Almost Saw Great Grandmother (Chapter 72)
A group of about a dozen people in black robes, wielding weapons, descended upon the crowd like wolves among sheep, with each swing of their blades claiming a life.
The mercenaries of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group were urged to blow their whistles urgently. The crisp sound quickly spread, summoning mercenaries active in other areas to come to their aid.
After making contact, several members of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group immediately charged forward to battle the people in black robes.
Among them was Ah Mu who swung his large saber with such force that even when surrounded by three people in black robes, he did not fall behind.
However, the others were not so lucky; many were injured to varying degrees.
The workers panicked and fled just as they had when they encountered the blood-sucking aphids before. Once caught by the people in black robes, their heads were chopped off with a single stroke, and the blood gushing from the wounds attracted even more blood-sucking aphids.
Ye Sheng did not join the chaotic run. She stood her ground, observing the situation.
It was clear that the few members of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group were no match for their opponents, which made Ye Sheng realize she had to make a decision quickly... With her meager skills, it was better not to add to the chaos.
To attempt a rescue might lead to her own death!
She needed to find a hiding place quickly.
But in the cotton forest, aside from the trees, there wasn't even a blade of grass to hide behind. Where could she go?
If all else failed, she could only...
Ye Sheng, distressed and having confirmed there were no other options, immediately picked up a spray bottle and quickly walked to the cotton tree she had previously stripped bare. Stepping on a stool, she climbed up in one go.
While climbing, she was extra careful to avoid the needle-like cotton seeds that had lost much of their cotton, lest they poke a hole in her!
Although the cotton tree had lost its cotton and didn't offer much cover, there were still plenty of cotton bolls left. And with Ye Sheng's petite frame, she managed to pull the cotton bolls in front of her, barely concealing herself.
Then, Ye Sheng opened the tightly held pesticide spray bottle, took off her tattered cloak, poured it over it, and, not caring about the harm the pesticide might do to humans, she only wanted to survive safely.
(T_T)
She quickly draped the wet, tattered cloak over herself. The blood-sucking aphids, which had been drawn to the scent of humans from other cotton trees, soon lost their direction, unable to understand why the sweet scent of blood had turned into a disgusting odor.
They searched and searched but couldn't find their prey, and could only sullenly look for other targets.
Ye Sheng had temporarily found safety, peered out from under the cloak with only her eyes showing, intently watching the battle between the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group and the people in black robes below. She saw that Ah mu, who had been brave before, was also injured at this time.
His arm was slashed, bleeding profusely.
Even though the mercenaries had powerful insect repellent sprays on them, the bleeding attracted swarms of blood-sucking aphids, forcing Ah mu to fend off the aphids while fighting the people in black robes.
Distracted by having to deal with two threats at once, he was slashed again by the people in black robes, injuring his thigh.
And the other members of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group fared even worse than Ah mu; Ye Sheng saw that some had already been beheaded...
This couldn't go on!
Ye Sheng watched anxiously. If something happened to Ah mu and the others, she wouldn't be able to escape either.
Who knew if these people in black robes would eradicate them root and branch!
In her urgency, Ye Sheng took the hand crossbow from her waist. This hand crossbow was a gift from the deputy leader of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group, she had killed night raiders before, and now she would try it out on the people in black robes.
The deputy leader probably never imagined that the weapon given away casually would now be used to save the mercenaries in the group!
Ye Sheng was hidden in the tree had no worries at this moment and immediately switched to a trident arrow aimed at Ah mu's direction.
Among those present, Ah mu was the one she was most familiar with, so naturally, Ye Sheng chose to save him first!
Perhaps it was because they wanted to toy with Ah mu, even though he was caught in a pincer attack and had no strength left to fight, the three people in black robes did not immediately move to chop off his head. Instead, they occasionally struck with their weapons.
They inflicted more bleeding wounds, driving the blood-sucking aphids into a frenzy.
