Chapter 312: Jiang Xia and Qin Yun (2/3)

After waiting a while longer, the kidnapper turned into a side alley, his figure vanishing completely from Qin Yun's sight, even his footsteps fading into the distance.

Qin Yun stepped out swiftly and continued forward along the corridor.

So far, along his path, he had already found five hostages, each held separately in different isolated small chambers.

Of twelve hostages, only five had been found; seven still needed to be located.

Not long after, another chamber lay ahead, enclosed by wire mesh; Qin Yun crept forward silently. Peering inside, he saw only one hostage, slumped against the wall, hair hanging over his face, obscuring his features.

"Six."

Qin Yun glanced at the hostage, then turned to the side, where three corridors branched off, leading deeper into the mine tunnels. Without hesitation, he stepped into the first branch. After walking a dozen steps, he suddenly stopped.

Then, a figure emerged from one of the chambers, yawning as he walked out.

Qin Yun, hidden in the shadows, was close enough to clearly see the stubble on the man's face and smell his sweat. Instantly, Qin Yun's gaze sharpened—he recognized this man.

Hassan Said!

The Hassan who had signed up—now everything else fell into place.

He stared coldly at the man, making no move, watching as the man slowly walked away.

He had spatial memory; the entire mine's structure was gradually forming in his mind. The corridors crisscrossed like a spiderweb, dense as an underground ant colony—anyone unfamiliar would surely get lost, but for him, getting lost was impossible.

Once the man's back vanished from view, Qin Yun quickly increased his pace in searching for hostages.

He methodically checked each isolated chamber, every hidden corner, searching rapidly.

Half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.

Qin Yun halted before another chamber enclosed by wire mesh. By now, he had successfully found eleven hostages—only one name remained on the list of twelve.

He looked up at the wire-mesh chamber before him; clear signs indicated someone had been held here, but no one was present now.

"Yang Jiawei, Liu Feng, Han Tingting… Jiang Xia."

Twelve names, twelve photos, twelve sets of information flashed through his mind.

Based on his comparisons, the hostage held in this chamber was undoubtedly Jiang Xia—she was a travel blogger, twenty-four, young, beautiful, with a stunning figure, an undeniable beauty.

Being in the hands of these kidnappers, a woman of such beauty was clearly at far greater risk than the others.

"I hope she's alright!"

All he could do was pray this woman named Jiang Xia had not been harmed—if something unspeakable had happened, it would be a lifelong shadow.

Soon, he vanished from his spot, rapidly scouring the entire mine area.

Another half-hour passed, and Qin Yun appeared before a chamber from which a continuous "oooh oooh oooh" sound emanated.

Of all the chambers, this was the only one hung with a curtain.

He gently pulled it aside and peered inside—the scene instantly filled his vision, and his expression darkened sharply. On a crude wooden plank bed, a figure lay bound at all four limbs, stretched out in a star shape, pinned to the bed.

The person on the bed was Jiang Xia.

At this moment, Jiang Xia's clothing had been completely stripped away; her fair, smooth skin was fully exposed to the air. Her limbs were tightly bound with coarse hemp ropes, deep red marks gouged into her wrists and ankles, the skin nearly torn through.

Her hair was disheveled, her shoulders trembling slightly; "oooh oooh" sounds came from her nose, her mouth sealed shut with thick tape.

Beside the bed stood a tall figure, motionless.

"Why struggle? Look, you've already bruised your skin—this isn't beautiful anymore."

Farah's eyes locked onto Jiang Xia's body, his greed nearly tangible.

He shed his outer garment, revealing his muscular, darkened upper body, then raised his rough hand and pressed it directly onto Jiang Xia's chest.

The instant Jiang Xia felt that disgusting kidnapper's touch, her whole body shuddered; her fear intensified, tears poured freely, and her struggles surged violently, ignoring the pain in her bound limbs.

Farah squeezed twice, then chuckled lowly, immediately pulling down his pants without hesitation.

Seeing this, Qin Yun ripped the curtain aside, his body flashing like a lingering shadow—vanishing from his spot, reappearing instantly behind Farah.

He reached out, seized the man's nape, and slammed him violently to the ground.

"Bang—!"

When a man in the throes of arousal crashes face-first into the floor, the outcome needs no elaboration. Farah didn't even cry out—he was overwhelmed by searing pain, then collapsed like a pile of mush.

