118: Gathering

Su Xi fell silent for a moment, stood up, walked to his side, and hugged him from behind: "Be careful. I'll wait for you to come back."

"Okay."

That night, Wang Chen made over a dozen phone calls.

First, he called Du Ruoxi, "Ruoxi, I need to go abroad for a while. Be good at home; Dragon has arranged people to protect you."

Du Ruoxi's voice carried a hint of crying: "Yang Yang, you must come back..."

"I will."

Then he called Su Yue: "Yueyue, I have to go on a long trip. Xiao Xi is with me and is very safe. You guys should be careful too."

Su Yue didn't ask anything, only saying softly: "Come back safely."

He personally reassured every woman.

An Jinxi and Su Xiaoxiao somehow got the news and called to show their concern, but were instead comforted by Wang Chen.

After making arrangements, he called Bai Li back: "Miss Bai, after I leave, my family's safety..."

"Leave it to me." Bai Li's tone was firm, "The Bai Family will send people for 24-hour protection. As long as they are within Dragon Country, I guarantee they won't lose a single hair."

"Also..." Wang Chen paused, "I've had Chen Yi compile the evidence of Xiao Yu hiring Grim Reaper to kill me. While I'm away, please help me keep an eye on the Xiao Family."

"The Xiao Family?" Bai Li's voice turned cold, "They dare to collude with overseas mercenaries?"

"Whether they've colluded or not, we'll only know after investigating." Wang Chen said indifferently, "Anyway, don't let them have it too easy."

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"Understood."

Everything was properly arranged.

The next morning, Hangzhou City International Airport.

Wang Chen's boeing 787 bbj was ready for takeoff.

In the cabin, three teams—Dragon, Tiger, and Rabbit—totaling thirty-six people, were all in place.

"Boss, Rat's side has already picked up the Snake, Horse, and Monkey teams," Dragon reported. "They are waiting for us at the Africa branch."

"What about the base?"

"Goat sent word that all equipment has been overhauled, and there's plenty of ammunition; we can start fighting anytime." Tiger rubbed his hands excitedly, "Boss, we're really going to go big this time!"

Wang Chen smiled and didn't speak, looking out the window.

The plane slowly taxied onto the runway, accelerated, and took off.

Hangzhou City grew smaller and smaller beneath them, finally disappearing into the clouds.

Twelve hours later, at an international airport in a certain African country.

When the plane landed, it was already evening local time.

The cabin door opened, and a wave of heat rushed in.

Wang Chen walked down the ramp; before him was a desolate scene of yellow sand, low buildings, and a group of fully armed people in camouflage.

Standing at the front was Rat, and behind him were the captains of the other six teams, including Zodiac: Ox and Goat.

Further back were over thirty modified bulletproof off-road vehicles lined up in two rows, presenting an imposing sight.

"Boss!" Rat stood at attention and saluted.

"Boss!" Nearly a hundred people from the nine teams behind him shouted in unison, their voices echoing in the empty airport.

Wang Chen nodded, his gaze sweeping over this group of elite warriors.

The Twelve Zodiac Signs, 144 people, were gathered once again after several years.

The last time they were this complete was when Dragon Shield was first established.

"Brothers." Wang Chen spoke; his voice wasn't loud, but everyone heard him clearly. "This mission is very simple."

He paused: "Wipe out the Hades Hall branch in Africa. And while we're at it, find those three pieces of trash from Grim Reaper and kill them."

No grand words, no pre-battle mobilization.

But just those two simple sentences made everyone's eyes light up with fire.

"Yes!"

The synchronized response made the ears of the airport ground staff go numb.

"Get in the vehicles, head back to base."

The convoy drove out of the airport in a grand fashion, kicking up clouds of yellow sand.

Along the way, Tiger was like an elementary student on his first spring outing, peering out the window: "Wow, so this is Africa! This sun, this sand... it's like an oven!"

Rabbit rolled her eyes at him: "You hillbilly, have you never been to Africa?"

"I have, but every time I was busy fighting or on a mission, there was no time for sightseeing." Tiger grinned, "This time is different. This time we're here to... uh, also to fight."

"Then isn't it the same?" Snake complained.

"But this time there are tanks!" Tiger's eyes gleamed, "Rat, leave one of those three VT-4s at the base for me! I want to be the tank commander!"

Rat sat in the passenger seat without looking back: "Keep dreaming. Zodiac: Ox has already reserved them."

"What?!" Tiger bristled, "Zodiac: Ox! You brat, you're not playing fair!"

Zodiac: Ox, sitting in the vehicle behind them, chuckled through the intercom: "Tiger, you're in good shape, you're suited for assault. Leave the rough work like tanks to me."

"Bullshit! I got my tank driver's license before you did!"

"But you don't drive as well as I do."

"Who says?! If you're not convinced, let's duel!"

"A duel it is then, you think I'm afraid of you?"

The two argued over the intercom, and the cabin was filled with laughter.

Wang Chen leaned back in his seat, listening to the noise with a smile on his face.

This was the Twelve Zodiac Signs he was familiar with.

Usually noisy and bickering, but once they started fighting, each was more ruthless than the last.

Two hours later, the convoy arrived at the edge of the Sahara Desert.

Further ahead was a vast sea of sand, impassable for ordinary vehicles.

"Get out, change equipment," Rat ordered.

Everyone got out and unloaded desert combat uniforms, wind goggles, and hydration packs from several trucks.

Wang Chen also changed into desert camouflage and put on goggles.

"Boss, the base entrance is thirty kilometers away." Rat pointed to the distant dunes, "We'll head over in three groups to avoid being too large a target."

"You arrange it."

The three groups departed at thirty-minute intervals.

Wang Chen followed the first group, traveling in a desert-modified off-road vehicle, bumping along through the sea of sand.

As night fell, the desert temperature plummeted.

But no one complained of the cold; everyone's adrenaline was surging.

An hour later, a seemingly ordinary patch of sand dunes appeared ahead.

Rat stopped the car, took out a palm-sized controller, and pressed a few buttons.

*Rumble—*

The ground vibrated, and the sand dunes slowly parted to both sides, revealing a downward-sloping tunnel.

The tunnel was brightly lit and wide enough for two cars to drive side-by-side.

"Holy crap..." Tiger's eyes widened, "This entrance is awesome!"

The convoy drove into the tunnel, and the sand dunes behind them slowly closed, returning to their original state.

The tunnel extended a hundred meters downward before suddenly opening up.

A massive underground space appeared before them.

It was twenty meters high, with an area comparable to ten football fields. Surrounding it were neat dormitories, warehouses, and maintenance workshops.

Everyone took an elevator platform to the second floor, which was slightly smaller than the first.

In the center sat three VT-4 main battle tanks painted in desert camouflage, twenty armored vehicles, ten self-propelled guns, and three apache attack helicopters.