The vast primitive forest, where the drizzling rain had stopped, was bathed in a reddish sun appearing in the west, spreading beams of golden light that pierced through the tiless space onto the dense woods. The light filtered through the gaps in the leaves, falling on Luo Zheng's face, causing a blur before his eyes. He looked up at the sky, annoyance rising within him, even the heavens wouldn't leave him in peace. His blood boiled as he firmly swept his gaze around, seeing that everyone was waiting for his decision, his expression hardened as he declared, "Fight, we cannot let everyone die in vain."
Hook relayed Luo Zheng's decision with a serious deanor, and the tribespeople in the forest began to howl fiercely, their murderous intent thickening, soaring into the sky. Seeing that the recent sacrifices hadn't diminished their morale, but rather had the opposite effect—as everyone's expressions were resolute and their fighting spirit high—Luo Zheng felt a tension ease from his expression, hoping his decision was the right one.
As the commander of the battle, every decision could an sacrifices, but Luo Zheng knew he had no choice but to stand tall and march forward. After making the decision, Luo Zheng was free of hesitations and called out to Hook, "Quickly inform everyone, those who are injured or unable to move should stay behind, the others will follow ."
"Yes." Hook quickly agreed and went to relay the orders.
Lan Xue ca over, speaking softly, "I don't know if your decision is right or wrong, but I will support you. Your brothers will support you too. Don't burden yourself with thoughts, just give it your all, and avenge them."
"Hmm, Mountain Eagle, you and I will scout ahead. Xue Er, you command from the rear," Luo Zheng gratefully said. He cast a glance at the fading glow of the sunset in the west, his eyes glinting with determination, his expression solemn as he continued, "Regardless, the attack we suffered was a failure in my command, I hadn't considered everything. I will never make such a mistake again. For this mistake, I'll make the enemy pay with their blood. Everyone, be careful." He then looked at Mountain Eagle, who nodded in agreent.
At that mont, Hook ca over, and Luo Zheng asked him to stay by Lan Xue's side to relay ssages at any ti. Knowing Luo Zheng and Mountain Eagle's request to scout ahead, Hook called Lang Sen for guidance. The group moved forward. In the dense forest, the three ford a triangular search formation with Luo Zheng at the front, his ears perked, his gaze icy as he scrutinized everything in front of him without overlooking any suspicious detail.
Learnt from the past, the battlefield was the best place for hardening one's resolve. After the recent defeat, Luo Zheng had beco more cautious. Unnoticed, two hours passed, and the group climbed over a hillside. Ahead, a ridge appeared, with towering trees and barren ground that allowed clear visibility.
As they walked further, Luo Zheng suddenly felt an unnerving sensation and, puzzled, quickly signaled for everyone to drop and stay put. Lang Sen did not understand the gesture, but seeing Luo Zheng slowly crouch down, he too hunkered down and hid behind a large tree. Mountain Eagle also concealed himself, vigilantly watching ahead. Birds chirped joyfully, and nothing seed out of the ordinary. Trusting Luo Zheng, Mountain Eagle lightly tapped his earpiece to send a faint noise back to Lan Xue and the others as a warning.
Luo Zheng watched the area carefully, only the backs of the large trees could hide soone, no other place looked suspicious. Strangely, two birds flew down from a tree, landing on the ground, pecking at insects, chirping cheerfully without any signs of distress. The wind rustled the leaves gently.
"Strange, could it be an illusion?" Luo Zheng pondered, scrutinizing the area carefully. The uneasy feeling he had experienced before had vanished, yet he dared not take it lightly—the team couldn't afford any more losses. He lifted his sniper scope to observe and spotted a bird's nest on a tree branch five hundred ters away, with several birds chirping joyfully.
The tree branch was covered in vines, the trunk robust. A small bird landed on a section of the trunk, chirping excitedly. Birds are very sensitive to danger and would fly away at the slightest disturbance. With so many birds here, it seed unlikely there was an ambush. Luo Zheng silently breathed a sigh of relief.
"What's the situation?" Lan Xue's voice ca through the earpiece.
Luo Zheng did not respond; communication was Mountain Eagle's responsibility. His gaze, sharp and searching, continued to scan the area. Still finding no place for concealnt, even after checking the canopy, Luo Zheng was about to stand up when he suddenly felt sothing was amiss. He quickly crouched down and continued his search, his brows slightly furrowed in thought.
Ninjas are masters of concealnt, often hiding in the most unexpected places. The safer a place seed, the more likely it was to be dangerous. Luo Zheng pondered this and couldn't help but glance again at the tree covered in vines. Several birds were still chirping joyously near their nests, showing no signs of irregularity.
Luo Zheng lifted the sniper scope to his eye, carefully searching every detail, but still found nothing. Annoyed, he bumped the suppressor against the sniper rifle, aid at the trunk, where a small bird hopped about and another landed beside it. Both birds chirped joyously. If there were soone there, it seed the least likely place. The least likely place implied the greatest safety, and the greatest safety often harbored the biggest threats. Luo Zheng decided to do the opposite of what was expected, if only to reassure himself, at worst he would waste a bullet.
"Whiz!" The sniper bullet shot out quickly, carrying Luo Zheng's full load of doubts, discreetly flying towards its target. The sound, subtle and soft, did not carry far in the woods, so he did not worry about being exposed. It hit its mark in an instant, and to Luo Zheng's surprise, he saw a spray of blood from the trunk in the sniper scope, clearly hitting a person.
Imdiately after, a figure rolled down from the thick trunk, covered in green vines, looking like a piece of broken wood falling from the sky, and landed heavily on the ground, motionless.
"What?" Luo Zheng was shocked; he hadn't expected to accidentally hit a target. As Mountain Eagle's voice of inquiry rang in his ear, he quickly responded, "Cover ." With that, he rushed forward, holding the sniper rifle across his shoulder, charging into battle swiftly.
Soon, Luo Zheng arrived beside the tree and saw a man lying face-up on the ground, wrapped in an all-black suit, with only his eyes exposed, wide open in death. The body was entwined with green vines, making it nearly impossible to identify as a human from a distance. Such clever camouflage, even deceiving the birds.
Seeing a knife inserted into the man's back, Luo Zheng quickly removed the green vines, picked up the knife, and inspected it. The sheath was similar to his own Dragon Tooth but looked less ancient, adorned with a cherry blossom pattern, indicating an ordinary ninja rank, a level lower. Pulling out the knife, he saw it was pure black, the blade sharp, exuding a chilling aura that made one's heart palpitate. He kept the knife and continued to search the body, finding a walkie-talkie, a pistol, and ten triangular shurikens that emitted a blue glow, clearly poisoned.
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