46: Chapter 46 Nighttime Boss

Deep night in Jinhai, the sea breeze carried a salty, fishy smell through the alleys, making the wires hum.

Li Ling lay prone on the roof of an abandoned attic, his body as motionless as a stone statue. Through his night-vision goggles, he stared at the brightly lit three-story western-style building two hundred meters away—that was the "East Asia Trading Company." On the surface, it was a trading firm for imports and exports, but in reality, it was the largest intelligence stronghold of Japan in the northern part of Qingxia Kingdom.

The night-vision image was pale green, turning the night into day. He saw two men in black suits standing at the entrance of the building, their waists bulging—clearly carrying guns. Shadows flickered behind the second-floor windows, and there was a sentry on the third-floor rooftop, leaning against the railing smoking.

Three days ago, the Special Forces reconnaissance team had figured out the details here. There were forty-seven Japan spies living in the building. The leader was Major Yamamoto Ichiro, who had been lurking in China for fifteen years and controlled the entire intelligence network in the north. He held a top-secret list recording all officials and generals who secretly supported the resistance against Japan—once this list fell into the hands of the Japan headquarters, at least a hundred heads would roll.

Li Ling licked his chapped lips, suppressing the killing intent in his heart.

"Report status, teams." He lowered his voice, and steady responses came through the earpiece.

"Team One in position, all sixteen outer sentries marked."

"Team Two in position, the east passage of the main building is clear."

"Sniper Team Three has occupied the high ground, visibility is good."

"Demolition Team Four on standby, explosives loaded."

"Reserve Team Five has completed the encirclement, no one will escape."

Li Ling took a deep breath and glanced at the luminous watch on his wrist—2:15 AM, the time when people were most drowsy. At this moment, human reaction speed would slow down by a fraction of a second, and a fraction of a second was enough to decide the outcome of a battle.

"Action."

The moment the order was given, three bullets were fired almost simultaneously.

The snipers used suppressed sniper rifles. Although the initial velocity of the bullets was high, the muzzles were equipped with silencers, and the sound was compressed into a faint "puff." The sentry smoking on the rooftop tilted his head back sharply, as if slapped by an invisible giant hand, and his body slumped softly onto the railing. The cigarette butt slipped from his fingers, drawing a faint arc in the darkness.

The two men in black suits at the building entrance reacted extremely quickly. Hearing the strange noise on the rooftop, their hands had just reached for their waists when the second wave of bullets arrived. Both men were hit in the chest, blood blooming on their white shirts, and they fell to the ground without a sound.

Almost at the same instant, the sixteen outer sentries were pinpointed and eliminated.

The Special Forces emerged from the darkness like ghosts. Some used suppressed submachine guns, firing in three-round bursts, the muzzle flashes almost invisible due to the silencers; others used tactical knives, covering the sentries' mouths from behind, slicing the blades across their throats, warm blood splashing onto their hands. The entire process was clean and efficient, without even a single scream.

The big wolfhound in the yard seemed to smell the scent of blood. Just as it pricked up its ears to bark, a sausage laced with sleeping pills flew to its mouth. A dog is a dog after all; it swallowed it in two or three bites, and ten seconds later, it keeled over and fell into a deep sleep, snoring.

"Outer perimeter cleared, time taken: forty-seven seconds." Commander Zhao Tieshan's voice came through the earpiece.

"Team One entering."

"Team Two entering."

Li Ling flipped down from the attic and led the assault team to breach through the front door. The demolitionist attached a small piece of plastic explosive to the door lock, and everyone stepped back two paces. With a muffled "puff," the iron door was blown open. Before the smoke had cleared, Li Ling had already rushed in.

There were four Japan samurai on duty in the lobby on the first floor. They reacted extremely quickly, drawing their samurai swords from their waists almost at the same time as the explosion, the blades flashing coldly in the dim light. But no matter how fast their swords were, they were not faster than bullets.

The suppressed submachine gun in Li Ling's hand spat fire, "puff, puff, puff, puff," four muffled sounds, and all four men were hit in the chest. Two fell on the spot, one slid down against the wall, and the last one stumbled two steps while clutching his chest, knocking over a vase nearby, scattering broken porcelain all over the floor.

"Second floor!" Li Ling waved his hand, and the assault team rushed up the stairs.

