Spy Wars: Strong Agents Who Are Ruthless and Talk Little

Chapter 403: A strong will supports the escape

"This isn't going to work," Su Ming thought, glancing around quickly, only to find himself trapped in a dead end. He let out a wry laugh, mentally cursing himself for being so flustered that he hadn't noticed the end of the alley. However, this situation was already familiar to him, and he knew he had no time to dwell on himself.

Su Ming raised his head, his gaze fixed on an old two-story building not far away. The windows were closed, but a mess of wooden boxes and discarded items lay piled beneath the windowsill. "Maybe... I can give it a try." He gritted his teeth, steeled his resolve, and decided to take a chance.

Grasping the edge of the windowsill with both hands, Su Ming leaped with all his might, using the strength of his arms to pull himself up. Instantly, he felt a pain as if his arms were being torn apart, but he resisted the urge to let go. Finally, with great effort, he squeezed himself through the dilapidated window and rolled into a dimly lit room.

The room was filled with a musty smell, tinged with the scent of rotting wood. Su Ming held his breath, lying quietly on the floor, listening intently. He heard a few heavy gasps from outside the alley, followed by the scraping of shoes. The pursuers had clearly not given up and were still searching nearby.

"They really won't let me go..." Su Ming felt a surge of helplessness, but then he forced himself to dispel those negative thoughts. Now was not the time to lament the unfairness of fate. He had to live, not only for himself, but also for those who had helped him and still believed in him.

He gently rose and moved silently along the wall. The light in the room was dim, and he groped in the darkness almost by instinct. Suddenly, his toes touched something hard. The soft "snap" sounded particularly harsh in the silence. Su Ming's heart tightened, and he held his breath for a moment, listening carefully to the noise outside.

A sudden commotion erupted from the alleyway. "He's in there!" a gruff voice shouted. Then, a clatter of footsteps surged toward them. Su Ming knew he had no time to hesitate. He quickly opened the door and rushed into the corridor, searching for a possible way out.

This small building had clearly been abandoned for years. Moss grew on the walls of the corridor, and the wooden floorboards creaked from years of disrepair. Su Ming darted through the dimly lit corridor, his heart nearly pounding in his chest. Just as he was about to reach the end of his run, he suddenly caught sight of a half-open door from the corner of his eye.

"Perhaps there's still a glimmer of hope..." He gritted his teeth, quickly pushed open the door, and rushed in. The room was filled with all kinds of shabby furniture and miscellaneous items, obviously someone's abandoned storage room. Su Ming grabbed a piece of rag and hid himself behind the pile of discarded debris.

After a while, hurried footsteps were heard in the hallway, and several men in black rushed in. They quickly looked around the room, and one of them whispered, "Look carefully, he must still be in this building."

Su Ming held his breath, practically audible to his own heartbeat. He huddled among the debris, striving to remain still, not daring to make even the slightest noise. The men in black rummaged through the room, making dull, clanking noises. Su Ming could sense them drawing closer, as if ready to pull him out of the shadows at any moment.

"No!" Finally, one of the men in black, growing impatient, kicked the wall hard. "He can't be here. Let's search downstairs!" With these words, the men gradually retreated, the door closing behind them, and the room fell into dead silence once again.

Su Ming finally breathed a sigh of relief, his back soaked with sweat. He leaned against the cold wall, closed his eyes, and allowed himself to relax for a moment. However, he knew this was only temporary relief; the other party would not give up easily. He had to leave this place as soon as possible, find Zhang Feng, and uncover the truth behind this.

At that moment, a subtle noise suddenly emanated from the corner of the room. Su Ming's eyes snapped open, his dagger tightly gripped in his hand, his gaze as sharp as an eagle's as he scanned the source of the sound. In the dim corner, a thin figure slowly stood up.

"Don't move! If you move again, I won't be polite!" Su Ming shouted in a low voice, and the dagger in his hand reflected a cold light.

"Don't, don't shoot... I'm... I'm a resident of this building..." A trembling voice came from the corner. Su Ming then saw that it was an elderly man wearing a tattered coat, looking extremely thin. He raised his hands above his head, his face filled with fear.

Su Ming relaxed his guard slightly, but remained on guard. "Why are you here?" he asked coldly, a hint of suspicion in his eyes.

The old man replied tremblingly, "I... I have lived here for many years. I just heard some noise and I didn't dare to come out."

