A convoy drove out of 48, St. Cross Street to embark on a journey to the eastern outskirts of Jerusalem. The formation consisted of four Desert Hunter armed off-road vehicles and bulletproof Mercedes Benzs. In the vehicles were Israel’s best Special Force Troupe, ‘Sword of David’. While the other vehicles had carried special agents from Mossad. The total headcount of the convoy had reached a total of thirty people.
As the convoy had exited St. Cross Street, an unassuming Ford Raptor pickup truck began its journey on another path towards the eastern suburbs of Jerusalem.
The Ford Raptor had carried five people. Xia Lei and the four Chinese Zodiac Battle Team members. The driver of the day was Sa’im, the Iraqi. As of now, Sa’im had on the face of a Mexican.
“Boss, do we follow them?” Sa’im questioned.
Tsukino Kyoko, Yelena and Anjum Khan placed their attention on Xia Lei. This was not a simple decision to make. This was ultimately a choice that concerned their life and death. The amount of personnel that left 48, St. Cross Street earlier was sufficient to take down more than three hundred people. They, on the other hand, only had five people to spare. Another problem was that Mossad agents were able to call for air support within minutes. As soon as the battle began, there was no turning back.
Xia Lei was very aware of the circumstances. He wished to get rid of both Augustan and Yan Fo. He wasn’t going to get a better shot than this one. However, he would be subjected to another endless chase after the first shot rang out. This was essentially making the conscious choice to die!
His dilemma clashed loudly in his mind. It took him ten seconds to settle on a decision. “Stop the car.”
Sa’im slammed hard on the brakes, stopping the Ford Raptor violently.
Xia Lei uttered, “More than thirty people had left Mossad’s base. Based on my observation, there are twenty-eight Mossad agents and eight members of the Special Force. With so many people gone, infiltrating their base would be .”
“Haha!” Anjum Khan guffawed. “Boss, even if we fail, attempting to infiltrate Mossad’s headquarters would shake the world!”
Xia Lei was reminded of the conversation between Yan Fo and Kerns. “No, 48, St. Cross Street is not their headquarters. It’s just a very important base to Mossad.”
“Boss, are you sure about that?” asked Sa’im.
Xia Lei nodded. “Yes. We’ve ignored a very blatant fact. This is Jerusalem, a holy land to many Arabians. Israel had built its nation on this piece of land and made Jerusalem the capital. However, most of their most important government departments are not here. This is a decision made for the sake of security. The Mossad’s headquarters is equivalent to the CIA’s Langley headquarters.”
Sa’im slapped a palm harshly against his forehead. “Ah, shit! How could I miss something as simple as that!”
Xia Lei continued, “With twenty-eight agents dispatched from the base along with the addition of eight Special Force members stationed here, there isn’t much left to pose a threat at the base. This is our best opportunity.”
Yelena gnawed on her lip worriedly. “Boss, you need to think this through. We’re in Jerusalem. As soon as we open fire, Israel’s Emergency Response Force would arrive within a few minutes.”
Xia Lei laughed lightly. “There’s no need to fire.”
“Huh? How should we approach it then?” Tsukino Kyoko could no longer suppress her curiosity. Xia Lei’s calmness and wisdom on the battlefield were the qualities that pulled her in like a magnet.
Xia Lei trained his gaze on Sa’im. “Sa’im, dispatch your Middle Eastern intelligence network immediately. I’ll pay you twenty million USD. Can you have your people create some ruckus in the Gaza Strip around the borders? After that, have them arrange a safe escape route for us. After the retreat is complete, I will pay them another twenty million USD.”
“Forty million USD? Long live Allah.” The excitement in Sa’im’s tone was obvious. “The sum is enough to have them do whatever you wish. Fighting a battle is no issue.”
Xia Lei turned to Yelena. “Yelena, I need you to locate the optical fibre of the St. Cross Street base within twenty minutes. After that, wait for my signal to cut it off.”
The woman nodded.
Following that, Xia Lei turned to face Anjum Khan. “Anjum Khan, find the underground gas pipeline of St. Cross Street and plant timed explosives at three points that will not harm the civilians. The timer of the bombs should be set for half an hour. After you’re done, drive around the area and come pick us up at the twenty-five-minute mark and we’ll leave.”
Anjum Khan nodded. “No problem.”
Xia Lei checked his multifunctional watch. “It’s 9:09 now, the timer shall start at 9:10.”
Tsukino Kyoko asked, “What about me?”
Xia Lei answered, “You’ll come with me. We’ll enter the base and rescue the prisoner.”
Hearing that, the edges of Tsukino Kyoko’s lips were curled ever so slightly. She knew that Xia Lei had allowed her to play a part in the most important portion of the plan due to her forte. Be it any plausible reason, Tsukino was just happy to be able to work with him.
