The place they chose to set up camp was a depression at the foot of a cliff. If an avalanche were to occur, it was likely that not even one person could escape from there.
Fighting these ferocious wolves hand-to-hand might be a matter of life and death, but if these special forces soldiers dared to fire their guns here, they would likely be doomed.
No wonder that even though these people were being torn apart by a pack of snow wolves, not one of them dared to fire a shot.
These special forces soldiers were all quite skilled, but because they were wearing bulky and heavy cotton-padded clothes, they had long lost their usual agility and nimbleness. Furthermore, in order to hold the tight defensive perimeter, they dared not dodge too much. As a result, they suffered greatly in the fight against the ferocious snow wolves.
Currently, almost none of the dozen or so special forces members are without blood on their bodies. Thanks to the thick cotton-padded clothing, although these special forces soldiers are covered in wounds, fortunately, none of their wounds are very deep. With the cotton-padded clothing as a barrier, the injuries they have suffered are not very serious, and at least none of them are fatal.
However, in the center of the defensive perimeter lay two special forces soldiers who had lost their ability to fight; it appeared that their legs had been bitten off by snow wolves.
Just then, an unusually large snow wolf suddenly leaped out of the tent that had been dug into the ground, and in the wolf's mouth was a slender person.
Although these special forces soldiers were all wearing thick cotton-padded clothes, it was still impossible to tell from their figures that the person being held in the wolf's mouth actually looked like a woman.
Upon witnessing this scene, the dozen or so special forces soldiers were instantly enraged. They abandoned the snow wolves that were fighting them and charged desperately toward the giant snow wolf in front of the tent.
The snow wolves surrounding the area were no pushovers. Seeing an opportunity, they howled and pounced with their gaping maws. In an instant, seven or eight more special forces soldiers were knocked to the ground by the towering snow wolves.
Just then, a dazzling golden light suddenly flashed across the sky, startling the special forces soldiers and snow wolves who were engrossed in their fierce battle...
Volume 2 The Assassin's Nightmare Chapter 358 Rescue
The golden light didn't seem particularly intense, but it was dazzlingly bright in the night. The golden light took on a human shape and swept across the low sky, accompanied by a series of mournful wolf howls.
The dozen or so special forces soldiers were immediately horrified to discover that wherever the golden figure passed, all the snow wolves fell down like wheat being harvested. After the golden light circled the wolf pack once and then flashed away again, only a pile of wolf carcasses remained on the ground.
With a loud "boom," after the golden figure disappeared without a trace, the huge snow wolf that had just jumped out of the tent carrying a woman in its mouth suddenly fell to the ground.
All the snow wolves died in similar ways, with a bloody hole piercing their foreheads. However, the largest blood wolf had its head severed off at the neck. Because there was a slope outside the tent, the huge wolf's head rolled into the tent along with the woman it was carrying in its mouth after it was cut off.
The dozen or so special forces soldiers froze in shock. Each of them instinctively opened their mouths wide, staring blankly at the snow wolves that had been so ferocious just moments before, but had been slaughtered in the blink of an eye. Their minds were completely blank.
"Uh... Tiger, did you... see that just now? That... that glittering gold thing... what was it?"
After a long while, Chang Li, the captain of the special forces search team, finally let out a slow breath and turned to a burly-looking special forces soldier next to him, saying, "Why do I feel like... that... looks like a person?"
The special forces soldier nicknamed Tiger subconsciously shook his head and said, "A human? Impossible! Can humans fly? And... look at his golden, shimmering body... it's like... like the halo of Buddha in mythology, could it be... that was a deity?"
"Gods... well... we're all materialists, so we can't just say things like that."
A very handsome special forces soldier came over and criticized Tiger with a stern face, saying, "There have never been any gods in this world. I guess... that figure might be an alien. Those golden lights are probably energy emitted from an alien's single-soldier flying vehicle. Hmm... that must be it."
Upon hearing this, Hu Zi immediately curled his lip and said, "What aliens... Even if aliens really exist, why would they be so kind as to save us? Gu Bin, do you think you're so handsome that aliens will treat you differently? Hehe... If aliens really exist, they'd probably capture you and make you a specimen first. I'd rather believe it's a deity... In that case, maybe I, Hu Zi, can also gain some divine favor..."
"Gods? Aliens?" Chang Li found the two people's words to be rather unreliable, but there seemed to be no other reasonable explanation. In any case, with his somewhat limited imagination, he simply couldn't figure out what that golden light was all about.
