Skinwalker Belle – Chapter 51 – Desperate Escape

The atmosphere on the way back was oppressive.

The armored vehicle cleared the path ahead, while Lin Fan drove the SUV, following unhurriedly behind.

Only she and Lei Li were in the car; the others had taken most of the weapons and boarded the armored vehicle.

“Lei-jie, if they come to attack Fragrant Hills International… can we defend it?”

Lin Fan’s voice carried Chen Yao’s characteristic softness and tremor, as if she still hadn’t recovered from the terrifying moment at the military camp.

Lei Li leaned back in the passenger seat, lit a slim cigarette, and took a deep drag.

Amidst the curling smoke, her usually resolute profile was now shrouded in gloom.

“I don’t know.”

She uttered those three words.

This wasn’t the usual Lei Li.

Lin Fan knew in her heart that the appearance of the woman in white had completely shaken the confidence of this stronghold’s queen.

A monster that could think, command, and control a horde of zombies.

This was beyond anyone’s understanding of the apocalypse.

“Then… then what do we do?” Lin Fan drove the car very slowly, leaning her body slightly toward Lei Li like a kitten seeking shelter. “If she brings those zombies to attack us…”

Lei Li was silent for a moment, then reached out and gently patted her on the back.

“Don’t be afraid.”

Lei Li’s voice was low and powerful.

“As long as I’m here, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Mmm…”

Lin Fan smelled the faint scent of tobacco on her, but the corner of her mouth curved into an imperceptible smile.

Suddenly.

Thud! Thud thud!

A few dull impacts came from the roof of the car.

“What’s that sound?”

Lin Fan shot her head up, a look of perfectly feigned terror on her face.

The color drained from Lei Li’s face in an instant.

She crushed out her cigarette, her voice almost a roar.

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“Not good! They’ve caught up!”

Lin Fan glanced in the rearview mirror.

Her heart clenched violently.

A black, crushing horde of zombies, like a tidal wave, was swarming madly down the road they had just come from.

They moved faster than any ordinary zombie she had seen before, running on all fours over the rugged mountain road, letting out guttural roars.

Even stranger, the thousands of zombies completely ignored the larger, noisier armored vehicle up ahead.

They had only one target.

The SUV that she and Lei Li were in!

“Their target is you!” Lin Fan screamed, her voice filled with terror.

“Drive faster!”

Lei Li drew the dual blades from her waist, rolled down the window, and roared at the outside, “Shake them off!”

Vroom!

Lin Fan slammed her foot on the accelerator.

The SUV’s engine let out a massive roar as the vehicle shot forward, instantly picking up speed.

But it was useless.

The zombies were too fast.

A few of the fastest ones had already caught up to the rear of the car. They clung tightly to the back bumper with their claws, trying to climb aboard.

Bang!

A zombie’s head smashed through the iron mesh of the rear windshield, its rotten face almost touching the back of Lin Fan’s head.

“Ah!”

Lin Fan let out a bloodcurdling scream.

“Get lost!”

With a backhand slash, Lei Li precisely split the zombie’s head open.

Foul-smelling black blood and brain matter splattered all over Lin Fan.

“Xiao Yao, ignore what’s behind us! Watch the road!” Lei Li yelled.

She leaned halfway out of the car, her dual blades a whirlwind as she hacked down zombie after zombie trying to climb onto the vehicle.

But there were too many zombies.

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They were endless.

“It’s no use! Lei-jie! There are too many of them!”

Lin Fan looked ahead and saw a fork in the road.

The left led back to the stronghold, while the right was an on-ramp to an abandoned overpass.

Without a shred of hesitation, she yanked the steering wheel.

The car let out a piercing screech of tires as it precariously turned onto the right-hand ramp.

She couldn’t go back to the stronghold.

Bringing such a large horde of zombies controlled by the woman in white back with them would turn the entire Fragrant Hills International building into a living hell.

That wasn’t what she wanted.

“Get on the overpass!” Lei Li immediately understood Lin Fan’s intention and shouted her approval. “We’ll lose them!”

The SUV roared as it charged onto the overpass.

