"Calling Wolf's Den. We have a car of Magpies returning to the nest."
"Let them in."
The binoculars tracked the small vehicle as it flickered in and out of sight between the mountain peaks and the forest.
Only when the silver chassis disappeared completely into the greenery did the commander lower the lens.
The Pan-Continent Alliance had set up the command headquarters for this operation on a mountain fifteen kiloters away from the enemy stronghold. The vantage point offered excellent visibility and sat precisely at the limits of both the Managent Authority's tolerance and their equipnt's range. If the commander shifted his binoculars to the west, he would see that the Managent Authority had also pitched a tent on another peak, similarly observing the situation—though they were watching the Alliance. So far, both sides had adhered to their agreent, maintaining mutual restraint.
It seed a disturbance had broken out on the Managent Authority's side. They were utterly swamped in their own territory and had no imdiate plans to interfere with the operation. This was a good sign.
Before long, twilight descended, and the encroaching shadows cast a veil of cover over the soldiers and munitions scattered throughout the forest.
Biological instincts would naturally cause people to lower their guard at this hour, making them feel fatigued and yearn for rest and food.
It was an ideal ti for a change of guard, and an equally perfect ti to launch an attack.
The small screen on the radio on the desk lit up.
"Eagle calling Wolf's Den. All outer Nests have been locked onto. The surface level of the Lair has five targets remaining on guard; the rest have moved underground. Over."
"Chaleon, what is your team's status?" one of the staff officers asked.
Two sharp beeps echoed from the other end of the comms.
"Everything is in position, sir," the chief of staff reported.
The commander scrutinized the drone feeds displayed across a row of screens. Through the thermal imaging lenses, the hidden sentries lurking at the edge of the woods were laid completely bare. After several hours of continuous monitoring, the occasional heat signatures leaking from beneath the camouflage nets had directly exposed their positions. Such amateur tricks could not deceive the Alliance's eyes.
Had this been the wilderness, the enemy surely would have deployed more counterasures. However, this was the city outskirts—a jurisdiction governed by the law, where the Alliance could join hands with official forces and operate openly.
In the realm of conventional military operations, even the Managent Authority had to take a back seat to the Alliance.
The commander could not be absolutely certain this was an Ascension Society stronghold, but local gangs lacked such a high degree of organization. There were no obvious signs of drug manufacturing or smuggling nearby, which did not align with the typical profile of a criminal syndicate.
Besides, even if they hit the wrong target, they would still be helping to clean up the streets. The local authorities would have to thank them for it.
"Can the lockdown be completed on schedule?" the commander asked.
"All the Reality Stabilization Anchors from the nearby offices have been transferred over, but it still isn't enough." The chief of staff glanced westward toward the Managent Authority's camp. "Unless we get an imdiate supply drop, otherwise..."
"Those unscrupulous rchants using their technology monopoly to jack up prices... No, we do not need to buy from them. Comnce the operation."
As darkness descended from the sky, the commander's orders traveled along invisible electromagnetic waves to the outermost edge of the encirclent.
The forest brimd with the chirping of insects and birds, just like any other day.
An Ascension Society sentry, hiding at a high vantage point to monitor the road below, waved his hand to swat away the mosquitoes. Maintaining vigilance for several hours straight was incredibly draining, especially with so much traffic on the roads. The Alliance was conducting an anti-gang sweep in the city, and gang mbers were scattering like roaches sprayed with insecticide, exploding out of the sewers and scurrying in every direction. It was impossible to know where to focus his guard.
Many Alliance vehicles had passed by, but none were heading toward the stronghold.
Perhaps the Alliance was planning to establish deep cooperation with the official forces of the Tenth District.
He wondered when his relief would finally arrive...
A dull thud echoed from the distance, sounding like a falling object or perhaps a blown tire on so passing car.
The sound reverberated through the mountains three tis, answering other strange noises that rang out simultaneously.
The sentry slumped sideways and plumted from the tree.
Every outpost visible under the thermal imaging lenses was eliminated. The drone array hidden high in the sky contracted inward, sweeping past the fading white heat signatures on the ground and closing in on the abandoned building complex in the woods. Several white figures dashed indoors, and soone shut the windows, vanishing from the thermal feed. However, in the seemingly empty spaces outside the house, several friendly signals hovered, rapidly approaching the building.
"Gunshots?"
"Too far away to hear clearly."
"The outposts aren't responding. I will try calling again..."
"Could it be the Alliance? How did they find this place?"
The people inside the building were still unsure of the situation, but the strange noises and the lost connection with their comrades outside were enough to spark panic.
"Sothing must have happened. We need to tell them to evacuate. I will call the underground—"
To be fair, the personnel left guarding the surface had reacted swiftly and maintained adequate vigilance. Yet, before their ergency protocol could even begin, the glass of an east-facing window on the first floor shattered. The man preparing to contact his comrades underground collapsed rigidly to the floor. The others raised their guns toward the window and unleashed a hail of suppressing fire outside. But when the gunfire ceased, they saw nothing but the swaying shadows of trees beneath the night sky.
"Where are they?"
"No gunshots, and I don't see anyone!"
