Meanwhile, back in China.
Inside a small, tastefully decorated cafe, soothing music played, and the air was thick with the rich aroma of coffee.
At a window booth, however, the atmosphere was completely at odds with the leisurely environment.
“I’m telling you, Li Ming, that’s enough.”
Qian Meng took a sip of his latte, looking at his best friend opposite him with a face full of impatience.
“South Sudan is at war? Do you think this is a movie like ‘Wolf Warrior’? Given Wang Yu’s character, running 800 meters in gym class was like taking half his life; he’s going to war? Is he going to be a moving target for others?”
Next to him, Zhou Tong, a beautiful girl with exquisite makeup, also scoffed.
“Exactly. Before you brag, can you at least make a draft? Wang Yu himself told us he was going to Africa as an international volunteer to experience life. How did he become a mercenary with live ammunition in your mouth? Your bragging is a bit too outrageous.”
Li Ming’s face turned crimson from being rebuffed by the two, his neck even thickening a bit.
He slammed his hand on the table, splattering a few drops of coffee.
“Damn it! What do you know?!”
“Wang Yu and I grew up together, practically sharing pants; would he lie to me? If he said he’s going to South Sudan, then he’s going to South Sudan!”
“Besides, can’t volunteers encounter danger? Africa is a very chaotic place!”
Qian Meng rolled his eyes, too lazy to argue with him further.
“Alright, alright, if you say so. Your Yu Ge is the most amazing, one man can take down a reinforced company, happy now? Can we talk about something else?”
Wang Chen, who had been silent, pushed up his glasses, trying to mediate.
“Alright, alright, both of you say less. As long as Wang Yu is safe, wherever he is.”
“Safe?”
Zhou Tong pouted, her tone full of mockery.
“I think Li Ming is hoping he’s not safe, so he can use it as bragging rights. Would a true friend curse him like that?”
“You!”
Li Ming almost jumped up in anger.
Just then, his phone screen lit up with a ‘ding-dong,’ a special notification popping up.
Li Ming’s eyes instantly lit up.
He grabbed his phone as if clutching a life raft, triumphantly waving it at Qian Meng and Zhou Tong.
“Here it is! The man himself posted an update! All of you, look closely!”
Qian Meng and Zhou Tong exchanged glances, both showing expressions of anticipation.
Wang Chen also leaned in curiously.
Under the gaze of the three, Li Ming took a deep breath, and with an almost sacred sense of ritual, clicked on the Moments post.
The video played automatically.
The footage was shaky, the background noise was chaotic, filled with crackling sounds and shouts in an unknown language.
In front of the camera, a face they were all too familiar with appeared.
Wang Yu.
However, the Wang Yu in the video was a completely different person from the sunny, cheerful classmate they remembered.
His face was smudged with black greasepaint, his lips were chapped, and his eyes held an indescribable weariness and… ferocity.
He wore a dust-covered bulletproof vest, tightly clutching a dark assault rifle, the muzzle still emitting wisps of white smoke.
Behind him was a devastated battlefield.
Several car wrecks were burning fiercely, black smoke billowing into the sky.
The entire scene exuded a grim, smoke-filled aura of war.
The video was very short, only a dozen seconds.
Finally, Wang Yu pulled at the corners of his mouth towards the camera, revealing a smile uglier than a cry.
The video’s caption made everyone’s eyelids twitch.
“First day of studying abroad in South Sudan. The scenery is nice, but it’s a bit fuel-intensive.”
For a moment, the cafe booth was so quiet that only the background music could be heard.
Li Ming’s heart pounded, a mix of anxiety for his friend and the triumphant feeling of “I told you so.”
He cleared his throat, breaking the silence first.
“How… how is it? I didn’t lie to you, did I?”
His voice trembled with excitement.
A few seconds later, the comments section of the post instantly exploded.
“Holy cow! Yu Ge, where are you? Is this a real-life PUBG battlefield?”
