The three bionics, each carrying flammable materials, silently approached three pre-arranged areas.
These three locations were a fair distance from the abandoned factory, but not too far—all within a 700 to 900-meter radius.
As soon as they received the signal, they would create a diversion to draw the Blood Saber Gang’s attention and buy time for Bena and his team to escape.
After confirming there were no issues with the flammable materials on the ground, the three bionics quietly waited for Bena’s signal.
······
「Inside the largest workshop of the abandoned factory.」
The workshop was dimly lit. Only a few lightbulbs hanging high overhead cast long, faint shadows.
The air reeked of alcohol and tobacco, mingling with the smell of machine oil and dust to create a coarse, chaotic atmosphere.
Members of the Blood Saber Gang were gathered in small groups. Some sat around dilapidated tables, drinking and carousing, while others laughed loudly in corners, swapping thrilling stories of their recent raids.
At one end of the workshop, several gang members huddled around a bonfire. The firelight illuminated their excited faces, casting their dancing, distorted shadows onto the grimy walls.
The leader of the Blood Saber Gang, a man known as Blood Saber, sat in the most prominent spot in the workshop.
Blood Saber was a burly man, his muscles clearly defined even in the dim light.
He wore an open leather jacket that exposed his muscular chest. A necklace of teeth and small bones hung around his neck, a testament to his savagery and brutality.
Over his jacket, he wore a three-piece, blue-black exoskeleton.
If Bena were there, he would have immediately recognized it as the exact same model of exoskeleton he had previously used.
This was the very same Sentinel-model exoskeleton that Blood Saber had stolen from Xisuo.
He held a bottle of hard liquor in his left hand, periodically tilting it back to gulp down the fiery liquid. The burn of the alcohol seemed to mix with the fire in his blood, making him seem even more feral.
His right arm was wrapped around a recently captured woman. Her eyes were filled with fear and helplessness, but under Blood Saber’s grip, she could only force a smile and try not to look so terrified.
A self-satisfied smirk played on Blood Saber’s lips. He basked in the flattery and toasts from his underlings, listening to their tales of heroic deeds and occasionally nodding or laughing in approval.
A long scar ran across his face, from the corner of his eye down to his chin. Rather than making him ugly, the scar only added to his fierce, unruly charm.
In Blood Saber’s eyes, this abandoned factory was his kingdom, and he was its uncrowned king.
Just then, one of his underlings sidled up to Blood Saber and said with a smile,
"Boss, do we really not need to step up security?"
"After all, a powered individual just escaped a little while ago."
"What if he has accomplices? Then..."
Before the underling could finish, Blood Saber waved his hand impatiently.
Blood Saber’s brow furrowed. He slammed the bottle onto the table with a dull THUD, cutting his underling off.
His voice was low and menacing. "Who do you think I am? What kind of place do you think this is?"
The underling was so intimidated by Blood Saber’s presence that he instinctively took a step back and lowered his head, not daring to meet his gaze.
Blood Saber sneered and continued,
"This is our turf. The Blood Saber Gang runs this place."
"So what if he’s a powered individual? Even if he has accomplices, you think they’d dare to charge into our den?"
Hearing Blood Saber’s words, the surrounding gang members voiced their agreement, breaking into uproarious laughter.
In their eyes, Blood Saber was invincible, and the Blood Saber Gang was unbeatable.
Blood Saber waved his hand, dismissing the underling. He raised the bottle to his lips again and took a long, hard swig. However, just at that moment, the sound of hurried footsteps cut through the workshop’s din.
A gang member ran in, panicked and out of breath, to report,
"B-bad news, Boss! There’s a fire outside! And... and it’s not just in one spot!"
Blood Saber’s expression instantly darkened. He shot to his feet, his gaze sharp as lightning as he stared down the messenger.
"What?! Explain yourself! What the hell is going on?"
The gang member stammered,
"Fires... fires suddenly started a few hundred meters away. There are flames in four different directions!"
Blood Saber narrowed his eyes.
’Flames?’
A sense of foreboding washed over Blood Saber. He knew this was no accident.
He spun around and roared at the gang members in the workshop, "Everyone, stop drinking! Grab your weapons and follow me outside to see what’s going on!"
The reek of alcohol and tobacco in the air was instantly replaced by the tense stench of danger.
Snapped out of their stupor by Blood Saber’s roar, the gang members dropped their drinks and food, grabbed their weapons, and quickly fell into formation.
Blood Saber quickly climbed to a high vantage point on the workshop roof. He stared at the four fires burning at varying distances from the factory, his brow furrowed so deeply it could have crushed a fly.
A grim look flashed in Blood Saber’s eyes. He knew this was clearly a ploy by his enemies. Four fires starting at once was no coincidence; it was a carefully orchestrated move.
’But what exactly are they up to?’
’If this is an attack, wouldn’t it have been better to sneak in and catch us by surprise?’
’So what’s the point of setting these fires so openly?’
"Boss, what do we do now?" a gang member asked anxiously.
"Boss, should we send some men to check it out?" another suggested.
At his subordinate’s words, Blood Saber’s eyes lit up.
’Could they be deliberately setting fires to draw our attention? Lure us out to investigate, then pick us off one by one?’
The thought flashed through Blood Saber’s mind, and a cold smirk tugged at his lips. ’If that’s what they’re thinking, they’re dead wrong.’
’The Blood Saber Gang isn’t so easily divided and conquered.’
"No. We’re not playing into the enemy’s hands," Blood Saber said, his voice low but laced with cool-headed resolve.
He turned, his gaze sweeping over the gang members behind him. Every man he looked at instinctively stood up straighter.
"Listen up," Blood Saber’s voice echoed through the workshop.
"Everyone, form up into four teams. Follow your training and hold your positions within the factory."
"I’d like to see what those cockroaches hiding in the dark are really after!"
·······
The moment the fires were lit, Bena and his team had already used Simon’s power to slip out of the abandoned factory.
Bena and his team moved swiftly through the darkness, silently following their pre-planned escape route into the distance.
Seeing that no enemies were charging out of the abandoned factory, a triumphant smile touched Zhou Mei’s lips. The diversion tactic had worked perfectly.
Bena also breathed a sigh of relief, but he knew that while they had successfully left the factory, their escape wasn’t over yet.
"Everyone, pick up the pace! We need to get to the motorcycle stash as soon as possible," Bena urged in a low voice.
The team immediately responded.
"Right!"
"Got it!"