Chapter 278: Chapter 276: Reconnaissance and Ambush

It was difficult to move through the dense forest, but there were fewer landmines. Once out of the forest, they quickly reached the passage cleared by the first two sweeps. Even if there were new minefields, they were recent, easier to detect, and limited in number. The team’s progress was faster than the previous times.

The seven-person team was well-disguised, as they were crossing between two military positions in broad daylight. Not only did they wear straw hats woven from branches and vines, but their bodies were also camouflaged with soft grass and vines. Crouching down in place, they were almost invisible until one got close.

The team advanced cautiously, defusing scattered mines along the way and making tactical pauses to disrupt the enemy sentries. Because it was broad daylight, there were no searchlights to contend with. The enemy didn’t expect an infiltration during the day and overlooked them. The team smoothly passed through the battlegrounds and arrived near the small village.

Outside the village, Ling Chengyan signaled, ordering the seven to split into three groups to search around the village perimeter, regrouping after an hour.

Ling Chengyan herself moved closer to the village, following the direction of the previously cleared tripwire minefield to investigate again. She found that the previously cleared minefields hadn’t been reset, but nearby, ordinary trigger mines were laid without any tripwires.

From this, Ling Chengyan could surmise that the mine-laying expert didn’t stay here long?!

She cleared some of the mines to ensure unimpeded entry into the passage and continued to the next step of the mission.

Without others to worry about, she had more freedom to maneuver.

To infiltrate the village, she found a densely foliaged tree, climbed high onto a branch, and surveyed the area from above.

Confirming there was no one, not even a stray dog, and that the whole village was enveloped in a dead silence, Ling Chengyan decisively jumped down and entered the village.

From the outside, the village was just scattered homes with low earth walls and thatched houses.

It was nearing dusk, and although the light was still adequate, Ling Chengyan utilized her eyesight and hearing to their fullest, not dismissing any suspicious point along the way. Surprisingly, she encountered no problems until she reached a small courtyard on the outermost edge. Carefully probing with a long bamboo pole before entering, she found no mines laid there either.

She held her weapon in one hand and the bamboo pole in the other, gently nudging open the ajar wooden gate.

The gate creaked open as Ling Chengyan sidestepped to the safe position she had scouted, waiting a few seconds; no explosion nor ambush occurred, and she then used the bamboo pole to probe the ground just inside the doorway.

Still nothing, no mines, no ambush.

Ling Chengyan finally stepped inside. The courtyard still showed signs of being lived in, though clearly abandoned for some time, with decay and ruin evident.

Proceeding cautiously, Ling Chengyan explored deeper until she reached the doorway, probing like before. She pushed open the door. The room inside was dim but not rigged with traps or mines like the door was.

She took a deep breath, pressed her lips together, and stepped inside the door.

The furnishings in the room were similar to those back home. Ling Chengyan’s eyes adjusted to the dim light, and then she used the bamboo pole to probe the floor… still nothing.

Finally, she turned around, her gaze sweeping over a bamboo bed and cabinets, boxes, and baskets. After investigating, she overturned a solid wooden table in the main hall to use as a shield. Holding the bamboo pole, she lifted a relatively delicate basket from the bed—boom!

Ling Chengyan crouched behind the wooden table, shielding herself from the blast shockwave that still left her dizzy and her heart pounding. After crouching and waiting until the blast’s effects dissipated, she slowly raised her head…

She pulled the table behind a short wall in the room, a dead angle with minimal exposure to the blast’s effects. Even so, the table was almost blown to pieces, part of the wall was destroyed, and almost none of the room’s furniture, like the bed or cabinets, survived the blast.

Surveying the aftermath of the explosion, Ling Chengyan clicked her tongue: the choice of this detonator point was truly excellent. If someone other than her had encountered the basket unprepared, they would certainly be dead.

Moreover, it would be a gruesome death.

The explosion was loud. If there were enemies in the village, they would certainly have been alerted.

After inspecting the scene, Ling Chengyan quickly left, stepping out of the courtyard in a few quick moves and hiding up the large tree in front of the courtyard.

She crouched silently, waiting quietly for nearly ten minutes. No one came to check, not even a sound of movement from humans or animals.

This confirmed once again that the entire village was intended as a trap.

Using the tree’s height, Ling Chengyan closely observed the layout of the entire village. Then, she jumped down and returned the way she came. Before reaching the rally point, she saw the other six had already regrouped, hearing the explosion and about to head to the village to check it out.

Ling Chengyan signaled them. The six had no time to express their relief at her safe return and quickly turned to follow her in a retreat.

The group withdrew from the village, then hid in a dense thicket not far away.

“Captain…” Someone began to speak, wanting to ask if Ling Chengyan was injured.

Ling Chengyan gestured for silence, the seven lying quietly in the bush as she observed the enemy’s elevated position through binoculars.

The sun had already set, the sky turning a brilliant golden-red, making the scene somewhat blurry, but through the binoculars, Ling Chengyan saw figures moving on the enemy’s positions. They were descending the mountain toward them.

Ling Chengyan gestured behind her: three people, twenty minutes!

The six silently gripped their weapons, fingers on the triggers, waiting for the enemy to arrive.

Ling Chengyan quietly took out a slingshot that was larger than a child’s toy. Its pouch was made of soft cowhide with three jagged stones inside.

She issued an order with hand gestures: wait for my command before firing!

The six were a bit stunned but nodded silently in agreement.

The enemies approached on foot, neither too fast nor too slow, taking about twenty minutes to reach a hundred meters away.

Ling Chengyan exerted strength with both hands to draw the slingshot, aiming at the three overlapping figures, waiting for the right moment. Finally, she fired the slingshot, making almost no sound, and three green stones cut through the air—

One cried out in pain before falling, while the other two dropped silently to the ground.

The other six were shocked by their commander’s display, and before they could react, Ling Chengyan had already leaped from the concealed brush, twisting one person’s neck with her hand while simultaneously kicking another’s neck. Turning around, she chopped the back of another’s neck, rendering them unconscious.

Crack, crack, thud!

Two dead, one injured.

Clean and efficient, all within a minute.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep