Volume Two: Second Scroll
Battle of the Endgame (6)
Sometimes, we have no choice but to believe in a thing called a miracle.
Lin Yan stretched out her arm, watching with wide-open eyes as he was swallowed by the sea of fire, yet she was powerless to reverse the sky1. Song Yuhang grabbed her waist, yanked her back with one pull, and pressed her deathly tight underneath her body, using her own back to shield her from the aftershock of the explosion.
Hearing the huge sound coming from not far away, Ding Ye suddenly sat up straight. He turned his head for a moment and only saw the firelight shooting to the sky.
He gritted his teeth: “Kuba……”
Kuba controlled the steering wheel, driving at full speed, not daring to slacken for even a moment.
“Ding Ye, we can’t go back. We just escaped the strips2 with great difficulty. If we drive forward another two kilometers, we’ll reach the pier. Once we get on the boat, no one will be able to stop us again.”
A principle that even Kuba understood, how could he not understand it? It was just…
After a long moment, Ding Ye slightly closed his eyes, his masseter muscles trembling.
“Go, to the pier.”
Kuba stepped on the gas, pushing the horsepower to the maximum. Just as they were about to reach the pier, a motorcycle rushed out from the side, in relentless pursuit.
The mission Song Yuhang had given him was only to follow Tiger and, after reaching Zhongjing Industrial Port, not to participate in the battle but to provide support for Lin Yan from the outside. However, when he saw they were about to escape from the jaws of death3, the hot-bloodedness in his bones surged up, and Duan Cheng, his eyes red, drove the motorcycle and charged out.
Even if he was one person alone, he had to stop them!
The repeated practice, again and again on the shooting range, finally came in handy. The big boy aimed the pistol’s front sight at the tire of the moving vehicle ahead. There was no time for him to hesitate too much. He decisively pulled the trigger, but the result was not as he wished. With a bang, the bullet hit the car’s body, shattering the window glass.
Tiger pressed Ding Ye down. “Mother’s, the strips are truly like lingering ghosts4, they’ve caught up again.”
He pulled back the bolt and fired out through the car window, but seeing the other party was one person alone, the corner of his lip pulled into a disdainful smile.
“I was wondering who it was. Just a snot-nosed brat whose smell of milk is not yet dry5. Eat my bullet!”
Seeing him stick his head out, Duan Cheng immediately felt something was wrong. He drove the motorcycle, slammed on the brakes, and dodged to the right, executing a perfect drift. The bullet flew past his heel, and due to inertia, he was thrown from the vehicle, falling heavily onto the sandy beach.
Tiger put away his gun: “Er Ye, you guys go first. Let me get off and meet him.”
Having someone to cover the rear was naturally something they couldn’t ask for more6.
Kuba lightly stepped on the brake: “We’ll wait for you at the pier for fifteen minutes. If you don’t come in fifteen minutes, we’ll…”
Tiger gently pushed open the car door: “Why would it take fifteen minutes? To take care of a piece of trash like this, five minutes is enough.”
After speaking, he leaped down. His landing posture was extremely standard, almost a single hair unharmed.
Duan Cheng was dizzy with blurred vision from the fall. Before he could even get up and stand firm, a fist smashed into his face, sending his nosebleed flying. He staggered back a few steps and fell into a puddle.
The sea tide was rising, and it washed over his face. In his blurry vision, Tiger charged over again, his rivet-studded combat boots stomping viciously towards his stomach.
Duan Cheng raised his hands to grab his leg, gritted his teeth, and let out a roar from deep in his throat. He forced himself to sit up, pushed the man backward, and flipped him over.
“Fuck.” Tiger was caught off guard and suffered a setback. He was, after all, a veteran fighter. After coming to his senses, he performed a carp strikes erect7 and leaped up, wiped the corner of his lip, and beckoned to him with his finger.
“Trash, your strength is less than a woman’s. Are you scratching an itch for this master?”
Duan Cheng, his eyes red, balled his fists and lunged forward. His punches were like the wind, his movements agile, and every move was an effective strike. If it were against an ordinary person, they would have probably been knocked down long ago. Unfortunately, his opponent was Tiger, a boxing champion who had practiced martial arts since childhood and won a golden belt8. He admitted he was not bad, but this level of skill was really not enough to look at in his presence.
He made effective strikes, and Tiger used passive defense, blocking them all with his forearms.
Duan Cheng was panting for breath. In a moment of carelessness, his flaw was caught. Tiger pressed down on his shoulder, and at the same time, raised his knee to strike a vital point on his abdomen.
Duan Cheng cried out in pain, his vision went black. Tiger gave him absolutely no chance to react. His elbow smashed into the back of his neck like lightning, making the man bend at the waist. Duan Cheng bent over, and Tiger grabbed his clothes and kneed him upwards again. The knee hit his chin, and a crisp crack sounded by his ear. A bone had cracked, and a bloody tooth was knocked out.
Tiger pressed his advantage, viciously kicking him in the chest. Duan Cheng staggered backward several steps, his eyes emitting gold stars, his eardrums buzzing. Before he could assume a defensive posture, Tiger used the inertia of the first flying kick to leap into the air, and another kick smashed down hard on his celestial spirit cover9.
Duan Cheng spat out fresh blood and was sent flying, crashing heavily onto the sandy beach, so weak he couldn’t even lift a finger.
The setting sun sprinkled on his body. Duan Cheng slightly narrowed his eyes, his vision growing more and more blurry.
Is… it getting dark?
How come… I can’t see anything clearly?
He blinked a couple of times. His eyelids were so swollen from the beating they were almost a single slit. All he could hear was the splashing sound of the ocean waves, beating against his body.
Through this slit, he peeked at the light of the sky.
“Duan Cheng, for the next autopsy, you carry the machine.”
“Lin-jie……” he murmured.
The scene changed, and a tall, handsome police officer stood before him.
“Rather than regretting and feeling sad now, it would be better to do something meaningful, to make yourself stronger, to better protect the people you want to protect.”
“Captain Song……” his eyes moistened slightly.
“I… I still can’t do it.”
A woman’s slightly urgent voice sounded by his ear.
“Duan Cheng, come back alive!”
That was before they set out. After he kissed Fang Xin, he turned to run but was suddenly called to a stop.
Come… back alive.
He chewed on these few words, and a surge of strength seemed to be injected into his whole body, or perhaps it was the strength of love and faith. It supported him as he moved a finger, gritted his teeth, turned over, and crawled forward step by step.
So what if he was an intern? He was, after all, wearing a police uniform. There was a national emblem on the brim of his cap, and the lights of the city were behind him.
So what if the technical investigation unit doesn’t go to the front line? Lin Yan had already set the best example for him with her own body and actions.
So what if he was trash? He had lived his whole life in a muddle with no great ambitions. Could it be that this world only has great people? Ordinary people can also have a grand and spectacular journey.
He gritted his teeth, enduring the immense pain, a resilient light bursting from his eyes as he crawled step by step towards that figure’s back.
“Mother’s, really can’t take a punch.” Tiger spat on the ground. Seeing no more movement from him, he turned to leave.
He hadn’t walked more than a few steps when his thigh was hugged.
Duan Cheng raised his head, his face covered in blood. He smiled like a man, pulling up the corners of his lips, his eyes both crazed and wild.
“I am here. No one is to even think about leaving.”
“Lin Yan, Lin Yan……” In a daze, someone was shaking her shoulder, urgently calling her name in her ear.
“Cough cough……” Lin Yan choked out the dust in her throat and opened her eyes, slightly dazed.
Song Yuhang was so happy she cried, pulling her into a hug.
“That’s great, Yanyan, it’s good that you’re okay.”
Lin Yan came back to her senses, strenuously raising a hand to touch her face and wipe away her tears. Through the gap in the embrace, she saw that the warehouse they had just come out of had already been razed to the ground. Her eyes immediately turned red.
“Lin Ge……” She looked at her, a trace of hope in her eyes.
Song Yuhang silently shook her head. In an explosion of this magnitude, it was hard to say if a whole corpse could even be found. If not for Lin Ge’s push before he died, using his flesh and blood and that iron door to block the aftershock for them, they would probably have met the same end now.
Lin Yan’s throat moved slightly, and tears fell: “Ge… Ge……”
She struggled to sit up and crawl towards the ruins. Song Yuhang held her down, pulled her into her arms, and held her face. Their four eyes met, and she said, word by word.
“Lin Yan, Ding Ye hasn’t been caught yet, the inner ghost10 hasn’t been rooted out yet. I believe this matter isn’t that simple. Even if Lin Ge’s crime was great and his evil extreme and his death was not worth pitying, there must be a deeper reason behind it that pushed him to do these things. In that final moment, he definitely wanted you to live well and not do anything foolish.”
“I know… I…” Lin Yan buried her head in her chest, tightly clutching her clothes, her whole body trembling. She tried with all her might not to cry out loud, but suppressed sobs still escaped from between her lips and teeth.
Song Yuhang’s heart ached terribly. She gently patted her back, on and off, comforting her in silence.
She knew that at a time like this, any words were superfluous.
How could human nature be so complicated?
