Searching for someone in northern Myanmar, and you call that earning tuition fees?

Border temporary command post.

The torrential rain pounded on the military canvas tents, creating a noise as loud as gongs banging in your ears.

Zhao Gang paced back and forth in the tent, his military boots splashing mud everywhere. He checked his tactical watch every ten seconds, his brow furrowed.

"Something's not right!" Zhao Gang slammed his fist on the map, making his water glass rattle. "It's been twenty minutes since that explosion. Even if it was a mountain blast, there should be some echo. Now the signal is silent, the satellites are useless, and we're just going to sit here and stare blankly?"

In the corner, Liu Jianjun was picking at the mud under his feet.

In front of him was a leftover self-heating rice box, and next to him squatted a guard named Xiao Wang, who also looked bewildered.

Zhao Gang roared, "Old Liu, speak up! That's a venomous fang! It has heavy weapons! No matter how skilled Su Ming is, he's just a freshman, and a part-time one at that! What if..."

Liu Jianjun looked up, slowly took a clove of garlic from his pocket, peeled it, and popped it into his mouth: "Team Leader Zhao, calm down. What's wrong with being a freshman? Newton wasn't promoted when he was hit by an apple."

"Is this about promotion?!" Zhao Gang pointed to the red circle on the map. "That's the flood zone! Downstream of Wild Elephant Valley! Crocodiles, anacondas, and those ruthless mercenaries! I'm asking you, what will Su Ming use to block them? His head?"

Liu Jianjun chewed on garlic and mumbled, "Take knowledge."

Zhao Gang chuckled in exasperation: "Fine, Knowledge. Then tell me, with nothing happening for the past twenty minutes, has Knowledge gone offline?"

Liu Jianjun paused for a moment.

To be honest, he started to feel uneasy.

The earlier bang was certainly impressive, but this eerie silence was far more unsettling. Su Ming was human, not a god; faced with such a natural disaster, who dared to speak definitively?

A scout rushed into the tent, soaking wet: "The downstream observation post reported that the river level has surged five meters above the warning line. A large amount of trees and debris have been washed down. The current is too fast; our assault boats simply can't get off!"

Zhao Gang's face turned pale instantly.

A five-meter flood peak.

What does this mean in this kind of canyon riverbed?

That was practically a giant shredder.

Let alone bamboo rafts, even an iron ship would turn into a pancake if it went down into the sea.

"It's over..." Zhao Gang slumped into a chair, utterly dejected. "With this kind of water, even a god couldn't survive."

Liu Jianjun was also stunned, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead for the first time.

Oh no, this has gone awry.

Human strength has its limits when it comes to nature. No matter how capable Su Ming is, he only has two hands and two legs.

Zhao Gang took off his hat, his voice choked with emotion: "Prepare...for the search and rescue. Search along the riverbank; we must find them alive, or...we must find their bodies."

"Wait a moment."

Liu Jianjun suddenly spoke, his voice hoarse.

He raised his head, a flicker of struggle crossing his eyes, and finally gritted his teeth and said:

"Team Leader Zhao, I request to... lead the team into the water."

Zhao Gang was stunned: "Are you crazy? You..."

"I misspoke." Liu Jianjun suddenly stood up, grabbed his tactical vest, and said, "Mr. Su is a human being, not a god. I shouldn't treat him like a god. I have to go down and help him."

Xiao Wang also stood up: "I'll go too!"

Zhao Gang looked at them, remained silent for a few seconds, and finally nodded emphatically:

"Okay. But remember, your lives matter too. Don't fucking play the hero."

Inside the command center, only the despairing sound of rain remained.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the rainforest.

"Achoo!" Jerry sneezed loudly, his snot flying onto the banana leaf.

The bamboo raft completely fell apart.

The four men were wading through waist-deep mud and water, inching their way toward the shore.

Su Ming carried the unconscious Medicine Girl on his back and led the way, while Ling Qiao held the tactical dagger and brought up the rear. Jerry was sandwiched in the middle, with the monkey that was using him as a lifebuoy riding on his neck.

"Brother Su... there's something rubbing against my legs in the water!" Jerry cried, "It's slippery, it must be a water ghost."

"Those are fish," Su Ming said without turning his head, "or maybe leeches. If you don't move, they can suck you dry."

Jerry yelled and his short legs moved incredibly fast, managing to overtake Su Ming.

"Stop making noise." Su Ming stopped and listened carefully.

Amid the sound of rain, he noticed something unusual.

It wasn't the roar of machines, nor the sound of gunfire.

Instead, it was a dull tremor that struck the chest cavity directly.

"Thump...thump...thump..."

The earth was trembling rhythmically.

Ling Qiao's expression hardened, and she quickly moved closer: "Pursuers? This frequency... sounds like heavy artillery clearing the way?"

Su Ming shook his head, staring at the dense bushes ahead: "Artillery doesn't have such a synchronized rhythm. And..."

He sniffed.

In addition to the earthy smell of rainwater, the air was filled with a foul stench of fermenting grass mixed with feces.

"Damn, this smell..." Jerry pinched his nose, "It's even more intoxicating than what I smelled by the Ganges!"

"Silence." Su Ming shouted in a low voice, lifting the medicine girl on his back higher.

He grinned, which sent chills down Ling Qiao's spine.

"Don't panic, our Didi has arrived."