This was just empty talk; Zhang Lei could never truly consider them his elder brothers. But in this foreign land, he couldn't just watch them die like that. They were the only Chinese people here, and if those people really killed them, they would most likely turn on him as well.
Zhang Lei's mind had already weighed the pros and cons several times in an instant, and finally made up his mind the moment the two men went out. "Watch out!" Zhang Lei shouted and rushed out first, but he was a little late. When he went out, the two new big brothers had already stepped out the door.
Sure enough, the messenger immediately ducked and shrank back as soon as he stepped out the door, which made the two shareholders realize something was wrong. But by then it was too late for them to react. Two bullets, carrying a murderous aura, were heading straight for their chests.
Fortunately, Zhang Lei had time to react. The bullets were all coming from the same direction, which made it easier for Zhang Lei to intercept them. Otherwise, even if Zhang Lei activated his superpower, he probably could only intercept bullets from one direction. Moreover, Zhang Lei did not activate his superpower. Before figuring out whether there were any superpowered experts here, Zhang Lei did not intend to expose himself unilaterally. In this unprepared situation, the still unskilled Zhang Lei could not perfectly construct the reverse fluctuation with his internal energy.
"Bang!" Two bullets exploded in Zhang Lei's hand. These were SAM bullets with treated warheads; even if they didn't hit the target's vital organs directly, they could still be fatal. "Looks like the assassins are really determined to kill them!" Zhang Lei muttered to himself. Today he had witnessed the legendary SAM bullets for firsthand. Moreover, both bullets were coated with poison, similar to those on poisoned blowguns, but with some differences.
"Luckily, I learned how to conceal and convert poison from Brother Xiao earlier, otherwise I might have died while saving someone due to carelessness!" Zhang Lei secretly wiped the sweat from his brow. Sniper rifle bullets are inherently more powerful than ordinary bullets, and with the split warhead of the SAM bullets, and Zhang Lei not activating his special ability, his internal energy vibrations were perfectly accurate, allowing them to create several small openings. If he hadn't known how to convert poison, he might have already been poisoned.
Episode 3: The Bloody Path to Adulthood, Chapter 67: Sawing a Living Person (Part 2)
"There!" Seven or eight men carrying AK47s surrounded the area, not with fire sticks, and poured firepower at the spot where the bullets were being fired.
The sniping location isn't too far. While many sniper rifles have an effective range of over a thousand meters, even with a muzzle velocity of two thousand meters per second, the bullet will take half a second to travel that distance. In that time, even a normal person could walk two meters, making the required lead time and the element of chance too great. Furthermore, the longer the flight distance, the more unexpected factors it is susceptible to. Therefore, the most effective attack range is generally within one or two hundred meters.
This time was no different; therefore, at this distance where the power of a semi-automatic rifle could be fully utilized, only those who also served as bodyguards could effectively suppress the assassin.
This isn't Counter-Strike; flick shots are impossible. Sniper rifles simply can't hit accurately without aiming, and they can't be used like automatic or semi-automatic weapons, relying on a large number of bullets to achieve a hit.
These two assassins didn't seem to be any real gun experts; they didn't even have time to commit suicide before they were captured alive by the people who circled around from behind.
Shareholder Zhang's smile remained unchanged. He simply said with a grin, "Arrest him too!" He was pointing in the direction of the messenger who had come to deliver the message.
"I don't know what you're thinking. Is following them really better than following the two of us? You're just going to listen to them and kill us?" He kept switching between "them" and "us" in his words, making Zhang Lei dizzy. Maybe he didn't want Zhang Lei to understand in the first place, and was just mocking their internal discord.
At this point, Zhang Lei, as an outsider, should have been the most suspicious person. However, everyone saw that Zhang Lei had just blocked the bullet with his own hand. Therefore, Zhang Lei was completely cleared of suspicion, and no one dared to doubt him, as that would undoubtedly cause trouble for the two bosses who were extremely grateful to Zhang Lei.
Zhang Lei didn't want to get involved in these matters anymore. His interface had been damaged, so he asked for a room to rest and recover.
Although they didn't say it explicitly, Zhang Lei could guess that there were probably some problems among the four shareholders, and someone wanted to reduce the share of profits. This might also be the reason why they wanted to win over Zhang Lei, whose background was unknown and whose skills were more a matter of guesswork.
…………
While Zhang Lei was practicing self-reinforcement in his room, someone knocked on the door. "Mr. Zhang, our boss would like to see you, is that alright?"
Although the visitor's words left room for negotiation, the addition of the "Is it alright?" made Zhang Lei feel much more comfortable, and the unpleasantness of being interrupted from his self-reinforcing efforts seemed to lessen. "Yes, I'll go out right away!"
"Come, come, Brother Zhang, please have a seat. I'll show you a good show!" Zhang Lei's relative was extremely hospitable and invited Zhang Lei to take a seat.
The table was set up in a corner of the square. We Chinese like to set up a table for everything, but there were only three people at Zhang Lei's table. The others didn't seem to be qualified to sit at this table. Sometimes, Chinese people have a strong sense of hierarchy.
In the center of the square, three people were hanging upside down. One of them was the messenger from earlier, and the other two were probably the assassins who had been captured alive. All of them had their legs bound and were being lifted into the air, while their bodies were tied to thick wooden pillars.
What a waste! Although I don't know what kind of wood it is, it's so thick and the grain looks so fine. It would be very valuable if it were used as timber. But this is in a primeval forest, where wood is the least valuable commodity.
