Chapter 131: Falling off the Cliff

As Hong Chen drove to a point just shy of the mountainside, a text message arrived on his phone from that very same number. It contained only two words: "Summit."

A flicker of suspicion crossed Hong Chen’s eyes. The winding road of this mountain only extended two-thirds of the way up; beyond that, there was only a single-lane path leading to the peak, and another route descending from the back of the mountain. Aside from tour buses during the day, almost no vehicles ventured up there, let alone at night.

Accelerating slightly, Hong Chen finished the loop a few minutes later and turned onto the final single-lane path toward the summit. After another few minutes, he finally reached the top. In the distance, several historical structures stood in darkness, their silhouettes looking eerie under the moonlight.

Hong Chen stepped on the brake and dialed the number first. It was the same as before; it rang seven or eight times without an answer. Only then did he reply with a message: "I'm here."

A message quickly followed: "Drive forward, to the first building."

Hong Chen complied, though he kept his speed very low. His eyes scanned outside the windows constantly, and he monitored the situation behind him through the rearview mirror. At this point, only two possibilities occurred to him. The optimistic one was that Mo Fei was playing a prank on him, though he felt this was unlikely. The pessimistic one was that Mo Fei had been captured—was this another kidnapping?

Amidst his suspicion and vigilance, Hong Chen arrived in front of the first building. The road ended there, yet no one was in sight. He decided to get out of the car and shouted, "Mo Fei! Mo Fei! Mo Fei!"

On the third shout, two figures emerged from the side of the building. One led the way, while the other followed half a step behind.

"Mo Fei." Hong Chen’s gaze sharpened. As the two figures drew closer, he finally made out the features of the first one. It was indeed Mo Fei. Her eyes and mouth were sealed with strips of cloth, and her hands were tied behind her back. The person behind her was masked.

Suddenly, catching a flicker in the faint moonlight, Hong Chen noticed movement on his left and right. The next moment, two gusts of wind signaled an attack. Ignoring them, Hong Chen lunged rapidly toward Mo Fei.

"Stop!" the person behind Mo Fei barked in a hoarse voice, pressing a gleaming blade against her throat. Hong Chen’s forward momentum came to an abrupt halt.

Sensing no lethal intent from the sides, Hong Chen did not dodge. He stood frozen, as if terrified.

A moment later, the two figures from the sides reached him, each pressing a half-foot-long sharp knife toward him, stopping just inches away.

"To come alone for her, it seems you’re quite the romantic," the person behind Mo Fei chuckled hoarsely. Hong Chen rolled his eyes internally and decided to play along. "Yeah, well, you’re just here for money, aren't you? Let her go, and I'll be your hostage instead. I have money too."

The large gold chain, six gold rings, and the heavy gold watch were all still on him—symbols of wealth in the eyes of an ordinary person. But the man behind Mo Fei merely drawled, "Oh? She is worth a billion. What are you worth?"

Hong Chen was speechless. "Uh..."

The man’s tone shifted, turning cold and sinister. "Cut the crap. If you want to live, do as you're told: drive us down the mountain."

A flash of realization hit Hong Chen. That was why they had lured him here. They had no vehicle, and carrying Mo Fei down the mountain—over a hundred pounds of weight—would be difficult even for three people, not to mention the risk of being spotted. This also confirmed one thing: they didn't intend to kill him and Mo Fei right here and now. That was good—that was very good.

"Look, brother, I haven't seen your faces. You won't kill me to silence me, right? You have to keep your word." Hong Chen didn't agree outright, feigning a look of nervous anxiety.

"Don't worry. As long as you behave and play the role of the driver, I guarantee your life will be spared. If we wanted to kill you, we would have done it already, thrown your body off the cliff, and driven off." The man behind Mo Fei gave a logically sound answer. Hong Chen hesitated for a moment longer before reluctantly agreeing.

Inside the BMW, three men sat in the back with Mo Fei squeezed in the middle. Because she was bound, blindfolded, and gagged, the two men guarding her sheathed their knives. The man who had been behind her sat next to Hong Chen; he also put away his knife but kept his hand inside his jacket, which was bulging—pointing something at Hong Chen.

It was a gun.

Hong Chen’s hands on the steering wheel trembled slightly. He kept the speed at fifty miles per hour. After driving for a long stretch, the man beside him grew impatient. "Keep it at eighty. At this rate, when will we ever get down the mountain?"

Hong Chen nodded hastily. As they entered the downhill slope of the back mountain, he pressed the accelerator. The speed climbed to seventy, eighty, then a hundred, and kept increasing.

The single-lane road was only wide enough for two cars. Even with the BMW’s six-cylinder engine, it remained steady at over a hundred miles per hour, but looking out the window, especially with the dark, sheer cliff walls on both sides, was harrowing.

"Slow down!" the man beside him barked when the speed hit a hundred and twenty. This time, Hong Chen did not comply. He casually rolled down the driver’s side window, glanced at the rearview mirror, and a cold glint flashed in his eyes. He suddenly slammed the accelerator to the floor, yanked the steering wheel to the right, and simultaneously reached out a hand to press against the bulge in the man’s jacket.

Caught off guard by the sudden maneuver, everyone in the car tilted to the right. In the blink of an eye, the BMW veered off the road and plunged over the cliff like a tiger leaping into a ravine.

"Ah!" The three masked men, their expressions hidden, nonetheless showed sheer terror in their eyes. Mo Fei, blindfolded and unaware of what was happening, felt her heart leap into her throat and let out a scream.

Only Hong Chen remained unnervingly calm. With a cold and composed expression, he flicked his fingers three times. Three silver needles flew toward three distinct points, striking the men’s necks with lethal precision. The effect was better than a gunshot; the three men’s eyes bulged, and their heads lolled as they fell into an instant, unconscious state.

Next, Hong Chen reached his arm into the back seat, grabbed Mo Fei by her clothes, and pulled back. Mo Fei was lifted from her seat, flying into the front as if weightless.

Then, Hong Chen pushed Mo Fei out through the window and leaped out immediately after her. Before he left, he didn't forget to hit the lock button, sealing all four doors.

The series of actions sounded complex, but it took only two seconds. Two seconds later, the BMW hit the ground with a deafening boom!

At the same time, in a small forest near a mountain fork, several cars shook violently from the impact.

Hong Chen held Mo Fei in his arms as they plummeted. He didn't panic. Seizing an opportunity, he reached out and grabbed a tree branch about the thickness of three thumbs. The branch snapped instantly. As they continued to fall, he grabbed another branch, slightly thicker than a thumb; it also broke. Finally, as his back hit the ground, he used a soft, internal force to push Mo Fei out of his arms.

A few seconds after they landed, another massive explosion roared, and a fireball erupted a few dozen meters away!

The BMW had exploded.

Hong Chen lay on his back, staring at the sky. A fall from nearly a hundred meters, no matter how much force he had dissipated, was not something one could walk away from lightly, especially since he had used his body to shield Mo Fei during the descent. His back had snapped countless branches, and now, every inch of his body ached, especially his back, which throbbed like it was being pierced by needles. As he gasped for air, he tasted a faint metallic tang of blood.

Despite this, not a hint of pain touched his face. He squinted at the fireball rising into the distance, which seemed to wash away the night itself, and suddenly grinned. "A million-dollar BMW as a coffin, and I’d just filled the tank—at least your cremation is covered. You three should have no regrets in death."