The cowardly rat ran at full speed, trying to find his comrades who had gone around from the rear.
He had just seen Li Qingyu, like the god of slaughter himself, appear out of nowhere. With one sword strike, he had crushed his partner's head, and decapitated another – the sight almost made the fugitive wet himself.
Now he didn't care about anything – he just ran, longing to find the remaining three as soon as possible.
His friends hadn't gone far. Creeping, the trio bypassed the position from the left flank. They barely breathed, trying not to scare the prey, and carefully chose where to place their feet to avoid making noise.
Suddenly, heavy footsteps reached them. Turning around, they saw a panicked figure rushing straight at them.
Only a few stationary flares broke the darkness. The rats saw only the approaching silhouette, but couldn't make out the face.
However, it could only be one of their own – the one they left to watch the sniper.
The trio froze, peering into the shadow, and one hissed:
"Hey, what are you doing? We agreed to approach from three sides and trap him!"
The cowardly partner froze as if exhausted and, catching his breath, slowly moved towards them.
When he was about ten steps away, their eyes bulged.
The fugitive's face turned pale, and his gaze was filled with animal terror.
The reason was obvious – a long sword was pressed against his neck. One movement – and his throat would be slit.
The bandits understood and flinched, but the blade on their partner's neck snapped back. The trachea, larynx, arteries – all were severed at once. Blood spurted into the air like a fountain.
At that very moment, Li Qingyu emerged from behind the falling body. He shot forward like lightning and plunged his sword into the nearest bandit's stomach.
The blade went in and came out through the other side.
The bandit howled:
"A-a-a!"
Li Qingyu pulled out the sword. He deliberately struck the stomach – there are no bones there, the blade slides as if through butter.
Instantly, he struck the opponent's nose with the pommel, knocking him down, and rushed to the next one.
The remaining two, screaming in terror, grabbed their weapons and rushed into battle. One had a cleaver in his hand, the other a piece of pipe.
Li Qingyu met the blow with his sword. The terrified opponent put all his strength into the swing; metal clashed with a clang, sparks flew.
But the strength was on Li Qingyu's side – the Power of the Nine Dragons was raging within him now. His blow sent the enemy flying, stunning him.
Without losing time, Li Qingyu slashed with his blade from bottom to top. The blade sliced the bandit's face. Blood flowed like a river; the guy dropped his cleaver, clutched his face with his hands, and howled.
At that moment, the second one struck from above with the pipe. A whistle of air, a roar – the pipe descended towards Li Qingyu's head.
If the enemy had hit accurately, even a helmet wouldn't have saved him, his brains would have splattered on the walls!
But there was no time to dodge. Li Qingyu ducked and exposed his back – the armor there was the thickest.
A dull thud – BOOM! Pain shot through his shoulder blade.
An ordinary person would have collapsed without strength. But Li Qingyu felt only a dull ache – the great god of Pain Relief was still with him!
He slashed backward blindly. The blow was glancing, but for an ordinary person, it would have been enough.
The rat grabbed his shoulder, blood flowed from the wound. Panic overwhelmed the bandit.
Both enemies lost their fighting spirit. Just ordinary Underhive scum – wound them, and their courage evaporates.
Li Qingyu delivered five consecutive blows. The wounded man tried to block with the pipe, but couldn't withstand it – he fell to the ground. Li Qingyu caught up to him and plunged his sword into his chest, piercing his liver.
A sharp jerk – the blade came out. The bandit convulsed and fell silent.
The one with the sliced face was already running away. Smirking coldly, Li Qingyu broke into a pursuit. He was twice as fast.
Hearing approaching footsteps, the wounded man screamed:
"A-a-a-a!"
His scream echoed through the dark corridors of the warehouse.
From the other side, three more rats approached. They heard the shots, heard the screams, but didn't care.
Such are the rats of the Underhive – don't expect brotherly love from them.
Hearing screams from where their flanking comrades were supposed to be, they became alert. Perhaps the sniper had noticed their maneuver and flanked them himself?
It didn't matter to them. Reaching Li Qingyu's hiding place, they greedily stared at the loot.
Behind the container lay a sniper rifle and two backpacks – a large one and a small one.
Greed flashed in their eyes. One lunged forward, grabbed the rifle, and immediately aimed the barrel at his accomplices.
The others raised their hands – as if saying, "We don't claim anything, it's all yours" – and rushed for the backpacks.
Both lunged for the large bag, but the sturdy one knocked his rival down and claimed the trophy. The thin one, getting hit on the ear, didn't argue – he darted for the small backpack.
Now everyone had loot. Their eyes sparkled – it was time to escape.
Through a breach in the wall, they could escape to a safe zone. But as they approached the breach, they froze.
Seven heads stood in a row at the exit. Seven bloody human heads – the heads of their comrades.
The bandits froze. The one with the rifle cocked the bolt, ready to shoot.
Suddenly, a clear click rang out – *dzin'*.
A lighter flared, illuminating a man's face, covered in blood, from the darkness.
The trio recoiled simultaneously.
Li Qingyu lit a cigarette, took a couple of puffs, and, smiling, said:
"Your daddy once said: you guys, in the Underhive, are just sweet lolis~"