The night was very dark, and the neon lights along the streets shone on the wet road, making everything look a bit mysterious. The air was damp, mixed with the smell of rain and petrol, making people feel uncomfortable.
"Walao eh, they still chasing!" Cheng Mo turned his head and saw shadows moving fast behind them.
"Shen Qiu, are you done already or not?" Li Chuan panted as he spoke into the earpiece. "If take too long, we really kena liao."
Shen Qiu's voice came through the other end, with loud keyboard tapping. "Almost lah, give me three more minute can or not?"
"Three minute? So long?!" Cheng Mo let out a breath, "We cannot tahan already lah!"
They rushed out from the alley and suddenly found themselves at the busy road in Butterworth, where cars moved non-stop. Opposite them was an old residential area, full of narrow lorong (alleys) that looked like a maze.
"Faster cross," Li Chuan said, his voice very serious.
Behind them, the black-shirt men had already appeared at the alley entrance, holding guns. One of them raised his hand—
"Bang!"
A bullet flew past, almost hitting Li Chuan's shoulder, and struck a nearby tong sampah (dustbin), making a loud metallic sound.
Cheng Mo didn't think twice. He took out a smoke bomb from his bag, pulled the ring, and threw it onto the ground. Thick, white smoke immediately covered the alley.
"Go go go!" Cheng Mo shouted, and both of them dashed into the traffic.
Horns blared everywhere, cars nearly langgar them, and angry drivers shouted bad words. One uncle even stuck his head out from his Myvi and scolded, "Oi, you gila kah?!"
But they didn't care, just kept running.
Behind them, the black-shirt men also rushed out, but the smoke slowed them down a bit. One of them took out a walkie-talkie, "Target spotted, request backup at Jalan Raja Uda."
The earpiece crackled, "Roger, all exits will be sealed."
Meanwhile, inside Shen Qiu's apartment, the computer screen flashed with lines of code, and the progress bar was at 97%.
Shen Qiu wiped his forehead, "This file really damn hard to crack lah," he mumbled, fingers flying across the keyboard.
Outside the apartment, black cars had already surrounded the area. More men in black shirts moved silently, positioning themselves near the building entrance.
The leader raised a hand, giving a silent command. One of them placed a small device on the door—a mini explosive.
"Boom!"
The door blasted open, and the black-shirt men rushed in.
But inside, the whole apartment was pitch dark.
Suddenly—
"Bzzzt!"
A small explosion came from the corridor, releasing thick smoke. The men coughed as the alarm blared loudly.
At the same time, Li Chuan and Cheng Mo ran past a row of old shophouses, heading toward a quiet lorong.
Suddenly, Li Chuan's earpiece crackled. "Oi, don't come back. Your area all kena lock down already." Shen Qiu's voice sounded tense. "I arranged a car for you, it's waiting at Lorong Selamat. Faster go now."
Li Chuan clenched his jaw, exchanged a glance with Cheng Mo, and nodded.
No choice. They had to run.
Five minutes later, they reached Lorong Selamat. A dark-colored Proton X70 was waiting with its engine running. The tinted window rolled down slightly, revealing a woman wearing a cap.
"Get in." Her voice was cold and calm.
Li Chuan and Cheng Mo hesitated for only a second before jumping into the car.
The moment they closed the door, the driver stepped on the accelerator. The car sped off, disappearing into the night.
At the alley entrance, the black-shirt men arrived just a few seconds too late. They watched the empty road, their faces dark with frustration.
One of them spoke into the walkie-talkie. "Target escaped."
From the other end, a voice responded coldly—
"Find them. No matter what."