Chapter 68: Li Wei

When a person is extremely nervous, their breathing becomes rapid, their muscles even begin to spasm, their eyes widen, their heart beats faster and faster, and their blood flows ever quicker.

Wang Xi was in exactly this state. Although he was very excited, he was equally nervous.

Xiao Ziguang noticed something was wrong with him, reached out, and slapped Wang Xi across the face. "Don't panic! In this lifetime, a person has to risk it all once for wealth and glory. If we win, we carouse every night; if we lose, at worst we forfeit our lives!"

"Stop being nervous, showing such a spineless look. Today, I'll teach you a secret: before undertaking a major task, not feeling fear doesn't necessarily mean you'll succeed, but being afraid means you will surely lose!"

Wang Xi gritted his teeth inwardly, his facial features contorting into a ferocious expression, and let out a roar, "Ah..."

The scream was piercing, as if he were trying to muster his own courage, or perhaps venting all the fear buried deep in his heart.

At that moment, Yu Hu's voice came through the walkie-talkie: "Lead car, get ready..."

Xiao Ziguang had already seen a Santana slowing down near the bend, and then felt an intensely violent push from behind. The pickup truck's engine roared as it slammed directly into the Santana.

"Damn it!" Xiao Ziguang hadn't expected the excited Wang Xi to initiate the collision ahead of schedule. He had no choice but to raise his walkie-talkie and roar, "Execute, execute, execute ahead of time!"

Yu Hu, following behind the convoy, had already seen the small truck dash out. He clenched his fists, though there was nothing he could do. "Pheasant, Ho Nan, execute now. Use the Molotov cocktails to create a zone of fire and don't let anyone escape into the sugarcane fields!"

"Snipers, pay attention. When the Grim-Reaper calls the roll, anyone who dares resist is to be put down!" After giving these orders, Yu Hu also floored the accelerator, speeding up his van and charging toward the convoy.

Both sides of the road were entirely surrounded by sugarcane fields. If Qiu Changtian were decisive enough to lead his men into the sugarcane fields, it would indeed be very difficult to capture him.

Boom! The collision began. The modified pickup truck had an astonishing weight and plenty of horsepower, directly tilting the Santana at a forty-five-degree angle. Its four tires shrieked, leaving four black marks on the ground before slamming into the Passat behind it.

"Reverse, reverse, reverse!" Seeing Wang Xi frozen in a daze, Xiao Ziguang slapped him again. Just as he secured the steel plate beneath his feet, he heard *bang, bang, bang!*

Continuous gunfire erupted from within the Santana. Bullets pierced the glass, several striking Xiao Ziguang. If he hadn't been wearing a bulletproof vest and a helmet, with a steel plate cushioned underneath, this single round of concentrated fire would have been enough to send them both on their way.

The ricocheting bullets bouncing around inside the cab finally snapped Wang Xi out of his stupor. He shifted into reverse, stepped on the gas, backed the pickup up, and then whipped the steering wheel around, blocking the middle of the road.

Xiao Ziguang didn't hold back either. When narrow paths meet, the courageous prevail; right now, it was a battle of who was more ruthless. He grabbed the double-barreled shotgun from beside him, thrust it out the window, and pulled the trigger repeatedly.

Bang! Bang!

Gunsmoke filled the air as more than two hundred steel pellets roared toward the Santana, instantly silencing the areas that had just been firing back.

Inside the bulletproof Mercedes-Benz, Qiu Changtian peered outside. "So they've finally bared their fox tails? Tell Old Bangzi to bring reinforcements quickly and capture them all alive. I want to see if these bastards grew bear hearts or leopard gallbladders!"

Qiu Liu immediately agreed, pulling out his phone to make a call. But the number that normally connected immediately was nothing but a busy signal today. Checking his phone screen, Qiu Liu made a tearful face. "No signal! There's actually no signal here!"

