Chapter 213

Xie Wendong paced back and forth in the room several times and said, “There can’t be just that one path to get down the mountain, right?” Ren Changfeng was also unfamiliar with the terrain and was about to send someone to investigate when the two members of the Secret Squad said, “There is indeed only one path down the mountain, but it’s possible to descend from other areas as well—only it’s covered in dense forests and not easy to navigate.”

Xie Wendong replied, “Dense forests? It doesn’t matter if the path is easy to walk; what worries me is that Xiang Wentian might have set up an ambush in the woods. If we rush in recklessly, we risk being completely wiped out.”

Ren Changfeng agreed, “Brother Dong is right. Since Xiang Wentian has planned so meticulously, he must have considered the possibility that we might break through the forests to get down the mountain.”

Xie Wendong pondered and said, “It seems we have no choice but to wait!” Ren Changfeng, confused, asked, “Wait for whom?” Xie Wendong smiled and said, “Jiang Sen!” Ren Changfeng slapped his own forehead. Right, how could he have forgotten this ‘honest man’? He asked urgently, “Brother Dong, I was wondering why Jiang Sen hasn’t shown up in this operation at all. Where is he?”

Where was Jiang Sen? He wasn’t far from Xie Wendong, both of them at the foot of the mountain—just like Xiang Wentian, but while the latter was in the east, Jiang Sen was in the dense forests to the west. He wasn’t alone; Liu Bo and no less than a hundred members of the Blood Kill Secret Squad were with him. Liu Bo was holding a night vision device, wearing it on his eyes, marveling nonstop. “Wow, this thing really works well. With this, everything is crystal clear.” Although he was a military man, he had only seen advanced products like night vision devices on TV or in magazines; this was the first time he’d seen one in person. As he praised it, he muttered under his breath, “No wonder people say Red Leaf is so amazing. With just this equipment, he’s a hundred times stronger than the military.” Saying that, he bent down and kicked lightly at the person lying on the ground.

Jiang Sen wasn’t idle either. He collected quite a few ‘treasures’ from the man—two pistols, one large and one small, a sniper rifle, two grenades, a Swiss Army knife, a military dagger, a small walkie-talkie. Finally, he found a compass in the man’s arms. Jiang Sen sneered and said, “Brother, did you come to the mainland to fight?!”

This man was indeed a member of Red Leaf. He had been lying in wait in the jungle behind the villa with his comrades. Once Xie Wendong entered the dense forest, it would be impossible for him to escape alive. These Red Leaf members were well-equipped, each carrying night vision goggles, allowing them to see clearly even in complete darkness. Their marksmanship was also exceptional; it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say they could shoot through a target from a hundred paces away. However, Hou Xiaoyun learned that Nie Tianxing had sent people to rescue Xie Wendong, and they were fighting against the three thousand men sent by Xiang Wentian. She wanted to show off Red Leaf’s strength in front of Xiang Wentian, so she sent this man to assassinate Nie Tianxing. This man had excellent marksmanship and was skilled at using snipers for assassinations, capable of killing a flying fly from a hundred meters away. He had just come down the mountain and hadn’t taken two steps when he happened to encounter Jiang Sen and Liu Bo, who were on their way there. It was truly a coincidence of bad luck. Before he could run, the two of them grabbed him and found a red maple leaf in his pocket. Without needing to ask, Jiang Sen and Liu Bo already knew this man was a Red Leaf member. After being captured, he closed his eyes and said nothing.

Jiang Sen fiddled with the compass and said with a smile, “Brother, you’ve got some backbone. I like people like you!” Then, he picked up the dagger found on the man to trim his nails and asked, “There must be quite a few of you Red Leaf members on the continent. I want to know the exact number.” The man opened his eyes to look at him before closing them again. Jiang Sen asked further, “Are there any others hiding in the forest?” The man remained silent with his eyes closed. Jiang Sen’s eyes sparkled as he asked again, “How many more Red Leaf members are hiding in the forest?”

The man still remained silent. Jiang Sen glared at him. He had no time to waste on him. He suddenly waved his hand, thrusting the dagger into the man’s palm with force. The dagger pierced through his palm and sank deep into the ground. The man screamed, his face covered in sweat, his body trembling uncontrollably. Jiang Sen leaned close to his face and said coldly, “I’ll only ask once. If you don’t want to suffer, answer me. Otherwise, I’ll show you what happens when a person turns into a beehive—yet still doesn’t die.” With that, he pulled out the dagger and stabbed again, creating another hole in the man’s palm. Liu Bo sighed heavily, walked over, knelt down, and said, “Brother, it’s better to talk. That way, you’ll suffer less.” He then pointed at Jiang Sen and said, “This guy will do whatever he says. Don’t take him lightly. Dying in a foreign land is truly a painful thing.”

