Chapter 521
Breaking in
“Me too.” Old Knife laughed. “I should have shot you right then and there.”
The moment the words left his mouth, the two of them moved simultaneously.
There was no probing, no holding back.
Old Dao's dark red longsword slashed down with a whooshing sound, its force as heavy as a mountain. Jiang Nian didn't take it head-on; instead, he slid to the side, his resonant blade slicing towards his opponent's ribs.
"Ding!"
Old Dao parried with his sword, his movements incredibly fast.
"Do you think I'll suffer the same loss in the same place again?" he sneered, then swung his blade across Jiang Nian's neck.
Jiang Hou leaned back, the blade grazing his chin and taking away a few strands of hair.
He flipped backward, landing on one knee, and used the resonant blade to stabilize himself by inserting it into the floor.
"You're too slow." Old Dao approached step by step. "Too much blood loss? Or exhaustion?"
"Enough to kill you."
Jiang Nian suddenly exerted his strength, shattering the floor tiles. He shot out like a cannonball, his resonant blade aimed straight for Lao Dao's heart.
The attack was too fast; Old Knife could only barely turn to the side. The tip of the blade pierced his left shoulder and emerged.
But Old Dao actually laughed.
He grabbed the blade that had pierced his shoulder with his left hand, while simultaneously thrusting his right longsword into Jiang Nian's abdomen.
Trading injury for life!
Jiang Nian's pupils contracted, he released his grip on the knife, and twisted his body forcefully. The dark red longsword grazed his side, tearing away a large chunk of flesh.
Both men retreated simultaneously, each bearing injuries.
Old Dao had a resonant blade embedded in his shoulder, blood gushing out. Jiang Nian's wound on his side was so deep that bone was visible, and blood instantly soaked half of his body.
"A draw," Old Knife said breathlessly.
"It's not over yet."
Jiang Nian pulled the short blade from his side.
The short-haired woman then moved.
She had been watching from the sidelines, but seeing Lao Dao seriously injured, she finally couldn't hold back any longer.
He drew his twin swords, aiming straight for Jiang's heart.
"Watch out!" Manager Wang screamed from behind the control panel.
As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Jiang Nian stabbed backward with the dagger.
"clang!"
The dagger precisely parried the first curved blade, but the second one was already slashing towards the back of his neck.
Just then, the door to the database center was suddenly blown open!
"Advisor Jiang! Lie down!"
It's the sound of Hailong-4.
Jiang Nian fell to the ground without hesitation.
Three stun grenades simultaneously flew into the hall, exploding with blinding white light and extremely high-decibel noise. Old Dao and the short-haired woman screamed, covering their eyes and ears as they knelt on the ground.
Hailong No. 4, accompanied by Grey Goose and Rock, rushed in, while hunting dogs stood guard at the door, guns raised in watch.
"Let's go!" Hailong No. 4 grabbed Jiang Nian with one hand and picked up the module and tablet on the control panel with the other.
Grey geese and rocks form a bridge for Manager Wang.
"Where's the bayonet?" Jiang Nian asked urgently.
"He's in the back, his leg is injured, but he can walk," Hailong No. 4 said quickly. "The first floor is in chaos. We blew up three substations. Now the entire base is 70% power outage, and the monitoring system is completely destroyed."
"here you go."
Six people rushed out of the database center.
The corridor was pitch black, with only the emergency lights providing dim illumination. In the distance came the sounds of hurried footsteps and shouts; the Dawn Guards were gathering.
"This way!" the hound led the way. "Maintain the passage, it leads directly to the bottom exit."
"Are there guards at the exit?" Jiang Nian asked.
“At least twenty, and they have heavy weapons,” Hailong-4 said. “But we have a surprise.”
"What surprise?"
You'll find out in a moment.
The team moved quickly through the narrow passage. Bayonet was carried on a rock, his face pale but conscious. Supervisor Wang limped, supported entirely by Grey Goose.
Jiang Nian treated the wound on his side as he ran. He took out some styrofoam from his tactical vest and squeezed it directly into the wound. The burning pain made him groan, but the blood flow slowed down noticeably.
"Old Qin, report the situation," he said into the communicator.
"You are on the third floor of Zone B, and the exit is on the east side of the basement level," Qin Lao's voice came. "But there's bad news: Dawn has activated the base's self-destruct program."
"what?!"
"Thermal imaging shows that the temperature in the reactor area is rising abnormally. They are overloading the reactor, trying to blow up the entire base."
"how long?"
"At most thirty minutes. After thirty minutes, the reactor will melt down, and the entire fjord will be blown to smithereens."
Jiang Nian gritted his teeth: "That's enough."
“There’s worse,” Qin Lao paused. “The energy reading at the Greenland anchor has risen to 75 percent of the critical value. Dawn may be activating it remotely.”
"Don't they not have the key?"
"They're trying a brute-force attack. Manager Wang's tablet has a dynamic password algorithm. If they can crack it, combined with your biometric sample..."
