Retreat!

What is an elite force?

An elite force is one that obeys orders without question! Any command, even if it were to draw their guns and end their own lives, would be executed with absolute resolve. Clearly, the "Black Snake" unit led by Nicholas is an elite force—perhaps even the elite among elites!

When the team members received Nicholas's order, they did not show the slightest hesitation or doubt, executing it with decisive, cold-blooded efficiency! Moreover, they gave their "Boss," Nicholas, their unwavering trust and support.

More bullets, a denser hail of lead, erupted from the muzzles in their hands, whipping up a metal storm that forced Li Shuangmu and Yin Kuang back into their respective hiding spots.

Yin Kuang had originally intended to take down the enemy from within the clothing store, but he hadn't expected them to refuse to enter, instead pouring a frantic barrage of gunfire into the shop. Helpless, he had no choice but to hide once more.

"This is nothing short of a disgrace!"

Yin Kuang gritted his teeth fiercely.

Elsewhere, Li Shuangmu, cowering at the base of a wall, was struck in the left foot by a stray bullet, causing him to wince in agony. Yet, he could not afford to dwell on the searing pain; instead, he furrowed his brows tightly. "Something is wrong! This is highly abnormal! But... what exactly is off?"

"First the Type 54 gunfire from high up... then the Barrett... Zeng Fei's AWM... the sudden surge in firepower... could it be... Oh no!!"

As if realizing something, Li Shuangmu's expression shifted violently. His face, already pale from blood loss, drained of its final trace of color.

Li Shuangmu took a deep breath, braced his throat, and roared with all his might: "They're trying to escape!"

"Escape... escape... escape..."

The echo reverberated through the street, weaving into the intense cacophony of gunfire.

Yin Kuang was not far from Li Shuangmu, so he heard the words with perfect clarity.

"Escape?" Yin Kuang froze, then joy immediately lit up his face. "They're running? We won..." Suddenly, before his smile could even fully form, his expression stiffened. "Running!? Oh no!"

If the enemy runs, isn't that a good thing?

Not only is it not good, it is absolutely, catastrophically bad!!

Why?

The reason is simple!

Even while facing them head-on, his side couldn't even lift their heads. Once the enemies slipped into the shadows, with them in the dark and us in the light, nothing awaited his side but a swift and certain death!

A group of fresh high school graduates being hunted by mercenaries who had survived through blood, iron, and fire—they couldn't even drink water without the risk of a bullet to the brain. Where was the hope of survival?

This mission... it was truly impossible to continue!

Abandon the mission? That was no longer an option!

His side had already killed several of them; the blood feud was set in stone. He feared they would want to tear everyone on his side limb from limb. Besides, one doesn't fear a thief stealing, but a thief plotting! And now, the ones "plotting" against them weren't just thieves, but a pack of desperate outlaws—and their bullets!

Therefore, the only way not to be killed by them was... to kill them all!!

Thinking this, Yin Kuang's jaw tightened, his teeth grinding together. We've been pushed to this point... to advance is death, to retreat is death! Fine, very well! I want to see... I want to see...

Yin Kuang's face flushed red, his teeth gnashing. Suddenly, he spotted a mannequin lying nearby. Without a second thought, he grabbed the curvaceous figure and hurled it with all his might!

Da-da-da!!

A storm of metal swept through, and the mannequin was instantly riddled with holes.

Taking advantage of that split-second shift in fire, Yin Kuang scrambled out of the clothing store. He knew that once he left the shop, he would be completely exposed to the enemy's guns, but he had no other choice! Even if he were to be turned into a sieve like the mannequin the next moment, he had no options left.

He squeezed his eyes shut.

As he vaulted over the low wall outside the clothing store, he felt every hair on his body stand on end, his body feeling as if it had plunged into a frozen lake in the dead of winter.

Silence!

He suddenly felt an eerie silence! It was as if he had gone deaf!

However, before he could process that deathly, soundless world, a piercing pain erupted in his back.

Is this... what it feels like to be hit by a bullet? It really, really hurts.

