The Camp

Procuring the supplies from Wei Chang'an had taken very little effort. With the assistance of Feng Xiaoqi and Luo Kaiyuan, Chen Chuan spent a day coordinating and preparing, getting everything else they needed in order as well. Senior Sister He had arranged a total of five off-road vehicles for them. Adding Ren Xiaotian's personal vehicle brought the count to six, plenty to carry all of them along with the essential supplies and weapons required to traverse the wilderness. When the time came to depart, Chen Chuan's party numbered five, Wei Chang'an brought six men, and together with Ren Xiaotian, there were thirteen in all. Because Lin Xiaodi was still young, she did not take part in this raid. Instead, she remained in Yangzhi City to keep an eye on the exchange delegation and answer any incoming calls from the Foreign Affairs Bureau at a moment's notice. They had purposely brought two radios on this trip so she could notify them immediately if anything unusual occurred with the delegation. Everyone conducted a final inspection before setting off. Once they confirmed that all gear was in order, they nodded to one another and boarded the vehicles one after another, rolling out onto the open roads under the cover of night. Every one of the six men Wei Chang'an brought knew how to drive, so the convoy was entrusted to them rather than relying on the vehicles' original drivers. The convoy departed from Wuyi Academy and headed east, exiting Yangzhi City and plunging straight into the wilderness. The passengers soon felt the ground beneath them turn rugged and bumpy. In truth, if they had been able to take National Boulevard, they could have reached the vicinity of their objective in at most two hours. However, both sides of the boulevard were lined with guardrails, barbed wire, and defensive ditches left behind from the Great Expansion period; once a vehicle got onto the highway, it could only drive along that paved corridor. The only places to exit were near the checkpoints. Those, however, were precisely where security was tightest. Exiting there required inspection and registration, an enormous hassle that occasionally led to detentions for verification. Traveling directly across the wilderness was far preferable. Ren Xiaotian regularly handled commissioned tasks in the wilderness and was thoroughly familiar with the terrain. Having personally scoped out the Copper Rust Gang's camp, he was put in charge of guiding the way. Sitting in the back seat, Chen Chuan inspected the fortification-piercing rifle in his hands. The weapon measured roughly 1.2 meters long and weighed around twenty-odd jin, though for a fighter, supporting it with a single hand was completely effortless. The most distinctive feature of the weapon, however, was its ammunition. He picked up a cartridge to examine it. By sight, the bullet was around seven or eight centimeters long with a sharp tip, and it felt heavy in the hand. They had brought a total of fifteen rounds. It might not look like many, but it was enough. Weapons of this class were strictly regulated. Aside from high-grade protective suits like the one he had worn during his raid on Fang Dawei, ordinary protective suits were as flimsy as paper within the rifle's effective range. Among the six-man team Wei Chang'an had brought, aside from two technicians responsible for vehicle maintenance and radio operation, one notable member was an expert marksman. Although this man lacked a weapons license, he had grown up around the constabulary and frequently hung around their shooting ranges, honing excellent marksmanship. When he heard he would have the chance to wield a fortification-piercing rifle, he insisted on coming even if he had to pay out of his own pocket, just to satisfy the itch. After setting the rifle aside, Chen Chuan flipped through the dossier Ren Xiaotian had handed him, which contained intelligence regarding the Copper Rust Gang. The leader of the Copper Rust Gang was named Mitai, nicknamed "Wild Eagle." A mixed-blood Maka in his forties, he was said to have run with gangs in the wilderness since childhood. Being clever, he had been taken on by a gang boss as an attendant. Later, that gang boss was killed in a skirmish. As a henchman of the former leader, he was not trusted by the successor and was driven out. The chief reason, however, was his mixed Maka heritage. While city dwellers looked down on everyone in the wilderness, a pecking order existed out here as well. In particular, mixed-blood Maka and pure Maka ranked lower than even people from Mount Jiao. Stuck at the absolute bottom of the social hierarchy, climbing upward was extraordinarily difficult. From then on, the man took odd jobs across the wilderness without achieving anything noteworthy—until roughly a year or two ago, when he experienced a meteoric rise and formed a crew of his own. Looking at that trajectory alone, it was obvious he had secured the backing of an outside faction. Mitai had two primary lieutenants. One was "Viper" You'an, the gang's strategist, who was a pure Maka. The other was "Raging Bear" Yatan, a mixed Maka and a towering brute standing 2.35 meters tall. This man had clearly demonstrated exceptional hand-to-hand combat prowess. Mitai had rescued him during a past conflict, and he was very likely someone blessed with natural talent. Chen Chuan considered this. According to Ren Xiaotian, aside from Yatan, the individual martial strength of these bandits was not particularly high; when clashing with others, they relied primarily on arms and equipment. That was only natural. Most people who possessed superior martial strength could carve out a decent life in the city. As long as they weren't wanted criminals, how many people in their right mind would choose to scrounge around the wilderness like hyenas all day? While a few might be born with a taste for such a life, they were certainly the exception. He pondered further. If the Maka homeland was indeed backing this group, they would almost certainly have sent skilled combatants from Maka to supervise and keep watch over these hardened wilderness bandits. When he discussed this with Ren Xiaotian and Wei Chang'an, they believed that person should be roughly on Douma's level. As for being a tier higher in combat power... Consider that Maka's entire population was barely over a million, while Yangzhi City, together with its six surrounding counties and towns, had a population exceeding ten million—ten times that of Maka. The general standard of Wuyi instructors was likely around that mark as well. After all, how high one could reach depended on talent; without talent, no matter how hard one trained, very few could break through their ceiling. Only with a large enough population base could there be enough talented individuals. Anyone of a higher caliber would be considered a national treasure in Maka, an irreplaceable