Seeing there was nothing to gain, Zhang Wei was about to turn and run when a faintly glowing, beer-cap-sized badge on a surgical cart in the room caught his attention.
He picked it up and examined it under the light from the hallway. The badge was dark black, and although small, it felt somewhat heavy in his hand.
The front depicted a goat-headed demon with a pair of wings on its back. Despite being a goat face, at first glance, it appeared somewhat delicate and pretty, and from a distance, it bore an eighty percent resemblance to a human face.
He flipped the badge over.
Order of Slaughter Conscription.
What is this?
These small characters left Zhang Wei utterly bewildered. Suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his palm and quickly flipped the badge back over.
“What the hell?!” Seeing the sight on the badge, Zhang Wei instinctively flung it away.
The goat-headed demon seemed to have come alive, its goat mouth wide open, a streak of fresh blood at the corner of its lips, revealing a mouthful of gleaming white teeth slowly chewing.
What was it chewing? Of course, it was Zhang Wei’s flesh. A thumb-sized wound on his palm made him almost doubt if he was seeing things.
He shook his head, looked again, and damn it, he wasn’t seeing things. There really was a small pit in his palm, blood flowing freely, with several teeth marks clearly visible.
“I'm going to punch you in the lung! Am I hallucinating?”
He really was hallucinating.
The badge he had just flung away reappeared in his palm in the blink of an eye. At this moment, the badge appeared somewhat transparent, and through its surface, Zhang Wei frantically saw that the goat-headed demon seemed to have moved, wiggling its backside, burrowing into his palm.
“Get out of my face!” Zhang Wei was greatly alarmed and tried to shake off this evil thing.
He shook his hand, then looked again, and where was the badge? His palm was perfectly intact, no small pit, no blood, no badge.
“Holy crap, I’m seeing a ghost!” He walked out of the operating room and raised his palm to examine it carefully under the corridor light.
He really was seeing a ghost. A coin-sized hole in his palm made Zhang Wei grit his teeth.
What the hell is this?
The hole was like a mirror, and in the mirror, a goat-headed demon was grinning wickedly at Zhang Wei.
Zhang Wei slapped himself in the face. As a staunch materialist warrior, he exclaimed, “Impossible, impossible! I must be seeing things.”
“Hero? What’s wrong with you?”
Next to him, Zhu Zi finally finished his work, unlocking the handcuffs of everyone present. Once freed, those people didn’t even say thank you and ran off, leaving not a single one behind.
Zhang Wei extended his palm towards Zhu Zi.
“Take a look, how’s my hand?”
Zhu Zi looked bewildered, thinking Zhang Wei was playing a trick on him. Seeing Zhang Wei’s serious expression, not like he was joking, he quickly pretended to seriously examine his palm.
The more Zhu Zi looked, the more bewildered he became. In Zhang Wei’s palm, besides a few shallow calluses from years of punching sandbags, there was nothing else.
“Hero?” Zhu Zi tentatively called out.
Zhang Wei slapped him across the face, “I told you to look at my hand, what the hell are you yelling about?”
This big slap stunned Zhu Zi. He dared not be angry, nor did he dare to speak. The sequelae of being beaten for years immediately made him stand at attention and shout:
“I was wrong, I won’t dare to do it again.”
Zhang Wei backhanded him with another big slap.
“I told you to look at my hand, what the hell are you blabbering about?”
Zhu Zi was even more bewildered now, and somewhat ingratiatingly said, “Hero, your hand is very powerful, it hurts a lot to be hit. Hero, did you practice Iron Sand Palm?”
“What Iron Sand Palm?!” Zhang Wei raised his hand, intending to hit him, but seeing Zhu Zi’s desire to dodge yet not daring to, he felt a sudden softness in his heart.
After repeated confirmation, Zhang Wei was certain that Zhu Zi couldn't see the abnormality in his palm. This was truly a ghost.
“Amitabha, you sister! Limitless Heavenly Venerate, you mother!”
Zhang Wei grumbled two slogans, which calmed him down a bit, then he called out to Zhu Zi, “Let’s go!”
Zhu Zi felt that Zhang Wei was crazy, but he didn't dare to say it, so he could only lead the way.
Zhang Wei followed behind, occasionally raising his palm to examine it.
The more he looked, the more frightened he became. Every time he raised his palm, the goat-headed demon would smile at him. It made him want to cut off his hand.
At this moment, Zhu Zi in front turned back and said ingratiatingly, “Hero, you were right to keep me. I’ve been trapped here for several years, constantly thinking about escaping. After several experiences of being caught while escaping, I’ve already planned a safe route that guarantees 100% success.”
The more Zhang Wei looked, the angrier he got, repeatedly examining his palm in front of his eyes. Every time he looked, the goat-headed demon smiled at him. “What are you smiling at, you sister?!”
He swung out a slap, hitting Zhu Zi squarely in front of him.
Zhu Zi looked full of grievances, weakly calling out, “Hero, what did I say wrong again?”
Zhang Wei knew he was in the wrong, but as someone famously stubborn, he didn't want to admit it.
So he said, “What safe route? Hurry up and lead the way.”
Zhu Zi both respected and feared Zhang Wei. He respected Zhang Wei for saving him, and he feared Zhang Wei because he seemed a bit crazy and would hit people at the slightest provocation.
Zhang Wei had a gun in his hand, so he didn’t dare to resist. Once they were out of the building, the square was bustling with people. Thousands were running out, and people were continuously pouring out of other buildings. The main gate was only wide enough for a small car, so how could they escape quickly?
In the distance, police sirens began to wail, and the crowd became even more chaotic. People were jostling each other, fleeing in terror.
Zhu Zi led Zhang Wei in the opposite direction, walking to the side. Zhang Wei was busy studying the goat-headed demon in his hand and didn’t pay much attention. When he came to his senses, he saw the wall in front of him and looked utterly bewildered.
“What is this? Where’s your safe route?”
Zhang Wei wanted to hit someone again.
Zhu Zi was full of confidence, pointing his hand, “Hero, please look.”
Zhang Wei looked in the direction he pointed. The wall was five or six meters high, built entirely of concrete, with barbed wire as thick as a thumb on top. Below the wall was a ditch about three meters wide, like a moat.
He kicked Zhu Zi in the butt, “Look at what? What time is it? You’re still playing mysterious with me. Can’t you just say it directly?”
“There’s a hole there, we can escape.”
Seeing that Zhang Wei was about to flare up again, Zhu Zi immediately blurted out the words.
He looked closely and indeed there was a hole, a dog-hole-like drainage ditch under the wall, submerged beneath the water, not easily seen without a careful look.
Zhang Wei looked, then turned and walked away.
Zhu Zi was puzzled, “Hero, if we swim out from here, behind us is a big mountain. Hiding in the mountain is much safer than going through the main gate.”
The building was built against the mountain, and behind it was indeed an endless mountain range. If they could really get out from here, it would indeed be much safer.
“Look under the water again, what’s there?” Zhang Wei reminded Zhu Zi as he walked.
Zhu Zi focused his eyes and saw, “Damn it, there were several five or six-meter-long large crocodiles in the ditch, just their heads sticking out, waiting for them.”