"Ah...right, Wang Peng, Zhao Yu, you two go check on Liu Xinghan! It looks like she was being carried away by that big snow wolf...this is terrible...I told you a long time ago that a girl like her shouldn't come here, but she insisted on being stubborn. If something happens to her, how am I going to explain it to her father!"
The two special forces soldiers whose names were called by Chang Li were the two least injured in the team. Upon hearing this, they quickly responded and hurriedly crawled into the tent buried deep in the snow.
Chang Li glanced around at the wolf carcasses scattered on the ground again, and suddenly a thought struck him. He asked, "Hmm... did any of you see how these snow wolves died? If you know what kind of weapon that... that... that thing in the golden light used, you might be able to deduce some of the origin of that golden light."
Upon hearing Chang Li's question, most of the special forces soldiers shook their heads blankly. Their attention had been drawn to the golden light that flew overhead, and they hadn't noticed how the snow wolves had died. Only after hearing the mournful howls did they look in the direction of the sound and see that all the snow wolves had a large hole in their foreheads and had fallen to the ground dead.
Tiger hesitated for a moment, then said somewhat uncertainly, "I think I saw... several silver lights fly out from the golden light, but I couldn't see clearly what those silver lights were. Perhaps... that was the weapon used by that immortal! Hmm... I know, flying swords... that immortal must have been using flying swords!"
The handsome special forces soldier named Gu Bin shook his head slightly and said, "What flying sword... I think you've been reading too many of those ridiculous novels. The silver light you mentioned... I think I did see it, but I don't believe it could be a flying sword. In my opinion, it should be an energy weapon used by aliens!"
"I saw it...it looks like...it really looks like a flying sword!"
Just then, a delicate voice rang out from behind. It turned out that the two special forces soldiers had helped the woman who had been carried out of the giant snow wolf's mouth.
"Ah... Liu Xinghan, are you alright? How are you? Are you hurt anywhere?" Chang Li turned around and saw that the girl was still able to walk on her own, and there didn't seem to be any blood on her body, so he breathed a slight sigh of relief.
It was quite a close call. When they realized they were surrounded by a pack of snow wolves, they all rushed out to snipe at the wolves from outside the tent, but Liu Xinghan was ordered by Chang Li to stay inside the tent.
They were so engrossed in their battle with the snow wolves that they didn't even notice when the enormous snow wolf slipped into the tent.
Fortunately, the golden light appeared just in time; otherwise, even if Liu Xinghan hadn't been eaten by that ferocious wolf, she probably would have been carried off alive.
"Captain Chang, I'm fine..." Liu Xinghan said somewhat embarrassedly when Chang Li asked, "It's all my fault for being so useless; I almost dragged you all into this. That snow wolf was terrifying! It knocked me down as soon as it crawled into the tent. Then it bit my leg, but luckily I was wearing thick clothes today, and the wolf didn't seem to bite very hard. Then it carried me out. My leg only hurts a little, but I don't think it broke any bones. Oh... by the way, you all have injuries. Come into the tent quickly, let me bandage you up!"
"Wait a minute..." Chang Li was relieved to see that Liu Xinghan was not injured. Then he remembered what Liu Xinghan had said earlier and hurriedly asked, "What did you say you saw?"
Liu Xinghan, still slightly shaken, said, "I mean, I saw that silver light. It really looked like a flying sword... Oh... I was being carried in the mouth of that huge snow wolf, and just when I thought I was going to die, suddenly a silver light shot over quickly and pierced the snow wolf's neck. Then the silver light circled the snow wolf's neck once, and then the snow wolf's huge head fell off. The silver light slowed down a little while it was circling the snow wolf's neck, so I saw what it looked like. It really looked like a sword... Oh, or rather, it was a dagger, or maybe a throwing dart would be more accurate. It's just strange that there was a pair of thin metal wings on that dagger. I've never seen such a strangely shaped weapon before..."
"I told you those silver lights were flying swords, they were gods... there really were gods who came to save us."
Upon hearing Liu Xinghan's words, Hu Zi immediately waved his arms excitedly and shouted. Although he was a little puzzled and felt that the flying sword Liu Xinghan described was quite different from what he had imagined, he didn't care too much. After all, since it was a sword-shaped weapon that could move freely in the air, what else could it be but a flying sword controlled by an immortal?
Zhou Ziwei had no idea that his casual gesture had been mistaken for a god-like existence.
When he saw the special forces search team surrounded by a pack of snow wolves, and even a special forces soldier who looked like a girl being carried in the mouth of a huge snow wolf, he didn't have time to think. He immediately activated his force field space to fly down and controlled the twelve new cross-shaped darts on his body to slash wildly. In just a few seconds, he wiped out all the snow wolves.