loss. How could they possibly dispatch such a person to another country for an operation like this? Not to mention that once such a fighter donned a protective suit and took up arms, their destructive potential was immense; the moment they set foot on Great Shun soil, they would inevitably draw attention. Besides, even if someone of that caliber showed up, they still could not withstand a fortification-piercing rifle, so there was no need to worry excessively. The road conditions in the wilderness were poor, and they had to steer clear of wandering convoys. It took more than three hours of driving before the convoy finally reached the vicinity of their destination. Because the outpost offered wide, unobstructed sightlines and vehicle engines sounded distinct in the dead of night, everyone dismounted ahead of time as they drew close. They parked the vehicles in a concealed area, leaving two technicians behind as guards while the rest proceeded toward the site on foot under the cover of darkness. A heavy wind blew across the wilderness, whipping grit and gravel through the air. Everyone put on scarves and face masks. As they slowly crept closer, a camp came into view. Following the prearranged plan, Ren Xiaotian and Wei Chang'an split off toward two other directions to scout. Chen Chuan took out a pair of binoculars to survey the grounds. He observed that the camp's structures were haphazardly scattered, though situated on higher ground, preventing him from taking in the entire layout at a glance. Several campfires burned near the access paths, and lights powered by algae oil generators cast scattered specks of illumination across the night. Surrounding the camp were winding trenches, and slightly further inward hung rope nets strung with assorted scrap metal. Two tall, semi-open watchtowers stood to the north and south, while two lower guard posts were positioned before the main entrance. Shadowy figures could be seen pacing about at intervals, evidently sentries on patrol. After observing for a while, Ren Xiaotian circled back and said to him, "Both armored trucks are there. They should all be inside; nobody has left." Chen Chuan nodded. Normally, this hour was peak activity time for an armed gang like this, leaving only a skeleton crew behind at camp. Had that been the case, things would have been simple—they could have picked them off piecemeal. The current situation was hardly surprising, however. If they had a critical job to carry out within the next day or two, they certainly would not be out causing trouble; staying hunkered down in camp was entirely expected. A direct frontal assault against a camp like this was out of the question. They did not have enough men, and their advantage lay in closing the distance, infiltrating, and engaging in close-quarters combat. Before doing that, they had to eliminate the watchtower guards. When Wei Chang'an returned from the other side, Chen Chuan conferred with them and then gathered the group to outline the situation. Ultimately, it was decided that he, Ren Xiaotian, Wei Chang'an, and Cai Si would infiltrate first, finding a way to take out the guards in the watchtowers and dealing with the sentries as the situation permitted before signaling the rest to move in. If all went smoothly, they would split up to eliminate the camp's inhabitants step by step while sabotaging the vehicles. If they were compromised, they would throw smoke grenades and launch a direct assault. Chen Chuan surveyed the layout and said, "Leave the slightly taller watchtower to the north to me. Senior Brother Ren, take the southern one." Ren Xiaotian nodded. Chen Chuan turned to Wei Chang'an and Cai Si. "As for the patrol post and sentries positioned closest to the front entrance, we'll rely on you two, Brother Wei and Brother Si, to handle them." Wei Chang'an said with confidence, "As long as the guards on the watchtowers are handled, the rest won't be difficult." Judging by the sentries' gaits, it was obvious at a glance that they were ordinary men. With their speed and reflexes, once they closed the distance, the sentries would have no chance to fight back. Chen Chuan said, "Then let's get ready." Each of them produced a small tin and began smearing grease over their bodies. The ointment served to mask their scent, a precaution against any patrol dogs that might be present. Once prepared, the group dispersed. Chen Chuan slung the Xuejun Saber across his back. Taking a few slow steps forward, he suddenly surged ahead. Relying on the powerful mutated tissue within his body, he skimmed along the ground with astonishing speed. Though some of the outer trenches appeared wide, he cleared them with an effortless leap. As he sailed over, he could see the bottoms bristling with sharpened stakes and caught a foul stench, deducing that the occupants of the camp likely relieved themselves down there. Throughout the approach, he kept himself strictly within the shadows. He avoided the debris scattered across the ground—broken glass, metal spikes, tin cans, and the like—wherever possible. When an obstacle could not be avoided, he had no fear of injury and simply vaulted over with a hand plant. Only the innermost perimeter presented a slight challenge. Rope nets and barbed wire crisscrossed in multiple layers with no gaps between them, hung with noisy trinkets and positioned right against the edge, leaving virtually nowhere to land. After a moment's thought, he leaped straight across, drove his hand into the revetment wall, and hung there suspended. Slowly edging laterally toward the entrance of the front corridor, he pushed off with one hand and planted a foot. The distant campfire flickered ever so slightly, and he had already slipped inside, entirely unnoticed by the sentries in the guard post by the entrance. Once inside the camp, Chen Chuan avoided the campfires and light sources ahead, carefully circling around until he arrived near the watchtower. He waited a moment, and the instant the guard on the opposite watchtower turned his back, Chen Chuan darted forward. Within one or two breaths, he scaled the structure without making a sound. Reaching for the doorknob, he turned it and stepped inside. The guard was intently trimming his fingernails at that moment. Stunned by the door opening, he realized a stranger was standing before him and reacted instantly, swiftly grabbing the pistol beside him and leveling it forward. Yet before his finger could squeeze the trigger, Chen Chuan was already upon him. Seizing the man's wrist, Chen Chuan applied a light squeeze, shattering the wrist bones. Before the guard could let out a scream, his head was twisted a full one hundred and eighty degrees, slumping limply against the chair. Chen Chuan glanced at the neatly trimmed fingernails, thought back to the foul hygienic conditions along the way, and offered a quiet assessment: "Now that is a good habit."