The man swallowed hard, glanced at Liu Bo, then at Jiang Sen, and forced a cold smirk onto his contorted face. “There are indeed many of my companions in the forest. Whoever goes in won’t survive—none of you, not even Xie Wendong, will be an exception.” With that, he closed his eyes, ready to face whatever they decided to do to him.

Jiang Sen asked, “How many are there?” The man sneered, “Not many. Just one round of fire will take care of all of you in this forest.” Furious, Jiang Sen slapped him across the face and said, “Stop being so arrogant!” Then, he grabbed the man’s eyes with one hand and used the other to cut his throat.

“Ah!” Liu Bo was shocked. “Why kill him? I still have so many questions!” Jiang Sen waved his hand. “Enough. I don’t think he can tell us anything anyway. Saving Brother Dong is more important. Let’s charge in!” Liu Bo shook his head repeatedly. “No! The Red Leaf members all have night vision goggles. If a fight breaks out, the darkness in the forest will put us at a huge disadvantage.”

Jiang Sen smiled. “Don’t worry. We’ll use this!” He took out a round wooden stick over half a foot long. Liu Bo took a closer look, smiled, and said, “I never expected you to have fireworks on you.” What Jiang Sen had taken out were indeed fireworks, but more accurately, torches—with a powder charge at one end that released intense light when lit. Such items were rare in the market, but railway departments often used them as emergency signal lights. It was unclear where Jiang Sen had obtained them. Jiang Sen patted his backpack and said with a smile, “I knew we’d be fighting at night, so I specifically bought these. They’re quite cheap—five yuan each. Perfect for using as fireworks during the New Year.”

Liu Bo nodded. “Indeed, perfect!” Jiang Sen distributed the torches to everyone, gave more instructions, and then, along with Liu Bo, led the group deeper into the jungle.

Just as Xie Wendong had said, the Nan Hongmen’s first attack was merely a probe. About half an hour later, the real attack began. No fewer than five thousand men, led by Xiao Fang, Gun King Zhan Long, and Wolf King Qian Xixi, charged fiercely toward the villa on the hillside. Behind them, Xiang Wentian led another five thousand men as a reserve force, while Hou Xiaoyun stationed the over a hundred Red Leaf members he brought in the dense forest behind the villa. Their momentum was such that it seemed they were determined to swallow Xie Wendong whole.

Xie Wendong wasn’t exactly at ease right now, but not a trace of tension could be seen on his face. Standing on a rock in front of the villa and looking down at the mountains, he saw a mass of white mist emerging from the darkness. Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a dense crowd of Nanhongmen disciples. Xie Wendong smiled and said, “It seems Xiang Wentian is really going all out this time!”
Ren Changfeng had already seen clearly. Wiping the sweat from his forehead and swallowing hard, he said, “It seems there must be about five thousand of them!”
Xie Wendong estimated quickly and nodded, “Exactly that number!” Ren Changfeng said with a wry smile, “But we’re not even two hundred right now.” Xie Wendong replied, “If we include the wounded, it’s almost two hundred.” Ren Changfeng urged anxiously, “Even if we have two hundred people, we’re probably not enough to withstand their charge.” Xie Wendong said, “That’s right, so it’s better if we retreat back inside the villa.” After saying that, he shouted, “Everyone, retreat inside the villa now! Stay quiet and don’t turn on the lights!” He jumped down from the rock, stretched his limbs, and muttered to himself, “It seems another fierce battle awaits us tonight!” Ren Changfeng thought to himself: It’s not just a fierce battle—it’s a life-or-death struggle! He glanced at Xie Wendong, who showed no sign of fear at all, his smiling eyes narrowed into slits. Ren Changfeng wondered why this brother Xie was so confident. In fact, Xie Wendong was also nervous—after all, he was facing over five thousand fierce men armed with real weapons. He just didn’t show it on his face. If everyone saw that he was scared, there would be no need to fight at all.
Xie Wendong led everyone back inside the villa, ordering them to be silent and turn off the lights, turning the place completely dark and eerily quiet. When Xiao Fang arrived in front of the villa, he saw exactly this scene. The villa’s gate was wide open, the courtyard was pitch black, and the small building was the same—no sound at all. It was as silent as an ancient ruin, and that silence was terrifying. Qian Xixi didn’t care about any of that; she led her men to charge in. Xiao Fang had suffered too many losses at Xie Wendong’s hands, so he quickly stopped her, saying earnestly, “That’s not right!” Qian Xixi was stunned and asked, “Why not?”
Xiao Fang said, “Xie Wendong is full of tricks. We mustn’t fall for his schemes!” “Hah!” Qian Xixi dismissed him with a laugh, saying, “Brother Xiao, you’re overthinking it. Xie Wendong is already trapped like a fish in a jar—what tricks could he possibly play now?!” Though she said this, she secretly sneered inwardly. Xiao Fang was so scared of Xie Wendong that even now he was still afraid of falling for his traps. Xiao Fang could see right through Qian Xixi’s thoughts and said with a wry smile, “Brother Qian, Xie Wendong is definitely no ordinary person. It’s best to be careful!”