One minute later, four people emerged out of the Ford Raptor.
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Yelena picked up her pace, searching for the optical fibres as she walked.
Sa’im pulled out his phone to make calls as he walked briskly.
Meanwhile, Xia Lei led Tsukino Kyoko into 48, St. Cross Street. On his back was his trusty backpack that contained his laptop along with other pieces of gear. Tsukino Kyoko was carrying a backpack as well but its contents were mainly weapons and explosives. Her usual katana was absent but the ninja had made sure to bring along her dark stealth attire.
Anjum Khan drove the Ford Raptor into another road. He kept a steady speed as he attempted to figure out the layout of their underground pipeline.
Xia Lei continued to walk as he studied his desired entry point, using his X-ray vision to aid his judgement. A few minutes later, he finally stopped before about a hundred metres away from 48, St. Cross Street to enter a two-storey building.
The entrance to the building was locked.
Xia Lei approached the door and picked the lock open with a steel wire. He then entered the place with Tsukino Kyoko behind him.
“Guard the door. No matter who comes in, knock them out,” instructed Xia Lei.
Tsukino Kyoko nodded obediently and took her place beside the door.
Xia Lei removed his bag and brought out his laptop. Two minutes later, he gained access into the Jerusalem Municipal Sanitation Bureau’s database. It took another minute for the laptop screen to display the underground drainage system plan of St. Cross Street and its surrounding streets.
Studying the two-dimensional image on the screen, what appeared in Xia Lei’s mind was instead a three-dimensional model of the drainage system. He could see everything. From where the pipes would lead to, to the number of manhole covers and size of the sewer along with everything else. His brain had grasped it all.
Finally, his attention was captured by a shaded area on the map. The peculiar area had faced the ancient building that was 48 St.Cross Street.
Realizing something, Xia Lei smirked. “A very important prisoner has been held at 48 St. Cross Street for god knows how long. Would a place like that not have underground dungeons? If there is a dungeon, it is bound to have a drainage system. There’s no way Mossad would have their agents handle their prisoner’s excrement by themselves.”
Giving the plan another look, Xia Lei finally folded the laptop and returned it into his bag. “Kyoko, let’s change our clothes.”
“Change clothes?” Tsukino Kyoko stared at him in confusion, clearly clueless of Xia Lei’s intention.
Xia Lei did not offer further explanation, quickly moving into a room to open a closet. Within its storage were overalls for sanitation workers. The man threw the crisp new overalls to Tsukino Kyoko while he took the used uniform. “Put that on.”
It was then that Tsukino Kyoko had understood where he was coming from. She made a quick move to remove her bag and took off her denim jeans and jacket. Beneath her clothes was a matching set of white cotton undergarments. The bra covering her bosoms were thin and breathable, almost close to transparency. Xia Lei could see slight colour changes amidst the white magnolia-like scenery. There was a dash of mysterious black and some pink. Its edges were hazy and suffocatingly seductive.
Xia Lei didn’t dare to take another look, averting his gaze away immediately. He needed all the concentration he had for the operation. There was no room for error.
To be fairly honest, it was far from Tsukino Kyoko’s intention to seduce the man. Her fingers worked deftly to put on the overalls Xia Lei threw over. While she was in the middle of changing, Xia Lei had managed to locate two sets of portable oxygen supply equipment from a toolbox. He took one and gave the other to the ninja.
To say that Tsukino Kyoko was bewildered was an understatement. How did Xia Lei know so much about this place? This was his first time here. Not only did he know what the house owner had worked as, but he also knew where his work uniform was. The most shocking part was that Xia Lei was aware that the owner had a manhole cover in the backyard! Despite that, Tsukino Kyoko did not voice her confusion. She was starting to get used to his antics.
Putting on the oxygen supply gear, they left the room. Tsukino Kyoko had thought that Xia Lei was going to lead her out of the building. Surprisingly, they were headed for the backyard instead.
In the midst of lush greens and beautiful flowers was a cast-iron manhole cover.
Swiftly, Xia Lei pried it open with some tools and descended the iron ladder.
Tsukino Kyoko followed suit, remembering to pull the cover back to its original spot after her entry.
It was pitch dark underground. The oxygen supply gear that Xia Lei found had played an important function in their operation. Without it, it was essentially impossible for a normal human being to breathe in such an environment.
Xia Lei turned on his tactical torch and waded forward in the filthy water. The building was only one hundred metres away from 48 St. Cross Street on the map but Xia Lei knew he had to walk at least three hundred metres to reach his destination.
“We need to hurry.” Adjusting himself to the environment, Xia Lei began to speed up through vehement twists of his waist.
Tsukino Kyoko did the same, the increased exertion of energy causing her proud chest to sway with the motion. It was a pity that there was no light to enjoy this impressive scenery.