"Let's begin!" Without much further ado, shareholder Wang waved his hand.
The square was surrounded by a group of thin, dark-skinned Black people, who must be the miners. The fact that they had these miners stand guard was probably meant to make an example of them, and judging from their reactions, they'd probably been made the example of many times before.
"These three have already been dealt with. Their intestines have been removed to avoid affecting everyone's appetite." Besides Zhang Lei's table, there were three or four other tables filled with strong, muscular men of various races. They were probably the armed forces responsible for security and suppression.
"We also injected them with glycerol... what's it called again? Anyway, it's something to enhance their endurance and resistance, so they don't pass out too early!" Zhang Lei's relative explained to him. As he spoke, two shirtless burly men appeared in the arena. From the large saws they were carrying, Zhang Lei already guessed what they were up to.
This large saw was originally used for logging, but there's no rule that says you can saw wood but not people. Judging by their skill level, this probably isn't the first time they've done this.
"Watch the show, watch the show!" Zhang Lei's clansmen stopped making noise and looked at Zhang Lei with smug expressions, as if waiting for Zhang Lei to show some panic.
Although his mentality was strange, Zhang Lei could understand it. He had saved them as soon as he arrived, and while they would be grateful, they would also feel embarrassed, especially since Zhang Lei had refused their kindness. They would feel like they owed him something. In this situation, they hoped that Zhang Lei would also lose a little face. It wasn't necessarily out of bad intentions; it was just a bit petty.
A master is not necessarily accustomed to bloodshed. Many masters may never have killed a single person. Even if they have killed, seeing what others have done might make them want to vomit. These are two completely different things.
Two burly men picked up a large saw, placed it between the groin of one of the assassins, spat on their hands, and sawed it off from the groin.
The man struggled incessantly, but his legs and body were bound, leaving him with little room to move. Struggling only added to his suffering.
“Some people like to saw from the top down, but we prefer to start from the bottom. With the help of the medicine, he usually doesn’t die until he reaches at least the navel!” Shareholder Zhang explained to Zhang Lei. To his disappointment, Zhang Lei didn’t seem to have any problem accepting it; on the contrary, he seemed quite excited.
"Is the wood in the back there to prevent the big saw from cutting too fast?" Zhang Lei asked, turning his head, but by this point they no longer thought he was turning his head out of reluctance.
"Hmm!" Zhang Lei's relative let out a listless hum through his nose.
Episode 3: The Bloody Path to Growth, Chapter 68: Return Home (Part 1)
Perhaps Zhang Lei isn't hard-hearted enough yet, and he can't do what they do—sawing someone open from the bottom up. But looking at it, he doesn't find it disgusting or unacceptable, and he certainly won't let his sense of justice get the better of him and cause trouble for himself.
And so, Zhang Lei lingered in their mine for two days. During this time, he kept an eye on whether the pursuers would catch up with him. If he found any trace of the pursuers, he would have to leave immediately, regardless of whether the people here would be implicated.
Actually, Zhang Lei's plan to rest here was to have them hold off the people behind him. As for whether he would be blamed, Zhang Lei didn't care.
Although Zhang Lei could survive in the jungle, and few could survive better than him, it wasn't the life he was used to. He still preferred sleeping in a dry, warm bed; of course, warmth might not be necessary in southern Africa. He also preferred eating hot food, especially Chinese cuisine. The mine's chef, perhaps to cater to the tastes of the bosses, prepared the Chinese food quite well.
Two days later, Zhang Lei successfully emerged from the primeval forest, hiding in their diamond smuggling vehicle. They traveled along official roads, and thanks to their cover, they encountered virtually no trouble.
"Brother Wang, I owe you a favor. If you ever need my help in the future, just let me know. I may not have much else, but I certainly have plenty of strength!" Zhang Lei shook shareholder Wang's hand, speaking with great magnanimity.
But this guy used organizational discipline as an excuse and didn't leave his contact information with anyone. Even if someone needed his help, could they even reach him? Just knowing he's in China is like searching for a needle in a haystack among a billion people. And this guy even narrowed it down to "a bunch of brute force," meaning, don't bother contacting me for anything else.
Shareholder Wang was somewhat amused and exasperated. Zhang Lei thought he had been very discreet, but for someone like him who had been navigating the cutthroat business world for countless years, it was as obvious as lice on a white tiger cub.
"Look at what you're saying, Brother Zhang. If it weren't for you, Old Zhang and I would be dead by now. Nothing is greater than this life-saving grace. As for you, brother, if you ever encounter any difficulties in the future, just come to us two old brothers. As long as we're still alive, you'll be able to find one of us at that mine!" Shareholder Wang's words were much better than Zhang Lei's; at least he left Zhang Lei the method of creating a child. But thinking about it carefully, it was practically as if he hadn't left anything at all. Their mine wasn't a place you could walk; Zhang Lei had already been there. Even if he hadn't told him, wouldn't Zhang Lei have known where to look?
Moreover, the so-called life-saving grace may not be that great. Although Zhang Lei stopped the bullet halfway, no one knows whether they have a way to deal with it themselves. If they were so easily assassinated, they probably wouldn't have survived to see Zhang Lei's great face.
Zhang Lei had already guessed that the pursuit had become lax at this point. Most of the main force had probably already returned to China by now, and there was no point in keeping an eye on a small fry like himself.
Zhang Lei quickly made up a fake document and flew back to China, but the lanyard had to be put in the baggage compartment.
…………