Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

……

"Zhang! Zhang..."

At this point, Sam finally climbed the hill. For someone of his weight, doing so much exercise in such a short time had left him breathless.

But he still raised his trembling right arm and handed a shovel to Zhang Renfeng, saying breathlessly, "Just in case... I was thinking just in case, we might need this..."

"Good, very useful." Zhang Renfeng took the shovel, weighed it in his hand, and then waved his hand behind him, "You all step back!"

……

"Thump—!!"

He swung his shovel and smashed it hard into the gap between the two boulders. A crisp metallic clang rang out, sparks flew, and the shovel was firmly wedged between the two boulders, becoming a useful fulcrum. Using it as a lever, he pried a small gap between the two mountain-sized stones at their interlocking edges.

People can't get over it.

But there's plenty of room to put both hands in.

Zhang Renfeng took a deep breath, stretched his neck and wrists, making a clicking sound. He assumed a horse stance in front of the crevice, extended both hands, and grabbed the edge of a boulder in each hand. After a brief silence, his back muscles instantly bulged!

Even from his back, you could tell that every muscle in his body was taut. Immense power was emanating from his body, flowing through his strong arm muscles to his palms and fingers!

The ruins trembled slightly, and rubble and rainwater fell from above with a thud.

"..." Lydia's expression was somewhat taken aback. She wasn't really sure how heavy these concrete fragments blocking her way were. But reason told her that this was definitely not a weight that could be moved by human power.

Now, the shaking ground and the small stones bouncing on the ground are like heavy hammer blows, constantly falling and pounding on her worldview.

“Ms. Lydia!” Sam quickly urged, “Let’s go a little further back.”

……

"Woo..."

Zhang Renfeng clenched his teeth, his expression becoming somewhat ferocious from the exertion, with veins bulging on his forehead.

"what!!!"

……

"boom-----!!!"

With a loud crash, he finally managed to push the two small hills of rubble aside, creating a narrow passage that could accommodate a person.

Chapter 750: I am already dead

"call……"

The moment he pushed them away, Zhang Renfeng felt his head lighten, his body feel weak, and he heard a buzzing sound in his ears.

His senses suddenly became extremely sharp; he could hear the sound of each raindrop shattering as it hit the ground. It was as if he had suddenly gained several additional senses, allowing him to understand the world around him better and more thoroughly. He could even perceive Sophia's presence directly through the fragments of the ruins—she was still alive, her heartbeat and breathing normal.

This relieved Zhang Renfeng, but he also felt very uncomfortable.

I experienced a sudden increase in physical weakness and heightened senses once in Sanma Town. This was a sign that my body was about to lose control!

"Zhang, are you alright? You..."

"No, don't come any closer!" Zhang Renfeng, still conscious, quickly stopped Sam's movements and said in a deep voice, "Let me... catch my breath..."

……

Now, it's only a matter of time before the dam breaks. Even if he rescues Sophia, there will be a mountain of problems to solve back in the shantytown; this isn't the time to act recklessly. Besides, Tito isn't around. If he really loses consciousness, who can bring him back to his senses?

However, since his last loss of control, Zhang Renfeng has developed a "quick calming method." Simply put, it's a variation of yoga, using rapid inhalation and exhalation to control heart rate and breathing frequency, thereby "cooling down" the body.

After repeating this several times, he suppressed the restless wildness within him, and Zhang Renfeng felt a sense of relief.

"Wow, Zhang!" Sam exclaimed from the bottom of his heart. "Even Hercules, the mighty god of mythology, is no match for him."

"Ha..." Zhang Renfeng chuckled and waved his hand, his expression somewhat complicated. He didn't dare grab Sam's outstretched hand, afraid that a mismatch in strength would cause him to rip Sam's arm off. He could only hold onto the edge of the stone and slowly stand up. "Are the bandages ready?"

"I prepared a little something, it's all in my bag." Sam patted his satchel.

Zhang Renfeng nodded and gestured for him to step back, then moved aside the concrete fragments blocking his view one by one.