Watching Ah mu being played with like a monkey, Ye Sheng remained calm, aimed the hand crossbow at one person's heart, held her breath for a few seconds, and then immediately fired!
There are many fatal spots on a person's body, and compared to the temples and throat, the heart has a higher hit rate.
Although, when Ye Sheng previously shot a thug, she intended to hit the heart but hit the throat instead.
The accuracy was slightly off.
But fortunately, the final result was good.
That's why Ye Sheng still aimed for the heart this time, silently praying that she must hit the target!
If she missed with one shot, it would be bad to shoot again next time, as the opponent would be on guard.
Even worse, they might find her hiding place... But now, she couldn't worry about that much, saving the people of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group was also saving herself!
Silently watching the direction the trident arrow shot out, Ye Sheng's eyes quickly brightened!
Her prayers had worked.
Or perhaps the daylight was sufficient, making the trident arrow hit the target squarely.
One of the people in black robes was hit in the heart by the trident arrow, grunted, and quickly lost his breath... With a companion suddenly falling dead, the remaining two people in black robes sensed something was wrong and stopped toying with Ah mu, preparing to make a quick decision.
However, after Amu saw one of the people in black robes suddenly die, he immediately crushed the powerful insect repellent ball in his pocket, causing the fiercely attacking blood-sucking aphids to pause their movement, even though they were desperate for blood, they stopped their attack.
Just waiting for the scent of the repellent ball to dissipate.
The reason Ah mu had not crushed the repellent ball before was simple: once the repellent ball turned into powder and fragments, the medicinal effect would greatly decrease, and it would dissipate quickly, making the blood-sucking aphids even more unrestrained.
Now that only two people in black robes were left, Ah mu decisively chose to crush it.
After temporarily getting rid of the worry of the blood-sucking aphids, Ah mu was very brave, exerting all his strength to chop off the head of one of the people in black robes. When only one person in black robes was left, he suddenly felt darkness before his eyes.
Excessive blood loss made him tired and weak.
Ye Sheng saw from the tree because Ah mu was entangled with the person in black robes, she could not aim at the person in black robes, and it was too late to rescue at this moment. She saw the person in black robes' long sword directly stab towards Ah mu's heart.
Disaster!!!
"Ah mu, get down."
At this critical moment, Lan Zhang's voice suddenly rang out, causing Ah mu to subconsciously follow the command.
And after Ah mu awkwardly fell down, a long sword flew out and directly pierced the eye socket of the person in black robes, causing him to fall to the ground.
Having narrowly escaped a disaster, Ah mu turned over, sat up, and tugged at the corner of his mouth, giving Lan Zhang a thumbs-up.
What a good brother!
Ah mu had nearly gone to meet his great-grandmother!
Lan Zhang however had no time to pay attention to Ah mu. He led the mercenaries to encircle and attack the people in black robes, and the previously one-sided situation immediately changed, turning into the people in black robes being chased and cut down.
Seeing the rescue arrive, Ah mu quickly moved aside and took out hemostatic powder to sprinkle on his wound, quickly stopping the bleeding.
Although the hemostatic medicine was more effective, it also had a slight sedative effect. Since it was not completely safe yet, Ah mu certainly would not allow himself to become careless and relaxed amidst danger.
After quickly stopping the bleeding, Ah mu bandaged the wound with a bandage. Then, he stared at the dead person in black robes, looking straight at the arrow stuck in the opponent's chest.
It looked somewhat familiar.
Compared to ordinary arrows, the bolts from a crossbow were smaller.
Ah mu carefully recalled who else used a hand crossbow, and did not forget to look in the direction from where the bolt had come.
It was a cotton tree that had been stripped bare.
Tsk tsk, these workers were really efficient, having stripped the cotton tree clean in such a short time.
Only the cotton bolls were left and...
The next moment, Amu's eyes widened in surprise as he looked at the person on the cotton tree waving at him.
It was Ye Sheng!!!
Compared to Ah mu's shock, seeing Lan Zhang leading the mercenaries to the rescue made Ye Sheng pat her chest in relief, secretly glad that she had escaped another disaster!
