Warning! A hidden dragon has emerged!

"When will we launch our final offensive?"

Xie Bi'an pressed for an answer again.

"Wait five more minutes."

Jiang Yao stared intently at the brightly lit headquarters of the Gu Poison Sect ahead and gave the order in a deep voice.

"If there's no signal before 4 PM, we'll force our way through and fight our way out!"

"receive!"

Xie Bi'an immediately calmed down, concealed himself again, set up his sniper rifle, and glanced at his watch from time to time, quietly waiting for his turn.

Ding!

The next second, Xiao Yi's command from the intelligent system echoed throughout the team's communication channel.

"All personnel, listen to my command! The rear mountain is undefended. The enemy's main force has assembled at the front mountain to set up an ambush. At 4:00 sharp, launch the general offensive!"

"It's finally here!"

Xie Bi'an was greatly encouraged and instantly entered his best combat state.

The hour hand landed precisely at the four o'clock mark.

boom!

The dull blast of a sniper rifle shattered the deathly silence of the night.

A large-caliber bullet pierced the night sky, drawing a sharp parabola, and precisely locked onto the head of the hidden sentry.

puff!

The bullet pierced through the forehead, and the extreme explosive force instantly blew open the skull, scattering red and white debris everywhere. The sentry didn't even have time to scream before he died on the spot, leaving no trace of his body.

At the same moment, the entire Hidden Dragon team unleashed their full firepower.

The dense barrage of bullets and the deafening roar of mortars filled the air.

Countless shells rained down from the sky, crashing heavily into the Gu Poison Cult's complex.

Boom boom boom!

Flames shot into the sky, and earth and stones flew everywhere.

The entire cluster of wooden buildings built against the mountain was as fragile as paper, collapsing and exploding in an instant, turning into ruins everywhere.

The Gu Poison Cult disciples, hidden in houses, bushes, and ravines, had no time to react before being engulfed by a barrage of artillery fire.

The venomous insects, poisonous fog, and miasma hidden in the shadows instantly vaporized and dissipated under the high-temperature artillery fire.

Countless believers were blown to pieces and left with no trace before they even had a chance to draw their swords or unleash their poisons.

A few surviving cult members tried to escape but were precisely shot dead by snipers.

Under guns and cannons, all living beings are equal.

No matter how strange your Gu techniques or how powerful your martial arts, you are nothing but ants before the onslaught of firearms.

In just ten minutes, the once infamous Gu Poison Sect headquarters, which had dominated the southern border region, was completely razed to the ground.

The ground was covered in ruins, corpses lay strewn everywhere, and blood stained the mountains and forests. There was no sign of life within a three-mile radius.

The artillery fire ceased, but the air was thick with smoke.

Xie Bi'an raised the thermal imaging telescope and scanned the entire battlefield repeatedly. Only after confirming that there were no signs of life did he give the order in a deep voice.

"All personnel assemble! Quickly clean up the battlefield!"

Brush brush!

The hidden dragon team members stood up in unison, their movements swift and decisive.

"Search for the remaining forces! Focus on finding Huang Lüdeng and the elders; find them alive or dead!"

"yes!"

The team members from the southern Xinjiang region immediately formed three-person tactical squads and began clearing the area from east to west.

Jiang Yao led the Jincheng team to conduct a comprehensive search from west to east, leaving no blind spots.

Qin Quan, along with the sulking Lin Wanrou and the surrendered Miao Cuihua, emerged from the back mountain and cut into the battlefield from south to north, simultaneously eliminating the remaining forces.

Just as everyone was cleaning up, a figure covered in blood and with a ferocious face suddenly sprang out from the ruins of the fire, amidst a shower of sparks, and rushed out with a short knife in hand, aiming straight for Miao Cuihua's heart!

"Traitor! I'll kill you!"

The severely wounded cultist, in a state of frenzy, launched a desperate sneak attack with the intention of taking everyone down with him.

Miao Cuihua's eyes turned cold, she shifted her feet slightly, and casually flicked and shook her cane.

Click!

A sharp cracking sound rang out suddenly, and the cultist was instantly thrown to the ground, crashing heavily into the rubble and dying on the spot.

