940 You Call That a Human?
Miao Tianchuan also looked up at the cliff that was getting further away from them.
Miao Xiheâs powers were far above what he had expected them to be. He had been well-prepared for the trip. He had even thought of grasping the rare opportunity to take Miao Xihe out right there and then. That was why he packed so much firepower. From a machine gun to high explosive grenades to other powerful explosives, he had packed enough to cause a landslide if the situation called for it. He packed so much firepower and had the element of surprise, yet Miao Xihe was able to survive all the same. Worse still, he seemed to have survived completely unscathed. Is he even a human anymore? Thatâs a monster in human form!
Thatâs just insane!
They had been able to escape partially due to ample preparations. The rest had been sheer luck.
Miao Chengtang sighed as he said, âMiao Xihe sure is one hell of a powerful assh*le.â
âYeah, very much so. Heâs far more powerful than I thought he was,â Miao Tianchuan added.
âAfter getting your message, I thought about taking the chance to kill him. Even if he managed to survive, it still would have been a good thing to cripple him. I didnât expect him to be so insanely powerful.â
âThat wasnât a human. That was a monster.â
âHe has been using methods passed down throughout the ages in the village. He has been stimulating his body with medicines to make himself indestructible.â
âIndestructible against blades and blunt weapons, sure, but thatâs a machinegun youâve got there, as well as grenades! He shouldnât have been able to survive being blasted by grenades!â
âWeâll talk later once we get out of here. Weâll take our time thinking about how to take him on after that.â
âSure.â
Miao Qingshan manned the boat and quickly went down the raging river.
Miao Xihe looked at the river from atop the cliff far away. He remained silent the whole time.
âChief?â
âLetâs go home,â he said as he waved.
âYes, Sir.â
He never thought things would turn out like this. It should have been a guaranteed success, yet those people managed to escape.
âMiao Tianchuan is a rare prodigy,â he said to the man beside him.
âIndeed, he is rare and difficult,â the middle-aged man added.
âYeah, I was careless this time,â Miao Xihe said.
âThis is not your fault, Chief. Itâs just that heâs too cunning.â
âSaying the enemy was cunning is nothing more than an excuse for oneâs failure. Iâm the one who was at fault in this case.â Miao Xihe was being honest, admitting that it was his fault for not being amply prepared. He had been ill-prepared. He had been high and mighty for too long in the village. Things in the village had been peaceful since that ruckus 16 years ago. No one doubted him. Everyone revered him like he was a god. That changed his mindset somewhat. He thought that he would always have everything under control and that those people out there were little more than clowns who could not accomplish much. However, the series of recent happenings, especially what happened that night, made him realize what was wrong with him.
âContact our guy outside and put him to work. We need to find those three at all costs.â
âYes, Chief.â
The boat drifted downstream. Before long, it was nearly 10 miles away. They eventually arrived at a remote shore. They made their way through the woods without making any stops. By dawn, they emerged from woods into a town hundreds of miles away.
âAlright, it should be safe here for the time being,â Miao Tianchuan said. âWeâll rest for the morning and think about what should we do from here on out. We need to decide if we should leave southern Yunnan or not.â
âLeave?â Miao Chengtang was baffled when he heard that.
âYeah, after what happened last night, Miao Xihe will probably use all the resources he has amassed throughout the years against us,â Miao Tianchuan said. âAll those resources he has accumulated for over 10 years are no joke. Iâve looked into it somewhat. From officials and rich people at the top to punks and thugs at the bottom, he has people working for him outside the village. If he were to put those resources to good use, things would get terrifying. Weâll be all exposed if weâre not careful, and weâll have to deal with people coming for our us like leeches going after blood.â
âItâs best if we resort to using external resources too. What do you think about that suggestion I proposed before?â
âDo you mean the two detectives from town?â
âYeah, them.â
âItâs a plan worth thinking over.â Miao Tianchuan had some other plans in mind, as well as someone more up to the task.
Cough, cough. Miao Chengtang suddenly started to cough.
âWhatâs wrong?â
âNothing. Thereâs probably some water left in my lungs.â
In the Valley of Thousands of Medicine...