Fortunately, the further he went in, the smaller the stones blocking his path became, and there were no longer situations where he had to exert all his strength to clear a way. Like a burrowing mole, he kept digging deeper and throwing stones out. Finally, after persisting for several minutes, he managed to dig an inconspicuous passage through the blocked culvert ruins.

As the last stone was removed, the squeezed water surged out instantly, submerging Zhang Renfeng's ankles and giving him a very bad feeling.

Time is really running out.

"Sophia, are you in there?" Zhang Renfeng wiped the water off his hands with his clothes, turned on the lantern, and carefully moved closer to the inside. "Sorry we're late."

The ruins inside the culvert are very narrow, just a cramped space of a dozen meters long, composed of rubble and debris.

Sofia sat there quietly, her face pale and her eyes somewhat numb.

The noise from the rescue, especially when Zhang Renfeng broke apart the boulder, was considerable and could certainly be heard inside. But Sophia chose to remain silent. She neither called for help nor revealed her location, simply sitting motionless in the cold water, maintaining a doll-like posture.

“Wait a minute, Zhang,” Sam sensed something was off. “Something seems off.”

Zhang Renfeng naturally sensed it too. He half-squatted down, stretched out his finger in front of her, and waved it twice. Seeing that her eyes still followed his finger, he asked, "Do you remember who we are?"

"..." Sophia glanced at them, her eyes seemingly containing a wealth of information, but unable to express it because she couldn't open her mouth.

She nodded anyway.

"What happened..." Zhang Renfeng was also puzzled. "I was outside just now and I heard your screams. Are you injured?"

The girl shook her head again.

Zhang Renfeng shone his lantern on the ground and indeed saw no fresh bloodstains. Since the girl was not injured, where did the screams come from?

……

"boom----!!"

The crack in the dam began to widen further, followed by a muffled echo after the tremor.

"It's not safe here; it could collapse at any moment." Zhang Renfeng helped her up. "No matter what, let's get out of here first!"

----

"Oh my God...Sophia!!!"

The moment Lydia saw them come out, her legs went weak and she almost fainted.

The tension that had been building up suddenly eased, and all the stress, excitement, and exhaustion from the journey rushed over her. She then realized that she had probably twisted her left ankle when she lost her high heels while running, but she hadn't even noticed the pain before because she was too nervous.

She limped forward and hugged Sofia tightly. She had a lot to say, but at this moment, it seemed unnecessary.

It's good that he's back.

"..."

The sensation of the embrace caused the girl's pupils to dilate gradually; she was like a newborn baby just opening its eyes. Somewhat clumsily, she imitated her sister's movements and hugged her back. Despite the urgency, Zhang Renfeng and Sam remained silent, giving the sisters as much time as possible.

"elder sister……"

Finally, Sofia spoke.

"What's wrong?" Lydia immediately noticed the weakness in her voice. She pressed her shoulder and looked her up and down, but saw no external injuries. She then looked to Zhang Renfeng for help, hoping that this man, who seemed almost omnipotent in her eyes, could answer her question.

However, this time, he couldn't give an answer either, and just shook his head.

“We’ve checked her over. Miss Sophia doesn’t seem to be injured; we didn’t see any wounds or bruises,” Sam said in a low voice. “Perhaps… something happened before or after the explosion that put her in…”

“Let’s talk about these things when we get back,” Zhang Renfeng interrupted Sam. “The river is about to overflow, we need to discuss what to do next!”

……

"Woo!!"

These words seemed to trigger some painful memory in Sofia. She covered her head, let out a muffled groan, and her expression changed, as if she were enduring unspeakable pain.

"Sophia?" Lydia's heart leaped into her throat. "Are you alright?"

"I...I'm fine...I'm fine. I just remembered...something...ah!"

As if she had finally broken through that wall, Sofia suddenly realized what was happening, and then, completely instinctively, she grabbed her sister's wrist tightly. It was hard to imagine that such strength could suddenly burst forth from this weak body. It was as if she would be kidnapped if she didn't do so.

"Just now, about ten minutes ago..."

She said with absolute certainty, "I have drowned."

Chapter 751: Without me, where would you be?

"What?" Wilson's expression changed abruptly. With a "bang," he slammed the glass full of red wine to the ground and shouted angrily, "What did you say? It didn't explode?"