After dealing with Farah, Qin Yun turned his gaze to the woman on the bed.

Jiang Xia stared fixedly at this sudden intruder—his familiar face, his swift, ruthless actions.

"Oooh oooh… oooh oooh…"

Qin Yun quickly pulled out his dagger and sliced through the ropes binding her limbs; then a trembling body flung itself upon him, clinging desperately.

The problem was, she was completely naked—this left him deeply awkward.

"Put on your clothes first!"

Qin Yun could only remind her, then gripped her shoulders, forcing her to calm down.

Jiang Xia tore off the tape from her mouth; her fear had not faded, and as for shame—there was no room for shame now, only the overwhelming luck of survival.

Only after she had dressed and staggered off the bed did she speak.

"Qin… Qin Ye… Am I dreaming?"

She stared at Qin Yun, utterly incredulous—how could a man who had been live-streaming in the Serengeti suddenly appear here?

Then, a sudden flash in her mind—she looked stunned: "Qin Ye, did you see my message?"

"That message was yours?" Qin Yun froze.

Jiang Xia nodded vigorously, grateful she had dared to leave that message—if Qin Yun had arrived even a moment later, she would have been violated. Even if rescued afterward, she would never have had the courage to live.

"Not now. Including you, I've found all the hostages. You must stay here until I've dealt with all the kidnappers before I can take you out."

"Qin Ye, I want to come with you—I know how many kidnappers there are."

Jiang Xia looked at the man before her, a sense of safety she had never known settling over her heart.

It was this man who had descended from nowhere, rescuing her from utter despair.

"Uh… fine!"

Qin Yun hesitated; though the man had hidden it well, fear still lingered in his eyes. Then he looked down at the man on the ground and kicked him squarely in the back of the neck—no hesitation—to ensure he wouldn't wake up mid-process, then tied him up with a rope nearby.

"Follow me!"

The two quickly left the cave chamber and soon found a place where the kidnappers rested.

There were two ground mats, each with a figure lying on it.

Qin Yun slipped inside, his hands brushing over the two men's Ya Men acupoints; instantly, both on the ground mats went limp and slipped into unconsciousness.

"There are thirteen kidnappers total. The leader… was the one named Farah."

Qin Yun nodded slightly and repeated the motion, binding the men back-to-back.

Things were far easier than he'd imagined—this deep into the night, most of the kidnappers were already asleep; dealing with them was no different than stepping on an ant.

In less than half an hour, all the kidnappers except the two at the mine entrance were knocked out and tied up—including Hassan Said.

The two kidnappers at the entrance gave him no trouble either; before they could react, he easily knocked them unconscious.

"Jiang Xia, go back to your cave. I won't show myself—I'll notify the Kenyan police. They'll rescue you."

At Qin Yun's words, Jiang Xia panicked.

"Master Qin, I want to go with you. I'm scared here."

As he spoke, Jiang Xia put on a pitiful, delicate expression—the kind of frail beauty that made one want to comfort him. Too bad Qin Yun was straight.

"No. You must stay here," Qin Yun's tone admitted no argument. "But don't worry—I'll stay nearby until you're rescued."

"But—"

"Trust me."

"Then where will I find you afterward?"

"Don't look for me. The embassy will arrange for you to return home directly."

Jiang Xia had no choice but to yield. Then Qin Yun took out his phone and dialed a number.

It was barely four in the morning; when Guo Feiyan answered the call, she was still half-asleep.

Only after Qin Yun repeated himself twice did she fully wake up.

"What? Found them? Where? Okay, I'll send Kenyan police right away. Fine, you withdraw. Don't worry about anything."

After hanging up, Guo Feiyan still couldn't believe it.

But she knew such a major matter couldn't be a lie.

Soon, a location ping and a string of data appeared on her phone—the latitude and longitude coordinates.

……

An hour later, over a dozen police cars appeared around Gypsum Mountain, surrounding the entire peak with impenetrable precision.

Immediately, fully armed special police forces stormed into the mine.

Not long after, twelve hostages were successfully extracted, and all thirteen kidnappers were carried out on stretchers.

Watching this, Qin Yun turned and walked away. He swept his sleeve—leaving not a single cloud behind.