Chapter 180: Chapter 179: Elimination, Betrayal?

The weather was clear, and Ling Chengyan didn’t look for a cave nor did she make a fire to boil water; she found a big tree and decided to spend the night up in the tree.

As a result, just as she climbed onto the tree branch, she suddenly saw a red flare streaking skyward.

When they set off, everyone carried a blue flare and a red flare. The blue flare is used for distress signals, indicating voluntary withdrawal; the release of the red flare signifies failure in confrontation and being eliminated.

Soon after, another red flare shot into the sky.

Ling Chengyan pursed her lips, sat on the branch she had chosen, and took out a piece of compressed biscuit to eat.

Two people eliminated in a row meant someone was banding together for an ambush.

After eating and drinking a few sips of water, Ling Chengyan closed her eyes to rest on the branch.

She slept for two hours, alleviating much of the day’s fatigue, then looked at the starry sky to confirm her direction and position before lightly jumping down the tree to continue her journey.

Initially, she didn’t plan on traveling at night, but given that someone was teaming up for an ambush, she needed to be extra cautious now. The latter half of the night is when regular people sleep, minimizing the chances of encountering an ambush.

Ling Chengyan detoured a bit to avoid the area where the flares were sent up, making her journey quite arduous, with brambles, thorns, and ditches, not to mention a lot of animals coming out at night to hunt.

Luckily, large beasts like tigers, leopards, and bears were long gone from the province. Ling Chengyan encountered two lynxes and a wild boar with several piglets, but she heard the movements and avoided them.

Letting the large and small wild boar group pass, Ling Chengyan felt a bit regretful; if she wasn’t participating in the survival contest, she could have brought them along — this amount of meat would be enough to feed a family for a year.

As the thought flashed by, Ling Chengyan suddenly felt a chill down her spine, instinctively leaped up to grab hold of a sideways branch, swung herself, and landed deftly on a smoother piece of rock.

Looking back, a cold sweat broke out all over her.

Right where she was about to step, there were two animal traps with sharp serrated jaws hidden by bushes and wild grass — very hard to detect.

Stepping into such a trap, a smaller animal’s leg would be snapped directly. Even if a person stepped into it, the ankle would be badly injured!

It might not lead to disability, but it would definitely affect the result of this survival challenge.

Ling Chengyan carefully inspected, finding no marks on the surrounding tree trunks or rocks, which made her angry — setting traps for hunting had been a practice since ancient times, but there was an unspoken rule to place a mark in a noticeable spot to prevent accidentally injuring others.

Evidently, the person who set these traps did not do so.

Ling Chengyan showed no mercy toward such a person and directly disabled the two traps, taking them with her.

Upon passing through a mountain rock crevice, she tossed the two traps inside.

This close call made Ling Chengyan walk more cautiously, probing the unclear grass and bushes with a stick…

She pressed on for two hours straight, about four hours of night travel, and the east gradually showed a hint of dawn.

Ling Chengyan climbed a tree to check her direction and position once more, confirming she hadn’t gone astray, before resting up on a branch.

She ate another piece of compressed biscuit and drank a few sips of water before continuing on her way.

This time, she again took a detour rather than heading straight for the mountain road where they disembarked, instead bypassing a mountain ridge and cutting back from the other side.

Choosing a vantage point from above, Ling Chengyan decided to take a break.

After a night’s worth of exhausting mountain trekking, Ling Chengyan was significantly drained. If she encountered an ambush by multiple people at this moment, she couldn’t guarantee she’d escape unscathed.

Her chosen spot was excellent — she could see the bend in the mountain road from which they set off, there were no vehicles or personnel for reception, indicating it was not yet time for them to arrive; going there too early might make her someone’s target.

She placed the stick beside her, tightly gripped her weapon in hand, and closed her eyes for a breather.

The morning mountain breeze was quite cool, and Ling Chengyan even managed to sleep a little. When she opened her eyes, the sun had risen above the ridge, hanging in the sky.

Ling Chengyan took out her last piece of compressed biscuit, eating it in small bites, and drank the remaining water in her flask, sip by sip.

The sound of vehicle engines was approaching from afar.

Ling Chengyan had a clear view from her elevated position: a jeep and a Liberation truck — the very vehicles that brought them over.

The ones responsible for reception (evaluation) had arrived.

She packed her backpack and flask properly, picked up her stick, and started heading towards the vehicles ascending the mountain.

Still, she discreetly concealed herself, not rashly exposing her position.

The vehicles got closer and closer until finally stopping at the bend in the mountain road where they disembarked.

Ling Chengyan’s gaze shifted to the other side of the bushes because just as the vehicles stopped, someone started swiftly moving up from within the bushes.

Bang!

A gunshot rang out!

The person who had just stepped onto the road and was only dozens of meters from the finish suddenly jolted, bewildered and frozen on the spot.

He slowly turned to look behind at the bushes, letting Ling Chengyan see a conspicuous white mark on his back — since it was a confrontation exercise, the equipment couldn’t be live ammunition but rather practice rounds that wouldn’t be lethal, only leaving white marks where hit!

One of the conditions for elimination is being hit in a vital area.

Ling Chengyan narrowed her eyes, gazing at the hidden figure below on the forest road.

This person’s ability to hit the target with precision wasn’t just due to the forest cover — his shooting was highly skilled.

If he doesn’t reveal himself voluntarily, going down to confront him carries certain risks.

With this thought, she further concealed herself behind the bush.

Twelve participants started, and with three confirmed eliminations, there could be at most nine people left.

The eliminated person stood dazed for a moment, despondently unbuckled his backpack, held it in hand, and dragged himself to the reception area. After a brief greeting, he climbed into the truck.

Ling Chengyan could almost picture him dumping his backpack and lying down in resignation.

Three days of struggling through trials, victory within sight, only to be sniped out and eliminated at the last moment — an easy victory turning into defeat, hopes dashed — such a huge blow is indeed hard to bear.

Ling Chengyan felt neither emotional nor regretful — coming to participate in this survival challenge meant to be prepared for failure. No one can be undefeated and infallible.

After the eliminated person climbed onto the Liberation truck, Ling Chengyan turned her gaze away because she noticed movement among the forests down the mountain road.

Ah, this hidden contender’s patience is limited.

Evidently feeling safe after taking out an opponent, he was eager to claim the victory ahead.

Then, Ling Chengyan got a clear view of the lurking contender’s appearance. Tall in stature, pleasant features, bushy eyebrows, big eyes, and a square face — it was the Guard Company Captain Shao Guoqing.

And the person he eliminated pretty soon was Guo Peng, one of the captains of the two Coastal Defense Companies, whom Ling Chengyan also knew.

Just two days ago, when they set off, Ling Chengyan had seen Guo Peng walking closely together with Shao Guoqing, seemingly quite friendly.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep