Chapter 92: Improvised Weapons and a Glimmer of Hope

As Lin Qing and Liu Hong were led away, they happened to overhear a conversation between Dog Brother and Dragon Lin.

Knowing that Dog Brother wouldn’t be able to see Su Yao anytime soon, Lin Qing immediately felt a wave of relief wash over him.

He then began to contemplate how he could swiftly escape his predicament.

A sigh escaped his lips.

Meanwhile, as Lin Qing was roughly shoved forward by the guards, Liu Hong, who had been dragged along, soon regained consciousness.

The blow he had received earlier was no light strike; a concussion was almost certain.

Liu Hong’s quick recovery was solely due to his robust physique, yet he still felt overwhelmingly nauseous.

Upon hearing the commotion, the guards noticed Liu Hong had awakened.

They promptly released their grip on him with a look of disgust, gesturing for him to follow obediently on his own.

Having already experienced the sting of the iron rod, Liu Hong naturally held back any protests.

He simply clutched his head and stumbled along.

Lin Qing, walking beside him, reached out and steadied Liu Hong by the arm, preventing him from falling and hitting his head again.

“Lin Qing, how is Su Yao?”

Liu Hong was in a terrible state, his face pale and his gaze flickering out of focus.

Yet, despite his condition, he remained deeply concerned for Su Yao’s safety.

His question reached Lin Qing’s ears, leaving him at a loss for how to respond.

‘Su Yao is fine; it’s others who are in trouble.’

‘Even if I said that, Liu Hong would likely not believe me,’ Lin Qing thought.

With a shake of his head, Lin Qing remained silent.

Seeing Lin Qing’s silence, Liu Hong’s face immediately contorted with regret, and his eyes welled up.

He despised himself for being so utterly powerless, unable to offer any resistance.

During his days of lording over others and acting arrogantly at school, he had never once experienced such a profound sense of helplessness.

“Hah, still worrying about others? You’re already at death’s door.”

The conversation between Liu Hong and Lin Qing reached the ears of a nearby guard.

One of them scoffed, his gaze fixed on the two with a mixture of pity and schadenfreude.

This made Lin Qing recall Dog Brother’s earlier instruction to take them to the ‘toilet room.’

Hearing the guard’s remarks now, it was clear this was no ordinary place.

“Why are you telling them all this?”

“Be careful, if Dog Brother finds out, he’ll flay you alive!”

“They’re dead men walking anyway; it’s not like they can escape!”

Without offering Lin Qing any more clues, the two guards continued their banter.

By the time they finished speaking, they had already reached their destination.

Gazing at the iron gate looming before them, Lin Qing subtly pinched Liu Hong’s arm.

It was a silent warning to be cautious and not let their guard down.

However, Liu Hong remained lost in the sorrow of being unable to save Su Yao.

He completely disregarded Lin Qing’s subtle hint, and at that very moment, the iron gate swung open.

The next instant, a cacophony of dog barks erupted, deafening and chaotic.

Lin Qing and Liu Hong were shoved inside.

Before either could react, the guards pushed them into a small, isolated room, where they found themselves confined with over a dozen dogs.

The cramped, enclosed space had poor ventilation, reeking of dog urine.

The incessant barking of the dogs filled the air.

Lin Qing observed the dogs around them, their claws scratching at the walls, yet he paid them no mind.

A chilling premonition quickly surged within him, a certainty that danger was closing in.

The current situation was perilous.

Lin Qing gripped Liu Hong’s arm, his nails digging in, knowing he couldn’t let Liu Hong wallow in despair any longer.

“Liu Hong, I just overheard that Dog Brother won’t go directly for Su Yao; he has other matters to attend to!”

“We can’t just sit here and wait for death. We need to escape quickly if we want to find Su Yao.”

Lin Qing knew precisely what to say to rekindle the fire within Liu Hong, whose spirit seemed to have vanished.

Sure enough, at the mention of Su Yao’s name, Liu Hong immediately lifted his head, his eyes bloodshot.

He vigorously wiped his eyes with his sleeve.

Hearing Lin Qing’s words, he realized there was still time and a chance for salvation; he couldn’t afford to be despondent now.

Seeing Liu Hong finally regain his composure, Lin Qing let out a small sigh of relief.

He knew he wouldn’t be fighting this battle alone.

“Judging by the current situation, I have a very bad feeling.”

“Dog Brother ordered the guards to take us to the ‘kitchen’… We might not make it out of here alive.”

!

Liu Hong, who had only just cleared his head, hadn’t even had a chance to vent his anger.

Hearing Lin Qing’s grave pronouncement, his eyes immediately widened in shock.

‘That’s impossible,’ he almost blurted out.

But then he recalled Dog Brother’s ruthless demeanor.

It seemed utterly impossible that Dog Brother hadn’t taken a life before.

“The worst-case scenario is that a chef might appear later, armed with a knife, to harm us, using our bodies to make processed food.”

“However, considering Chen Sen’s group seems to only be involved in dog theft and not the processed food industry, this is merely my speculation.”

Lin Qing ignored whatever thoughts were swirling in Liu Hong’s mind.

He continued to voice his suspicions.

A place like a kitchen, when combined with their current predicament, immediately conjured up ominous possibilities.

It certainly didn’t bode well for their future.

“But no matter what happens, we cannot simply wait for death.”

Fortunately, Lin Qing didn’t continue to dampen their spirits.

His final words of encouragement prompted Liu Hong to nod, forcing back the dizzying nausea he felt.