Lin Ge went astray because of a twisted love, hurt Lin Yan’s best friend, and caused the pain of the first half of her life, yet at the moment of his death, the subconscious “Ge” that Lin Yan cried out awakened the conscience that remained in the bottom of his heart.
Hateful, yet also tragic and lamentable.
But compared to these things, she felt more heartache for Lin Yan. Within one day, two of her closest relatives had passed away one after another. She was afraid she would lose heart, afraid she would blame all the cause and effect on herself, afraid she would be unable to recover from this blow.
“Lin Yan, it’s okay, it’s okay now, I’m here, I’m here. From now on, I will be your family.”
It would have been fine if no one consoled her, but with someone comforting her, the tears poured out like a flood from an opened sluice gate.
Lin Yan clutched the clothes on her chest, kneeling in the ruins, wailing loudly, a sound that made one’s liver and intestines break inch by inch11.
Song Yuhang’s eyes also reddened. She wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand and hugged her back tightly, using her own body to give her all her love and warmth.
She did not rush her, just patiently waited for her to finish venting, all the while gently patting her back.
Finally, the sobbing stopped.
Lin Yan raised her head, her eyes blurry with tears, and said in a small voice: “Let’s go.”
“Okay.” Song Yuhang supported her waist and lifted her up. Before they could turn to leave, the police officers who had recovered from the explosion surrounded them, or to be precise, surrounded Lin Yan.
“What is the meaning of this?” Song Yuhang’s expression was calm but held a trace of sharpness as she shielded Lin Yan behind her.
The special police team leader was relentless: “Captain Song, this person is on the wanted list. Are you planning to defect to the enemy?”
What a guy, putting such a big hat on her right from the start.
Song Yuhang gave a skin smiling but flesh not smiling12 smile: “Her name is Lin Yan, the former chief forensic pathologist of the Jiangcheng City Public Security Bureau’s technical investigation department, codename ‘Nail’, who went undercover into the enemy’s interior to carry out a top-secret mission. Someone of your rank, of course, wouldn’t know. Get out of the way, let us pass!”
As she reached the end of her words, her tone had implicitly grown heavier.
The special police team leader gritted his teeth, looked at her, then at Lin Yan, still feeling that there was something fishy about this matter.
“Wait a moment, we need to contact the command center to confirm.”
Lin Yan was so angry she started cursing: “With that kind of time, if you had gone to chase Ding Ye, you probably would have caught him long ago!”
Song Yuhang gently squeezed her hand. Lin Yan understood, nodded, and while he was talking to his subordinate, requesting to contact the command center, she suddenly made a move. A fist smashed into his face, making him stagger. Then, a sweeping the hall leg13 kicked him to the ground. The strikes were not heavy, but they won a precious bit of time for the two of them to break out of the encirclement.
“Captain! Captain!” The other team members rushed forward, but the two had long since fled.
There happened to be a police car parked outside the courtyard. Song Yuhang pulled open the door and jumped in, with Lin Yan close behind. She slammed the door shut and put on her seatbelt.
The car key was still inserted below the steering wheel. Song Yuhang quickly turned it to start the engine. By the time they came to their senses and chased out, they had already vanished without a trace.
The special police team leader wiped the nosebleed from his face and cursed under his breath: Mother’s, I carelessly fell for their trick.
“Everyone get in the cars, continue the pursuit!”
“Report, report, no enemy activity found on Yunzhong Island.”
The small team sent to scout Yunzhong Island sent back real-time satellite images. The entire island was peaceful and quiet in the night. The waves lapped against the white sandy beach. The only red dots flashing on the thermal imager were a few small animals; there were no suspicious personnel.
A huge helicopter circled above the island, the strong wind from its propellers shaking the trees.
The pilot lowered the altitude, turned on the searchlight, and the night vision system scanned the calm island below. The jungle, bushes, shallows… none of it escaped his eyes. Finally, he faced the ground commander, and the two gave each other a thumbs-up from a distance.
“Report to command, target not found. 027 requests permission to return.”
“027, 027, weather is good, you may return.”
A jumble of static came through the communicator. The pilot began to fly the helicopter backward and upward, then turned left and flew away from this sea area.
The ground team, under the leadership of the commander, also boarded the assault boat: “Withdraw!”
Not long after they left, Ding Ye’s group had already arrived at the boarding point near the Zhongjing Industrial Port pier.
Kuba lifted a plastic tarpaulin and pulled out a speedboat from underneath, pushing it strenuously into the shallow water.
“Ding Ye, come.” He stood on the side of the boat, extending a hand to Ding Ye, and helped him aboard.
Two or three other underlings also climbed on. Seeing that they were about to escape from the jaws of death, Pei Jinhong also grew anxious. With her hands tied, she limped forward, intending to get on the boat.
