The desert night was exceptionally cold; the sub-zero temperatures seemed to pierce skin and flesh, seeping into the very bones. Even with the windows tightly shut and the heater blasting, the frigid air still managed to infiltrate the car.
Frank was curled up in a sleeping bag, eyes closed in sleep.
Hong Fei, meanwhile, had a faint red glow in his eyes as he drove rapidly through the pitch-black night.
In the vast wilderness, apart from nocturnal animals hunting for food, there were almost no other signs of life.
This, conversely, made Hong Fei's tracking much easier.
Driving onto a nearly straight road, Hong Fei's eyes never stopped, absorbing every aura in front of him for analysis.
After a long while, he discovered a cluster of particles composed of yellow light on the side of the road.
In the game, this usually represented excrement left behind by some creature.
Locking onto this aura, Hong Fei jerked the steering wheel, and the vehicle left the road like a beast, charging into terrain filled with weeds and gravel.
The violent shaking woke Frank. Seeing Hong Fei's excited expression, he couldn't help but ask, "Found it?"
"Most likely," Hong Fei nodded slightly. In front of the vehicle, rows of footprints were incredibly clear. After driving past a low hill, Hong Fei steered the vehicle into a cluster of giant rocks and then slowly came to a stop.
"This is close enough. You handle the concealment, and I'll go find them."
Frank nodded immediately. Their division of labor was very clear; he was a former Marine, so handling concealment was perfect for him, and since Hong Fei was skilled at tracking, he was naturally the best choice to find the people.
After getting out of the car, Hong Fei didn't specifically carry a rifle, nor did he put on a helmet, because he already had a dagger and a pistol on his right thigh.
Climbing up a rock formation, the glowing footprints in front of him suddenly increased, which meant that the targets had been active here frequently.
Bending down, lightening his footsteps, and continuing forward along the direction of the footprints, a short while later, Hong Fei discovered a red figure crawling in a bush.
If he hadn't activated the Eyes of Death, in the dim light at this moment, it would have been very difficult to spot the target without using an infrared thermal imager.
Hong Fei lay on the ground, straining his eyes to continue observing. Soon, he successively found five more enemies distributed around the perimeter. Connecting these positions into an arc and finding the center point, he saw a bare, rocky mountain.
Hong Fei dared not be careless. He stared fixedly at the mountain. Sure enough, he eventually caught a fleeting glimpse of a figure.
The red body just swayed slightly before immediately disappearing as if cloaked.
A cave!
Hong Fei immediately realized.
This was a bit tricky. Since the targets were using a cave as a hideout, it would be difficult for me to quickly determine the exact number of people. Judging from the six people posted as sentries around the area, a rough estimate suggested there were probably about twenty people gathered in the cave.
After noting the location, I crawled backward slowly, not standing up to run quickly until I was dozens of meters away.
Returning to the vehicle's location, Frank had already set up the concealment. Seeing me return, he asked, "Did you find them?"
"Yeah." I told him my findings truthfully.
Frank held a tablet, opened the map, looked at it, and said, "You said they will definitely attack that arms dealer. The best location for them to launch the attack would be the road more than two hundred meters away. There's a patch of scattered bushes and rock piles there, along with a small hill, which is enough for concealment. Plus, it's the end of a straight road, making it easier for people to let their guard down."
I nodded and humbly asked for advice, "You're right. So, where should we set the trap?"
Frank raised an eyebrow. "If you really want to save that arms dealer, we'd better wipe out these militants right now. There's a mortar in the car, and I'm confident I can bury them right in the cave."
I, however, shook my head vigorously.
"No, no. If we kill them now, who can prove they would have definitely attacked the convoy tomorrow? If they don't admit it, wouldn't we go from saving someone to kidnapping them?"
Frank was somewhat shocked by this, his expression seemingly asking: Isn't that what we're doing?
I smacked my lips; this matter was simply impossible to explain.
