Strongest Soldier King

The Black Shadow appeared abruptly and eerily, as if it had always been there, its icy gaze sweeping over the camp before swiftly hiding behind a thicket. The jungle was deathly quiet, as if nothing had been discovered at all. Had Luo Zheng not been scanning that exact spot, he wouldn't have noticed anything.

Startled by the sudden emergence from the darkness, Luo Zheng jumped, quickly holding his breath to avoid letting any sound escape and betray his position. Whoever was able to approach this silently was certainly no ordinary person, with a perception for danger far beyond that of the average man. Luo Zheng couldn't afford to be careless. Unsure of the other person's next move, he didn't stir, nor did he sound an alarm. Instead, he watched the other's hiding place calmly, ready to counteract any action with stillness.

After a while, Luo Zheng saw the Black Shadow vanish with a flash, reappearing about twenty meters from the campfire. Seeing that the other person's gun was not pointing downward and there was no intent of a sneak attack, Luo Zheng remained still. However, his gun was now subtly aimed at the other person, prepared to strike first at the slightest hint of movement.

The figure surveyed the people for a moment, then advanced again with a movement technique that was exceptionally agile, moving through the dark jungle like a Wild Wolf hunting for prey—calm and patient. Luo Zheng knew he was facing a master and dared not make a wrong move. He took a deep breath to stay calm, his index finger slowly finding the trigger.

At this moment, the figure had closed in to about ten meters from the campsite, just six meters away from Luo Zheng. Under the faint moonlight, Luo Zheng discerned that the figure did not resemble a member of the East Yi Yun Members but was of the Yellow Race, which took him by surprise. He watched cautiously, his finger lightening its hold on the trigger a bit—the last thing he wanted was to mistakenly kill one of his own.

The Black Shadow hunched over behind a bush, scrutinizing the campsite and slowly raising a gun. Luo Zheng saw it clearly: the figure was fitting a silencer onto a pistol, a cruel cold smile flickering at the corner of its mouth. Less than ten meters apart, they could clearly see the faces of those resting by the fire. If it were one of their own, there would be no need for assassination; even if the identity could not be confirmed, they could simply retreat quietly.

Seeing that cruel smile, Luo Zheng was horrified and, no longer cautious, took his shot decisively. The AK47 might not have been very accurate, but it had a rapid rate of fire and strong penetration. At a distance of just six meters, there was nothing to impede Luo Zheng, and his burst of gunfire turned the figure into a sieve.

The sudden gunfire startled the others awake; they all grabbed their weapons and took cover, reacting swiftly. Luo Zheng leapt from his hiding place and pounced forward to confirm the figure was dead before breathing a sigh of relief. After signaling for the others to form a defensive perimeter, he rushed over and asked Luo Zheng in an alert tone, "What's the situation?"

"This person attempted a surprise attack on the camp, using a silenced pistol," Luo Zheng said, picking up the silenced pistol and handing it to the Scholar, while looking for the figure's dog tags—it was all about the points. Suddenly, he realized there were no tags around the figure's neck, which was unusual. On closer inspection, there was nothing on the neck, but there was a tattoo on the back of it. Luo Zheng was taken aback, a sense of unease welling up inside him. He dragged the body to the campfire, where the light clearly revealed a ferocious wolf's head tattoo on the back of the neck, lifelike and seemingly ready to leap out. Luo Zheng was shocked, his expression turning grim.

"A member of the Wild Wolf Mercenary Group? Why would there be someone from the Wild Wolf Mercenary Group here?" Luo Zheng was stunned to find his bitter adversary, wondering if it was a coincidence or if they came specifically for him.

"What's wrong?" The Scholar saw Luo Zheng, whose face had turned ashen, seemingly about to drip water, and couldn't help but ask in surprise.

"Oh, it's nothing," Luo Zheng reacted and did not reveal the truth; it was best to keep such things to himself.

"As long as it's nothing. This guy doesn't seem like a member of East Yi Yun, he could be from a mercenary group hired by them. With the combat abilities of the East Yi Yun members, defeating us would be difficult, so it wouldn't be surprising if they hired others. We've been exposed here, so let's quickly pack up and evacuate immediately," said Scholar, his expression becoming serious as he spoke while looking out to the other members on circular watch duty.

"Understood," everyone whispered in agreement, and swiftly began to move.

Luo Zheng, hearing Scholar's analysis, felt there was reason in it. It made sense for the Wild Wolf Mercenary Group to be employed by East Yi Yun, considering they were mercenaries. Of course, it could not be ruled out that the Song family purposely leaked information to the Wild Wolf Mercenary Group. Given the Wild Wolf's style of holding grudges and their vendetta against each other, knowing that he was competing here would definitely bring them over. Perhaps both were true, but now was not the time to get entangled in this issue; they had to withdraw as quickly as possible.

Thinking this, Luo Zheng checked the body. Besides a pistol, the man had a multi-functional M9 bayonet. This smoothly designed multifunctional bayonet was used with the M16 automatic rifle, doubling as a dagger and a field tool, and is one of the most sophisticated multi-functional military knives to date. The blade was made from improved 425M steel with a thickness of 6 millimeters. Its surface was pure black, the edge sharp. The longer sawback edge was sturdy and well-angled, able to saw through airplane fuselage. The blade had an oval perforation near the front that, when coupled with the sheath's cutting plate, could act as pliers to cut through wire fences and cables. The handle was cylindrical with a net-like pattern, offering a good grip and insulation.

Looking at the M9 bayonet, Luo Zheng smiled with satisfaction. This was a fine piece of equipment. He quickly secured the bayonet, and after not finding anything else of use, he glanced at the others, who were all set to go. The field stove had been stomped flat by Monk, the campfire extinguished. At Scholar's command, everyone hurriedly left.

They could not linger at this place. Luo Zheng, following at the rear, consciously took on the role of rearguard. The team marched swiftly, running nonstop through the woods in silence. After twenty or so minutes, they crossed the woods, and before them lay a vast, open wild area with mountain ridges. It was easy to be spotted during the day, but not so much at night. They continued on their way, eager to exit any potential encirclement.

With the enemy's presence a fact, it was unclear if they were encircled. After half an hour of running that severely depleted their energy, they were forced to stop for a rest. The team concealed themselves behind an earthen slope, silently sitting on the ground catching their breath, which took a while to settle. Scholar then turned to Luo Zheng and asked, "What exactly happened back there?"

Luo Zheng recounted in detail the sound of the gunfire and the appearance of the Black Shadow, adding, "It's difficult to tell if the gunshots were from other competing teams. I don't think that person was an East Yi Yun member, there was no badge, and besides, I felt he was very formidable. He managed to approach our camp silently, and if it weren't for the close-range surprise attack, he might not have been so easy to take down."

"That was close; we were somewhat careless. I didn't expect the enemy to be active so late. I have seen the body; it must be a mercenary. But let's not talk about this now. Our whereabouts have been compromised, what should we do next? Let's all discuss," Scholar said in a low voice.

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