Special Forces Medic-Chapter 644 - 606: How did you find it?
In the end, Hua Qingyi chose the most inconspicuous place on the left. There was nothing there, and the surroundings were quite empty. He swung the octopus hook and flew toward the gap on the top of the wall. Once he landed smoothly, he tested its bearing strength. Only after ensuring it was secure did he begin to slowly inch his way up.
The right-angle climb was a tiring position. Hua Qingyi pushed off with his feet and grabbed the rope with one hand to pull himself up half a notch, then repeated the method to move upward. He felt this would be faster than climbing straight up the edge, though if he failed to grab the rope at the same moment, he would fall, risking at best injury or worse, disability. It was only once he reached the top that he realized how dangerous the task was, spurring his fear and apprehension after the fact.
"How did he make it up here without tools?" Gazing at the steep wall, Hua Qingyi asked himself this question. It was only a question; he wasn't interested in knowing the answer.
The chimney diameter was about forty centimeters wide. He retracted the octopus hooks, wrapped them into a ball after that, and placed them in a corner. Common sense dictated that the chimney needed regular cleaning to clear the soot and grime off the top, ensuring the interior remained clear and avoiding the remnants of waste residue that could produce harmful gases when burned again.
As he descended along the rock wall, the supporting bars underfoot grew narrower, forcing him to rely on his toes to secure himself. Hua Qingyi cursed under his breath, thinking it would have been easier just to use the octopus hooks to come down.
He looked up, now about two meters from the bottom, confident he could jump without issue. Just then, he suddenly heard a noise. He stopped moving and pressed himself against the rock wall, listening intently to the faint sound. His foot slipped, and he slid down. In a panic, Hua Qingyi reached out to grab a foothold, steadying himself, breathless.
The faint sound he'd heard earlier had also ceased. A bad feeling lodged in Hua Qingyi's heart. It had been more than twenty minutes since he descended from the roof. He should have reached the ground by now, so why did he feel like he was still suspended mid-air? If he hadn't slipped just now, he might have really jumped, and he couldn't help but feel relieved that his rashness had been accidentally resolved.
His fingers dug into the rock wall as he tried to find stones at the seams to gauge the chimney's depth. Unfortunately, the builders back then were very devoted, with no corners cut.
The flashlight couldn't illuminate the bottom, so he kept climbing down. The further down he went, the more constricted it felt, completely opposite to a chimney's usual shape. At the end, it became like a circular hole, its diameter just wide enough to fit his shoulders. The chimney resembled two equilateral triangles fused together, forming a rhombus.
About a meter farther down, Hua Qingyi felt he finally reached the ground. Along with this, a very slight breeze blew up from the small of his legs. The air was no longer dusty; opening his mouth no longer filled it with gritty dust, and there was a faint whistling sound caused by air flowing through gaps.
He bent down, making the airflow sound more pronounced. After scanning around with light, he saw a passage before him. On its upper layer was Xiao Lin's mark — this time, it was two fingers and a horizontal line, a bit different than before.
He took out his usual weapon and wore it on his left hand. At the passage entrance, there were no signs of a fight. Hua Qingyi continued moving forward. The man-made walls bore traces left by drilling machines, and the uneven pits underfoot, paired with the passage's height that only allowed a crouch, cost Hua Qingyi much time. He didn't encounter any other markings left by Xiao Lin during his advance.
He turned off the flashlight as a faint light appeared ahead. Hua Qingyi quickened his pace until he suddenly halted, only one step away. If he'd gone any farther, he would have fallen straight down. The end of the light was a very large depression. Lying flat on the ground, Hua Qingyi extended his head to look down.
A clearing spread before his eyes. Several powerful generators rested on the cement-piled ground. On a wall opposite him were two gigantic exhaust fans, whirring noisily. From his angle, he couldn't see the entirety of the underground pit but could vaguely hear voices, echoes blowing away in the air.
Wanting to probe further, he suddenly heard footsteps behind him. He quickly searched for a place to hide, but this was an opening. He could either retreat or jump out. The stone overhead was extraordinarily hard; no escape below as well. With no time to consider, Hua Qingyi instinctively chose to confront the newcomers.
He calmly rose from the ground, turned around to face whoever would appear, his fingers poised on the trigger of the weapon on his left hand.
The footsteps approached, their force varied with each step. It was two people, one male and one female.
"Are you sure they haven't returned?" The woman's voice was the first to reach Hua Qingyi's ears.
"Before we came out, that forensic guy was inquiring." It was the innkeeper's voice, so the woman must be the innkeeper's wife.
Mu Rongyun had arrived rather swiftly, Hua Qingyi thought. His original plan to take them down had to be shelved for now. These two could not be killed yet. He glanced back at the opening, then flipped over and attempted to climb downward from the rock wall. Just as he leaped, a figure reached out from above, grabbing his collar and pulling him up, coincidentally as the two speakers arrived.
The sudden force turned Hua Qingyi's initial shock into joy. A familiar scent wafted behind him, somewhat unpleasant.
"Brother…" He started to turn but was stopped by the person behind him, pressing his head down.
The man and woman standing at the opening were indeed the innkeeper couple, oblivious to the presence above them, still conversing. Due to the echoing valley, their conversation wasn't clear. There was a dedicated lift down from the opening, an advanced feature, creating slight similarity to a Middle Eastern base. Hua Qingyi lay on the ground again, watching below. From this angle, it was clearer than from the mouth of the opening.
"How did you find this place?" Xiao Lin took a couple of steps back, sat up. Their hiding spot was only half-man-high, a squeeze for two tall men.
"Came down the chimney!" Hua Qingyi crossed his legs like Xiao Lin, leaning against the wall, surveying the surroundings. "What exactly is this place?"
"Chimney, did you not see the marks I left?" Xiao Lin rolled his eyes at Hua Qingyi. He had left messages for him, guiding him on how to enter. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote with recommendations, monthly tickets at Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my greatest motivation.)
