Chapter 975: Chapter 660: Loulanel City [06]—Just Me
The moon is bright and the stars are sparse, thin clouds dissipate, and silver moonlight scatters across the vast desert, undulating like the vast ocean.
Under the cover of night, groups of silhouettes move like tiny black dots, insignificant in the vast expanse. Yet, as involved parties, their emotions fluctuate wildly, with terror overwhelming everything.
When they were surrounded, the exploration team had just unloaded tents and other supplies from the car and hadn’t yet caught their breath when several vehicles encircled them.
They were stunned on the spot.
This scene reminded them of the fear dominated by robbers last year.
"I just washed the rice, who the hell is driving like crazy, scattering a potful of sand—"
Some hadn’t reacted yet, cursing while holding the pot, only to be dumbfounded when they looked up, their voice naturally stopping abruptly.
From the car parked beside them, a burly man with a knife scar on his face stepped down, a cigarette in his mouth, scrutinized him for a moment, then smiled at him.
"..."
He stiffly pulled the corners of his mouth.
In the next instant, the scar-faced man’s smile vanished, he raised his hand, knocked his pot to the ground while kicking him, directly flipping him over.
He sneered, "Quite loud, eh!"
"..."
The one who was kicked over didn’t dare utter a sound.
The scar-faced man raised his hand, moved his fingers, and next, everyone started moving, swiftly surrounding the exploration team.
On the other side.
Luna Durant and Stella Durant’s group reacted differently, they were not easy prey. All of them immediately drew sticks and got off the cars, confronting the newcomers. However, being outnumbered, they hesitated to make a move, both sides ended up in a stalemate.
Meanwhile—
Things were more complex on Jared Oliveira’s side.
Three groups, all with different stances, find themselves in the same peril, each harboring their own schemes, plotting their moves.
"Sis, what do we do?" Luna whispered in Stella’s ear, "Our people can’t make it here in time."
Stella frowned.
They had people secretly following them, but they were at a distance, unable to arrive quickly. With the people they brought, it’s very difficult to withdraw safely.
"Don’t we have the Living Map," Stella said coldly to Luna, "Let’s observe the situation first."
They stood aside, said nothing, did not resist, planning to act as the situation evolved.
As for the "Living Map" they mentioned—
Seeing the situation, his legs felt weak, but due to Master Sedgewick’s training, he couldn’t show his fear, so he forced himself, pretending to be calm and indifferent, playing the fake big-shot role quite convincingly.
Annabelle called out, "Mr. Oliveira."
She wanted to see Jared Oliveira’s abilities.
However, Jared slightly lifted his eyelids, leaned lazily against the car door, one hand in his pocket, casually asked, "Do you have anyone in this area?"
Annabelle paused, taken aback by his calm demeanor, mistakenly thinking Jared wanted to see her capabilities...
This was an opportunity to earn points.
After some thought, Annabelle suppressed her slightly anxious feelings, proactively said, "I’ll give it a try."
Jared’s eyebrow slightly moved.
Annabelle turned around, watching the group start searching for supplies, pondering how to respond.
"Hey—"
A lazy female voice suddenly emerged from the off-road vehicle, followed by two consecutive screams, drawing everyone’s attention.
In the next moment, they saw April Thomason emerging from the other side, dragging two men each weighing over 150 pounds. She walked leisurely, her figure enveloped by the cold moonlight, smiling cynically, resembling a bandit.
Tossing the two men onto an open space, she clapped her hands, raised her eyebrows, scanned the tense scene, "What’s the situation here?"
She seemed like an independent entity, detached from the entire event, each action contrasting sharply with the surrounding atmosphere.
"..."
For a moment, no one knew how to respond to her.
At this time, the scar-faced man stepped forward, he glanced at April Thomason, keenly detected a hint of kinship in her demeanor, immediately feeling wary. He exchanged glances with a few people around him, soon several set their sights on April Thomason, ready to attack in unison.
Someone unloaded a box of supplies from the car.
The scar-faced man kicked the supplies, "That’s the situation." After speaking, he added, "As long as you behave, we won’t hurt anyone."
April’s lips curled into a smile.
