One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Nie Lingfeng nodded, and the three of them flashed to the door like ghosts. The door was a heavy iron door, but it wasn't locked; it was just ajar. Nie Lingfeng gently pushed it open a crack, revealing a spacious hall with only a dim emergency light on. A guard was dozing in a corner.

"Leave this to me." Daoist Wang Ye made a hand seal and pointed at the guard from afar. The guard's head tilted to the side, and he fell asleep on the table, even snoring. The Feng Hou Qi Men technique affects local spacetime, instantly plunging someone into a deeper sleep.

The three quickly entered the building. According to Erzhuang's instructions, the underground entrance was likely in a hidden room on the ground floor or directly leading to the basement. They searched each floor carefully, avoiding the guards patrolling the building (most of whom were silently taken down by Chen Duo's Gu worms), and finally found an inconspicuous little room at the end of the corridor on the first floor, with a Russian sign on the door that read "Electrical Distribution Room, No Unauthorized Personnel Allowed".

"This is it. There's a strong energy reaction and metallic echo behind the door," Erzhuang confirmed.

Nie Lingfeng tried it; the door was locked—it was an electronic combination lock. He looked at Wang Ye. Wang Ye shrugged, stepped forward, and tapped the combination lock panel a few times while muttering incantations. Suddenly, the indicator light on the lock flashed wildly, then with a soft "beep," the green light came on, and the door opened.

"It's just a small trick, a change in the 'fortune' of the circuit," Master Wang said casually.

Pushing open the door, it wasn't a power distribution room, but a brightly lit concrete staircase leading downwards. At the top of the stairs was a heavy alloy door with an electronic lock, from which a faint buzzing vibration could be heard.

"This is it." Nie Lingfeng's eyes narrowed. He gently placed the unconscious ninja he was carrying under his arm against the corner of the wall, signaled Wang Ye and Chen Duo to be on guard, and walked to the alloy door. The electronic lock on the door looked even more complicated.

"Erzhuang, can you handle this?"

"Trying to crack it... It's a bit troublesome. It's an independent internal network system, physically isolated. I need some time to establish a data channel... Wait! Erzhuang's voice suddenly became urgent. "Commander Nie! Watch out! A large number of heat source signals are rapidly approaching from upstairs and outside! We've been discovered! It's possible that the sniper on the roof was eliminated, triggering the alarm, or there are other surveillance cameras we haven't detected!"

Almost at the same time that Erzhuang gave the warning, a piercing alarm suddenly blared throughout the entire factory area! Chaotic shouts and hurried footsteps came from upstairs! And the alloy door in front of them suddenly made a soft "click" sound and slowly slid open to both sides!

Behind the door was not the missile silo or secret warehouse one might imagine, but a brightly lit hall that resembled a small underground fortress!

In the center of the hall stood a dark green cylindrical object, over ten meters long, bearing white serial numbers! The cold metallic luster and conspicuous danger markings on the missile body clearly indicated its terrifying identity—a tactical missile!

Several people were standing next to the missile.

Leading the group was a giant man nearly two meters tall, bald, with a face full of scars, a ferocious bear head tattoo on his neck, and explosive muscles that couldn't be concealed even by a thin leather jacket. He carried an exaggerated shotgun with a barrel as thick as a wrist, and stared intently at Nie Lingfeng and his two companions at the door with fierce, bloodshot eyes. It was Bald Bear!

Behind the bald bear stood several powerful figures: an elderly man from Japan dressed in a kimono with a sword at his waist; a burly man from Russia wearing a military overcoat with hawk-like eyes; and a white man in a suit, smoking a cigar, exuding an elite air. They represented the Ninja Association of Japan, the Snowfield Fang of Russia, and the Freedom Vanguard of Russia, respectively! Clearly, the leading figures of these factions had somehow gathered here!

What's even more unsettling is that in the shadows around the hall, there are no fewer than twenty fully armed and sharp-looking gunmen, all pointing their guns at the door!

"Hahahaha!" Bald Bear, seeing Nie Lingfeng and his companions, was not surprised but delighted, letting out a piercing laugh like an owl. He roared in broken but loud Chinese, "I knew it! Rats always end up in their cages! I've been waiting for you, you Chinese temporary workers!"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over Nie Lingfeng and the other two, then seemingly looking through them into the darkness outside. His voice was filled with undisguised greed and arrogance: "Since you're all here, stop hiding! Come out! Perfect, everyone's here, saves me the trouble of searching for you one by one!"

As he spoke, a small door on the side of the hall opened, and several people, bound hand and foot, gagged and injured, were pushed in. They were none other than Wang Zhenqiu, Gao Yuhuan, and two other skilled fighters from the Northeast region! They had clearly been in a fight; bloodstains covered them. Wang Zhenqiu's signature red hair was disheveled, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, but his eyes remained defiant. Upon seeing Nie Lingfeng, he even blinked.

