Chapter 86

The courtyard was utterly silent, save for the occasional chirping of insects and birds.

Yu Dazhang stood in the center of the courtyard, swiftly scanning the corpses on the ground.

He then tossed the weapons from the bodies to one side.

The officers at the gate also came over, gathered the weapons together, and carried them into the self-built house.

Yu Dazhang removed a magazine, reloading as he said to the officer:

"Stay here. Don't go anywhere."

The officer nodded:

"You be careful."

Seeing no further danger in the courtyard, Yu Dazhang hurried out.

Outside, on the blue stone path, he oriented himself and sprinted toward the location where the gunshots had been heard.

Along the way, as he passed each household's gate, he slowed to observe carefully.

Especially near the walls—he gave those spots extra attention, fearing ambushes.

Hurry as he might, he couldn't afford to let his guard down.

If someone was crouched on a wall and fired a hunting rifle, he'd die too foolishly.

Fortunately, the gunfire had been close by; he walked only five minutes before seeing people again.

Outside one household's gate stood several men and women dressed as farmers, all at least fifty years old.

They were staring blankly into the house, seemingly captivated by something inside.

Yu Dazhang immediately raised his gun and aimed at them.

"Hands on your heads, squat against the door!"

After shouting, he moved to the opposite side of the gate, quickly adjusted his angle, and kept his gun aimed inside, ready to shoot at any moment.

To Yu Dazhang's surprise, they complied without resistance—none fought back, all obeyed obediently.

They pressed their bodies against the doorframe and squatted, hands raised high over their heads, then fixed their gazes on Yu Dazhang.

As if silently asking: Is this the right posture?

This left Yu Dazhang bewildered.

Are they not from this village?

Just minutes ago, he had fought a bloody battle with people from this village—the scene still vivid in his mind.

Almost all of them were ruthless, fearless killers.

How could things change so drastically just by switching households?

Had age drained their bloodlust?

As he pondered, he moved toward the center of the gate, gripping his pistol tightly in both hands.

If he sensed the slightest irregularity, Yu Dazhang would shoot without hesitation.

When he was still about three meters from the front door, a voice came from inside:

"Who's there?"

Zhang Sen!

Yu Dazhang immediately recognized his voice.

"It's me, Yu Dazhang."

He replied, then sprinted to the front door—what he saw froze him in place.

Zhang Sen sat on the steps of the main house in the courtyard, one leg drenched in blood.

His face was as pale as paper, his brows tightly furrowed, his body trembling slightly from pain.

Yet he still held on, pointing his gun at the two men across from him.

The two men were about six or seven meters away from him.

Between them lay another man on his back, his chest soaked in blood, alive or dead, unknown.

Yu Dazhang first ordered the people squatting by the gate to enter the courtyard and squat again against the wall.

He also commanded the two men to raise their hands over their heads and squat to one side.

Seeing no immediate danger, Yu Dazhang hurried to Zhang Sen's side.

He first glanced at his wounded thigh—seeing no vital artery damaged, he exhaled in relief.

If the major artery had been hit, Zhang Sen wouldn't have lasted this long; even the most optimistic scenario would've been hypovolemic shock.

Then he picked up a crude shotgun from the ground and placed it on the step beside Zhang Sen.

After finishing this, he took out his phone, turned off silent mode, and saw over twenty missed calls: two from Captain Wei Qian, the rest all from his master, Lu Zhongxin.

He called Lu Zhongxin back—the call connected after only two rings.

"How are you now? Are you injured?!"

No scolding, no blame—only rapid, ragged breathing, revealing the other man's deep anxiety and unease.

Hearing this concerned tone, Yu Dazhang felt warmth spread through his chest.

The malevolent aura from the killings also began to dissipate slightly.

He replied in a low, hoarse voice:

"I'm unharmed, but three officers here are wounded—one minor, two severe, one critically so, near death."

Yu Dazhang felt his throat was on fire; speaking was agony, his throat parched, his breathing heavy and coarse.

His body had been in a state of extreme arousal earlier—now the side effects were hitting.

Not only was he thirsty, but his entire body felt limp, drained of strength, as if hollowed out.

Please... collect... 6... 9... Shu.... Ba....!

"The rescue team will be here shortly," Lu Zhongxin said quickly:

"We have reached the foot of the mountain. Hold on a little longer."

After ending the call, Yu Dazhang looked at Zhang Sen's injuries again.

The wound was still bleeding continuously. Although the blood loss was not heavy, continuing to bleed like this would place a huge burden on the body.

He had originally planned to meet up with those two officers, but the current situation did not allow it.

Staring at the few people squatting in the corner of the wall, Yu Dazhang felt it was better to be cautious.

Afterwards, he ordered those people to step forward one by one. Under his command, they formed pairs and searched each other.

They patted down every place where weapons could be hidden, lifted up clothes, and even did not spare the pant cuffs.

After searching everyone, Yu Dazhang finally felt slightly relieved, but he still did not put away the gun in his hand.

A while later, he received a call from Lu Zhongxin.

"We have arrived. Where are you?"

Yu Dazhang told him the locations of these two households.

Houses in domestic mountain villages are built next to each other; one row of houses can connect to form a whole area, so they are easy to find.

Ten minutes later, he saw Lu Zhongxin at the entrance of the courtyard.

Behind Lu Zhongxin followed several officers, most of whom were familiar faces.

Seeing the situation inside the courtyard, the officers rushed forward quickly and handcuffed all the people squatting in the corner of the wall.

Seeing the scene brought under control, Yu Dazhang felt as if all the strength in his body had been drained; he collapsed onto the steps.

It was like having a nightmare... he couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

He didn't even dare to recall the scenes from before.

Being able to survive was already considered a blessing from heaven.

Lu Zhongxin came to their side and first observed Zhang Sen's injuries.

After confirming there was no danger to life, he came over to his disciple's side.

"The people in the courtyard at the head of the village..."

Lu Zhongxin's face looked very bad, and deep worry was still in his eyes, as if he feared something.

After pausing for a moment, he continued speaking:

"According to the rescued officer, you did it all?"

After finishing speaking, he stared at Yu Dazhang, waiting for his disciple's answer.

"You went to that house too, didn't you?" Yu Dazhang made a teasing remark first, then said in a helpless tone:

"The situation was urgent at the time, so I could only..."

Just as he was about to explain, Lu Zhongxin slapped his thigh, interrupting:

"Well done."

The voice was not loud, yet it carried an undeniable affirmation.

Yu Dazhang forced a smile:

"Well, it wasn't all me. One of them was shot by a colleague from the detachment, and there was also..."

He glanced at his master beside him, and his voice dropped even lower:

"There was one more in the cellar."

(End of this chapter)