"Hey..." one of them said. "Did you guys not close the door when you ca in?"
At so unknown point, the main entrance of the building had been pushed open just enough for a person to slip through. The door creaked as it swayed in the night breeze, allowing the moonlight to spill inside.
"They're using invisibility!"
Soone shouted the correct answer, but the muzzle flashes that materialized out of thin air in the corner extinguished any chance of resistance.
Once all the gunn had fallen, several figures accompanied by a rippling distortion in the air erged from the shadows around the room. They fired a follow-up shot into the head and chest of each person on the ground. Completely encased in black combat suits, they looked like a flock of ghosts drifting in on the wind.
The squad leader scrutinized the silenced pistol in his hand, muttering a complaint about its stopping power and accuracy—he had clearly fired three consecutive shots at the start, yet only one man had gone down.
"Found the entrance to the underground." A squad mber yanked away a carpet, revealing a vertical shaft with a heavy gate beneath it. The passage was incredibly narrow, only wide enough for one person to climb down at a ti.
At that mont, a peal of thunder rolled in from afar. The resulting tremors made the abandoned building sway precariously, throwing everyone's heartbeat out of rhythm.
"Lock the gate. Coordinates sent. It is ti for us to withdraw."
The gate slamd shut with a heavy thud.
The booming echoes traveled all the way down the vertical shaft to the underground. The two Ascension Society mbers guarding the bottom of the shaft exchanged a glance from behind their cover.
"Are they not coming down?"
"They might be planning to drop hand grenades down the shaft. Be careful."
Behind them lay a corner, and just past that was a long, narrow corridor utterly devoid of cover, with two more firing points positioned at the far end.
If the Alliance intended to assault this location by force, they would inevitably pay a massive price to cross those short ten-plus ters.
In the main hall at the end of the corridor, countless people were rushing about under Leader Qin's command, carrying out their tasks with orderly precision.
"Has the roster been burned yet? You two, there is no ti to dismantle the equipnt, so just blow it up! We absolutely cannot let it fall into the Alliance's hands! Everyone keep moving! We can all get out of here, so do not panic!"
"Gasoline! Bring another barrel of gasoline!"
"Smash the mainfras! Ignore the monitors!"
"Heart Fist, was your car followed?"
"Move fast! Now is not the ti to argue!"
More than thirty seconds of their one-minute final warning had already ticked by.
The Yunling City stronghold was rely a safe house, but the possibility of an attack had been factored into its construction. They possessed ample contingency asures.
Shi Rang stood at the edge of the chaos, clutching the cardboard box containing the mini-humans.
When he first heard of the Pan-Continent Alliance's arrival, his eyes had lit up. The clues he had deliberately planted had finally drawn the desired response. However, upon learning there was no backup exit, a cold sweat broke out across his skin.
He was the one who lured the Alliance here, but since he was also trapped inside the very stronghold under siege, it was impossible for him not to be nervous.
If a stray bullet caught him before he could reveal his identity, everything would be over.
He held the box full of mini-humans tight against his chest, waiting to see where the storm he had personally unleashed would sweep him.
When the Pan-Continent Alliance went on the offensive... would they offer a chance to surrender?
How was he supposed to prove who he was?
Leader Qin dashed over from a short distance away and grabbed a mber crouching by the communications equipnt. "Have we received a reply? When will Mirror get here?"
"I am already here." A young man wearing a cloak appeared on one side of the hall, accompanied by a flash of light. "Where is he?"
"That is him. The data on the Eye of God is inside his head. Absolutely nothing can happen to this guy." Leader Qin anxiously shoved Shi Rang forward. "For the future of humanity, you must get him to safety."
"For the future of humanity."
The brown-skinned young man known as Mirror grabbed Shi Rang. With his other hand, he pulled a photograph out from under his cloak.
The next mont, another flash erupted. A trendous force yanked Shi Rang forward, forcing him to stumble a couple of steps. He suddenly realized he had been teleported to a place that resembled a hunting cabin.
Looking back, the photograph in Mirror's hand was gone. In its place, a reality rift had been torn open in the air, and the scene inside the stronghold rippled like water within the tear.
Mirror waited for the continuously rippling image to stabilize before waving to his comrades waiting to evacuate on the other side. "Next!"
The next in line was the young boy, Heart Fist. He leaped toward their side of the rift, and Mirror reached out to pull him through. But suddenly, accompanied by a deafening crash, a shadow drilled straight through the stronghold's ceiling and smashed into the center of the room, crushing a passing mber beneath it.
It was a massive, inverted teardrop-shaped tal object.
Heart Fist lunged forward in absolute terror.
The unidentified object erupted from within, unleashing an intensely bright light. The rift collapsed instantly under the shockwave. A violent burst of turbulent air blasted through the tear just before it vanished, sending both Shi Rang and Mirror flying to the ground.
Mirror picked himself up from the floor. He looked down at his hand, which still registered the phantom sensation of touch, only to see he was holding a severed hand.
Peals of thunder echoed in the distance, far more terrifying than any thunder Shi Rang had heard in his entire life. He stared chanically in the direction of the noise, only to see a billowing fireball, wreathed in thick smoke, surging straight into the heavens.
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