Under the starlight.
Caruso, the head of the inner defense zone, was inspecting the three ambush points with his subordinate, Jasen.
Even though Snow Ghost hadn't appeared last night, it didn't mean it had truly vanished.
Nor did it mean Snow Ghost would only cause trouble in the outer defense zone and not dare to invade the inner defense.
To ensure safety—
Especially tonight, the last shift!
Caruso, who was naturally cautious, knew well that many accidents happened at the last moment. Thus, he decided to stay awake all night to ensure the defense zone's safety.
The six members at the three ambush points also perked up, their rifles at the ready for combat.
Looking at the still snowfield and the drones constantly drifting overhead, Caruso couldn't imagine anyone escaping his watchful eyes when he was so focused on defense!
At this moment.
He felt an urge to become stronger.
He just wanted to roar: "If Snow Ghost dares to invade my inner defense, whether it's a person or a ghost, the only outcome will be death!"
"Boss, I need to go."
Just as Caruso stood there, gazing at the outer defense zone, his heart surging, Jasen rubbed his stomach and hurried away.
Caruso paid him no mind.
He continued to look east, lighting a cigarette.
In the swirling smoke, his mood underwent a significant change.
Tomorrow, he would be going home!
Thinking of leaving this forsaken place tomorrow and returning to his long-lost home, Caruso felt an indescribable emotion.
A sense of urgency.
A sense of sentimentality.
A sense of trepidation, and even a discernible reluctance.
It was normal for those who had been away from home for a long time to feel a sense of urgency as they neared their return.
The sentimentality was naturally due to the various events Caruso had encountered in the past few months.
The trepidation stemmed from the Bai Du Birds and Snow Ghost (if they hadn't captured 66 hostages, completely reversing the disadvantage, Caruso's family would likely have suffered the same fate as the Bai Du Birds' victims; the Snow Ghost that appeared a few days ago had directly caused immense psychological pressure).
So, what was the source of Caruso's reluctance to leave?
It was because here—
He could kill without any psychological burden, tormenting the captives; he could even have sex with more than three women every day, as long as his physical condition allowed!
But once he returned home, he would only be a good husband and father in the eyes of his wife and children; seeing young, attractive women, no matter how much he craved to conquer them, he could only maintain the most gentlemanly demeanor.
"Alas, I truly don't want to leave here."
As Caruso flicked away his cigarette butt, he couldn't help but sigh and murmur.
Before his voice faded—
Caruso heard a chilling voice from behind him: "Since you don't want to leave, then stay here forever."
Who!?
Upon hearing the voice, Caruso's heart pounded, his nerves tensed instantly, and he spun around.
Caruso, as one of Rhodes' confidants, had incredibly fast reflexes!
The moment he turned, his right hand was already grasping the pistol grip.
By the time he saw the white figure behind him, he had drawn his weapon!
And then, as he—
A cold hand suddenly appeared at Caruso's neck just as his right hand was about to rise.
Then Caruso heard the cracking sound of his own throat bone being crushed by a pair of pliers.
All his strength vanished with that snap.
Clatter.
The handgun fell to the ground.
Caruso's eyes, bulging from their sockets, remained fixed on the white figure.
He struggled to open his mouth, gasping out a few syllables: "Snow, Snow Ghost?"
Seeing as he was about to die, Li Qianfan nodded: "Yes, I am the Snow Ghost you speak of."
"Can you tell me who you are?"
Caruso, slowly kneeling, asked this question with his eyes.
Li Qianfan looked down at him and replied: "I am Li Qianfan, whose obituary you posted and who was frozen to death in the outer defense zone."
You are Li Qianfan?
Impossible!
How could you hide for so long in the sub-zero cold, wearing only a thermal suit!?
Caruso hoped Li Qianfan would answer this question.
Unfortunately, before Li Qianfan could respond, the pupils of his eyes froze at that instant.
"To ask so many questions when you're about to die is simply unreasonable."
Li Qianfan muttered, flicking his toe. Caruso's handgun flew up, and he caught it.
He needed to seize some firearms to give to Madam Murong to protect the hostages.
He had already captured Jasen's handgun and submachine gun.
Thinking of Jasen, who would still be frozen with his backside cold after death, Li Qianfan felt a pang of remorse.
He decided to speed up his killing, sending the six members of the three ambush points to join the pitiable Jasen.
Whirr—
As two drones drifted past over Caruso's corpse, Li Qianfan had already vanished.
Black Water Forest, local time, 1:17 AM.
A few hundred meters east of the East Line outer defense zone warning sign, it looked no different from afar.
