The night was ink-black, and all was silent.
The occasional moonbeam pierced the clouds, casting mottled shadows that added an air of mystery to the still evening.
Behind this calm, a carefully orchestrated ambush plan was quietly unfolding.
After his confession, Junior Officer You ZhanYu, the head of the security team, sent out a pickup ssage to the White Eagle contact channel as instructed.
The ssage indicated he had left the Academy of Sciences, but his identity had been exposed, so he urgently needed to transfer the hard drive and requested Alex Austin to help him leave Da Xia.
This ssage had been analyzed by several staff mbers to ensure it would lure the enemy spy into the trap without arousing suspicion.
The ntioned rendezvous point was at Ningta Bridge downstream of the Jingshui River.
The location had been ticulously chosen.
Ningta Bridge was not a main thoroughfare, so there were few vehicles and pedestrians in the early hours of the morning.
At the sa ti, a etup here would offer multiple escape routes, via water or land.
This way, Alex Austin wouldn't suspect a trap.
At this mont.
Lu Heng was on the river embanknt of the Jingshui River.
Su Muyu had activated the Invisibility Veil, enveloping a ten-ter radius and concealing the command team for this operation.
Moreover.
Jian Qing, Zhuo Hongjun, and other Junior Officers each led a squad of Superpower Soldiers, lying in wait at various points, ready to intercept at any ti.
Junior Officer You ZhanYu, standing in front of his superiors, felt a complex mix of emotions.
He had once been a loyal and brave warrior, yet now he stood against his country.
His heart was filled with regret, but he had no choice.
What had happened on the Abyss Battlefield left him with no room to turn back; he had to follow the path to its dark end.
"Go. Lure out the enemy spy, and you can make ands for your wrongdoings," the commander gestured towards the riverbank and then ordered the guards to unlock the shackles on his wrists.
You ZhanYu flexed his wrists, turned to look at Lu Heng with a complex smile, and said sothing strange: "Thank you."
Lu Heng frowned and asked, "Why are you thanking ? I'm the one who caught you."
You ZhanYu looked up at the sky, exhaled deeply, and spoke pensively, "As long as a person still has a chance to live, they will do whatever it takes to survive. Even if burdened with sin and regret, you walk the path to its dark end.
"But my heart aches because I know what I'm doing; I don't want this, but I can't turn back—because I am a traitor.
"Now I am at peace, even though I know the judgnt I face. But at least I no longer have to suffer. Isn't that a release in itself?
"Lastly, let give you a word of advice. Never beco a traitor of the Abyss. Don't harbor any hope of returning once you're on that path."
After speaking, he took the holstered gun handed to him by the guard, slung it over his shoulder, and headed towards the riverbank.
...
Actually, Lu Heng didn't need his warning. He was well aware that taking on a Traitor Task was absolutely forbidden—it was the Abyss's temptation of Superpower Users.
Faced with a mysterious force capable of devouring countless worlds, a human hoping to receive the rewards of a Traitor Task without falling into becoming an Abyss Minion was impossible.
In his past life, Lu Heng had seen too many succumb to the temptation and fall as traitors; not one had t a good end.
It was a road of no return.
...
You ZhanYu ran swiftly to the riverbank, then looked around for the person to pick him up.
However, after dashing over a hundred ters along the riverbank and searching everywhere, he could not find the one eting him.
He took out the hard drive, raised it high, and shouted, "Do you still want the information? I've been exposed; unless you get out of the country, this data will be my funeral offering!"
After his shout, there was still no response around him.
He threw the hard drive onto the ground and pulled out his pistol, aiming it at the hard drive as if to shoot it.
At that mont.
A cloaked figure appeared on the riverbank and quickly approached him, stretching out a hand and speaking in English, "Give it to ."
You ZhanYu picked up the hard drive, pressed the gun against it, and threatened, "Get out of here, or you can forget about the hard drive."
"Co with ," the cloaked figure gestured and then turned to lead the way.
You ZhanYu had no choice but to follow.
Atop the embanknt, the faces of the command team watching these events unfold bore grave expressions.
The ploy to lure the enemy had not progressed as planned, but it couldn't be deed a failure either.
The strategy had indeed flushed out an enemy spy, but only one, and it was an Assassin System Superpower User adept at stealth.
There were plenty of Perceivers around, and catching this assassin shouldn't be a problem, but Alex Austin had not shown himself.
Capturing just a lowly minion bore little significance.
The commanding general ordered the Power Users with stealth abilities to follow, while the others remained in place, standing by to avoid startling the enemy.
Su Muyu frowned and asked, "Should we follow?"
Lu Heng pondered the sa question, wondering why Alex Austin had failed to appear?
Alex Austin did not show up. Did he know this was a trap?
