Chapter 30 : Chapter 30
Chapter 30: Flying Across the Broken Bridge
“There’s been a car accident! Hurry and call the police!”
“The driver fled after hitting someone. Get his license plate number first!”
“Call an ambulance, quickly...”
“No, there’s no time. Her injuries are too severe.”
Quite a few kindhearted people nearby rushed over to help.
The corners of Black Snake’s lips slowly lifted.
“Lu Zhan, Jurisdiction Head of Peach Blossom Alley, take a good look. She died because of you.”
The vehicle sped away, yet he still deliberately left behind that one sentence to disgust Lu Zhan.
Wang Botao’s expression changed slightly.
He was a careful-minded man, and he instantly understood the malicious intent behind those words.
Shangguan Ling, however, did not realize it. She could only watch helplessly as that G-Class SUV struck the woman to death. Someone who treated human life so lightly was truly infuriating.
“Beast.”
“Brother Lu, don’t worry about us. Chase him down and kill the bastard.”
Lu Zhan frowned. The road ahead had become badly congested because of the accident. There was no way to force the vehicle through.
He leaned on the horn.
The piercing sound drowned out the voices of the gathered crowd.
“What are you honking for? Are you blind or—”
That person had just started to curse when his voice abruptly cut off.
“The Demon Extermination Bureau is conducting official business. All unrelated persons are to clear out immediately.”
Lu Zhan pulled out his Identity Token and gave the order in an extremely forceful tone.
At those words, the crowd slowly drew back.
The Demon Extermination Bureau only handled cases involving Demon Beasts. None of them dared provoke it.
“My lord, please save my mother. I have money... I’ll give you all my New Year money...”
It was as though Anan had finally found someone to rely on. He dropped to his knees by the roadside and kowtowed desperately, until his forehead was bloody.
Who would not pity such a miserable sight?
Everyone around them focused their gaze on Lu Zhan.
They wanted to see what the Jurisdiction Head of Peach Blossom Alley would do. Would he save her, or continue pursuing the criminal?
The SUV started up again. Its engine roared through the silent crowd, kicking up a violent gust of wind.
That person’s action seemed to give them the answer.
“Mom, wake up... don’t leave Anan behind... Anan won’t lie to you again...”
“I didn’t really want to eat the goose. I just miss Grandpa. Will you go see Grandpa with me... You promised me... wuwuwu...”
Anan’s eyes dimmed, and tears finally streamed down his face against his will.
No matter how much he wiped at them, they would not stop.
The crowd sighed inwardly.
Although Lu Zhan had not technically done anything wrong, they still could not help feeling disappointed.
The crowd began murmuring among themselves.
“Lu Zhan? I’ve never heard of this Jurisdiction Head of Peach Blossom Alley before. He must be new, right?”
“If those Martial Artists were willing to save her, maybe they could have saved that child’s mother. Ah, what a pity...”
“You can’t put it that way. If they help, that’s kindness. If they don’t, you can’t blame them for it. Besides, that woman is so badly injured that even an official Demon Exterminator might not be able to save her, let alone newcomers like them.”
“That’s right. The one who’s truly detestable is the bastard who treated human life like dirt. If someone like that gets away, who knows how many more people will suffer in the future?”
...
Anan could not hear clearly what the others were saying.
He merely cried in silence, because he knew his mother was dying.
“When you beg others to save your life, you’re placing your life in someone else’s hands. Only when your life is in your own hands is it truly secure.”
The engine was clearly loud, yet Lu Zhan’s voice still rang distinctly in their ears.
Anan was stunned, and the crowd did not understand what he meant either.
The SUV drove off.
But the crowd saw a streak of red light shoot out from the car window and land on the woman’s forehead.
When they looked carefully, they saw green light flowing from her body, while a yellow-brown talisman had been pasted to her chest.
“It’s a Rejuvenation Talisman!”
Someone who recognized it blurted it out.
“Look, her complexion is much better. She’s still unconscious, but her breathing is obviously much steadier, and the fatal bleeding seems to have stopped. It looks like she can be saved now. At the very least, she can hold on until the ambulance arrives.”
“In truth, the bleeding was only one of her fatal injuries. More importantly, her internal organs were damaged. I can sense a dense life force inside her body constantly repairing the damaged organs.”
“A Rejuvenation Talisman is incredible. It can actually save even someone who was about to stop breathing the very next second.”
“It looks like this newcomer from Peach Blossom Alley is no ordinary person. He has both ability and ambition. So this was the answer he gave us? Then again, no one ever said he couldn’t choose both...”
He would save the person, and he would kill the one who had offended him as well. This was absolutely a ruthless man with principles.
The crowd looked at the departing SUV, their eyes filled with awe.
“Child, when you grow up, you must repay this lord properly.”
Light filled Anan’s eyes once more. He kowtowed heavily in the direction of the SUV to express his gratitude.
“Thank you... thank you...”
“The ambulance is here. Everyone, make way.”
...
Inside the SUV, Shangguan Ling was a little surprised. “Brother Lu, I really thought you were just going to leave that woman alone.”
“But that was a Rejuvenation Talisman. You only have three in total. I didn’t expect you to be willing to use one on a stranger.”
Wang Botao covered his face. “Shangguan Ling, if you don’t know how to talk, then stop talking. You’re making it sound like Brother Lu is some kind of miser.”
“No, no, no, Brother Lu, I really didn’t mean it like that.”
