This entrance to the Lost Valley was very different from the one Ning Gu used before. Upon entering, there was a small cave chamber with a single tunnel leading to a different place. The cave was rather small, with no trace of the bustling atmosphere he witnessed the last time.
There were no trading huts around, no owners leaving their goods behind to wander around and the hefty heaps of their items on the ground, only a scattered few individuals dressed in worn-out clothes, all seated in one corner. When they heard someone was coming in, those people didn’t react in any way. With their heads lowered, it was unknown whether they were alive or dead.
However, in contrast to the last time, there was only one tunnel here, eliminating the risk of going the wrong way. After all, it couldn’t be that this entrance just had one tunnel leading into a darkness with no return.
…But what if it did?
After some hesitation, Ning Gu looked back at Lian Chuan behind him, “You walk ahead.”
“Keep following me,” Lian Chuan didn’t mince his words and walked past him towards the tunnel, “You wouldn’t manage to escape me.”
“Then you’re just too confident,” Ning Gu remarked, “I managed to escape you quite a few times.”
Lian Chuan didn’t mind him and entered the tunnel. Ning Gu didn’t go right after him, watching Lian Chuan’s back while standing by the tunnel exit for a while. He only walked in when he made sure that Lian Chuan didn’t get ‘lost’.
In reality, he had no idea what being ‘lost’ meant. Lian Chuan’s steps, however, remained steady, showing no apparent difference from before. People said that Hyenas and city guards didn’t dare to enter the Lost Valley, that they would be done the moment they got there, but it didn’t seem very accurate.
The tunnel was quite lengthy, stretching straight ahead. Ning Gu started to feel done with the journey, but eventually, he heard the clamour of voices ahead.
“There’s someone there,” he said.
Lian Chuan grabbed his arm back-handedly, dragging him ahead and pushing him to the front.
“Why are you being so handsy all the time, cut it out!” Ning Gu was very displeased and pulled back with his arm. In the face of someone like Lian Chuan, whose every move left no reaction time, he even regretted suggesting that Lian Chuan follow him as a bodyguard.
It’d be better to just run!
But I can’t afford to lose this guy!
As the loud voices ahead grew clearer the closer they got, Ning Gu suddenly felt ill at ease.
There was another cavern at this end of the tunnel, a much larger one than the previous one, reminiscent of the trade hall he saw during his first visit. However, the purpose of this cavern was clearly quite different.
The expansive chamber was filled to the brim with people of all kinds. There were even several new styles of modifications in Bats he’d never seen before. Apart from that, there was also a group of people crowded together so tightly, it was virtually impossible to tell apart the vagabonds from the Travellers.
But despite their varying styles, they all shared the same emotion,all cheering excitedly at whatever was happening in the middle of the cavern.
And right there, there was a large platform towering over a man’s height, and on it were two… Ning Gu couldn’t find suitable words to describe them, but he knew that those were two Bats. However, they weren’t quite the same as the ordinary ones he saw before—compared to the Bats who only modified certain parts of their bodies, these two seemed to undergo a complete restructuring.Their entire bodies were ulcerated, revealing a network of metal frames beneath the broken skin.
And at that moment, those two metal frames were clashing in a fierce fight.
The surrounding onlookers were enthusiastically cheering, waving their hands; a lot of them were holding something, like cards or other items… the stakes for their wagers.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Ktf ogjwfr rtbkfv cb gfjmalbc ab atf mtjbr jgbecv atfw, olzjafv bcis bc fjmt batfg. C ‘gfofgff’ rerqfcvfv lc jc lgbc mjuf ogbw atf mjnf mflilcu, tbivlcu jc lgbc gbv, yjcufv la bnfgtfjv—atf qlfgmlcu rbecv bo atf mbiilvlcu wfaji ralggfv j kjnf bo ogjcalm mtffgr, jcv atf ogjwfr bc atf qijaobgw ifjqfv lcab atf jlg, mbiilvlcu wlv-oiluta.
