Nightfall, Alliance Mine was lit up. Other than regular lights, there were several spotlights illuminating the entire area and its peripheries.
While the spotlights did not help the Special Forces and field agents observe the forest much, there was one person in the forest who could see them very well.
That person was Xia Lei.
A group of Boko Haram members walked past the bottom of the tree, speaking loudly.
This area contained both American soldiers and Boko Haram members. Since there were many of them stationed here, the duties of manual labour in the forest naturally fell on the Boko Haram members.
At this moment, Boko Haram did not know that their members stationed at the tracks had been killed, nor did the Americans know that some of their own were gone. The signal-jamming was a double-edged sword. One thousand people guarding an area of two hundred square kilometres was already an almost impossible task. However, neither party was currently worried because they did not hear any gunfire.
This was why Xia Lei insisted on stopping the enemy from firing their guns. That was how he slipped undetected here.
When the Boko Haram’s patrol team left the forest, they walked down a path towards the camp. There was a campsite outside the factory area with hundreds of tents packed densely together. The empty grounds nearby were filled with modified pickup trucks armed with machine guns, anti-aircraft machine guns, cannons that fired tear gas etc. It was a mess of all types of weapons.
The Americans did not let these armed members enter the factory area. This was obviously because they did not want Boko Haram to know they had found rare ore in Alliance Mine!
Xia Lei climbed down the tree and walked towards the wall by the factory area’s gates.
There was a checkpoint there, plus temporary watch stations on the wall. There was a spotlight and an armed soldier on each station.
Xia Lei was quickly noticed.
“Hey! Brother! Why are you here alone?” yelled a soldier at Xia Lei, lifting his M14EBR rifle, ready to shoot.
The M14EBR assault rifle was a gun specially made for the American Navy SEAL team. This gun also told everyone of his status, which was a Special Forces soldier from the Navy SEAL team that was separate from Xia Lei’s ‘Delta team’. Under such circumstances, it was normal for this soldier to react like this to a stranger.
“Hey, brother! Want some weed? I’ll give you some at a good price,” replied Xia Lei in an American accent as he strode over to the wall.
The soldier kept his gun, “Can’t you bump me one for free?”
“Sure, I’ve got a lot in stock anyways.” Xia Len had already arrived at the bottom of the wall. He looked up, his eyes turning into two black holes as soon as they met with the soldier’s eyes.
The soldier at the watchpoint awkwardly lifted the spotlight and aimed it towards a mountain on the left. He turned it off, on, off and on, the repeated once before stopping and aimed it back to its original position.
“Go to sleep,” ordered Xia Lei.
The soldier closed his eyes and collapsed on the ground.
Xia Lei turned and sprinted into the forest where he previously hid himself, scrambling up a tree like a monkey. He had just hidden in the crown when a deafening boom came from the mountain.
Soaring flames from an explosion turned the sky red.
The rumbling of an explosion followed immediately, its vibrations felt even a few kilometres away.
The Chinese Zodiac Battle Team members on the peak had already destroyed the radar and signal jamming vehicles.
A piercing alarm rang within Alliance Mines as tens of Special Forces soldiers rushed out of the main gates. Even the Boko Haram members were startled too, running out of the camps by the factory area. They ran towards the mountain on the left according to their leader’s instructions, who was yelling very loudly.
The Delta forces and Navy SEALs reacted quickest, disappearing into the dense vegetation in the blink of an eye. Boko Haram members followed soon after like a large pack of wolves.
Xia Lei hid soundlessly in the tall tree, even holding his breath when they ran under him. As he held his breath, he was shocked to realise that he did not actually need to breathe that frequently. His lungs did not burn even though he had been holding his breath for two minutes. It seemed that the mysterious power flowing through his veins could even replace oxygen!
“I must test this ability out at the ocean or lake once I leave. I wonder how long I can remain underwater without taking a breath… Damn, am I still fucking human?” Xia Lei could not help but smirk bitterly to himself.
