Chapter 19 A Risky Move

That night when we found out the secret of the "Water Drop," everyone was in low spirits and didn't get much rest. We also had no plans for our next move.

Fatty, ever the optimist, said to everyone, "If we can't touch the 'Water Drop,' then we won't. We came here not just to find out the secret of the missing expedition team, but more importantly, to find a way out of the hands of the Z organization."

Seeing that everyone's mood had improved slightly, Fatty continued, "Yesterday, our Little Yu was so worried and mentally exhausted. She finally discovered the secret of the 'Water Drop.' Today, let's rest well and discuss our next steps. Fatty here will show you guys his skills."

As soon as we heard Fatty say he was going to make something delicious, the negative emotions of the three of us instantly dissipated by more than half. Han Yu's eyes, in particular, lit up.

I seriously suspected that Fatty was a cook when he was in the army. He could squeeze all sorts of ingredients into his bulky backpack. He magically produced many dehydrated, easy-to-store ingredients like seaweed and dried meat. Zoe and I were dumbfounded.

Although rehydrated food loses its original taste and texture, the dishes Fatty made were surprisingly delicious. While eating, we temporarily forgot the difficulties we were facing.

After the meal, I raised a question: "If Han Yu could deduce the original appearance of Devil's Gulch, then the people of the Z organization should have a lot of information as well."

Han Yu thought for a moment and said, "I don't know what the Z organization has, but judging from their current research methods, it's clear that they are still in the early stages of understanding Devil's Gulch. At least in terms of physics, they don't know the structural properties of the 'Water Drop' or what's underground. However, it's impossible to know if they've reached the same conclusions from other aspects, such as geological evidence..."

Fatty said sullenly from the side, "Damn it, tomorrow Fatty here will turn the Z organization's expedition team camp upside down. I'll show you what a soldier king is."

After saying that, Fatty secretly winked at me. I instantly understood Fatty's meaning and echoed, as if possessed, "I'll go with Fatty."

As soon as I said it, I regretted it. Damn it, Fatty and I were not in the same league at all. He had his own magical powers to go anywhere, while I was just a pale-faced scholar who would pant after a short run. How could I possibly go on a reconnaissance mission? I was really overestimating myself.

But words were like spilled water. Now that I was on the pirate ship, it was hard to go back.

"True brother, Young Master," Fatty gave me a thumbs up and hugged me tightly with his broad arms.

I smiled bitterly to myself.

Although the Z organization's expedition team camp was only about two kilometers away from our camp as the crow flies, we couldn't cross directly because of the Devil's Gulch in between.

One side of Devil's Gulch was a continuous mountain range, towering and steep, making it difficult to pass. The other side was a continuous stretch of low snow hills, which, although requiring a long detour, was not so treacherous. So we decided to detour around the snow hills.

Fatty planned to lie low at a high point where he could observe the expedition team camp up close and stay there for a few days. If conditions permitted, he would sneak into the camp to steal information (Fatty was really daring). Zoe and Han Yu would observe the expedition team camp from a distance at our camp and inform us via walkie-talkie if there was any movement in the expedition team camp.

The next day, Fatty and I set out lightly, taking only the necessary rations, sleeping bags, and reconnaissance equipment. The journey was long and the snow was thick. The deepest part of the snowdrifts could submerge our bodies below our chests. It took us the better part of a day to finally reach the vicinity of the expedition team camp and find a suitable observation point.

The problem arose: our walkie-talkie was somehow interfered with on the way and could not work properly. After arriving at the observation point, the walkie-talkie's reception frequency was completely messed up, and we lost contact with Zoe and Han Yu.

While Fatty was observing the expedition team camp with binoculars, I was tuning the walkie-talkie, eagerly hoping to reestablish contact with Zoe and the others.

"Buzz... buzz... buzz... buzz..." The walkie-talkie kept making this static sound. I was annoyed, but I had to be patient.

Fatty was much calmer and quieter. He had been lying motionless on the snow beside me for more than an hour, a far cry from his usual demeanor. I seemed to see his past military career in him.

"Buzz... buzz... buzz... buzz..." Another long burst of static. I kept changing positions, adjusting the antenna direction. I was getting further and further away from Fatty, but Fatty didn't notice.

