Chapter 311
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW
Chapter 311: Spare Me, Boss
The meteorite has already landed.
A prison guard lowered the binoculars in his hand, then turned around to report to Xie Yu.
Seated behind a wide black desk, Xie Yu nodded and spoke calmly, “From this moment on, the entire Abstinence Facility is now under Level One Alert. Notify the military defense team to keep constant surveillance on the surrounding waters. Also, reassign two-thirds of the prison guards to assist with external defense.”
The prison guard froze. Pulling two-thirds of the guards to the outside? Isn’t that too many? What if something happens inside the prison?
“Under Level One Alert, all inmates are confined to their cells. And there’s the top-notch artificial intelligence security system of Great Xia controlling everything. What could happen?” Xie Yu waved a hand. “Just do as I say.”
The guard hesitated for a moment before responding, “Yes, sir.”
When the guard left the office in quick strides, Xie Yu slowly stood up and walked to the window, gazing down at the deserted Abstinence Facility. The corners of his mouth tilted upward.
“The time has come…”
…
Outside the Abstinence Facility.
Baili Pangpang was crouched behind a giant boulder, sneaking half of his head out to peer forward through a monocle perched on his nose.
“This security is way too tight,” Baili Pangpang muttered as he pulled his head back. He couldn’t help voicing his thoughts.
“It is,” Cao Yuan sighed, a hint of puzzlement in his eyes. “I remember it used to be strictly guarded here, but not to this extreme. There are at least twelve snipers alone. Right now, even if we turned ourselves into flies, I doubt we could get in.”
“Could it be because of that meteorite just now?” Baili Pangpang mused. “I don’t think it was a natural occurrence.”
Cao Yuan nodded in agreement. “The probability of a meteorite strike is already small, and for it to hit the Abstinence Facility so precisely—there’s no way that’s a coincidence. And I can’t shake the feeling that it has something to do with those three people we just tied up…”
“Who cares,” Baili Pangpang said with a shrug. “Once we rescue Seven Nights, we’ll run for it. Whatever they plan to do won’t involve us then.”
“Don’t you have any forbidden items stashed away that could help us get through this checkpoint directly?” Cao Yuan asked.
“Well, I do, but either they’ve lost their effects or their power is hugely diminished,” Baili Pangpang replied with a helpless sigh. “All items involving spatial powers have stopped working. Even the ones that still function can only teleport two or three meters, nowhere near enough to break through such a long defensive line. Even Yao Guang can only radiate a one-meter glow. We definitely can’t rely on a one-meter glow to deal with so many guns and cannons, right?”
Cao Yuan nodded. “That’s not surprising. Under the influence of the Zhenxu Stele, all forbidden items that project a forbidden domain beyond themselves have been disabled. Only certain items that come with intrinsic abilities can still function.”
“So what do we do?”
“We wait for now.” Cao Yuan deliberated for a moment. “Since the extra defensive forces were deployed temporarily, they might let up somewhat after a while. Once that happens, we can look for an opportunity.”
“More waiting…” Baili Pangpang scratched his head, then suddenly had a light-bulb moment. “I’ve got an idea!”
“Go on.”
“What’s our main goal right now?”
“To get into the Abstinence Facility,” Cao Yuan answered, looking puzzled.
“Exactly! To get into the Abstinence Facility!” Baili Pangpang slapped his thigh. “So let me ask you this: if we’re trying to break someone out of prison and fail, where would those prison guards send us?”
Cao Yuan considered for a moment. “Send us on our way to the afterlife?”
“…,” Baili Pangpang’s lips twitched. “Try to be more optimistic. I’m saying, if we merely attempt a jailbreak and then have a crisis of conscience, turn ourselves in, and plead for leniency, won’t the guards think we’re… you know what I mean?”
Baili Pangpang squinted his already small eyes, trying to communicate through frantic winks.
“They’ll think we’re… insane?”
“…They’ll think our crimes don’t warrant the death penalty!”
“I get what you mean.” Cao Yuan fell silent for a moment. “You’re suggesting that if we go to them ourselves, they won’t be so quick to kill us. Instead, they’ll take us to a holding area first…”
“That’s right!” Baili Pangpang nodded vigorously. “And within a thousand miles of here, the only place they can lock us up is…”
“In the prison, after we surrender ourselves at the gate…” Cao Yuan whispered, doubt creeping into his voice. “I don’t know, this plan sounds shaky.”
“What’s shaky about it? It makes perfect sense!” Baili Pangpang’s eyes widened as he tried to reason patiently. “Besides, do you have any other way of getting into the Abstinence Facility? Even if we waited two or three days for the guards to relax, do you think we’d have any better chance of barging in?”
Cao Yuan fell silent, unable to respond.
Indeed, even in a couple of days, the defenses here still wouldn’t be weak enough to slip through.
“Then after we’re taken inside, what next?” Cao Yuan asked again. “They’ll definitely do a body search. Once they seize your ‘Free Space,’ we’ll have no means left to rescue Lin Qiye.”
Baili Pangpang patted him on the shoulder, letting out a sigh with an air of disappointment. “Listen, Old Cao, you’ve been running with me this long, but you still don’t get it? The best plan is no plan at all! We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Once we’re inside the Abstinence Facility, a way will present itself!”
“Think about right now. Before we came to this island, did you ever think of surrendering at the prison gate as a genius idea? No way! That’s why you shouldn’t overthink everything.”
Under Baili Pangpang’s unrelenting brainwashing, Cao Yuan’s thoughts grew muddled, his head throbbing. He glanced back and forth between Baili Pangpang and the distant checkpoint, then gritted his teeth.
“All right, let’s do it!”
…
Dusk was gradually falling.
In the yellowish glow of twilight, between the towering steel walls, a sniper held his rifle and carefully swept the area.
Suddenly, a figure flashed through his scope.
Click—
Seven or eight rifle bolts crashed into place almost at once. In an instant, most of the snipers had locked onto a certain spot in front of the checkpoint, ready to fire.
At the same time, the headlights of heavy armored vehicles around the checkpoint all switched on, illuminating the area with bright light. Dozens of fully armed special forces personnel disembarked from the vehicles, swiftly forming a perimeter and moving in slowly.
On the road not far away, two figures were walking forward at a measured pace, heads held high, solemn expressions on their faces—like warriors prepared to face death.
In particular, the chubby one had both hands up over his head, clutching a banner from who-knows-where. Across that banner, several large characters were emblazoned in bright red:
“SPARE US, GREAT ONES!”