Other people lusted for more power while all he wanted was his wives’ milk.
Rumble, rumble….
He heard a helicopter approaching.
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Pushing his messy thoughts aside, he looked over to see an Apache helicopter and Chinook heavy-lift helicopter with twenty Delta soldiers sitting within. There was no question what these aircraft were here to do. If he did not stop them, the Chinese Zodiac Battle Team would never survive!
The Apache helicopter flew past the top of his head with the Chinook behind.
An XL2500 with a muffler attached peeked silently from within the tree crown, though it was mostly covered by tree leaves.
Poof!
A steel armour-penetrating bullet fired angrily out of the barrel and punctured the Apache’s fuel tank, lighting it immediately. The Apache burst into flames and before it could conduct an emergency landing, it split into half with a deafening boom.
The Chinook quickly commenced its emergency procedures, veering steeply away but in that moment, another bullet punctured its fuel tank.
Boom---
The Chinook exploded and crashed ceremoniously into the ground. Another explosion that was more violent than before ensued. The soldiers within had met their maker before meeting the enemy.
This was the harsh reality of war.
Xia Lei climbed down the tree and ran to the sentry post from before.
As he sprinted, he suddenly braced and leapt onto the three-metre tall wall. Grabbing the side of the watch post, he flipped inside and replaced the guard.
A large group of Special Forces soldiers rushed out of the factory gates once more, splitting as they hurried to the two crash sites. They acted very quickly and professionally.
A man’s voice crackled from the communication device. “What happened?! Fuck! Where is the enemy? Find and kill them!”
The comms were live again but only because of the Chinese Zodiac Battle Team for they had bombed the signal jammer.
Many voices came from the communication device but no one seemed to know where the enemy was. Based on the previous incidents, the enemy was obviously on the mountain but based on the two exploded helicopters, it seemed they were also close by. This meant they would attack anytime. The situation was chaotic because no one could make a conclusion.
Amidst the chaos, Xia Lei left the watch post and entered the factory area.
Since the explosions on the mountain and helicopter crashes had lured all the soldiers out, only American special agents remained in control of the factory. It was silent inside, not even a person in any of the well-lit areas.
Forty special agents should not be able to control such a large area on their own. Where would they keep their hostages?
Xia Lei activated his X-ray vision, and at the same time used his right eye to scan. His target was soon located.
It was a warehouse with closed blinds. The inside could not be seen but there were two CIA agents in suits guarding the entrance.
A regular warehouse should not have guards like them.
Xia Lei’s vision penetrated the warehouse and he saw more than a hundred Chinese workers inside. Some sat on the floor while others were lying on their backs. It was obvious that some were injured but were not treated. They suffered badly but the CIA agents did not seem to care.
These Chinese workers who had flown all the way to Africa did not come from wealthy backgrounds, only looking for an honest job for a living. Their usual jobs were already difficult enough but this was ridiculous. Xia Lei was sure that once the Americans confirmed the presence of the rare metal, these people would be massacred and the blame pushed to Boko Haram.
Xia Lei was enraged by their situation but quickly calmed himself down. He walked towards the warehouse, radiating an icy chill.
A voice suddenly came from the communication device. “Xia Lei? Can you hear me?”
His footsteps halted.
It was Kestin’s voice.
“I know that you’re here and had long anticipated this. But I did not know you would strike this soon,” said Kestin. “You’re an absolute pain in the ass… Bombing the satellite dish and killing so many people… Say, what should I do?”
Xia Lei’s gaze fell on the office tower as he scanned the building. He could see everything inside but other than a few agents and suspected commanders, he did not see Kestin.
Kestin did not stop talking. “I know you’re somewhere here. Even if you do not speak, I know you are. You’re very smart, but you’re not the only smart one in this world. Do you really think you’ll win? No, I will.”
Xia Lei threw the device on the ground and crushed it with his heel.
It was not because he did not want to listen to Kestin’s mockery- he knew that this device might become a beacon for Kestin to locate him.