Luo Zheng, who had just reached the mountaintop, felt a bullet whiz by, grazing his back, no more than half a foot away. His complexion turned pale, his whole body stiffened, and his hairs stood on end, his breathing seemingly stopped, a cold sweat breaking out on his back. His face was ashen as he quietly lay there, as if unsure how to move, it was too close a call.
"What's happening?" Lan Xue asked anxiously, thinking of Luo Zheng taking risks, possibly losing his life, wishing she could rush out of cover imdiately. But reason told Lan Xue not to move, an unbearable feeling, especially without hearing Luo Zheng's response, made her more anxious and she pressed for an answer.
After a while, Luo Zheng's almost frozen heartbeat returned to normal, his breathing smoothed out. That brush with death was terribly uncomfortable. On hearing Lan Xue's anxious checking in, warmth filled his heart. He quickly said, "It's nothing, don't move, everyone keep hidden. I've reached the mountaintop. Those bastards, watch how I clean them up."
"Little brother, using true north as the 12 o'clock reference, three o'clock direction, about 500 ters from you, there is one target." Snow Bear's voice rang out in the headset, right after firing, Snow Bear didn't hide imdiately but took another look. That glance allowed Snow Leopard to spot the colonel's hideout. Initially, Snow Leopard planned to find an opportunity to eliminate the target himself but upon hearing Luo Zheng's words, he gave the chance away and quickly started to reposition.
After firing a shot, the colonel realized he had exposed himself and imdiately moved to another position along the snow cave, still keeping an eye on Luo Zheng atop the mountain. But, he discovered that Luo Zheng had vanished, not targeting him, which startled him. He quickly asked through his headset, "Headquarters, report the mountain target's position."
"Target locked, slope sniper." A voice promptly responded in the headset. Arctic Bear Country's military was a world leader, and their level of data-driven combat was not to be underestimated. The headsets used limitless technologies, such as satellite positioning and communication, which were not an issue.
Luo Zheng and his team's headsets used Bluetooth technology, incapable of satellite communication and not relying on limitless signals. The advantage of this thod was its difficulty to be intercepted and deciphered by the enemy. However, the downside was the inability to communicate directly with the outside world. Upon hearing that his comrade on the slope was targeted, the colonel's complexion changed drastically, and he urgently commanded through his headset, "Hide imdiately."
Unfortunately, it was too late. Elevated, Luo Zheng quickly locked onto the head on the slope through the heat imaging function of his sniper scope. The near-death experience had left Luo Zheng frightened and furious. With an opportunity presenting itself, he didn't hesitate to squeeze the trigger.
"Whoosh!" The sniper bullet soared out of the barrel, carrying Luo Zheng's full fury, slicing through the air in an eerie arc of death, screaming ominously as it advanced.
Everyone was dumbfounded by this sudden shot, unsure who had fired. They just lay tight behind cover, and upon hearing a crisp tallic clang, everyone's heart tightened. Luo Zheng watched the blood spatter from the head in his sniper scope with a cold laugh, quickly withdrew his rifle, and rolled to the side, changing his sniping position.
"What's the situation?" Lan Xue asked eagerly in a hushed voice.
"Took out one slope sniper. Ghost Hand, do you have any hidden targets in sight?" Luo Zheng whispered back, his words carrying an icy chill, like a draft from this frozen land. To the ears of Lan Xue and the others, it felt as if a warm sun had dispersed the chill, invigorating their spirits and filling them with delighted surprise.
"There are still four targets." Unaware that there were now three targets left, Lan Xue said with surprise and then noticed a patch of snow slightly sunken in. Startled, she imdiately grasped the implication, aid at the spot, adjusted her breathing, and firmly locked onto the suspicious area, waiting for the right mont.
"No targets in sight, but it's worth a shot," Ghost Hand replied. Everyone else had made their mark, and he hadn't distinguished himself, which irritated Ghost Hand imnsely. He was ready to go all in, the only problem being that he couldn't spot where the target was hiding, which further annoyed him. He raised the sniper scope and started observing carefully.
After waiting for a while, everything around was silent, with only the wind gently blowing and swirling the snowflakes. Ghost Hand gripped the rifle tightly and slowly took off his bulletproof helt and tossed it aside. The helt hit the snowy ground and slid down the slope. The absence of the expected gunfire told Ghost Hand he was dealing with an expert, so he was even more cautious as he slowly set his backpack down.
The backpack was bulky and could be mistaken for a person. Moreover, without the weight of the backpack, it would be easier to move. Ghost Hand thought for a mont and then took out a grenade, pulled the pin, and tossed it toward a suspicious spot on the slope ahead that provided his cover. The grenade exploded with a loud bang, and almost simultaneously, he tossed the backpack as well.
"Whizz, whizz, whizz!" Suddenly, three sniper rifle shots rang out, and the bullets struck the backpack one after another. Ghost Hand, seeing that he had finally drawn out the enemy, was greatly relieved. He thought about the direction from which the gunshots had co and peeked in that direction, spotting soone poking their head out from the snow on the slope ahead—it was the enemy.
Ghost Hand didn't fire imdiately but quickly withdrew, thinking that it was no wonder he hadn't spotted the target after observing for so long; the enemy had been hiding in the snow, perfectly concealed by a pile of it. He quickly took out two grenades, pulled the pins, and threw them toward the target's location.
The concealed Snow Bear saw Ghost Hand throw the helt and knew he was pulling a trick. When he saw the grenade coming, he thought Ghost Hand was about to attack and braced himself, tension mounting as he saw a person-like figure fly out from around the corner. Thinking it was his opponent, he didn't hesitate to fire three shots, as three would increase the chances of hitting the target.
However, the mont he realized he'd only hit the backpack, the Snow Bear panicked. He imdiately rushed out of his cover, planning to sprint down the slope to escape, but then he saw the grenades flying toward him—two of them. His face drained of color, and his body nearly instinctively dropped to the ground as he uncontrollably tumbled down the slope.
The slope was quite steep, and once he lost his balance, he couldn't control his fall. Although he managed to avoid the grenade blast, Ghost Hand, who had been chasing him for days, saw it all and was overjoyed. He aid at the target and swept it with continuous fire, venting all the frustration and anger he had been harboring.
"Aaah!" Ghost Hand roared as he charged and shot, his dense bullets hitting the target and splattering trails of blood, causing the body to slide down the mountainside.
"What happened?" Lan Xue asked.
Hearing Lan Xue's voice, Ghost Hand regained his composure, took a deep breath, and expelled all the frustration and rage from his chest. With a calm voice, he spoke through the earpiece, "It's nothing. Took down one bastard."
"Take cover imdiately," Luo Zheng promptly instructed. There were still enemies concealed in the snow, their exact positions unknown. They couldn't afford to be careless until the fight was over.
Upon hearing Luo Zheng's instruction, Ghost Hand acknowledged and then felt the snow beneath his feet give way suddenly, almost causing him to slip. Out of nowhere ca the sound of a gunshot, and he instinctively hit the deck.
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