Serial Player -
Chapter 498 - 174: Tin Man
Chapter 498: Chapter 174: Tin Man
The mannequin’s speed was incredible, turning into a blur of shadows as it quickly approached Liu Tao.
Being cautious in the dim environment, Liu Tao had not approached any furniture or mannequins.
As a result, there was a buffer distance of almost ten meters between them.
This allowed him enough time to act, and in the face of an inhuman presence, every moment was critical.
"Let them run!"
He shouted, alerting his teammates while simultaneously lifting his gun to fire and quickly retreating.
Gunshots echoed throughout the furniture store lobby, and the flickering light from the gun revealed the mannequin’s face.
It wore a special squad member’s tactical helmet, and below it was a lifelike face with a metallic sheen that seemed oddly familiar to Liu Tao.
As a member of the special squad, he instantly understood. He roared in rage, "Bastard!"
The mannequin’s face was that of the Sixth Squad’s Zhang Yi!
And the heart should be... Zhang Yi’s heart.
This mannequin... no, this Tin Man had taken Zhang Yi’s heart and mimicked his voice to call for help on the radio.
The aim was to attract the special squad to be killed, and that’s why there was a strong smell of blood in the lobby!
This was a trap! The Abnormality wouldn’t harm the civilians who heard the steam whistle, but the special squad members were not spared.
Zhang Yi might have been killed in the same way. How many people had it killed? How many comrades of his own?
And now... it had set its sights on him.
Liu Tao roared and let out a barrage of bullets.
That was all he could do because the enemy was already upon him.
Bullets hit the Tin Man, tearing apart the tactical helmet it wore, as well as its bloody, hollow heart in its chest. Yet, they left no trace on its seemingly thin metal sheets that possessed incredible hardness. Even specialized bullets couldn’t slow it down.
"Get them out of here!" Instead of retreating, Liu Tao moved closer, drawing his tactical dagger and lunging at the Tin Man.
He intended to stall the creature for as long as possible, even if it meant risking his life.
After scattering the transportation squad, they had hoped that the Abnormalities would only obstruct the evacuation and not actively attack. However, they were now bearing their fangs.
This trap revealed that they had consciously begun to eliminate the special squad while gathering civilians.
But there was still a glimmer of hope!
If he could stall the creature enough, perhaps the students could have enough time to escape.
There was only one kilometer left to the border! They were so close!
On the other side, the last special squad member rushed towards the entrance, shouting, "Run!"
Old Zhao’s face turned pale. He couldn’t see what was happening in the darkened lobby, but the gunshots had already told the story.
Abnormality was right inside, fighting with Liu Tao!
At this moment, he forced himself to shout, "Brother Liu is still inside!"
"It’s up to you now!" The special squad member ran closer but didn’t leave through the front door.
Instead, he closed the door and locked it from the inside.
He shared the same plan as Liu Tao, intending to put his life on the line to stall the creature.
Naturally, they were no match for the Abnormalities. Even the [Player] had to tread carefully when facing them.
All they could do was to hold the Abnormality back with their flesh and blood!
"Run and scatter! Don’t make our deaths in vain!" The special squad member, without looking back, charged into the lobby. He had run over simply to inform the students to evacuate and close the door, just to delay the Abnormality for a moment.
Watching his retreating figure, Old Zhao was stunned. He had previously mentioned his desire to join their mysterious team, but now he saw two brave soldiers heading to their deaths.
At the same time, the male student left and immediately began to run, even pushing away the injured female, which made her face even paler.
He had gathered an essential piece of information from the special squad member’s words.
Scatter and run! It meant there weren’t many Abnormalities, perhaps only able to catch one person at a time. All he had to do...was run faster than anyone else!
There is no good or evil in the heart, only good and evil in the intention. This was a theory proposed by Ming Dynasty thinker Wang Mingyang. The human heart is neither good nor evil, but as soon as the intentions are formed, good and evil, merit and demerit, follow.
His plan was to use the injured female to buy some extra time for himself.
In matters of life and death, it was human nature.
Nevertheless, it made Li Changhe somewhat upset. He glanced at the male student fleeing and held back from telling him that he had taken the wrong way since the path nearby was actually quite complicated.
Old Zhao quickly responded, pulling up the female student, turning anxiously to Li Changhe, and saying, "Old Li, what about us?"
"You take her this way," Li Changhe pointed out a route, "There’s an old bicycle by the roadside there. Turn left at the second traffic light on the highway, and you’ll see the pier. That fool took the wrong way."
"And you?"
"I’ll go find another bicycle... don’t wait for me."
With that, he slipped into a nearby alley.
Old Zhao opened his mouth wide, remembering the two special squad members who were still stalling for time. He gritted his teeth, carried the girl on his back, and ran into the distance.
Indeed, he saw an abandoned bicycle by the roadside, probably left behind during the earlier evacuation.
In fact, it was something Li Changhe had noticed when using the Black Hawk drone during his movements.
...
Liu Tao’s tactical dagger had curled, and his right hand hung limply.
Despite giving everything he had, he was unable to leave a mark on the Tin Man.
"How long has it been?" He asked in a hoarse voice, his whole body covered in blood and sweat.
The other special squad member’s left calf was a bloody mess, and he was half-kneeling on the ground.
He spat out a mouthful of blood and cursed, "Old Liu, don’t be stupid. It hasn’t even been twenty seconds. Just one encounter, and we’re already done, right?"
"Time passes so slowly..." Liu Tao’s words were filled with bitterness. Just one brief encounter, and he was already struggling to keep going. Delaying had become a delusion.
"You are very brave, and your hearts are strong," the Tin Man did not attack but appraised the two of them, "I really like your hearts. I’m just not sure if they are suitable for me."
' It removed the heart, already torn apart by bullets, from the hollow in its body and carelessly tossed it to the ground.
"I am really looking forward to it."
With the heart gone, its tone was flat and emotionless, as if it were merely stating a fact.
"Don’t say disgusting things with my comrade’s voice! No one wants you to like them!" Liu Tao retorted. He and his teammate exchanged looks, struggling to get up.
They were planning a desperate final attack, hoping to use joint locks to hold the monster. That seemed to be the only option left.
At that moment, a fourth voice suddenly sounded from a corner.
The voice had been altered to sound neutral, "So that’s how it is. I was wondering who it was in the fairy tale story that liked to scoop hearts."
"The Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz?"
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