86: Chapter 86: Back in their hideout, they find themselves surrounded by the FBI.

The scorching heat of Riyadh had not yet faded from his skin.

Inside the cabin of the private jet, the air conditioning hissed as Chen Yuan leaned back against the wide leather seat.

He was resting with his eyes closed.

In his hand, he still held a glass half-filled with whiskey on the rocks.

The ice cubes clinked together.

They emitted a clear, rhythmic clinking sound.

"Boss, we're about to land."

Ada Wong's voice came from beside him, carrying a professional caution.

Chen Yuan slowly opened his eyes and cast his gaze out the porthole.

It was the familiar desolate backdrop of San Verde.

Yellow sand, Gobi desert, and that steel city rising from the ground bit by bit under his hand.

But today, the runway of San Verde Private Airport seemed much brighter than usual.

This brightness did not come from the sun.

Instead, it was that piercing, flashing, alternating blue and red of police lights.

The corners of Chen Yuan's mouth curled into a playful arc as he tilted his head back to pour the remaining liquid into his mouth.

"The rats are quite diligent."

He casually set the empty glass on the table. "It seems while we were away, someone helped us sweep the floor."

The private jet's tires hit the ground heavily.

Taxiing.

Slowing down.

Before the fuselage had even come to a complete stop, Chen Yuan could already see a dense black mass outside the window.

That scene was almost more grand than the welcoming ceremony he had orchestrated in the Middle East.

Dozens of black Chevrolet Suburbans with 'FBI' liveries were like a swarm of black beetles, surrounding the entire apron so tightly that not even air could pass through.

Interspersed among them were several desert-colored Humvees from the National Guard, the heavy machine guns on their roofs already stripped of their dust covers.

"Tsk, they really spared no expense."

Chen Yuan stood up and adjusted the collar of his suit.

He faced the mirror, tying his tie with meticulous precision.

Alice walked over and handed him a pair of black leather gloves, her eyes cold.

"Boss, do we need to clear the area?"

"No."

Chen Yuan took the gloves and slowly pulled them onto his fingers. "This is a society ruled by law; we must be polite."

"Ada, tell the brothers to put their guns away. Don't let them misfire."

"Since the guests are so enthusiastic, we have to go down and say hello."

The cabin door slowly opened.

The sound of the hydraulic system's pressure release was exceptionally piercing in the dead silence of the airport.

The dry, gunpowder-scented air of San Verde instantly rushed in.

Chen Yuan stepped onto the airstair.

He stood at the highest point, hands resting on the handrails, looking down at the scene below from a superior height.

Flashbulbs went off in a continuous wave.

Was that the media? No, those were FBI forensic cameras.

At the very front of the group of men in black stood a familiar face.

Agent James.

Still wearing that somewhat rumpled brown trench coat.

Still possessing those hawk-like, cold eyes that flickered with a perverted fanaticism.

He was chewing a piece of gum with his hands in his pockets, a smug, triumphant sneer on his face.

"Hi, Chen."

James shouted loudly, his voice echoing across the empty runway. "Was the sand in the Middle East fun? I see you've tanned quite a bit."

Chen Yuan walked down the airstair step by step.

His pace was steady.

Every time his leather boots hit the ground, it felt as if he were crushing James's lowly self-esteem.

"Agent James, long time no see."

Chen Yuan stopped five meters away from James.

He ignored the dozens of assault team members surrounding him with their fingers on their triggers.

He also ignored the glint of sniper scopes on the roof of the opposite warehouse.

"A welcoming ceremony of this scale—I don't recall paying enough taxes to deserve this."

"You indeed haven't paid enough taxes."

James pulled a piece of paper from his trench coat and waved it in front of Chen Yuan.

It was a formal arrest warrant issued by the court.

The official seal on it gleamed with a nauseating dark red luster in the sunlight.

"Not only have you not paid enough taxes, but you've also missed quite a few bills."

James leaned in closer, his tone full of provocation. "For instance, those mercenaries who vanished without a trace in the desert, and those non-compliant 'Bats' of yours."

Chen Yuan shrugged with an innocent expression.

"The Colonel said those were oversized Bats. Are you going to contradict The Pentagon?"

"Don't mention that idiot you bought off to me!"

James spat violently, his expression instantly turning hideous. "Here, in San Verde, I call the shots!"

He waved his hand.

The surrounding FBI agents immediately pressed forward, the circle tightening further.

Several rifles were even leveled, their muzzles aimed directly at Chen Yuan's chest.

The atmosphere was as tense as a string about to snap.

Chen Yuan could feel the killing intent radiating from Alice behind him.

That killing intent was enough to make every human in the vicinity stop breathing within a minute.

But he held her hand back.

"James, are you sure you want to do this?"

Chen Yuan's voice was very low, yet it carried an unquestionable penetration. "Do you know the consequences?"

"Consequences?"

James acted as if he had heard the world's biggest joke.

He spread his arms, pointing at the elite forces armed to the teeth around them.

"Look around, Chen!"

"This is American territory, not your monster-filled Pharmaceutical Factory!"

"Did you think you were still that Baron of the British Empire? Did you think you could still turn the tables with those disgusting biological weapons?"

He pressed closer again, his face almost touching the tip of Chen Yuan's nose.

The smell of cheap mint gum made Chen Yuan frown in disgust.

"I've waited three months for this day."

James lowered his voice, speaking rapidly. "I've uncovered all your money laundering channels and found the victims of your lethal herbicides."

"I have the depositions of thirty witnesses."

"Chen, you're finished."

He suddenly straightened up, turned around, and took a megaphone from his Deputy.

He faced the Pharmaceutical Factory employees watching from the perimeter, and addressed all of San Verde.

He wanted to completely shatter the myth of Chen Yuan right here.

"Attention all personnel!"

James's voice through the megaphone was deafening.

"Chen Yuan!"

"You are suspected of international terrorism! Illegal possession of heavy weaponry! Transnational murder, and multiple counts of endangering public safety!"

"You are officially under arrest!"

He turned back and gave Chen Yuan an extremely cruel smile.

"Drop your weapons and surrender immediately!"

"Otherwise, my men have the authority to kill you on the spot!"

Above the airport, three Black Hawk helicopters roared into view.

The gale whipped up by the rotors ruffled Chen Yuan's hair.

But he only smiled faintly.

Then.

He turned his head to look at Ada Wong, who had remained silent by the airstair.

"Ada, it seems our legal department needs to get to work."

"Understood, Boss."

Ada Wong nodded slightly, a mocking curve appearing at the corner of her mouth.

She pulled a mobile phone from her trench coat pocket and dialed a pre-saved number.

As for Chen Yuan.

Under the muzzles of everyone's guns, he leisurely removed one glove.

He looked at James, his eyes devoid of fear.

There was only a kind of...

Bantering look, as if watching a dead man dance.

"James."

Chen Yuan spoke softly. "Your head is currently worth a hundred million US dollars."

"But I suspect your life isn't even worth the cost of the ink on that piece of paper."

James's expression darkened.

Just as he was about to retaliate.

A rapid ringing of a phone suddenly sounded from his own pocket.

That was.

The vibration of a top-secret direct line from Washington.

"Hello?"

James answered the phone, his tone impatient. "I am currently apprehending a major criminal..."

The next second.

His expression froze.

That old face, flushed with excitement, was turning at a visible speed.

Turning deathly pale.

"What... did you say?"