That night, Su Mo enjoyed a perfect dreamless sleep, sleeping like a baby.
When his consciousness awakened again, it was already early the next morning.
Waking up, there was still a faint pain in the back of his neck, indicating how strong Nuobai's hand chop was.
"This woman must be toxic..." Su Mo cursed softly, intending to rub his neck, suddenly realizing something soft was holding his hand.
He opened his eyes to see Nuobai still lying face-to-face with him in the sleeping bag.
To protect her true identity from being seen by Su Mo, she didn't remove her mask while sleeping.
Behind the mask, her eyes were closed, dense and long eyelashes on her eyelids trembled occasionally, resembling two resting black butterflies.
One arm was under her head as a pillow, while the other hand was clutching Su Mo's, her fingers gently clasping it.
This delicate posture, coupled with the soft touch, left Su Mo a bit bewildered. He was about to pull his hand out, but as he lightly moved, the small hand instantly tightened.
"Creak..." Nuobai's fingers locked Su Mo's hand like iron clamps, each fingertip pinching his bones painfully.
At the same time, Nuobai quietly opened her eyes and stared at him coldly.
Su Mo quickly realized that gripping his hand was a method to detect his movements and prevent him from escaping or doing anything unexpected.
Even while sleeping, Nuobai maintained such high vigilance.
The pain in his fingers made Su Mo a bit annoyed, and he frowned, saying, "I won't run away. In this vast wilderness, where can I go? Let go!"
Nuobai paused for a moment and released his hand.
She picked up her phone to check the time and typed:
[Pack up, let's go]
She tossed Su Mo some compressed biscuits and started packing the gear they brought into the cave to avoid the rain yesterday.
After packing, she saw Su Mo sitting in the cave, still slowly eating the biscuits.
"Thud." She picked up a rock and threw it near Su Mo's legs.
Su Mo kicked the stone away and slowly said, "Why the rush? Breakfast should be eaten, come, sit down and eat something too, it's not good for your stomach otherwise."
He spoke lightly, but was actually very anxious inside.
The night passed, yet there was still no sign of the Hegemony Company's pursuit team.
Are they still on the way?
Or did they simply not notice the blood traces he left behind and are still wandering around aimlessly?
If there are no rescuers, it would follow the original plot's trajectory, a certain death situation!
Thinking of this, Su Mo couldn't help but feel anxious, as if the passage of time had become exasperating.
Su Mo's slow eating made Nuobai a bit impatient, and she came over to nudge his back with her knee.
Su Mo was like fish on a chopping board, and the only thing he could do was delay time as much as possible.
He intentionally laid flat on the ground, kicking his legs: "Ugh... The biscuits you gave me aren't fresh, my stomach hurts, I need to go to the bathroom."
Nuobai clenched her fist, ready to punch him in the head.
Just as she was about to strike, her gaze suddenly sharpened, looking towards the southern side of the cave.
At the horizon, sand and dust flew up, soil sprayed up forming a long trail of dust, accompanied by the faint sound of engines approaching, it was a vehicle.
Su Mo followed Nuobai's gaze and felt relieved.
The pursuit team had finally arrived!
...
An advanced armored vehicle moved across the wasteland, its body covered in heavy armor, with a hook-shaped composite turret protruding from the top like a scorpion's tail, continuously reflecting the cold light under the sun.
The side of the armored vehicle bore the "double helix" emblem, the Hegemony Company's insignia.
This vehicle, called the "Scorpion Armored Car," could hold up to 8 people. Its designers achieved a perfect balance of armor protection, firepower suppression, off-road capability, and endurance, making it one of the main vehicles of the Hegemony Company's light armored forces.
The Scorpion Armored Car was fully loaded, with the Razor combat team led by Alote aboard.
The "White Shark Blood Code" carrier leaned out the passenger window, nose twitching as it discerned the scents carried by the wind.
Suddenly, he said to Alote in the back seat, "Chief, the scent of blood doesn't extend beyond this area."
Alote pondered for a moment, then said, "Either Dr. Chen's ploy was discovered, or they made a stop nearby and haven't left yet."
"Orders: conduct a thorough search of this area, all personnel ready for battle."
Just as Alote's command came down, the Scorpion Armored Car hadn't slowed, when suddenly, dust rose from a racing vehicle on a distant barren hill.
"Two o'clock direction! Pursue!" Alote saw the anomaly and gave the order.
The driver changed direction, steering the Scorpion Armored Car towards the barren hill.
The Scorpion Armored Car was very powerful, keeping its superior off-road performance and combat capabilities while moving with ease, easily navigating the rough terrain at 140 kph.
The Razor team followed the trail of dust, and after ten minutes, a tactical motorcycle appeared within their sight.
The White Shark Blood Code carrier leaned out the window, observing with binoculars.
Soon, he turned back to report: "There's someone in the front seat of the motorcycle, wearing a white coat, it should be the kidnapped researcher!"
Alote picked up the vehicle's loudspeaker and issued a routine warning: "Unidentified vehicle ahead, you have kidnapped a member of our company, which is a serious hostile act, stop and negotiate immediately! Or we'll have the right to shoot you on sight!"
...
Because the pursuit team arrived so suddenly, Nuobai couldn't manage to bind Su Mo, simply throwing him onto the front seat of the motorcycle. Leaning forward while driving, she pressed down on him to prevent him from falling off.
Hearing the warning from the pursuit team behind, Su Mo knew his plan had succeeded.
The pursuers were here; the bait had taken!
What next?
Distract Nuobai to make her crash and let the company rescue him?
No, absolutely not.
He must not be taken to the Iron Blood Alliance by Nuobai.
Nor be rescued back to the Hegemony Company by the pursuit team.
Because both paths had similar outcomes.
The "Ancestral Blood Code," as a "failed product," couldn't be controlled by the Iron Blood people or the company's people.
If he was rescued back to the Hegemony Company, he might get one chance at saving, but this saving attempt was doomed to fail.
After that, he would likely end up in a lab for live dissection, facing a tragic end still.
In the vast Dawn Realm, only one thing could save him.
This thing was neither with the Iron Blood nor the company.
It existed in a place known only to those who played the game.
A place that only Su Mo knew of.
To get to that place, the first step was to disrupt Nuobai's kidnapping and lure the pursuit team.
The second step was to prevent the company's rescue!