Qin Feng and the others walked past these people with calm expressions. After the recent training, their state of mind had stabilized considerably.
Soon, they reached the area where the hostages were being held.
It was a sealed iron cage, containing a group of Ivia civilians.
Their eyes were filled with despair. Especially upon seeing Qin Feng and the others arrive, their eyes filled with fear, and some even knelt on the ground begging for mercy.
Qin Feng and the others said nothing, their gazes sweeping over these civilians, searching for Deng Mei.
Suddenly, a Chinese face caught Xia Nan's eye, and she immediately said to Qin Feng beside her, "She is Deng Mei."
She had seen Deng Mei before, so she recognized her immediately. Qin Feng also noticed the situation and had seen Deng Mei's photo.
"Found her!"
In reality, despite Qin Feng's calm demeanor throughout the journey, his heart was far from tranquil. He was under immense pressure, fearing he wouldn't find Deng Mei, and even more so, fearing he would find her only to discover she was already dead.
As it turned out, the outcome was good.
She was still in a corner, looking disheveled, but at least she hadn't suffered major injuries.
Qin Feng immediately spoke on the public channel, "Yang Rui, we've found the hostage. Be aware of the situation. Once we make a move, there will definitely be noise. Be ready to break out at any moment."
"Understood!" Yang Rui replied immediately.
After speaking, Yang Rui hung up the communication and immediately signaled Lu Chen and Zhang Tiande, "Execute the plan!"
Upon receiving the order, Lu Chen and Zhang Tiande scrambled into the tank, while Yang Rui provided cover from outside.
Inside the tank, Lu Chen took out a heavy machine gun.
This was a powerful weapon, a grinder on the battlefield.
Lu Chen mounted the heavy machine gun on the turret, while Zhang Tiande held a light machine gun to cover the rear.
With preparations complete, Zhang Tiande grinned and said, "Captain, this is going to be a big one!"
Lu Chen also smiled and said, "Indeed, Captain. It's been a while since we had such a satisfying fight. If we don't make them suffer immensely this time, we won't be satisfied."
Hearing their words, Yang Rui's expression also became excited. He said directly, "Alright, you'll have your time to fight. You saw the situation just now. Don't spare any bullets on these bastards. Take them down one by one."
Lu Chen patted the heavy machine gun and said, "With this guy, we don't need to fear them."
Zhang Tiande grinned and asked, "Captain, who exactly is this Captain Qin? You really don't know?"
Yang Rui replied, "Why would I lie to you? If you want to know his specific background, wait until this operation is over, and then go to Lang Ya yourself. You'll know."
"Okay, with your words, I'm reassured. I'll visit Lang Ya later," Zhang Tiande said.
...
While the three of them were talking and preparing for the assault, Qin Feng's group was scanning the captive hostages. Among them were young, middle-aged, and elderly people. Every one of them had eyes filled with fear and despair.
When they saw Qin Feng and his team, their cries were stifled as they clamped their mouths shut in fear.
They dared not provoke these armed militants; angering them would mean death.
Before them, the ground was already stained with blood, and there was even a headless corpse...
There were guards everywhere. Two armed militants stood outside the entrance, holding AK47s.
At this moment, they also noticed Qin Feng's group. However, they assumed they were their own people, just conducting a routine check.
General Zakka attached great importance to these hostages, frequently sending people to check on them, as they were a form of leverage.
Qin Feng and his team had inadvertently entered and, by chance, blended in as checking personnel.
As Qin Feng walked forward, his gaze grew colder, and a strong killing intent emanated from him once more.
When Xia Nan saw the headless corpse, she broke down, tears streaming down her face.
The clothes on the headless corpse were those of her assistant, Abu. The bloody corpse, and its head, had been disposed of by the militants somewhere...
Guilt filled Xia Nan's heart again. Abu was her best assistant, the one who understood her the most, and had helped her countless times. She never expected that her momentary lapse of compassion would lead to his tragic death...
As Qin Feng had said, Abu might not have died if not for her. It was her ignorant belief that journalists were fearless, leading her to venture deep behind enemy lines.
But she hadn't been prepared at all. She had charged in impulsively.
She was fortunate to have encountered her country's rescue team, but Abu was brutally murdered.
Thinking of this, Xia Nan whispered repeatedly, "Abu, I'm sorry. Abu, I'm sorry. I'm truly sorry. It's all my fault. I caused your death..."
At this moment, Xia Nan finally understood how right Qin Feng had been when he scolded her.
Before she had the ability to protect herself and those around her, what right did she have to lead people deep into enemy territory? Wasn't that just rushing to her own death?
If it weren't for her, Abu might not have died. She had made a grave mistake, a colossal error.
Forget about news reports; if she lost her life, who would remember her as a journalist? How could she report anything?
Qin Feng heard Xia Nan's distress and glanced over. "Stop crying. Go tell the hostages not to make a sound. We're getting them out."
He then turned to Tong Li and ordered, "Protect Deng Mei at all costs."
Tong Li nodded solemnly, "Understood!"
In fact, their primary mission this time was to rescue Deng Mei. Saving the others was merely out of humanitarian concern.
"Attach suppressors and prepare for combat!" Qin Feng ordered.
"Yes!" everyone responded in unison.
The team members immediately took suppressors from their gear and attached them to their gun barrels.
This would reduce the sound of gunfire and minimize the chance of them being exposed.
A firefight was inevitable.
Given the current situation, it was impossible to avoid alerting the armed militants outside.
The only way was to break out quickly, to fight their way out as fast as possible.
However, the silver lining was that Qin Feng had made all the necessary arrangements before entering.
Otherwise, how could their small group contend with over two hundred armed militants? That would be an international joke. Forget about rescuing people; it would be harder than climbing to heaven.
It was time to make some noise.