128: Chapter 128: Reversing the Inferno

Inside the hot pot restaurant, thick smoke rolled out from the back kitchen like a giant beast, filling the entire space with a pungent smell of gas mixed with burning odors.

Open flames could already be seen flickering at the second-floor windows. Tongues of fire greedily licked the wooden decorations, making a "crackling" sound.

The owner and staff of the hot pot restaurant had already fled to safety. Several waiters stood at a distance, their faces pale and helpless.

"You heartless people! You only care about running away yourselves!" a middle-aged woman shouted at the owner, pointing her finger.

Wiping sweat from his forehead, the owner stammered in defense, "W-we're human too, we're afraid of dying! The fire is so big; if I ran up to notify people, what if I couldn't come back down?"

"Bullshit!" A burly man grabbed the owner by the collar. "You didn't even know there was a gas leak in the kitchen? Did you even do safety inspections?!"

"We did! Of course we did!" a chef chimed in from the side. "We just checked the pipes last week! Who knew something would go wrong today..."

"Stop fucking shifting the blame!" an angry shout erupted from the crowd. "If anything happens to the people inside, none of you will get away!"

Hearing this, the owner's face turned pale. He could only pray in his heart for the fire department to arrive quickly—there must be no casualties!

The private rooms on the third floor were already shrouded in thick smoke. The fire spread upward along the wooden stairs, igniting decorative paintings and curtains in the hallway. The firelight illuminated figures fleeing in panic.

Several customers were trapped at the end of the hallway, coughing violently. Some tried to cover their noses and mouths with wet towels, but the thick smoke still made breathing difficult.

"Jump out the window! Quick, jump!" someone shouted.

But at the height of the third floor, jumping would mean certain death or injury!

At this moment, Su Han had already arrived at the entrance of the hot pot restaurant with the black panther.

"Little Black, lead the way!"

The black panther rushed into the fire without hesitation. Su Han followed closely behind, bending down to avoid the thick smoke as he quickly climbed the stairs.

"Is that man crazy?! The fire has already reached the second floor!" the onlookers exclaimed.

"How many can he save alone? Isn't this just suicide!"

Su Xiao Nuan clenched her fists tightly, tears welling in her eyes. "Brother..."

Xiao Budian hugged Su Xiao Nuan's leg, her voice trembling. "Great-grand-aunt, Great-grandfather will be fine, right?"

Su Wu's expression was grave. "Don't worry, your Great-grandfather is no ordinary person."

...

Inside the hot pot restaurant, the fire had already spread to the second-floor hallway. Wooden decorations crackled and burst under the high temperature. Thick smoke, like a rolling giant wave, surged up the stairs to devour everything.

In the third-floor private rooms, guests were still immersed in laughter and conversation, completely unaware that danger was approaching.

Boom!

A loud noise came from downstairs, followed by a slight tremor throughout the building.

"What's going on?" someone asked, poking their head out the door in confusion.

"Was that an explosion?"

"Ignore it, keep eating! It's probably just some naughty kids playing with firecrackers outside."

However, a few seconds later, the pungent smell of burning and gas seeped into the private room through the door cracks, causing someone to cough violently.

"Something's wrong!" A middle-aged man stood up and pulled open the door, instantly recoiling two steps as he was choked by the incoming thick smoke.

"Fire! Run!"

Panic spread like a plague on the third floor. Guests rushed out of their rooms, only to find the hallway blocked by thick smoke, with visibility less than a meter.

"Cough, cough... where are the stairs?!"

"I can't see anything!"

In the chaos, someone knocked over a decorative shelf in the hallway. Glass items smashed onto the ground with a piercing shattering sound.

"Don't push! Don't push!"

"My child! My child is still in the room!"

...

At the first-floor entrance.

Su Han took a deep breath, took off his jacket, soaked it in a bucket of water by the fire hydrant, then wrung it out and covered his nose and mouth.

The black panther stood beside him, ears pricked, letting out a low whimper from its throat as if urging him to act.

"Little Black, lead the way!" Su Han barked softly, charging into the fire without hesitation.