The bridge was littered with abandoned vehicles, and Lin Fan weaved through the wreckage with her superb driving skills.

The horde of zombies pursued them relentlessly.

They seemed tireless, their eyes fixed on Lei Li as their only target.

Thud!

A zombie leaped down from the roof of an abandoned bus next to them, landing heavily on the SUV’s hood.

Its claws scraped madly at the windshield, creating a deafening noise.

“Dammit!”

Lei Li tried to stab it with her blade, but it was too far away to reach.

“Hold on tight!”

Lin Fan’s eyes turned cold as she jerked the steering wheel sharply to the left.

Screech!

The car slammed hard into the overpass guardrail. The massive impact sent the zombie on the hood flying off, plummeting from the bridge.

But the front left side of the car was now heavily dented.

The vehicle’s speed dropped sharply.

More zombies took the opportunity to swarm in, climbing onto the car from all directions.

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The roof, the doors, the trunk… everywhere were frantically clawing hands and snarling faces.

Cracks began to appear on the windows.

“Lei-jie!”

“I’m here!”

Lei Li’s battle had reached a fever pitch. She was almost entirely out of the window, her dual blades flashing up and down in a shower of blood and gore.

Just then.

A zombie hung upside down from the roof, its sharp claws suddenly piercing through the metal roof above the driver’s seat, lunging straight for Lin Fan’s head.

“Watch out!”

Lei Li’s pupils contracted violently.

Lin Fan seemed completely petrified, even forgetting to dodge.

She yanked the steering wheel, and the car spun completely out of control.

Boom!

The SUV, at a terrifying speed, crashed through the guardrail.

Nose-first, it plunged off the overpass!

A sense of weightlessness instantly enveloped them both.

The wind howled in their ears.

In that split second, Lei Li made a move that even surprised Lin Fan.

She gave up resisting, dropped her dual blades, and lunged over, holding Lin Fan’s small body tightly in her arms.

She used her own powerful back to face the impending impact.

CRASH!

With a tremendous bang, the SUV smashed into the river below the bridge, sending up a monstrous splash.

Icy cold river water poured madly in through the shattered windows.

Held tightly by Lei Li, Lin Fan barely felt any impact aside from choking on a few mouthfuls of water.

But Lei Li, who was shielding her, had shuddered violently at the moment of impact and then gone completely still.

Lin Fan could feel the arms holding her slowly losing their strength.

She had passed out.

The car continued to sink.

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Lin Fan calmly pushed Lei Li away, held her breath, and looked out the window.

On the overpass, the frenzied zombies, having lost their target, had actually stopped.

They milled about at the edge of the bridge for a moment, seemingly bewildered, and then, in unison, they turned and retreated.

The crisis… was over.

In the cold river water, the corners of Lin Fan’s mouth slowly curled upward.

Heaven itself was helping her.

She didn’t rush to escape. Instead, she first collected the scattered rifles and full magazines in the car, stowing them all in her Storage Space.

This was all good stuff that couldn’t be wasted.

After doing all this, she unbuckled her seatbelt, pried open the deformed car door, and dragged the completely unconscious Lei Li, struggling to swim toward the shore.

The river was cold.

But Lin Fan’s heart was ablaze.

She painstakingly dragged Lei Li’s tall, heavy body onto the riverbank.

Lei Li lay quietly on the muddy bank, her short black hair plastered wetly to her cheeks. Her long legs, encased in leather pants, exuded a sense of power.

Due to the crash, her leather jacket was also torn in several places, revealing the firm muscle lines beneath.

Perfect.

Simply the perfect prey.

Lin Fan crouched down, extended a finger, and checked for Lei Li’s breath.

Still breathing.

She then checked Lei Li’s body. There were severe impact injuries to her back and head; she definitely wouldn’t be waking up anytime soon.

The surroundings were dead silent, save for the sound of the flowing river.

Ah Hu’s armored vehicle, due to its size, was much slower than the SUV.

It had been left in the dust long ago.

No one would come to disturb them.

Lin Fan looked down at the unconscious queen beneath her, a cold, triumphant smile spreading across her face.

Lei Li.

Everything you have will soon be mine.