A middle-aged man in a kimono suddenly rushed out from the corner of the stairs, holding a Nambu pistol. His eyes were fierce and panicked. Before he could raise his gun, Li Ling had already pulled the trigger. The bullet hit his right shoulder, the pistol flew out of his hand, and the man fell to the ground, screaming, blood gushing from the wound on his shoulder.

"Tie him up! Don't let him die!" Li Ling kicked the pistol away and continued to rush up without looking back.

The second-floor corridor was already in chaos.

Seven or eight Japan spies rushed out of various rooms, some in pajamas, some shirtless, holding pistols, samurai swords, and some even holding a broom—obviously awakened from their sleep by the explosion, grabbing whatever was at hand.

But the Special Forces did not give them any chance.

The six Special Forces soldiers behind Li Ling lined up, their suppressed submachine guns firing in unison, bullets sweeping across like raindrops. The corridor was narrow, with nowhere to hide, and those people fell like wheat being harvested. Fresh blood splashed onto the walls, staining the original beige wallpaper dark red. Some were not yet dead, twitching in pain on the ground; Commander Zhao Tieshan stepped forward and fired two more shots, ending them completely.

"The intelligence room is at the end of the corridor!" Commander Zhao Tieshan shouted.

"Team Two, guard the stairs; Team Three, follow me!" Li Ling rushed to the door of the intelligence room. The door was a thick iron door with three locks, clearly a special security door. The demolitionist quickly attached explosives, and with a "boom," the iron door was blown open, and terrified screams immediately came from inside.

The intelligence room was filled with smoke, and five people were frantically throwing documents into a brazier. A Japan officer in military uniform drew his pistol to shoot, but was shot in the head by Li Ling; another tried to jump out of the window, but was shot down by a sniper waiting outside, his body hanging on the window frame, swaying.

The remaining three were so scared they hugged their heads and squatted on the ground, shivering.

"Extinguish the fire! Seize the documents!" Li Ling ordered.

The Special Forces rushed in, used fire extinguishers to put out the half-burned documents in the brazier, and then dumped everything from the safe and packed it up. Documents, maps, codebooks, photos, microfilms, gold, silver, jewelry... everything that could be taken was stuffed into waterproof bags, not even sparing the few gold bars in the safe.

"Young Master Li, the list has been found!" Commander Zhao Tieshan held up a kraft paper envelope containing a thick stack of papers.

Li Ling took it and flipped through it, his pupils shrinking.

The list was densely packed with names, official positions, addresses, bank accounts, family member information... even when these people had visited Japan's geisha houses, when they had accepted bribes from Japan, and what unspeakable leverage they had, were all recorded clearly. If this list fell into the hands of Japan, it wouldn't just be a matter of a hundred heads rolling—half the imperial court would be held in their hands.

"These animals." Li Ling gritted his teeth, his voice as cold as ice shards, "Take it away, go back and investigate slowly. Don't let a single one get away."

He glanced at the luminous watch on his wrist; one minute and fifty seconds had passed.

"Retreat!"

The Special Forces were well-trained, carrying the heavy spoils and quickly withdrawing from the main building. Li Ling was the last to come out. He stood in the yard and scanned the brightly lit western-style building—there was still fire jumping in the windows, the curtains ignited by an overturned oil lamp.

He had no intention of putting out the fire.

Li Ling took a grenade from his waist, pulled the safety pin, and threw it into the window of the main building.

"Boom—"

A violent explosion soared into the sky, and the three-story building collapsed in the flames. Flames gushed out from every window, the roof tiles were lifted like paper, and thick smoke rolled up into the sky. Residents within a two-kilometer radius were awakened; some thought it was an earthquake, some thought it was thunder, and some saw the soaring flames and were so scared they started chanting Buddha's name.

Li Ling didn't look back and got on the truck: "Let's go."

The truck sped away into the night, followed by the sea of fire and the fading sound of sirens.

The operation ended, taking two minutes and seven seconds. Forty-three Japan spies were killed, four captured (including Major Yamamoto Ichiro, whose shoulder was injured by Li Ling), and over five hundred classified documents, two tons of gold, fifty thousand taels of silver, and over thirty antique paintings were seized. The Special Forces suffered no casualties.

When they returned to the naval port, it was not yet dawn.

Li Ling did not rest but interrogated Major Yamamoto Ichiro overnight. He did not use torture—because torture was too slow and could result in false confessions. He used another method.

He had people tie Major Yamamoto Ichiro to a chair and then brought in a radio. In front of Major Yamamoto Ichiro, he used the Japan Navy code to send a telegram to the Japan headquarters:

"East Asia Trading Company suffered an unknown armed attack, all personnel sacrificed. Crow missing."