Bald Bear pointed smugly at Wang Zhenqiu and his group who were tied up, then at Nie Lingfeng, and Zhang Chulan, Zhang Lingyu, and Feng Baobao who had rushed down from upstairs (they had obviously heard the alarm and came down to provide support after dealing with the guards on the roof). Finally, his gaze swept over the other groups in the hall, and he said with a sinister grin:

"Everyone's here! From China, Japan, Russia, and the US... Heh heh, looks like they're all interested in my treasure!" He patted the cold missile body beside him. "Fine! I'm not unreasonable! I can't handle this thing all by myself, let alone afford it! Rather than letting it rot here or bring disaster upon myself, I'd rather... get something more practical!"

He grinned widely, revealing a mouthful of yellow teeth, and his voice echoed through the hall:

"Three days! In three days, right here, I'm going to hold an auction! Highest bidder wins! This missile, and the 'other good stuff' I found underground in the chemical plant, are all auction items! As for the rules... it's simple, whoever brings the most 'money' or the best 'goods' gets them! Of course, if anyone dares to cause trouble in Ussuriysk during these three days and breaks my rules..."

He suddenly raised the shotgun in his hand, aimed it at the ceiling, and pulled the trigger!

boom!!!

A deafening gunshot rang out, a large hole was punched in the ceiling, and dust fell in a flurry.

"...This is what happens!" Bald Bear grinned maliciously, lowering his gun and blowing away non-existent gunpowder smoke. "Now, all of you get out of here! Find a place to stay, prepare your 'money' and 'goods,' and we'll see what happens in three days!"

The hall was deathly silent, with only the faint low-frequency vibrations emanating from inside the missile and the heavy breathing of the crowd.

Nie Lingfeng stared coldly at Bald Bear, then swept his gaze over the various expressions on the faces of the other factions, and finally exchanged a glance with Wang Zhenqiu.

The situation has become more complicated than expected.

A frenzied auction revolving around missiles and unknown "goodies" is about to unfold beneath the surface of this icy border town. And they have been forced from the shadows into the open.

Three days is neither a long nor a short time.

For the temporary workers and people in the Northeast region who were trapped in Xueling Town, these three days felt like an eternity.

The snowstorm in Xueling Town hadn't stopped for three days, as if even the heavens were pouring their chill onto this border town. The snow outside the inn was already knee-deep, and icicles as thick as arms hung from the eaves, reflecting a cold light in the dim lamplight. The townspeople were already used to such harsh winters, huddled in their heated brick beds, not venturing out, and even the usually noisy dogs were too lazy to bark. But the group staying at the inn was like ants on a hot plate, unable to find a moment's peace.

Wang Zhenqiu, Gao Yuhuan, and several others from the feint attack team were taken hostage by Bald Bear. Although the news indicated they were not in immediate danger—Bald Bear was hoping to use them as bargaining chips to gain some benefits—this was undoubtedly a noose tightening around their necks. The infiltration team was exposed, forced to move from the shadows to the open, and the entire plan was disrupted. Furthermore, the "auction" orchestrated by Bald Bear completely muddied the already chaotic waters, bringing the conflicts between the various factions to the forefront.

The atmosphere in the temporary command post of Xueling Inn was so heavy it could be squeezed out of you.

The command post was set up in the largest guest room in the backyard of the inn, which had originally been the innkeeper's warehouse for stockpiling goods. It had been temporarily cleared out and replaced with a few tables and maps. A floor plan of the Ussuriysk chemical plant and a map of the surrounding terrain were nailed to the wall, densely marked with red and blue pencils, like a giant spider web. The tea on the table had long since gone cold, and no one had any appetite for it.

Gao Lian paced back and forth in the room like a restless, trapped beast, his footsteps creaking loudly on the wooden floor, the sound particularly jarring in the quiet night. He was already hot-tempered, and the recent loss of his nephew—though only detained and not in mortal danger—had only fueled his rage. Each stomp of his boots seemed to cause the floor to groan, as if it might break through at any moment.

"Damn it!" Gao Lian stopped abruptly, slamming his hand on the table, making the teacups rattle. "That bald bear, he really thinks he's something special! Holding an auction? Does he think this is a vegetable market selling cabbages?! When I catch him, I'll twist his bald head off and use it as a football!"

His voice echoed in the small room, and the innkeeper passing by the door shrank back and quickened his pace to slip away.

"Uncle Gao, calm down, calm down." Zhang Chulan handed over a cup of hot water, his face beaming with a smile that was seven parts ingratiating and three parts helpless. "Qiu'er and Yu Huan are alright for now, which means Bald Bear still wants to use them as bargaining chips and won't kill them easily. We need to calm down now and think about what to do in three days."