'I've killed someone...'
Having grown up in an era of peace, this was the first time Han Ning had ordered the killing of a human being.
Even though Yin Yi had carried it out, and even though they were foreigners who had threatened their lives, he still felt a sense of unease...
The feeling of killing a highly intelligent being was completely different from slaughtering chickens or ducks.
'These people were dangerous combatants. It was either them or us... They were a well-trained military force. It would've been nearly impossible for Teacher Zhou and the other two to defend against a sudden ambush.'
Han Ning lowered his head and took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.
BOBO?
Yin Yi seemed to sense Han Ning's strange mood and gently rubbed his arm with its flower.
"I'm fine."
A moment later, Han Ning lifted his head, his expression back to normal. He gently patted Yin Yi's back before walking over to the scattered corpses.
He walked around the area where the militants had died, confirming that all ten of them were dead. He then took out the iodine and gauze he carried, and together with Teacher Liu, he began to clean the wounds of Luo Chen and the others, stopping the surface bleeding.
But for injuries like broken fingers, they would have to return to the school and have Dr. Chen take a look. He didn't have the skills to treat fractures.
Meanwhile, Yin Yi used its Vine Whip to skewer over a dozen thick, black leeches, as if making a kebab. It then piled them onto the three Silver Lotus Wood plants for them to consume.
These leeches had engorged themselves on human blood and were rich in nutrients. The moment the three Silver Lotus Wood plants pierced their bodies, their leaves and branches began to tremble, showing signs of revitalization, like dead wood coming back to life in spring.
Seeing their spirits clearly lift, Han Ning said, "It's working... Yin Yi, go get some more. Feed them until they're full."
"BOBO~"
"Whew... Han Ning, Teacher Yue Ming, thank goodness you were here to help. Otherwise, the few of us would have been done for today." Teacher Zhou clutched his head as he staggered to his feet, grabbing Han Ning's hand with a grateful expression.
"Don't mention it, Teacher Zhou. If we were the ones in danger, I'm sure you would do everything you could to save us, just like that time when Tianhe, Lin Yu, and I were trapped by that pack of rats." Han Ning shook his head, supporting Teacher Zhou.
After all he had been through, he understood that only by helping each other could they hope to survive in this dangerous wasteland.
He glanced at Teacher Li, whose face was pale from the pain, and said, "Teacher Zhou, why don't you all head back and rest? You can call the others to come over and help gather the supplies here."
"Yes, we're injured and won't be much help here anyway. It's better if we go back." Teacher Zhou nodded in agreement, but before leaving, he pointed toward one of the train cars and said, "I just saw other people's faces through the window. There are other survivors inside. They might be ordinary people imprisoned by these militants. When you're gathering supplies later, be careful in case the people inside suddenly attack."
After all this time, the people inside hadn't made a sound. They probably weren't accomplices of the militants, but their identities were still questionable.
"Okay. I understand." Han Ning glanced at the silent train car.
After Yin Yi returned with another dozen or so leeches and fed the three Silver Lotus Wood plants a full meal, Han Ning called it over. He picked up one of the rifles from the ground, asked Teacher Liu how to fire it, and then entered the train car Teacher Zhou had pointed out, with Yin Yi by his side.
This car, unlike the others, wasn't filled with rotting corpses. Instead, it was packed with all sorts of military-green ammo crates and various unknown supplies.
The passages at both ends were heavily blocked with heavy objects, clearly to prevent people or Soul Beasts from the other cars from getting in.
The car had also clearly been modified; the seats were removed, making it look more like a cargo hold for transporting goods.
Han Ning held the rifle as Yin Yi took the lead. They carefully navigated through the piles of supplies. As they neared the front of the car, they discovered five women huddled in a corner, trembling with their heads in their hands.
The five of them were in ragged clothes, and their exposed skin was covered in obvious bruises and injuries.
He turned the muzzle of the rifle toward them and said coldly in English, "Lift your heads."
"Please... don't kill me."
Hearing the click of the safety being disengaged, the five women fearfully raised their heads, revealing pale, terrified faces.
"Who are you? Why are you on this train?" Han Ning didn't let his guard down, his tone calm as he questioned them.
"We were passengers on the train..."
The five women all spoke at once, chattering away in English or their local languages, explaining who they were.
Han Ning got the gist of it. He deduced that these five women had likely been captured by those militants to be used for their sexual gratification.
'I can't bring myself to shoot unarmed, non-hostile people,' he thought. 'But I don't want to get bogged down with how to handle these five. It's better to leave troublesome matters like this to Dean Wu and the others.'
So, Han Ning said, "Put your hands on your heads and come out with me."
"Yes... yes."
The five women trembled as they were led by the one who understood English the best. Under Han Ning's watch, they walked out of the train car.
"Teacher Zhou, the people from the car are all here. What should we do with them?" Han Ning gestured with his chin toward the five scantily and shabbily dressed women, briefly explaining their situation.
Teacher Zhou pondered for a few seconds, then said, "Let's take them back for now. We'll let Dean Wu decide."
'Looks like... he doesn't want to deal with this trouble either.'
After a rough search, they found that out of the eight cars, plus the two engines, for a total of ten sections, only this one car had any survivors.
Having cleared the car of any immediate threats, Han Ning and Teacher Zhou's group escorted the five women back to the entrance of the academy's South Gate.
This whole series of events happened very quickly; by the time they temporarily returned, barely an hour had passed.
The teachers and students guarding the gate saw Han Ning's group approaching with several women in tattered clothes, and strange expressions appeared on all their faces simultaneously.
"Teacher Zhou, Teacher Li, Luo Chen... What happened to you?"
As they got closer, the guards noticed the injuries on the three of them, as well as the rifles in the hands of Han Ning and Teacher Liu. Their expressions turned even more shocked.
Teacher Zhou didn't explain much, just said succinctly, "Sigh, it's a long story. Have ten people come out and escort us and these women back. The rest of you go with Teacher Liu and Han Ning. There's a new discovery over there."
"Right, got it. You guys hurry back and rest." The teacher Teacher Zhou called Xiuning nodded and quickly arranged for people to escort Teacher Zhou's party.
The remaining dozens of people followed Han Ning and Teacher Liu back to the train.
'One car full of weapons and various supplies is enough to arm dozens of people to the teeth.'
The thought crossed Han Ning's mind as he gazed at the rifles scattered on the ground and the layered stacks of supply crates inside the car.
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