Chapter 29: Desperate Situation

The wind howled, stirring up specks of sand and dust.

Under the night sky, the moment Blood General abruptly appeared, Chen Chong and all the Scavengers from Dawn Gathering Place froze solid.

No matter where they stood facing Blood General, they all felt an invisible, cruel aura lock onto them, as if some top predator had fixed its gaze on them. An extremely dangerous feeling enveloped their entire bodies.

A warning sign rose unbidden in everyone’s heart:

Don’t move! Whoever moves first dies immediately!

Even the Scavenger captain, veteran Awakener Qiao Jun, was completely tensed up, staring deadly at Blood General’s eerie figure, his face utterly drained of color.

Chen Chong’s heart also went cold at that moment.

From the Scavengers’ earlier accounts, this Blood General was clearly a bloodthirsty and brutal armed organization leader with transcendent power. There was no way such a person appeared here just to say hello. In such a dark era, where the strong preyed on the weak, life and death were at the strong’s whim. And now, without a doubt, they were all Blood General’s prey!

Moreover, seeing Qiao Jun’s extreme fear showed that this so-called Blood General was already powerful enough to make him dare not resist!

What to do?

In those few tense seconds, as thoughts raced through Chen Chong’s mind, the roar of engines suddenly came from afar, drawing closer through the wind of the Wilderness. It seemed a large number of vehicles were speeding toward the ruins from all directions.

“As expected of Blood General. He had his men and vehicles stop several kilometers away, then crept here alone, leaving us completely unaware…”

Hearing the approaching engine roars, the last trace of blood drained from Qiao Jun’s face. All hope vanished. Looking at the blood-red figure studying them with amusement, he said bitterly:

“We admit defeat. But how did you find us?”

Qiao Jun had spotted Blood General’s convoy right on the route back to their gathering place. Since night was falling, to be safe, Qiao Jun had deliberately avoided Blood General and come to this ruined safe spot to rest.

However, he never expected fate to play such a cruel trick. His decision had plunged everyone into an abyss. The sound of vehicles came from all directions. They were completely surrounded. And with Blood General, a Transcendent, right in front of them, breaking out was absolutely impossible.

Chen Chong’s face was equally grim. His mind raced desperately for a way out.

“You little mice are sensible enough not to do anything stupid.”

Seemingly very satisfied with everyone’s reaction, Blood General’s blood-red eyes glinted in the night as they carefully swept over Qiao Jun. His voice was hoarse and unhurried:

“As for me coming here, it’s merely coincidence. You can only blame your bad luck…”

All the Scavengers were pale and trembling in fear. Qiao Jun exhaled deeply, nodding in understanding:

“Coincidence? I see. Checking a safe spot like this casually might just trap other Scavengers. Our own carelessness is to blame. No one else. But I wonder, can we use all our gains… to buy our lives?”

“Buy your lives?”

Under the moonlight, Blood General stood with his hands behind his back and let out a sneer filled with mockery:

“In front of me, not only your gains, but even your lives already belong to me. What sense is there in using my things as bargaining chips to trade with me?”

“Blood General, don’t push us!”

Listening to the approaching engine roars from all directions, anxiety filled Qiao Jun’s heart. A fierce glint flashed in his eyes as he roared in a low, harsh voice:

“We’ll trade all the Spiritual Fruit we harvested this time! You let us go! Otherwise, it’s a fight to the death, and you’ll get nothing!”

“You say… a fight to the death?”

Blood General laughed softly:

“Very interesting. It’s been a long time since someone dared threaten me to my face. You seem to be an Awakener too? No wonder you have such courage, but unfortunately…”

Boom! Boom!

Like a thunderclap from clear sky, in the drawn-out tail of Blood General’s words, the decayed and weathered bricks and stones beneath his feet exploded violently, crushed directly into powder and dust. The muffled blast stirred up a wave-like surge in the air. A howling wind roared in everyone’s ears as a fierce gale blew in their faces!

Almost at the same instant the bricks exploded, Chen Chong’s vision blurred. Blood General vanished from sight. Then, from the corner of his eye, he saw Awakener Qiao Jun, as if struck head-on by a speeding car, sent flying backward violently, crashing hard into a crumbling ruined wall behind him! He then collapsed to the ground!

In the ruins, there was a moment of silence.

Until Qiao Jun’s figure, like a cannonball, smashed into the wall and was buried by dirt and stone. Blood General, who had vanished, reappeared like a ghost in his original spot, a cruel smile on his face, uttering the unfinished words:

“The fish may die, but the net will not break…”

Terrifying power, terrifying speed, so this was a Transcendent!?

The fierce wind surged. Chen Chong, who had barely managed to see what Blood General did, felt a violent tremor in his heart. An extreme crisis, a feeling that life and death were no longer in his own hands, arose. Even Qiao Jun, an Awakener, had no power to resist at all. Chen Chong knew if he were in that position, the outcome would be no different!

“Captain!”

The Scavengers, finally reacting, let out horrified shouts. They knew Blood General was formidable, but they never imagined that in a flash, without seeing anything clearly, their captain would be sent flying without any ability to fight back!

The Scavengers all aimed their makeshift firearms at Blood General, but their arms trembled slightly from intense terror.

No one dared shoot. No one dared run.

Just now, they hadn’t even seen Blood General’s movements before Qiao Jun, an Awakener, was severely wounded in an instant. No one believed the crude guns in their hands could harm this notorious Transcendent. And the vehicle roars closing in from all sides clearly signaled Blood General’s men were encircling them. They were now in a hopeless situation with no way to heaven and no door to earth!

“Get up. I know exactly how much force I used. With your Awakener physique, you won’t be seriously hurt. No one can threaten me to my face. That was just a small warning for your foolish behavior.”

Not even glancing at the Scavengers pointing their guns at him, Blood General looked at the small pile of rubble burying Qiao Jun and chuckled softly:

“An Awakener is a rare asset for any Territory. How could I bear to beat you to death?”

As Blood General’s words fell, a clatter sounded. From within the rubble, Qiao Jun spat out a mouthful of bloody foam, placed his hands on the ground, and slowly, painfully, stood up.