To avoid being recognized, Zhou Ziwei deliberately increased the proportion of pure energy he inhaled into light energy as he flew over.
As a result, the golden light emanating from his body became even stronger, completely obscuring his figure.
With this dazzling golden light concealing him, even those who are very familiar with Zhou Ziwei would not be able to discern his true appearance from this golden light.
With the snow wolves wiped out, Zhou Ziwei naturally wouldn't go to meet the special forces search team right away. He then turned and flew down the mountain.
In order to avoid attracting attention, he dared not let his whole body radiate golden light this time, as he felt that would be too flashy.
In order to prevent his body from freezing, Zhou Ziwei could only continue to absorb the energy emanating from the Heart of Flame.
However, when converting this pure energy into some weak heat energy, we are as careful as possible to prevent the heat energy from being mixed with light energy.
It was indeed very difficult at first, but after carefully controlling it for a while, he gradually adapted. He had perfect control over the amount of heat energy in his body, and while there was still a slight dissipation of light energy, it was much better than before. The light energy emitted would at most turn his skin into a pale golden color, but it would not be as dazzling and eye-catching as before.
Because he could not feel the cold, Zhou Ziwei's flying speed increased significantly, and in no time at all, he had flown back to the outpost at the foot of the mountain.
On his way back, he saw the platoon leader of the outpost leading two squads of soldiers up the mountain.
These soldiers who have been stationed on the border for many years are obviously much more experienced than the special forces. Since they dare not fire their guns on the Kashgar Mountains, there is naturally no need for them to carry such heavy loads up the mountain.
Each of them carried only a dagger and a military bayonet, and each of them had a thin wooden plank tied to their feet. This made walking more difficult, but they were not worried about sinking into snow pits.
These border soldiers who live year-round at the foot of the Kashgar Mountains know that the most terrifying thing on this snow-covered mountain where the snow never melts is not the harsh climate or the ferocious snow wolves, but rather the snow pits scattered across the mountain that are indistinguishable to the naked eye.
Some of those snow pits may only be a few meters deep, while others may be as deep as ten meters.
Because this place is covered in snow all year round, and the snow that falls doesn't melt, it accumulates year after year, filling even the deepest snow pits. So even the most experienced person would find it difficult to tell from the outside whether there are snow pits under their feet. And if someone accidentally falls into a snow pit, they are basically doomed.
Zhou Ziwei, hiding above a layer of snow mist in the sky, silently watched the group of border guards moving slowly up the mountain like ants. He couldn't help but shake his head slightly. He estimated that at this speed, it might take them two hours to reach the special forces search team's camp.
If those special forces search teams really have to wait for them to come and rescue them, then they'll probably have to wait for these border guards to collect their bodies.
Zhou Ziwei hesitated for a moment in mid-air, but finally decided not to remind the border guards. Since the danger had been eliminated, he let them slowly climb up the mountain. He would just treat it as a cross-country exercise.
Zhou Ziwei shook his head and smiled slightly. Then, with a swift movement, he left the border guards behind, transforming into a faint afterimage and disappearing into the vast sky...
After returning to the outpost, Zhou Ziwei opened the small room where he and Wang Xuewei lived and jumped inside in a flash.
Ever since Zhou Ziwei jumped out of the window, Wang Xuewei's heart had been pounding wildly. In just a short while, she had stood by the window and looked out countless times.
Just as she turned to pour herself a cup of tea, before she could even take a sip, she felt a biting cold wind blowing behind her. Startled, she turned around and saw someone had appeared in the room at some point. It was none other than Zhou Ziwei, who had just left not long ago.
That night, the two did not sleep in the same bed again. Wang Xuewei asked Zhou Ziwei what he had been doing. Zhou Ziwei just made up some nonsense, then claimed that he needed to practice his breathing exercises for a while. He then took a cushion, sat on the ground, closed his eyes, and sat in meditation like an old monk in deep meditation all night. During that night, he completely absorbed and dissolved a small piece of the already scarce Flame Heart.
Seeing Zhou Ziwei sitting on the ground, Wang Xuewei felt a little sorry for him, but she remembered that Zhou Ziwei had said not to disturb his practice, so she didn't dare to go over and persuade him to go to bed.
Moreover... thinking about Zhou Ziwei's somewhat beastly behavior just now, Wang Xuewei, while her heart was pounding and her face was flushed, couldn't help but feel a sense of relief...
The two platoons of border guards went up the mountain to rescue the special forces search team, but they didn't return until it was almost dawn.
Although they weren't of much help on their trip, they still gained a lot. The group of over twenty people brought back ten snow wolf carcasses in one go, which explains why they took so long to return.
