Chapter 149: Squeaking [Seeking Monthly Votes! Thank you!]

Through the cracked gap in the wooden door, the Tatar man glared with bloodshot, enraged eyes.

Li Tianque immediately shone his flashlight directly into the man's eyes, attempting to force him back with the blinding glare.

"Big brother, what is this all about? Let's talk things out!"

The Tatar man turned a deaf ear, not even bothering to shield his eyes from the harsh light.

"I have to kill you... I'm going to kill you..."

Li Tianque felt his mind go blank, on the verge of being swallowed by terror.

Unfortunately, the chainsaw had no concern for Li Tianque's feelings. Its formidable cutting power obliterated the security door in the blink of an eye. Wielding the chainsaw wildly, the Tatar man began to tear through the final metal framework.

Dazzling sparks burst forth in the darkness, painting his angry face in a ruddy glow.

Realizing the situation was turning critical, Li Tianque frantically hurled the surrounding cassette tapes at the Tatar man. He had hoped the man would use the chainsaw to deflect them, buying at least a little time.

Yet the Tatar man seemed to have lost even basic human instincts. Completely ignoring Li Tianque's harmless, tickling attacks, he pressed on with his cutting, continuously spewing angry curses, alternating between Mandarin and the Kang language.

This crazed lunatic was now within arm's reach. Li Tianque noticed that the Tatar man appeared to be in agonizing pain, his ashen face contorted with intense struggle.

Perhaps it was this overwhelming agony that had made him so restless, violent, and utterly devoid of reason.

What was the source of this pain, though? Could he have contracted some kind of disease? Or had he been injected with some drug?

Li Tianque had no energy left to ponder. Seeing that the Tatar man completely ignored his assault, he hurriedly threw a few more empty boxes.

His futile, mantis-trying-to-stop-a-chariot attacks did not cease. After hurling five empty boxes in succession, Li Tianque prepared to execute his plan!

Taking advantage of the moment when the Tatar man was fully focused on cutting through the metal frame, Li Tianque suddenly switched off his flashlight and threw the multi-tool in his hand straight ahead.

"Squelch..."

Hearing the sound, Li Tianque hastily flicked the flashlight back on, only to discover that the thrown tool had actually struck the Tatar man dead-center!

His previous box-throwing had been merely a feint; this was the genuine sneak attack!

The tool had embedded itself deep into the Tatar man's neck, half the blade vanishing from sight.

Expecting the projectile to be just another videotape, the Tatar man had not bothered to dodge Li Tianque's assault.

Although this place could be considered the middle of nowhere, Li Tianque still preferred not to take a life.

At the very least, his attack had landed and might buy him a little more time.

An ordinary person taking a knife to the neck at such close range would likely lose all fighting capacity, if not die outright.

Yet, after taking the blow, the Tatar man did not collapse in agony as Li Tianque had imagined. Instead, he grew even more furious, completely ignoring his gushing wound like a total madman.

He brandished the motorized chainsaw, roaring continuously like a chanting monk.

Because he was speaking in the Kang language, Li Tianque could not understand most of it, but he figured it was probably much the same as what the man had been shouting before.

It seemed that today, no matter what, the Tatar man was determined to fight him to the death.

Li Tianque's psychological defenses crumbled instantly. Almost simultaneously, the Tatar man broke through the remaining barrier between them and lunged wildly at Li Tianque, leaving barely a single step between them.

"Damn it..."

Li Tianque retreated hastily, reflexively holding up a wooden board to shield his head.

The chainsaw failed to descend immediately, yet Li Tianque's mind had already conjured up all sorts of horrific scenarios.

Moments later, Li Tianque realized he hadn't been sliced in two by the chainsaw; he could still hear its buzzing whine, but felt no pain.

After nearly two full minutes of waiting, Li Tianque finally opened his eyes in a daze.

When he saw the scene before him, he slumped to the ground in a wave of relief.

It seemed his guess was right—A Chu hadn't run away.

