The Cycle of Reincarnation in the Four-Courtyard House: A Journey Through the Heavens

In the dead of night, Ping'an County is like a lurking wild beast, even the howling of the cold wind is suppressed to a very low level, with only the occasional cry of a night bird breaking into the inky sky.

Li Xiao's shoes were covered with a thick layer of cloth, and when he stepped on the snow-covered stone path, there wasn't even a rustling sound.

This was his second time infiltrating this place. The seemingly chaotic layout of the streets and alleys during the day had already been dissected into a clear pattern in his mind: which alley entrance had a mobile sentry post, which section of the barbed wire fence had a gap, and which window had the guards' shift change pattern, all of which were engraved with perfect accuracy.

Jiang Hui followed half a step behind him, his breathing slow and deep. His gaze swept over the dark buildings on both sides, his fingers always resting on the M9 military knife at his waist.

The two men moved like shadowless ghosts, clinging to the base of the wall and skillfully avoiding the occasional Japanese searchlights that flashed by at the alley entrance.

They eventually stopped in front of a drab, gray house, which looked no different from the surrounding dwellings.

The walls of the courtyard were peeling, and the gate was ajar. If Li Xiao hadn't thoroughly investigated the situation beforehand, no one would have guessed that this seemingly unguarded house was actually the core stronghold of Yamamoto's special forces.

Li Xiao raised his finger and pointed to the house in front of him, tapping the courtyard wall twice with his fingertip. He then turned to the similar-looking house diagonally opposite, made a "sniper" gesture, pressed his palm down, and then made a few faint strokes towards the courtyard of the house.

Li Xiao meant to tell Jiang Hui that the house across the street was the best sniping position, and he would be responsible for filling in any gaps.

He would deal with the enemies in the courtyard by himself, and if the operation was exposed, Jiang Hui would snipe the Japanese soldiers who escaped.

Jiang Hui immediately understood Li Xiao's intention.

He didn't say anything, but simply nodded slightly to Li Xiao.

He tiptoed around to the back wall of the opposite house, like a leaf blown by the night wind, and with a few quick movements, he climbed onto the low eaves without leaving a sound of tiles colliding.

Li Xiao watched Jiang Hui's figure disappear before turning his gaze back to the house in front of him.

The courtyard gate was ajar, and a dim, yellow lantern could be seen inside, but it couldn't illuminate the shadows in the corners.

These things are nothing to Li Xiao. His body has been greatly enhanced, and his night vision is absolutely comparable to that of an owl.

He squinted, his gaze sweeping across every corner of the yard like a hawk's.

Behind the woodpile on the west side, there was a silhouette that almost blended into the night.

The man was half-crouched on the ground, holding a loaded American submachine gun in his hand, his eyes fixed on the direction of the courtyard gate, his finger always on the trigger.

Under the old locust tree on the east side, another figure leaned against the trunk, seemingly relaxed, but his toes were pointing towards the courtyard gate, ready to react immediately to the slightest movement.

Even next to the old well covered with remnants of snow in the corner of the courtyard, there was a third hidden sentry. The man was huddled behind the well platform, only revealing a pair of vigilant eyes that scanned every inch of the courtyard.

None of the three sentries were negligent in the slightest.

Yang Xiuqin's inexplicable disappearance during the day clearly made Yamamoto Ichiki more vigilant.

They didn't even take turns resting; they remained motionless in their positions, breathing very softly. If Li Xiao hadn't had sharp enough eyesight and a thorough understanding of this special forces' vigilance mode, he wouldn't have been able to spot these "spies" hidden in the shadows.

Li Xiao took out three three-inch-long iron nails from his pocket and weighed them with his fingertips.

Instead of taking immediate action, he first crouched down by the courtyard wall and carefully observed the blind spots of the sentries.

The sentry behind the woodpile had a view that covered the gate and the west wall, but couldn't see the half-withered wormwood at the base of the wall.

The sentry under the locust tree focused his attention on the center and east side of the courtyard, his back facing a section of drainage ditch outside the courtyard wall.

The sentry behind the well had the widest field of vision, yet he missed the crack in the brickwork of the courtyard wall.

The wind and snow started again at some point, and fine snowflakes landed on Li Xiao's brow bone, but he was completely unaware of it.

He bit two nails between his teeth and held the other in his palm, slowly pressing his body against the cold wall, like a venomous snake waiting for its chance, moving towards the crack in the brickwork.

He took each step in the gaps between the shifts in the sentry's gaze, and even his breathing was in sync with the rhythm of the wind and snow.

To eliminate these three sentries, they must not make a sound. Otherwise, if they alert Yamamoto inside the building, not only will the assassination plan fail, but he and Jiang Hui will also be trapped here.

In fact, Li Xiao could have used his personal space to take these three sentries in and then slowly deal with them, but he didn't do that tonight.

The reason for using the spatial ability was to rescue Xiuqin during the day, as it was essential to ensure her safety.

Now, there are fewer concerns about assassinating these Japanese agents.

With his and Jiang Hui's skills, as well as the advanced weapons in their space that far surpassed the capabilities of this era, he was confident that he could wipe out all the Japanese soldiers in the entire Ping'an County even if they launched a direct assault.

Li Xiao didn't want to rely on the system's cheat codes for everything; once that became a habit, it would definitely not be a good thing.

In his previous life, he was one of the world's top special agents. If he relied too much on cheat codes, his assassination skills and abilities would gradually deteriorate over time.

At this moment, the lanterns in the courtyard swayed in the wind, and the light and shadows flowed around the sentry.

The person behind the woodpile seemed to have noticed something, and slightly turned his head, glancing towards the outside of the courtyard wall.

Li Xiao immediately stopped what he was doing, pressing himself against the wall, not daring to let out a single breath. Only when the wary gaze withdrew did he slowly exhale, and the dart at his fingertips was already aimed at the back of the first sentry's head.

"Whoosh~"

After a very faint sound, the figure fell to the ground without uttering a sound.

The remaining snow on the ground made the sound of the sentry's body falling extremely faint, and it did not alert the other two sentries.

Li Xiao held his breath and waited for a few seconds before crouching down and, using the shadow of the courtyard wall as cover, went around to the drainage ditch outside the wall.

The sentry under the locust tree had his back to him, his submachine gun leaning against the trunk, still on high alert.

Li Xiao's body clung to the wall like a gecko, slowly moving up two feet until he was right above the sentry's head.

He flipped his hand, and a black M9 military knife appeared in his palm.

Li Xiao's arm slid down like a serpent, and the sharp tip of his military knife pierced the sentry's brainstem diagonally upwards from the back of his neck.

This is an assassination technique from a past life. Once the human brainstem is violently destroyed, the victim will die instantly without making a sound.

The sentry's body went limp instantly, sliding down the tree trunk and onto the snow, the sound of his landing muffled by the thick snow.

Now only the last hidden sentry behind the well platform remains.