The face of the person pointing the gun at him was equally dark, like a void.
"Bang!"
A gunshot rang out, and John collapsed to the ground.
Thinking he had been shot and was dying, John was surprised to feel no pain. He cautiously opened his eyes and saw the surprised expression on the face in front of him, as if the person couldn't believe why he hadn't been shot yet.
Frantically checking his body, John found many rips in his clothes, but they were from when he had been running through the desert earlier.
"Whoo, that scared me! I thought I was shot!"
Letting out a long sigh, John was about to relax, but before he could, the wounded soldier, bleeding heavily, raised his gun again.
John instantly tensed up, and before the enemy could pull the trigger, he suddenly dove sideways and rolled into a nearby bush.
Then came a rapid series of AK-47 shots.
"Click, click, click."
Hearing the sound, John's heart leapt.
"That bastard's out of bullets!"
Without hesitation, John took advantage of the moment when the soldier was reloading. He grabbed a nearby rock with his left hand and lunged forward, knocking the soldier, who was still reloading, to the ground.
As he pinned the soldier down, John raised the rock high and slammed it into the soldier's forehead.
"Bang, bang, bang!"
He hit the soldier repeatedly, smashing the rock into his head until it shattered. Only then did he stop.
The enemy, struggling desperately, had finally stopped moving. Fortunately, the soldier had already been heavily wounded; otherwise, John, with his 5'7" frame, wouldn't have been able to overpower the 6'3" soldier.
Exhausted, John rolled over and collapsed on the grass beside him. The rocks on the ground hurt his back, but he had no strength to move.
When he turned to look at the soldier he had just killed, he was horrified to see what looked like a crushed melon, with the soldier's eyeball bulging and staring directly at him. Even John, who was usually bold, was so scared that he rolled five meters away.
Before he could react, another round of intense gunfire erupted.
The gunshots, crackling like beans popping, made John snap his head to the side. At a distance of around 400 meters, he could see two groups of people firing at each other.
Although the distance was too far to see clearly, John was certain this wasn't a hunting accident—it was a battle!
His heart sank, and he instinctively ducked lower, pressing his body to the ground. Even though the two groups were far off, John didn't want to risk being hit by a stray bullet or being spotted. If they saw him, he was as good as dead!
"I have to get out of here!"
Even though he had no idea how he ended up here, everything that had happened confirmed one thing: this was real. If he didn't want to die here, he had to fight for survival.
Crawling low to the ground, John slowly moved, using the tall grass for cover, trying to sneak away from this dangerous place.
As he passed the soldier he had just killed, he hesitated for a moment before taking the soldier's slightly worn AK-47 and two full magazines. He had no idea where he was, but it was clear this place wasn't safe, so carrying a weapon would at least give him some sense of security.
With the gun slung over his back, John continued to crawl forward.
"What the hell is going on? I was just out playing outdoor paintball with some buddies, and suddenly I wake up to this? Why am I here, and why is everyone armed with AKs?"
"Is this some kind of war zone? But why are all these people black, wearing ragged clothes and holding AK-47s? They look like armed militants from a movie. Did I somehow get transported into a war film? Is this like Lone Survivor?"
Lost in thought, John crawled forward, his goal being to climb over the hill ahead. Once he reached the top, the armed men wouldn't be able to spot him, and he'd be able to stand up and escape.
But fate seemed determined not to let him leave so easily. Just as he was nearing a boulder at the top of the hill, a voice suddenly called from behind.
"Hey, over here! It's Hank, he's here!"
John's heart skipped a beat. He quickly hid behind the boulder, peering through the gaps in the grass to see what was happening.
Sure enough, five more soldiers with AK-47s had appeared near the spot where he had just been.
"Look, Hank wasn't shot dead. His skull was crushed with a rock!" the first soldier to discover the body of the fallen man said to his comrades.
"Look, there are traces here! Someone must have left just now!"
While crawling, John had left a clear trail through the grass, and now it had become the key to the soldiers tracking him down.
"Shit, they've figured it out!"
Hiding behind the boulder, John's heart raced. The soldiers were only about 300 meters away, and even if he tried to run, he knew he wouldn't outrun them. With his poor stamina, there was no way he could escape.
"Only one option left—fight back!" John thought. He refused to die like this, and he didn't think the soldiers would spare him. He had no choice but to use the gun he had taken to fight for his life!
Though John wasn't exactly a gun expert, he had fired a few shots at a shooting range during military training in college. Even though it was only five shots, he had done well back then.
Taking the gun off his back, he crouched low in the grass, aiming carefully at the five armed men who were steadily approaching. He focused on steadying his breath, trying to calm his trembling hands.
They were still about 200 meters away. John didn't think he could hit them at that distance, so he waited, hoping they would get closer.
Time passed slowly, and the soldiers, clearly experienced, moved cautiously, staying alert to their surroundings. If it weren't for the boulder providing cover, John might have already been exposed.
Now, it was a matter of life or death.