141: Chapter 141 Gunfire on the Border

Li Xin had driven less than ten kilometers when he saw that the road ahead was blocked.

It wasn't a checkpoint; it was a combat zone.

From a distance, he saw several vehicles blocking the middle of the road, with people standing behind them, holding guns. Something was lying on the ground, dark and indistinct, making it impossible to tell what it was. Gunfire came from that direction, crackling sharply, and people were shouting.

He slammed on the brakes, made a U-turn, and drove back.

His current position was awkward; he was blocked both in front and behind. He thought about going out and revealing his Chinese identity, but after a moment of consideration, he decided not to do so unless absolutely necessary, to avoid unnecessary trouble.

After driving for a few kilometers, he turned onto a dirt road. The dirt road led to a group of abandoned farmhouses; the mud walls and roofs had half-collapsed, and the courtyard was a mess. He drove the car behind the farmhouse, got out, and stored the vehicle in his space.

The gunfire was still ringing out. It was closer this time.

He crouched down and looked out through a crack in the wall. There were flashes of light in the direction of the highway, flickering on and off. Several vehicles drove over from the west, their headlights on, moving at high speed. People in the vehicles were firing, sweeping the roadside.

"Damn, they aren't coming this way, are they?" Li Xin cursed, shrinking back behind the wall.

He quickly looked around. The farmhouse courtyard wasn't large; there were piles of gravel on the ground and a pit in the corner that looked like an old cellar. He walked over and shone his flashlight into it. The pit wasn't big—a little over a meter wide and two meters long—but it was quite deep, enough for a person to crouch in.

He jumped in.

[ AI System: Zhuzi, there is more space down here. The wall on your left is hollow; there is a small room behind it. ]

Li Xin reached out and touched it. It was a mud wall, but it sounded wrong when he knocked on it—it was hollow. He pushed hard, and a piece of the wall collapsed, revealing a hole.

The hole wasn't large, but he could crawl through.

He crawled inside. Inside was a small cellar, three or four square meters, with damp air and a musty smell. There were wooden boards overhead, which were likely the floor of the farmhouse above.

He took a flashlight out of his space and shone it around. The walls of the cellar were built of stone and were very old; they must have been left over from ancient times. The floor was covered with hay that had already turned black.

Li Xin crouched down and opened the system panel.

"AI System, what's the situation around here?"

[ Scan: There are 3 armed personnel about 1100 meters to the northeast of your current position, and 5 to the southwest about 900 meters away. There are military vehicles in the direction of the highway to the east, at least two. Gunfire in the direction of the Iraq border continues; the exchange of fire has not stopped. ]

"Can I get out of here?"

[ Scan: The highway on the east side is blocked. The west side is a combat zone. The north side is a desert with no armed personnel, but the terrain is complex. It is recommended to wait until dark before moving. ]

Li Xin checked the time. It was two in the afternoon. He would have to wait at least four more hours.

"Fine, I have no choice but to wait and see."

He took a sleeping bag out of his space, spread it on the ground, and sat down. He also took out some water and beggar's chicken from his space and placed them beside him.

The gunfire was intermittent. Sometimes it was very intense, sounding like firecrackers, crackling for a long while. Sometimes it would quiet down, leaving only the sound of the wind. Every time it quieted down, he thought it was over, but it wouldn't be long before it started again.

A little past four in the afternoon, an explosion came from the distance. With a boom, the ground even shook. A few chunks of dirt from the ceiling of the cellar fell onto his head.

He shrank his neck.

[ AI System: The shell landed about 1.5 kilometers to the west. It is far enough away that it will not hit here directly. ]

"No kidding, if it hit us, we'd be having a funeral feast."

[ AI System: You still have the energy to joke; that means you are quite relaxed. ]

"What else can I do if I'm not relaxed? Go out and get shot?"

He took out a can of Red Bull, pulled the tab, and took a big gulp to mask his nervous mood.

The sky was gradually beginning to darken. He looked out through the crack in the wall; there were flickers of light on the western horizon. The gunfire was less frequent than in the afternoon, but it was still ringing out.

Around six o'clock, the system popped up a notification.

[ AI System: The military vehicles on the east highway have started to move, heading north. There are currently no armed personnel in that direction. ]

Li Xin stood up and stretched his legs.

"Can I leave now?"

[ AI System: There is still sporadic gunfire in the northern desert, but it is far away. It is recommended to wait another hour and move only after it is completely dark. ]

He sat back down and waited for another hour.

Past nine o'clock, it was completely dark. He crawled out of the cellar, hid in the farmhouse courtyard, and looked around. The firelight in the west was still there, but the gunfire had died down significantly, with only a few shots ringing out occasionally.

"AI System, navigate. Head north."

[ AI System: There is a dry riverbed about 4 kilometers to the north-northwest. You can bypass the combat zone by following the riverbed north. The total distance is about 11 kilometers. ]

Li Xin took night-vision goggles out of his space and put them on his head. He had bought these back home; they were military-grade and could see things hundreds of meters away at night.

He climbed over the farmhouse wall and headed north. The ground was full of gravel and sand, which crunched loudly when stepped on. He tried to tread as lightly as possible, walking slowly, step by step.

After walking less than five hundred meters, the system popped up a notification.