“Ding Ye, Ding Ye, take me with you, take me with you, I will be your cow and horse…”
Ding Ye looked back at her and lightly pulled at the corner of his lip.
Kuba understood. He raised the rifle in his hand. When Pei Jinhong saw the situation was not right, her face turned deathly pale, and she turned around like lightning to run back. Unexpectedly, she tripped on a reef and fell to the ground.
With the bang of a gunshot, the woman lay quietly on the beach, no longer moving. The blood seeping from under her body soaked the white sand.
“Ye, are we still waiting for Tiger?” Kuba hesitated for a moment before starting the engine.
Ding Ye was helped by his men to sit down in the cabin, his cane placed to one side: “Wait for what? Go directly.”
Kuba nodded and, without further hesitation, started the engine. He gripped the steering wheel and sped out. A trail of white waves appeared behind the boat as it rushed towards Yunzhong Island.
According to the plan, they indeed had not arranged for anyone to be there. They had only hidden a boat in advance. On the boat was fresh water and food needed to survive at sea. In less than twenty-four hours, they would be able to escape China’s borders and head for the high seas. At that time, someone would naturally come to meet them.
Ding Ye looked at his watch, stroking the incomparably huge cowhide suitcase, which was filled to the brim with money.
A smug smile appeared on his lips. The strips who went to Yunzhong Island at this time should have all withdrawn, right? No one could stop him anymore. He would take this huge fortune to another country to enjoy his later years.
Lin Youyuan was dead, and the strips had also suffered heavy casualties. How could this not be delightful?
He had been dreaming of this day.
Ding Ye sighed slightly and opened his eyes to look at the sea level. This was the first time in over thirty years that he had so eagerly wished for the sky to brighten quickly.
“Mother’s, lingering ghosts!” Tiger cursed. Just as he was about to lift his foot to kick the person away, the headlights of a car shone brightly in the distance. A police car, siren blaring wildly, sped towards them.
The light was blinding. He subconsciously raised his hand. Song Yuhang stepped on the gas and drove straight towards him.
“Fuck!” In an instant, the strong wind was already before his eyes. Relying on instinct, Tiger jumped to the side, scraping past the front of the car and rolling onto the sandy beach.
Song Yuhang slammed on the brakes, and the vehicle stopped steadily in the shallows. The two of them pushed open the car doors and got out.
Tears quickly gathered in the eyes of Duan Cheng, who was lying on the ground: “Captain Song, Lin-jie, you’re finally here.”
Lin Yan reached out to help him up: “Good job, you’ve worked hard.”
This was the first time she had ever praised him. The big boy’s mouth puckered, and he wiped his tears.
“Wuwuwu, if you hadn’t come, I was about to perish together with him.”
If not for the distinction between men and women, he probably would have hugged her and started crying in the next second. Three black lines immediately appeared on Lin Yan’s forehead.
Song Yuhang patted his shoulder: “The rest, leave it to me.”
“No.” Lin Yan raised her eyes and walked to the front of her.
“It should be left to me.”
Song Yuhang frowned in surprise: “No, you still have injuries on your body.”
Lin Yan’s fingertip dabbed a bit of blood from the wound on her chest, put it in her mouth, and licked it lightly. Her eyes were both demonic and wildly arrogant.
“It’s fine, you go. Ding Ye has many people with him, and Kuba is also there. Be careful.”
“As for me—” she flexed her wrists: “I’ll loosen up my muscles and bones.”
Song Yuhang knew that Lin Yan was placing most of her hopes on her. Kuba was the number one expert by Ding Ye’s side. Only by defeating him could they successfully capture Ding Ye.
And as for Lin Yan? Did she not know her current skill level? It was less than half of what it used to be. This was a fight that completely disregarded life and death, and it was also the solitary courage of knowing well there are tigers on the mountain, still insisting on going towards the tiger mountain14.
But if they didn’t do this, and they went to chase Ding Ye, Tiger would inevitably block them. And if Lin Yan couldn’t beat Tiger alone, could she beat Ding Ye?
Song Yuhang gritted her teeth and struggled, clenching her fists.
Instead, Lin Yan was more relaxed: “Sometimes we have no choice but to believe in a thing called a miracle.”
Duan Cheng also limped forward, clutching his shoulder to stand side-by-side with her.
“Captain Song, go without worry. I will stay behind with Lin-jie to stop him. With us here, no one should even think about leaving.”
“You guys…” Song Yuhang’s eyes moistened slightly, her voice trembling a little. After a long moment, she finally clenched her jaw, made this difficult decision, and turned to get in the car.
“Be careful.”
“Hey.” Just as she was about to leave, she was called to a stop again.