The black panther was like a bolt of black lightning, the first to rush up the stairs, with Su Han following closely behind.

The fire on the second floor of the restaurant was becoming increasingly fierce, with thick smoke rolling upward like a giant wave, swallowing every inch of space.

Wooden decorations made a "crackling" sound under the high temperature, and sparks flew everywhere.

Su Han moved forward hunched over, covering his mouth and nose with the wet cloth, his eyes turned red by the smoke.

The black panther led the way in front of him; the military dog's keen sense of smell could still discern directions even in the thick smoke.

It would look back from time to time to confirm Su Han was keeping up, its amber eyes flashing with a sharp light in the smoke.

"Is anyone there?" Su Han shouted loudly, his voice sounding exceptionally hoarse in the fire.

"Help! Save us!"

Faint cries for help came from the second floor. Su Han's heart tightened, and he quickened his pace toward the source of the sound.

The black panther suddenly stopped, ears pricked. It turned toward a private room on the right, pawed the ground twice, and let out an urgent whimper.

Understanding its intent, Su Han kicked open the door to the room.

In the thick smoke, several figures could be dimly seen huddled in a corner, covering their noses and mouths with wet towels.

"Follow me, quick!" Su Han shouted. "The fire is about to spread over here!"

A young woman with a ponytail looked up, her delicate face barely visible beneath the soot.

The middle-aged couple beside her were already choking too much to speak and could only nod weakly.

"Can you walk?" Su Han stepped forward to help the middle-aged man up.

The woman quickly supported her mother. "We can walk!"

"Black Panther, lead them out!" Su Han patted the military dog's head. "Remember the safe route."

Black Panther immediately entered work mode. It first circled the three of them once to confirm everyone's status, then picked up a napkin from the floor and signaled for the woman to grab it.

Seeing the woman's confusion, Black Panther simply stuffed the napkin into her hand and gave it a gentle tug.

"It... it wants us to follow it?" the woman asked in surprise.

Su Han nodded. "It will take you the safest way. Remember, bend low and cover your mouth and nose with wet cloth."

Seeing the woman understood, Black Panther immediately turned toward the door, but would look back every few steps to ensure the three were following.

It chose to move along the base of the walls, avoiding the center of the floor which had already begun to get hot.

"Dad, Mom, let's follow this dog!" The woman tore the napkin in half and handed it to her parents. "Use this to cover your noses and mouths!"

Black Panther led the three into the hallway, where the thick smoke had reduced visibility to a minimum.

The military dog suddenly stopped, ears pricked alertly. It keenly heard an ominous "creaking" sound from the ceiling ahead.

Black Panther immediately changed routes, turning toward the staff service corridor and nudging open a half-closed door with its head.

"It... it wants us to go this way?" the middle-aged man asked, coughing.

Black Panther stood firmly at the corridor entrance, its tail wagging slightly as if saying "trust me."

The woman gritted her teeth. "Follow it! This dog knows the situation better than we do!"

The service corridor was narrow but had less smoke. Black Panther skillfully avoided the piled-up clutter, leading the three forward quickly.

Suddenly, a loud "rumble" came from ahead as a piece of burning ceiling crashed onto the main corridor they were originally going to take.

"Oh my god..." the woman gasped. "If it weren't for this dog..."

Black Panther didn't stop, continuing to lead them forward.

When they reached the stairwell, it suddenly stopped and sniffed the air cautiously.

The fire below the stairs was already very large. Black Panther turned decisively and led the three toward the staff elevator shaft—there was an emergency evacuation staircase there.

"This dog... how does it know so many routes?" the middle-aged man asked in amazement.

After Black Panther safely led the three to the first-floor back door, it rammed the emergency exit open with its body.

Fresh air rushed in, and the three breathed greedily. Black Panther, however, did not stay; it turned around, ready to charge back in.

"Wait!" The woman tried to grab Black Panther's collar. "It's too dangerous!"

But Black Panther nimbly avoided her and gave her a firm look, as if saying "I still have a mission," before charging back into the fire without looking back.

...

Couldn't sleep, so I got up to write a chapter. Updates will continue around 6 PM.