Since coming to the wasteland world, she had encountered too many dangers!
(╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻
With only one or two of the dozen or so people in black robes left, and they were far from her, Ye Sheng finally threw off the old cloak she was wearing and slid down the tree trunk quickly.
"It's really you, Ye Sheng, you saved me!!!"
By the time Ye Sheng reached Ah mu's side, Ah mu was already moved to tears. If it weren't for the difference between men and women, he would have run over and hugged her tightly, and said "good brother"!
(;???Д??`)
If it weren't for Ye Sheng's arrow killing the person in black robes, he wouldn't have lasted until Lan Zhang and his men arrived.
Indeed, Ye Sheng was his lucky star, not the disaster star Lan Zhang had mentioned!
"Ah mu, don't get too excited, be careful not to reopen your wound!"
Faced with Ah mu's almost tearful gratitude, Ye Sheng was somewhat at a loss and dryly said a word to calm Ah mu down. She then reached out to drag the nearest corpse of the person in black robes.
The person in black robes wore a mask, making it impossible to see their face. Ye Sheng directly reached out and took off the mask.
Then, looking at the face burned beyond recognition under the mask, it made one frown.
Unable to discern who the person was from their appearance, Ye Sheng took off the person's robe and searched the body, finding nothing that could prove their identity.
Even the fingerprints on all ten fingers had been melted away.
There was not a single thing on the body that could prove their identity.
Even the weapons were very common and could be bought anywhere in the base.
It reminded Ye Sheng of the ancient novels' dead soldiers, who hid in the shadows to complete special missions, and regardless of success or failure, they would eventually commit suicide to keep the secret.
"These damned bastards, where the hell did they come from!!!"
Seeing no gains, Ah mu cursed in frustration.
Lan Zhang had intended to keep one person in black robes for severe interrogation, but the person took a dagger and stabbed themselves in the heart, catching the mercenaries off guard and preventing them from stopping it in time.
Upon seeing this, Lan Zhang frowned and carefully examined the bodies.
As a result, in addition to their disfigured faces and lack of fingerprints, it was discovered that most of the people in black robes had no tongues.
Only the leader could speak.
Suddenly encountering such a strange and stealthy attack team gave Lan Zhang an ominous feeling.
This cotton forest is very dangerous!
They'd better not stay here any longer...
"Ah mu, can you hold on with your injury? If you can, we must leave quickly!"
After checking the bodies of the people in black robes, Lan Zhang quickly approached Ah mu. Without speaking to Ye Sheng, he directly and decisively announced his decision.
Originally, the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group's mission was to stop the blood-sucking aphid outbreak; protecting the workers was just a verbal agreement.
Therefore, leaving early was not a problem, as there were no contractual restrictions.
Now, with plenty of other mercenaries around, the absence of one Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group wouldn't matter.
After quickly dealing with the attack by the people in black robes, Lan Zhang sent people to look deeper into the cotton forest.
To check on the life and death of Lei Tian, the leader of the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group...
"Ah? Aren't we waiting for the base's vehicle to pick us up before leaving? My wound is fine, it's no longer bleeding, I can hold on for a few more days."
Upon hearing Lan Zhang's words, Ah mu thought his good brother was worried about his injury and was immediately moved to tears.
Seeing this, Lan Zhang gave him an annoyed look, really fed up with this brainless guy.
Therefore, Lan Zhang had to be blunt, "No, it's these stealthy attackers in black robes that feel very strange, it's dangerous to continue staying in the cotton forest, we need to leave quickly."
Lan Zhang's expression was serious, his attitude firm, letting Ah mu know that they had to leave.
Having just experienced the attack by the people in black robes, Ah mu also felt that the cotton forest was not very safe. It would be good to go back, but...
Ah mu glanced at Ye Sheng beside him, just about to speak, but was interrupted by Lan Zhang, "No, only the people of the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group can take the car to leave, we refuse to take others."
