Artifact Report

Chapter 453 Mai Minghe: Paradise is a Bus
If tonight is the last night of her life, then Mak Ming Ho has less than nineteen hours left.

Eighty-six years of life seemed to pass by faster and faster, eventually cascading down like a torrent, crashing into tonight, breaking through tonight, and still rolling forward, taking away the last bit of time in her hands.

Therefore, when the three people left the parking lot one after another, Mak Ming-ho thought it over carefully.

Nineteen hours is just a day that young people can spend going to work, scrolling through their phones, eating, etc., but it was the biggest gamble of her life.

Is she really going to gamble her last moments, betting that she can get something from the host? Or is it just a facade?

She seemed to have guessed what it was, but Mai Minghe had no idea whether she was right or wrong.

If she guessed correctly, how did she get her hands on it? And how did Damian get his hands on it?

Knowing its form is of no use whatsoever—the illusion still did not miraculously appear on her body.

If we leave now, we can follow the original plan to find the sea reeds and Aimeili, and spend the last nineteen hours peacefully...

Will she regret it?
Do you regret not trying one last time?
The sound of the car engine fading into the distance made Mai Minghe subconsciously raise his head.

Damian and Caronan have already left.

They got into a car together—a car that had been parked in the parking lot, which didn't seem to belong to the Kai family, and it was unclear how the host opened the car door and started the engine.

They didn't bring Chais along; before getting into the car, Kaironan whispered a few words to Chais and patted him on the shoulder, whether to comfort him or to encourage him, it was unclear.

When Chai Si was the only one left in the parking lot, he took out his phone and quickly tapped on the screen for a while.

Mai Minghe's cell phone buzzed in his pocket.

"I'll find a car and follow them. You have a car too, right? If you want to follow, I'll tell you how to get there."

He did not ask to ride in the same car as Mak Ming-ho; if Mak Ming-ho was a card he was playing, the person he wanted to hide from was certainly not Damian.

The floating dots on the message dialog box indicate that the other person is still typing—this is what Hai Luwei taught her.

"I cannot hand over the reins of power to you for the same reason that you cannot hand it over to me. However, before we must fight to the last moment, let's walk together for a while."

Mai Minghe stared intently at the message, and for a moment, a smile almost crept onto his face.

After sending the message, Chai Si left. I wonder where he's going to find a car.

Looking at the empty parking lot, a few rules that were still in effect were faintly shimmering.

She closed her eyes and sighed softly.

Even hesitation and indecision are luxuries she cannot afford; because everything in the world requires time.

Mai Minghe slung the machine gun back on his back, climbed down the second floor along the same route, jumped onto the roof of the vehicle, and sat back in the driver's seat.

“Okay, tell me where to go,” she typed on her phone, “I’ll follow you right away.”

...She wants to seize...? ? ? An illusion.

While she was bedridden, she recalled her life countless times; she never regretted the attempts she had made, the risks she had taken, or the detours she had taken... even if the results were not as she had hoped.

What's most heartbreaking are the things she was tempted to do and wanted to try, but ultimately convinced herself not to do them with various reasons.

By the time you regret it, it's too late; there's no time left.

Mai Minghe started the car and drove back the way he came.

Chai Si had not yet replied, but she had a vague guess in her mind—at this critical moment, Damian suddenly invited Kaironan to get in the car with him and leave. Could it be that he wanted to go home and visit someone?
If Mai Minghe's guess is correct, perhaps they followed Damian's route to retrieve... a decoy.

Anyway, let's head in that direction first.

Mai Minghe kept a close eye on the direction as she went, and when she saw the shimmering waters of the Hysen River in the distance, she slowed down—it wouldn't be good if she accidentally followed Kaironan and alerted him.

The driver hasn't sent a message yet. Could it be that he hasn't found a car?
Even if he's exceptionally capable, he might not know how to steal a car... It would be ridiculous if he messed things up because he couldn't steal a car at a crucial moment.

Sigh, if I had known it would turn out like this, I would have preferred to—

Mai Minghe's jumbled thoughts came to an abrupt halt when a bright flash of headlights suddenly illuminated his rearview mirror.

A car had just turned out from the side road and followed behind her. Seemingly to get her attention, it turned on its high beams. When Mai Minghe turned around, she was blinded by the light and couldn't see anything. She could only wave to the car behind her.

Chai Si still hadn't turned off the high beams and accelerated to catch up; he was getting closer and closer; in the dim light of the night, it seemed as if he was peeking out of the driver's seat.

Is there something you want to say?

No, that's not right.

At that moment, Mai Minghe felt his internal organs clench rapidly. Chai Si had something to say: "Can't you even make a phone call?"

