Chapter 2

The sudden gunshot startled Gao Yang, and before he could even shout for help, a series of intense gunshots followed.

Hearing the gunshots like popping beans, Gao Yang abruptly turned his head and saw two groups of people firing at each other about five or six hundred meters away. Although the distance was quite far and the view was not very clear, Gao Yang was certain that this was not a hunting scene; it was a real battle.

Gao Yang's heart sank to the bottom, and without hesitation, he immediately lay down in the grass. Although the distance was still quite far, Gao Yang did not want to be hit by a stray bullet or be discovered by either side. Who knew who was fighting? It was better to stay hidden.

The only thing he could hear was the intense gunfire, and his view was blocked by the tall grass. However, Gao Yang had no intention of getting up to see what was happening. He only hoped that no one had seen him.

The battle started suddenly, but the gunfire soon became sparse, though it did not completely stop. Gao Yang soon realized with surprise that the gunfire was getting closer.

The gunshots occasionally rang out, rapidly approaching him.

Gao Yang inwardly cursed. With a surge of adrenaline, he felt his mouth dry and his hair stand on end, and his hands began to tremble uncontrollably.

Gao Yang forced himself to calm down. He pulled out the hunting knife from his waist, took a few deep breaths, and cautiously raised his head to observe.

Two black men in camouflage uniforms were running towards where Gao Yang was hiding, and behind them, about seven or eight people were chasing, firing at the two black men. Soon, the one at the back was hit in the chest and fell to the ground.

The remaining black man was still running towards Gao Yang. To his horror, this black man ran faster than a rabbit. Despite the initial distance of several hundred meters, it had only been about a minute since the gunfire started, and now he was less than fifty meters away from Gao Yang. The distance was rapidly closing as the black man ran for his life.

The fleeing black man occasionally fired a shot to slow down the pursuers. When he turned to fire again, his gun did not go off; he was out of bullets. A bullet then hit him in the head with a muffled thud, and his brains splattered in the air.

Gao Yang, lying on the ground, could see everything clearly without lifting his head, as the black man would have stepped on him if he had not died.

When the last fleeing black man fell, a cheer went up. At this moment, Gao Yang only wanted to cry. He deeply regretted not running away at the beginning. If he had, he might not have attracted the attention of the two sides. Now, it was too late to run.

The cheering soon stopped, and a voice rang out.

"Iga, go check it out. The rest of you clean up the battlefield. We need to leave quickly."

The speaker used English, though with a strange accent, but Gao Yang could understand him.

The footsteps grew closer. Looking at the almost reachable corpse, Gao Yang knew he could not hide any longer. After a moment's hesitation, Gao Yang decided to be proactive.

To avoid any misunderstanding, Gao Yang first put the hunting knife back in his waistband. Then, lying on the ground, he shouted in English, "Don't shoot! I am Chinese, I have no gun, I am not a threat. I am a survivor of a plane crash. Please listen carefully, I am Chinese, a survivor of a plane crash, and I am not a threat."

"Who is it? Come out, raise your hands and come out."

The other side did not immediately shoot, which slightly relieved Gao Yang.

"I'm coming out, don't shoot, please. I am injured, very badly, and I will move slowly. Please don't shoot."

As he spoke, Gao Yang slowly stood up, raised his hands, and stood still. He noticed that the nearest black man was about seven or eight meters away, and there were six other black men scattered at various distances, about a hundred meters away. However, everyone had their guns pointed at him.

Seeing Gao Yang's face, the nearest black man seemed to believe he was not a threat and relaxed a bit. At this moment, someone in the distance shouted, "Iga, who is it?"

The black man named Iga, holding a rusty AK-47 and wearing a tattered camouflage uniform and flip-flops, did not look like a regular soldier. He pointed his gun at Gao Yang, ran up to him, and after a careful look, turned his head and shouted, "It's a yellow-skinned guy. He says he is Chinese and has no gun."

