Chapter 41

The rhythm of the battle to break through the encirclement was almost predictable...

Li Shier was running ahead, but he would eventually be caught by players who had the system map, automatic tracking capabilities, and lighter loads. Even with two horses to switch between, Li Shier could dodge the players' ranged attacks, but his horse couldn't.

Of course, he could try his best to block the attacks, but he couldn't stop all of them. The two horses would eventually run out of health and fall, leading to a round of combat. He would kill the players, take new mounts, and start a new round of pursuit.

However, as the enemies got closer, they could launch ranged attacks at any moment, and the mounts he seized might not even have full health. Soon, there would be a second round, a third round... of combat.

If he wasn't strong enough, he would be worn down by the rounds of attacks and fall. If he was strong enough, he would only end up killing all the players' mounts, turning the situation back to what it was last night, where everyone was running on foot, continuing the chase and combat in the mountains. Without another miracle, he would eventually be overwhelmed by the endless waves of players.

However, both Dugu Fu and Li Shier seemed to have confidence in miracles.

While galloping, a fork in the road appeared ahead. Dugu Fu and Li Shier had already said everything they needed to say, so Li Shier turned to the innkeeper. He reached into his chest, took out a clay jar and a money bag, and handed them over: "This is all I can do. Second Brother, once you help her settle down, please tell me the address. The innkeeper died because of me, and I can't let his family go hungry or cold."

Hearing Li Shier say this, Dugu Fu also took out a bag of money: "This is actually my fault. If I hadn't insisted on keeping them, it wouldn't have happened..."

The innkeeper had been silently crying, but at this moment, she suddenly shook her head: "No, it's not your fault. This is fate. That day, more than ten people in the village died, and many more were injured. Many homes were burned to the ground... If it weren't for Hero Li, my husband and I would have died that day. I can't take this money; I have hands and feet, I can support myself..." As she pushed the money away, the lid of the clay jar slipped off, revealing the black ash inside.

Seeing the ash, the innkeeper hesitated: "This is..."

"This is... the innkeeper's ashes," Li Shier's voice was low.

The innkeeper's body trembled, and she suddenly remembered that when their line retreated to the third level, the first level had been completely burned to the ground. Li Shier had gone down again, killing many players and taking many wounds, eventually returning with this clay jar.

In that moment, the innkeeper's tears burst forth, and she hugged the clay jar, sobbing: "Thank you! Thank you!"

Li Shier shook his head, picked up Gong Er, mounted his horse, and set off, the reins shaking. In the distance, a bold and melancholic song drifted along the way—

"Battle in the south of the city, die in the north of the city, the dead in the wild are not buried, the birds can eat them."

"Tell the birds for me, and mourn for the guests."

"The dead in the wild are not buried, how can the rotting flesh escape from you."

"Today I fill the earth for you, who will bury my bones in the future..."

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Li Shier galloped along the main road with Gong Er. Dugu Fu took the innkeeper down the fork, without any delay.

Far behind, the players, urged on by Hong Qingsong's antique car, also galloped forward. It didn't take long for them to reach the fork. "Rumble..." The players unhesitatingly took the main road. Li Shier and Gong Er were on this road, so they would definitely chase this way.

However, when Hong Qingsong's antique car reached the fork, it paused. The car door opened, and a girl, whose clothes were torn to shreds, suddenly appeared. Her once pale and slender body was now bruised and purple, with bite marks and bloodstains around her small, rosy nipples. The few bodyguards who followed couldn't help but glance at her, but quickly looked away.

"Tch, acting all righteous," Hong Qingsong spat, "If we weren't in the middle of nowhere, I would have thrown her to you long ago."

The girl, who had been like a broken doll, suddenly struggled upon hearing this.

Hong Qingsong grunted, his fat jiggling, and his pig-like face showed a lecherous expression: "So you still have some strength left? Keep going, use more force!" As he spoke, he took out a monocular and aimed it at the fork. The antique car's windows couldn't be rolled down, so he had to open the door to look.

"I've searched for that Li Shier. His strength is indeed good, but... he's not smart enough to come up with so many tricks. Gong Er is even less likely, even if she is the main character of the plot. After all, she's only twelve, and even the completed Gong Er isn't a strategist. It must be... hmm, it must be that one who's always masked, and she even dared to look this way!"

"Everyone else, continue forward, kill Li Shier, and capture Gong Er alive. Hong San, you go and capture those two over there, I want them alive. If anyone dares to oppose me, I'll make the man wish he were dead, and the woman... hehehe, she'll be in ecstasy! A virtuous young wife, my favorite type. If you don't bring them back, you know the consequences."

As he spoke, saliva dripped down, wetting the struggling girl's chest.

"I don't... " Hong San started to speak, but seeing Hong Qingsong's narrowed eyes, he swallowed his words, nodded, and galloped down the fork.

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When Hong Qingsong was looking through the monocular, Dugu Fu was also looking back through his own monocular, which is why he said, "She even dared to look this way." Putting down the monocular, Dugu Fu felt a headache.

The strength of Hong Qingsong's bodyguards was clear after a night of testing. They couldn't win in a one-on-one fight with his brother, but against him, he could easily take on fifteen or twenty... the gap in levels was too great!

If he had time to set up, there might be a chance, but now, with only a few hundred meters between them, there was no time for anything. However, it didn't make sense... Dugu Fu didn't know Hong Qingsong very well, but he knew enough.

This guy was born with a disease, weak and fat, with a crazy and obsessive mind, but physically weak... if it weren't for his broad body, he would be blown away by the wind. It was a miracle that he could command a night of battle, and now he was still full of energy... he thought of the half-naked girl who had slipped out.

When he watched from the top of the mountain with the monocular, he thought the car was just a cover for Hong Qingsong's weakness, but now it seemed that wasn't the case... What should he do? Dugu Fu's mind raced.

"Someone is chasing us?" The innkeeper's face turned pale. After a night of watching, she, a woman, could clearly see Dugu Fu's strength... without traps or mechanisms, those cannon fodder players could bully him without using many moves.

It didn't matter who was chasing them; as long as someone was chasing them, it was trouble!