Chapter 249: The Watcher in the Tunnel
Fang Xiaocao adjusted her headlamp and began descending into the dark tunnel via the rope. It took several minutes before Taotie, waiting below, caught her and set her safely on the ground.
As she untied the rope, preparing to signal for Tom and Hummingbird to follow, a dark figure suddenly leaped down from above. Before she could react, Taotie swiftly grabbed her by the waist and pulled her behind him.
Thud!
The figure landed—Tom.
Without a word, Tom rolled forward, coming to a stop near Taotie’s feet before standing up and flashing Fang Xiaocao a grin.
A second later—
Another shadow dropped from above.
Hummingbird landed gracefully beside them.
Fang Xiaocao stared, utterly speechless.
Oh, great.
So I’m the only useless one here?
Even among elite assassins, this level of agility was ridiculous. Being the odd one out was downright humiliating.
Tom tossed Taotie a headlamp. “Here.”
Taotie caught it and strapped it on without hesitation.
“Go scout ahead,” Tom said casually. “Try not to get killed by traps.”
Taotie shot him a glare but obediently gripped his machete and ventured into the darkness.
“Should we follow?” Fang Xiaocao asked.
“Not yet.”
Tom shook his head, then turned to her. “Princess, lend me some steel spikes.”
Confused, Fang Xiaocao retrieved a dozen sharp spikes from the custom-made case at her waist.
Tom took them with a smirk. “Remember, we’re not the only ones in these woods. Ragnarok, the Blacklist, maybe even the Nemesis could show up. No harm in leaving a little… surprise for anyone who tries to sneak up on us.”
As he spoke, he embedded the spikes into the ground, tips pointing upward, then lightly covered them with loose soil.
The trap was set directly beneath the entrance—anyone descending, whether by rope or free-fall, would land right on them.
And if they jump… those spikes will go straight through their feet.
After finishing the trap, Tom checked his watch. Taotie had been gone for ten minutes.
“Princess, you and Hummingbird move forward—but not too far. Watch for Taotie’s markers along the way.”
Fang Xiaocao nodded, and the two began advancing while Tom continued setting up defenses.
He drew his black dagger, then—with a sudden leap—jumped nearly three meters upward.
At the peak of his jump, he drove the blade deep into the tunnel wall, suspending himself midair.
With his free hand, he pulled out a disc-shaped explosive, bit off a thin wire, and secured the bomb to the stone.
The wire connected to the climbing rope—now a trigger.
Anyone who touches that rope… boom.
Tom smirked, then carefully climbed down, avoiding his own spike trap.
Once his feet touched the ground, he hurried after Fang Xiaocao and Hummingbird.
_________
Ahead, Taotie pressed deeper into the tunnel.
The air was damp, the ground slick with puddles. Snakes of all sizes slithered past his boots, their scales glinting in his headlamp’s glow.
None were venomous.
None were large enough to be a threat.
So he ignored them.
But something else bothered him.
A presence.
Something watching him from the shadows—eyes filled with malice, as if waiting to tear him apart.
Taotie tightened his grip on the machete.
That giant snake’s kin?
Or maybe… its mate?
Whatever it was, it was dangerous.
He quickly sent a warning through his comms.
_________
Fang Xiaocao tensed when the alert came through.
She instinctively moved closer to Hummingbird.
That snake…
It could swallow me whole.
“Hummingbird, I’m scared,” she whispered, gripping the other woman’s arm.
“Don’t be.”
Hummingbird’s voice was flat as she unsheathed her katana.
Fang Xiaocao sighed.
This woman might as well be a robot.
“Fear not, Princess. Your knight has arrived.”
Tom’s voice echoed from behind them, and Fang Xiaocao nearly sagged in relief.
Now that’s more like it.
“Taotie can’t handle that thing alone if it’s the big snake’s partner,” Tom said. “Let’s move.”
With Tom leading, they quickened their pace.
________
Ahead, Taotie froze as a chorus of hisses filled the tunnel.
His scalp prickled.
Then—
A dark shape lunged from the shadows.
Taotie swung.
Splurt!
Blood sprayed as a two-meter-long serpent was cleaved in half.
But snakes didn’t die easily.
The severed head still writhed, fangs snapping toward him.
Taotie crushed it under his boot.
Yet the feeling of being watched only intensified.
“Fcking coward!” he spat.
Then—
The hissing multiplied.
The sound of scales scraping stone surrounded him.
From every direction, dark shapes shot toward him—
Dozens of snakes, striking at once.