“Old Wang, you set me up...”
Shangguan Ling hurriedly explained.
“It’s just a Rejuvenation Talisman. Leaving it in my pocket would only let it gather dust anyway. But whether I care about it or not, this debt still has to be collected from Black Snake...”
Wang Botao shivered.
Black Snake causing trouble in Peach Blossom Alley had already stirred Brother Lu’s killing intent. Now that another debt had been added on top of that, his death would probably not be pleasant.
“Give me the update!”
Lu Zhan said coldly.
Only then did the Public Security Bureau side respond. “The target has exited Mengren Street and is now speeding toward Jade Bottle Bay.”
Lu Zhan continued the pursuit.
All kinds of complicated terrain, all kinds of driving maneuvers—it left Wang Botao utterly astonished.
Suddenly, a booming crash rang out from up ahead, followed by flames soaring into the sky.
“Attention: the target has blown up the Spiral Light Bridge leading to Jade Bottle Bay. Please turn left and detour via Starlight Avenue...”
Ahead of them, Black Snake finally let out a breath in relief.
“Hah! That damned mad dog is finally going to be shaken off.”
He got out of the car.
He moved slowly and deliberately, carrying himself with the elegance of a victor.
He had completely forgotten how pathetic he had looked when he had been chased just moments ago.
“Oh my, Lu Zhan, I’m terribly sorry. I’m afraid this is as far as you can escort me. What a pity. I originally wanted you to send me a little farther, but alas, Heaven had other plans.”
“Hahahahaha!”
At the broken bridge, Black Snake threw back his head and laughed smugly, venting the fear and unease in his heart.
When he had faced Lu Zhan just now, that damned oppressive pressure had felt like Death itself chasing him with a scythe, the kind of pressure that could drive a person mad.
Now that he had finally escaped, he had to vent it fiercely.
His posture was especially arrogant, as though he were saying, Come on then. Don’t you like chasing people? If you have the skill, then fly over here.
He even leisurely lit himself a cigarette.
Wang Botao and Shangguan Ling also saw the scene ahead clearly, and their hearts instantly sank to the bottom.
The Spiral Light Bridge had broken in the middle. There was a gap of more than thirty meters between the two halves.
And below the bridge was a rushing river.
Still, seeing Black Snake acting so smug after such petty success, Wang Botao could not bear to look at it.
“Heh. You’re only capable of lowly tricks. If you hadn’t kept harassing Brother Lu the whole way, then with Brother Lu’s driving skills, he would’ve caught you long ago.”
Shangguan Ling also urged him, “Brother Lu, let’s take the detour. With your driving skills, we’ll definitely catch up to him...”
But Wang Botao fell silent.
Black Snake’s driving might not be as good as Lu Zhan’s, but he was vicious.
And besides, his driving was not poor either. It was just worse than Lu Zhan’s.
On top of that, if they continued any farther, they would practically be leaving Shanzhu County Town. At that point, he could duck into any random mountain hollow, and who knew where he would hide?
Lu Zhan paid no attention to the clown’s shouting.
The broken bridge could not be crossed?
What a joke. That only meant the driving skills were not good enough.
Lu Zhan focused his gaze on one of the talents on his system panel—Veteran Driver.
At the end of the day, it was only Common-grade.
So what if it were upgraded to Rare-grade?
“System, how many Talent Fragments are needed to upgrade the Veteran Driver talent?”
【5】
“That cheap? Upgrade it!”
【The Host has consumed 5 Talent Fragments. Upgrading the talent Veteran Driver. Talent advancement in progress...】
【Advancement successful. Congratulations, Host. You have obtained the Rare-grade talent—Driving God】
Fixed Talent: Driving God
Talent Grade: Rare
Growth Potential: Potential exhausted, maximum reached
Duration: Permanent
Status: Fixed
【Effect 1: Vehicle Mastery】
You are no longer limited to ordinary vehicles. You can easily handle all kinds of rare and special vehicles, and when driving them, you instantly become familiar with their performance and characteristics, as though you and the vehicle were one.
【Effect 2: Rapid Repair】
The Host can rapidly determine faults in conventional vehicles through visual inspection and simple touch alone. Without professional repair equipment, the Host can still perform rapid repairs using ordinary tools and materials.
【Effect 3: Conquering Desperate Situations】
Even when facing complicated, ever-changing, and extremely harsh road conditions, you can still easily perform high-difficulty maneuvers such as drifting, fishtailing, and leaping. In addition, you can use your skill to reduce damage by 90%.
The first two effects had not changed much.
But the Driving God talent had gained one more effect: Conquering Desperate Situations. It was equivalent to giving the vehicle an extra layer of insurance.
The corners of Lu Zhan’s lips rose as he calmly uttered four words.
“Sit tight. Hold on.”
A bad feeling instantly rose in Wang Botao’s heart.
“Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy shit!!!”
“No, Brother Lu, what are you trying to do? Wait... Brother Lu, calm down... calm down a little... I haven’t gotten out of the car yet.”
Shangguan Ling was so anxious she was nearly in tears.
VROOOM! VROOOM! VROOOM!
The SUV’s engine roared like a steel beast driven into fury.
“Too late.”
Lu Zhan’s gaze was as sharp as a blade. Without the slightest hesitation, he slammed the accelerator down.
In the next moment, the SUV launched straight into the air.
Everyone—including the smug Black Snake on the opposite side—revealed expressions of utter disbelief.