Across the battlefield, the remaining, heavily wounded cultists launched desperate counterattacks, driven by a last-ditch effort to take others down with them.

However, all counterattacks will be futile against the well-equipped and powerful Hidden Dragon team members.

Any attacker who dared to show their face was either instantly riddled with machine gun fire or cut in two, ending their life completely.

The smoke of battle has not yet cleared, and the massacre continues.

This evil tyrant, which had dominated the southern border for decades, has finally met its end.

The half-hour-long, comprehensive search and raid came to a complete end.

Amidst the charred ruins, the Hidden Dragon team meticulously searched every inch of the remaining walls, confirming that there was no longer any sign of life at the Gu Poison Sect's headquarters.

Everyone then put away their weapons, and Jiang Yao and Xie Bi'an hurriedly walked towards Qin Quan.

"Team Leader Qin, the entire area has been cleared. All the Gu Poison Cult disciples have been wiped out; not a single one has escaped."

Xie Bi'an's expression was solemn. "However, we have not found any trace of the sect leader Huang Lüdeng or the other elders."

These words weighed heavily on everyone's hearts.

Even if the Gu Poison Sect is destroyed and all its disciples are slaughtered, but the sect leader and several elders are not eliminated, then this mission cannot be considered successful, and is even equivalent to failure.

Qin Quan's face suddenly darkened, his eyes sharp as a blade, fixed on Miao Cuihua, who looked disheveled and down on her feet.

All eyes turned to him, filled with astonishment and doubt.

This person was dressed in rags, with messy and withered hair, covered in dust and looking disheveled, like a beggar on the street. No one would guess who this inconspicuous person was.

Everyone speculated: Could Qin Quan be hiding something else?

Noticing the subtle gazes from the crowd, Miao Cuihua quickly bowed and spoke frankly.

"No need for you to be on guard, everyone. I am Miao Cuihua, the Fifth Elder of the Gu Poison Sect."

His words caused an uproar throughout the room.

Xie Bi'an, Jiang Yao, and Zhang Qingshun's expressions changed drastically. With a flick of their wrists, the swords at their waists were already half an inch out of their sheaths.

A cold glint appeared.

The three of them kept a close eye on Miao Cuihua, not daring to relax their vigilance for even a moment.

"There's no need for you to be nervous."

Miao Cuihua hurriedly explained, "I have already surrendered to Captain Qin. I have told him everything about the Gu Poison Cult's plans tonight, the cause and effect."

She didn't hide anything and told the whole story in detail.

From Jin Hai and Liu Chuanwu secretly tipping off the Hidden Dragon's movements, to Huang Lüdeng mobilizing all the elders and disciples to set up ambushes and lay a trap to encircle and annihilate the Hidden Dragon, every detail is clear and thorough.

Qin Quan's gaze turned slightly cold as the doubts in his mind finally connected and gradually became clear.

"So, the giant python I killed on Camel Peak was the Third Elder's pet?"

"Exactly."

Miao Cuihua nodded in agreement.

"The Fourth Elder was the one who laid an ambush in the Misty Ghost Forest. He and the Third Elder have probably already escaped beforehand?"

The First Elder and the Second Elder were the Qiu siblings who caused trouble in Jincheng.

All the clues have been gathered, and the truth is now clear.

A cold glint flashed in Qin Quan's eyes as he instantly saw through Huang Lüdeng's vicious scheme.

"What a clever escape! He sent all the elders and disciples away to their deaths, using them as cannon fodder to hold us back, while he escaped alone. He really thought this through."

"Captain Qin, we searched the Misty Ghost Forest but did not find the legendary Fourth Elder."

"These bastards are old and cunning; they wouldn't take risks so easily. They'll probably run away long ago, just like Huang Lüdeng."

Qin Quan spoke sharply and immediately gave the order.

"Report to headquarters immediately what happened tonight. Highlight the fact that Jin Hai and Liu Chuanwu colluded with the enemy and leaked secrets, and that Huang Lüdeng and the Third and Fourth Elders abandoned the sect and fled. Do not omit any details."

"Yes, sir!"

Xie Bi'an and Jiang Yao solemnly accepted the order.

……