Lin Yan smiled beautifully: “Give my thing back to me.”
Song Yuhang was stunned for a moment. Her gaze fell to the mechanical baton at her waist. With a swoosh, she drew it out and threw it to her through the air.
Lin Yan caught it steadily. With a snap, she flicked it straight. The smile on her face faded, and her expression became sharp and cold.
She raised her eyebrows faintly and said to Song Yuhang a final sentence that was both wild and arrogant.
“Don’t fight too fast, and don’t be too ruthless, lest you kill him in one go. I still want to kill my enemy with my own hands.”
Song Yuhang glanced at her. A slight smile appeared on her lips, but her eyes were unavoidably a bit grave and worried. She squeezed the back of her hand and jumped into the car.
“Don’t worry, I guarantee I’ll complete the mission. You take care of yourself—”
“Wait for me to come back.”
As soon as her voice fell, she stepped on the gas to reverse. The wheels sank into the soft sand, but she forced her way out with powerful momentum and sped into the distance.
Having listened to their heroic words for half a day, Tiger had long grown impatient. Now, seeing her leave so swaggeringly in front of him, he flew into a rage, pulled a dagger from his leg strap, and lunged forward.
“Stop! Don’t even think about running!”
With a clang, the mechanical baton met the bright blade. Lin Yan gritted her teeth and used her strength to push him away.
“Your opponent is me.”
“And me!”
Duan Cheng also charged forward with his fists.
Tiger held the knife and assumed a tactical stance, eager to fight.
“One piece of trash, one heavily injured. Overestimating your own strength. It doesn’t matter how many more of you come. Come on, together!”
Lin Yan and Duan Cheng exchanged a look and charged forward together.
Song Yuhang followed the tire tracks on the beach all the way to the front of the pier. She quickly jumped out of the car, looking around for any boats, and finally found an abandoned boat not far away.
She rushed over in a single bound, waded through the seawater, and flipped herself onto it. She started the engine. The boat made a rumbling sound; it could still be used.
Joy filled her heart. She jumped down, pushed it a few steps, then jumped back on and pressed the engine. The boat shot out from the sea surface.
White waves stretched out behind her, and the strong wind lifted the hair on her forehead. Song Yuhang’s face was resolute. Looking at the small island not far away, she increased the horsepower again and flew out like an arrow leaving the bowstring.
Tiger originally thought Lin Yan was a little woman with hands that lack the strength to tie a chicken15, that even with a weapon, it would only be a chicken rib. He intended to disarm her, and a straight punch went directly for her face.
Lin Yan subconsciously raised her baton to block. A glint flashed in Tiger’s eyes. This was the moment he was waiting for. He grabbed her baton firmly with both hands, intending to snatch it away with brute force.
A sarcastic smile hooked the corner of Lin Yan’s lips. With an explosive burst of power, she turned to the left and twisted. Tiger still held on tightly and didn’t let go. Lin Yan then twisted back with the momentum of a sudden thunderclap that gives no time to cover the ears16, equivalent to yanking the steering wheel wildly while driving. The instantaneous burst of power sent the man flying straight out.
The baton returned to her hand, and with an eight-character chop, she fiercely smashed it towards his temple.
Tiger staggered back a few steps, dizzy with blurred vision. Duan Cheng was waiting there and delivered a whip kick, which smashed into his head. He raised his hand to block, retreated a few more steps, and spat a mouthful of bloody foam onto the ground.
“Mother’s, you’ve got some skills.”
Lin Yan twirled the baton, her footwork changing as she silently searched for a suitable attack distance and angle.
“You praise me too much. If I hadn’t studied forensic medicine, I probably could have ranked in the top ten in the country.”
Tiger pulled up the corner of his lip in a cold smile: “What a pity, today you have to die here.”
“Who will die is not yet certain!”
The best defense is offense. Even though that last exchange had already made her breath and blood surge and her limbs feel weak, Lin Yan still charged forward, unafraid of death.
Duan Cheng followed closely behind. Although the two of them were not as strong as him, their advantage was Lin Yan’s rich combat experience, agile movements, and unpredictable moves, as well as her tacit cooperation with Duan Cheng.
For a moment, Tiger was beaten back again and again, barely able to defend himself without launching an effective counterattack.
Lin Yan was breathing heavily, thinking to herself: This can’t go on. Both Duan Cheng and I have injuries. We can’t last. We need to fight a quick battle to force a quick resolution17.
Perhaps sensing that her breathing was slightly disordered, a cunning look flashed across Tiger’s face. He deliberately showed her a flaw. Duan Cheng closed in, intending to grab his head and knee him. Tiger’s hand shot out with a swoosh, and the bright light of a blade flashed past.