[ AI System: There are 2 armed personnel about 800 meters to the southwest, moving east. Crouch down, don't move. ]

Li Xin immediately crouched down and shrank behind a rock. Through the night-vision goggles, he saw two figures walking over from the southwest, holding guns and moving quickly.

They were getting closer and closer to him. Two hundred meters. One hundred and fifty meters. One hundred meters.

He held his breath, curling his entire body behind the rock, not moving at all.

The two figures walked past him, less than fifty meters away, without stopping. The sound of their footsteps grew fainter until it could no longer be heard.

He stood up and continued walking forward.

After walking for nearly an hour, he reached the dry riverbed. The riverbed wasn't wide, just over a dozen meters, with steep banks on both sides. He jumped into the riverbed and followed it north. The riverbed was full of gravel and sand, making it hard to walk, but it was safer than being above—the banks on both sides blocked the line of sight, so people outside couldn't see him.

After walking for about two hours, the gunfire was completely gone. He could hear a few shots occasionally, but they were very faint and impossible to pinpoint.

He climbed up the bank and glanced north. There were lights in the distance, which must have been the highway.

"AI System, where is the nearest highway?"

[ AI System: About 6 kilometers due north. This highway leads to Ilam Province and is currently not blocked. ]

He quickened his pace and headed north. After walking for another hour or so, he reached the side of the highway.

The road wasn't wide, an asphalt surface, with farmland on both sides. There were no cars or people on the road. He stood by the side of the road and took a spare off-road vehicle out of his space. This was one he had prepared beforehand—a second-hand Toyota he had bought in Shiraz, which he had kept in his space as a backup.

He got into the car and started the engine. He didn't turn on the headlights, driving slowly forward by the moonlight.

He drove for a few hundred meters before turning on the headlights.

Once on the main road, he accelerated and drove northwest. Looking in the rearview mirror, there were flashes of light in the southern sky, but they were getting further and further away.

He took out his phone and sent a message to Chen Hu: "I've made it out. Heading to Ilam Province."

Chen Hu replied instantly: "Boss, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Just really scared."

"That's good. Where are you crossing the border?"

"The Iraqi Kurds. Crossing from the border checkpoint."

"Is it safe over there?"

"Better than here. There's a war going on here."

Chen Hu was silent for a moment. "Message me when you arrive."

"Hmm."

Li Xin threw his phone onto the passenger seat and stepped on the gas.

The car sped along the highway, and the farmland on both sides gradually turned into desert. The wind rushed in through the gaps in the car windows, howling.

He drove all night. By daybreak, he reached a small town in the north of Ilam Province. The town wasn't big, with a few dozen households and one main street. There were a few breakfast shops on the street, wafting with the scent of naan and tea.

He parked the car by the side of the road, found a small shop, and ordered two servings of naan, a bowl of lamb stew, and a pot of tea. After devouring the meal, he packed ten more naans and stored them in his space.

Then he continued driving north.

By noon, he reached the border checkpoint. The checkpoint wasn't large, just a few single-story buildings and a guard station. There weren't many people in line; a few truck drivers were smoking and chatting.

He parked the car in front of the checkpoint and rolled down the window. A soldier in uniform walked over and looked at his passport.

"Where are you going?"

"The Kurdistan Region of Iraq."

"What for?"

"Tourism. Crossing from Iran."

The soldier flipped through the passport and checked the entry and exit stamps on it. Thailand, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Iran—a long list.

"Alone?"

"Yes."

The soldier stared at him for a few seconds, then stamped it and handed the passport back. "Go ahead."

Li Xin took the passport and stepped on the gas.

After crossing the border, the road became even worse. Potholes everywhere, filled with gravel and sand. Less than an hour into the drive, a checkpoint appeared ahead—not an Iranian one, but one belonging to the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. Several people in camouflage were standing by the side of the road, holding guns.

He slowed down and stopped the car. A man walked over, looked at his license plate, and then looked at him.

"Chinese?"

"Yes."

"What are you here for?"

"Tourism. Coming from Iran."

The man nodded and waved his hand. "Go ahead. Be careful on the road."

Li Xin closed the car window and continued driving north.

After driving for nearly three hours, he reached Erbil. The capital of the Kurdistan Region; the city wasn't large, but it was much safer than the border area. There were many people and cars on the streets, with malls, hotels, and restaurants.

He didn't go into the city; he went straight to the airport. He parked the car in the parking lot, stored it in his space, and then walked into the terminal.

He bought a plane ticket to Dubai. It would take off in two hours.

In the waiting hall, he sat on a chair and took out his phone. He had a signal. He opened the news, and the first headline was—

"Iranian military announces the thwarting of armed border infiltration, seizing some historical artifacts."

There was a picture accompanying it. In the picture was a pile of wooden crates, covered with canvas, with several soldiers in uniform standing nearby. The style of the wooden crates was very familiar—square, natural wood color, with iron-reinforced corners.

They were exactly the same as the ones he had seen in the Ctesiphon ruins museum.

Li Xin stared at the picture for a long time.

Someone had taken things from there. It wasn't him.

He hadn't touched the underground palace in the ruins; he had moved the treasure from an underground palace more than forty kilometers away.

Then whose were the artifacts in these crates? Were they stolen from the ruins, or had another group dug something up?

He didn't know. But regardless, someone was taking the fall for him.

He turned off his phone, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes.

The announcement sounded: "The flight to Dubai is now boarding."

He stood up, grabbed his backpack, and walked toward the boarding gate.