nagpurpolice Chapter 97 The Life or Death of the Subordinates and the Silent Forest!
Chapter 97 The Life or Death of the Subordinates and the Silent Forest!
Chapter 98 The Lives and Deaths of His Men and the Return to the Silent Forest!
On the edge of the Kursk Desert, the dry wind whipped up sand and gravel, making the campfire crackle.
Hick's men sat around the fire, the atmosphere heavy with tension.
"Hey, Sory," Brown said, chewing on dry jerky, his voice muffled and clearly impatient. "Why has the boss been gone for so long? How many days has it been?"
He gazed into the depths of the desert, where there was only the deathly yellow sand and the endless sky.
Sori remained silent, as if he hadn't heard.
Sean, standing next to him, leisurely used a dagger to slice the sizzling meat on the grill, not even lifting his eyelids, his tone as calm as if he were discussing the weather:
"What's the rush? Just wait. If you're getting impatient—why don't you go in and take a look?"
His words were calm, as if he had unintentionally clashed with Brown.
"You fucking—"
Brown's temper flared up instantly. He threw the jerky on the ground and made a move to pounce on it.
"That's enough!"
Labour growled in frustration and poked the campfire hard with a branch, sending sparks flying.
As a subordinate who had always followed Hick, he looked down on Sory and Brown, these two groups of "defeated soldiers".
One mission failed, resulting in the near annihilation of the entire army, leaving only himself and Sean. Another mission, led by Brown, resulted in the complete wipeout of the entire army, leaving him as a lone commander.
He hadn't hidden his contempt for the past few days, which fueled Brown's anger. Now, Sean's provocation had completely ignited his rage, but he was suppressed by Rabble.
"Shut up! It never stops, day and night! My ears are ringing!"
Rabble scolded impatiently, his eyes sweeping over Brown with undisguised contempt.
Brown turned pale with anger, glared at Sean as if he were eating Sean's flesh, and finally sat down angrily, grabbing another piece of jerky and tearing at it in a fit of rage.
Sean shrugged indifferently, his nonchalant demeanor only making Brown feel more aggrieved.
"Rabour! There's movement!" an apprentice on lookout suddenly shouted, pointing to the distant horizon.
Whoosh—!
Everyone sprang to their feet as if propelled by a spring, weapons instantly gripping their hands, their eyes warily fixed on the direction the apprentice had pointed.
After several days on the edge of the desert, they had encountered more than one group of ill-intentioned individuals. Now, with the campfire still burning, their target was obvious.
On the distant horizon, a tiny black dot was rapidly growing larger, hurtling toward their location!
Extremely fast!
"Alert! Prepare for battle!" Labour shouted the order, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.
"Wait! That—that looks like—it's an adult!!"
Another apprentice with excellent eyesight squinted and carefully examined the object before exclaiming in surprise!
The taut bowstring snapped open instantly.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, put away their weapons, and showed expressions of relief on their faces.
"Quickly! Put out the fire! Tidy up the camp! Prepare to welcome the adults!" Labour quickly gave orders, his voice tinged with excitement.
In the distance, Hick, riding his eagle-headed bat, looked at the tenacious monster beneath him and was quite surprised.
After the devastating energy storm and subsequent sand avalanche, he thought the beast had long since become fertilizer in the desert. Unexpectedly, he found it fighting for prey with a sand lizard from the ground. Although it looked disheveled, it was still lively and energetic.
As they drew closer, the camp and his eagerly awaiting men became clearly visible.
Hick's gaze swept over Rabble, Soray, Sean, and Brown. A thought flashed through his mind: to kill or not to kill?
These people were in the know; at least they knew they had come to the desert to meet their mentor, and they knew Leo's death was related to them. Keeping them around would always be a potential problem.
But he quickly shook his head, suppressing the thought.
The truth about the mastermind's schemes, the Ring of Silence, Qaboos' remains, and the final outcome is now known only to him and Mochamo.
As for Mochamo, as a "partner," for the sake of the stability of the Silent Forest and his own interests, he would never take the initiative to lift the lid.
These subordinates were merely peripheral executors with limited knowledge.
"My lord!" Labour was the first to step forward and bow respectfully. Sorey, Sean, and the others followed closely behind.
Hick nodded slightly, his gaze calmly sweeping over everyone, lingering for a moment on Brown's slightly nervous face before looking away.
His voice was clear, with an unquestionable commanding tone:
"All, set off now! Target—Silent Forest!"
"Yes, sir!" the men replied in unison, quickly packing up the last of their belongings and extinguishing the embers.
Soon, eagle-headed bats took to the air and, led by Hick, formed a formation and flew swiftly towards the Silent Forest.
Kabu (Kabusu) flew close to Hick's side and rear like a silent, lifeless shadow. Its withered body remained motionless in the gale, exuding a chilling, inhuman aura.
Hick sat on the back of the eagle-headed bat, feeling the suffocating deathly aura of the Kurs Desert behind him gradually recede into the distance.
The wind and sand blew across his face, dispelling the last trace of hesitation in his heart.
His gaze pierced through the thin clouds, heading towards the Silent Forest. Deep within his eyes, excitement and cold ambition burned like two intertwined flames.
"tutor--""
He whispered silently, his fingers unconsciously stroking the black feathers of the raven on his shoulder, as if he could touch the vast legacy left by his mentor through them!
Those secret outposts scattered throughout the area, priceless research notes, and mountains of rare resources.
"The treasure you left behind—this disciple will accept it without hesitation!"
They traveled day and night for three consecutive days at breakneck speed.
"The Silent Forest—we've finally arrived!"
Looking down at the boundless green sea of trees below, exuding an ancient and mysterious aura, Hick couldn't hide his excitement.
When he left, he was a pawn on the chessboard, at the mercy of others, his future uncertain.
Upon his return, he was a player with a treasure trove of knowledge and a promising future!
He quickly retrieved the information conveyed by his mentor's spiritual imprint in his mind and accurately identified the location.
A moment later, he pinpointed the location of his mentor's most important core laboratory stronghold deep within the Silent Forest!
Without pausing, Hick led his men, like a flock of crows returning to their nest, and swiftly swooped down toward their target.
Half an hour later, deep within a canyon entangled by enormous, menacing vines.
Hick landed before a hidden, deep cave that resembled the mouth of a giant beast.
His men followed behind in awe, looking at the ominous entrance before them.
Standing at the cave entrance, Hick was greeted by the cold, damp air, which carried a faint, indescribable smell of stale medicine and the stench of decaying biomass.
He gazed into the bottomless darkness of the cave, his face displaying the ecstatic joy of a hunter who had found a treasure, and—undisguised, naked greed!
"This—is this the professor's core experimental base?"
He murmured to himself, his voice filled with anticipation and a thrill of about to uncover a secret.