“How’d you know the plane’s almost at Steelbull?” Xiao Di hollered over her shoulder while clearing the way, totally baffled.
“I heard it!” Jill Young kicked open a door. “That hall’s right by the cockpit—I caught the pilot chatting.”
Behind the door was a massive cargo hold, stuffed with giant wooden crates and some pretty sweet-looking cars. A bunch of burly guys in uniforms were setting up defenses; the second they spotted Jill Young, they opened fire. Jill ducked behind the door, bullets pinging off the frame—no way she was poking her head out just yet.
“I’m starting to think you got yourself caught on purpose!” The plane, which had been flying smooth, suddenly jolted and tipped left. Seizing the moment as cargo and guards stumbled, Xiao Di rolled out, gun blazing: “You let them nab you, you got on the plane, you even went to see that Syndicate crew—on purpose!”
“With those lazy, bribe-hungry cops who spend more time at brothels than at work? No way they’d protect the bank unless someone told them to.” Jill Young vaulted onto a big crate, firing off shots way more accurate than when she first landed in this crazy world. “If I didn’t get caught, I’d never know who was pulling their strings! And if I didn’t play along and get on the plane, how’d we get to Steelbull City? Besides…” Her gun clicked empty, and Jill flipped off the four-meter-high crate, booting a uniformed thug right in the chest. He flew backwards, smashing through a car’s windshield with a glorious crash.
The plane lurched again, cargo creaking and sliding. Xiao Di steadied herself and yelled, “Besides what?”
“Besides, now that we ditched Steelbull City, you and Derek Cheng are all alone—no crew, no turf, nobody to boss around. You’ve got no choice but to team up with me! That’s been my master plan all along, mwa-ha-ha-ha!” Jill Young cackled like a villain from a Beijing opera, making Xiao Di grind her teeth. “So you’ve been scheming against me this whole time!”
“Alright, alright, don’t get all tsundere on me,” Jill Young said seriously to Xiao Di. “I’m honestly recruiting you, you know.”
“Who’s tsundere?!” Xiao Di snapped, surprised people in this world even knew that word. Then she sighed, “Whatever, let’s just get out of here alive first.”
Seeing Xiao Di soften up a bit, Jill Young grinned. “Easy fix! Just fight shoulder to shoulder with me!” Xiao Di had no clue what kind of ancient bandit dialect Jill was using, but couldn’t help rolling her eyes. Eye-rolls aside, the two covered each other as they advanced—one stopped, the other moved, one shot, the other charged. Their teamwork was freakishly on point.
All the way, the plane rocked side to side like a drunken bull, and the cargo skidded around like bumper cars. For Jill Young, who practically has Olympic-level balance, this was a bonus. But it also meant something wild was happening up in the cockpit—probably Derek Cheng’s doing.
Soon, the two made it to the rear of the cargo hold. Jill grabbed a parachute, strapped it on with pro-level speed. Xiao Di found a big red button and slapped it—cue the blaring alarm as the rear hatch buzzed open. Freighter planes are built this way: open it, and you get a sloping ramp to the sky; close it, and it’s just the cabin.
As the hatch swung wide, a blast of freezing wind tore through, howling like a banshee. If this world didn’t have super-thick air, you’d suffocate at this altitude. The whole plane shuddered, smaller boxes got sucked out by the gale. Then Derek Cheng’s voice crackled over the intercom—he’d grabbed the cockpit mic. "Ladies, I’ve got the cockpit under control. Heading for Steelbull City airport now!"
Jill Young and Xiao Di shot each other a look—then burst out cheering. "Nice going, Derek Bighead!" They high-fived, and Xiao Di forgot all about her parachute for a second.
Suddenly, gunshots crackled through the intercom. Both girls frowned—bad vibes incoming. Jill jabbed the talk button: "Bighead, you okay up there?"
"Still hanging in—" Bang bang bang! More gunfire, cutting Derek off mid-sentence. Jill and Xiao Di exchanged a worried glance, ready to sprint back, when the plane went full rollercoaster—nose up, wind howling. Cargo started stampeding for the exit, and both girls got launched toward the hatch, totally off guard.
Midair, Jill reacted lightning-fast—right hand grabbing Xiao Di, left hand snatching the hatch edge. Both hung suspended above the abyss. Just as she braced to haul them up, a tidal wave of crates thundered past. With a massive crash, cargo spilled out, and Jill and Xiao Di went tumbling out after it.
Wind howled past as Jill spun through the air, finally stretching out to stabilize herself. Gravity yanked her down fast. The cloud sea below didn’t seem any closer, but Jill could feel herself picking up speed.
Out of control, weightless, plummeting from the sky—what a wild ride. If you’ve got a parachute, it’s an extreme sport. No parachute? Welcome to the Death Express. Speaking of parachutes—uh-oh, Xiao Di forgot hers!
Eyes wide, Jill scanned the endless sky—everything looked tiny, impossible to spot. Luckily, she’s got eagle vision; in the moonlight, she spotted Xiao Di about a hundred meters below. A scream floated up on the wind, so high and long it would make any opera diva jealous.
Jill grinned, tucked her limbs in like a pro diver to cut wind resistance and dropped even faster. Suddenly—a streak of light zipped past. A bullet, whizzing by from above! Jill glanced up: a dozen uniformed goons were skydiving after her, spraying machine-gun fire midair.
Are Steelbull City gangsters always this hardcore? Chasing you into the stratosphere just to finish the job—now that’s commitment!
But hey, it’s opponents like these that make it worth getting out of bed. Jill Young’s not here to pick on kindergarteners. With a twist of her waist, she flipped midair, back to earth, face to the sky, and whipped out her veteran’s big gun. Not many special rounds left, but taking these guys down? No problem.
Bang bang bang—her gun’s signature roar echoed. Under the moon, above the clouds, Jill and the goons had a full-blown firefight. At terminal velocity, aiming was nuts—like dogfighting in a wind tunnel. But Jill got the hang of it fast. Each round exploded midair into gruesome fireworks. And that gun’s monster recoil? It helped her drop even faster.
Usually, that ridiculous kickback is a pain, but right now it’s like a rocket booster. Jill accelerated, closing in on Xiao Di. Bang bang bang—she blasted the last enemy, then in a flash, stowed her gun, spun midair, and scooped Xiao Di up in a princess carry.
Whoosh—parachute bloomed like a flower, and their fall slowed down in an instant.
Gasping for breath, Xiao Di instinctively clung to Jill’s shoulders. "I—I thought I was toast! I even saw my life flash before my eyes, like a movie reel!"
"You’re my right-hand gal. No way I’m letting you die on my watch." Jill patted Xiao Di’s back. "Look, moonlight, rolling clouds—aside from the chill, this is a killer view. Take it in while you can."
"You…" Xiao Di just stared. "You’ve got nerves of steel, I swear…"
Jill laughed, her ears twitching as she glanced back. Behind them, the Syndicate’s plane had circled around and was now barreling straight toward them, growing bigger by the second.