Su Ming thought for a moment and decided that the old man didn't seem like an enemy, but he still didn't fully believe it. He signaled the old man to step aside while he quickly checked the rest of the room. After confirming there were no ambushes, he felt slightly relieved.

"Listen, I'm just hiding for a while. I'll leave after they leave." Su Ming's tone was slightly softer, but still full of vigilance.

The old man nodded and whispered, "I know... I didn't see anything. Please don't hurt me."

Su Ming was silent for a moment, then suddenly thought that perhaps this old man could provide him with some useful information. He re-examined the old man before him and asked tentatively, "How long have you lived here? Have you ever seen a man around my age come here?"

The old man shook his head, his voice still weak: "I seldom go out... I don't know what's going on outside. However, if you want to escape, there is an old sewer underground... but it has not been used for many years..."

Su Ming's eyes lit up slightly. "Sewer?" he repeated, as if he had seen a glimmer of hope.

Su Ming's heart trembled at the word "sewer." He had imagined countless possible escape routes during his escape, but he had never imagined such a hidden passage. He stared into the old man's eyes, trying to discern a lie from his cloudy gaze. However, the old man's trembling expression and slightly trembling body seemed pitifully sincere, as if he was eager to please him out of sheer fear.

"Where is the sewer?" Su Ming asked in a low voice without time to think about it.

The old man hesitated, seemingly wavering, but under Su Ming's piercing gaze, he finally gave in. "It's... under the floorboards of this room," the old man muttered, pointing to a cluttered corner on the other side of the room. "This used to be the sewage outlet of the old factory, but it's fallen into disrepair and most people have forgotten about it."

Su Ming's gaze was fixed on the dark corner. If what the old man said was true, then he still had a chance of survival. He suppressed his inner excitement and carefully withdrew the dagger. He relaxed his vigilance towards the old man, but his inner guard remained extremely cautious. He didn't trust anyone, especially in such a dangerous moment.

"You'd better not lie to me, otherwise..." Su Ming paused deliberately, with a strong threat in his tone.

The old man nodded repeatedly, his forehead covered with fine beads of cold sweat. "I don't need to lie to you. I just want to save my life... Please, don't delay any longer. Those people may come up at any time."

Su Ming said nothing more, turning quickly toward the pile of junk. He pushed aside the pile of old wooden boxes and rags, and sure enough, he found a hidden iron lid on the floor. His heartbeat quickened, as if hope were within reach. He tugged at the lid, but it refused to budge due to age and rust. In desperation, he exerted all his strength, yanking it open, and finally, it popped open.

A pungent, musty smell filled the air. The dark cave entrance seemed like a gaping maw, waiting to devour everything. Without hesitation, Su Ming whipped out his phone, activated the flashlight, and shone it into the cave. Below him lay a narrow passage, its damp brick walls covered in moss, creating an eerie, gloomy appearance. Yet, at this moment, this passage was his only hope of escape.

He turned around, glanced at the old man who was still standing there trembling, and said in a low voice: "You come with me, otherwise I can't guarantee that they won't find you."

The old man seemed panicked and shook his head repeatedly, "No, no, I can't go down... That sewer... has been abandoned for too long. There might be poisonous gas in it, and there might be rats..."

Su Ming sneered, a glint of cruelty flashing in his eyes. "Then you stay here," he said as he quickly climbed into the cave entrance. Just as he jumped into the passage, hurried footsteps and noisy shouts were heard again in the corridor. The pursuers had obviously begun searching this floor.

Su Ming quickly closed the iron cover, burying himself in the cold, damp darkness. He tried to hold his breath, letting himself blend into the deadly silence. In the darkness, he seemed to be back in that night of fleeing amidst the flames of war, memories flooding back to him like a tide. Back then, he had been so helpless, relying only on his fragile hope and tenacious will to keep himself afloat.

Time seemed to stretch endlessly. Su Ming could almost hear his own pounding heartbeat. In the darkness, he tried to calm himself. He silently counted his heartbeats, trying not to think about whether pursuers might suddenly burst in from behind. Suddenly, he heard a dull knocking sound overhead, as if someone had slapped the iron cover hard.

"Is anyone inside?" A low and rough voice came from upstairs, with a bit of impatience.

Su Ming held his breath, his fingers tightly gripping the dagger. Sweat trickled down his forehead, knowing this was a potentially life-or-death moment. Fortunately, after slapping the iron cover a few times, the men didn't seem to notice anything unusual. The footsteps gradually faded away, eventually disappearing deep into the corridor.