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

There was a ten-second silence on the other end of the walkie-talkie.

Commanders monitoring the battlefield from the rear via satellite or drones were completely stunned by the surreal scene before them.

Three fully equipped special attack speedboats and six elite special operations frogmen were wiped out in less than five minutes by a young man who looked like a student, using a sinking, dilapidated boat in a manner that was almost like a joke.

Three of the ships were disabled, and six people were captured alive.

This is no longer a battle, but a massacre. A dimensional reduction attack dominated by physics and basic electrical engineering.

"Who...who are you?!"

A voice, laced with suppressed anger and disbelief, finally came through the walkie-talkie. The voice belonged to a middle-aged man, speaking with the standard official accent of an island chain nation.

"Who I am is unimportant." Su Ming leaned against the ship's railing, his voice as calm as if discussing the weather. "What's important is that your six soldiers are now my prisoners. My ship is sinking, and if we can't reach an agreement within half an hour, I'll have to watch them feed the fish with me."

"How dare you! You are declaring war on both 'Oceania Nation' and 'Island Chain Nation' at the same time! This is an act of terrorism!" the commander roared, his voice laced with bravado.

Su Ming chuckled lightly, his laughter full of sarcasm.

"Terrorism? You use warships to hunt down a civilian in international waters and plunder another country's assets. What do you call that? Maintaining world peace?"

He paused, his tone suddenly turning cold: "Enough nonsense. I don't have time for word games. State your terms. What will you offer in exchange for their lives?"

"You want money? I can give you ten million US dollars!" the commander immediately offered.

"Money?" Su Ming retorted as if he'd heard the biggest joke in the world, "Do you think something I risked my life to retrieve from three thousand meters deep in the sea can be measured in money?"

"Then what do you want!"

"I need the technology," Su Ming said clearly, enunciating each word distinctly.

"Technology?" The commander was taken aback.

"That's right." Su Ming said in a deep voice, "The complete set of design drawings, core algorithms for the power system, and material formulas for the energy module of your country's latest 'Poseidon VII' unmanned deep-sea submersible, developed by Ishikawa Heavy Industries, have all been sent to my designated email address. Remember, it's the latest model. Don't try to fool me with those downgraded versions; I can tell the difference."

There was silence on the other end of the walkie-talkie again.

The shock from just now has now turned into a bone-chilling cold.

"Poseidon 7"!

That is the next-generation strategic deep-sea submersible developed by the island chain countries with all their national strength. It is still under top-secret testing, and even within the military, only a few high-ranking officials know about it!

This young man not only knew of its existence, but also knew its name and the research institution!

Who exactly is he?! Who is standing behind him?! Has the intelligence agencies of the Dragon Kingdom infiltrated to this extent?

"Impossible! This is a top state secret! I don't have the authority!" The commander's voice was hoarse, carrying a hint of fear that he himself was unaware of.

"That's your problem, not mine." Su Ming glanced at the diving watch on his wrist, his tone becoming impatient. "I'm only giving you twenty minutes. After twenty minutes, if I haven't received anything, I'll start throwing them into the sea one by one. You can take a gamble and see if you get authorization first, or if I clear the deck first."

To increase his persuasiveness, Su Ming dragged over an unconscious frogman, pressed his head against the side of the boat, and spoke into a walkie-talkie.

"Listen, how beautiful the wind sounds. He seems to really like it here and wants to stay forever."

This seemingly casual remark completely shattered the commander's will.

"You're insane! You're a madman!"

The commander was completely on the defensive, but he dared not gamble.

Losing technology would at most constitute dereliction of duty on his part. But if his decisions lead to the deaths of six elite special forces soldiers in international waters, and the matter is exposed, it would be a massive scandal that shakes the entire military leadership.

"...I need to ask for permission! Give me time!"

"You have nineteen minutes left," Su Ming coldly cut him off.

The surroundings were deathly silent, and every second of waiting felt exceptionally long.

Over the walkie-talkie, one could faintly hear the commander's hysterical arguments and requests for instructions from other high-ranking officers.

Su Ming leisurely turned on his second-hand surveying instrument, connected it to the satellite antenna, and set up a temporary, multi-encrypted receiving email address.

In the live stream room, millions of viewers were completely silent.

Everyone was stunned by Su Ming's move.

Holy crap! A lone wolf, extorting a nation's core technology on the high seas? This script is insane!

[No Mary Sue here, I like it! This is the way to deal with these scum!]

[A finance major freshman? Don't be ridiculous, this guy's a combination of a doctoral supervisor in international relations, a former special forces soldier, and an academician of the School of Mechanical Engineering!]

My mom asked me why I was kneeling while watching the live stream, and I said I was witnessing history...

"Tick-tock, tick-tock..."

Time passed by, and nineteen minutes quickly came to an end.

The walkie-talkie still only crackled with static; the expected email notification tone did not sound.

Su Ming frowned for the first time. He glanced at the diving watch on his wrist; only one minute remained.

Just then, a voice finally came through the walkie-talkie. It wasn't the previous hysteria, but an eerie calm, tinged with a chilling coldness.

"We've gone through the highest level of consultation," the commander's voice was icy. "Your request has been rejected."

Su Ming's face darkened.

"The value of 'Poseidon VII' is paramount." The commander announced coldly, in a standard official tone, enunciating each word clearly. "As for the six soldiers, they were warriors of the Empire. The moment they put on their uniforms, they were prepared to die for their country. The Empire will posthumously award them the highest honors and provide their families with the most generous compensation."

"You..." Su Ming was surprised for the first time.

"We're abandoning them," the commander coldly interrupted him, his tone indifferent. "At the same time, we're abandoning our pursuit of you. We're now withdrawing from this area. Good luck, and hopefully you and your ship will find shelter before the storm hits the high seas."

The moment he finished speaking, a "click" came from the walkie-talkie, and the communication was unilaterally cut off.

Su Ming abruptly raised his head, gazing at the distant sea horizon. On the radar screen of the secondhand mapping instrument, the few dots representing the destroyer immediately changed direction, the engines roared to full speed, and it began to accelerate away.

They left without the slightest hesitation.

The mockery and composure on Su Ming's face vanished completely. He had miscalculated. He had anticipated the other party's greed and arrogance, but he hadn't expected their cold-bloodedness and decisiveness to reach this level.

He glanced at the six unconscious frogmen lying on the deck, then at the cabin where seawater was constantly pouring in.

These once priceless chips instantly turned into six heavy burdens, enough to drag him into the deep sea.

Just then, on the screen of the second-hand surveying instrument, a huge green dot representing friendly forces suddenly entered the scanning range.

It came so quickly and so quietly, as if it appeared out of thin air.

At the same time, a powerful and unfamiliar sonar wave, like a gentle tide, swept across the hull of the "Breaking Waves" which was about to fall apart.

That wasn't enemy reconnaissance.

Instead, it was a clear friendly signal bearing the identification code of the Chinese military.