Mercenary I am the king

Chapter 1167 Victorious Reunion
Those occasional stray bullets aren't really that scary. After all, unless you're extremely unlucky, an inaccurate bullet is just like a headless fly.

Song Heping knew very well that the real test actually came from the sky.

The existence of the "Reaper" drones means that every exposure they make under the cover of night carries the risk of death.

One wrong move and you're out of the party.

The low ambient temperature at night on the plateau makes human heat sources more visible under infrared detection. Although they wear ghillie suits with some heat insulation and use thermal camouflage nets, the risks are still enormous in front of the drone's highly sensitive sensors.

In order to more firmly lead the trackers to the predetermined route, they must cross a narrow pass about fifty meters wide.

The terrain there is relatively flat, with steep rock walls on both sides, making it an excellent area for drone surveillance, but also a death trap.

"Pass through quickly! Don't linger!"

Song Heping gave a low shout, and the two of them simultaneously leaped out from behind the rocks where they were hiding, increasing their speed to the maximum and rushing towards the other end of the pass.

The cold air, when inhaled, causes a burning sensation in the lungs.

Just as they were about to cross the center point, a chilling, piercing whistling sound, like tearing fabric, approached from above at an alarming speed!

Song Heping, who had dealt with US drones countless times, broke out in a cold sweat.

Those are the drone's "Hellfire" missiles!
"missile!"

The hunter roared and lunged forward and to the side.

Song Heping also rolled to the other side at almost the same time.

The two disappeared almost instantly behind the rocks in the mountains.

"boom!!!"

The ground trembled violently! An AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-ground missile had struck their location with pinpoint accuracy just a second before!

A massive fireball rose into the air from the darkness, instantly illuminating the surroundings as if it were daytime. The shockwave, carrying debris, shrapnel, and scorching heat, spread out in a ring!

Song Heping felt as if he had been hit hard on the back by an invisible giant hammer. His eardrums were ringing and his mouth was filled with the taste of sand and gunpowder.

He gritted his teeth against the dizziness and the sharp pain in his back, and shouted hoarsely, "Hunter! Report the situation!"

"Cough... It's alright! I won't die!"

The hunter's voice came from the billowing smoke and darkness, accompanied by violent coughing, "Move! Before the smoke and darkness dissipate!"

The two dared not linger for a moment, scrambling and crawling, in the most disheveled yet most efficient manner, rushing into the rocky area opposite the pass.

They left behind a chaotic trail of footprints and a clump of bushes swept down by the shockwave. From the drone's perspective, especially in thermal imaging, all that could be seen was a patch of white and orange mixed heat signals.

Besides the sky, threats on the ground are equally ubiquitous.

During their detour to approach the basin, they once chose a dry underground riverbed, using its deep ravines to conceal their movements.

The river channel is almost completely dark, and only night vision devices can provide a view.

The air was filled with the damp smell of earth and decaying plants.

The two stood one behind the other, maintaining a defensive formation, their steps as light as cats, trying not to make a sound.

Just as we rounded a prominent bend in the riverbank, we suddenly heard a jumble of footsteps and the sound of people talking in hushed Arabic ahead!
Less than 30 meters away!
Song Heping instantly raised his clenched left fist, and the two of them froze, pressing themselves tightly against the cold, damp earthen wall, their breathing almost stopping.

The HK416 and SV-98 in his hands were instantly pointed at the source of the sound, and his fingers lightly rested on the trigger guard.

The other party clearly sensed something, and their footsteps stopped.

A suppressed, tense conversation could be faintly heard, along with the crisp sound of a machine gun bolt being pulled.

It was one of the Kold's search teams!

These guys really were born and raised here!
They actually managed to get in front of us!

That's absolutely shocking!

In the darkness, time seemed to stretch out, each second feeling like dancing on a knife's edge.

Sweat beaded on Song Heping's forehead, but quickly turned cold in the chilly night.

He turned his head and gave the hunter a subtle sign, clearly indicating that he should not take action unless absolutely necessary.

Both of them could clearly hear the strong, slow beating of their own hearts in their chests, as well as the other's heavy breathing.

If a firefight were to break out here, the muzzle flash would instantly reveal their precise location. In less than two minutes, the "Razor" squad could complete their encirclement from behind, at which point it would be a situation where they would have no chance of survival.

This time, Lady Luck seems to be on their side.

The Kold squad seemed to have received new instructions. After a heated, low argument, footsteps sounded again, gradually moving away in another direction and eventually disappearing into the darkness.

Only after confirming that the other party had completely left did Song Heping and the hunter slowly exhale the breath they had been holding in their chests, and exchange a glance through their night vision goggles.

Although they couldn't see each other's eyes, they could both feel each other's relief and solemnity.

It seems this route is no longer safe.

Song Heping immediately changed his route, abandoning the seemingly convenient river route. He preferred to take a longer detour, spending precious energy and time, rather than encountering those damned Kolds.

It was nearly 2:30 a.m., the deepest and darkest hour of the night.

The cold in the Mannier Valley had reached its peak, and the white breath exhaled from the breath interfered with the night vision goggles.

Song Heping and the hunter turned off all possible light sources, relying entirely on low-light/infrared night vision devices to navigate through the jagged rocks and bushes.

The occasional gunshots and the clamor of the pursuers behind me seemed to be absorbed and weakened by the boundless darkness, becoming distant and elusive.