This was the rumoured ‘performance’ from the Bats’ entertainment places; Lian Chuan glanced at it but couldn’t bear to watch. Just as he wanted to leave through any of the tunnels to find a less crowded place, he suddenly noticed that Ning Gu was nowhere to be found.
He furrowed his brow. Did he really just let that guy escape?
Lian Chuan found it hard to believe. He had never experienced a situation where his target escaped right under his nose. He pinched his brow. Could it be that he was unwittingly getting influenced by something in the Lost Valley?
.o0o.
Ning Gu spotted two Travellers ahead, each carrying a bag, likely preparing to go look for a trade. He caught up to them, “Which way to the trading location?”
One of the Travellers turned around. “Ning Gu? Didn’t Captain lock you up in the clocktower?”
This Traveller hadn’t shared the same wagon with Ning Gu on their journey to the Main City; on their way here, Ning Gu almost got buried with the similar questions.
“I got released,” He stuck to the same response as before, “Answer me, quick.”
“Up ahead, take the left passage,” The Traveller replied, a hint of unease in his voice, “You’re not with anyone? Just on your own?”
“What are you fretting about?” Ning Gu quickly bolted towards the pointed out passage.
He was indeed a bit afraid, but not of taking the wrong path; in such situations, Travellers wouldn’t deceive their own. What he feared was Lian Chuan catching up. After all, this guy was like a phantom, always able to appear in the least expected places at the least expected times.
Just as he reached the entrance to the passage, Ning Gu saw two figures inside. They were Bats, the ones Li Xiang had told him about and ones he met the last time—Jiu Yi’s Black Ring squad.
Just what kind of bad luck was that!
Without a moment of hesitation, Ning Gu turned around and sprinted back to where he came from. Sure enough, those two immediately gave chase.
They were remarkably fast. Just as Ning Gu got back to the tunnel leading to the Bats’ arena, the footsteps behind him felt as if they were closing in on the back of his head.
Just as he was about to fish out a stun grenade from his pocket, he glanced up and saw Lian Chuan standing in the middle of the tunnel.
“Quick!” He no longer cared whether he could afford to lose this guy, “Behind me…”
Before he could even finish his sentence, Lian Chuan had already swiftly passed him. When Ning Gu turned his head back in astonishment, he saw the two Black Rings already sprawled on the ground.
“Are they dead?” He asked.
Lian Chuan remained silent, slowly walking towards him. This time, his pace was normal, but the words he uttered sent a shiver down Ning Gu’s spine.
“If you run again,” Lian Chuan stared at him, “You’ll end up lying there with them.”
.o0o.
“Who did this?!” Jiu Yi leaped off the metal pedestal, furiously swinging his arms in the air. The metal spikes extending from his fingers hissed and glinted with the cold silver light, and upon landing, he hammered a fist into the floor beside his leg, driving all five spikes on his right hand through the ground.
“Who was it?” Jiu Yi rose slowly, eyeing Longevity, who had just returned with the information.
“There are no witnesses. Black Rings wanted me to inform you that two of the brothers were killed in one strike.” Longevity frowned, “No weapons were involved; the strike went straight through their hearts.”
“In one strike?” Jiu Yi swiftly turned his head.
“That’s what they said.” Longevity confirmed.
Jiu Yi fell silent for a few seconds, then suddenly bursted into laughter. At first it started off quietly, but quickly escalated from a hoarse chuckle to a sharp, piercing cackle, revealing the excitement and madness within.
“It’s almost certainly him,” Jiu Yi continued to pace in circles while laughing, “Who would have thought, who would have thought… The most powerful Hyena in the Main City had actually entered the Lost Valley.”
“Lian Chuan?” Longevity asked in astonishment.
“Bare-handed, lethal in a single strike moves are not unheard of. From what I know, Lei Yu, Long Biao, and Li Liang are all able to do bring it off, but to kill two in a single strike,” Jiu Yi rubbed his chin with excitement, then suddenly raised his voice to a furious howl, “And they were my Black Rings!”
After this outburst, he immediately grinned again, “So it must be Lian Chuan.”
Longevity joined in with uncontrollable laughter, “Lian Chuan!”