At this moment, Zhan Long nodded and said, “Brother Xiao is right. However, it could also be a trap set by Xie Wendong to buy time. How about this: I’ll lead my men in first. If there’s indeed an ambush, I’ll withdraw quickly. If not, Brother Xiao and Brother Qian can follow in and finish the job. What do you think?”
Xiao Fang nodded, agreeing that Zhan Long’s idea was good, but Qian Xixi shook his head vigorously. He thought to himself that Zhan Long was just trying to steal credit. Why should he take the lead? Why must the greatest credit go to him? With that in mind, he said, “Brother Zhan’s idea is good, but I want to take the lead. Do you mind if I do?”
Zhan Long sighed inwardly, knowing Qian Xixi thought he wanted to steal credit. With a bitter smile, he said, “Since Brother Qian wants to take the lead, I have no objections at all.”
“Great!” Qian Xixi grinned broadly, overjoyed. Fearing Zhan Long might change his mind, he hurriedly led a few hundred men and strode into the villa. Qian Xixi was brave, but he was the typical type of person with muscle but no brains. Xiao Fang knew him very well. Just as he wanted to step forward to stop him, Zhan Long pulled him back, shook his head, and whispered, “Let him go! If we stop him now, he’ll surely think we’re trying to steal his credit and will be resentful. That would only cause trouble.” Xiao Fang sighed and shook his head silently.
The Wolf King walked around the courtyard twice but saw no sign of anyone. Finally, his gaze settled on the small building. He walked up to the door and laughed wildly before shouting, “Xie Wendong, I know you’re inside! Your grandfather Qian has come in person today. If you’re sensible, come out on your own. Don’t make me drag you out—it would be embarrassing for you.” He shouted for a long time, but there was no response from inside. Qian Xixi’s face turned red. Feeling like he was performing a one-man show, he grew furious. He raised his hand to open the door, but then suddenly had an idea. He turned to the men below and said, “Go and open the door for me.”
Although the men were dissatisfied, they didn’t dare disobey his order. They hesitantly turned the doorknob. To their surprise, the door wasn’t locked at all, and it swung open slowly. The man who opened the door was so scared that he rushed over to Qian Xixi. Qian Xixi kicked him away angrily and said, “Useless!” With a motion of his shoulder, he drew the battle sword from his waist and waved it, saying, “Come with me! Let’s storm in and bring back Xie Wendong’s head to show our leader!”

After speaking, Qian Xixi picked up the knife and headed inside. As soon as he reached the door, he saw a white figure flash by and fly straight at him. Startled, Qian Xixi thought to himself what kind of hidden weapon could be so large. Instinctively, he swung his knife. With great force, the knife split the white figure in two. Before he could figure out what it was, he felt something wet on his face and body—sticky and unknown. His heart trembled, and he quickly stepped back. Touching his face under the moonlight, he saw traces of blood. Looking at the Wolf King, the others saw a man covered in blood, both on his body and face. Qian Xixi let out a scream, leaped high, and turned to see on the ground a disciple of the Nan Hongmen, cut in two with blood everywhere. Needless to say, the white “hidden weapon” that flew at him was this Hongmen disciple. Qian Xixi’s facial muscles twisted, and combined with the blood on his face, he resembled a demon just crawled out of hell. Gritting his teeth, he forced out three words: “Xie, Wen, Dong!” Hearing Qian Xixi’s scream, Xiao Fang and Zhan Long thought something terrible had happened to him and rushed to the courtyard. Seeing his condition, they were both shocked. Although they felt an indescribable dislike for him, Xiao Fang stepped forward quickly and asked worriedly, “Brother Qian, where are you injured?”