Miao Xihe stared at the mound of bloodstained dirt before him and remained silent for a long time.
âItâs the Blood Orchid.â
âBlood Orchid? How is that possible? How did he get his hands on that?â The man by his side was surprised.
âThis canât be anything else,â Miao Xihe said. âEverything makes sense now. This explains how he is still alive after being poisoned. The Blood Orchid took care of the poison for him.â
âHow did he know about that place?â
âMiao Chengtang told him,â Miao Xihe said. âThose two have been in touch for quite a while.â
âChengtang should be poisoned as well, right?â
âIndeed, and I activated it last night. Iâm sure itâs in full force now.â
At a hotel hundreds of miles away...
Miao Chengtang spat out a mouthful of blood.
âChengtang!â
âHeâs poisoned!â Miao Tianchuan exclaimed as he looked the dark red piece of clotted blood.
âIt is probably something that has long been in him and activated last night.â
Miao Chengtang gritted his teeth as he uttered, âMiao Xihe really is a snake!â He felt as if countless bugs were tearing at his internal organs. The pain was unbearable.
âCome. Take this.â Miao Tianchuan took out a pouch from his pocket. Inside it was several Blood Orchids.
âHave you been there again?â
âWeâll talk about that later. Just hurry up and eat this. It will help.â
Miao Chengtang chewed on the Blood Orchids and gulped them down. The pain in his stomach began to wane after a while.
âDidnât any of you take Blood Orchids?â Miao Tianchuan asked.
âNo, we didnât.â
âDidnât Miao Xihe tell you people anything?â
âHe said the flower was in conflict with some of the effects of the medicines in our bodies and might have devastating effects if we ate them,â Miao Chengtang said. âAll Blood Orchids taken were guarded by specific people, all of whom were his trusted ones.â
âItâs Miao Xihe who would have suffered the conflicting effects,â Miao Tianchuan said. âHe tempered his body with the meds, some of which contained poisons that seeped into his blood. The Blood Orchid would have conflicted with his body, but you people would have been safe.â After all, it was something he had tested.
âYeah, I long suspected that, but I never did anything out of place so I did not have my cover blown,â Miao Chengtang said.
âThatâs not good enough,â Miao Tianchuan said. âIâm not sure if the poisons in your body are totally clear now.â
âI feel that itâs subsiding.â
âThat could be little more than an illusion,â Miao Tianchuan said. âThat poison might possibly be something concocted by Miao Xihe personally. We canât afford to let our guard down.â
âWhat should we do?â Miao Chengtang asked.
âAs you said before, weâll figure something out using those two, but that could be risky still,â Miao Tianchuan said. âMiao Xihe might have planted his eyes and ears around them. Contact them and see how they fare for starters.â
âSure.â
âThat settles it,â Miao Tianchuan said. âQingshan and I will need to hide for the time being.â
âWill do.â
Lu Xiufeng, who was in the county town, received another message.
âHey, partner! That guy got out and is poisoned. He suspects that Miao Xihe is after him and hopes that we can provide protection.â
âDid he say what his name is?â Yang Guanfeng asked.
âMiao Chengtang.â
âMiao Chengtang, eh. Let me check.â Yang Guanfeng began to search for the information he was holding in his hand. The information was from 15 years ago. They had just gotten their hands on it, which pertained to the Valley of Thousands of Medicine.
âItâs there. Miao Chengtang was 22 years old back then, so heâs 37 now.â
âHold on,â Lu Xiufeng said. âHeâs asking for our help. What does age have anything to do with it?â
âWeâll help him,â Yang Guanfeng said. âWe have to help him, but we need to keep this a secret and let as few people know as possible. If what heâs saying is the truth, we could be a witness. I was rather impressed by the influence of that chief, given how he was able to make a high-ranking official in the province speak on his behalf. That is one hell of an influence.â
âWhere is he now?â he asked.
âIn the county.â
âWow, heâs actually here. Thatâs interesting. So, do we need to see him?â
âOh, definitely.â Lu Xiufeng smiled as he lit a cigarette.