Chen Chuan merely glanced at the ground, twirled his blade, and continued down the metal-plated corridor. He walked at a steady pace, the sound of his footsteps echoing through the empty factory.

Near the exit, Wei Jun’s men heard the footsteps slowly approaching. A sense of terror welled up within them, and cold sweat trickled down their backs as they tensed up.

One man, in his panic, quickened his pace, but he slipped and tumbled some distance. When he came to his senses, he discovered his lower body lying two meters away and began to scream in agony.

The sight horrified the others. Their faces turned pale and their breathing grew ragged, but they didn’t dare stop. Their movements simply became shaky and trembling.

But after they had struggled to crawl forward for some time, the footsteps behind them suddenly stopped, seeming to vanish altogether.

"The sounds stopped?"

"What’s going on? Did he not follow us? Or did the Combat Mantises get him?"

Wei Jun couldn’t resist looking back. As he did, his pupils involuntarily contracted. Chen Chuan was standing just around the corner of the corridor, watching them with a calm gaze.

"Fuck."

A wave of despair washed over Wei Jun.

"Call for help! Quick, get people in here! We have men outside!" another member, who had clearly spotted Chen Chuan, yelled in a panic.

But shouting was all he could do.

They had indeed stationed plenty of men outside. Unfortunately, they had given prior instructions for everyone to keep their distance, warning that things inside the factory might get a little "lively." So now, their men were faithfully holding their posts. Even after hearing the gunshots and screams from within, not one of them approached.

Moreover, things had been too rushed. This was an abandoned factory complex, so there were naturally no active phone lines. They did bring a radio, but in the chaos just now, they obviously hadn’t had a chance to use it. And now, it was impossible.

Another man seemed to realize something. "No, wait! This stuff is blocking him! That’s right, it’s blocking him too! He isn’t coming over. We can leave! We can get away!"

He shouted with excitement, as if he’d just grasped a life-saving straw.

The few men around him were thrilled to realize he might be right.

"Right, right! He can’t get through either."

Jiang Wei silently kept crawling forward, ignoring the men behind him. He knew that if Chen Chuan had made it this far, he must have already dealt with the two Combat Mantises. That meant there was likely nothing left to stop the bio-weapon Chen Chuan had brought with him, either. In such a confined space, they stood no chance. ’Better to save my energy and run than waste time talking,’ he thought. ’Maybe there’s still a slim chance of getting out.’

Just then, Jiang Wei probed ahead with his knife, only to be surprised when he met no resistance. He wasn’t the only one; the others also discovered that the obstacle in their path was gone.

This was because the silk’s effective duration had ended, causing its binding properties to disappear.

Upon realizing this, the members of the Mutual Aid Association scrambled to their feet and staggered toward the exit.

Just then, Chen Chuan walked forward. His pace didn’t seem fast, yet in an instant, he was right behind the group. With a flash of his blade, one of them fell.

Seeing how fast Chen Chuan was, Wei Jun kicked a man in front of him toward the attacker. Chen Chuan simply flicked his Snow Monarch Blade, the edge slicing across the man’s throat. The man stumbled, clutched his neck, and kicked his legs as he backed into a wall. Using the wall for support, he pushed himself up and staggered away, still trying to run.

Chen Chuan paid him no mind. Relying on his physique as a Fighter, the man managed to run for about a hundred steps, leaving a trail of blood. He grew slower and slower until he finally collapsed. After a few feeble twitches, he lay still.

One member’s eyes went bloodshot. With a roar, he charged at Chen Chuan.

Chen Chuan suddenly appeared at the man’s side, his hand resting on the man’s neck. His fingers tightened. CRACK. The man’s body and limbs went limp, his feet dragging along the ground.

Chen Chuan’s arm remained steady as he dragged the man for two steps before releasing his grip, letting the body drop to the floor.

Wei Jun’s breath grew ragged as he watched. He was a capable Fighter himself, and a part of him wanted to charge forward and take Chen Chuan on. ’It’s death either way,’ he thought. ’Might as well go down fighting.’ But his legs were frozen to the spot. ’Even without bringing Tan Wang into it, judging by what Chen Chuan just did... I wouldn’t stand a chance. And if I can live, who the fuck wants to die? Senior Brother Zhao promised he’d send experts, but the motherfuckers still haven’t shown up! Otherwise, we never would have ended up in this mess!’

’Looks like this is my only choice.’

He pulled a squirming, transparent worm from his pocket and swallowed it in one gulp.

It was a creature left behind by the Two-Faced Mind-fiend whenever it killed someone. Whoever swallowed it would, for a short time, gain the same abilities as someone possessed by the fiend.

Although he might fall into a hallucinatory state and would suffer rebound damage when attacking others, he would also become nearly impervious to external harm.

’As long as I can last through this, I’ll live!’

After getting to his feet, Jiang Wei didn’t immediately bolt. He hesitated for a moment. In that brief pause, someone shoved him aside, rushed past him, and grabbed for the doorknob. But the instant his hand made contact, a black shadow flashed past, and the man was diced into pieces.