Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

Mark's smile revealed an air of unbridled confidence. "Unfortunately, Miss Marston, your father isn't as clever as you; he didn't understand this..."

He tapped his temple with his finger, then his expression suddenly changed. "Mr. Cheddar is the biggest sponsor of the New Elizabeth State Police."

"The mounted police here are generally paid $20 more per month than in other states, and their equipment and benefits are also better. Do you think this money comes from somewhere, or falls from the sky? He just can't see such a simple truth."

As he spoke, a look of disgust appeared on his face, and he spat out his cigarette. "We didn't ask him to do much, just to keep quiet, that would have been enough. But he refused, and not only that, he wanted to drag all of us down with him... This is something that should have been resolved behind closed doors, but he insisted on bringing it up in the open. It's not just stupid, it's downright stupid, utterly foolish."

“Now you know the truth, Miss Marston.”

Mark slowly opened the drawer, took out a stack of money, and counted it out one bill at a time in front of the two men. "Actually, I gave him a choice. He is indeed an excellent mounted policeman, I admit that. So I offered him $500, and we could pretend this never happened. Unfortunately, he wasn't smart enough and didn't accept my offer."

The $500 was placed on the table; it was a heavy stack of loose change.

This is not just about money. Accepting it means accepting "dirty money," and it means that you are the same kind of people as them.

Humans are social animals. When everyone is the same kind of person, even doing evil becomes as easy as breathing.

However, when an outcast enters the ranks of the same kind, everyone realizes they are doing something wrong. But they don't feel remorse; they just find the existence of this outcast incredibly obstructive and want to find a way to eliminate him: either corrupt him into their own kind, so everyone is equally rotten and they can do whatever they want without worry; or... make this outcast disappear from the group completely.

Having lived so long, Mike already knew everything about this gadget. His hand was already on the handle of the Colt revolver, his eyes half-closed, but he didn't interrupt.

The most important choice in her life should be made by her.

----

"As far as I know, you're staying with your relatives right now, right? Being a dependent must be a difficult experience. The smarter a woman is, the more painful she may feel facing this world..."

Mark added two more large-denomination bills to the stack and laughed, “Don’t be like your father, Miss Marston, think more about practical matters.”

"After all, we all have to live in this real world, don't we?"

……

Xiaomei's breathing almost stopped. She stood there like a broken doll, neither speaking nor moving, staring intently at a stack of money on the table, lost in thought. Because of her silence, the atmosphere in the police station became stiff and seemingly frozen. Separated by a thin wooden wall, the nightlife of Fengchuisha had just begun, as if two different worlds were separated.

After a long silence, she slowly raised her hand and grasped the bandage covering her face.

“Sizzle!!”

Mark was still taken aback when he saw the hideous wolf claw marks on the face after it was suddenly ripped off.

In her deep blue, watery eyes, the timidity of a young girl had vanished completely. Instead, they seemed like sparks rising from the embers after all hope had been shattered, flickering with a wild rage. Some of the claw marks hadn't healed, and each tear brought forth blood, but the pain only made her grin. Blood trickled down her cheek, dripping onto the corner of her mouth like vibrant red lip gloss.

"See you in hell."

She said this with a smile, as if she had already witnessed that scene.

"...shit!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Mike caught a glimpse of movement at the back door. He immediately deduced that the two young men who had gone to dispose of the body hadn't shown up for so long because they must have sensed something was wrong and were hiding behind the door waiting for an opportunity. Now, Xiaomei had clearly shown her uncooperative attitude, leaving no room for negotiation.

Get started first!

"Bang!" "Bang!"

He estimated the two men's positions and fired directly. The bullet pierced the wall, and screams came from the other side of the wooden wall.

"Get down!"

After dealing with the two henchmen, Mike didn't waste a second. He immediately leaped forward and tackled Mei to the ground.

"boom!"

Hollow-point bullets whistled out of the revolver, shattering a wanted poster on the wall.

Chapter 55: Rebel army, do not flee! Hongzhong is here!

After rolling around on the ground with Mei in his arms, Mike lifted his leg and kicked open the police station door, then rolled out in a disheveled manner.

No matter how ugly the posture was, it was still the most efficient way to dodge bullets. He even kicked the door back in, and almost at the same time, another blank-point bullet whistled out of the house, piercing several large holes in the poor door!

"Survive, little girl. Don't think about anything else right now, just survive! That's the most important thing!"

Taking advantage of the chaos, Mike first lifted Mei onto the horse, then mounted himself, skillfully biting the reins, drawing his two pistols, and firing wildly at the police station entrance. The combined firepower of the two revolvers emptied their magazines in an instant, suppressing Mark and preventing him from going out to pursue.

"beep---!!"

"beep---!!"

……

The sharp sound of police whistles pierced the air, coming from all directions.

It had only been about three weeks since Colin was killed, and with the bounties on Mike and Red, a large number of armed men were entrenched here. The sheriff emerged from the alleyways and witnessed Mike firing at the police station entrance. There was no possibility of negotiation, so he drew his gun and prepared to fire.

