Chapter 283 - 255: Escape (3)
Chapter 283: Chapter 255: Escape (3)
Zhao Quan had already decided on his direction.
"Alright, you be careful. Don’t get yourself killed. Dammit, to think that I, the fourth heir of the great Holy Flame Clan, was nearly defeated here..."
With a flash, Zhao Quan vanished.
Zhao Chi didn’t linger either and immediately rushed southwest.
But he hadn’t run for long before he was blocked by more fighting up ahead.
Zhao Chi had run all the way here from the ruins of the virtual training hall; he must have covered over three kilometers.
But it seemed like battles were raging everywhere.
’If the Resistance was just trying to ambush and wipe out the nobles watching the competition, the fighting shouldn’t be on such a massive scale, right?’
’Could it be... that this is just the tip of the iceberg?’
’Is the Resistance’s operation tonight far bigger than I imagined?’
’Could their target be the entire River Valley Town?’
At this thought, Zhao Chi immediately opened the system.
But communications were still blocked.
He couldn’t contact anyone and had no idea what was happening elsewhere.
’Forget it.’
’I’ll head back to my territory first.’
Zhao Chi proceeded with extreme caution, taking a winding, roundabout path.
He was finally about to leave River Valley Town.
He no longer cared which path was shorter. As long as a road had few people and wasn’t a battlefield, that’s the one Zhao Chi took.
In any case, heading southwest was the right general direction.
As he got farther and farther away, the number of people nearby dwindled, and his surroundings grew darker.
Zhao Chi’s mood gradually started to relax.
Looking back, the entire River Valley Town was a sea of flames.
The roars of various Magical Beasts could still be faintly heard.
’It looks like the world is about to change.’
’I wonder if tomorrow the blue sky will reign, or the yellow sky.’
Zhao Chi didn’t dare take the main roads, or even the smaller paths.
He stuck to the shadows, heading wherever it was darkest.
His speed increased as he ran.
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his foot.
WHOOSH~
A small Fire Array suddenly appeared.
The orange-yellow glow flared up in the darkness, so bright that Zhao Chi couldn’t open his eyes.
’Shit!’
Zhao Chi cursed inwardly and quickly leaped away.
But the Fire Array had already been triggered, making it impossible to dodge completely.
BOOM!
The Fire Array exploded.
Zhao Chi was sent flying.
’Dammit...’
’Who the fuck set up a Fire Array here?’
Zhao Chi’s entire body ached with pain.
He immediately pulled out a Pill and stuffed it into his mouth.
Enduring the pain, he threw off his burning Iron Armor.
Streaks of flame still clung to his body, burning him.
He ignored the agony and vigorously rubbed against the ground.
While extinguishing the flames, he also scraped off his own skin.
’It fucking hurts...’
Zhao Chi lay motionless on the ground, letting the Pill slowly heal him.
After a while, Zhao Chi had recovered a little.
He didn’t rush to get up, instead carefully observing his surroundings.
But all was quiet, with only the Flame Array still burning.
’Someone probably set it here while they were fleeing, right?’
Zhao Chi didn’t wait any longer. He immediately scrambled up and dashed away from the spot.
But he had barely taken two steps when he felt his foot trip on something again.
THUD!
He was instantly on high alert.
He quickly rolled to the side.
But this time, nothing happened.
’Was it a rock?’
’No, the texture felt wrong.’
Using the light from the not-so-distant fire, Zhao Chi looked at what had tripped him.
He saw the figure of a woman.
The woman was lying face down on the ground. Zhao Chi must have just kicked her in the head.
No wonder the texture felt wrong.
’She might have been the one who set the Flame Array.’
’Is the woman dead?’
’None of my business.’
Zhao Chi had no intention of getting involved.
Man or woman, living or dead, Zhao Chi planned to ignore them. His own escape was the top priority.
But the moment he stood up, he suddenly noticed a golden glint reflecting off the woman’s body in the firelight.
This wasn’t the color of the flames; it was the color of the Armor on the woman’s body.
Golden Armor!
A noble!
Zhao Chi couldn’t help but look at her face.
Her face was pressed against the ground, half-covered by her hair.
But Zhao Chi still found her somewhat familiar.
There weren’t many female nobles that Zhao Chi knew.
So...
Zhao Chi cautiously approached and used his index finger to brush the hair away from her face.
’Zhao Tan!’
’What is she doing here?’
Zhao Chi quickly scanned his surroundings. It was pitch black, with no sign of movement.
He shook Zhao Tan’s arm. "Hey, Zhao Tan, wake up."
Zhao Tan: "..."
Zhao Chi placed his finger under her nose but couldn’t feel any breath.
But when he touched her body, it was still warm.
’She should be alive.’
Zhao Chi took out a High Level Life Pill and put it in her mouth.
But an unconscious person can’t swallow.