He knew this was no time for weakness.

To survive and rescue Su Yao, they had to escape their current predicament.

“But we have nothing on us right now.”

“My phone and folding knife, which were in my pocket, were taken by those bastards.”

Realizing their utter lack of resources, Liu Hong felt a surge of helplessness.

If the danger was as real as Lin Qing described, they, unarmed, wouldn’t even have a chance to fight back.

How could they possibly win with just their fists?

Upon hearing Liu Hong’s words, Lin Qing turned his head, observing the dogs restlessly scratching the walls around them.

Liu Hong subconsciously looked with him, wondering what Lin Qing was staring at.

‘Forget about pulling out dog teeth as weapons,’ Lin Qing thought.

“Look at these dogs’ necks; many are wearing metal tags. These are excellent weapons.”

Lin Qing didn’t keep him in suspense.

However, Liu Hong still looked confused.

“What good could these tiny metal tags possibly do?”

“Don’t underestimate these things. In prison, even a toothbrush can be a deadly weapon.”

As Lin Qing spoke, he immediately stood up and began actively removing the tags from the dogs’ necks.

Liu Hong watched him, feeling a blush creep up his own face.

‘Even a scrawny kid like Lin Qing isn’t despondent; what right do I have to wallow in self-pity?’

With that realization, Liu Hong immediately joined in, beginning to unfasten the tags.

However, perhaps the dogs simply didn’t take to Liu Hong, as he nearly got bitten by an agitated one while trying to remove a tag.

He managed to dodge just in time, narrowly avoiding a painful bite to his arm.

Thus, after Lin Qing had collected eight tags and Liu Hong two, they gathered them and examined them closely.

To their surprise, one dog’s tag wasn’t square; it was a long, pointed cone shape.

Though only half the size of a palm, its sharp tip offered a glimmer of hope.

Lin Qing immediately claimed the cone-shaped tag.

While Liu Hong was still choosing, he wrapped several other tags together with a bandage, fashioning a rather crude ‘glove.’

The pointed tag was strategically positioned on the back of the hand, ideal for striking.

Liu Hong, on the other hand, used the tags to shield vital areas of his body.

He even remembered to place two tags around his neck, guarding against attacks on vulnerable spots.

Confident in his own strength, he understood there was no need to solely focus on offense and risk exhaustion.

Preserving their lives was paramount, for only then could they plan their next move.

Seeing Lin Qing’s makeshift glove, Liu Hong raised an eyebrow in surprise.

He hadn’t expected Lin Qing to be part of the offensive faction.

‘He thought Lin Qing would choose defense too!’

Once both were prepared, and to avoid detection, Liu Hong tore his shirt into strips to cover his neck and chest.

Lin Qing, meanwhile, folded his ‘glove’ flat and tucked it into his pocket.

All that remained was to await the impending danger.

“Lin Qing, if we make it out of here alive this time, I’ll truly acknowledge you as my brother!”

“Even if you and Su Yao genuinely… Well, in any case, we’ll compete fairly.”

“Let Su Yao choose!”

Lin Qing’s calm demeanor in the face of adversity had significantly increased Liu Hong’s regard for him.

His sudden words during their wait startled Lin Qing, who then couldn’t help but shake his head with a small smile.

‘At a time like this, and he’s still thinking about such things?’

“If you can, you should give up on Su Yao!”

At Lin Qing’s words, Liu Hong’s expression instantly changed.

‘He had made such a concession, yet Lin Qing refused to budge even an inch.’

‘Did Lin Qing really want to fight him?’

“That’s not what I meant. It’s just that Su Yao is a dangerous woman.”

“She’s not as gentle and harmless as you imagine.”

Observing the look on Liu Hong’s face, Lin Qing immediately surmised his thoughts.

He then shook his head, silently revealing Su Yao’s true nature.

‘Even if Liu Hong wouldn’t believe him…’

“How could that be? Su Yao is such a cute and beautiful girl; she’s just a bit aloof.”

As Lin Qing had anticipated, Liu Hong was utterly unconvinced.

“Once we get out of here, if you still like Su Yao, I won’t try to dissuade you anymore.”

“For now, let’s just focus on preparing ourselves!”

Lin Qing knew that words alone would be futile.

If they could escape their current predicament, he would take Liu Hong to find Su Yao, allowing Liu Hong to witness his ‘goddess’s’ true colors firsthand.

Just as Liu Hong was about to speak, the door confining them suddenly swung open.

Less than ten minutes had passed.

Liu Hong cautiously looked up, only to see a massive iron cage placed in the room before them, its door gaping open in their direction.

“What are they planning to do?”

No one answered Liu Hong’s question.

Guards, armed with iron rods, swiftly entered, shoving both men and dogs into the iron cage without allowing any resistance.

Liu Hong, having already taken a blow to the head, immediately became compliant.

He noted there were four guards just inside the room, with another five or six stationed outside.

He knew that even if they managed to overpower these four, escaping successfully would be impossible.

This forced him, with a sense of humiliation, to step into the iron cage.

He raised his hand to touch the tags around his neck, vowing that he would not simply wait for death, but would find an opportunity to escape.

After Liu Hong and Lin Qing, along with the pack of dogs, were crammed into the iron cage, a massive red cloth completely covered it.

Immediately, someone began pushing the cage, setting it in motion.

Liu Hong’s hands tightened into fists, his heart pounding with tension, unsure where these men were taking them.

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