As his body hit the concrete ground beyond the low wall, he used the momentum to roll forward with all his strength. There, an overturned sedan sat; if he could just reach it, he could escape the torrential rain of bullets.

But in the distance, the white man, William, suddenly emerged from nowhere. With a savage grin, he bit the pin off a grenade and roared: "Rona! I've avenged you!!"

With that, he used his only functional left hand to prepare the throw...

"William!!"

Not far away, Nicholas's eyes bloodshot, he let out a heart-wrenching scream.

But it was too late!

Another bullet from the shadows flew through the night, pierced his body armor, and buried itself in William's heart!

A spray of blood erupted.

William felt his entire body turn weightless, the power coiled in his left hand draining away like a burst dam. "Shit..."

Boom!

The grenade detonated, the roiling flames instantly swallowing his entire body.

Nicholas, not far away, dove to the ground just in time to avoid the shockwave of the blast.

The flash of the explosion illuminated the positions of several mercenaries.

"Damn you, William!" Nicholas gritted his teeth, issuing a decisive order: "Blue Whale, Sagittarius, you two stay behind to cover! The rest of you, increase fire and break contact immediately. Then rendezvous at the old spot. Don't worry, everyone... we will settle this debt with them properly."

"Yes, Boss!"

A long-haired youth on the other side responded, then said to his teammate beside him, "Sagittarius, the boss wants us to stay behind and cover the retreat."

"Cover the retreat... fine." The man gave a bitter smile, then said with a look of absolute resolve, "The time has come! This is the final hour of judgment. May the Lord forgive my sins... even if I am to stand by Satan's side... my heart shall forever serve You..."

The man traced a cross over his chest, praying like a devout believer.

The residual flames cast a crimson glow upon his smoke-stained face; even with a centipede-like scar running across it, he appeared incredibly pious.

Blue Whale watched him pray in silence, his bright eyes dancing with the reflection of the flames. "It's truly wonderful to have faith. Even in the face of death, his will remains unyielding..."

"That's enough." Sagittarius kissed the silver cross in his hand before tucking it into his chest.

"Hmm." Blue Whale responded lazily, saying, "This time... to use an old Chinese saying, we've 'capsized in a gutter.' Honestly, up until now, we don't even know who the enemy is or why they ambushed us. Furthermore, their tactics were extremely crude—you could even say they had no tactics at all. I could see it clearly; they were fighting individually, with absolutely no coordination between them. Even now, I still can't figure out where we went wrong."

Sagittarius asked, "Does that matter?"

"..." Blue Whale gently wagged a finger, his long, narrow face filled with ease, as if he were basking in the sun on a Hawaiian beach rather than standing on a battlefield composed of gunfire, bullets, flames, and the dead of night. "The Chinese say, 'Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated.'" His Mandarin was perfectly standard, complete with a Beijing accent; listening to his voice alone, one would think he was a native of the city. "If we knew who they were... why they attacked us... perhaps we could have started from there and countered them. It's a pity that headquarters hasn't sent a shred of information. We've lost five comrades, and we still don't even know what the enemy's objective is."

"This isn't the time for your deductions, Blue Whale." Sagittarius said coldly, "Pick up your gun and use your bullets to grant your enemies absolution; that is what you should be doing."

Blue Whale let out a melancholy sigh, his eyes revealing a deep sense of disappointment—though it was unclear exactly what he was disappointed in. "Fine... let's carry out our mission."

The reason the two of them had the leisure to chat here was because their teammates were buying them time to rest and regroup. As they spoke, the curtain of bullets in the air showed no signs of stopping. Clearly, this group of "Black Snake" was pouring their fury into their ammunition, determined to fire every last round to vent their anger and resentment!

They retreated while firing, and gradually, their figures were about to be swallowed by the night...

And in the shadows where they could not see, two pairs of eyes were emitting a faint, cold light...

One pair belonged to Yin Kuang, who had been crawling forward the entire way, his elbows and knees worn bloody by the concrete ground.

The other pair belonged to...