Jiang Nian touched the wound on her side.
"We must leave as soon as possible," he said.
As the group rounded a bend, a squad of guards suddenly appeared ahead.
"Retreat!" Hailong No. 4 roared.
A pincer attack from both sides.
“There’s no way out.” The hound leaned against the wall and quickly changed its magazine.
Jiang Nian looked around.
This is the equipment maintenance area, with various large machines and pipes on both sides. The crisscrossing pipes on the ceiling look like a spider web.
“Up there,” he pointed overhead, “the ventilation ducts.”
"It's too far, we can't reach it," said the grey goose.
"Within reach."
Jiang Nian took a deep breath, and the marking system activated at full power. Pale golden energy surged into his legs, and he leaped into the air.
Four meters high, bare hands.
He gripped the edge of the ventilation duct with his fingers, pulled hard, and flipped himself up onto it.
"Bayonets, ropes!"
Bayonet pulled a climbing rope from his backpack and threw it up. Jiang Nian secured the rope end and lowered the rope.
"quick!"
Gunfire has already begun below.
Hailong No. 4 and the hunting dog provided cover ahead, while Grey Goose and Rock quickly tied Bayonet and Supervisor Wang to the rope. Jiang Nian pulled from above, and the two were hoisted up.
"Number Four! Hound! Come up here!" Grey Goose shouted.
"You guys go first!" Hailong No. 4 fought and retreated, "We'll cover the rear!"
"no!"
"Execute the order!" Hailong-4 roared. "Jiang Nian needs someone to escort him out! The module and the password are more important than our lives!"
The greylag goose gritted its teeth and gripped the rope.
When Jiang Nian pulled them up, the battle below had already reached a fever pitch. Hailong No. 4 and Hound were pinned down behind cover, bullets hitting the metal equipment and sending up countless sparks.
"Number four!" Jiang Nian shouted.
"Go!" Hailong No. 4 said without turning his head. "Remember, get him to the base!"
He threw out his last smoke grenade, then charged off with the hound.
It's not running away, it's charging in the opposite direction.
The two pounced on the guards like mad tigers, their guns spitting fire.
In close-quarters combat, the advantages of heavy submachine guns are brought to their fullest potential.
“Let’s go.” Grey Goose’s voice was hoarse.
……
Ten minutes later, at the end of the ventilation duct.
Below is a small dock with three underwater transport vessels moored there. Six guards are on high alert at the dock.
"We've arrived," Jiang Nian said in a low voice.
“There are six people below. Two are at the control panel on the left, two are next to the cargo containers on the right, and two are patrolling in the middle.” Grey Goose observed through the gap. “The dock gate is closed; an access card is required.”
“I have it,” Manager Wang said, pulling out the blood-stained card, “but I don’t know if it will work.”
“Gray Goose, Rock, you two are in charge of the two on the left and the patrol. I'll take care of the two on the right and the control panel. Once we succeed, immediately seize the transport ship.”
Which ship?
"The one in the middle is the largest and has the longest range."
The three exchanged a glance and nodded.
Jiang Nian took the lead.
He jumped directly from the four-meter-high pipe opening, tumbled upon landing, and when he got up, the resonant blade was already unsheathed.
Before the two guards on the right could react, a blade had already sliced across their throats. Almost simultaneously, gray geese and rocks descended from the sky.
Grey Goose swooped down towards the control panel on the left, its dagger plunging into a guard's back. Rock charged at the two patrolling men, punching one of them in the face; the sound of bones shattering was clearly audible.
The last patrolling guard raised his gun, but Jiang Nian had already arrived. He used the resonant blade to cut the gun barrel and then thrust it into the guard's chest.
"Clean and efficient." Grey Goose examined the body. "No alarms were triggered."
"Open the door," Jiang Nian said.
Manager Wang limped over to the control panel by the dock gate and swiped his card.
The green light comes on.
The heavy alloy gate slowly rose, revealing the dark fjord waters outside.
A cold wind blew in, carrying the smell of the sea.
"Get on the ship!"
The five men rushed toward the transport boat in the middle.
Grey Goose opened the hatch, and Rock first stuffed the bayonet and Manager Wang inside, then crawled in himself to start the system.
Jiang Nian stayed behind, warily watching the passage they had come from.
There were no pursuers.
It's too quiet.
"Something's not right," he murmured.
"Advisor Jiang! Come on up quickly!" Grey Goose called from the cabin door.
Just as Jiang Nian was about to turn around, he suddenly heard the sound of machinery running overhead.
He looked up.
On the ceiling of the dock, four automatic machine gun turrets are protruding from their hiding places, all pointing their guns at the transport boat.
"Trap!"
The machine gun turret opened fire.
Bullets rained down like a storm, striking the hull of the transport boat and sending up dense sparks. A gray goose was hit in the shoulder by a ricocheting bullet and fell back into the cabin.
"Close the door!" Rock roared, slamming the lever.
The transport boat's engine started, and it slowly departed from the dock.
