General Zuma’s two guards walked ahead, wielding sharp machetes to clear the path. Behind them came two more guards and a pilot carrying General Zuma’s stretcher, hurrying forward. Flanking the stretcher were four Wolf Fang soldiers, weapons ready, keeping a vigilant watch. Bringing up the rear were Xu Ze, Bai Qi, and the remaining Wolf Fang soldiers…
“Have you made contact with the troops at the rendezvous point to request reinforcements?” Xu Ze asked Geda, who was helping carry the stretcher, his voice low and urgent.
“I’ve already contacted them, but the troops are still fifty kilometers away. Reinforcements have been dispatched, but since we’re deep in the rainforest, it’ll take them some time to get here,” Geda replied promptly.
“Good… as long as they make it in time, we still have hope…” Xu Ze nodded. For now, the priority was to shake off the Dragon Lion Army’s pursuit—if they caught up, it would turn into a bloody battle.
The group pressed forward rapidly through the rainforest. Bai Qi glanced repeatedly at the Barrett sniper rifle strapped to Xu Ze’s back, clearly puzzled. Finally, unable to contain his curiosity, he asked, “Major… did you really take down three helicopters with just this?”
“Yeah… otherwise, what, you think I knocked them out with a standard-issue rifle?” Xu Ze ran his hand over the scope on the Barrett and let out a soft sigh. After climbing down from the tree, he’d casually picked the scope back up. He didn’t really need it, but if he was going to carry a sniper rifle around without a scope and still nail targets from long range, that would definitely draw way too much attention.
“Oh…” Bai Qi watched Xu Ze, who was carrying nearly forty kilograms of gear yet seemed completely unburdened. At last, he began to feel genuine respect for this officer who looked far too young, didn’t seem particularly sturdy, and was supposedly a medical officer. Being able to pull off that kind of feat wasn’t unheard of, but doing it with this build—carrying forty kilos so effortlessly—that was rare. And the sheer skill with that sniper rifle, taking out three helicopters from a distance in just a few seconds—even the military’s elite snipers would find that incredibly difficult.
“Xu… those Dragon Lion troops have already started entering the rainforest. Once they’re inside, the satellites can’t track them anymore, so there’s not much I can help with on that front… you’re on your own now!” Xiaodao warned Xu Ze in his mind.
“They’ve already entered the rainforest?” Xu Ze glanced at the glowing dots on his glasses display near the forest’s edge and sighed quietly. They’d been in the rainforest for less than twenty minutes, and the Dragon Lion Army was already on their tail. What a mess.
With that thought, Xu Ze turned to Bai Qi and said, “Have the soldiers spread out now and start setting traps… we’ll mount our first defensive action and lay down some misleading diversions.”
“Understood!” Bai Qi acknowledged, then waved to the five soldiers behind him, who quickly melted into the rainforest.
Meanwhile, Xu Ze began pulling items from his backpack. The gear the General Staff had prepared for him was top-notch—Hive Burst Mines…
Xu Ze picked a tall, slender tree and gently hung a grenade-like Hive Burst Mine from a branch. He looped the tripwire around the ground several times and then moved swiftly ahead.
He carefully erased all traces of the group’s movements along the way. After catching up to the team, he hung another mine not far behind them…
These Hive Burst Mines were devastating even against dispersed personnel. They weren’t concussion-based trip mines but fragmentation ones. When triggered, hundreds of steel needles inside would blanket an area of dozens of meters… Anyone caught in the blast would suffer extremely high rates of death and severe injury.
About ten minutes later, all the soldiers who had been setting traps and creating false trails returned. Following Xu Ze’s orders, the group picked up the pace once more. By now, everyone knew the pursuers were closing in—if they didn’t lose them quickly, there’d be no way out.
Xu Ze began steering the group toward the agreed rendezvous point. While shaking off the pursuers was the main task, they couldn’t just wander aimlessly. Only by linking up with the relief force as fast as possible could they truly escape danger.
After marching for a while, a faint muffled explosion echoed from the distance. Everyone’s faces turned grim as they looked back—they all knew the enemy had reached the trap positions. That dull thud was likely an anti-personnel mine detonating…
It seemed the enemy was getting closer. Without needing Xu Ze’s urging, everyone quickened their pace, pushing forward with renewed urgency.