Stung by Lan Zhang's cold and ruthless words, Ah mu immediately protested, shouting, "What do you mean by others? If it weren't for Ye Sheng's help, I would have died long ago, look at the arrow in this guy's chest, it was shot by Ye Sheng!"
"......"
Watching Ah mu ready to throw a tantrum at the drop of a hat, Lan Zhang was speechless and twitched the corner of his mouth, not responding, but actually examining the bolt stuck in the chest of the person in black robes, then looking at the hand crossbow Ye Sheng had reattached to her waist.
It was indeed an arrow shot by Ye Sheng.
Although he really didn't want to have any more contact with Ye Sheng, the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group had to show the proper attitude for Ye Sheng saving Ah mu, they couldn't refuse to let Ye Sheng leave with them.
"It's okay, I'll go back with the others, it's just one more day anyway."
While Ah mu and Lan Zhang were arguing about whether to take Ye Sheng with them, Ye Sheng herself quickly waved her hands, indicating she didn't necessarily want to leave, feeling that following this group of mercenaries might be even more dangerous!
Continuing to stay and pick cotton could still earn her an excellent reward, and most importantly, three hours of free cotton picking!
Although Ye Sheng got a snow cotton cocoon on her first day of picking cotton, which could be exchanged for ten pounds of cotton, who would think that's too much cotton? If you can take more, take more, once you leave this place, there won't be such a shop!
"No way!!!"
However, Ye Sheng refused to leave, and Ah mu was the first to disagree.
He absolutely couldn't leave his lifesaver in the dangerous cotton forest!
Even if he had to tie her up, he would take Ye Sheng away!
Ah mu knew he was not good with words, so to persuade Ye Sheng to leave with them, he quickly gestured to Lan Zhang to speak up!
Lan Zhang felt that today was the most speechless day, but for Ah mu's sake, he still reluctantly spoke, "Given the unexpected events, it's okay to leave early. The Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group can smooth things over for you, and the base officials won't deduct your salary; you'll still get your points."
"As for the three hours of free cotton picking... although you don't have to hand it over, you need to pay two-thirds of the cotton when taking the base's transport vehicle, or you'll be refused a ride."
Lan Zhang's words were to the point.
He shattered Ye Sheng's beautiful thoughts and faced her with the harsh reality.
Hearing that she needed to pay two-thirds of the cotton, Ye Sheng immediately cursed in her heart, thinking the base officials were too greedy!
In the plantation, digging potatoes only required handing over half!
(▼へ ▼メ )
Upon hearing that she had become a serf, Ye Sheng's desire to stay wavered. After all, picking more cotton would only benefit the base, so it was better to go home early and reunite with the poor little one.
"Can I take the cotton with me when I leave?"
"Yes, you can put the three bags of cotton you picked today directly in the vehicle and take them with you, but you have to give one bag to the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group."
Lan Zhang replied to Ye Sheng in a business-like manner. Ah mu, who was beside him, couldn't help but want to speak up, but Lan Zhang covered his mouth and then explained.
"Ye Sheng, you saved Ah mu, and he will repay you, but the vehicle belongs to the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group, not an individual. Everything is based on regulations."
Hearing that it involved the interests of the mercenary group, Ah mu didn't speak up anymore, but thought to himself... after returning, he must give more thanks!
Ye Sheng didn't mind, being able to take away three bags of cotton was clearly a win for her!
One bag of cotton weighed about five pounds, so even taking only two bags was ten pounds of cotton.
That was completely enough for her and The Poor Little One.
It's just that the one-pound cotton reward announced by the small manager yesterday was probably unattainable... Although the small manager was quite shrewd, he was unlucky, having his throat cut by someone from the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group.
The new manager who was assigned to the area this time also had his head chopped off by a person in black robes.
Ye Sheng was speechless, wondering if she was some kind of grim reaper student, bringing death wherever she went!
￣へ ￣
"I'll go with you."
