The Mysterious Soldier of the Anti-Japanese War

Chapter 227 Escape and ascend to heaven

Lei Tao spun around abruptly, shining his flashlight behind him. He saw a dozen large rats, the size of large bowls, lunging at him with bared fangs and claws. Their fur was matted, their sharp incisors gleamed coldly, and they squeaked, appearing ferocious.

Forced into a corner by the sudden onslaught of rats, Lei Tao decisively raised his gun and fired. Bang, bang, bang! The gunshots echoed through the narrow passage, stinging his ears. A rat, struck, screamed and fell to the ground, twitching. Far from retreating, the other rats, enraged by the sound of the gunfire, charged forward even more frantically.

During the battle, Lei Tao discovered that rats seemed to be afraid of bright light. So, while firing, he waved his flashlight, flickering the bright light among the rats. Several rats were disoriented and slowed down. Seizing the opportunity, Lei Tao fired accurately, and several more rats fell.

But the rats were too numerous and continued to press forward. Leaning against the wall, Lei Tao calmly aimed at the rats' heads and shot them one after another. Bullets blazed, and the rats fell one after another.

After a fierce battle, the rats were finally driven back, their carcasses strewn across the ground. Lei Tao wiped the sweat from his forehead; his arms ached from the constant firing. But he knew the danger wasn't over yet, so he rested briefly, picked up his flashlight, and continued cautiously along the passage.

As he walked, Lei Tao discovered a rough map carved on the wall. The map marked several different locations, one of which looked like his location, and another marked with a special symbol that looked like the exit of a passage.

Following the map, Lei Tao found a hidden groove around the stone door. He reached in and fumbled with a mechanism. The stone door slowly opened, a gust of fresh air wafting in. Lei Tao saw a valley and found himself halfway up the mountain.

Lei Tao then quickly returned to the skylight. Beads of sweat covered his forehead, and his breathing was rapid. He quickly retrieved a rope from the Bagua spinning top and tightly wrapped one end around a regular, heavy rock beside him, tying several knots to prevent it from coming loose during the climb. Then, he slowly lowered the rope from the valley entrance down through the skylight.

After doing all this, Lei Tao bent down, put his hands to his mouth, and shouted to the bottom: "The exit is above, everyone climb up along the rope, be careful!" His voice kept echoing in the passage.

Upon hearing this news, the team members below immediately brightened with hope. Hu Hansi took a deep breath, stretched his stiff hands, and was the first to reach the rope. He gripped the rope tightly, pushed his feet against the wall, and began to climb carefully. At first, his movements were relatively quick, but as the altitude increased, his arms became increasingly sore, and each inch of climbing became a struggle.

Huang Hu looked up from below, staring at Hu Hansi and shouted, "Old Hu, come on! We're almost there, you can do it!" Hu Hansi gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, and responded, "Don't worry, I can definitely make it!" He adjusted his breathing and continued to climb up with tenacious perseverance.

Hu Hansi finally climbed to the skylight, and Lei Tao reached out and pulled him up. Hu Hansi slumped to the ground, gasping for breath.

Before they could even catch their breath, Lei Tao saw what was happening in the passage. His face changed drastically, and he shouted, "Watch out for that guy! He's coming again!" The mechanical puppet, emitting strange smoke, approached them again with heavy, mechanical steps. The long sword in its hand flashed with a cold light, and the ground shook slightly with every step it took.

Lei Tao's eyes immediately became sharp, and without hesitation, he quickly took out a powerful bomb from his waist. He held the bomb tightly, took a deep breath, bent his legs slightly, and jumped out of the skylight.

Lei Tao drew an arc in the air and quickly fell towards the mechanical puppet. The team members below saw this scene and their eyes widened in shock. As Lei Tao fell, his eyes were fixed on the mechanical puppet, calculating the distance and timing.

When he was only a few steps away from the mechanical puppet, Lei Tao threw the bomb at it with all his might. The bomb landed at the puppet's feet. With a loud "boom", the bomb exploded, and an intense flame and shockwave spread out in all directions.

The fire lit up the entire corridor, sending waves of heat crashing down upon them. Stones and dust flew everywhere. The mechanical puppets were toppled to the ground by the force of the explosion, their parts scattered everywhere, and their long swords were blown away. The corridor was filled with smoke, the stench of gunpowder choking them.

When the smoke cleared slightly, Lei Tao slowly got up from the ground. He had some scratches on his body, but they were not serious. He patted the dust off his body, thinking that he could not let the Japanese army catch up with him, nor let them destroy the precious coffin in the tomb.

Lei Tao sprang into action, carefully installing several time bombs along the stairway leading to the area. These bombs were strategically placed in strategic locations, some hidden in the cracks of the stairs, others affixed to hidden corners of the walls. He carefully timed them to give everyone ample time to evacuate, yet still allow them to explode before the Japanese could catch up.

After completing all this, Lei Tao returned to the skylight and looked at the team members still waiting below. Considering that the seven young women, Fan Xiaoyu, Lin Yue, Su Yao, Chu Yan, Liu Yi, Qin Lan, and Jiang Xue, were relatively weak in physical strength and climbing might be more difficult, he decided to provide them with some safety measures.

Lei Tao took seven lengths of strong rope and quickly made seven simple but sturdy safety rope devices. He fixed one end of the safety rope firmly to the stable protrusions on the edge of the skylight, and made the other end into a safety loop that could be put on a person.

Lei Tao said to the young women, "Xiaoyu, Lin Yue, Su Yao, Chu Yan, Liu Yi, Qin Lan, and Jiang Xue, I have prepared safety ropes for you. Put the safety rings on your bodies. As you climb, we will pull you up. This way, it will be easier for you to come up."

Fan Xiaoyu responded: "Okay, we'll get ready." After that, she turned to the other young women and said: "Don't worry, put the safety ring of the safety rope on first." Lin Yue and others nodded and started to work.

While helping Jiang Xue adjust the safety ring, Fan Xiaoyu whispered, "Jiang Xue, don't be afraid. With the safety rope, we will definitely be able to get up safely." Jiang Xue looked at her gratefully and said, "Well, Sister Xiaoyu, I'm not afraid."

Soon, everyone put on the safety ring, and Su Yao shouted, "We are ready, you can pull." After hearing this, the people above began to slowly pull the safety rope, and the seven young women also used their hands and feet to climb up.

Chu Yan was having a hard time climbing, and Liu Yi shouted, "Chu Yan, come on, we'll do it together." Qin Lan also said, "Yes, Chu Yan, don't give up, we're almost there." Encouraged by everyone, Chu Yan gritted her teeth and continued to work hard.

As the distance shortened, the people above pulled the safety rope harder. Fan Xiaoyu shouted, "Everyone, work harder, we're almost there." Finally, the seven young women successfully climbed to the top of the skylight.

Lei Tao then arranged for the others to climb. Ten minutes later, everyone had reached the skylight. Lei Tao took out his flashlight and illuminated the hallway, where the ground was littered with the carcasses of large rats. He said, "Let's go! These rats might come back again at any moment."

The group walked along the passage for half an hour and finally reached the exit.