Those below seemed to have anticipated his unpredictable behavior.

He shifted his body slightly, not bothering to dodge, and continued reporting the situation, "The plan proceeded as expected, with two teams setting off as you instructed. However, only the explosives at the culvert successfully detonated, and the resulting breach was not enough to immediately cause the dam to collapse."

"Just half an hour ago, Ms. Sofia, who had just declared at the meeting that she would take responsibility for the more than 3800 workers, also set off towards the dam. But she should not have been armed, and it is currently unknown whether she is involved in the whole incident."

"Currently, this information is being kept secret from subordinates; they are unaware of it yet. Do you need me to...?"

"Did a donkey kick your brain?! Don't say a word!" Wilson became hysterical, grabbed an ashtray, and slammed it to the ground. "Get out, get out of here!"

……

Wilson took a deep breath, and his shoulders began to tremble.

As the initiator of this plan, he knew better than anyone the potential benefits and risks involved.

Such a plan to eliminate any potential offspring either succeeds or fails; there's virtually no possibility of mediation. The fact that it hasn't succeeded already means it has failed.

Not to mention, he wasn't just targeting one person's household; the entire shantytown housed 3872 people, young and old. It's easy to imagine that if the plan were exposed and the news leaked out, these people would fight him to the death.

Currently, the security forces in Pike City are insufficient to protect his life. His two most elite trusted teams have already been dispatched, and they are likely to have perished on the levee.

The remaining few people... might not be able to guarantee their safety if things change!

"Shit, shit! How did things come to this?!" He slammed his fist on the table twice, his expression a mixture of hatred and rage, as if he wanted to devour someone.

But soon, as if suddenly realizing something, he turned his head and looked at Jonah, who had been standing beside him.

……

"It's you?"

Wilson turned his head, his first question tinged with disbelief, but his second was filled with rage, his eyes and brows furrowed together.

"It's you!!"

Jonah's fear intensified, and he waved his hands repeatedly, but his aura was already weak, and his lips trembled as he couldn't utter a single decent rebuttal.

This convinced Wilson that Jonah was the informant. He grabbed Jonah by the collar, threw him to the ground, and punched him in the eye socket.

“But…but brother, this is wrong in the first place…” Jonah took a punch but didn’t argue. Instead, he admitted it directly, “You are the mayor of this city, yet you want to blow up the dam and drown more than 3800 people…This is just too unreasonable!”

"With so many people, there will always be survivors. If even one eyewitness survives and speaks out about it, it could cause a huge uproar."

"At that time, let alone the mayor's position, our family's status within the organization will probably also..."

"Shut up, you bastard! You dare tell me how to do things? Do you think this is helping me?! How dare a self-righteous fool like you interfere with my decisions?!"

Wilson's eyes widened, spittle flying from his mouth. "After it's all over, there might be two or three survivors, but they'll definitely be a minority. There are plenty of ways to deal with a minority and keep them from speaking out."

"Now that things have been exposed, there are over 3800 more survivors! The deed is done, so how are you going to undo the damage?"

"You think you've done something incredibly good, that everyone will thank you? Ha... what a joke! You're even dumber and more brainless than I thought!"

Wilson screamed hysterically, “Do you know what those despicable bastards call us? ‘Water Ghost Brothers’! In their eyes, you and I are already one! Anyone can betray me, but not you. Our interests are highly intertwined. Even if you wanted to use the credit for betraying me to defect, no one would believe you!”

"I...I didn't intend to surrender..."

Jonah's voice was drowned out by Wilson's roar.

“A good-for-nothing like you, so indecisive, would only be fit to shine shoes or tend horses if you were born into a commoner family. All your privileges in this city—your food, your clothes, your possessions—come from me. I am the source of your power!”

"Boom—!!"

There was lightning and thunder outside.

The pale lightning illuminated half of Wilson's face, making him look like a demon crawling out of hell.

"Without me, where would you be?"

"Without me, you wouldn't exist!!"

He repeated the question twice, grabbed his younger brother by the collar, picked up an ashtray, and was about to smash it on his head.