“Be careful!” Lin Yan gathered her breath and shouted loudly, using her baton to block the knife that was stabbing straight at his abdomen, and flicked it slightly upward.
Tiger let go of his hand, a cold smile appearing on his lips. An elbow strike sent Duan Cheng flying, and his right leg hooked Lin Yan’s, tripping her hard. She fell to one knee on the ground, and a fist as heavy as a thousand jun came smashing down, hitting her so hard her head turned to the side. She spat out a mouthful of bloody foam, the strength in her hand loosened, and the mechanical baton fell to the ground.
Tiger would absolutely not give her a chance to catch her breath. A kick to the chest sent her flying onto her back. He picked up the dagger that had fallen to the ground and lunged, stabbing straight for her eyes.
After suffering successive blows, the wounds on her body split open again, blood seeping out. Lin Yan coughed a few times, so weak she couldn’t even lift a finger.
The point of light from the blade in her pupils grew larger and larger.
“Stop! Don’t go!” From a distance, she could already see their speedboat stopped by the shore. Kuba was about to help Ding Ye off the boat. Song Yuhang gathered her breath and shouted loudly, maneuvering the dilapidated boat’s engine to its maximum speed, and rammed straight towards them like a cannonball.
Kuba looked back, his pupils shrinking. He gritted his teeth: “Madwoman.”
If she crashed into them at this speed, none of them could expect to live. The boat would be destroyed and the people would die.
He quickly raised his gun, aimed at the speedboat’s fuel tank, and pulled the trigger. Hitting the person wouldn’t stop the boat, only by destroying the boat’s power system would it stop completely.
With a huge bang, the fuel tank exploded.
Song Yuhang looked back and clenched her jaw. The boat’s speed gradually slowed, and it drifted over crookedly. The sea surface was turbulent.
Kuba retracted his gun: “You guys take Ding Ye and go first, I’ll cover the rear.”
The few lackeys did not dare to delay. They helped Ding Ye quickly off the boat and walked in the predetermined direction.
Song Yuhang jumped into the water with a splash and disappeared into the night.
A strong wind blew across the sea. The night deepened, and it was pitch black, so dark you couldn’t see your five fingers if you stretched out your hand.
Only the waves were beating against his body. He stood in the waist-deep seawater, searching back and forth for any trace of her.
He had just turned around with his gun when, unexpectedly, someone shot out from behind him like a fish.
Water droplets still hung from the tips of Song Yuhang’s hair. She was soaking wet. One arm was clamped deathly tight around his neck, forcing him to suffocate, as she dragged him towards the shore.
“Fuck!” Kuba cursed under his breath. He held the gun horizontally with both hands and raised it over his head to hit her head.
Song Yuhang cried out in pain and staggered back a step. Immediately following was a punch straight to her face.
She raised her hand to block quickly, gripping his arm tightly like an eagle’s claw. At the same time, she shifted to the side, and her right knee slammed into his abdomen, sending him flying.
Kuba wiped the corner of his lip and stood up: “You are very good.”
Song Yuhang raised her chin slightly, assuming an attack stance.
“Likewise.”
She had to defeat him quickly to chase Ding Ye. She absolutely could not let them escape to the high seas.
Kuba saw through her thoughts. He took off the heavy gun, ammunition belt, communicator, and other items from his back, throwing them into the sea to reduce his load, and beckoned to her with his finger.
“Come on, Chinese police, let me see what you’re capable of.”
“So you, a foreigner, why did you have to come to our land to commit crimes?” Song Yuhang gritted her teeth and lunged forward, a fist smashing towards his head, which was blocked by his arm.
Kuba began to fight back. With his load lightened, his movements were clearly much more agile. A punch as fast as a sudden thunderclap smashed into her abdomen. Taking advantage of Song Yuhang’s pain, another side kick landed viciously on her waist.
She retreated again and again. The sand under her feet was soft, and she unexpectedly sank into it, choking on a large mouthful of seawater.
Kuba pressed his advantage, intending to take her life directly. What he had practiced since childhood was Ancient Thai Boxing18, known for being tricky and ruthless. He used the toughest and sharpest part of the human body, the elbow tip, to smash viciously towards her jaw. The force was so great that her bones made a crisp sound as if they couldn’t bear the load.
Song Yuhang spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood with a wah, her head knocked to the side. Before she could organize a counterattack, another elbow strike came from the other direction.
In a competition ring, two consecutive heavy elbow strikes could basically declare the result of the match. No one could withstand his attack.
Kuba was secretly pleased, but then he suddenly froze.
His elbow wanted to advance another inch, but it couldn’t move. No one had expected that she still had the strength to resist. She had actually raised her hand and gripped his forearm, with so much force that his bones ached.