“Go,” Jiu Yi waved his hand at him, “Tell the Black Rings and your other brothers that no matter why Lian Chuan came here, they must catch him first.”
“How should they catch him?” Longevity asked.
“With their lives!” Jiu Yi howled, then raised his head to look up, “Don’t worry, once Poet wakes up, he’ll definitely get affected, so catching him won’t be difficult… Don’t you want to see what kind of the most powerful Bat will get created by transforming the most powerful Hyena?”
“I do—!” Longevity bounced up and down in place, his voice trembling from excitement.
“Then go!” Jiu Yi hollered.
.o0o.
Ning Gu walked briskly ahead. The directions given him by his fellow Travellers were accurate, and he recognised a familiar sight when he left the last passage: it was the same chamber he saw when Hammer brought him here the last time. Back then, he didn’t even get the chance to stroll around before he got chased out of the Lost Valley when that Yellow Flower Eye started shouting after him.
Curse that guy!
The moment he thought about that person, Ning Gu quickly lowered his head and darted into a nearby passage. When Lian Chuan joined him, he explained, “I’ve got enemies here.”
Lian Chuan remained silent.
While Ning Gu wasn’t particularly talkative, the Travellers usually had a lively lifestyle. Unlike Lian Chuan, they were all very animated, whether it was during a fight, a verbal clash, when running away or at the moment of death, everything was lively.
Now, faced with Lian Chuan’s demeanour, he found it a bit disconcerting. After glancing at him once, he didn’t attempt to start a conversation. Instead, he awkwardly turned his head away and started walking ahead, preparing to lead Lian Chuan to the little room Li Xiang had shown him before.
He hesitated to enter the other empty rooms, unsure if there might be an ambush awaiting for them.
“Let’s take a breather here first,” Ning Gu entered the room. It was empty, and it looked just as barren as the last time. He leaned against the rock wall and looked at Lian Chuan, “We have to get along nicely now, so we’ve gotta set some rules…”
Lian Chuan stood in front of him, watching silently.
Ning Gu realised that since this guy probably did nothing outside of missions, he always stared straight at people as if they were his mission targets. There was no subtlety; once he fixed his gaze on you, he would stare at you like a goddamn vulture.
Ning Gu pulled up his collar to cover the lower half of his face, “Let’s exchange some info first, about the purpose of coming here.”
“Capturing you,” Lian Chuan replied.
“Fine,” Ning Gu paused for a moment, “I came here to…”
“Not my business.” Lian Chuan interjected him.
Ning Gu swore to himself that if he managed to live through that day, he would force his power to awaken at any cost to beat the living crap out of Lian Chuan.
“Whatever.” He leaned hard against the stone wall, then slid down against it to sit on the ground.
Lian Chuan continued standing, not even budging.
The two of them remained silent for several minutes, one sitting and one standing. However, Ning Gu failed in holding out like this. Just what kind of crap was this? He might as well go outside and give Yellow Flower Eye a beating.
Just as he was about to stand up, Lian Chuan suddenly swayed.
The way he swayed seemed off, not very like he intended to move or walk, but more like… he was unsteady on his feet.
He looked up at Lian Chuan, only to suddenly notice that the red light in the little crypt began to dim.
“We’re getting out, quick!” Ning Gu reacted immediately.
No matter if Poet was only a lie made up by Li Xiang to fool him, there was definitely something wrong with the places where the light disappeared.
He kicked himself off the ground and bolted outside of the room.
After he got outside and stopped, he realised that despite Lian Chuan’s speed, this guy failed to get there before him. When he turned his head to have a look, Lian Chuan was still standing in the same spot.
“Get out!” Ning Gu was kinda anxious, and hissed at him in a hushed voice, “Lian Chuan!”
Inside the room, Lian Chuan inclined his head to glance at him, then suddenly fell backwards. Following that, he fell onto the floor with absolutely no sign of resistance.
Ning Gu stood frozen outside the door, staring at this scene in disbelief.
Thanks a lot for the translation! ❤
That why I don’t like poetry
Thanks for the chap!❤️❤️❤️