Chapter 15: Wavering
Arriving at the Chamber of Commerce by air train, Nan Jiao first greeted the person on duty at the entrance with practiced ease, and then went inside.
All the seized goods were gathered in the warehouse. There were five or six batches of goods seized here, and you could see quite a few orcs in suits arguing with the staff.
Unexpectedly, Nan Jiao also spotted Sang Lin and Ke Lin's backs here; they seemed to be there to pick up goods as well.
Nan Jiao walked precisely to her batch of goods, looked at her old acquaintance, Wang Hai, the inspector from the Chamber of Commerce, who was bent over taking notes. Upon seeing Nan Jiao, he said:
"You're here?"
Nan Jiao asked, "Where did the problem go wrong?"
"Oh, that batch of red peppers showed an anomaly and has been sent for testing. The results should be available soon."
Wang Hai closed his notebook and smiled: "It's not usually this strict, but as you know, the Dark Zone is stirring up trouble, frequently sending contaminated items to other star systems. If you accidentally ingest those things, you'll mutate. That's why Her Majesty the Queen has ordered a thorough investigation, leaving no stone unturned."
Nan Jiao nodded; she trusted Liu Yuan's source of goods: "Then I'll wait here for a while."
Just as she finished speaking, a staff member in a yellow uniform walked in. He approached and said, "Ms. Nan, it's been a long time. The test report is out, and the pollution index is normal. You can take your goods back now."
Nan Jiao nodded: "Okay."
After finishing her business, Nan Jiao left the Chamber of Commerce and prepared to board the air train to leave when she suddenly heard a panicked scream from the crowd:
"The Zerg are here! The Zerg are here!!"
The Zerg are another major interstellar threat besides the Rogues. They are enormous insectoids that lack the ability to shapeshift and are mindless. They are keen on attacking Orks, and their appearances are never fixed.
Interstellar weapons are already quite advanced, and there have been campaigns to hunt down the Zerg, but the Zerg's reproductive capacity is so astonishing that they are impossible to eradicate.
More than fifty years have passed since the last large-scale attack by the Zerg on the Orcs, and no one could have imagined that the Zerg would choose to attack Lant City today.
The aerial train hadn't arrived yet, and the surrounding shops were all closed. The Zerg had an exceptionally keen sense of smell and liked to attack crowded areas, so Nan Jiao quickly left the congested crowd and ran towards a less crowded area.
All around her were air raid sirens and screams of terror. The communicator in her bag beeped, but Nan Jiao couldn't reach it because she was at risk of being attacked at any moment.
Now all we can do is try to avoid the Zerg and hold out until the rescue team arrives.
"Nan Jiao! What are you doing here?!" Sang Lin and Ke Lin rushed over to hide, saying, "No wonder I've been so unlucky today, turns out it's because I ran into you, you jinx!"
"Shut up." Nan Jiao was too lazy to argue with her and kept an eye on her surroundings.
Sang Lin knew this wasn't the time to argue; after all, nothing was more important than life. She pulled out her communicator and frantically shouted into the other end, "Why aren't you here yet?! Come save us! We're at the shopping mall near the train!"
Suddenly a faint sound came from the air, very soft, like the flapping of an insect's wings. Then the sound grew louder and louder, becoming more and more complex.
The Zerg were attracted, and there were more than a dozen of them.
Sang Lin screamed wildly.
Klin pulled out his energy gun and fired at the Zerg.
One shot, two shots, three shots...
The Zerg were incredibly resilient; it took three shots to bring them down.
But more and more Zerg are swarming this way...
Nan Jiao nimbly dodged the worm with its gaping mouth, and the next second the worm trembled and fell down—it was Klin who fired the shot.
Klin looked at her for a few seconds with an inscrutable expression, but did not approach her. "Nan Jiao, are you alright?" He added, "Our people are here to meet you. Come with us."
Suddenly, Sang Lin cried out in pain: "My leg! My leg is cramping! Klin!"
Klin rushed over to check on her, but Sanglin gripped his collar tightly, tears streaming down her face as she cried, "What do we do? I can't move! I don't want to die! We have to get out of here quickly!"
Kelin picked up Sang Lin and looked at Nan Jiao again, clearly hesitant.
The Zerg could swarm in at any moment. Sang Lin's ankle is twisted and she can't move. If she brings Nan Jiao along, all three of them might die here.
Sang Lin was still crying out in pain. Ke Lin froze for a few seconds, as if making a decision: "I'm sorry, Nan Jiao..."
He carried Sang Lin and ran toward an exit.
Nan Jiao's forehead was covered in sweat as she ran in another direction.
Klin's gaze stirred up some unpleasant memories for her; his eyes were so similar to those of her parents when they abandoned her. At the same time, a dull ache in her heart made her movements somewhat sluggish; she knew this was the lingering emotions of the original owner of the body at work.
She pinched her thigh hard, the pain forcing her to clear her mind.
Escape! We must escape!
"Nan Jiao, you don't need anyone else's love. You can take care of yourself and live a good life..."
As if to comfort herself, Nan Jiao kept repeating this sentence.
But those annoying faces clung to her again, chattering incessantly in her ear:
"Jiaojiao, why don't you go live with your mother? Dad is under so much pressure saving money for your brother, plus the mortgage and car loan. I'm so worried I'm about to jump off a building!"
“Jiaojiao, Mommy loves you, but Mommy has a new family now, and your Uncle Jiang and I argue every day. Why don't you go live with Grandma? Please understand Mommy's feelings…”
"You must be Nan Jiao? Your grandmother died, so you were sent to this orphanage? What about your parents? Did they die too? Or did they abandon you?"
...
There's a memory of someone constantly crying, but she doesn't know who it is or why they're crying...
Nan Jiao's mind was in complete turmoil, and she clutched her head in anguish.
Someone please save her...
The sound of flapping wings behind her grew closer and closer, and Nan Jiao collapsed to the ground due to a headache.
Just as the gaping maw drew closer, a gunshot rang out, and the enormous worm in front of him collapsed, quickly turning to ashes.
"Jiaojiao!"
People still call her name, but no longer with resentful pleas, but with panic and fear, as if they are afraid she will disappear.
Nan Jiao was embraced in a warm hug. Someone cupped her face, pressed their warm forehead against hers, and their noses touched.
The familiar smell of cigarettes brought a sense of security, and Nan Jiao gradually regained her composure, her voice still somewhat weak: "Lu Xiao?"
"I'm here, don't be afraid, I'll take you away from here."
After speaking, Lu Xiao gently put her down, took out his weapon, and began to fight the insectoids that surrounded him.
Lu Xiao is a ninth-tier combat-type orc. Not only is he excellent in close combat, but he also broke the record of the Joint Military Academy in shooting class.
These insects were clearly no match for him, but something attracted the insect race, and more and more insects attacked this place. Even if Lu Xiao was strong, he was having some difficulty facing so many insects.
After repelling a wave of insects, Lu Xiao did not linger in the fight. He took off his combat suit and wrapped it around Nan Jiao, then picked her up and ran quickly in one direction.
On the battlefield, Lu Xiao might enjoy the thrill of combat, and the smell of blood often arouses his animalistic desires.
But now the situation is different; his whole world is still in his arms, and he must safely take her away.
Just as they reached the exit, Lu Xiao, carrying Nan Jiao, narrowly avoided a pursuing insect. As the insect raised its pincers, he seemed to realize something, his body stiffened for a second, and the sharp pincers pierced his shoulder, instantly drawing blood.
"Lu Xiao!"
Even so, Lu Xiao's arm remained tight. He kicked the insect against the wall, and the insect slid down the wall and quickly turned to ashes.
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