C99 The Pig Teammate Dragged the Situation, and a Ray of Hope Appeared in the Midst of the Crisis.(1

No one expected Tang Bing to fire so decisively, let alone take out the bearded ringleader with a single shot.

The remaining survivors' faces were etched with terror as they frantically shoved Lin Leyan and her daughter Liang Hui forward, using them as human shields.

It wasn't just the other survivors who were stunned; Zhao Dagang and his group, as well as Lin Leyan and her mother, were frozen in shock.

Tang Bing had swiftly eliminated two of them and was about to shift his aim when he realized the four survivors were shielding themselves with Lin Leyan and her daughter, making it impossible for him to take a clear shot.

A slight miscalculation could mean hitting Lin Leyan and Liang Hui.

"Drop the gun!" The young survivors, thrown into disarray by the death of their bearded leader, turned to a middle-aged man in a panic. The man, terrified for his life, pressed a dagger against Liang Hui's neck, drawing a bloody line on her delicate skin. He screamed hysterically at Tang Bing, "Put the gun down now! Or I swear I'll kill her!"

"Don't do it!" Zhao Dagang and Qin Mengli yelled frantically from upstairs.

Tang Bing glanced at them, thinking, 'You're not helping, and now you're making things worse?' He clenched his jaw and retorted, "Go ahead, kill them! I'll just wait for you to finish them off before I take you all down!"

"I don't believe you have the guts to shoot!" the middle-aged man challenged, using Liang Hui as a shield.

"I've already fired several shots!" Tang Bing countered, his gun trained on the man. "This is your last chance. Let them go and beat it!"

"If we release them, you'll shoot us!" the middle-aged man argued, shaking his head. "You put down your gun first!"

"If I drop my gun, we're the ones who'll end up dead!" Tang Bing replied icily. "Forget it, it's not happening!"

"Then shoot! Go on, shoot! I want to see how accurate you are, see if you'll end up shooting one of your own first!" The middle-aged man, cornered and desperate, was gambling with the lives of the young survivors against Tang Bing.

"You think I won't do it?" Tang Bing aimed deliberately at Liang Hui. "You don't have to lift a finger. I'll take out Teacher Lin and Liang Hui myself, then I'll make sure to avenge them! It's better than letting them suffer at your hands, enduring unspeakable horrors later on!"

"Ah!" Lin Leyan and Liang Hui's complexions shifted at the sight of the gun barrel aimed at them, their eyes snapping shut in terror.

"Bing, no!" Zhao Dagang, in a panic, didn't hesitate. He shoved the injured young man to the ground and bolted for the stairs.

"Go ahead! Fire!" The middle-aged man, realizing his knives were no match for two pistols, decided to risk everything. "I'll take these two with me to the afterlife! At least we'll have company on the journey to the underworld!"

Tang Bing squinted, surprised by the resilience of the survivors. Despite his pistol and the sight of their fallen allies, they refused to crumble in fear and beg for mercy. This posed a problem for him. Was he really going to make Lin Leyan and Liang Hui collateral damage?

It didn't matter to him; he would act if pushed to the brink. After all, survival often meant putting oneself first.

The standoff continued, with neither side willing to back down.

Just then, Zhao Dagang made it to the bottom of the stairs and hurried over to Tang Bing. He glanced at Teacher Lin and Liang Hui, then at the survivors holding them hostage, and turned to Tang Bing with urgency in his voice, "Bing, please don't!"

"Don't what?" Tang Bing kept his focus on the four survivors, not bothering to look back. "You want to put down the gun? If we do that, we're both dead!"

"But... but..." Zhao Dagang understood the stakes but the thought of Liang Hui coming to harm left him deeply torn.

"Drop the gun now! Do it!" The middle-aged man bellowed, desperate not to meet the same fate as his companions. He pressed the knife harder against Liang Hui's throat. "I swear I'll do it!"

"No!" Zhao Dagang's voice cracked in distress, "Please, don't kill her! Let's trade places, me for them!"

"Who the hell wants you?" the man snapped back. "Throw your guns over here, both of them!"

"I'll end you!" Tang Bing clenched his jaw, his finger tensing on the trigger.

"Don't do it, Bing!" Zhao Dagang reached out in a panic, grabbing Bing's arm with eyes brimming with desperation. "Please, I'm begging you, don't hurt Liang Hui!"

