Large beads of cold sweat fell from Luo Zheng's forehead, landing on his arm and the dry leaves on the ground, making a faint sound. Sunlight filtered through the dense foliage, casting mottled shadows on Luo Zheng, like butterflies dancing gracefully. Everyone stared in horror at the land mine on the ground, eyes full of despair. At this mont, ti seed to freeze, and they could hear each other's heartbeats.
Ghost Hand landed on the ground with eyes wide, face pale, filled with regret and sha, his mouth agape but unable to utter a word. Both Mountain Eagle and Snow Leopard were shocked, staring at the land mine speechless. It was Lan Xue who snapped out of it, realizing the land mine hadn't exploded imdiately; she shouted, "Quick, find a large stone."
"Here." Mountain Eagle saw a large stone beneath him, quickly picked it up and rushed over, pressing it down on the Dragon Tooth Military Saber. Lan Xue dragged Luo Zheng, whose muscles had numbed from extre tension, backward. When everyone retreated over ten ters and saw the mine hadn't detonated, they breathed a sigh of relief.
Luo Zheng quietly exclaid in relief, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and looked at Ghost Hand saying, "Are you alright?"
"Brother, I owe you once again," Ghost Hand said shafully.
"What nonsense. Between us, who's counting?" Luo Zheng exclaid dissatisfied.
"Ghost Hand, don't be like that. We're all brothers. If he stepped on the mine, you'd do the sa. Don't forget our vow to live and die together," Lan Xue said earnestly.
"Alright." Ghost Hand looked gratefully at Luo Zheng, giving a grateful smile without saying more.
"Rest here for three minutes before we set off," Luo Zheng shouted, flexing his stiff body. He looked at Lan Xue, dissatisfied, saying, "Why didn't you retreat earlier?"
"Did you forget our vow?" Lan Xue replied with a gentle smile.
"Alright." Luo Zheng felt warmth inside, saying no more. Once his stiff muscles relaxed, he drank so water, raised his binoculars, and looked deeper into the forest. The dense fir trees obstructed his view, so he lowered the binoculars helplessly. Gesturing everyone closer, he said, "This place should be fortified with traps everywhere. Two hours until dark; we must reach the designated spot before nightfall."
"Yes." Everyone stood and responded.
"The tighter the defenses, the higher the value. Be careful, follow the footprints ahead. I'll lead; Ghost Hand, stay at the back and adjust your status, recover quickly. We can't be without you. Follow ," Luo Zheng said softly.
"Yes." Everyone responded in unison, following Luo Zheng forward.
Luo Zheng opened mind and soul, using his family-taught Breathing Skill to sense everything around him. In this state, he could preemptively sense danger, while wielding the Dragon Tooth Military Saber to explore the path ahead. He carefully inspected suspicious areas with his saber before proceeding, taking extraordinary caution.
Before long, Luo Zheng saw a venomous snake slithering nearby, fist-sized, resembling previous snakes they encountered. It posed no threat, and they cautiously proceeded without provoking it, avoiding any incidents. After about half an hour, Luo Zheng stopped to let Mountain Eagle lead, as maintaining such intense focus was ntally exhausting.
Mountain Eagle led for a while, then Lan Xue took over, ensuring the leader remained calm and alert. Along the way, they bypassed several mines and snakes. As the dusk fell unnoticed, they reached a mountain summit, hiding in the forest to look ahead, just enough to see the temple directly in front.
Luo Zheng raised his binoculars for a closer look, finding the temple about two kiloters away, and the valley laid out clearly. He could see where the military and patrols were. Luo Zheng pondered, saying, "We'll stay here tonight; check for any threats around."
"Yes." everyone responded and quickly dispersed.
"It's bad, there's surveillance," Lan Xue suddenly shouted.
"What?" Luo Zheng exclaid in shock, rushing to Lan Xue's side. Following her directions, he saw surveillance installed on a tall tree, with a small radar mounted on a nearby tree canopy. His face fell as he raised his binoculars, seeing the valley troops beginning to move.
"Not good, we were spotted. Surveillance signals wirelessly relayed to the command below via the small radar. There's a radar signal receiver in the camp—these bastards have sophisticated defenses," Luo Zheng said coldly.
"What should we do?" Lan Xue urgently asked, as the others gathered around, spotting the surveillance and tightening their grips on their guns, spreading out to secure the area.
"Don't rush; let's see where they approach from first," Luo Zheng said seriously, taking a deep breath to force calm upon himself, his face frosty, lowering the binoculars to look at the surveillance, drawing his gun to shoot. Since they were exposed, destroying enemy surveillance was worthwhile. He fired two rounds at the radar, grumbling, "Waste of effort."
"Enemies advancing from both sides; we must retreat," Lan Xue whispered.
Luo Zheng nodded indifferently, gesturing to lead everyone to leave. By now, it was dark, with low visibility; thankfully, everyone had night vision devices they donned, cautiously choosing a retreat path. The area was rife with mines and snakes, demanding cautiousness.
The night vision devices had infrared thermal imaging to spot snakes hidden within the forest's dead leaves, avoiding much trouble. As for mines, Luo Zheng personally led, constantly navigating around them, detouring several mines before swiftly leaving into the vast forest mountains.
They traveled over an hour, with no one sure how far they'd gone, only noticing the denser forests and towering trees, making paths increasingly challenging. Luo Zheng gestured to Ghost Hand, handing him the binoculars. Ghost Hand understood, slung the binoculars around his neck, and rapidly climbed a tall tree to observe.
"Catch your breath, everyone," Luo Zheng whispered, solemnly scanning around, ensuring no nearby threats before eyeing Ghost Hand scouting at the treetop.
Ghost Hand signaled the all-clear; Luo Zheng breathed a sigh of relief, saying to everyone, "The darkness hinders enemy pursuit; they've likely given up. But our trail's exposed—fearful of the target withdrawing overnight, blocking retreat tracks a priority; rest for ten minutes."
"No need, if we endure, they might withdraw. Otherwise, we'd have wasted effort," Lan Xue warned.
"Right, let's go." Mountain Eagle and Snow Leopard, understanding the gravity, agreed with murderous resolve.
"Indeed. Take the shortcut to intercept," Luo Zheng mused, decisively concluding.
Note: Recomnded friend's work "Strongest Battle Emperor," narrating one man, a saber, seizing stars and breaking the heavens; an appealing tale for fantasy fans to explore.
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