Chapter 130: Seventeen Masters Guard the National Gate

"Captain, we must open fire. If we wait any longer, we’ll lose the advantage of the snipers," Chen Hua whispered, licking his lips.

He was a veteran sniper and understood the optimal killing range for his rifle. Too far, and he risked missing; too close, and the enemy’s return fire would negate the sniper’s superiority.

However, Lin Xiaoyang rejected this logical suggestion. "You are only responsible for targets beyond four hundred meters. Leave those within four hundred meters to Zhijun and me!"

Chen Hua was stunned. He finally realized what his captain intended to do. Lin was going to use his rifle—and his unique ability to see in the dark—to stage a nighttime sniping operation. He wasn't using a sniper rifle; without a scope, he couldn't hit targets at long range, which was exactly why he had lured the enemy in closer.

Tonight, there wasn't just one sniper, but three: one conventional, and two unconventional.

In the suffocating tension, the mercenary group slowly approached in a fan formation: five hundred meters, four hundred, three hundred, two hundred...

"Fire!" Lin Xiaoyang commanded.

Twelve guns erupted simultaneously. The silence of the night was shattered as four or five mercenaries dropped instantly. The rest scrambled for cover. The jungle was full of options—behind trees, rocks, or even just pressing their bodies into the thick grass. Once under cover, the mercenaries returned fire. A hail of submachine gun bullets tore toward the hill.

"Use cover and engage at will!"

The soldiers retreated behind the natural barricades of the hill, shifting positions and entering full combat mode. Suddenly, a fierce battle ignited on Lone Eagle Ridge.

In free-fire mode, the roles of the three snipers—Lin Xiaoyang, Zhijun, and Chen Hua—became pivotal. While others fired blindly, they sniped with precision. One shot, one kill; the enemy’s numbers dwindled rapidly. Chen Hua targeted those beyond four hundred meters, while Lin and Zhijun handled everything inside that range.

In the darkness, obscured by weeds, trees, and rocks, killing an experienced mercenary was usually difficult. But tonight, the darkness was not a hindrance—it was their ally. The mercenaries, emboldened by the cover of night, operated under the delusion that if they couldn't see the enemy, the enemy couldn't see them. But the iron rules of the battlefield had changed.

Lin Xiaoyang and Zhijun had activated their Rejuvenation Arts. Although their twelve main meridians and eight extraordinary vessels were not yet fully opened, their physical prowess had not yet reached a qualitative leap, but their eyesight had been completely transformed. With the flow of true energy, their weapons felt like extensions of their own bodies. Every time they spotted an enemy, they fired—heads for heads, limbs for limbs. The mercenaries’ screams filled the air, escalating their panic until they finally abandoned their positions and retreated. Their movement only provided more targets, and within moments, another six or seven were struck down.

"Retreat!" a shout echoed from the enemy ranks.

Whoosh!

A dozen black objects flew through the air. Grenades. The mercenaries were covering their retreat as was their custom.

Boom!

Fireballs erupted, filling the space between the soldiers and the mercenaries with smoke, effectively blinding Lin and Zhijun’s enhanced vision. Under the cover of the smoke, the mercenaries dragged their VIP and fled. Chen Hua fired his sniper rifle repeatedly, dropping three more, but by his fourth shot, the group had already reached the base of the hill.

"Pursue!" Lin Xiaoyang rose to his feet.

Twelve soldiers charged down the slope in pursuit. This was the most dangerous part of the engagement. The mercenaries were highly experienced, and having been caught off guard, they were now looking to set up an ambush. Lin had fallen into this exact trap before, nearly losing his life while covering his comrades' retreat.

Today, the scene was identical, but his choice remained the same. Five miles away lay the national border, and he had to stop them before they crossed it. The priority was the person they were escorting; capturing him would allow them to pull the entire thread of the local drug trafficking ring.

By the time the soldiers caught up, the mercenaries had retreated into a narrow gap between two massive boulders. It was a natural ambush point, overlooking the approach.

"They actually followed us!" a Caucasian man sneered. "Prepare for a counter-kill. Start with a saturation grenade attack!" He reached into his pocket and pulled out three grenades.

There was no response from behind him. The mercenary leader turned around, and his eyes froze. His dozen companions, who should have been in position, were all sprawled motionless on the ground. The drug lord they were escorting stared at a single spot, his lips trembling, unable to make a sound.