"Have you lost your mind, Brother Zhao?!" Sun Meng yelled from above, infuriated. "Not only are you not backing up Bing, but now you're dragging us into this mess?"

"I... I didn't want to! But I can't just stand by and watch Liang Hui be killed!" Zhao Dagang blurted out in distress.

Tang Bing inwardly cursed upon hearing his plea.

Sure enough, Zhao Dagang's words sparked a glimmer of hope in the middle-aged man, who, desperate to survive, decided to take a bold stance. He exchanged a knowing glance with the young man beside him and barked, "Both of you, drop your guns now! Move it! I'm running out of patience!"

"Bing, what do we do?" Zhao Dagang's gaze was lost and pleading as he turned to Tang Bing.

Tang Bing realized that Zhao Dagang was hopelessly in love with Liang Hui, much like himself four years prior. In such a state, Dagang was prone to rash decisions. He had to prevent that at all costs.

With that in mind, he gave Zhao Dagang a reassuring nod. "Okay, I'll put my gun down. Dagang, you do the same..."

"Brother Bing, I..." Zhao Dagang knew deep down that surrendering wasn't the smart move, but the sight of the dagger at Liang Hui's throat and the fear etched on her pale face clenched his heart.

"Just put it down," Tang Bing instructed firmly, slowly bending down and keeping his eyes on the adversaries. "I'm setting down my gun. Don't make a move..."

After a moment's hesitation, Zhao Dagang followed suit, mimicking Bing's actions and placing his gun on the ground.

The middle-aged man's face lit up with joy, sensing a chance at life.

But in a twist no one saw coming, Tang Bing swiftly snatched the gun from Zhao Dagang's hand and kicked him aside. Seizing the moment of surprise, Bing swiftly took aim and fired to the left and right.

"Bang! Puff!" The two unsuspecting young men were struck in the head and shoulder. One fell dead instantly, while the other clutched his shoulder, writhing and screaming in agony on the ground.

The middle-aged man and the youth beside him were both taken aback, never anticipating that Tang Bing would still fire his weapon in such a moment.

Frozen in shock, the middle-aged man stood there dumbfounded. The youth, however, acted with alarming decisiveness, savagely kicking Lin Leyan to the ground and plunging a dagger into her neck from behind. He yelled at the middle-aged man, "What are you waiting for? Let's go down together!"

Snapping out of his daze, the middle-aged man was rattled by the youth's resolute actions. It all unfolded too swiftly for him to keep up.

With a "Puff!" the youth's push sent Lin Leyan tumbling, her large frame no longer shielding the assailant. Without hesitation, Tang Bing shot the youth in the head, stopping him dead in his tracks. He then swiftly turned the gun on the middle-aged man.

"Clang!" To everyone's surprise, the middle-aged man dropped his dagger in fright and collapsed to the ground.

"Mommy~!" Freed, Liang Hui rushed to Lin Leyan's side, crying out in terror as she lay in a pool of blood.

Zhao Dagang was petrified by the rapid turn of events, standing still as a statue from afar.

Tang Bing paid him no mind, rushing over to knock the middle-aged man down and pointed his gun at his head.

"Mommy~! Mommy~! Save my mom! Bing, I'm begging you, save my mom!" Liang Hui's frantic plea came as she clung to Tang Bing's legs, nearly causing him to drop his gun. Fuming, he fought the urge to turn the weapon on her.

Glancing at Teacher Lin, convulsing and bleeding out on the ground, then at the middle-aged man, pale with terror, Tang Bing clenched his jaw and called out to Zhao Dagang, "What are you doing standing there? Get over here!"

"Oh, right!" Jolted by Tang Bing's shout, Zhao Dagang lumbered over.

"Keep an eye on him!" Tang Bing handed the gun back to Zhao Dagang and stashed his own at his waist. He then reached into his pocket, feigning a search, and pulled out a medical kit from his virtual backpack, applying it immediately to Lin Leyan.

Lin Leyan's wound was swiftly dressed, almost as if by magic.

Liang Hui watched in amazement as Tang Bing expertly bandaged her mother's injured neck, quickly stemming the bleeding. Witnessing the entire process, she was left speechless, struck by the surreal nature of the scene.