The short-haired woman before him lowered her head and gave a cold laugh. The next moment, using his arm as a pivot, she leaped into the air, and her two feet kicked viciously into his chest, sending him flying.
Kuba fell heavily into the seawater, splashing up a sheet of water. Traces of blood floated on the sea surface around him.
Song Yuhang performed a carp strikes erect and leaped up. She bent down and untied the leggings on her feet. Two twenty-jin sandbags fell to the ground.
Kuba’s pupils shrank. He clutched his chest and coughed twice, his throat filled with the taste of blood. He gritted his teeth and climbed up.
Song Yuhang then untied her arm wraps and threw them into the sea. She took out finger tigers19 from her pocket and put them on, opening and closing her fist.
For some reason, Kuba always had the illusion that she hadn’t been using her full strength before, and it was this feeling that made his scalp tingle.
“Chinese, you are using a weapon. This is not fair.”
Song Yuhang gave a cold laugh and was the first to lunge forward.
“Who the fuck wants to have a fair duel with you? What benevolence and morality is there to speak of with an enemy? This old father20 only wants you to die!”
Compared to Song Yuhang’s side, which was an evenly matched battle, Lin Yan’s side was hanging by a thread.
She barely managed to lift her arm to grab his, but even with all her might, it was difficult to stop the dagger from descending.
There was no other way; the difference in physical strength was too great. In just this short time, the clothes on her chest were already more than half soaked with blood. The seawater washing over her body was as painful as being stuck with needles.
Lin Yan gradually clenched her jaw. She was at a disadvantage in this contest of strength, watching with wide-open eyes as the blade got closer and closer to her, her eyelids stinging slightly.
“Lin-jie, I’ll help you!” Seeing the situation was not good, Duan Cheng struggled to get up from the ground, limped towards him, and hugged his waist tightly, dragging him backward.
Tiger ignored Duan Cheng, single-mindedly wanting to kill her. The dagger’s cold light flashed, and it stabbed down in an instant.
Lin Yan abruptly turned her head. The bright blade cut off a few strands of her hair. Her ear felt warm; it must be bleeding. She couldn’t care too much. While the dagger was still stuck in the sand, she grabbed his arm tightly, making his upper body unable to move. Her right foot stepped on his instep to control his balance, and she suddenly flipped over, successfully countering and controlling him.
Tiger was stunned for a moment, as if he hadn’t expected that she was not only skilled with a baton but also a master of Ba Rou21 ground techniques.
Having been with Lin Yan for a long time, there was naturally a tacit understanding. Seeing the enemy on the ground, Duan Cheng subconsciously pounced, picked up the dagger next to him, and stabbed it viciously towards his chest. It was very strange; a year ago, he was a little policeman who couldn’t bring himself to be harsh with criminal suspects, but now he could attack an enemy’s vital points without a change in expression or a skip of his heartbeat.
Such a change was startling.
Warm blood splattered out.
Song Yuhang staggered back a few steps, wiped the bloody foam from the corner of her lip, and charged forward again with her fists.
Both sides were similarly locked in a bitter struggle.
After taking a few of her punches, Kuba finally found a chance to counterattack, pressing her head and forcing it into the seawater.
“You are very good. Are you interested in working for Ding Ye? Money, you won’t be short of it.”
“Fuck your mother, cough cough…”
Song Yuhang choked on several mouthfuls of water, bubbles coming from her mouth and nose. She had just managed to get her head out when she was pushed back down again. She struggled in vain, her soft hair floating in the seawater.
It was very strange. It was pitch black all around, yet in this instant, she saw a light, as if she could even see Lin Yan swimming towards her with open arms, then gently holding her face to offer a kiss.
Song Yuhang’s whole body trembled. She suddenly understood when this was. It turned out that when she fell into the sea, Lin Yan had also come for her, full of love, breaking through thorns and riding the wind and waves. So this time, it was her turn to bring her home.
Lin Yan, wait for me.
Chewing on these few words, her whole body was suddenly filled with endless power.
She, who had already been exhausted while being held underwater, suddenly reached out and grabbed Kuba’s leg, tripping him as well. She slammed her head hard against his forehead. Kuba fell backward and was about to swim away immediately, but Song Yuhang chased after him, hugging his waist from behind and dragging him back.
Kuba kept hitting her vital points in the abdomen with his elbow joint. Bubbles came out of Song Yuhang’s mouth, and the expression on her face was one of extreme pain, yet she still did not let go.
In terms of swimming ability, Song Yuhang was not as good as Lin Yan, but she was much better than Kuba, who was a landlubber.
