Chapter 164 - 146: Pushing with the Current
Chapter 164: Chapter 146: Pushing with the Current
Just as everyone was steeling themselves to put up a desperate fight, the beautiful woman’s voice suddenly rang out. "I’ll do it," she said. "This Cultist is probably after me. If I split up from you, I should be able to draw away the hidden enemy."
The beautiful woman stepping forward at a time like this showed great courage and responsibility, causing Li Qian’s impression of her to improve considerably.
He also agreed with her assessment. Although it was possible the hidden Black Divine Teachings Cultist was after him, a quick analysis revealed that while the possibility existed, it wasn’t very likely.
The Black Divine Teachings certainly had reason to deal with him, but it was highly unlikely they could have discovered his whereabouts.
After all, he hadn’t made any detailed plans for this trip, only having a general direction in mind.
The Mu Family had bought his Flying Ship ticket to Zhonghai City; even he hadn’t known beforehand that he would be on this particular flight at this specific time.
Therefore, the possibility of a Black Divine Teachings Cultist setting up a special ambush for him along this route was extremely low. Nine times out of ten, the target was the beautiful woman right in front of him.
As he was thinking this over, before the captain and the two female crew members could say a word, Li Qian had already spoken up first. "Then it’s decided."
"Uh..." The beautiful woman was taken aback. She clearly hadn’t expected Li Qian to agree so readily.
It was as if this was the most natural and logical course of action.
Once she processed it, she shot Li Qian a strange look.
’Logically speaking, in a situation like this, shouldn’t they be feeling tragic reluctance and overwhelming guilt? I’m a woman volunteering to lure away the enemy—never mind any bonus points for my appearance. Even if my comrades-in-arms, Li Qian and the others, eventually agreed, shouldn’t that be their reaction?’
’Doesn’t he find this even the slightest bit inappropriate? Doesn’t it kill the mood?’
"What’s wrong?" While the other four were still reeling from his glib acceptance, Li Qian himself remained completely oblivious. He blinked and asked the question.
One of the female crew members glanced at Li Qian, then at the beautiful woman, and said sheepishly, "Is... is what we’re doing a little too... you know?"
Hearing this, Li Qian, who had already prepared his justification, said directly, "Why are you hesitating? The hidden Cultist is definitely after her. This beautiful lady’s identity isn’t simple; she must have some life-saving measures. If we stay here, we’ll just be tying her hands and getting in her way."
His words sounded reasonable, but coming from Li Qian’s mouth, they just felt... odd.
It was so strange that even the captain was at a loss for words. "Well..."
Seeing the captain and the two female crew members still couldn’t get over their moral qualms and were hesitating, Li Qian took the lead and started walking away. "Enough of this hemming and hawing," he said decisively. "If you’re not leaving, I am."
The beautiful woman watched this unfold in silence, the corner of her mouth twitching. ’He really stole my lines, leaving me speechless.’
’It’s as if he was the one who was supposed to stay behind, not me.’
If she hadn’t personally seen Li Qian volunteer to come out and help them earlier, she would have suspected that the person before her now and the person from before were two different people.
The reversal was so drastic she was having trouble processing it.
Of course, Li Qian had no idea what the beautiful woman was thinking. If he did, he would have complained bitterly.
’You think I didn’t want to stay on the Flying Ship?’ But he knew full well that when the nest is overturned, no egg stays intact.
If he hadn’t come out to provide a diversion, it was likely that no one would have gotten away.
Of course, he had also been somewhat inspired by the captain’s fearless demeanor.
Furthermore, the current situation didn’t allow them any time for deliberation.
Since the hidden Black Divine Teachings Cultist was after her, having her draw the enemy away was simply the best choice.
There was no need to waste time with meaningless arguments over the right decision.
One last point, and it was one Li Qian was quite certain of.
Since this beautiful woman had such an extraordinary identity, she definitely had some tricks and trump cards up her sleeve.
If the four of them stayed, they would only get in her way.
Given that, it was better to leave decisively.
Seeing Li Qian leave the moment he said he would, with no intention of staying, the captain was suddenly unsure of what to do. "Then we..."
The beautiful woman could see that even the captain was being swayed, so she simply waved her hand. "You all should leave quickly, too!"
Li Qian’s words might have been unpleasant, but she had to admit, there was some truth to them.
Besides, it was better for everyone else to leave than to stand around hesitating.
Just as Li Qian had guessed, she did indeed have other trump cards she had yet to play.
Since the beautiful woman herself had said so, the captain didn’t argue. He waved his hand and, leading the two female crew members, sped off in the direction of Nandu City.
The captain’s reasoning was simple. Since she had chosen to stay behind and create an opportunity for them to escape, their job was to get reinforcements as quickly as possible and not let her sacrifice be in vain.
Besides, just as Li Qian had said, if she had other tricks up her sleeve and they brought back reinforcements in time, they might even be able to save her.
The group of four sprinted toward Nandu City, once again pushing the power of their Mechanical Armor to the maximum.
As he left, Li Qian glanced back and saw that the two mutated River-Flipping Crocodiles and the Storm Eagle were already pouncing on the beautiful woman.
Even though the beautiful woman had already summoned her three Flying Pet Beasts, in the face of four terrifying Overlord-level Pet Beasts, she still seemed as insignificant as an ant.
Li Qian, firm in his judgment, didn’t overthink it and quickly sped away.
After rushing for about two or three kilometers, he looked at the captain and his crew nearby and announced his plan. "Let’s split up. I’m heading east!"
With that, he sprinted east without a second glance. That direction wasn’t the complete opposite of Nandu City, but it was a significant detour.
Li Qian had his own reasons for doing this.
He had deduced that the beautiful woman’s identity wasn’t simple and that she surely had trump cards, but the same was true for him.
He also possessed an extraordinary trump card: the Suicide Bombing Robot that Professor Yan had given him.
If it exploded, its power would be enough to match the full-force blow of an Emperor-level Pet Beast.
The power of that single blow would be earth-shattering. Therefore, to be safe, to leave himself an escape route, and to make it easier to act, it was best for him to split off from the captain and his crew.