I will never hold you back

After assessing the situation on the ground, the remaining members of the Black Blood Gang knew that facing the overwhelming numerical disadvantage against the Fire Scorpion Gang would only lead to certain death.

Their only option now was to flee.

The few remaining Black Blood Gang members hastily lifted Lin Yu and Li Yuan, carrying them toward their controlled territory—a mahjong parlor not far away.

The Black Blood Gang had left only a handful of men behind, and after sending two away to fetch a car and buy medicine, only five were left.

These five could have escaped easily on their own, as the Fire Scorpion Gang members, exhausted from the long chase, were hardly in peak condition.

The real challenge was dragging along Lin Yu and Li Yuan, who had almost completely lost the ability to move.

Together, the two weighed well over three hundred pounds, a burden so heavy that the five Black Blood Gang members could barely move at speed. It was only a matter of time before they were caught.

As the Fire Scorpion Gang pursuers closed in, Black Tiger, the Black Blood Gang’s second-in-command, grew increasingly desperate.

Just then, Lin Yu, his face covered in blood, suddenly broke free from Black Tiger’s grip and shoved him hard.

"Black Tiger, you—"

Confused, Black Tiger stared at Lin Yu, who had stopped in his tracks, unsure what he was planning.

"Just go!"

"Take my uncle and get out of here."

"Leave me behind!!!"

Lin Yu’s tall, gaunt frame swayed unsteadily, as if he might collapse at any moment, but his eyes burned with a resolute, heartbreaking determination that brooked no argument.

"Lin Yu, don’t be ridiculous—come on!"

"We’re leaving together!"

"The mahjong parlor is right ahead! We’ll be safe there!"

Black Tiger reached out urgently, knowing all too well what would happen if the Fire Scorpion Gang caught Lin Yu.

Those bastards were vicious—they wouldn’t stop until they’d beaten him half to death.

And in his current weakened state, there was a real chance Lin Yu wouldn’t survive the beating.

How could he just abandon him here?

"Stop acting like a damn coward!"

"Go!"

Lin Yu roared at Black Tiger:

"If you drag me along, we’ll all get caught! Without me, you might still have a chance to get my uncle out!"

"There’s no time to hesitate!"

"Get him out of here—now!"

"You—"

Black Tiger’s face twisted in anguish as he looked at Lin Yu’s grim resolve, then at the bloodied, barely standing young man, and finally at the Fire Scorpion Gang members sprinting toward them, knives and batons in hand.

Torn, he hesitated—until Li Yuan, barely conscious in the arms of the other gang members, spoke weakly:

"Lin Yu’s right… Leave him. Get back to the parlor… then send help."

At Li Yuan’s words, Black Tiger’s indecision hardened into resolve.

"Lin Yu… hold on as long as you can. I’ll bring reinforcements the second we make it back."

Lin Yu managed a faint, bitter smile but said nothing, only nodding slightly.

The sight of his self-sacrifice brought tears to the eyes of Black Tiger—a man who’d once taken six knife wounds without a whimper.

But there was no time for sentiment. After one last desperate look at Lin Yu, Black Tiger turned and fled, carrying Li Yuan with the others as they bolted toward the right-hand path leading to the mahjong parlor.

Meanwhile, Lin Yu staggered in the opposite direction, veering into a narrow alleyway like a man on the verge of collapse.

The Fire Scorpion Gang reached the fork in the road moments later. Their leader paused, scanning both paths before barking orders:

"You four—after the blond kid. The rest, with me!"

The gang split up, the main force continuing the chase after Li Yuan while the four designated thugs sprinted into the alley after Lin Yu.

But when they reached the entrance, they skidded to a halt, baffled.

The alley was empty.

The men exchanged stunned glances.

This alley stretched at least a hundred meters. The blond kid had entered barely fifteen seconds ago—how was he gone?

Even uninjured, no normal person could vanish that fast.

Was he some kind of teenage Usain Bolt?

Meanwhile, Lin Yu was already halfway across the district, sprinting at full speed while shoving his unruly hair out of his face and spitting a bloody wad of saliva onto the pavement.

Damn idiots. You think I’m sticking around to get my ass kicked with you?

Dream the fuck on.

After twisting through backstreets until he was certain no one was following, Lin Yu finally slowed, ducking into a shadowed alley to slump against the damp brick wall, exhaling hard.

The moment he released the breath he’d been using to keep himself upright, his vision swam. His legs turned to jelly, his strength evaporated, and even standing became impossible.

To avoid collapsing and risking another head injury, he used the last of his energy to slide down the wall, landing heavily on the filthy ground.

The encroaching blackness at the edges of his vision alarmed him.

He fumbled at his scalp, parting blood-matted blond hair until his fingers found the wound—now crusted over, no longer bleeding.

Relieved he wasn’t in immediate danger of bleeding out, he sagged further.

The relief unleashed a tidal wave of dizziness and exhaustion, swallowing even the pain of his injuries. All he felt was an overwhelming urge to sleep.

Gritting his teeth, Lin Yu fought it.

This spot wasn’t safe. The Fire Scorpion Gang could still find him.

He needed to rest just long enough to recover, then move somewhere secure.

But his oxygen-starved brain refused to cooperate. Thoughts moved like rusted gears, sluggish and disjointed. His awareness dulled, making him miss things—like the fact that, for quite some time now, a pair of nervous, hesitant eyes had been watching him from the mouth of the alley where it met the main street.