The flashlight was still rolling on the floor, and in its dim, chaotic beam, Li Tianque saw that the Tatar man's body was densely tangled in razor-sharp wire.

However, having grown up on the grasslands, the Tatar man possessed a sturdy build and physical strength far surpassing that of an ordinary person.

Though Li Tianque had been rendered utterly immobile when restrained by A Chu in this manner earlier, the frantic Tatar man seemed too wild to be completely subdued.

Gritting his teeth, the Tatar man strained against his binds, ignoring the wires as he attempted to swing the chainsaw once more.

The chainsaw tore furiously at the metal wires surrounding him. Though the wire was exceptionally tough, it quickly began to give way under the onslaught of the motorized chain.

Continuing to whirl the chainsaw, the Tatar man snapped every single wire wrapping around his body.

As severed pieces of metal wire spun and tangled in the chainsaw's teeth, showers of sparks flew in all directions.

Having freed himself with all his might, the Tatar man completely disregarded A Chu behind him and lunged straight toward Li Tianque.

At this critical juncture, the Tatar man's feet caught on the trailing wires, sending him sprawling heavily to the ground.

The chainsaw in his hand spun wildly where it landed, slicing open a massive gash across his own fingers and cracking the bone.

Blood pooled everywhere. Glaring furiously at Li Tianque, the Tatar man let out another roar.

Just then, A Chu drifted slowly out from behind the Tatar man, asking with an eerie chill,

"Where is he?"

Without answering, the Tatar man crawled toward Li Tianque like an evil spirit clawing its way up from hell.

"Kill... kill you..."

Regrettably, the metal wires binding the Tatar man were growing steadily tighter.

When the Tatar man had flailed his chainsaw with reckless abandon earlier, the dense wires had sliced deep into his flesh, many embedding themselves straight down to his bone.

If he attempted to struggle further or lunge at Li Tianque now, his fate would be no better than that of the fierce leopard, especially since human flesh and skin could never be thicker than a beast's.

"Last chance. Where is he?" A Chu demanded in an icy, menacing tone.

Still offering no reply, eyes bulging with veins, the Tatar man shrieked and dragged himself forward in stubborn fury.

Completely bewildered by the sight, Li Tianque blurted out,

"Why does he insist on killing me?"

"Simple. If he doesn't kill you, he dies," A Chu answered coldly.

The metal wires slowly pulled taut, forming a shape resembling a musical staff between A Chu's hands.

A Chu stepped slowly toward the Tatar man like a reaper claiming a soul.

At that moment, a profound heaviness gripped Li Tianque's heart.

He could not understand why the Tatar man was so bent on taking his life, nor did he wish to kill the Tatar man himself.

Perhaps nobody genuinely likes a bleeding heart, but someone who had never taken a life simply could not bear the psychological weight of stripping another human being of theirs.

Yet, at this moment, he could find no reason whatsoever to stop A Chu.

Gazing blankly at the unfolding scene, Li Tianque slowly clenched his fists.

A Chu soon drifted right up to the Tatar man, poised to deliver the fatal blow.

Right then, several bizarre cries echoed from within the Tatar man's body.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak... squeak, squeak, squeak..."

The sound resembled the squeaking of rats, identical to the eerie noise emitted by that living corpse.

As the sound rang out, the Tatar man spasmed violently, the corners of his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

The next instant, like a bull catching sight of a red cape, the Tatar man gripped his motorized chainsaw with mad frenzy, recklessly breaking free from the wire net A Chu had woven around him.

Whether it was because the wires weren't sturdy enough or because A Chu hadn't had time to prepare properly,

after breaking free, the Tatar man didn't suffer a fate as gruesome as the leopard's, nor was he shredded to ribbons of raw flesh.

Even so, large chunks of meat had been torn from both of his arms by the wires, leaving them drenched in blood.

Soaked from head to toe in splattered blood, the Tatar man looked even more fiendish and terrifying than before.

This time, he finally shifted his targets, raising the chainsaw without a shred of fear to sweep it straight toward A Chu behind him!