After reading this telegram, the color drained from Major Yamamoto Ichiro's face, turning as pale as a sheet of paper.

He knew too well what this telegram meant. The Japan military feared "missing" intelligence personnel the most—missing meant they might have been captured, captured meant they might have defected, and defecting meant the entire intelligence network might be exposed. Regardless of whether you actually defected, your family would be monitored, investigated, your reputation would be ruined, and everything about you would be erased.

Li Ling's move was more vicious than any torture. He had ruthlessly split a rift that could never be bridged between Major Yamamoto Ichiro and the Japan headquarters.

"Mr. Yamamoto, we can talk properly now." Li Ling moved a chair and sat opposite him, crossing his legs, his tone as casual as chatting with an old friend, "Your value determines the safety of your family. You should know better than me how Japan treats the families of traitors."

Major Yamamoto Ichiro's lips trembled for a long time, his eyes red, and finally he slumped in the chair like a deflated ball.

"...I'll talk." He said hoarsely, "Whatever you want to know, I will tell you. But you must promise me to protect my family."

"As long as you tell the truth, I guarantee the safety of your family." Li Ling nodded, "But if I find out you are lying to me, you know the consequences."

Major Yamamoto Ichiro closed his eyes, tears sliding from the corners of his eyes.

Over the next three days, the Special Forces conducted a carpet cleaning of the Japan intelligence network in Qingxia Kingdom based on Major Yamamoto Ichiro's confession and that diary. Intelligence strongholds in fourteen cities including Jinhai, Shanghai, Yangcheng, Jiangcheng, Jinling, Yantai, Weihai, Qingdao, Xiamen, and Ningbo were uprooted, two hundred and thirty-seven spies were killed or captured, and thousands of classified documents, five tons of gold, and two hundred thousand taels of silver were seized.

The intelligence network that Japan had operated in China for twenty years was completely destroyed in three days.

The system's notification sound rang in Li Ling's mind, with a rare touch of approval: "Congratulations to the host for successfully destroying the Japan intelligence network in China, achieving the hidden achievement 'Bloody Dawn.' You have received one lucky draw opportunity."

Li Ling leaned on the chair and let out a long breath. He hadn't closed his eyes for three days, his eyes were bloodshot, blue stubble had grown on his chin, and there was still undried blood on his military uniform—not his, but the enemy's.

Empress Su Wanqing walked in with a bowl of hot porridge. Seeing his appearance, her eyes turned red immediately.

"Li Ling, you haven't slept for three days." She placed the porridge on the table and reached out to touch his face. Her fingertips touched his rough skin, and her voice trembled with heartache, "Look at you, you've lost a circle of weight, and your eyes are sunken."

"It's fine." Li Ling picked up the porridge and took a sip. It was preserved egg and lean meat porridge, his favorite. Every time he stayed up late, Empress Su Wanqing would make this for him. The temperature of the porridge was just right, not scalding his mouth, warming his stomach, "It was worth it."

Empress Su Wanqing opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but finally just sat silently beside him, accompanying him to watch the sky gradually brightening outside the window.

She didn't know how to start. She had grown up with Li Ling, watching him change from a mischievous boy into the decisive man he was now. He still had the same smile, cheeky and unserious, but his eyes had changed—there was something more in them, something that only appeared after killing people, something that only appeared after carrying too much responsibility.

She was afraid he would change, but she was even more afraid that something would happen to him.

"Wanqing." Li Ling suddenly spoke.

"Hmm?"

"After this busy period is over, let's get married."

Empress Su Wanqing was stunned, her face flushed instantly, red like a ripe apple. She lowered her head, twisting the corner of her clothes with her fingers, and whispered: "Who... who wants to marry you..."

"You don't want to?" Li Ling teased her on purpose, a bad smile hooking at the corner of his mouth, "Then I'll find someone else."

"How dare you!" Empress Su Wanqing looked up sharply, her eyes red again, tears swirling in them.

Li Ling laughed loudly and reached out to pull her into his arms. Empress Su Wanqing struggled twice and then gave up, leaning obediently against his chest, listening to his powerful heartbeat, smelling the faint scent of gunpowder and blood on him.

Outside the window, the morning sun jumped out of the sea, and golden light spilled over the entire naval port. The sea was sparkling, a few fishing boats set sail, and the chant of fishermen came faintly.

A new day had begun.