CHAPTER 879: CHAPTER 883: QI DE ACADEMY (PART 1)

"Run, run, they are chasing us..."

Amidst the barking of vicious dogs from behind, Zheng Dong shouted with all his strength.

His face and arms were covered in blood and grime, some were old scars, and many were new injuries.

With him were a man and a woman, both looking equally battered, not much better than Zheng Dong. Especially the girl, who seemed no more than fifteen or sixteen years old, with delicate features, but a terrifying scar stretched from her brow to her chin, making half her face as ghastly as an Evil Ghost, indicating she must have gone through horrendous experiences.

The three panted heavily, feeling their lungs burning, but each gritted their teeth and persisted.

Zheng Dong looked back; those vicious instructors with fierce dogs were tightly on their tail, about to catch them at any moment.

He glanced at Xiang Dongxing and Taohua, who were supporting each other beside him, gritted his teeth, and quickly said, "This won’t work, they’ll catch us and bring us back sooner or later."

"Dongxing, you take Taohua and run in another direction, I’ll distract them to lure them away."

Xiang Dongxing immediately objected, "No way, Brother Dong, you take Taohua and run, I’ll distract them."

Taohua pressed her lips together, her eyes, dull and indifferent, moved slightly, and she said, "Stop arguing. I’m the weakest, the two of you have the best chance of escaping, so let me..."

Zheng Dong forcefully interrupted Taohua, giving Xiang Dongxing a push, "You two go that way."

After saying this, without looking back, he turned and ran backward. "I’m the oldest, there’s no way I’ll let you go, hurry up and run."

Taohua whimpered, wanting to turn and follow, but Xiang Dongxing quickly caught her, half-holding and half-dragging her back.

Xiang Dongxing, choking with sobs, quietly said, "Run quickly, don’t let Brother Dong’s effort go to waste."

With hatred, Taohua looked deeply in the direction they came from, then sprinted away without looking back using all her strength.

They listened to the sounds continuously coming from behind, tears unable to be held back flowed down.

Both Taohua and Xiang Dongxing knew what fate awaited escaped students caught by the instructors.

Every year, some disobedient students would plan their escape, and those students ended up either crazy or crippled, or even worse...

Just the thought of the wolf-tooth club, electric baton, and the hellish Confession Room in the school made them shiver uncontrollably with dread.

"He’s here... caught..."

"Yes, it’s just him, the other two are nowhere to be found... yes, yes, I’ll bring them all back..."

Xiang Dongxing and Taohua tightly covered their mouths, crouching in a man-tall thicket, quietly waiting for the sounds of people, dogs, and fists hitting flesh to fade away into the air.

After waiting a while longer, until the whole area seemed to fall into silence, Xiang Dongxing finally moved his tense, stiff body.

His legs felt numb and trembled, moving even a little was a struggle, but after experiencing more terrifying events, this discomfort was nothing to him.

With a slightly relaxed expression, Taohua also gasped for air, the cries that had been trapped in her throat finally couldn’t be held back and burst out.

Xiang Dongxing stood up, cautiously scanning the surroundings to keep guard for Taohua. Once her emotions calmed a bit, he somberly said, "We better leave quickly, in case they come back."

Taohua roughly wiped her tears, nodded, and the two, whose average age was no more than fifteen or sixteen, crept through the sin-laden woods, disappearing into the deep night.

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"Where should we go next?"

Once they truly escaped, Xiang Dongxing and Taohua could hardly believe it, feeling bewildered and without direction.

In those few years at Zheng Miao Motivation Training School, they dreamt of escaping, but once they did, they didn’t know where to go.

Those few short years had completely destroyed them.

Going home was out of the question, and at this moment, they didn’t know what to do.

And Brother Dong, he got caught because he was trying to help them escape; they couldn’t just abandon him.

"I should get us something to eat first." Xiang Dongxing took out a handful of change from his pocket, secretly given to him by Brother Dong.

After their thrilling escape from Zheng Miao School last night, they had walked down a small path for several hours to reach the city, and then found a small park where they curled up on a bench to pass the night. Exhausted, daylight broke before they had a chance to rest properly.

"No." Taohua nervously grabbed Xiang Dongxing’s arm, shook her head quickly, and said, "Don’t go. After failing to find us all night, the instructors will definitely search the city. If the two of us show up like this, we’ll be too obvious."

Xiang Dongxing had always known Taohua was smart and couldn’t help feeling dejected, "Do we have to get caught again?"

Fear and hatred flashed quickly in Taohua’s eyes, "For now, we need to hide."

Making use of the bustling morning market, when no one noticed them, Taohua dragged Xiang Dongxing under a stall, silently curling up there.

With the enticing aroma of food wafting into his nose, Xiang Dongxing’s stomach growled loudly in protest.

He didn’t dare talk or move. It felt like both a long time and a short time had passed when a familiar voice reached their ears.

"Sister-in-law, did you see a boy and a girl around here?"

"Busy with business, didn’t notice."

"The two kids are having an early romance, and last night they ran away after being scolded harshly by their families. The family is worried sick..."

"Oh, kids these days are really hard to manage, unlike in our day."

"Sister-in-law, if you see them, please keep an eye out. If possible, try to keep the kids there."

"Sure, no problem..."

Listening to Captain Wang’s voice so close, Xiang Dongxing trembled with fear while Taohua bit down hard on her fist stuffed in her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

This man was like a devil.

"Wh-what... do we do..." Xiang Dongxing’s teeth chattered with fear.

Suddenly, the cover above them was lifted, startling the two inside, thinking they’d been found.

"Don’t shout, it’s me..." Taking advantage of the stall owner’s inattention, Jie Xifang quickly whisked the two away and into a van.

Inside the van, besides Jie Xifang, sat an unfamiliar woman.

Xiang Dongxing and Taohua’s hearts, which had just settled, immediately rose again, ready like wary little beasts to bolt if anything seemed amiss.

However, Jie Xifang didn’t worry about the two kids, instead, he thanked the woman appreciatively, "Thank you, Sister Su."