Ye Sheng quickly made her decision, which delighted Ah mu. He was about to say something, but unfortunately, he was interrupted again.
"Captain Lan Zhang! I found that more than a dozen people from the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group are all dead in the depths of the cotton forest, and some workers' bodies have also been drained by the blood-sucking aphids."
The person previously sent by Lan Zhang to investigate deep in the cotton forest hurried back, out of breath, and quickly reported what he had seen.
Then, remembering Lei Tian from the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group, he added, "Lei Tian is also dead, his head was cut off by a blade, and his body has been drained of blood."
"Okay, go inform the others from the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group to collect the bodies."
"Yes!"
After the mercenary was sent to notify the others, Lan Zhang frowned and told Ah mu and Ye Sheng to prepare quickly; they would leave in ten minutes!
Although he didn't like Lei Tian, the squad leader of the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group, he couldn't deny that Lei Tian was strong.
But such a person had his head cut off... No matter how you look at it, these people in black robes were up to no good, and it was best to leave quickly.
After hearing Lan Zhang's orders, Ye Sheng told Amu to stay and rest, while she ran to see Zhou Lin.
Although Ye Sheng wanted to take Zhou Lin with her, the Zhou family had too many people, and the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group's four-wheeled vehicle was not big enough to fit so many people.
Zhou Lin wouldn't agree to leave first, and the Zhou family wouldn't feel at ease either.
So, all Zhou Lin could do was to be extra careful!
"Sheng Sheng, don't worry, my big brother is here!"
When the two met, Zhou Lin nodded solemnly upon hearing that Ye Sheng was about to leave, indicating that she understood and would definitely be careful!
The Zhou family was not so lucky this time, having encountered an attack by the people in black robes, resulting in the death of several unfortunate ones.
Now staying here, they also needed to deal with the aftermath.
Ten minutes was not a lot of time. After saying goodbye to Zhou Lin, Ye Sheng immediately returned to Ah mu's side, and the two of them carried three bags of cotton and walked out of the cotton forest.
Without the attack of the blood-sucking aphids, they left the cotton forest smoothly.
Soon, they saw the Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group's four-wheeled vehicles parked in a conspicuous place. There were six vehicles in total, each capable of seating 4-6 people. However, because the mercenaries were all burly men, at most only 4 could sit.
Five of the six vehicles were full, leaving only the one led by Lan Zhang, who disliked crowding, with only Ah mu driving and no one else.
Thus, it was only natural for Ye Sheng, Ah mu, and Lan Zhang to sit together, with the remaining space occupied by the cotton.
However, the bags filled with cotton took up a significant amount of space, and Ye Sheng sat alone in the back seat, with the last bag of cotton unable to fit, so it had to be placed in another four-wheeled vehicle.
Finally, everything was arranged.
"Let's go!"
Lan Zhang's vehicle took the lead, leading the other vehicles away.
The speed of the vehicles was not too fast, and the cool breeze on their faces was relaxing.
Because it was a convertible, Ye Sheng could clearly see the surroundings, so she quickly noticed that there were more than a dozen four-wheeled vehicles following behind.
Ye Sheng was curious and turned to look back. Before she could ask, Ah mu, who saw from the rearview mirror, immediately clarified, "Those are people from other mercenary groups. Because many from the Grey Wolf Mercenary Group died, they dare not stay in the cotton forest any longer and are preparing to leave with us."
"Ah? Aren't they violating the contract signed with the base officials by not protecting the workers in the cotton forest?"
"Yes, violating the contract will not only require compensation but will also lower the reputation of the mercenary group, causing the base officials to reduce cooperation... However, this encounter with the blood-sucking aphid outbreak and stealth attack has made them prefer to violate the contract and return."
Lan Zhang was sitting in the passenger seat, chuckled lightly, aware of the intentions of these mercenary groups. They felt that the contract for the safety of the workers in the cotton forest was not very important, and the base officials would not demand too much compensation.
In this case, it was better to return early to avoid encountering other dangers.