More than ten meters away from the observation point, the walkie-talkie suddenly transmitted some strange sounds, like people talking, followed by another long burst of static.

I was overjoyed, thinking that I could receive the signal from the camp, so I quickly continued to adjust my position, looking for the signal.

Unconsciously, I had walked far from the observation point.

The vast snow-capped mountains stretched into a white expanse. I was afraid of getting lost if I walked around, so I decided to give up tuning the frequency and go back to join Fatty. At this moment, the walkie-talkie transmitted a distinguishable sound: "Buzz... buzz... somethingiswrong... ifind...."

Huh?! English?

No, this voice wasn't Zoe's, it was a man's voice! I looked up at the direction I was heading, which was towards the Z organization's expedition team camp.

I hurried back to find Fatty, wanting to tell him about this. Fatty was still lying there intently.

I lay down beside him and said, "Fatty, something's up!"

Fatty ignored me.

I touched his shoulder with my hand: "Fatty! Fatty!" At this moment, the binoculars propped against his forehead drooped down.

No wonder this guy was so quiet, he had fallen asleep...

I woke Fatty up. Fatty subconsciously raised his binoculars to look at the expedition team camp, thinking he had just taken a nap.

I said, "Fatty, you've been sleeping for a long time. I left here for a while and you didn't even notice."

Fatty scratched his head and said, "Ah? Fatty, did I sleep for so long?"

"Never mind that, I've made a discovery!"

I told Fatty about my discovery during the frequency tuning process. Fatty was surprised: "You heard the voice of the walkie-talkie in the expedition team camp?"

I nodded: "They said something seemed to be wrong, and they found something. Because of the interference, I couldn't hear it clearly."

"Alright, Young Master, you've done a great job this time!" Fatty got up, put away his binoculars, and said, "Let's go, we'll sneak over there."

I followed Fatty closer to the expedition team camp, eventually choosing a place that was closer to the camp and could hide our tracks.

At this time, the voices in the walkie-talkie were much clearer. Although there were many people talking and it was chaotic, I could hear every sentence clearly. I translated their words to Fatty in my broken English:

(Anxious) "Still haven't found it?"

(Hoarse voice) "No, sir."

...

(Accompanied by screams) "Please send Dr. Schiller to Area A."

(Strained voice) "Please send Dr. Schiller to Area A."

(Roaring) "Dr. Schiller, please reply if you receive!"

...

(Urgent voice) "Report, Area A tunnel is leaking."

...

(Desperate) "Report, Dr. Schiller is missing in Area A."

...

(Desperate) "Report, Area A is sealed off."

...

Fatty and I listened to the voices coming from the walkie-talkie, our hearts were pounding and our palms were sweating. Through the information in the walkie-talkie, we came to a conclusion - the Z organization's expedition team was in trouble.

Fatty found a slightly higher position and looked towards the camp with his binoculars. There was no one in the camp except for a guard on duty.

Fatty was puzzled, where were these voices coming from?

After a while, Fatty saw expedition members coming out one after another from a hole in the ground next to the camp. The hole was inside a tent. If our position wasn't directly facing the opening of the tent, we wouldn't have discovered the hole at all.

"One... two... three... four... five... six... seven..." Fatty counted as he watched, "Huh, why are there three people missing?"

The expedition team originally had twelve people. Apart from the guard who accidentally fell into the "Water Drop," there should have been eleven people left. Judging from the information in the walkie-talkie, Dr. Schiller had probably died.

Fatty believed that in addition to Dr. Schiller, two others had also met with misfortune, presumably Dr. Schiller's assistants.

The seven people were all wearing oxygen masks. After coming up from underground, their faces were full of fatigue and disappointment. Two of them luckily took off their masks and lay straight on the ground.

"The continuous loss of team members will definitely cause great psychological pressure on the other members," Fatty said. "In war, there are countless examples of armies collapsing because of continuous losses."

"However, this is precisely when they will be lax, which is beneficial to us." Fatty was frighteningly calm, able to quickly analyze the current situation. This made me admire him.

We wandered around the expedition team camp, constantly looking for observation points, observing their every move, and waiting for an opportunity to act.