The familiar screech, the terrifying screams—Luo Zheng's heart seized up. He turned his head and saw that a woman sitting nearby had her palm shattered; a coffee cup lay broken on the table, blood was everywhere. Gunshots. Luo Zheng was horrified and quickly crawled further under the table, taking cover at the edge of the window. He glanced at Ghost Hand, who was dialing on his phone.
"Sniper?" Luo Zheng realized. If Ghost Hand hadn't warned him just now, he wouldn't have thought to get up, and thus he wouldn't have leaned backward as he stood, making his head draw back. The whistling sniper bullet would have hit him right in the head, turning him into a cold corpse.
With this thought, Luo Zheng felt a whoosh of cold sweat down his back, so terrified of the sniper who managed to exude no killing intent. Fortunately, Ghost Hand's intuition was sharp, his nature cautious, or today would have been his end. Seeing the people around him panicking and screaming as they ran out, Luo Zheng did not try to stop them. Instead, he squatted down with his back to the wall and waited for Ghost Hand to finish the call before asking, "Sniper?"
"Yes, all because of your jinxing, he must be in the building opposite. Judging from the bullet's trajectory, he should be on the sa level as us. I've already notified the captain. He told us not to move. That was close, are you okay?" Ghost Hand asked, still in shock.
"It was close. If it weren't for your suggestion to leave, I'd have been done for today. These bastards are actually using sniper rifles. It seems they're determined to get us. What's next?" Luo Zheng asked.
"The captain is worried there might be other enemies lurking nearby. He told us to stay put and wait for him to co," Ghost Hand said.
"We decided to co here on the spur of the mont. It's likely a coincidence. They couldn't have arranged for people to be here. I suggest we go out, draw all the enemies out, and wipe them out in one fell swoop. If we're careful enough in close distance while moving, it shouldn't be a big problem. I will talk to Xue Er later," Luo Zheng analyzed angrily.
"Okay, but how will you explain it to the captain?" Ghost Hand was also unwilling to just sit and wait, but he didn't want to defy Lan Xue's orders. With Luo Zheng there to smooth things over, his mind beca more active and he agreed readily. They both drew their pistols, exchanged a look, and quickly rushed outside.
As they dashed out of the Western restaurant, the two glanced at the panicking crowd who were dodging everywhere, running blindly. In tis of peace, who had witnessed such a scene? No one knew how to react. Ghost Hand whispered urgently, "No elevators, take the escalator—move fast!"
Luo Zheng agreed and followed him. When they arrived at the escalator, they saw people rushing up in haste. The mall was in chaos; everyone was running downstairs, yet this person was running upwards, which was illogical. Luo Zheng instinctively took note. Seeing the man glance over and then quickly avert his gaze as he hurried upstairs, Luo Zheng grew suspicious.
"Not good," Ghost Hand suddenly pulled Luo Zheng, who was walking down, and shouted a warning, raising his gun and firing at the young man going upstairs, knocking him to the ground. The bullet hit the man between the eyes; he stood no chance of living. Luo Zheng, with his keen awareness, noticed the gun in the hands of the young man on the floor. A police officer wouldn't dodge eye contact; they'd announce their identity upon recognizing a situation. This man was clearly an assassin.
"Cover with gunfire here; I'm going down the stairs," Ghost Hand said, his face becoming stern. Once Luo Zheng nodded, Ghost Hand leaned against the escalator, sliding quickly downwards, gripping a gun in each hand, calmly watching his surroundings. He saw soone raising a gun by a downstairs display case and revealed a cruel smile without a shred of hesitation before he pulled the trigger.
The sound of gunshots ringing out again made Luo Zheng realize that the situation had beco complicated. After Luo Zheng slid down the escalator quickly, with a roll, he landed and rolled forward a few ters. Sparks flew as two bullets struck the ground, making it clear that there were still assassins on the floor below. The panicked citizens wanted to run downstairs, but he quickly shouted, "Police operation, nobody go down."
Hearing Luo Zheng identify himself as a police officer gave the citizens a sense of reassurance. They saw the calm expression on his face as he drew his pistol, and the cold, forceful gaze as he aid ahead, which made them feel even more secure. They all crouched down on the spot, holding their heads, and didn't dare to move. Luo Zheng breathed a sigh of relief; as long as the citizens didn't rush down, it would be manageable. He followed Ghost Hand's example, leaning against the escalator belt and sliding down quickly while cautiously observing his surroundings.
Halfway down, Luo Zheng realized that sothing was wrong below. Three gunshots from three different directions were firing at Ghost Hand, and the firepower was suppressing him. If he hadn't been hiding behind a pillar, he probably would have been dead by now. Luo Zheng was shocked. He twisted his body forcefully and sprang up, charging forward, then dove to the ground and rolled towards the opposite side behind another column, feeling the chaos of bullets flying behind him. His blood instantly boiled.
"Brother, don't move rashly. They're all skilled shooters. Wait for reinforcents," Ghost Hand loudly reminded him.
Luo Zheng was startled and quickly crouched down, holding his gun, back against the column. These load-bearing columns in such a large mall were very thick and square-shaped. A pistol bullet could at most make a hole but couldn't penetrate them, providing high concealnt. Luo Zheng knew Ghost Hand wouldn't speak without reason; if he said they were skilled shooters, then he couldn't be wrong. Luo Zheng waited patiently for the right mont to fight back, while also listening attentively.
Based on the sound of the gunshots, they seed to be from SIG P220 pistols, the king among handguns. The three assailants positioned themselves in a triangular formation, covering each other with alternating fire, leaving no gap in their shooting, making the likelihood of waiting for them to make a mistake virtually zero. To survive, he had to create his own opportunity.
After waiting for a while, the three assailants realized they couldn't get the upper hand on the two n and stopped shooting. This complicated the situation even further, and Luo Zheng didn't dare move recklessly. Who knew if they had changed positions? Looking at Ghost Hand across the way, who was also backed against a column, rely twelve ters apart, Ghost Hand gestured to Luo Zheng to provide covering fire while he would charge in. Luo Zheng imdiately shook his head.
It was too risky with the positions of friends and foes unclear. If he rushed out recklessly, it would be suicide. Who knew if there were other assassins around who hadn't fired yet? Luo Zheng's peripheral vision caught sothing odd at the elevator entrance—a tal trash can that had an unusual reflection. Focusing on it, he saw a smooth surface reflecting a person's shadow, who was cautiously approaching from the front, not far from himself. Luo Zheng was startled and quickly determined the position and distance of his opponent, guessing at their height. He aid his pistol around the side of the column and calmly pulled the trigger.
"Bang!" The bullet whistled away and directly struck the opponent in the chest.
The shot didn't kill the assailant; Luo Zheng saw through the reflection in the trash can that the person rolled on the ground without screaming, clearly soone who had undergone strict training. His expression grew grave—it indeed was a skilled shooter. He watched as Ghost Hand took out a small mirror from his pocket, cautiously reflecting what was behind him with a grave expression.
When they had been about to leave earlier, Luo Zheng had teased Ghost Hand about why a grown man would carry a mirror. Ghost Hand had just smiled and said that this was the true nature of a man. Luo Zheng hadn't anticipated its real use would be in a mont like this. Soon, he saw Ghost Hand squat down and reach out toward a direction behind the column, calmly pulling the trigger.
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