Invasion of the United States

When it closed, the two blades of steel teeth clamped tightly together, deeply biting into the cleaner's calf. The trapped 'Cleaner' immediately let out a heart-wrenching scream.

This clamp not only tore the skin but also instantly caused a comminuted fracture of the shinbone.

This powerful animal trap was not a sharp blade, clamping but not cutting, continuously tormenting its prey. The trapped 'Cleaner' immediately dropped his gun and tried to open the trap with his hands.

However, when he glanced at the model of the trap and felt the thickness of the carbon steel spring plate, he instantly realized he had no chance of survival.

This guy was ruthless. Knowing his mission had failed and that he was now a liability, he didn't hesitate, directly drawing the pistol from under his ribs and pulling the trigger at his temple.

With a bang, the trapped 'Cleaner's' head exploded, and he fell to the ground, dead.

The face of another 'Cleaner' changed drastically, and he hurriedly shouted into the radio, "Be careful, there's a trap, George is dead!"

Lux was still dawdling in the backyard. When he heard the scream and gunshots, he immediately knew one of their men was down. However, the target had yet to show up, leaving him momentarily at a loss for what to do.

At that moment, Zhou Qingfeng, hiding in the storage room, took out a remote detonator and decisively pressed it.

A bomb installed in the kitchen of the villa exploded instantly, transforming into a roaring wave of energy in the night.

The wooden walls of the villa shattered into countless sharp splinters. Lux's two-person team was directly hit by the blast, taking the brunt of the explosion's shockwave head-on.

Even the 'Cleaner' in the living room was not spared, his body lifted by the shockwave, crashing through the front door and landing heavily on the lawn in the yard.

The roaring wave of energy was like a solid wall, continuing to wreak havoc after bursting out of the villa.

The 'Cleaner' waiting outside the villa only felt darkness before his eyes, a mass of debris coming at him, forcing him to the ground as the explosion's echoes filled his ears, making it seem the world had collapsed at that moment.

-----------------

As the explosion's roar sounded, the monitoring signal on the villa's tablet abruptly cut off, the screen turning blue.

Zhou Qingfeng sprinted out of the hidden storage room, using his memory of the layout to first target the 'Cleaner' waiting outside the villa.

That guy had been standing on the road outside the villa, but the blast had knocked him down, the intense shockwave and noise almost stripping him of his hearing and sense of direction.

As he struggled to lift his head, the narrow field of view provided by his night-vision goggles became his fatal weakness—he failed to notice Zhou Qingfeng quietly approaching from the side.

The silenced M4 rifle in Zhou Qingfeng's hand spat out a series of short, muffled bursts, the "puff puff puff" sounds completely masked by the crumbling villa's roar.

The 'Cleaner' outside the villa was hit by several bullets in an instant. Although the heavy bulletproof vest blocked some of the shots, his head, face, and limbs were quickly turned into a bloody mess.

At this moment, a frantic cry came through the radio, "Olin, turn around, the target is behind you!" It was a belated warning from the 'Cleaner' controlling the drone, but it was too late. ContentfirstreleasedonM_VLEM_PYR.

Zhou Qingfeng's M4 rifle, with two magazines taped together, allowed for a swift mag change. After emptying half a magazine, he pressed the release button, swapped in a full mag, and continued without any hesitation.

While changing mags, Zhou Qingfeng's steps never faltered as he rushed toward the villa's front yard.

Of the two 'Cleaners' who entered through the front door, one was dead, and the other was injured but still combat-capable. He needed to deal with it quickly.

At that moment, the injured 'Cleaner' in the front yard was dragging a leg pierced by wooden splinters from the door frame, stumbling to escape. Blood dripped from his wound, staining the ground red.

"Tom, rear left, open fire!" The 'Cleaner' controlling the drone yelled anxiously over the radio, but he couldn't change the tide of the battle.

The 'Cleaner' in the front yard immediately turned his gun to the rear left and fired wildly, the muzzle flashes glaring in the dark night.