However, the machine gun turret's firepower was too intense, and dozens of bullet holes had been punched into the hull, causing seawater to rush in.
Jiang Nian did not board the ship.
He rushed toward the control panel on the left side of the dock.
The bullets followed his footsteps, carving a series of bullet holes in the metal ground.
He leaped into the control panel, the screen still lit up, displaying images of various areas of the dock.
Jiang Nian tried using Manager Wang's card, but it didn't work.
The machine gun turret was still firing wildly.
The transport boat has already left the dock, but its hull is severely damaged and it is moving very slowly, so it could sink at any time.
"Old Qin! Can you crack it remotely?"
"The system is independent and not connected to the base network! Physical access is required!"
Jiang Nian looked at the side of the control panel.
A row of data interfaces.
He took out the universal decoder that Qin Lao had given him from his tactical vest and inserted it.
The decoder screen begins to scroll through code rapidly.
"Ten percent...twenty percent...too slow!" Jiang Nian stared in the direction of the transport ship.
The boat was listing and taking on more than a third of its cargo. Greyhounds and rocks were desperately trying to plug the leak, but to no avail.
"Hurry up!" he roared.
Time is running out.
Jiang Nian gritted his teeth and pulled out the decoder.
If you can't turn it off, then destroy it.
He raised his pistol and aimed it at the main unit of the control panel.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Three shots blew up the processor and power module.
The console screen went black instantly.
But the machine gun turret did not stop.
They switched to autonomous mode and continued firing.
"Oh shit!"
Jiang Nian turned to look at the machine gun turrets. Each one was protected by thick armor, impenetrable to pistol bullets.
He needs more firepower.
My gaze swept across the dock and finally landed on the container area on the right.
There were some engineering equipment piled up there, including two portable plasma cutters.
Have it.
Jiang Nian rushed out of the cover again.
Bullets chased after him, one grazing his thigh and leaving a bloody gash. He endured the pain and rushed to the cargo area, where he picked up a cutting machine.
This thing weighs fifty kilograms; an ordinary person couldn't lift it at all. But the marking system provides extraordinary strength.
He raised the cutting machine and aimed it at the nearest machine gun turret.
Press the start button.
A beam of incandescent plasma shot out, instantly melting through the machine gun turret's armor. An internal short circuit occurred, black smoke billowed from the turret, and firing ceased.
When Jiang Nian used the plasma beam to melt down the fourth machine gun turret, the transport boat had already traveled fifty meters away, but its stern began to sink.
"Advisor Jiang!" Grey Goose shouted into the communicator, "The boat is sinking! You have to get out of here!"
"You guys go first!"
"We can't leave! The water is flooding too fast; we can only hold on for two more minutes at most!"
Jiang Nian glanced at the dock.
There was also a small transport boat that sped off the dock and headed at full speed toward the sinking vessel.
"Catch!"
Jiang Nian steered the boat closer and threw out the mooring rope.
"Move! Quickly!"
Jiang Nian pushed the control lever hard, the small boat turned, and sped towards the fjord exit.
Behind me, a muffled explosion came from the direction of the base.
"The reactor is starting to overload," Qin said. "You have fifteen minutes left."
Is that enough?
"At the current speed, we can get out of the fjord in twelve minutes. But there might be an interception outside."
"I can't worry about that anymore."
The small boat left a white trail on the sea. The ice cliffs on both sides of the fjord rushed past, and the light at the exit drew ever closer.
Bayonet lay at the bottom of the hold, breathing faintly.
Grey Goose was giving him emergency treatment, but the wound was too deep and the bleeding wouldn't stop.
“He needs surgery.” Grey Goose’s face was grim. “He’s lost more than 30 percent of his blood.”
"Hold on," Jiang Nian said. "We'll have backup once we get out of the fjord."
"hope so."
Manager Wang, clutching the module and tablet, huddled in a corner, trembling.
He suddenly spoke up: "The password is dynamic, it changes every hour. This set still has... still seven minutes left to expire."
"What?" Jiang Nian turned his head.
"The algorithm in the tablet is just a decryption tool; the real password needs to be obtained in real time from the organization's central server."
Manager Wang said, "My card has temporary access, which allows me to connect to the server and retrieve the latest password. But this password expires after seven minutes."
What happens if it fails?
"The module will lock itself. It cannot be decrypted again for 72 hours. If it is forcibly cracked, the data inside will self-destruct."
Jiang Nian glanced at the time.
Seven minutes.
It will take at least ten minutes to get from the fjord exit to the rendezvous point.
It's too late.
"Mr. Qin, is it possible to remotely connect to the organization's server?"
“Impossible.” Old Qin smiled wryly. “That’s a physically isolated intranet; you have to use their specialized equipment to access it.”
"Special equipment..."
Jiang Nian looked at the tablet in Manager Wang's hand.
Can this tablet connect?
"Yes, but it's low on power and its signal is being blocked by the base. We need to get to open water and use a satellite link." (End of Chapter)