Chapter 285: Tailing The Heroes

The diesel rumble of the interstate truck stop mixed with the steady hiss of rain against the cold asphalt.

Neon signs advertising cheap diner coffee and twenty-four-hour diesel flickered through the mist, their reflections stretching across puddles of oil. Near the far edge of the lot, away from the overhead lights, an eighteen-wheeler carrying refrigerated cargo sat ready to head east.

The driver, a burly man in a stained canvas jacket and faded trucker cap, had just finished checking the air lines between his cab and trailer. He wiped his hands on a red rag, grumbling about the weather and the slippery mountain roads ahead.

As he turned to climb into the cabin, a strange chill brushed the back of his neck.

The man paused, his hand still on the door handle.

From beneath the trailer, thin ribbons of oily black fog began to rise. The mist curled around his boots and climbed toward his face before he could react.

"What the—"

The driver gasped.

The black miasma filled his lungs.

His eyes widened for a moment before his expression went blank. The tension left his body, and he stood there with an empty stare as the rain fell around him.

Hexi stepped out from behind the trailer’s mudflaps, clutching his bandaged side.

A satisfied smirk spread across his bruised face. He wiped the sweat from his temple, ignoring the dull ache in his ribs.

"You’re driving to the Appalachian foothills," Hexi whispered. "Take the direct route. No detours. No stops. When you reach Sector 4, pull into the old logging turnoff and wait."

The driver nodded stiffly.

"Direct route... Sector 4... logging turnoff."

"Good dog," Hexi sneered.

He waved a hand, and the driver turned and climbed into the cabin. The door closed with a dull thud.

Seconds later, the truck’s diesel engine roared to life, followed by the sharp hiss of the air brakes.

From beneath the trailer, Sniper rolled out with his scoped rifle in one hand and a canvas duffel in the other.

"I cannot believe this is my life," Sniper muttered as he stood and walked toward the rear of the trailer. "A refrigerated semi. We’re hitching a five-hundred-mile ride in the back of a rolling meat locker."

"It isn’t a meat locker. It’s hauling dry crates," Hexi snapped, following him. "And it keeps us away from the highway cameras. If we took a bus or stole a car, the Association would find the plate in thirty minutes."

"I’d rather get caught by the Association than get tetanus from rusty pallet nails," Sniper complained as he pulled open the rear doors.

Inside, the trailer was cold and dim, packed with cardboard boxes secured by yellow straps. Dirt and bits of wood covered the floor.

Sniper climbed inside and immediately kicked a pile of burlap sacks into the corner to make a makeshift bed. He dropped his duffel beside them, leaned against the metal wall, and pulled out a cigarette.

"Five hundred miles," Sniper groaned, lighting it. "My spine is already turning to powder. If we hit one pothole, this thing is going to fold me like cheap origami."

Hexi climbed in after him and pulled the trailer doors shut until only a narrow gap remained. He looked toward the darkest corner of the trailer, where the shadows seemed thicker than they should have been.

"Shadow," Hexi called. "Are you locked on?"

From beneath an overturned wooden pallet, the darkness gathered and rose.

Shadow emerged from it and sat with her knees pulled against her chest. Her pale face looked exhausted beneath her oversized hood. She pressed her fingers against the steel floor, her eyes half-closed as she focused on the darkness around them.

"I’m locked on," Shadow murmured. "The transport jet carrying the strike team landed at the regional airstrip an hour ago. They’ve already loaded into two heavy all-terrain vehicles. They’re heading up the eastern mountain ridge toward Sector 4."

Hexi’s eyes lit up.

"Can you feel their Qi?" he asked eagerly.

"Yes," Shadow said with a slow nod. "The swordsman with the purple blade... his energy is like a beacon. It’s moving in sync with the mountain. The deeper they go into the valley, the stronger the stone becomes."

"Perfect," Hexi grinned. "Everything is falling right into our hands."

Sniper blew smoke toward the ceiling and rolled his eyes.