However, with fewer mercenaries to protect the workers, those workers who valued their lives went on strike... leading to a decrease in cotton production, and the base officials would ultimately hold these mercenary groups accountable.
Fortunately, their Azure Phoenix Mercenary Group's contract mission was to stop the blood-sucking aphid outbreak!
"Speaking of which, it was also unfortunate when we came to this cotton forest. It would have been better if we had discovered it a few days earlier."
After talking about the vehicles following behind, Ah mu thought of the blood-sucking aphids and couldn't help but sigh.
Lan Zhang chuckled at that moment and then said, "Discover it early? Finding a cotton forest is already very lucky. Do you think the wilderness is your backyard where you can play around?"
"But I heard that someone anonymously provided the information, and the base officials knew about it long ago! However, they didn't immediately send people to pick the cotton, and they even delayed for a few days, which coincided with the outbreak of the blood-sucking aphids."
Sitting in the back seat, Ye Sheng kept quiet, listening to the conversation between Ah mu and Lan Zhang. When she heard the word "anonymous," her heart skipped a beat, and she felt a bit panicked.
She had a bad feeling...
"Maybe they sent someone to check if the information was true first. After discovering this cotton forest, more people will be able to survive the blizzard season this year, which is also a good thing."
Lan Zhang sighed and then fell silent.
Ah mu also became quiet, and just like that, driving the car after experiencing the blood-sucking aphid outbreak and the stealth attack by the people in black robes, the exhausted Ye Sheng fell asleep amidst the shaking of the vehicle.
When she woke up, Ye Sheng opened her eyes to find the wilderness still lush and green around her.
"Ah mu, what time is it now?"
"It's two in the afternoon. In another three hours, we'll be back in the base's safe zone."
Goodness!
Ye Sheng thought she had only slept for about fifteen minutes, but it turned out she had slept for six hours...
She was about to sleep like a pig.
Seeing that she would soon be home, Ye Sheng patted her chest, feeling that the previous bad premonition might have been her scaring herself.
Even if she was unlucky, it couldn't keep happening, right?
Just as Ye Sheng was thinking this, a buzzing sound suddenly came from the sky, causing her to look up instinctively, only to see a drone swiftly flying past, and at the same time, a spherical object dropped.
It fell straight down, landing in the vehicle.
Lan Zhang quickly realized what it was, his face turning ashen. He picked up the sphere and threw it far away, while shouting loudly, "Be careful, it's a bomb!"
Human strength is limited, so the spherical bomb didn't go very far, and the next second, it exploded!
The violent explosion overturned the moving vehicle, which rolled over several times like a movie special effect, and finally, the vehicle flipped onto its side and crashed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
Upon hearing the word "bomb," Ye Sheng immediately fastened her seatbelt and, as a precaution, hugged the cotton bags tightly.
After the vehicle rolled over, the cotton helped absorb much of the impact, leaving Ye Sheng unharmed.
She just felt dizzy and a bit nauseous.
She might have a slight concussion.
While Ye Sheng was continuously feeling sick, Ah mu and Lan Zhang had already crawled out of the vehicle, holding weapons and cautiously on guard, ready to face any enemies hidden in the shadows!
The ones who can bring out a bomb are definitely not good news!
"Hehe, quite a few people here, it's a big harvest this time."
Unlike the vigilant mercenaries, a joyful voice emerged, accompanied by whistling, as the familiar figures in black robes reappeared.
However, unlike the dozen or so black-robed attackers encountered in the cotton forest, there were now fifty or sixty of them!!!
Seeing this, Ye Sheng's face fell, knowing her bad premonition was correct.
This was a meticulously planned conspiracy!
As for who these black-robed people were...
"You are from the Black Spring Freemasonry!"
Lan Zhang, with a serious expression, spoke up first, causing Ye Sheng to feel a chill run through her heart.
Starcat
Yes I am alive ☺️
Starcat
Starcat
Yes I am alive ☺️
Yes I am alive ☺️