“666! This scene, these props, much more professional than Hengdian! What’s the name of the film crew?!”
“Yu Ge is awesome! Landed with an M4, all gear picked up, right? Take me with you next time!”
“Line up! I was first! Yu Ge, do you need someone to ‘loot your bag’? My 8x scope recoil control is super steady!”
“Hahahahaha, this caption is genius!”
Looking at these joking comments, Qian Meng and Zhou Tong’s expressions softened slightly.
Zhou Tong let out a disdainful “Tch,” crossed her arms again, and resumed her haughty posture.
“What did I say? Isn’t this just a special effects video?”
“There are so many clickbait short videos like this online now. Going to the Ukrainian battlefield, being a chef in Syria, it’s all scripted.”
She glanced at Li Ming, a hint of sarcasm on her lips.
“I didn’t expect Wang Yu to go bad too, starting to shoot these videos to get traffic.”
Qian Meng immediately echoed her.
“Exactly! Zhou Tong is right! Li Ming, if you can’t provide other evidence, this lousy video alone won’t convince me.”
Li Ming was instantly choked up again.
To be honest, although he was outwardly tough, he was also having doubts internally.
Wang Yu’s physical fitness was indeed a weakness in high school.
Running 800 meters, he could practically see his great-grandmother at the finish line.
This athletic slacker suddenly turning into the gun-wielding tough guy in the video?
That change was indeed a bit too drastic.
Could it… really just be for a video?
Just as Li Ming’s confidence wavered, Wang Chen, who had been silent, suddenly frowned and pointed at the phone screen.
“Look, what’s that behind Wang Yu?”
Li Ming immediately leaned in, squinting to look closely.
The video quality wasn’t particularly high definition, and with the dim background, he could only see a dark, somewhat reddish mass next to a burnt car not far behind Wang Yu.
“What is it? Isn’t it just a broken tire or a car part? It got burned, so it looks like that.”
Zhou Tong said impatiently.
She snatched the phone from Li Ming’s hand, wanting to personally expose what she considered a flawed “hoax.”
“Let me see, I want to see what you guys can find…”
She brought the phone closer to her eyes, dragging the video progress bar back and forth, observing frame by frame.
Suddenly.
The disdain and sarcasm on her face instantly vanished, replaced by extreme horror.
Her pupils contracted sharply, her lips began to tremble, and her face turned pale at a visible speed.
The next second.
“Ah—!”
“Murder!!!”
The surrounding customers were startled by the sudden scream and all turned to look.
“Zhou Tong! What are you yelling about?!”
“What’s wrong? What did you see?”
Li Ming and Wang Chen also looked surprised and uncertain.
Zhou Tong didn’t answer; she just stared intently at the phone Qian Meng had picked up, extending a finger that trembled with fear, pointing at the screen.
Her voice, as if squeezed from between her teeth, was filled with endless coldness and terror.
“The… the phone… he… behind him…”
“That dark mass… it’s not a part…”
Zhou Tong came from a family of doctors; she had followed her surgeon father in and out of hospitals since childhood, making her intimately familiar with human anatomy atlases and various organ specimens.
She could clearly distinguish between a model prop and… actual human flesh and blood.
Trembling, she spoke word by word.
“That… that’s a human… liver… and… and a section of intestine…”
Boom!
These words, like a bolt from the blue, exploded in the minds of Qian Meng, Li Ming, and Wang Chen.
The whole world went silent.
Qian Meng’s arm, wrapped around Zhou Tong’s, instantly stiffened.
He looked at the video footage in disbelief.
On the screen, Wang Yu’s tired and somewhat fierce face remained frozen.
And that inconspicuous, dark red mass behind him, amplified by Zhou Tong’s words, now appeared incredibly eerie and terrifying.
Qian Meng’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down; he swallowed with difficulty, his voice terrifyingly dry.
“Zhou Tong, you… you mean…”
“Wang Yu… he… he killed someone?”
“Is he… really in South Sudan now?”