In the darkness, Luo Zheng knew he was surrounded, and staying would an certain death. Shooting from under the eaves was sowhat better, but not safe, as there was no cover in the rainy alley, which made it easier to be struck by lightning. Discarding his gun was undoubtedly the best choice. The nearby lights had been shattered, and a short circuit caused a widespread blackout, making visibility extrely low. Luo Zheng decisively chose to strike, tossing his gun aside and taking the lead to move forward.
Everyone discarded their guns and picked up bows and arrows to walk under the torrential rain. A cold murderous aura surged into the sky. They were resolved to risk it all, death was nothing to fear now. Perhaps sensing everyone's fighting spirit, Elder Ma babbled a few words. Two people ran to cover the rear, while he led one other to clear the path ahead. With eyes like they had night vision, they drew bows and loosed arrows, and screams of agony kept erupting in the dark.
"Oh?" Luo Zheng wondered how, with his own vision unable to see clearly, these people could spot their targets. What was even stranger was that the arrows were quite ordinary, simply hardened wood sharpened to a point, without tal tips. Wooden and sturdy, they could penetrate a body, but were not likely to be fatal. Yet, illuminated by the lightning, Luo Zheng distinctly saw dead bodies along the way, all killed by wooden arrows. Strange?
The situation was eerily odd, but now wasn't the ti to ponder over that. Luo Zheng followed Elder Ma forward and soon realized they were retracing their steps. Luo Zheng hesitated, wanting to object, as it seed inappropriate just to leave after the effort it took to infiltrate, but seeing more people closing in, their flashlights flickering, he understood staying wasn't suitable either and didn't try to stop them.
Elder Ma, like an experienced guide, led everyone back the way they ca. They quickly reached the surrounding wall, where everyone helped each other climb over. Luo Zheng was the last, and seeing that the enemy didn't pursue them but was searching the houses instead, he breathed a sigh of relief, took a running jump, grabbed onto the wall, and flipped over.
After landing, Luo Zheng looked at the open field, a dark expanse. When they had arrived, they had crawled carefully, taking almost half an hour for a few minutes' journey. The path was nearly indistinguishable in the darkness. Crawling back to remove the mines would be ti-consuming and risk being discovered by the enemy, but rushing through haphazardly could trigger land mines.
At that mont, Elder Ma anxiously shouted sothing and tugged Luo Zheng along, gesturing for him to keep up. Luo Zheng was puzzled, but recalling these people's odd abilities, how they seed able to see things in the darkness that others couldn't, and how they accurately found their original path to the dot, he felt a stir of curiosity and followed them, shouting, "Everyone, keep up!"
Ghost Hand and the others were also concerned about the land mines in the dark expanse ahead, but seeing Luo Zheng running with Elder Ma and urging everyone to follow, they trusted he had a reason and followed suit. They ford a line and ran wildly, miraculously avoiding any land mines, which left them internally shocked but deeply relieved.
Arriving by the barbed wire next to the boulders and the passage, they looked at Elder Ma with admiration. Elder Ma chuckled sheepishly. Luo Zheng patted his shoulder, giving a thumbs up, then quickly passed through. Everyone followed through the barbed wire, staring coldly into the interior of the base.
"Ghost Hand, if we miss this opportunity, it might not be so easy next ti," Ghost Hand said with frustration.
"There's nothing we can do about it. We'll have to think of another way," Luo Zheng replied helplessly, his gaze on the base ahead both sharp and determined. After a mont of contemplation, he continued, "We can't bla these middle-aged n. They're consud by the desire for revenge. And they do have so skills that might help us."
"Don't worry, we understand," Snow Leopard responded.
"Speaking of their abilities, I'm really curious. How can they see targets in the dark when even our special training doesn't quite cut it? Are their genes different? And how did they find their original path through the dark? Everything around looks the sa, the ground is flat, with no references. Strange," Mountain Eagle said with curiosity.
"It's hard to say, but I think it's the scent." Luo Zheng mused.
"Scent, what do you an?" Ghost Hand asked curiously.
"Every creature that passes by leaves a scent behind. Dogs, for example, can follow the scent to return to where they ca from, no matter where you put them. Humans also leave behind a scent as they pass, but human olfaction has severely degenerated, not as good as that of animals. I guess these people are sowhat special, and this function hasn't degenerated for them? After all, it's not easy to survive in this prival forest," Luo Zheng explained as he saw a large group of Japanese pirates rush out of the buildings.
"Crack!" Just then, a huge bolt of spider-like lightning exploded across the sky, forming an enormous spider web, as if it was going to wrap up the entire earth.
"Aah!" Countless screams rose as Luo Zheng and others clearly saw many of their pursuers struck by the lightning, falling to the ground, starting to burn, before the Black Shadow instantly engulfed the land, blocking out the lightning.
"Serves them right," Snow Leopard yelled excitedly.
Then the lightning lit up again, as if fighting with the Black Shadow for territory. Following the bright light, everyone saw dozens of charred bodies lying on the ground, smoking, which looked particularly eerie amid the heavy rain. Under the powerful spider lightning, people were like fragile ants, utterly powerless to fight back.
"Let's go." Seeing this, Luo Zheng patted the shoulder of the middle-aged man with satisfaction, pointing in the direction to head back.
The middle-aged man nodded knowingly, pointing to the rope sling on Luo Zheng's body. Luo Zheng got the ssage and handed the end of the rope to him. The middle-aged man took it and tied it around his waist, leading the way. The others quickly followed suit. Traveling through the dark night was no laughing matter, as one could get lost or fall off a cliff at any mont. Having witnessed the unique abilities of the natives, no one hesitated to proceed.
Along the way, battered by wind and rain, facing hardship, they pressed on, an ordeal that ordinary people could hardly endure. Fortunately, the thunderstorms at night also kept the fierce beasts at bay. The group followed a mountain ridge. The ground was slippery, but at least there were no snakes, scorpions, or venomous ants; otherwise, it would have been even more troubling.
They slowly made their way, occasionally speaking to each other to avoid getting separated. When unsure of the road ahead, they waited for lightning to show the way. Tired and weary, they didn't notice the sky brightening, but the storm was still raging. Seeing the glimr of light on the horizon, Luo Zheng and others felt an increased sense of security and much more at ease inside.
For the first ti, they discovered how wonderful the dawn could be, their spirits lifting. With light, they untied the ropes and picked up the pace. Luo Zheng didn't even know how many cuts he had on his soles, the pain was unbearable, but he bit the bullet and kept going. They crossed the ridge, rushed down the hillside, climbed another slope, burrowed into the dense forest, and peering at the side peak ahead, everyone felt a great sense of relief, finally safe to return.
This nocturnal raid had been fruitless, but they had co close to the enemy base. At least they had learned one thing: the underground entrance was very likely to be at the southeast corner. This information was significant and would affect the planning of subsequent strategies. Lan Xue saw everyone's wretched state and yet smiled. Coming back alive was more important than anything else.
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