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

Just as Su Ming put the hand-drawn sheepskin map into his pocket, several muffled "puffing" sounds suddenly came from outside the temple amidst the wind and snow.

The sound was extremely faint, but Li Changfeng's body tensed up instantly.

"Silencer!" Li Changfeng's expression changed drastically, and he grabbed Su Ming and the old lama and pulled them behind a huge beam.

At the same time, the several shrill barks of dogs abruptly stopped.

The Tibetan mastiffs guarding outside the temple fell silent.

Zhuoma's expression changed, and she reached for the Tibetan knife at her waist: "Were they the poachers? How dare they storm a temple?"

Li Changfeng quickly moved closer to the corner of the wall, his sharp eyes analyzing, "Not poachers. The gunshots are muffled, they're from an automatic weapon with a silencer, and it's a standard three-round burst... That's military tactics. Based on the intelligence, it's highly likely that 'Snow Fox' and their gang have crept up here."

Outside the meditation room, the young lama Tashi peeked out, but Li Changfeng quickly pushed him back inside.

"Don't go out!"

"Hurry!" The old lama pointed behind the Buddha statue. "There's a way out under the Buddha's seat. But... if they force their way in, what will happen to the children in the temple..."

Li Changfeng gritted his teeth and pulled a flashbang from his tactical vest: "I'll cover you, you guys retreat first!"

"It's too late." Su Ming glanced out the window.

The moonlight was obscured by dark clouds, and the sky grew completely dark. Several shadowy figures dressed in snow camouflage and wearing night vision goggles ghost-like scaled the courtyard wall, their tactical maneuvers textbook perfect.

The leader made a hand gesture, and the group quickly formed a triangular shape and moved towards the main hall.

Su Ming glanced at the completely dark night outside the window and the flickering lights inside the hall, and suddenly said, "It's dark now, perfect for telling ghost stories."

Li Changfeng was stunned: "Huh?"

Su Ming ignored him and turned to the trembling Zaxi and the group of young lamas, saying, "Would you like more 'Thunder Sound Stones'?"

Tashi's eyes lit up, and he nodded vigorously.

"Go," Su Ming said, taking the twenty small round mirrors out of his backpack and handing them to the children. "Light all the butter lamps in the main hall, then take the mirrors and hide behind the pillars. When I tell you to move, just shine the light on the faces of those bad guys, shine it however you want, the more chaotic the better."

He then pulled out a handful of candies: "Also, in Tibetan, let's all loudly chant 'Divine punishment descends,' the louder we chant, the more candies we get."

Seeing the candy, the children grew bolder, took the mirror, and scattered in a commotion.

"Are you crazy?" Li Changfeng growled in a low voice, "Those are US special forces! You want a bunch of kids to shine mirrors on them? Do you think this is a disco?"

Su Ming glanced back at him, his expression calm: "Captain Li, don't rush, give them some local cultural experiences."

Li Changfeng: "..."

He felt that there was a generation gap between him and this kid, not in terms of age, but in terms of species.

Zhuoma spat, gripped her Tibetan knife tightly in her other hand, and said fiercely, "I'm not leaving. If word gets out that these outsiders are using guns in front of the gods and Buddhas, what will become of my reputation?"

Su Ming glanced at her: "Then go and turn the largest bronze mirror by the entrance so that it faces the entrance of the palace."

……

Inside the main hall, the butter lamps flickered.

The captain of the "Snow Fox" squad pressed his earpiece, his voice icy: "Intelligence indicates the target is still inside. Teams B and C, seal off the perimeter. Team A, infiltrate with me. The target is alive; the rest... eliminate."

He kicked open the half-closed palace door, and four team members, armed with guns, slid into the palace like flowing water.

In the green field of vision of the night vision device, the main hall was empty, with only hundreds of butter lamps flickering, illuminating the huge Buddha statue in a sinister and eerie way.

"Safety."

"It has been cleared."

Just as the captain was about to give the signal to order a search, something unexpected happened.

Without warning, countless blinding spots of light suddenly lit up from all directions, like hundreds of eyes opening simultaneously in the darkness. These spots of light jumped, spun, and flickered wildly without any pattern, instantly turning their night vision goggles into a dazzling white blur.

"High-intensity light interference!" The captain's voice remained calm as he issued the command through his throat microphone, "Switch to white light, discontinue night vision goggles."

The team members cursed, but in unison, they raised their night vision goggles, the powerful beams of their tactical flashlights instantly piercing the darkness. Just then, a series of childish yet unified Tibetan chants rose from behind beams, pillars, shrines, and curtains on all sides.

"ཨོཾ་མ་ཎི་པདྨེ་ཧཱུྃ།……" (Divine punishment descends)

The voice was ethereal and eerie, echoing endlessly within the hall, as if the whispers of countless monks' spirits.

"Psychological warfare, cover up footsteps," the captain calmly assessed. "Stay alert, be aware of blind spots in your hearing."

As soon as he finished speaking, the huge bronze mirror outside the palace door gathered, distorted, and magnified all the flickering lights, then projected them onto the smoke rising from the incense burner inside the palace.

A huge, blurry humanoid figure of light and shadow slowly took shape, twisted, and swayed in the smoke as the flames flickered.

It has no facial features, only an outline, yet it resembles a living god or Buddha, looking down upon the mortals who have intruded.

"Optical projection, not a physical object," a team member reported in a low voice.

"Position 3, use a single shot to probe," the captain commanded succinctly.

"Bang!"

A crisp gunshot rang out, and the bullet pierced precisely through the core of the light and shadow, striking the Buddha statue behind it and sending up a string of sparks.

The light and shadow flickered for a moment before returning to normal.

"Trap!" The captain's voice was flat, yet it sent a shiver down the spines of every team member. "Double audiovisual interference, plus optical deception... They've turned this place into their home turf. The intelligence was wrong; the enemy isn't a lamb to the slaughter. Mission aborted. Disengage immediately and replan!"

Without the slightest hesitation, he immediately ordered: "Team A, suppressive fire, alternating retreat! Quickly!"

If they stayed any longer, engaging in firefights in this desolate place with obstructed vision and constant echoes, they would be picked off one by one like targets. As an elite, he would never risk his team's lives in a hopeless skirmish.

While keeping his gun at the ready, he led his team in alternating cover, quickly and orderly retreating from the main hall. Although disheveled, their formation remained perfectly intact, befitting their elite status.

Li Changfeng swallowed hard. He subconsciously touched the modified Type 95 rifle on his back; the cold, metallic feel reminded him that this was a real, live-fire duel.

But his gaze couldn't leave the shopping bag with "Education Supermarket" printed on it next to Su Ming's feet.

A top-notch special forces unit was forced to retreat by a bunch of candy and twenty small mirrors? What the hell is this?

Su Ming pulled him and Zhuoma and quickly slipped into the secret passage behind the Buddha statue.

Before leaving, he left the remaining bag of candy in his backpack at the entrance of the secret passage.

"Remember, if they come in again, keep shaking the mirror. The faster you shake it, the angrier 'Buddha' will be."

Tashi looked at the pile of colorful candies, his little face flushed with excitement. These weren't snacks; they were sacred objects that could allow one to hear "thunderous sounds"! They were a gift from the Living Buddha!

He clasped his hands together, bowed deeply to Su Ming, and called out in the most respectful tone:

"Thank you, Candy Buddha!"