NOVEL NEXT Chapter 824 - 824: Request for Rescue
Chapter 824: Request for Rescue
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
At this thought, a rare smile graced Hu Jie’s face. However, her moment of tranquility was abruptly shattered by the blaring of the intercom. Zhao, the security officer’s voice echoed through the room, “Deputy Commander Hu, there’s a crisis in the military district. Orders from above demand that all officers of regimental level and above must assemble immediately.”
On the other side, the senior officer finally summoned Su Shen. Despite the meeting, he was still unwilling to release him. He took a sip from his large bowl of tea and said, “I’ve been accustomed to this for many years, I love drinking tea from this large bowl. Su Shen, let’s continue our discussion. In recent years, the power of drug traffickers seems to have weakened, but in reality, their methods have become more covert and diverse, making our investigations more challenging and discoveries harder to come by.
“You were personally trained by Hu Xiao. I don’t approve of him, but I deeply acknowledge your abilities. You’re not only a king on the battlefield, but your strategies are also top-notch, even surpassing him. The troops still need you. To let you go back to being a small individual would be a waste. Neither I nor any other senior officer could make such a foolish decision.”
Su Shen’s expression was solemn, and after a few seconds of silence, he was about to open his mouth to insist on leaving when a security officer rushed in from outside, “Commander, Gong Zhan from the Southeast Military District led a small team to infiltrate the drug trafficker’s camp. We’ve lost contact with them and request immediate rescue. Orders from above demand that Gong Zhan must be kept safe!”
“Didn’t I reject his application? How dare someone follow him? A deputy commander from the Southeast Military District acting on his own, this is outrageous!”
The old commander sprang up from his seat, almost cursing in anger. If this wasn’t reckless, what was?
Any soldier would know that among the five military districts in the country, the other four mainly focus on actual combat training, bearing the role of main force output during wartime. Only the Southeast Military District primarily developed national defense technology, serving the role of upgrading and maintaining the combat power of the other districts.
The soldiers of the Southeast Military District were not proficient in actual combat reconnaissance, yet Gong Zhan dared to act independently with a small team. The old commander was initially furious, but now he was so agitated that he could hardly breathe. He clutched his chest, almost fainting, and the security officer hurriedly stepped forward to administer medication.
Hu Jing, who had been waiting outside, strode in with a gloomy expression. He said to Su Shen, “Looking at this, you should know. That Gong Zhan, he went to the drug trafficker’s camp. Should we say he’s fearless because he’s ignorant?”
Upon hearing this, Su Shen also revealed a rare look of concern, as memories of the past flooded back.
In the desolate northern outskirts of the capital military district, nestled a notorious drug trafficker’s den. This den, one of the largest in the country, had been in operation for the longest time. When he and Huo Jing were first selected from the Southeast Military District to the Capital’s Imperial Military District, the people of the district were already deeply resentful of this den, yet they felt helpless.
The area was characterized by complex terrain, with vast stretches of untouched dense forest. Inside, the magnetic field was chaotic, rendering all equipment useless. Even the most modern military weapons were reduced to scrap metal once inside.
The drug traffickers’ army was defiant, vowing to turn the place into a graveyard for soldiers, piling the entrance of the forest with the bones of the fallen, using the skeletal remains of the righteous soldiers as a shield for their illicit operations.
Back then, the military district was thrown into disarray, which infuriated the senior officer, Hu Xiao. With a resolve bordering on suicidal, he led a squad of daredevils into the northern forest. Before he left, he addressed all the soldiers, “Every soldier who dies in the fight against drugs, tortured and brutally killed by the drug traffickers, their severed limbs and broken bones returned to us, may seem terrifying. But this is a testament to the cowardice of the drug traffickers.
“These monsters, who cannot face the light of day, fear those who dare to stand against them. So, every time they capture a resistor, they raise their butcher’s knife and cruelly mutilate the body of righteousness. Do they aim to destroy the physical body? No, they aim to break the will of the resistor. If they can instill fear in millions, then millions will cease to resist!”
In his final battle, Hu Xiao could have escaped, but he chose to let two young soldiers go first. He stayed behind to buy time, but in the end, in that sunless forest, not a single member of his daredevil squad survived.
Following that, Su Shen and Huo Jing led a rescue mission, but all the men they took with them fell in the forest. They only managed to retrieve Hu Xiao’s severed head. That scene became a nightmare for many soldiers, but that unscathed head also became an undying source of strength in the hearts of many.
Su Shen never forgot, but he knew well that some issues could not be resolved overnight, nor could they be changed by the power of one person alone. If the day came when the nation’s survival was at stake, he would answer the call. But for now, he had to return to Gu Zi’s side. The opportunity was right before his eyes.