She suddenly swerved the steering wheel and lunged into the passenger seat—almost the moment she fell, a bullet pierced through the darkness and shattered the car window, creating a shower of silvery fragments inside the vehicle. With the help of the wind, the bullet swirled and pounced, almost joyfully, drawing countless streaks of blood from her hands and face.

who is it?

Mai Minghe gripped the machine gun with one hand, but while trying to prevent the car from crashing into the Haisen River, she had little time to set up the machine gun and fire back. She could only continue to lie prone, slamming on the accelerator, trying to escape the firing range of the car behind her.

The black and blue car—the color scheme seemed familiar, but it was only far out in the corner of Mak Ming Ho's eye, and she couldn't see it clearly—also sped up and drove alongside Mak Ming Ho's car. The driver aimed at the driver's seat from inside the car and fired several more shots.

Fortunately, Mak Ming Ho had been crouching low, and the bullet whizzed past her head, exiting through the other side of the car window and exploding into a shower of bright silver.

Isn't this a typical car chase and gunfight scene from an action movie?
If you can experience this, then the last nineteen hours of your life will definitely not have been wasted!
Mai Minghe was filled with doubt and anger, not knowing who she had offended, but she had no choice but to retaliate now; she managed to prop the machine gun against the window with great difficulty, and while crouching down to drive, she miraculously fired several shots—of course, none of them hit the mark.

The car chasing her immediately slowed down and fell behind again.

Did they not expect her to have a light machine gun in her car? Turns out, she's not an easy nut to crack.

Mai Minghe dared not straighten up, but she also dared not look away from the road. When she peeked at the road ahead, she immediately felt a chill run down her spine.

what happened?

Despite not understanding anything, Mai Minghe slammed on the brakes—the road was slippery from the rain, and the car continued to slide forward uncontrollably for quite a while before finally coming to a stop with a screeching sound.

...Just slide forward a little further and you'll reach the left fork in the road.

A fork in the road that wasn't there just moments ago.

She drove along a wide road, with buildings on one side and the Haisen River on the other.

However, now there are two more intersections in front of Mak Ming River, one on the left and one on the right; three identical dark roads stretch into the distance of the same city.

Even in the sky, three upside-down nests crowded up. It was as if a picture had been printed in three copies and pieced together.

This must be the work of the lair, but—

Wait, that car behind—

Mai Minghe hurriedly turned her head, only to find that the car behind her was not slowing down and was rushing straight towards her as if it wanted to destroy everything. It was too late to turn the steering wheel to avoid it. She watched as a bright white light rushed closer, like a flood, completely engulfing Mai Minghe's vision.

...Her heart was pounding as if it were going to explode, and the adrenaline was making her head buzz; her mouth was dry and bitter, and her whole body was covered in sticky, cold sweat.

However, being able to sense all these physiological changes can only mean one thing.

Mak Ming Ho did not die.

In fact, she was not only alive, but she was sitting perfectly fine, without any bumps or bruises on her body.

She stared blankly at the back of the seat in front of her, her mind still seemingly dragged back to the car accident behind her, unable to keep up.

Where is she...?
Mai Minghe looked to his left and then to his right.

Both sides had identical passenger seats, the cotton seats were dirty and faded, exuding a sense of dejection after being sat on by countless bottoms.

Ahead were the same rows of passenger seats, straight handrails, and doors for getting on and off the bus... A screen was mounted behind the driver's seat, silently playing advertisements.

It was pitch black outside the car window, and vaguely, the shapes of buildings seemed to flash by—but they were more like illusions than real locations.

Even a fool could tell that this is a bus.

Has she gone crazy from the pressure? She was driving on the streets of Blackmore City just a moment ago, engaging in a high-speed gunfight for more than ten seconds, and in the blink of an eye, she's sitting in a public bus?

It was only then that Mai Minghe noticed that the machine gun that had been resting on her thigh—well, should I say it was still there, or not?
It still lay on Maming River's lap, but it was no longer a machine gun; it was just a baguette of unusual shape, the same length as a machine gun.

With a dazed surprise, Mak Ming-ho raised his baguette and waved it twice.

...Maybe I'm already dead, and heaven is just a bus.

She put down her baguette, turned around, intending to see what the second half of Heaven looked like—and upon glancing back, she froze in her seat.

This is certainly not paradise; the bus is just a man-made trap, and she is the prey it has caught.

She finally understood why the color scheme of that car seemed familiar to her.

That's the most common color for police cars in Blackmore City.

The police chief, Ashley Peigge, whom she had met once before, was sitting in the last row of the bus, elbows on his knees, staring motionlessly at Mak Ming River.

(End of this chapter)