"Go fucking get her! That bitch knows what we're talking about!"Boss was gasping, clutching his bitten arm as he hurled the snake into the woods with a vicious snarl. The venom was already seeping into his bloodstream, but his rage burned hotter than the pain.
But Xu Xiyan was already gone.
Though her body ached and her lungs screamed for air, she ran like her life depended on it—because it did. Injured or not, she was small, agile, and had trained for years. This mountain terrain was unforgiving, but she darted through it like a phantom.
The wind clawed at her face. Branches whipped her skin. Trees blurred as she weaved between them, avoiding the obvious trail and cutting straight through the woods. She didn't care about scrapes or bruises. She just had to get away.
At the base of the mountain, soldiers crouched behind a slope, camouflaged by branches and brush.
One of them raised his hand.
"Someone's coming."His voice was low, tense. The rustling leaves grew louder with each passing second.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, Xu Xiyan burst from the underbrush—like a deer fleeing for its life—and crashed straight into the muzzle of a soldier's gun.
Click.
The gun had been loaded. Safety off. Ready to fire.
Xu Xiyan didn't flinch. But the soldier did.
"Holy sh*t!" he hissed, his finger twitching before jerking the weapon away. He hadn't expected a child—much less one in blood-stained, torn clothing with eyes so calm they gave him chills.
"Girl—!"His voice caught in his throat. She looked barely conscious. Pale, shaking, and—was that a gun-shaped bruise on her forehead?
He quickly slung the weapon back and fumbled for his med-kit, pulling out a small spray bottle. "Here, your forehead's red. Spray this—"
But she didn't take it.
Xu Xiyan, slightly swaying, spoke with urgency, her voice dry but clear:
"Three armed men. Sniper rifle. Five hundred meters up the slope. Their leader's called Boss. He got bitten by a Black Zaocys snake."
Each word was sharp, clipped—rattled off like gunfire.
Then—
Her knees buckled.
She collapsed forward, barely breaking her fall with one hand before slumping to the ground completely.
She hadn't eaten in days. Her body had been running on fumes and fury. The fall, the blood loss, the adrenaline—it all finally caught up to her.
The soldier knelt beside her, eyes wide. "Medic! I need a medic over here—now!"
The others surged from cover, surrounding them as the soldier gently turned Xu Xiyan over.
Her small chest rose and fell faintly.
She had survived predators, venom, and gunmen—only to faint in the arms of the very people she might have just saved.