breathe. "How can I walk? I could have walked, but you broke me."

Xing Bi turned around and took a look at the box.

"That's impossible." said Qiu Shi.

Before he could say anything else, Xing Bi grabbed his collar and pulled him up from the ground.

Qiu Shi couldn't even utter a single curse word before he passed out from the pain.

The author has something to say:

Bi, did you stuff Shi Ge back into the box again

I will probably take a day off tomorrow. To be honest, I have some drafts saved, but not many. I have had a lot of family and personal things to do in recent months, so in order to ensure daily updates in the future, I will update every other day in the early stages.

But we will try to make it faster!

Love you guys! I will try to finish the copywriting in the next two days...