Gao Yang, with his hands raised, though extremely nervous, forced a smile and shouted, "Sir, I survived a plane crash. I am the only survivor. If you and your friends can help me, I will do everything in my power to repay you. Please don't kill me. I will give you a lot of money. Helping me will be more beneficial to you."

As he spoke, Gao Yang kept his eyes fixed on Iga's gun. They were almost face-to-face, and the gun was within arm's reach. Gao Yang was afraid that Iga might pull the trigger while he was speaking.

After Gao Yang finished speaking, he received no response from Iga, but from a distance, he heard a word he did not want to hear: "Kill him!"

Gao Yang's heart sank, but Iga did not immediately pull the trigger. Instead, he turned his head and shouted, "He says he can give us a lot of money."

"Idiot, kill him!"

Hearing "kill him" again, Gao Yang did not hesitate. Taking advantage of Iga's distraction, Gao Yang's left hand grabbed the gun barrel, lifted it upward, and with his right hand, pulled out the hunting knife. He then lunged forward, tackling Iga to the ground.

While pinning Iga down, Gao Yang pulled out the hunting knife. Iga, caught off guard, instinctively pulled the trigger, and the rapid gunfire rang in Gao Yang's ears. The gun barrel, having just fired, was very hot, and after Iga pulled the trigger, the gun barrel became even hotter. Gao Yang endured the pain, refusing to let go, and made sure the gun was not pointed at him. He then thrust the hunting knife into Iga's abdomen, piercing upward.

After thrusting the knife to the hilt, Gao Yang shifted his body, pulled out the knife, and thrust it upward again, this time piercing Iga's heart. Iga convulsed once and then stopped moving.

Although it seemed slow, everything happened very quickly. From the moment Gao Yang acted to the end, only two or three seconds had passed. By the time the others reacted, it was too late.

Gao Yang grabbed the AK-47, took a deep breath, and then knelt on one knee, quickly aiming and firing two shots.

The gunshots echoed, and two figures fell, both hit in the chest and immediately killed.

After firing two quick shots, Gao Yang immediately rolled to the ground, pulled his hunting knife from Iga's body, and quickly crawled to the side. As he crawled away, bullets hit the ground where he had just fired, sending grass and dirt flying.

Gao Yang's sharp shooting skills intimidated the enemy. Although they fired intensely, no one dared to charge forward. Gao Yang was also surprised by his own shooting skills, which had not diminished after so many years.

After crawling about ten meters, the gunfire stopped. Gao Yang did not dare to crawl further. He stopped, slowly raised his head to observe, and saw that the remaining four enemies were crouching and slowly approaching him.

Gao Yang took a deep breath, quickly knelt on one knee, and fired two more shots. One of the enemies fell.

This time, the enemy was more cautious, exposing less of themselves. Gao Yang's two shots only hit one enemy.

Killing and taking the gun, then quickly firing, was not Gao Yang's initial plan. He had hoped the enemy would spare him or even help him. It was only after hearing the order to kill him twice that he decided to fight back. The success was unexpected, but the second time he fired, it was a conscious decision, though the effect was not as good.

After firing and exposing his position, Gao Yang lay down again and quickly crawled, ignoring the "rustling" sound of bullets hitting the ground. He just kept his head down and crawled forward.

When the gunfire stopped again, Gao Yang stopped crawling and cautiously raised his head to observe. This time, he did not see the enemy. The tall, dense grass provided good cover for both sides, making it difficult to spot each other when lying down.

After catching his breath, Gao Yang slowly crawled forward. His right knee was in excruciating pain, and his left hand was swollen from the hot gun barrel. Gao Yang gritted his teeth and slowly moved forward.

The grassland was now silent, as if no life-and-death struggle was taking place. After crawling for several dozen meters, Gao Yang stopped and observed again, just in time to see a black man's forehead peeking out, looking in his direction, though he did not seem to have noticed him.

The distance between them was about seventy or eighty meters, and the enemy did not dare to approach quickly. This gave Gao Yang a slight relief, and he finally had time to check how many bullets he had left.