However, his random shooting didn't hit the target but instead gave away his position.

In the darkness, an older M4 rifle locked onto him precisely, and a few muffled shots later, he fell to the ground, lifeless.

By now, the villa had been engulfed by flames, with tongues of fire bursting out of the wooden structure. In the rolling smoke, the fire illuminated the surrounding area for several meters.

Zhou Qingfeng swiftly turned his gun and moved toward the backyard.

Through the hedge, he saw the bomb installed in the kitchen had blown a huge hole in the back door.

Amidst the scattered debris lay a fully armed corpse, one of the 'Cleaners' who had infiltrated from the backyard.

However, the other person was nowhere to be found.

In the light of the flames, a series of chaotic footprints and several drops of fresh blood could be seen on the backyard lawn.

-----------------

Lux gritted his teeth, trying to keep his steps steady to alleviate the ripping pain in his chest.

His rapid breathing only made the pain worse, as if a dull knife were twisting inside his chest with each breath.

His vision oscillated between blurry and dark, his brain feeling like it was filled with lead, heavy and confused.

After running thirty or forty meters, Lux's stamina was not yet exhausted, but the agony in his chest surged like waves, almost drowning him.

When the explosion happened, he was at the center of the blast wave, flung violently as if by a mighty hammer blow.

The skin on his face, neck, and limbs was covered in cuts from shattered windows and doors, blood flowing slowly down his skin, staining his shirt.

If the bulletproof vest hadn't provided some cushioning, he likely would have fallen in the wreckage, never to rise again.

At this moment, a deep regret welled up in Lux's heart. He should have brought a few robotic dogs.

Remote-controlled robotic dogs were already widely used, cheap and effective, especially useful as cannon fodder upfront.

In the last attack on the Caribbean cruise ship, the robotic dogs performed exceptionally, causing the Special Service Bureau to collapse in disarray.

But this time, how did he forget to bring them?

While running, Lux suddenly realized that the taxi parked outside the villa was nothing but a lure.

Old Hammer had been an agent for decades, specializing in tracking and counter-tracking. How could he make such a rookie mistake?

As Hammer's granddaughter, Lucy had been influenced from a young age. How could she be careless knowing she was being followed?

Even Victor, as the President of Holy Light, was a tech industry leader. When escaping with the 'Holy Light I,' he had erased all tracking signals.

How could he overlook the threat of casual photos and let himself fall into a trap?

Thus, this was a trap.

Lux mechanically moved his legs, stumblingly continuing his retreat. He felt he had run for a long time but had yet to reach the operation's starting point.

Desperate, he shouted into the radio, "Support! I need support!"

Now, he could only hope his comrade controlling the drone was smart enough.

If that guy had enough guts to drive up quickly, this hundred-meter distance wouldn't take long, and he could escape with his life.

However, in the flames and smoke behind him, a figure moved ominously, like death closing in step by step.

Lux glanced back frequently, his heartbeat racing, his steps becoming increasingly erratic. Until a gunshot rang out from behind, a bullet struck his back like a hammer blow.

Though the bulletproof vest took some of it, Lux fell hard, face-first into the dirt. He struggled to stand again, but another bullet hit, pinning him to the ground like a nail.

Hahahaha... Lux, his mouth and nose filled with dirt, turned over with effort to breathe more easily. Spreading his arms, he laughed aloud, even while panting heavily.

"Victor, it's you, isn't it?"

"When we played paintball, you loved to shoot me in the back."

"Honestly, it's not that I didn't want to work for you. You were generous, also easy to deal with. But I didn't expect you to be so tough to deal with. I just..."

Bang, a bullet fired from seven or eight meters away hit Lux in the head, ending his rambling. His hand loosened... and a pin-pulled high-explosive grenade rolled out.

Seconds later, the grenade exploded with a loud bang, flipping Lux's body over in place.

In the distance, the 'Cleaner' controlling the drone finally stopped hesitating. He didn't bother retrieving the drone, tossing the control stick aside, jumping into a black SUV, and driving away in reverse.