Chapter 262: Battle at the Steel Mill (Part 1)

Chen Erbao had just started the car and was about to leave when he caught a glimpse of two familiar figures in his peripheral vision.

'It's them!'

A shapely woman in a simple white dress slowly got into a car. Beside her was a long-haired girl dressed in all black. Both looked pale as they hurriedly left the parking lot.

Chen Erbao saw it all clearly. Right after the two left, a black van followed close behind them. After the van, another sedan tailed them.

"???"

Chen Erbao felt like something was wrong.

'Are those two girls being followed?'

'And by more than one group?'

Recalling the wound on Xia Qingxue's shoulder at the Antique Street, Chen Erbao sighed and pulled a wad of cash from his pocket. "You two take a taxi back. I have something to take care of."

Wenwen and Xiaoqian were confused, but they took the money and got out of the car.

Chen Erbao slammed on the gas and followed the last sedan.

...

Banna District is located on the very edge of Dian Nan, right on the border with a foreign country. It's a chaotic place where the lawful and lawless mix, home to a complex web of powerful factions.

Besides the desperados who haunted the border year-round, many internationally wanted criminals hid in the uninhabited mountains outside Banna City.

The Security Bureau was responsible for handling matters concerning Ancient Martial Artists throughout the country, but in a chaotic place like Banna District, its control was somewhat lacking.

Although special forces were stationed there, their numbers were small. Maintaining stability in the city was already a challenge, let alone diverting personnel for other operations.

Hua Yueqing led her two team members, closely tailing the van in front of them.

"Boss Hua, looks like they're heading out of the city. Why don't we intercept them on the way?"

Chen Fang said eagerly from inside the sedan.

A fierce fighting spirit flashed in Hua Yueqing's eyes. "Don't be hasty. Let's see what they're up to. When we make our move, try to capture them alive. If we can make them talk, we'll gather our forces, head to the grasslands, and wipe them all out in one fell swoop!"

"Are you serious, Boss Hua? Their sect has quite a few Grandmasters. If we go to the grasslands, we'll be walking right into their den. How's that any different from throwing meat buns to a dog?"

"Are you scared?"

Lu Mountain couldn't help but ask coldly upon hearing Chen Fang.

Chen Fang immediately shot back, "Scared my ass! Back in the day, I went to the battlefields of Central Asia and wasn't scared. You think a bunch of sneaky rats like them are enough to frighten me?"

"Then what's with all the crap! Let's just do it!"

Lu Mountain couldn't tolerate the slightest imperfection; he had long wanted to uproot that group of fanatics on the grasslands, but unfortunately, they never had any concrete intel on them.

Today was their chance!

The four cars gradually left the city, and the traffic on the road began to thin.

After driving for several more tens of minutes, there wasn't another vehicle on the road—only the four cars chasing one another.

"Boss Hua, I think there's a car following us."

Chen Fang saw Chen Erbao's car in the rearview mirror.

Hua Yueqing glanced back, her eyelids lowering. "Probably just a passerby. Ignore it. Keep your eyes on the target ahead."

Night gradually fell. After leaving the bustling city, they were surrounded by quiet wilderness.

The calls of unknown birds echoed from a distance. Further on lay an endless expanse of grassland and a continuous chain of rolling mountains at its end.

"They're stopping!"

Seeing the van in front slow down, Hua Yueqing's face lit up as she drew her Type 54 Black Star pistol.

BANG!

A loud gunshot echoed through the area.

But it wasn't Hua Yueqing who fired!

RAT-A-TAT-TAT…

The gunfire was like a call to arms. Someone leaned out of the van, rifle in hand, and sprayed bullets at Xia Qingxue's sedan.

The orange-yellow tracers struck the car's body with a series of sharp PINGS.

Inside Xia Qingxue's car, the all-black-clad Song Yao's expression turned icy. "Senior Sister, they've made their move! The abandoned Steel Mill is just ahead. Let's go there!"

"Hold on tight!"

Xia Qingxue slammed on the accelerator, and the sedan shot into the distance.

VRROOOOM...

At the same moment, the three cars behind them also accelerated in pursuit.

"Get them..."

Hoarse shouts came from the van, where men in long robes stared intently at the sedan ahead, fanatical smiles on their faces.

The sedan weaved left and right on the wide road, dodging the hail of bullets.

'Damn it, who the hell are these people?'

Chen Erbao, trailing at the very back, watched the scene stunned, clicking his tongue in disbelief.

At this point, their speeds were all over 150 kilometers per hour. In the blink of an eye, they blew past a toll station, smashing through the barrier arm.

In the distance, tall blast furnaces appeared, and a fenced-off factory complex came into view.

CRASH!

Xia Qingxue's sedan plowed straight ahead, smashing the factory's iron gate off its hinges. The speeding car instantly flipped, but just as it was about to be crushed like a tin can, the two women leaped nimbly out of the windows.

BOOM!

As the sedan crashed heavily to the ground, a huge fireball erupted into the sky. The powerful shockwave shattered the windshield of the van right behind it.

The van screeched to a halt at the entrance. The doors clanged open, and a dozen men in black and red robes filed out, each one carrying a rifle as they charged into the factory.

"They escaped inside! After them!"

Someone roared.

The leader was a bald man. Tattooed on his shiny head was a soaring eagle, giving him an incredibly bizarre look.

He glanced at the pitch-black factory, then looked back at the sedan that had followed them the whole way, and grinned menacingly. "The disciples will stay behind on guard. The two Stewards and Elder Chen, you're with me. We capture them alive!"

"Yes, sir!"

The men responded in unison, then took up their respective positions and sprang into action.

Vast, dark clouds, roiling in a fierce wind, pressed lower and lower, finally releasing pea-sized raindrops.

WHOOSH…

The drops quickly became a curtain of rain, blurring the world in a gray haze. The already low visibility of the night was now completely swallowed by darkness.

Chen Erbao sat in his car, peering through the rain-streaked glass at the Steel Mill in the distance.

Aside from the dozen or so men guarding the gate, the rest of the grassland fanatics had entered the Steel Mill, and sporadic gunfire began to echo from within.

Hua Yueqing pushed open her car door. Chen Fang and Lu Mountain followed right behind, braving the downpour as they headed toward the Steel Mill.

When Chen Erbao saw the three of them, he paused for a moment before pushing his own door open and getting out.

In just a few breaths, his clothes were soaked through. Fortunately, with his current physical conditioning, he didn't need to worry about catching a cold.

"Who's there— RAT-A-TAT-TAT..."

A burst of intense gunfire erupted from the main gate, immediately followed by a series of agonized screams.

SQUELCH!

"Aaargh..."