Traveling through the rainforest was no easy feat. Vines tangled everywhere, and razor-sharp grass grew thick. The two guards clearing the path already had arms covered in cuts and scratches from the brush. Still, thanks to their efforts, the rest of the group could move more smoothly.
Xu Ze was well aware that the tracks they left behind couldn’t be erased completely. The Dragon Lion soldiers would inevitably follow this trail. His only hope was that the traps would slow them down as much as possible.
At the rendezvous point, General Zuma’s forces probably weren’t very large. If they could airlift reinforcements in, that’d be ideal. But relying on helicopters to extract General Zuma himself wasn’t realistic—with the Dragon Lion Army closing in, the airspace was too dangerous. They’d have to eliminate the pursuers entirely or at least block them completely.
Everyone strode forward with determination. The two vanguard guards hacked away with their machetes, clearing a path through the dense vegetation. Thick vines and sharp grass fell under their blades.
Then, the guard on the right failed to notice a green snake coiled around a branch beside him. As he swung his machete to cut through a vine, the snake, startled, lunged forward and sank its fangs into his wrist. The guard cried out in shock, swinging his blade again. A flash of blood, and the snake’s head was severed.
The other guard caught sight of the snake’s markings and his face went pale. He let out a sharp cry, dropped his machete, and tore a strip of cloth from his shirt to wrap around his injured comrade’s wrist.
The wounded guard, now recognizing the snake as well, sat down in terror, letting his companion tighten the makeshift tourniquet.
The uninjured guard shouted something urgently toward the rear.
Major Hu Qiang’s expression shifted when he heard the call. He turned to the medic, Zhao Jun, and said, “Quick—someone up ahead has been bitten by a venomous snake. Come with me!”
The two rushed forward and found the wounded guard’s wrist already beginning to blacken. Zhao Jun drew in a sharp breath.
As the other guard rattled off a string of nervous words in their native tongue, Hu Qiang translated for Zhao Jun: “He says it’s an extremely deadly viper found in this region. He’s asking if you have the specific antivenom on hand.”
Zhao Jun’s face darkened. He quickly pulled on gloves and took out two small knives from his kit, starting to clean the wound. “No serum,” he said flatly.
When the wounded guard heard Hu Qiang’s translation, despair flickered across his face. He muttered a couple of phrases, and Hu Qiang’s expression grew somber. The guard had said this viper was incredibly toxic and the venom spread fast. Without antivenom, if not treated immediately, death was certain within ten minutes.
Geda and the other guard overheard and their faces filled with sorrow. Even General Zuma let out a heavy sigh from behind. Geda said something quietly, handed the stretcher over to the pilot, pulled out his own machete, and walked forward with grim resolve.
Xu Ze watched the hopelessness on the men’s faces and frowned. He strode over, just as Zhao Jun was futilely slicing open the wound to drain the venom. But the blackness was still spreading up the arm, inching toward the elbow. Xu Ze’s eyes widened in alarm.
The wounded guard saw Geda approaching and steeled himself. He raised his bitten arm toward Geda.
Seeing this, Zhao Jun paused, then understood. He sighed softly and stepped back.
Geda grabbed the wounded guard’s arm, raised his blade, and was about to sever it when Xu Ze caught his wrist from behind. “There’s still hope,” Xu Ze said firmly. “Let me try.”
Hearing this, Geda’s face lit up with excitement—he knew well how capable Xu Ze was. He lowered the knife and rattled off a few words to the wounded guard in their language.
The injured man’s eyes also filled with hope as he looked at Xu Ze.
“Such potent venom…” Xu Ze examined the blackening forearm closely and grunted. He quickly pulled out his acupuncture kit, extracted several silver needles, and inserted them swiftly just below the guard’s elbow.
Zhao Jun’s expression brightened when he saw Xu Ze step in. He hadn’t been able to do much for the snakebite, but if anyone could handle it, it was likely Lieutenant Colonel Xu Ze. After all, he’d neutralized the W1 biochemical toxin—there was a good chance he could handle this snake venom too.
Xu Ze nodded at Zhao Jun, who stepped aside. Taking the two scalpels from Zhao Jun’s hands, Xu Ze made three or four long incisions from the guard’s elbow down to the wrist wound.
Meanwhile, the blackness from the venom had already reached the needles at the elbow joint…