"boom!"

Gunshots rang out from the direction of the stables. Alana raised her rifle and, taking the initiative, killed a sheriff. She aimed for his head, but the bullet pierced his side of the neck. Blood gushed from the wound, and he instinctively tried to cover it, but more blood seeped through his fingers. Finally, he lost his balance and tumbled off the saddle, dying a gruesome death.

"ah----!!"

The screams of the people pierced the sky. In contrast, Windblown Sand was a stable pastoral town. Cowboys occasionally quarreled and dueled with guns, but no one dared to lay a hand on law enforcement officers. When they saw a sheriff with a star on his chest being knocked off his horse, they immediately descended into utter panic and chaos.

Born in a lawless land, Alana doesn't think about such things. When it comes to life and death, it's either me or you!

She skillfully pulled back the bolt and fired several shots in quick succession. Although her accuracy was not as good as Mike's, she still caught the sheriff off guard.

"Over here, over here!" She raised the rifle high above her head and waved it vigorously, calling out, "Follow me!"

“…Good girl…” In this desperate situation, seeing someone coming to his rescue, Mike’s lips curled into a smile. Amidst the hail of bullets, he tightened the reins, spurred his horse, and spurred his Dutch Warmblood forward, shouting, “Get out of the way! Get out of the way!”

With the situation so tense, he had no time to pay attention to passersby. The Warmblood, known for its endurance and large size, knocked over several unfortunate pedestrians during its charge. While charging, Mike completed a one-handed reload in the saddle, resumed dual-wielding, and fired!

Bullets whistled through the air, and human bodies, like shattered wine bottles, spilled bright red wine from the bullet holes, meaninglessly pouring onto the mud.

Screams, falling to the ground, firing... all sorts of sounds mingled together, forming a chaotic symphony.

The civilians hurriedly turned and ran, but they were inevitably hit by stray bullets. In no time, a large number of people fell on the road.

The heavy hooves carved a path through the mud.

Seeing this, Alana skillfully turned her horse around, and their escape began.

"Where are you going?!" Having fought your way out of the gunfire, practically walking a tightrope between life and death, even someone as skilled and daring as Mike couldn't help but feel a chill, and his voice tightened considerably. "Where's Red Center?"

"Let's head towards Tinglan Grassland first!"

Alana has been in the gang since birth, and her 14 years of gang life have made her quite familiar with this situation. Her voice showed no panic, "He stayed behind to buy us time."

"……what?"

Mike was startled and turned sharply to look at the windblown sand that was gradually receding into the distance—the sirens were blaring incessantly, and large numbers of armed sheriffs were rapidly gathering. Most of them were wearing black trench coats, like a flock of black crows, and they had spotted the glittering shards of glass and thus gathered together.

“In a typical town, there are probably only four or five sheriffs. But Windblown Sands is different; this is Chaidel's stronghold, and the security forces are exceptionally strong. Moreover, these are special times, so the number of officers will only be more…”

With a quick glance, Mike saw at least 20 people, not counting Cheder's private army, surrounding the entire town of Windblown Sand like an iron gate! Under such circumstances, leaving alone in the rear to buy them time to escape, Mike couldn't imagine what adjective could describe him other than "brave".

Interestingly, deep down, Mike believed he could escape this situation.

Hongzhong is not a boastful person; if he says something, he can definitely do it!

----

Mark pushed open the dilapidated police station door, his brow furrowed again. He strode out, glanced at the assembled security forces, pulled up his hat, and transformed back into the reliable sheriff everyone trusted. A cigarette dangling from his lips, he squinted, watching the direction Mike and his men had fled.

"As expected, I knew they had backup."

“Sir Mark, are you alright?” his sheriff asked.

“I’m fine, but they killed Eddie and Byron, a bunch of scum!” Mark spat out his cigarette, shouldered his rifle, and, under the admiring and expectant gazes of his men, prepared to give his usual pre-battle speech. “They fled in panic, without food or water. They can’t have gone far. First and second squads, mount up, we’re going to report back to those two fine lads…”

"boom--!"

A deep, powerful gunshot, like the heartbeat of a wild beast, whistled through the air and ripped his left ear to shreds!

Among the fleeing crowd, one man stood as still as a rock, a smile on his face, his right hand outstretched, and fired a shot at the sheriff amidst the blowing sand.

His calm and composed smile stood out starkly against the panic of those around him, making him stand out like a crane among chickens, instantly recognizable.

The sheriffs were stunned. In all their years of traveling around the country, they had never seen anyone so openly and brazenly stand in the middle of the road and fire at them. As a result, despite their numbers, none of them reacted immediately.

"Ah... bastard..."

Mark screamed and raised his hand to cover his bleeding ear, but instead of anger, a chill ran through him.

Just a little bit.

If the bullet had deviated even slightly from its trajectory, he would have been dead! They actually had such a skilled expert lurking in the town!

who is it……

Who is it? !

----

"Hahahaha!" Zhang Renfeng burst into laughter when he saw that the group of police officers were dumbfounded and none of them dared to fight back.

After laughing, his expression suddenly changed. He fired two shots into the air and shouted at the top of his lungs, "You traitors, don't run!"

"Red Center is here!!!"

He laughed wildly, his black and white Volcano Pistols resembling the incarnations of the Black and White Impermanence under the command of the King of Hell.

If it really is them, they probably never imagined that they would receive foreign customers in their lifetime.

Taking advantage of the moment when the sheriffs were intimidated by the name "Red Center" and did not take action, Zhang Renfeng swept his two guns and fired several shots in succession!

Gunfire flashed, bullets pierced through the chests without a trace of pain, striking the heart directly. In the blink of an eye, four men lay motionless on the muddy ground, lifeless.

"Hahahaha—!"

Leaving behind a string of maniacal laughter, Zhang Renfeng slipped into the gap between the houses and disappeared before the retaliatory bullets arrived.

"Chase him... Chase him! Corner him, flank him from both sides!" Mark, clutching his injured ear, retreated behind the group and gritted his teeth as he commanded, "No matter how many die, we must capture Hongzhong alive today!"

Chapter 56: We have strong logistical support

Previously, I had only heard how terrifying Red Center was, and based on mainstream speculation, I believed that "Iron Wall Mike" was in cahoots with him.

With him acting as an inside man, it was possible to so easily kill fifteen gunmen. Most sheriffs didn't take him seriously, assuming it was just another state's law enforcement team being incompetent and deliberately exaggerating his abilities to cover up their own negligence.

Now, witnessing firsthand how Hong Zhong killed six people in an instant, each shot piercing their hearts, and displaying a madness completely different from that of ordinary criminals, would terrify any normal person.

The average monthly salary of a sheriff in Windblown Sands is indeed $20 higher than in other places, but it's not so high that it would motivate them to risk their lives.

“I’ve already sent word that reinforcements will arrive soon, a dozen or so skilled men, armed and on horseback, all of them Mr. Cheddar’s bodyguards.” Mark used his knife to cut open his sleeve, tearing off a piece to bandage his injured ear, while warning in a sinister tone, “When Mr. Cheddar finds out that we let Red China escape in broad daylight… I don’t need to say more, do I?”

On the battlefield, where a single second can change everything, there is no time to provide psychological counseling to soldiers; threats are far more effective than reasoning.

Everyone in Windblown Sand Town agrees that if you displease Mr. Cheddar, you'll suffer the consequences.

……

The silent alley was deserted, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. The leading sheriff swallowed hard, instinctively gripping his rifle, and stepped into the narrow, hellish crevice. The muddy ground provided him with ample clues—a trail of footprints, still quite fresh.

It's called an alley, but it's really just a narrow gap between wooden houses, and it can't be very long. Most of the buildings in Fengchuisha Town are wooden structures, and this narrow gap is overgrown with weeds, the roots of which are covered in mud, making footprints difficult to discern.

Mark said he was leading another group, splitting into two groups to flank the town from the side. The town fell silent instantly, utterly still. The only sounds were the tense breathing of teammates and the pounding of hearts that seemed about to leap from their chests!

"crunch..."

The wooden walls emitted a sound characteristic of old wood, making it difficult to pinpoint the source; it could be a sound from the neighboring room.

"Bang bang bang bang bang bang!"

With the distinctive American sheriff's practice of emptying his ammunition magazine, a sheriff at the end of the line suddenly turned around, raised his gun, and opened fire on the wooden planks beside him, letting out a low growl of extreme fear that turned into rage. The gunshots, rang out so close, startled everyone. But when they realized he was only firing at the wooden planks, their expressions turned to disbelief.

"You son of a bitch! Open your eyes and look around, this is the wall of the grocery store!" the startled companion yelled angrily. "What's wrong with your brain, why do you have to go after a wall?"

"But... just now, there was a sound over there..." The young sheriff, still shaken, murmured, his lips trembling.

“Nonsense! It’s made of wood. It creaks when you step on it. My ceiling is completely bare, and it makes that sound at night too!” He pointed to the grocery store next door and asked in a tone that said, “Are you kidding me?” “Do you really think that in such a short time, this guy who shot the sheriff in the street has already hidden in the grocery store?”

"Are the people in the grocery store idiots? Can't they call out?!"

----

In the grocery store.

“Canned beef… chewing tobacco from the Great Valley… do you need coffee?” Chuck grabbed a can of instant coffee, waved it at Zhang Renfeng who was huddled in the corner, and asked in a low voice, “You can brew it tonight. It tastes weird, but it’s good for staying awake.”

Zhang Renfeng imagined everyone gathered around a campfire, brewing coffee together, and couldn't help but laugh even in such a critical situation.

"Let me pack this for you." Chuck took three cans of coffee powder and put them into the already large bag. "This should last for a while. By the way, do you need any bullets? We have some here, but they're not on the counter. If you want some..."