Qiu Changtian's expression shifted slightly. "It looks like they came prepared. Tell the rear car to back up, we're leaving here first..."

*Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat...*

The roaring sound of motorcycle engines suddenly tore through the air, and two dirt bikes abruptly burst out from the sugarcane fields on either side.

Wearing black helmets and black leather jackets, they looked precisely like the motorcycle gunmen of the Xiling Gang!

Pheasant still possessed ambition. He had always heard tales of bulletproof Mercedes-Benz cars, yet he had never laid eyes on one. Pulling a gun from his holster, he aimed at the Mercedes' window and pulled the trigger.

Bang! Gunfire roared, leaving a small white dot on the glass without managing to pierce it.

Ho Nan, by contrast, was much more pragmatic. He continuously hurled the Molotov cocktails in his hands; some smashed against the Passat's windows, some hit the Santana's hood, and one landed squarely on the roof of the Mercedes.

Boom, boom, boom! Balls of fire erupted, instantly enveloping the entire road in flames, turning the vehicles into burning iron coffins.

Pheasant hurriedly tossed a few more Molotov cocktails to ignite both sides of the road. Surveying the scene he had successfully brought under control, the corners of Pheasant's mouth curled into a smile. He suddenly felt that Qiu Changtian, famed throughout Xiling County, was nothing special after all!

At that moment, Xiao Ziguang's roar suddenly burst through the walkie-talkie: "Pheasant, watch out!"

Pheasant was startled, failing to understand what else he needed to watch out for. Then, he saw something resembling a pineapple tumbling through the air, trailing smoke, and the entire world seemed to have been pressed into slow motion!

Pheasant watched a cluster of flames bloom from that pineapple. Time seemed to stop at that very moment, and Pheasant's life spun rapidly before his eyes like a revolving lantern.

When he was little, his family was poor, and he dreamed of eating a full meal. Later on as he grew up, studying did not change his destiny; instead, in vocational school, he became a bad student despised by his teachers and shunned by his peers.

Pheasant, who had been full of self-doubt since childhood, didn't think there was anything wrong with that. Since he couldn't make everyone like him, making others fear him was actually pretty cool!

Later on, mimicking the young triad gangsters from Hong Kong movies alongside others, he earned the nickname "Pheasant of Tianhai Mechanical College." Although it didn't bring any tangible benefits, it felt genuinely majestic!

And then came the time he caught Qian Hao, followed the Boss, and became a member of Ziguang Trading! Suddenly he controlled half a street—video parlors, skating rinks, video game arcades. No matter where he went, junior gang members followed him with a bustling entourage; how majestic was that!

He had originally thought he could soar to the greatest heights and make the name "Pheasant of Tianhai" ring out across Tianhai, never expecting a single pineapple to finish him off!

Still, being blown apart by a pineapple grenade was actually quite cool, all things considered!

Starting today, there ought to be a legend of Pheasant from Tianhai Mechanical College circulating in the underworld!

Yet, if given the choice, Pheasant still wanted to live. Preferably to marry, have children, and tell people that he wasn't just Pheasant of Tianhai Mechanical College, but also ordinary Li Wei, born in Old Factory Street...

The dull explosion of the grenade shocked everyone present. A flash of insight lit up Xiao Ziguang's mind as a distant memory was triggered.

In his past life, the joint anti-drug operation had originated precisely from a large cache of firearms discovered in the armory of the Xiling Sugar Mill, among which was a suitcase full of grenades.

Endless annoyance welled up in Xiao Ziguang's psychology. Such crucial intelligence had actually slipped his mind!

"Ho Nan, pull back! The enemy has grenades!"

"Snipers, provide suppressing fire! Don't let this big fish get away!"

Xiao Ziguang's anger had fully flared up. He pushed out from the top of the vehicle cab that oversized, heavy antique blunderbuss!

Since it was a clash of hard power, today would not only decide who came out on top, but also settle the question of life and death!