Bringing down the mountain with ten enormous wolf carcasses was certainly no easy task.
Wolf meat is generally perceived as dry and tough, but snow wolf is an exception. Perhaps because it lives in the harsh climate of the Kashgar Mountains year-round, snow wolves have a lot of fat in their bodies to resist the cold, making them tender, smooth, and fragrant – a rare delicacy.
Moreover, these snow wolf pelts are all high-quality items. You can easily sew a few together and create a snow wolf pelt with astonishingly good warmth retention.
After enjoying two bowls of millet porridge made with snow wolf meat with Wang Xuewei in the soldiers' mess hall at the outpost, Zhou Ziwei bid farewell to everyone without saying a word and headed up the mountain alone.
The platoon leader originally wanted to send three to five more people to protect Zhou Ziwei as they went up to meet the special forces search team, but Zhou Ziwei firmly refused, saying that he had some special missions that needed to be carried out when he went up the mountain, and that these missions were quite confidential and it was inconvenient to have outsiders on the way.
Hearing Zhou Ziwei say this, the enthusiastic platoon leader didn't say anything more.
Although they were still somewhat worried that Zhou Ziwei, a newcomer who was here for the first time, might have an accident, they dared not send anyone to follow him anymore.
Helpless, he could only sigh and carefully and in detail explain to Zhou Ziwei the various taboos on Kashgar Mountain, as well as how to effectively avoid snow pits. He patiently explained everything to Zhou Ziwei, and only after he was sure that he had nothing more to tell him did he let Zhou Ziwei leave alone.
In broad daylight, although there was no one to be seen around, Zhou Ziwei didn't dare to recklessly use his flying ability. So, he obediently followed the example of the border guards, tying two planks to the soles of his feet, and then slowly made his way up the mountain step by step...
Volume 2: The Assassin's Nightmare, Chapter 359: This is an order
As Zhou Ziwei slowly made his way up the mountain, his soul power was activated. Every so often, he would send his soul power in a ray-like pattern deep into the nearby mountainside.
A straight-line perspective of sixty meters is enough for him to discover secrets that ordinary people simply cannot.
Following this path, Zhou Ziwei soon discovered the first cave.
Zhou Ziwei sighed inwardly, wondering if his luck was really that good. He'd found his target so quickly?
With a sense of doubt, Zhou Ziwei walked to the vicinity of the cave and extended his soul power as far as he could, only to find that the cave, hidden under the ice and snow, stopped abruptly after descending about thirty meters, with no way out.
Judging from this, this cave shouldn't be that strange cave that might lead to another world, right? Zhou Ziwei sighed and shook his head. However, although this cave wasn't deep enough, it didn't necessarily mean that it wasn't the one the old leader had asked him to find.
After all, nobody in China knows anything about this cave, and the information we got from Old M was very limited. So even though the cave is only this deep, the intelligence didn't say that it was bottomless...
Maybe the inside of this cave is actually a time tunnel, and once you go in, you'll be "beeped" and teleported to some weird place... Therefore, although Zhou Ziwei didn't have much hope for this cave, he still took out a specially made detailed map of Kashgar Mountain that he carried with him and marked the specific coordinates of the cave on the map.
Zhou Ziwei had an instinctive curiosity about what was in the cave, but also a deep fear. So all he had to do was keep his promise and help find the cave's location.
Since there really is a cave here, Zhou Ziwei only needs to mark its location. As for whether this cave is the same strange cave that the old commander mentioned, that will have to be verified by the special forces search team, and it has little to do with Zhou Ziwei.
In order to expand the search area as soon as possible, Zhou Ziwei did not follow a straight route up the mountain, but instead made a zigzag walking route on the eastern slope of Kashmula Mountain. Although this way of walking was a bit too slow.
However, once he has walked through this area once, he will not need to explore it a second time.
Zhou Ziwei carefully made his way up the mountain, step by step, and soon he felt the biting cold wind begin to numb his limbs again.
Before leaving, Zhou Ziwei was given a down jacket that reached his legs by the platoon leader of the outpost. However, Zhou Ziwei was worried that Wang Xuewei would get cold there, so after leaving, he went around again and secretly delivered the down jacket to the room where Wang Xuewei was staying.
Therefore, Zhou was still wearing only thin clothes at this time. Given his physical condition, he wouldn't have much of a problem in an environment of minus thirty degrees Celsius for a short period of time.
However, the higher you go up the mountain, the lower the temperature gets. Even during the day, when the sun hanging in the sky is very dazzling, the temperature in this godforsaken place doesn't rise much.