Chapter Seventeen: The Rescue

Jiang Yu and several other women were brought to a location where, in addition to them, another group of captives was being held under the watchful eyes of armed guards. Along the way, Jiang Yu had estimated the number of bandits to be around fifty, all of them ruthless and depraved criminals.

"Wuwuwu... what should we do?"
"I don't want to be here. I don't want to end up like them."
"Wuwu... If I had known, I wouldn't have joined the convoy to the base. If I had just stayed safely at home waiting for rescue, I wouldn't have encountered this."
"I curse these bandits to die a horrible death. Sooner or later, they will fall at the hands of the mutants."

Once the bandits had left, the emotions of those who had remained silent throughout the journey finally erupted. Cries and angry curses filled the room, echoing incessantly. The women were so immersed in their own despair that they remained completely oblivious to the fact that Jiang Yu had already slipped out and dispatched the guards stationed outside their door.

Jiang Yu did not want the captives to disrupt her plans, so she moved without alerting them. Along the way, she silently eliminated every sentry posted in the vicinity.

"These few look quite fresh. How about these?"
"Fine. Your choices are never wrong."
"Look at this tender skin; they’ll surely be a delicacy later."
"By the way, I wonder if the guys over there will share a few of them with us tonight. We brought back quite a haul this time."
"Don't worry. Even if it’s not our turn tonight, it will be sooner or later. And then... hehe..."
"You're right. Hahaha..."

Jiang Yu had navigated her way to the area where the children were held, arriving just in time to witness the bandits selecting their next victims. The children did not fully understand what was about to happen, but they knew the men before them were evil. They wanted to cry and scream, but they were too terrified by the bandits' ferocity to make a sound. The remaining children, not chosen this time, huddled deeper into the corners, seeking a shred of security.

Jiang Yu did not strike at the men inside immediately; instead, she neutralized the guards around the perimeter first. Before any of the bandits could react, she had slit their throats. One after another, the bodies collapsed, and blood began to flow across the floor at her feet. Afterward, Jiang Yu crouched in a concealed spot, waiting for the men to emerge with the children.

"Huh? Where did Xiao Wang and the other guy go?"
"Probably wandered off to smoke somewhere. It doesn't matter if we watch this place or not; the door is locked and they can't get out anyway."
"Those two, honestly—leaving without even telling us."

Despite their grumbling, the man locked the door and placed the key in its usual spot. As the two men led a few children away, they sensed someone approaching. Expecting their companions to return from a smoke break, they turned around—only for one to have his throat slashed instantly. He looked at Jiang Yu in disbelief, then down at the blood he could not stem with his hands. With wide, staring eyes, he collapsed without uttering a word.

The other man, seeing his teammate taken down, immediately reached for his weapon to fight. But before he could draw it, Jiang Yu had already lunged at him. He managed to dodge her first lethal strike, but his luck did not hold.

"You won't have a good end either... Boss, Boss..."
"Don't worry. I’ll send your boss down to join you soon enough. You’ll be reunited before long."

Jiang Yu ignored the man who glared at her with dying resentment; she felt that even a glance at him would soil her eyes. The children, having witnessed the bloody scene, had already scrambled away in terror. The older ones instinctively covered the eyes of the younger ones. One of the older children, hearing footsteps, carefully opened his eyes and felt a sudden sense of relief upon seeing Jiang Yu.

"Big sister, are you here to save us?"
The child could distinguish friend from foe; the person before him looked nothing like the cruel men who had captured them.

"Yes. You are safe now. Don't be afraid." Jiang Yu stepped forward, patted his head, and added, "I’ll take you back to that room for now, okay? Once I've finished dealing with the bad guys, I'll come back to take you out of here."

"Okay." The young boy led his younger siblings back behind Jiang Yu, returning to the room where they had been held. As soon as they entered, the children rushed to tell their peers, in broken, stumbling words, what had just happened outside. Though their accounts were hazy, everyone in the room understood that the bad guys had been defeated.

"Wow!" A chorus of gasps filled the room as the children looked at Jiang Yu with excitement and awe.

"Remember what I told you. Stay in this room and don't go anywhere, understand?"
"I understand. I will look after them."
"Good. I'm leaving now."

Just as the door was about to close, the young boy called out to her: "Big sister, you will definitely come back to take us out, right?"

Jiang Yu could see he was afraid she would abandon them and never return. She offered him certainty.

"Yes, I will definitely come back."

Jiang Yu left the area and headed toward the center of the camp. She remembered the path she had taken and knew which direction the leader had gone. Along the way, she was either killing bandits or on her way to kill them. Every sentry she encountered was silently eliminated, without alerting the rest of the gang.

However, once she reached the area where the main group of bandits gathered, it was no longer possible to act without being noticed.

"Who’s there? Damn it! To dare kill my brothers—see if I don't slaughter you today!"

Finally, the bandits discovered the anomalies. Though they hadn't seen the intruder, they grew alert and dispatched a search party.

"Boss, it's bad. Someone has infiltrated the camp and killed some of our men."

The boss, lounging on a tiger-skin chair, bolted upright at the news. "What are you all good for? Someone has broken into our territory and started killing, and you only notice now?"

"Boss, I suspect it’s someone from the group we just brought in."
"So, you're telling me you haven't even caught the person yet?"

The subordinate lowered his head, not daring to meet his gaze.

"Hmph! A bunch of useless trash!" The boss stood up, kicked the man aside, and barked, "Follow me!"