NOVEL NEXT Chapter 304 Bait
The man before him was none other than the founder and leader of Luan Long, the Eastern Dragon King, whose mere mention made Sanctuary pale with fear.
Xiao Wanli.
Xiao Wanli said with a smile, "That's what my girl says about him too. He might seem low-key, but he never tolerates being wronged. He never lets a grudge sit overnight; he'll retaliate immediately, no matter who he's up against... Heh, he reminds me of myself back in the day."
THUD, THUD, THUD...
A series of heavy footsteps approached from the distance. The man who arrived was built like a small mountain, with a buzz cut and a deadpan face.
"Dragon King, the situation has changed."
"Speak."
"We've recovered the blueprints, but the other side mobilized its military to blockade all coastlines and airports. Xia Liang defied everyone's advice and did the opposite, charging straight into their local military base. After hijacking a tank and wreaking havoc, he made a clean getaway, heading for Vegas."
Lu Chuang was dumbfounded. How could he be so damn ruthless? Getting chased, and he still hijacks a tank? Kills countless people and just strolls away like it's nothing?
"I freaking knew that kid could drive a tank! How about that? And he had the nerve to lie to me, saying he couldn't." Xiao Wanli clapped his old friend on the shoulder. "If I hadn't shelled out my own cash to get him a decent chassis, that rascal would probably still be playing dumb!" He then asked, "Did anyone get hurt?"
The burly man shook his head. "No, everyone is safe. However, we received a message from Situ Jing. He says we must find a way to interfere with the satellites over that area, or they'll be facing an airstrike very soon."
"Hahahaha..." Xiao Wanli burst into almost maniacal laughter. "Interesting! This is too interesting! What was supposed to be a simple infiltration has been turned into a grand spectacle by Xia Liang. To even think of something like interfering with another country's satellites... and during peacetime! Hahaha, it seems there's truly nothing he doesn't dare to do."
Lu Chuang looked worried. "Isn't this going a bit too far? The road from Gold Mountain to Vegas is mostly desert. If they just find a corner to hide in, it'll be very difficult for them to be found. If we rashly initiate electronic warfare, it could easily trigger a diplomatic incident."
"This Master doesn't care about diplomacy," Xiao Wanli declared with a grand wave of his hand. "Pass down the order. We've trained in electronic countermeasures for so many years; it's time to test our skills. I only have one requirement: cripple as many of their satellites as you can."
The burly man saluted and strode away, not giving a single thought to the consequences of such an action. The words of Dragon Jade were always right.
"Old Lu, Old Lu, you've really found a treasure." Xiao Wanli hadn't been this happy in a long, long time. He had smiled more in these past few moments than he had in the last ten years combined.
"You want him to go to the Northern Border to help you get your revenge, don't you? Don't be surprised. If I didn't even know about something like that, Luan Long might as well disband. Normally, that sort of thing would be impossible, but with a word from me, his path will be clear."
A troubled expression crossed Lu Chuang's face. The two were close in age, and Lu Chuang had been following Xiao Wanli around since they were snot-nosed kids. He knew exactly what his old friend's words implied.
"Sigh... and I was hoping to recruit him into the military. He's guaranteed to become a King of Soldiers. But since you're asking personally, what else can I do but agree?"
Xiao Wanli's smile grew even wider. "That's what friends are for. Take that hundred-year-old vintage I have with you when you go. I hear you even mutter its name in your sleep."
"I'd rather have Xia Liang."
"Heh. Too bad. Luan Long has already called dibs on him."
「On the other side of Blue Star, it was still the dead of night.」
On a highway, an M1A2 main battle tank barrelled forward at 85 mph.
Of course, Xia Liang couldn't care less about the wear and tear on the tracks. It wasn't his tank, so he was just going to run it into the ground.
The pursuers behind them had been scared witless by the twin-tailed girl's assault. They'd given up the ground chase and were now preparing an aerial strike. After all, no matter how ferocious their target was, he couldn't possibly dodge an attack from a drone. Meanwhile, the other cars on the highway didn't think much of seeing a tank. In America, it was common to see military vehicles speeding down public roads, so most just assumed it was some kind of performance test.
"What's the word from Dragon Country?"
The twin-tailed girl answered, her voice full of surprise. "You won't believe this, but the Dragon King actually agreed to interfere with the satellites here. Whoa! Hey, Didi driver, how did you know that would happen? Don't tell me you can read the Dragon King's mind!"
Xia Liang shot her a sidelong glance. "Of course not."
Rubbing her cute chin, the twin-tailed girl asked curiously, "Then how did you guess?"
Xia Liang smiled. "Think about it. There are only a handful of people in your team. Every single one of you is precious to him. If there was even the slightest chance, he would never stand by and watch his prized agents die in a foreign country."
"That makes sense." The twin-tailed girl nodded repeatedly at his explanation. She knew Dragon Jade's temperament well. When it came to being protective of his own, nobody could surpass him.
Just then, Xiao Qianxi spoke up, "Our fuel won't last until Vegas."
At her feet were two fuel barrels, which she eyed worriedly. It was thanks to Situ Jing's foresight that they'd grabbed them while stealing the tank, but even so, it wouldn't be enough to get them to Vegas.
"We don't need to," Xia Liang said, rubbing his chin as he calculated the distance. "Once we're past the mountain range, we'll abandon the tank in Darwin. Then we lie low for a while and wait for our backup. I expect the airport in Maple Country will be compromised soon anyway."
「Dawn.」
The headlines on every major newspaper and website were all about Gold Mountain's darkest hour. Mysterious criminals from the East had used knives, guns, bombs, and even a tank to kill hundreds of people. The manhunt was still ongoing.
During this period, it was safe to say all of America was on pins and needles. The public opted to stay indoors and hoard toilet paper while waiting for the criminals to be caught. Most people didn't really understand why they were hoarding toilet paper, though. That stuff... Oh, forget it.
On top of all that, the internet network across most of the western United States was paralyzed.