Trudging through the sewer for over an hour, Gao Yang felt so disgusted he wished he could die. When he saw the exit, he finally understood the true aning of relief.
Sloshing through the filthy water, Gao Yang whispered, "Calling Big Dog, over."
There was no sound from the radio. After calling two more tis, Gao Yang said helplessly, "We’ve lost contact with the support team."
Eileen said urgently, "Don’t worry about that. Once we’re out, we can re-establish contact. Hurry, quickly, let’s get out of here!"
The exit seed close, but after another ten minutes of trudging, Gao Yang and the others finally reached the sewer exit.
Less than ten ters from the exit, the usually silent radio suddenly burst with Glolov’s anxious voice: "Received, please reply! This is the support team, received, please reply."
Gao Yang imdiately whispered, "This is Ram, we are about to leave the sewer, over."
Glolov let out a long sigh of relief, then said urgently, "Finally got through to you. I was worried you’d suffocate in the sewers from lack of oxygen. Report your location, over!"
The sewer wasn’t straight but winding, so even Gao Yang didn’t know their exact location. After taking a few steps forward and checking outside, he said softly, "We’re by the Dnieper River, exact location unknown, will update later, Djo might be outside."
After speaking, Gao Yang held up two fingers, pointed to his eyes, then to the sewer exit. The four of them split into two groups, slowly sticking their heads out.
The conditions in the sewer were extrely harsh, and it took a long ti to reach the exit. This reduced the ten-minute lead of Djo Malthael who had left earlier. Due to the extrely harsh conditions, Djo Malthael’s first activity after leaving might well be to take a bath in the Dnieper River.
One hundred and ten kiloters north of Kiev is the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and an important tributary of the Dnieper River, the Pripyat River, flows through there. So, the water of the Dnieper River is reflective. Kiev uses it as a water source, but residents prefer bottled water when possible.
Knowing the Dnieper River is radioactive, Gao Yang didn’t care since its radiation wouldn’t kill him, but if he didn’t wash off quickly, he’d die of disgust.
rcenaries are one of the most resilient groups to environntal conditions in the world. If Gao Yang couldn’t stand it, then soone as pampered as Djo Malthael certainly couldn’t.
Slowly sticking his head out, Gao Yang assessed the situation. The sewer exit was slightly higher than the river; a large concrete pipe jutted out from a hardened concrete platform about half a ter above the water. But unfortunately, both sides of the pipe were lined with endless weeds and shrubs.
The riverbank wasn’t straight, greatly impairing view. Gao Yang looked left, finding the sa situation on the other side, the view obstructed by overgrown weeds, making it impossible to see far.
At the exit, signals returned, letting the radio and GPS work properly. Although Gao Yang wanted to jump into the river imdiately, he had tasks to do first.
"Check our position."
Taylor took out the GPS, and after a mont, said softly, "We’re far from the road, and there seems to be no buildings nearby."
Gao Yang exhaled, saying seriously, "Djo might still be nearby. Toad, Tyrannosaurus, search left. Postman, you’re with . Villain, stay nearby, find a clean spot, send the location to the support team and have Big Bird’s drone scout the sky. Everyone be careful, move out."
Looking down, the water wasn’t deep. Gao Yang lightly jumped in and imdiately said, "It’s all mud, be careful."
The water looked clean enough, as long as they stayed clear of the sewage outlet. Near the bank, the water barely reached knee-height, but when Gao Yang jumped in, it reached his thighs, the thick mud subrging his knees.
Gao Yang and the others were on the east bank of the Dnieper River, moving right, upstream. The sewage flowed downstream, so upstream was cleaner. However, Gao Yang’s choice to go right wasn’t about cleaner water, but because he felt Djo would make the sa choice.
Gao Yang struggled to pull out his foot, leaving his shoe stuck in the mud. He never intended to retrieve it; the expensive handmade shoe, after so long in the sewage, should be discarded.
Pulling his foot free, he trudged a few steps forward, thinking to walk through the grass, but he soon realized the river wasn’t so muddy. The river brought sand, making the riverbed a bit firr, while the grassy areas were swampy, muddy quagmires, where one might sink entirely.
"Follow the river path, avoid the grass."
Whispering, Gao Yang continued forward while Taylor urgently said, "Wait, I’m stuck, need to remove my boots!"
Gao Yang wore leather shoes that were easily removed, pulling his barefoot out when the mud trapped his shoe. But Taylor and others wore tactical boots, making them harder to take off.
At Taylor’s words, an idea struck Gao Yang. He whispered, "Feel around nearby, see if there are other boots."
As Gao Yang spoke, he pressed down with his foot and imdiately stepped into a pit. Feeling around, he said quietly, "Boots! Left by Djo’s n, we’re on the right track!"
Removing laced tactical boots in the mud wasn’t easy. Watching everyone rush to remove theirs, an impatient Gao Yang said softly, "You guys take off your boots, I’ll go check over there."
Walking a few ters upstream along the bank, Gao Yang stepped on at least three boots. No mistake, Djo’s n headed upstream too.
Looking back, Gao Yang whispered, "This way. Villain, notify Big Bird to redirect the drone here for scouting."
Finishing his sentence, Gao Yang moved forward with Eileen, who had only just removed one boot.
Carefully rounding a slightly protruding bush, Gao Yang peeked out and saw about a hundred ters away, a group of people bathing. Further away, two motorboats sped along the river. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian) to vote and encourage it. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read at m.qidian)
User Comments
0 comments from readers