Chapter 433 - 313: Bar Pursuit, Mechanical Lady

Chapter 433: Chapter 313: Bar Pursuit, Mechanical Lady

The operation’s utter failure meant she would face severe punishment upon her return, but right now, Yao Li wasn’t nervous at all. Instead, she felt a sense of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted.

’Whatever, screw it. I’m done with this job.’

With that thought, Yao Li walked to the car, pulled open the passenger-side door, and got in.

"Let’s go. Home," Yao Li ordered, leaning back into the seat and closing her eyes to take a quick nap.

But there was no response.

Yao Li frowned and turned to the driver. Just as she was about to speak, she froze.

The driver was drenched in a cold sweat, his face a mask of terror and despair as he stared at her.

’Not good!’

’Something’s wrong!’

The thought had barely crossed her mind when she felt something cold and hard pressing against the nape of her neck.

’It’s a gun!’

Upon this realization, Yao Li took a deep breath, quickly composed herself, and spoke in a steady, low voice.

"What do you need me to do?"

She knew, with certainty, that the person in the backseat was Wu Liangchen—the very man she had spent days hunting.

She didn’t know how he had broken through the encirclement and gotten into her car, but one thing was certain.

Since he hadn’t killed her on the spot, he obviously wanted something.

That was why Yao Li dared to ask.

Upon hearing her question, Wu Liangchen smiled faintly.

He preferred dealing with intelligent people who could grasp the situation; it saved a lot of unnecessary trouble.

And as it happened, Yao Li was just such a person.

So, Wu Liangchen didn’t waste any words. "Drive," he said simply.

The car started up and slowly pulled away from the area.

The Tiger Slayer Gang members guarding the perimeter saw the car but didn’t stop it, waving it through immediately.

This was partly because they recognized the car, but also because the passenger-side window was rolled down, revealing Yao Li’s face.

And so, they left without any trouble.

Once the car was on the main road, Yao Li asked, "Where to next?"

"Turn left!"

Wu Liangchen didn’t reveal his destination. Instead, he watched the road ahead and gave direct commands.

And just like that, the car began speeding down the road in the dead of night.

A look of surprise flickered in Yao Li’s eyes as she listened to Wu Liangchen give directions with such practiced ease.

He acted nothing like an outsider; he knew the roads even better than she did, and she was a Qing Province native.

Little did she know that when Wu Liangchen acquired Luo Qifeng’s soul power, he had also inherited the vast majority of his memories.

And Luo Qifeng, having operated in Qing Province for many years, naturally knew its roads like the back of his hand.

Finally.

The car slowed to a stop on a deserted, remote lane. At Wu Liangchen’s command, the driver shut off the headlights.

The car was instantly plunged into darkness. Only the distant, flickering neon lights cast a psychedelic glow into the deathly-still cabin.

The driver was so terrified he was about to piss his pants.

After all, a place this remote was the perfect spot to kill someone and dump the body.

Yao Li, on the other hand, was just barely managing to keep her composure.

But to stay alive, her mind raced, desperately searching for a way out.

Just then, a RUSTLING sound came from the back seat, like someone pulling on gloves.

That did it. The driver completely broke down.

"Please, don’t kill me! I don’t know anything!"

Yao Li flinched, then said in a low, steady voice, "Wu Liangchen, I know you’re filled with resentment, but this really has very little to do with me. I was just following orders."

As she spoke, every muscle in her body tensed. She silently regulated her breathing, searching for an opportunity to strike back.

She was quite powerful. The Martial Vein transplanted into her body wasn’t some off-the-shelf, mass-produced model but a custom version, handcrafted by a master.

So she believed she had a fighting chance.

In truth, she had been looking for an opening the entire ride, but her captor’s composure was unshakable.

The gun barrel, pressed to her neck between the two posts of the headrest, hadn’t wavered an inch the entire time.

It was a testament to his almost inhuman mental stability.

But now, she had to take the risk and make her move.

Yao Li silently channeled the power of her Martial Vein, her muscle fibers tightening like a bowstring.

But just then, a cold voice shattered her desperate hopes.

"Don’t waste your energy. You’re no match for me."

"Huh?"

Yao Li had just a moment to register her confusion when a sharp, stabbing pain shot through her neck—it felt like a hornet sting.

Then, to her horror, she found all the strength draining from her body in an instant, like air from a punctured ball.

Not only that, but she couldn’t move her arms or legs.

From the neck down, she was completely paralyzed.

"What did you do to me?" Yao Li demanded furiously.

"Nothing much. Just severed your spinal nerves. But I imagine with the Alliance’s level of technology, that’s hardly an incurable condition," Wu Liangchen said nonchalantly.

Hearing this, Yao Li let out a small sigh of relief.

’Good. If it’s just my spinal nerves being severed, that’s not considered a major injury.’

The Alliance’s medical technology had reached a point where, even if your entire body was destroyed, you could be fully restored so long as you were still breathing and had the money to pay for it.

Of course, it also depended on the extent of the damage.

If the cost of repairing a body was too high, many people would just opt for a full-body mechanical prosthesis instead.