The key was that if Tony hadn't been blown up by his own weapon and didn't have the Death threat of shrapnel, would he still have the motivation to develop the reactor? Without the reactor, why would I even look for Tony?
What, to get his autograph?
What a joke!
I pondered for a few seconds and then added, "Let's stick to the original plan. We aren't bodyguards; there's no need to do the road-clearing work for him. We'll appear only after these militants make their move."
Frank had no objections to this, or perhaps he had already guessed that I would make this decision. He pointed at the map and said, "Then our ambush location will be right here."
I glanced at it and turned my head to look at the cliff behind me.
"This spot is the most open, and the straight-line distance to where the targets might strike is no more than five hundred meters. Furthermore, when they initiate the attack, they likely won't pass through this area, so the chance of exposure is extremely low. As long as we occupy this place, whether we use artillery or sniping, we can ensure they have nowhere to hide."
"Very good, let's do it!"
Immediately, the two of them each shouldered a sniper rifle and worked together to transport the mortar and shells to the mountaintop. Seeing that it was still early, Frank took the initiative. "You've been driving for half the night; get some rest first. I'll keep watch."
Hong Fei didn't stand on ceremony; he crawled into his sleeping bag and put on an eye mask immediately.
The moon set and the sun rose. The temperature began to rise rapidly, and Hong Fei was soon woken up by the heat.
Crawling out of the sleeping bag, he saw Frank sitting on the ground, carefully wiping the sniper scope.
"Looking at you, aren't you afraid they might just attack us directly?"
Frank said calmly, "They already went over to set up their ambush. Twenty-four people. They've laid mines on the road, have machine guns, rocket launchers, and even a missile vehicle."
"So diligent?" Hong Fei raised his binoculars to observe the surroundings. Activating the Eyes of Death, he immediately found the targets' figures several hundred meters away. The twenty-four people were hiding on one side of the road, near and far, without revealing their traces. The enemy's missile vehicle was parked a kilometer away, perfectly obscured by several intersecting, undulating hills.
Frank raised his eyebrows slightly. "It looks like they aren't planning to kidnap him, but rather to silence him."
Of course, it was to silence him; Obadiah didn't want Tony to return alive. It was just that these militants hadn't killed the incredibly lucky Tony at first, and instead recognized him. Consequently, these militants immediately used this as an excuse to demand more payment from Obadiah. On the other hand, adhering to the principle of making the best use of everything, they forced Tony to manufacture the Jericho missile for them, which had just caused such a huge commotion.
Who would have thought that instead of seeing a Jericho, Tony would directly create the Mark I Armor to send them to meet Marx.
"You're right, they are indeed aiming to kill. But they don't know that their target is Tony Stark, the weapons expert. Otherwise, they definitely wouldn't be willing to."
"Then aren't you afraid he might actually die? Then everything you've done would be in vain."
Hong Fei laughed. "He will die, of course, but I don't think it will be this time."
This was a risk that had to be taken. If Tony really died, Hong Fei would accept it; he would consider it money spent to witness a hero who fell before he could rise. Although it would sting a bit, the ticket price wouldn't be too much of a loss.
Hong Fei had carefully thought and analyzed this.
After all, he couldn't just run up to Tony and say, "I want to ensure you won't die, but at the same time, I need you to get hit by a missile," could he?
That would be too stupid....
Even if he intervened in time to help Tony clear the threat and then found a way to make Tony use his brain to build a miniature reactor, Tony still wouldn't be able to just hand the reactor over to Hong Fei. This would take too long, and the probability of uncertain events skyrocketing would make it extremely not cost-effective.
Therefore, waiting for the time point after the target was attacked and then snatching the person away was the most appropriate approach.
The clock struck two in the afternoon. Hong Fei, who was chewing on dry rations, suddenly pricked his ears, immediately put down his food, and grabbed his binoculars.
Scanning the distance, he said, "They're here!"
Frank looked over as well, and immediately saw three armored vehicles driving quickly from the distance one after another.