—These people really are bold.
However, she didn’t care much for the exploration team. As Jared Oliveira’s assistant, she only needed to watch over Jared, protect Nora Scott, and if possible, keep an eye on Frank Ford. As for the rest, she didn’t care.
She glanced at the people encircling, pointed to the off-road vehicle she exited, spoke unhurriedly, "As long as you don’t touch this car, I won’t interfere."
"Huh," the scar-faced man seemed to hear a joke, laughed, then instantly his expression turned grim, "Just you?"
While speaking, someone sneaked behind April. She, as if with eyes in the back of her head, suddenly turned around, swung her leg, precisely hitting the person’s head, making the person’s eyes roll back, falling unconscious instantly.
April Thomason’s set of moves was like a performance—clean and crisp, with a vicious edge that clearly showed she was capable of lethal strikes.
She turned around, clapped her hands, and smiled brightly, "Ah, it’s just me."
"..."
Scarface’s sense of alertness shot up.
This woman...
Could she be from the regular army?
If she hadn’t undergone formal training and accumulated experience, it would be difficult to develop such ruthless skills.
"You."
April suddenly tilted her head and gestured with her chin at another person preparing to approach.
The person ready to make a move: "..."
He froze in place, still holding a stick in his hand.
Facing April’s smiling eyes, he felt like he had encountered the devil and instinctively swallowed hard.
"Go get me a stool from the car," April ordered.
"Oh." Hearing her tone, as if it were a matter of course, he inadvertently responded and then turned to Scarface for guidance, "Boss—"
Scarface frowned tightly, as if he saw another woman’s figure in April, and, without thinking, waved his hand, instructing, "Get it for her."
The person: "..."
He stood still for several seconds, confirming that he hadn’t been dreaming, then with a blank mind, like a walking corpse, went to the SUV to get a stool for April.
April took it, placed it on the ground, and sat down boldly.
At the same time—
She slightly turned her head, picked up a stick, and swung it over, knocking down another would-be assailant.
Everyone: "..."
Seeing this, Scarface rubbed his jaw, feeling a bit of a toothache. He looked at the unperturbed April and finally said, "Don’t touch that car," then let the others continue their actions.
They indeed gave April that face.
As for April, she took care of what she needed to protect and ignored everything else, seemingly oblivious to the scene.
Annabelle Pinto, who originally hoped April could solve this troublesome situation: "..." She really was overthinking it.
At this moment, her phone vibrated. She took a quick glance while no one was paying attention and then felt assured.
—She had asked around about this person’s background, and thanks to a description of her appearance, she got accurate information.
"Steel."
She raised her voice and called out.
Scarface, busy reprimanding some people who wanted to secretly call the police, turned around upon hearing the call and saw a uniquely figured woman walking up to them.
He squinted his eyes.
*
The SUV drove on the winding road.
The car windows were open, allowing the chilly wind to rush in, slapping against their faces with a bit of excitement.
Frank Ford stretched, "Hey sis-in-law, are we almost there?"
"Mm."
Nora Scott responded.
So, Frank Ford leaned his head out, raising his eyes to look ahead, faintly seeing the glowing lights of the camp.
He somehow pulled out a pair of binoculars to confirm the exact location of the camp, but after a few glances, his expression gradually changed.
After a pause, he turned back to Nora Scott and said, "Sis-in-law, I don’t think things look right ahead. There’s about ten more vehicles and a lot of people. I feel like..." He was still concerned for Nora Scott’s safety, "Should we not head over there just yet?"
Although Nora Scott could handle a one-versus-ten scenario—
There were certainly more than ten people there.
Nora Scott’s mouth twitched slightly, "Is your expedition group cursed?"
"..."
Frank Ford was momentarily speechless.
He scratched his head, contemplating whether he should go back and burn incense, pray for peace, or get some charms for safety.
Encountering such situations twice indeed seemed a bit uncanny.
After a moment, Frank Ford noticed that not only did Nora Scott not slow down, but she actually sped up and asked, surprised, "You’re not stopping?"
"No need to."
Nora Scott smirked.
As the accelerator was pressed, the vehicle sped off.