After a long time underwater, he gradually felt tightness in his chest and shortness of breath, eager to surface for air.
Since Song Yuhang had already noticed his weakness, she would not let it go. She still dragged him tightly, wanting to swim towards the depths.
In his urgency, Kuba’s moves inevitably became chaotic. In a moment of carelessness, Song Yuhang caught a flaw. Her elbow locked around his neck. Her peripheral vision caught sight of a large reef nearby. She dragged him over and slammed his head against it.
Kuba saw gold stars, and his limbs went weak. Faint red bloodstains seeped into the surrounding seawater.
Song Yuhang had seen red. Both her physical strength and endurance had reached their limits. Her mind was a blank; she was not even aware of what she was doing now, just mechanically repeating the action, grabbing his hair and slamming it against the reef again and again.
At first, Kuba could still struggle a bit, but eventually, he gradually stopped moving. By the time she came to her senses, the reef was covered in a mixture of blood. She let go, and Kuba sank heavily to the bottom of the sea, hitting the seabed. Dust floated up, and startled fish swam into the distance.
Dead?
She was slightly puzzled. She swam to his side and felt for his carotid artery. A huge smile suddenly appeared on her lips, and her muddled brain finally cleared up a bit.
Song Yuhang began to swim upwards, but she didn’t know if it was because her stamina was exhausted or her injuries were too severe. She coughed again and again. With each cough, blood would seep from the corner of her lips. Seawater rushed into her lungs, bringing on a new round of coughing, a vicious cycle.
Just now I could still see the light of the sky, how is it dark now?
Song Yuhang swam and swam, but she could never see the dawn. She seemed to be floating in eternal darkness, with no end in sight.
She paddled and paddled until she had no strength left, only able to float with the waves. As she floated, she grew sleepy. Just as she was about to fall asleep, with a thud, a lifebuoy was thrown next to her.
Xue Rui sat on the boat, a bright smile appearing before her eyes.
“Captain Song, reinforcements have arrived. Get on up.”
“Hey, didn’t we have a deal? I help you provide information, you tell me where my sister is?”
“Hey, hey…”
No matter how anxiously the man asked, the other end of the phone only returned a busy tone.
Ding Ye could no longer answer him.
The main force of the armed police had surrounded them. The ones who withdrew were the special police, while the armed police had been lying in ambush here from the start, catching a turtle in a jar22.
The few lackeys following Ding Ye all dropped their weapons and raised their hands in surrender.
By the time the reinforcement troops arrived, Tiger was already dead.
Duan Cheng’s attack had not hit a vital point, and instead, it provoked him into a frenzied struggle. He threw off Lin Yan and gripped her neck tightly.
The two were like a cornered beast that will still fight23, coming and going, neither giving way. Both of their bodies were covered in blood.
Duan Cheng gritted his teeth and pounced, hugging his waist tightly and dragging him backward. Lin Yan picked up the dagger and flew up. The blade flashed, and it directly cut his carotid artery. Blood flowed like a torrent, and there was no power to reverse the sky.
As soon as Duan Cheng let go, he knelt on the ground, his head buried in the seawater, and wisps of blood drifted away.
The armed police forces that came to reinforce were all stunned. Tiger, like Kuba, was an internationally wanted criminal, a number one dangerous figure. He died just like that?
Someone didn’t believe it and ran forward to feel his carotid artery. The cut was so deep the bone was visible, with only a little bit of flesh and skin keeping the head attached. If one did not have a thorough understanding of the human body, it would be impossible to achieve this level.
The armed police captain’s gaze towards Lin Yan immediately filled with solemn respect.
Seeing that he was really dead, Duan Cheng’s whole body went limp. He staggered back two steps and fell backward into the muddy water, panting heavily, but a smile hung on the corner of his lips.
“Stretcher, stretcher, an officer is injured!”
Lin Yan also, due to excessive blood loss and successive heavy injuries, had severely overdrawn her stamina. She knelt on the ground with a plop and spat out a large mouthful of stagnant blood with a “wah”.
Someone was about to come over and help her to the ambulance for treatment. Lin Yan waved her hand, wiped the bloodstain from the corner of her lip, and gritted her teeth to stand up.
“Ding Ye isn’t dead yet. I need to go over.”
LP: Re-translated on September 05, 2025
✨ Unlock Early Access to Chapters! ✨
Choose your perfect membership at bamboopandatl.net:
📚 Full Access ($4.99)
• Advanced chapters of ALL ongoing novels
• Access to complete finished novels
• Ad-free reading experience
📖 Single Novel Access ($1.49)
• Advanced chapters of ONE specific novel
• Ad-free reading for chosen novel
PayPal is the only current payment option!