Probably not. If they knew it was a trap, they wouldn't send anyone.
Since they sent soone, it ant they didn't realize it was a trap, and at the sa ti, they wanted the hard drive.
Therefore, the plan to lure the enemy had not failed.
Now the question was, how to find Alex Austin?
Following standard logic, this assassin superpower user should have taken You ZhanYu to et Alex Austin.
But could it be that simple?
Lu Heng began to put himself in the enemy's shoes. If he were Alex Austin, what would he do now? Where would he be?
Thinking of this question.
Lu Heng looked up and surveyed his surroundings. If it were him, before appearing, he would definitely first confirm whether this pickup was a trap.
How would he confirm?
Of course, from a position where he could see the river bank, watching how things unfolded while having his team's assassin move You ZhanYu to another location.
By changing locations, he could create space and observe whether there were any ambushes behind You ZhanYu.
That ant if Alex Austin had the sa idea, he should be at a place where he could see the river bank right now.
Moreover, Alex Austin would definitely arrange for a perceiver on the path You ZhanYu was taking to scout for any ambushes from behind.
With this thought, Lu Heng spoke up, "Hold on, I think Alex Austin should be nearby. We can't send an invisible soldier after You ZhanYu now; he would be detected by the enemy's perceiver."
The commanding general nodded in agreent, saying, "That makes sense. Everyone, hold your positions. Deploy perceivers to broaden the search area. Within a three-kiloter radius, every position with a view of the river bank should be checked. Let's see if there are any enemy spies lurking around."
Perceivers and stealth operatives were sent out to scout the area within a three-kiloter radius.
A three-kiloter radius was actually quite large, and it would take a long ti to check every position if they had to be thoroughly examined.
However, Alex Austin's team was definitely sowhere where they could see the river bank, so that narrowed down the search area considerably.
Lu Heng took a map, spread it out, and together with Su Muyu, they picked a few of the most likely locations for her to scout.
"Here, here, and here... go take a look and see if there's anyone there."
"Okay." Su Muyu nodded, released her Chongming Bird, entered an invisible state, and flew into the sky for reconnaissance.
Since her Chongming Bird had reached A-level, and after two class enhancents, its true strength was already quasi-S level.
So, in terms of contests of perception, Su Muyu had no rival at this stage.
As long as Alex Austin's team were in any of these positions, they definitely couldn't escape detection.
...
Ti ticked by, second by second.
Su Muyu checked the five most likely positions on the map, diving down close to confirm and prevent any special thods of concealnt.
After the reconnaissance, she shook her head and reported, "Nothing found; those five positions are clear."
Lu Heng frowned as he stared at the map. The five positions he had marked were the highest points within three kiloters and the most ideal vantage points to observe the river bank.
"Nothing?" Lu Heng continued to study the map, looking from one landmark to another, occasionally glancing up at the corresponding locations.
After looking up four or five tis, each ti his gaze swept across the Jingshui River, he saw a pleasure boat drifting downstream.
Previously, he had only focused on the surrounding high ground, but if it were on the Jingshui River, it would also provide a good view of the river bank.
Lu Heng was about to point at the pleasure boat in the middle of the Jingshui River when,
At that mont.
Zhuo Hongjun's voice ca over the communication channel: "Reporting to the commander, we have found enemy spies on the river boat. The second action team requests permission to strike!"
"Wait for the other teams to encircle them," the commanding general wanted a more secure capture of the spies.
However, Zhuo Hongjun spoke rapidly, saying, "There's no ti. Our team is very close to the pleasure boat. Sir, I am confident we can take down Alex Austin; please let us engage!"
As he said this.
On the western river bank, more than a dozen assault rifles opened fire at the sa ti, shooting at the pleasure boat on the river.
The battle erupted instantly.
Alex Austin leaped into action, clad in a cloak of thunder and lightning, instantly lighting up the night sky, then rode the thunder toward the western bank and slamd down his Thunder Hamr.
Boom!
Thunder surged, sending rocks flying about on the river bank.
The second action team's gunfire was instantly silenced.
Zhuo Hongjun drew two military daggers and rushed to battle with Alex Austin.
In Alex Austin's team, apart from the just-seen cloak-wearing assassin, there were three other superpower users: a Fla Walker controlling flas, a chanic mastering chanical puppets, and a Spirit Striker.
On realizing the battle had begun, the cloak-wearing assassin turned back, struck down You ZhanYu with one hit, snatched the hard drive, and then quickly skimd toward the river surface to et up with the team.
Alex Austin, along with his four superpower users, charged up the western river bank, crushing the second action team.
Zhuo Hongjun had hoped to take down Alex Austin in one fell swoop, but after clashing three tis, he realized Alex Austin's combat power far exceeded his expectations.
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