"Right, because sneaking up on four of the strongest heroes on the eastern seaboard sounds like a walk in the park," he said lazily. "Let’s see who we’re dealing with. There’s Phantom, who just beat the fake with his bare hands. There’s the swordsman, who can probably cut this entire truck in half from fifty yards away. There’s the spatial woman, who can probably twist you into a pretzel before you even see her. And then there’s Selena, who probably has twenty ways to deal with pests like us."

He took another drag and tapped his rifle.

"And who do we have? Me, who wants a cheeseburger and a nap. Shadow, who looks like she’s about to fall asleep standing up. And you, who currently have four cracked ribs and a jaw held together by spit and optimism."

"That’s why we aren’t fighting them, you idiot!" Hexi snapped, frustration flashing across his face.

He leaned forward, lowering his voice.

"We aren’t going there to fight the strike team. We’re going there to clean up their scraps."

Hexi gestured toward the rain outside.

"That ancient stone isn’t sitting in an open field waiting for someone to pick it up," he continued. "The clone said it himself—the stone in the mountain has been releasing energy for fifty years. In an abandoned mine like Sector 4, that kind of power must have created something horrible. Mutated underground beasts. Ancient creatures guarding the stone. The whole place could be a death trap."

Hexi chuckled.

"And who’s going to clear that death trap for us?"

He pointed toward the road.

"Phantom."

Hexi pointed at Shadow.

"The heroes will go straight into the main cavern. They’ll use their Qi, wear themselves out, and fight whatever huge monster is guarding the stone. While they’re busy fighting, they won’t be watching the shadows behind them."

He turned back to Sniper, his grin widening.

"Shadow will move through the cracks in the ground without being seen. The moment the beast falls and the heroes stop to catch their breath, I’ll release the miasma into the air. One breath, and they’ll slow down. You fire a shot to throw them off, Shadow grabs the green stone, and we disappear through the ground before they even know what happened."

Sniper stared at him through the smoke. After a long moment, he gave a reluctant hum.

"...Okay."

He tipped his head back against the metal wall.

"I’ll admit, letting them get mauled by cave monsters while we sit in the dark and steal their shiny rock is slightly better than your usual suicide charges."

"It isn’t just a shiny rock," Hexi whispered, his fingers tightening into fists as he stared at the wooden pallets. "That stone has enough power to fuel an entire civilization. If we bring it back to Master... if we fuse that energy into our bodies... we won’t be low-tier impures anymore. We won’t be the garbage they throw away."

Shadow closed her eyes and rested her head against her knees. She said nothing, but her small hands tightened around the hem of her coat.

Outside, the eighteen-wheeler rolled onto the rain-soaked highway. Its tires hummed against the wet road as it headed east toward the mountains.

Hours passed in the cold darkness of the trailer.

The air grew colder as the truck climbed higher, carrying the smell of wet pine, crushed stone, and fallen leaves through the small gap in the rear doors. The highway lights eventually disappeared, replaced by the dark shapes of mountains rising beneath the night sky.

Suddenly, Shadow’s eyes snapped open.

Her pupils were completely black, reflecting the strange pulse coming from deep beneath the earth.

"They’re off the road," Shadow whispered, her voice suddenly tense. "They left their vehicles at the entrance of the Sector 4 gorge. They’re going underground."

Hexi scrambled to his knees, ignoring the pain in his ribs as he looked through the gap in the rear doors.

Three miles away, two faint red taillights moved along a winding logging road before disappearing into the thick mountain fog.

Before Hexi could speak, a deep shockwave rolled through the ground beneath the truck.

The entire eighteen-wheeler shook. Its tires slid across the wet gravel before the mind-controlled driver fought to keep the truck steady. High above, startled birds burst from the pine trees and vanished into the night.

Inside the trailer, the metal floor began to vibrate with a steady hum.

Shadow pressed both hands against the shaking floor, her face turning pale.

"Something is wrong," she whispered, fear finally entering her tired voice. "The swordsman didn’t cause that pulse. Neither did Phantom."

She looked up at Hexi, her wide black eyes trembling.

"The mountain... it just opened its mouth."