In that spot stood a young man, holding a bloodied dagger that hung lazily at his side, a trail of red dripping from the tip.

"Since you're here, you might as well stay," the young man said softly.

Swish!

The mercenary leader pulled his own blade and lunged. When he started his strike, the young man was there. When the blade landed, the young man was gone.

Slice!

The mercenary’s head flew into the air, and the three grenades dropped from his hand. As they were about to hit the stone floor, a foot flicked out, sending the grenades flying back toward his own team. A massive explosion followed.

The young man turned his dagger and pressed the tip against the drug lord’s forehead. The criminal’s fingers had been inches from his gun, but he knew any attempt to draw it was futile.

"You... you aren't border guards. Who are you?" the drug lord rasped.

It was Lin Xiaosu. He didn't bother with small talk. He grabbed the drug lord by the throat and hoisted him onto the rocks, vaulting up after him.

Ahead, Lin Xiaoyang and his men reached the gap, advancing in a skirmish formation. They suddenly froze, their rifles pointing toward the sky. Atop the rock stood a man, with another figure pinned beneath him.

"Brother!" Lin Xiaoyang called out.

The soldiers shifted their aim. In the dim starlight, they recognized the man on the rock—the captain’s brother, the martial arts master who had just displayed incredible agility.

"The four on the Dongjiang side are finished, and there are a dozen more behind this rock," Lin Xiaosu smiled slightly. "No one crossed the border."

Lin Xiaoyang’s heart leaped. No one crossed the border? That meant the entire enemy force had been wiped out. This was his brother—he had easily completed the most difficult task at Dongjiang and kept his promise to join them afterward. He hadn't just joined them; he had intercepted those trying to escape and eliminated every last one.

The greatest prize was in hand: the drug lord.

The criminal was trembling, soaked in his own urine, as two soldiers hauled him away. As the battlefield was cleared, Deputy Captain Li Zhiwei circled Lin Xiaosu a few times before finally speaking. "Xiaosu, I want to ask you for a favor."

"Go ahead," Lin Xiaosu said.

"You've taught your brother and Zhijun martial arts. Could you teach us, too?"

The surrounding soldiers went rigid, their hands trembling slightly. In the past, no one had any real interest in such legendary concepts, but today was different. They had seen the man’s power with their own eyes. They had witnessed the miracle of martial arts on the battlefield. For the first time, they realized that such power was within reach—the captain and Zhijun had been just like them until a month ago.

Lin Xiaosu smiled, a look that was inscrutable under the starlight.

Li Zhiwei’s heart hammered. He wasn't greedy; he wasn't asking for himself. He was thinking of the border post, which claimed the lives of dozens of soldiers every year. If all seventeen men guarding Gongchun Mountain were martial arts masters, who would dare to invade?

Lin Xiaosu sighed, and the sound made everyone’s hearts sink. Was he refusing? It made sense—ancient arts weren't lightly passed on. How could they expect him to teach such power so easily?

Lin Xiaosu sighed again. "My only concern is that if the Gongchun Mountain post accidentally turns into an impenetrable fortress guarded by seventeen masters, the mercenary groups on the other side won't be able to sleep at night anymore."

"Haha... you agreed!" Li Zhiwei leaped forward and threw his arms around Lin Xiaosu’s shoulders.

Lin Xiaosu laughed. "You are my brother’s comrades, which makes you my brothers too. I am willing to share anything. But let’s be clear: I will teach you with all my heart, but whether you succeed depends on your own cultivation."

The soldiers who were clearing the battlefield let out a cheer and jumped for joy. The brutal midnight ambush had, in that moment, turned into a scene of celebration.

Under the same faint starlight, a hundred miles away, the Shan State of the Qingmian Kingdom slept. In a room inside a high-rise building, the air was thick with adult indulgence. The sounds of a man’s heavy breathing and a woman’s moans drifted into the hallway, making the guards on duty flush with heat.

But they dared not move, for the man inside was the king of this land. He was General Taya of the Shan State Guerrilla Army. Even with only two thousand men under his command, he was a general, and in the northern Shan State, his word was law. The woman moaning in the room was a schoolteacher; she usually carried herself with dignity, but when Taya beckoned, she had no choice but to obey.