The waterfall tumbled down onto the pool below, raising countless splashes and roaring loudly; the river water babbled its way eastward. Crickets chirped rrily in the dense night, adding a touch of vitality to the air. A gentle breeze blew, causing the weeds to dance and a few leaves to flutter down, landing on the river and floating downstream. Everything seed so tranquil and stable, yet Luo Zheng's heart was anything but calm, filled with restless anxiety.
He saw a figure hurrying towards him, dressed in a white gown, hair flowing—it was the pangolin. Luo Zheng was overjoyed and quickly went to et her. Suddenly, he heard voices behind the pangolin and was taken aback. Hesitating, he then heard gunfire, and the pangolin threw herself to the ground. It instantly beca clear to him that she had been exposed, and he imdiately shouted through his headset, "Quick, take out the pursuers behind her!"
Upon hearing this, Shi Qingshan and the others sprang into action. Luo Zheng rushed forward, saw shadows moving, and without hesitation, opened fire. Two screams pierced the night, then silence. Luo Zheng knew the pursuers were hiding. Seeing the pangolin trying to get up, he quickly ordered, "Stay down, don't move!"
The pangolin, though not experienced in combat, was well-trained and alert. Hearing Luo Zheng's shout, she quickly lay down and didn't move, covering her head with her hands while waiting for rescue. Luo Zheng stayed put, using a stone for cover, vigilant and ready to fire at any sign of aberration from behind the pangolin.
"Dadada!" Luo Zheng unloaded a magazine into a bush, and a scream followed. The surroundings quickly fell silent again—the crickets, having been scared off, were nowhere to be heard. Only the sound of the bushes rustling in the wind remained. Unable to see anyone, the pangolin looked tensely ahead, seeing no sign of Luo Zheng. She peeked carefully behind her and, seeing no pursuers, gained so courage and started crawling forward.
"Don't move," Luo Zheng hissed.
The pangolin jumped, not expecting his voice to be so near, just behind a stone in front of her. Realizing Luo Zheng must have rushed up at so point, she felt greatly reassured and remained tightly pressed to the ground. Suddenly, intense gunfire erupted from behind. The pangolin didn't know how many people Luo Zheng had brought, and assuming it was the enemy firing, she paled. But then she saw Luo Zheng erge from behind the stone and dash towards her as if without a care, which made her guess what was happening and smile with relief.
"You alright?" Luo Zheng ca over and asked softly.
"I'm fine, thank goodness you were here," replied the pangolin, her voice filled with relief.
"We can't stay here long, follow ," Luo Zheng said quietly, listening to Shi Qingshan reporting through the earpiece that about thirty pursuers had been killed. Luo Zheng quickly signaled the team to withdraw.
Everyone regrouped at the camp, and the pangolin, seeing soldiers in camouflage all around, felt reassured. She looked at Luo Zheng and hurriedly said, "I aroused suspicion while gathering information. I was followed upon leaving, but thankfully you arrived earlier than planned. A few minutes later, and I might not have survived. Thank you."
"No need for thanks. What did you find out?" Luo Zheng asked urgently, his gaze fixed on the pangolin, filled with worry and anxiety.
"I've found out that the ambush on Lan Xue was by one of Kuntai's subordinates. Apparently, he had taken a bribe from soone nad Balang, but we didn't catch him. Over two hundred went out, and only about twenty returned; that much is certain. Did you ambush their base?" the pangolin said quickly.
"Balang?" Luo Zheng was startled, then realized the connection to Turul's ard faction. If Lan Xue wasn't with Kuntai, then where could she be? Luo Zheng grew anxious, turned away, and sank into thought.
Seeing the pangolin's anxious expression and not wanting to say more, Shi Qingshan gestured for her to step aside, identified himself, and then said, "The valley base was attacked. Kuntai didn't co, but they sent a convoy, ten trucks, two to three hundred people, all wiped out by us."
"Good, that's excellent. The convoy was taken out by the sa bastard who ambushed Lan Xue, a fitting revenge," Pangolin exclaid in surprise.
"So it was them. Good that they were killed," Shi Qingshan said with excitent. Those who ambushed Lan Xue had also killed mbers of the First Squadron's Fourth Team, making them enemies of Shi Qingshan as well. Hearing this news eased his feelings sowhat. Seeing Luo Zheng with an icy expression, Shi Qingshan thought for a mont, then braved himself to approach and remind him, "Commander, the gunfire just now has revealed our whereabouts. What's our next move?"
Luo Zheng snapped out of his reverie and looked at Pangolin, suddenly asking, "Is Kuntai at the headquarters, and how many troops does he have left?"
"He is; everyone who was chasing us has returned. There are about seven or eight thousand n at the base headquarters, the rest are scattered around guarding the poppies," Pangolin quickly replied.
"Seven or eight thousand?" Luo Zheng mused with his head bowed. Lan Xue wasn't in Kuntai's hands, and if it weren't for Pangolin, Luo Zheng would have already led his troops back to search for Lan Xue. Nothing was more important than finding Lan Xue, but he had promised Pangolin he would kill Kuntai. Besides, Pangolin was furious because of him, and both publicly and privately, it was necessary to take out Kuntai before they could withdraw.
"There are too many troops. If he's holed up in the headquarters base, we can't make a move. Luring the snake out of its hole would be ideal, but with Kuntai's strong forces, they won't co out. Especially with internal instability, he's even less likely to leave the headquarters. What do we do next?" Shi Qingshan looked towards Luo Zheng for guidance.
"Don't rush ; let think," Luo Zheng said, falling into thought. Shi Qingshan had no choice but to arrange for reconnaissance personnel to move forward a few hundred ters to keep watch, to prevent Kuntai's n from catching up. The gunfire had already compromised their location; carelessness was not an option.
Luo Zheng had a general layout of Kuntai Headquarters in mind. Kuntai was not coming out, so the only option was a frontal attack. How to attack? Luo Zheng considered, then looked at Pangolin and asked, "Where is Kuntai hiding?"
"He originally lived atop the mountain, but after you blew up the cave, the mountain cracked, and it beca uninhabitable. So he moved down and now lives in a wooden house on the main road, to the east of the fifth checkpoint. They've increased the number of outposts around there. Did you co through the window of a room before? They've noticed and taken precautions; the sa thod might not work anymore," Pangolin reported.
"Through the window of a room?" Shi Qingshan looked at Luo Zheng curiously.
Luo Zheng didn't explain, but continued to think. Kuntai's base was in a valley surrounded by mountains, and with seven or eight thousand ard personnel stationed there, the defenses had been stepped up. Without heavy weaponry or air support, how to launch an attack?
"Commander?" Shi Qingshan asked softly.
"Should we, just forget it?" Being aware of the difficulty, Pangolin felt uneasy about letting everyone risk their lives for his personal vendetta and said with a sorrowful tone.
"Here's what we're going to do." Luo Zheng's eyes suddenly lit up, a hint of murderous intent erging on his resolute face, as he ordered.
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