However, the intuitive sense of threat from being pursued by a fierce adversary did not diminish; on the contrary, it became even more acute due to the limitations of vision and the stimulation of the cold. The U.S. Army's "Razor" squads are also equipped with the latest quad-eye panoramic night vision devices and infrared laser designators, giving them formidable combat capabilities even at night.

Like a pack of patient wolves, relying on high-tech equipment and the hunting instincts honed through countless nights, they relentlessly pursued the traces left by Song Heping and his companion.

This chase in the cold of the early morning has transcended mere physical strength and tactics, rising to the ultimate contest of will and patience.

"almost."

Using the rocks as cover, Song Heping glanced at his surroundings.

Although the outlines of the mountains were blurred in the darkness, for a map expert like Song Heping, he only needed to see the terrain clearly to find the corresponding locations on the map in his mind.

He quickly recalled and precisely compared the coordinates of the rendezvous point he had agreed upon with Petrovsky.

"About one kilometer ahead, at the edge of the basin. We can signal the Russians from here. If everything goes well on their end, they should arrive in about ten minutes."

The hunter nodded silently and pulled a cylindrical object, slightly thicker than a thumb and without any markings, from a special pocket in his tactical vest—a miniature infrared laser designator.

He carefully aimed the laser in the intended direction, adjusted it to the agreed-upon invisible infrared frequency, and then pressed the switch.

Several brief, almost negligible infrared laser pulses, completely undetectable to the naked eye and ordinary equipment, pierced the cold darkness and shot towards the rocky area in the center of the basin.

This invisible light is actually useless in the drone's night vision scanning mode, but this is the meeting point, and also the place where the real show begins.

Setting up an infrared laser pulse emitter here is tantamount to telling those American special forces soldiers—I'm here, come on, baby!

In the heart of the Mannier Valley basin, deep within a pile of rocks scattered like the bones of a giant beast, in a naturally formed, extremely well-hidden crevice, Major Petrovsky's personal terminal on his arm emitted an extremely faint vibration at a specific frequency.

I took out the PDA and turned it on. On the screen, a receiver icon disguised as a system icon flashed three times regularly before disappearing.

Petrovsky's face, as hard as the Siberian permafrost, seemed to soften by a tiny, insignificant detail.

"The 'guest' has arrived on time. Prepare to receive him. 'Signal,' give Song our location immediately."

He whispered into his headset.

"Signal" immediately emerged from its hiding place, moved to the observation position, and used night vision goggles to observe the distance.

Soon, several red dots flashed a few times on the mountainside nearly a kilometer away, then quickly went out.

He quickly took out the same infrared indicator and aimed it at Song Heping's location, sending three short signals.

Just as "Signal" began to make contact with Song Heping, the squad's deputy leader and sniper, "Cold Blade" Dmitry, silently carried his sniper rifle and, like a raccoon, climbed up to a well-positioned firing position above a crevice in the rock.

Machine gunner "Iron Hammer" Volkov carefully moved the machine gun forward a few meters and set it up in a new position that could provide intense flanking fire while being perfectly shielded by natural rocks, minimizing the heat signature of the gun.

The entire SSO team operated silently and efficiently in the cold and darkness, waiting for the prey to arrive and for the show to begin.

About ten minutes later, two figures, almost blending into the darkness, silently slipped into the crevice where Petrovsky's squad was hiding, using every indentation and shadow on the ground in a nearly crawling posture.

Their movements were swift and precise, without knocking over a single loose stone, only bringing in a gust of cold air from outside.

"Who?"

A cold voice came from behind the shadows of the rocks.

"Volga."

Song Heping, panting, answered the code in a low voice.

The prolonged extreme running and high level of mental stress had depleted his physical strength, making him appear even more exhausted in the cold.

"Song. Welcome back."

In the shadows, Petrovsky's tall figure emerged from behind the stone.

He reached out and pulled the nearly exhausted Song Heping and the hunter one after the other into the relatively spacious crevice in the rock.

It was slightly warmer inside the crevice than outside, but still icy cold.

The interior of the rock crevice had clearly been simply arranged to create several corners where people could take turns resting and keeping watch, and weapons and ammunition were neatly placed in a dry place.

The SSO members took their positions, silent and vigilant like rocks.

"How's it going?"

Song Heping pulled out the tube and took a few deep breaths of the water mixed with the energy drink packet from the water bag, feeling his parched throat slightly relieved.

"The guests from the east were treated very 'warmly'."

Petrovsky used a rare touch of dark humor, but there was no smile in his eyes, only a chilling murderous intent.

"They've left behind at least eighty corpses and retreated to lick their wounds. However, that mad dog Abu Omar has called for reinforcements—a large force—who are now less than two kilometers away and should arrive soon. What about you?"

"The tail is very long. The American special forces team is as elusive as a shadow, while the Kold are like hyenas that have smelled blood. They are so familiar with this place that they have gotten ahead of us several times, which startled me."

Song Heping summarized succinctly.

The hunter beside him had already quickly unloaded his SV-98 sniper rifle and, using the faint moonlight/night vision light filtering through the rock crevices, began to skillfully inspect the bolt and replace the rubber seal inside the suppressor, which was slightly worn due to continuous firing. The cold made the metal parts feel even more piercing to the touch.

"very good."

Excitement flashed in Petrovsky's eyes.

"The stage is set up and the actors are in place. Now, let's find a good spot and enjoy the show."

　Asking for a monthly ticket! Asking for a monthly ticket!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)