Chapter 303: Flattening the Entire Mountain!

The moment Xiao Gang saw Brother Hu again, he almost burst into tears. Even though only a day had passed, it felt like an eternity.

“Brother Hu!”

“Holy crap, Xiao Gang! Is that really you? Boss!”

Brother Hu had been sitting in front of the tent, anxiously waiting.

Wang Yun had stepped out for what he said was a quick bathroom break the night before but hadn’t returned since. Brother Hu had already woken up from a full night’s sleep, and there was still no sign of him. How could he possibly sit still?

And now, out of nowhere, Xiao Gang had shown up.

“You little punk! What are you doing here? Don’t tell me Boss went out to rescue you!”

Brother Hu rushed forward and pulled Xiao Gang into a bear hug. He had thought he might never see him again.

But here he was, somehow rescued.

Xiao Gang slapped Brother Hu’s shoulder enthusiastically, completely ignoring the grimace of pain on his face.

“Boss took five captains hostage and traded their lives to get me back. You wouldn’t believe it! He wiped out over twenty inspectors all by himself. I was just hiding nearby, and I was scared out of my mind just watching!”

Xiao Gang was so excited that he was practically jumping up and down, trying to vividly recount everything he had witnessed from his hiding spot.

But words failed him. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t capture the sheer awe of that moment.

“That figure… it was like a ghost,” Xiao Gang exclaimed, his face still full of excitement.

Meanwhile, Wang Yun ignored the two of them. He walked into the tent and calmly began reassembling the filtration device as if nothing had happened.

Wang Yun glanced at the two of them and said, “Alright, are you planning to chat in this poison mist all day? Brother Hu, let him inside to get some water. Xiao Gang probably hasn’t had much rest.”

Wang Yun’s expression softened with concern as he looked at Xiao Gang.

While running back, Xiao Gang had been on the verge of collapse multiple times. His body was weak, and he had almost fallen flat more than once. Thankfully, Wang Yun had quick reflexes, pulling him along as they ran.

If Wang Yun hadn’t helped him, Xiao Gang might not have made it back in one piece. He probably would’ve died halfway, either from exhaustion or by becoming a wild animal’s meal.

As soon as Xiao Gang stepped into the tent, he launched into an excited recounting of his ordeal.

“You guys have no idea! Those people tried every trick in the book to get me to spill anything about Boss. But no way, I didn’t say a word. They really tried everything. Hypnosis, guilt-tripping, they even brought out a photo of my parents, thinking they could use that to soften me up and make me give up Boss’ location. Guess what? I didn’t fall for it.”

Xiao Gang spoke with exaggerated gestures, his face full of pride. Brother Hu listened intently, thoroughly entertained.

His storytelling was dramatic and full of natural humor, so much so that even the livestream audience was cracking up.

Meanwhile, Wang Yun stood at the tent’s entrance, his face expressionless. His mind wasn’t on their conversation. Instead, he was thinking about the next steps. This time, he had taken out nearly a quarter of the program inspectors and humiliated their captains on top of that.

There was no way they would let this grudge go.

If he were in their shoes, the next logical move would be to mobilize every available resource to hunt him down and bring him to justice.

Even though the mountain range was vast, with enough people, they’d eventually catch him. Perhaps even…

Wang Yun raised his gaze toward the sky.

The trees around him were dense, their canopies once thick enough to block out the sun. But now, they were corroded by the poison mist, lifeless and hollow. Without nutrients to sustain them, they had lost all value. In the eyes of those chasing him, they were no different from him—a problem to be eradicated.

To eliminate a danger for the greater good was a moral duty for them.

“Looks like staying in the mountain really isn’t an option anymore,” Wang Yun murmured to himself after a moment of silence.

It had been three hours since the earlier chaos.

In that time, the inspectors had likely regrouped outside the mountain. If they were to re-enter, it would take about four hours to return.

Four hours wasn’t much time.

“Boss, what are you thinking? You should come inside and rest for a bit,” Brother Hu said, poking his head out of the tent, his tone tinged with concern.

Wang Yun waved him off. “No need. I got some sleep last night.”

“Xiao Gang, you stay here and rest,” Wang Yun said before turning to Brother Hu. “You and I need to get moving. We’re making a raft.”

“A raft? Are we really heading into the water?” Brother Hu asked, startled.

Wang Yun nodded. “Yeah. We can’t stay here any longer. We’ll need to build it fast. We’ve only got four hours. This river flows toward the coastal waters. South of that lies the Smoky Forest. That’s our target.”

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“Everyone, you seven should rest now. Leave the rest to us,” Zhao Youcheng said sternly, his expression grave as he looked at the others.

Wu Mingyu had already sat down to the side, his emotions more stable than before.

Everyone could understand his earlier breakdown. After all, anyone who had gone through that situation would either break completely or find some way to rise above it.

“Old Zhao, just tell us what to do,” Ying Yuezi, her usually composed demeanor shattered, spoke up with red, tear-streaked eyes.

Moments ago, she had hidden behind the crowd to cry quietly. Though she wanted to act as if nothing had happened, the slight puffiness around her eyes betrayed her.

“We’ll throw everything we’ve got at this. Follow me, we’re going to encircle and annihilate the entire mountain,” Zhao Youcheng declared. “Notify the production team. Have them send in helicopters to drop acid rain. The mountain is filled with poisonous creatures, and the trees have already been corroded beyond repair. There’s no reason for it to exist anymore. Acid rain will dissolve the forest quickly, and for us, it’s a win-win!”

As Zhao Youcheng spoke, his gaze burned with cold, unrelenting determination.

Acid rain? In other words, they planned to flatten the entire mountain.