If he forced it down her throat, it could even cause her to choke to death.
The only option now was a Healing Spiritual Skill.
But Zhao Chi didn’t know any.
’What should I do?’
’Leave her here?’
SHUFFLE SHUFFLE SHUFFLE!
Footsteps!
The hair on Zhao Chi’s neck stood on end.
He immediately scrambled a few meters away.
Looking back, he saw several Zombies slowly approaching.
They seemed to have been drawn by the light and the sound of the explosion.
Or perhaps they were drawn by the scent of Zhao Tan, a Human?
The Zombies moved slowly, but they would soon reach Zhao Tan.
’If it’s just Zombies...’
’I can save her!’
Zhao Chi rushed over, hoisted Zhao Tan onto his shoulder, and carefully but quickly departed.
Zhao Chi still had some reservations about saving Zhao Tan.
Although Zhao Tan didn’t seem to have a bad reputation, she was a noblewoman after all. Carrying her was too dangerous.
’But I’ve left the main battlefield now. The farther I get into the countryside, the fewer Resistance members there should be.’
’Besides, I just saved Zhao Quan, and he gave me a Golden Treasure Chest.’
’If I save Zhao Tan this time, even if she’s a Low Level noble, she should at least give me a Silver Treasure Chest, right?’
’Even if she gives me nothing, she’ll at least owe me a favor.’
’And Zhao Tan is Zhao Quan’s subordinate. If I save her, Zhao Quan should show his appreciation somehow, right?’
’If I run into the Resistance and it becomes inconvenient to escape, it won’t be too late to abandon her then.’
His mind was made up.
Zhao Chi ran with all his might.
An unknown amount of time passed.
Zhao Chi’s legs were sore and numb, his arms were exhausted, and his Physical Strength was depleted.
But Stream Village should be just ahead, and he pushed on through sheer willpower.
But as he ran, he suddenly heard a faint woman’s voice.
’Did Zhao Tan wake up?’
Just as Zhao Chi was about to stop and check, a blinding flash of fire lit up behind his head.
WHOOSH~
A wave of heat rolled over him.
’What the!?’
Zhao Chi dropped Zhao Tan and rolled forward.
He felt like half his head had been burned.
Zhao Chi was half-bald again.
But he paid no mind to his own condition, instead searching for the enemy at once.
There was no one nearby.
Instead, flames were still flickering in Zhao Tan’s hand.
Her eyes were half-open, her gaze unfocused, yet she stared hatefully at Zhao Chi.
"Damn... Resistance scum, don’t even think about capturing me... I’ll burn you to death..."
’Resistance?’
’Me?’
Zhao Chi immediately growled, "Zhao Tan, it’s me, Zhao Chi! Calm down. You’ve already burned me twice today..."
"...Zhao Chi?"
Hearing this, the flames in Zhao Tan’s hand died out.
The tension that held her up gave way, and Zhao Tan collapsed to the ground again.
The surroundings were plunged into darkness once more.
Zhao Chi breathed a sigh of relief, took out the High Level Life Pill, and popped it into her mouth.
"It’s a Life Pill, eat it quickly."
Zhao Tan: "..."
A faint chewing sound could be heard.
A moment later, Zhao Tan sighed softly and pushed herself up.
"What are you doing here? What’s the situation?"
Zhao Chi briefly told her what he had seen, finishing with:
"Zhao Quan... uh... His Highness Zhao Quan is fine. He headed north. Zhao Mu is dead."
Zhao Tan: "...Is that so? Zhao Mu is dead..."
It was too dark to see her expression.
But from her tone, she still sounded somewhat sad.
She sighed again. "As long as His Highness Zhao Quan is safe... Thank you. I have to go as well. You be careful."
Zhao Chi nodded. "You’d better take a detour back. I have a feeling the scale of the Resistance’s attack today is much larger than we thought."
Zhao Tan sighed. "I know. I’m afraid this matter isn’t so simple. Be very careful. I need to rendezvous with His Highness Zhao Quan as soon as possible. Goodbye."
"Goodbye..."
The sound of light footsteps came from the darkness, then quickly faded away.
’That woman. As expected, she didn’t give me a thing.’
’Whatever, now’s not the time to worry about that.’
After that, the path was clear.
A journey that should have taken just over an hour ended up taking Zhao Chi a full two hours.
After passing through a patch of woods, he finally saw Stream Village ahead.
Stream Village was brightly lit.
All sorts of torches stretched far into the distance.
Zhao Chi couldn’t help but slow his pace.
This was different from before.
Previously, Stream Village had torches at night, but there was no way they would have lit this many.
Looking closely, he saw people standing guard on top of the various buildings.
There were also patrols carrying torches around the perimeter.
Those people were all villagers, not members of the Resistance.
Zhao Chi breathed a sigh of relief, but still approached cautiously.