Chapter 141: Counterattack

At the southern port, aboard an ordinary transport ship, Yang Guang and Xie Chengyang checked the time, growing anxious.

"It’s been nearly three days. Why hasn’t Old Qin come out yet?" Xie Chengyang asked, frowning.

"Perhaps he’s been delayed too long. But all the civilians have been evacuated, so he shouldn’t be dragging it out much longer," Yang Guang said helplessly.

As they spoke, a few figures were seen rushing toward them from a distance. Yang Guang hurriedly jumped off the ship. Seeing it was Zhao Wu and the others, he breathed a sigh of relief. But when he saw Tang Li lying motionless on Zhao Wu’s back, he froze, his entire body stiffening. He lunged forward like a gale, grabbed Tang Li, and shook him. "Old Tang? Old Tang?"

"He’s dead," Zhao Wu said despondently. "His heart was pierced."

"How could this happen?" Yang Guang roared. "Old Tang has the strongest survival instincts; he couldn't have died."

"It was to save me," Sophie stepped forward, weeping. "It’s my fault."

In a fit of rage, Yang Guang slammed his fist into a wooden post. He hoisted Tang Li’s body onto his shoulder and carried it back to the aircraft. Dian Jiang and the others, who had emerged, fell silent at the sight of the corpse. Over ten years of life in the Black Prison had forged an unbreakable bond between them; every day, every second, had been spent in banter and laughter. They had imagined they might die of old age in prison, but they never expected that on the eve of their release, Tang Li would be dead—sacrificed where he least should have been.

"Where is Qin Yang?" Yang Guang asked, calming himself.

"He went for revenge. Let’s go," Zhao Wu said coldly. "Azarias is a dead man."

Yang Guang and the others preserved Tang Li’s body, placing ice around him to prevent decay, and signaled the crew to set sail. Meanwhile, Xie Chengyang connected to the operations department. The communication was initiated via video. Seeing General Jiang appear on the screen, Xie Chengyang saluted: "Report, God of War Squad, Parasol Special Operations Team, mission accomplished."

"Good!" The old General nodded with satisfaction, but then frowned. "Where is Qin Yang? As the mission commander, why isn't he reporting the situation to me?"

"He took another flight," Yang Guang stepped forward, suppressing the urge to kill, and said, "He stayed behind to delay the enemy’s pursuit troops, so he didn't evacuate with us. But it is confirmed that he has left Nili; it may take a few days of transit for him to return to the country."

General Jiang nodded.

Sophie, sitting to the side, felt puzzled. She couldn't imagine it; the Chinese military was a strictly disciplined force, and withholding information from superiors was a grave offense. Yet, Yang Guang had told a blatant lie. Xie Chengyang said nothing. They all knew perfectly well that given Qin Yang’s temperament, he would never let Azarias and Walker go. Qin Yang was likely about to embark on a killing spree in Nili.

"Were there any casualties?" the General asked.

"Report, God of War squad member Tang Li was killed in action." Yang Guang’s body trembled, unable to contain his agitation.

General Jiang was silent for a moment. "Return home. I will ensure he receives the honors of a hero."

"We don't need hero honors; we only ask that Tang Li be buried in his hometown. That was his final wish," Yang Guang said coldly. "Ten years without returning home, he only wanted to be near his family in death."

General Jiang nodded silently. He knew that if this were not fulfilled, the fury of everyone from the Black Prison would erupt. Having been victims of political maneuvering and forced to live over a decade in darkness, this was already a profound injustice. If they had refused this mission, the Black Prison would have been shut down anyway due to Qin Yang’s near-lawless attitude; they could have survived on their own.

The communication was cut.

Yang Guang looked at everyone and said coldly, "If anyone dares to reveal Qin Yang’s trail, I, Yang Guang, swear that even to the ends of the earth, I will kill them!"

Terrified by his icy killing intent, the others nodded.

The members of the God of War squad were equally murderous. Avenging Tang Li was a must, and only Qin Yang could do it right now. They had to ensure no one knew he had ignored the retreat order to seek revenge. They knew exactly how Qin Yang would take his revenge—the "biochemical education lesson" they had spoken of earlier. Since Qin Yang had vowed to make everyone under Azarias be buried with him, he would surely do it. For now, biological warfare was his best path.

As for morality, in the face of a brother’s death, Qin Yang cared nothing for it.

He was thick-skinned enough to curse like a shrew in front of high-ranking officials, and cold-hearted enough to act on his impulses, even beating a man who molested his woman to a pulp in front of the Prime Minister. Having survived as a "messenger of hell," Qin Yang cared only for his friends and family. For that, he would defy anyone, not caring if he became a mass murderer or was reviled for ten thousand years.

His brother was dead.

If Qin Yang swallowed this insult, he wouldn't be Qin Yang.

So revenge was his only goal in Nili. And his objective was the total annihilation of Azarias’s army!

In the jungles of Nili, Qin Yang moved like a ghost. With his comrades and all the civilians now in a safe place, he no longer needed to act as a lure. His mission now was to fight his way back to Kano City, and his immediate goal was to hunt down Walker. He swore he would make that arrogant bastard know the meaning of misery.

The insurgent rebels, meanwhile, were suffering from a massive headache. They had clearly tracked the hostages, but after this morning, they had vanished without a trace. Fifty-some people had simply disappeared. Their patrols reached the border and found nothing. They had deployed thousands of troops for this operation, yet the hostages were gone. What was even more terrifying was that while tallying their numbers, they realized they had suffered nearly six hundred casualties in the past few days. The deadly traps and omnipresent assassinations had left the rebels in a state of panic.

Worse, the three captives handed over to the rebels had also been snatched away.

According to a survivor, a group of Chinese had hijacked a plane and plastered it with photos of Azarias to throw them off. If they saw a plane covered in photos with a banner hanging from its tail, that was the group. This seemed to explain the sudden disappearance of the hostages.

Thousands of men were searching; they couldn't have just evaporated. The only answer was that single transport plane in the sky.

Just as this news reached every squad, Leosel discovered with horror that the communication systems on the plane and his handheld radio had failed. He desperately ordered the plane to land, knowing full well the consequences. The most tragic fate would be being killed by his own men. But several rebel squads were already nearby, waiting with guns drawn, ready to fire. They had intended to blow up the plane, but they couldn't—the hostages were supposedly inside.

The cabin door opened, and a few men jumped out, shouting, "Don't shoot! Don't shoot!"

"There are no hostages inside! It's the rebel army! They saved the hostages! Kill them!" At that shout, gunfire erupted. The highly alert rebel squads fired wildly. Watching this, Qin Yang sneered, raised his weapon, and vanished back into the jungle.

When they confirmed no one had survived, the rebels cautiously approached the plane. But when they saw Leosel, who had been trying to flee the cockpit, slumped over the window, riddled with bullets, they stared at each other in shock.

Leaving no survivors ensured no one could verify the truth. Simply cutting a few wires wasn't Qin Yang’s style; installing a remote-controlled explosive device was the real goal. Poor Leosel, nicknamed "The Hound," had failed to detect even that trap and died at the hands of his own men.