But if someone were to approach, they would be startled!
Because dozens of white figures, arranged in a large inverted triangle formation, were lying prone in the snow, motionless.
Du Junlin was at the front.
In fact.
As early as 10:30 last night, Du Junlin and others, who had been lurking two kilometers east of the East Line, had arrived at the designated location, which was five hundred meters from the warning sign.
Then, they endured the severe cold, silently waiting.
Waiting for Li Qianfan's signal to launch the all-out assault within the Rhodes team's camp!
During this period, all members of Dark Blade, including Du Junlin, deeply understood what it meant to feel like years were passing in seconds.
Especially as time wore on, and the clock struck one in the morning, with still no movement from the camp, even Du Junlin, who had the best patience, began to suspect that something might have gone wrong with Li Qianfan.
"Section Chief Du, should we move closer?"
Yuan Ting, the leader of Dark Blade's fourth team, crawled quietly to Du Junlin's side and asked in a low voice.
When Du Junlin was transferred to Dark Blade, her position was Section Chief of the Operations Department of Dark Blade Headquarters.
Of course.
Dark Blade had only been established for a short time, and its organizational structure was not yet complete.
Dark Blade currently had only eight teams, totaling 72 members, two supervisors, and a few secretaries.
The Operations Department, which Du Junlin was in charge of, was also a mere skeleton staff; she was a commander without troops.
But this did not prevent her from arriving at the front line without authorization, against the wishes of Li Wujiang and Su Nanyin; Yuan Ting, who was originally responsible for the operations of the five main teams, handed over command to her after contacting the two supervisors.
Du Junlin, holding a monocular telescope, shook her head: "We cannot move any closer. If we move closer, we will inevitably be detected by the drones' thermal imaging. If that happens, the enemy will surely react."
Yuan Ting knew this as well.
But the prolonged waiting was making him increasingly uneasy.
"Don't worry."
Du Junlin lowered her telescope and looked back at him: "Li Qianfan will not disappoint us."
"Mm."
Yuan Ting nodded and asked, "Section Chief Du, may I ask you a question?"
"You may."
Du Junlin answered crisply, but then added, "But don't ask questions you've asked before."
Yuan Ting's lips moved, and he fell silent.
He just wanted to ask Du Junlin again how Li Qianfan could withstand the severe cold.
This question had been asked by the leaders of the five teams to Du Junlin over the past few days.
Du Junlin's answer was always curt: "No comment."
Now.
Yuan Ting, thinking the general assault was about to begin, asked her the question again, hoping she might answer.
Yet, she curtly stated that questions previously asked could not be asked again.
What else could he ask?
Du Junlin then said, "Weren't you going to ask me a question?"
Yuan Ting—
Alright.
He coughed lightly and asked in a small voice, "Section Chief Du, do you have a boyfriend?"
Not everyone knew that Li Qianfan had become one of the "Four Beauties" of the Su family, and Du Yaoyao would soon be moving into Li Family Village.
Even.
Except for the members of Dark Blade's third team, Hu Zi's group, very few people knew that Du Junlin was Su Nanyin's daughter.
Therefore, it was natural for Yuan Ting to gossip about Section Chief Du's personal life to relieve his stress before the general assault.
Du Junlin would never hold any grudges against him for this.
Du Junlin thought for a moment and replied, "No."
Yuan Ting was stunned and blurted out, "No way? Section Chief Du, you are so young and beautiful, yet you have no boyfriend?"
Du Junlin replied again, "But I have a fiancé."
Yuan Ting became confused—
He gave a dry laugh and said, "Section Chief Du, you are joking. Isn't a fiancé just a boyfriend?"
Du Junlin shook her head: "No. A fiancé is a fiancé, and a boyfriend is a boyfriend."
Yuan Ting was bewildered: "Is there a difference between a boyfriend and a fiancé?"
"Of course, there is."
Du Junlin answered seriously: "One can have several boyfriends. But one can only have one fiancé."
Yuan Ting—
Under the starlight, he looked at the clean-faced girl, and for a long time, he didn't know what to say.
Whoosh—
The wind picked up.
It was now 1:53 AM.
Having finally dealt with all the hidden sentries within the inner defense perimeter, Li Qianfan, carrying seven or eight guns on his back, swaggered into the camp.
He casually glanced at the area of containers eleven and twelve and headed towards the drone defense command center.
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All four chapters were a struggle, my mind couldn't keep up; I wish everyone a Happy New Year again, and I hope I can recover from the after-effects of my fever soon.