188: Chapter 188 The Military Spirit Strikes Back (Part 1)

At 10:00 PM, Li Xin went out.

It was the same gray SUV, and Liu Mo was driving. The car didn't enter the courtyard; it stopped at the alley entrance, the engine was cut, and all lights were turned off.

Li Xin opened the back door and sat inside. The interior was pitch black, with only the dashboard emitting a faint light.

"Is everything ready?" he asked.

"Ready. Two mobile sentries on the outer perimeter are in position, and two observation points in the middle ring are set up. I have two people with me for the inner ring, close protection."

"What about thermal imaging?"

"It's on. It will immediately alert us if any living creature approaches within three hundred meters."

"Let's go."

Liu Mo started the engine, kept the headlights off, and drove slowly forward, guided by the moonlight. The alley was dark, flanked by high walls that left only a sliver of sky visible. The car moved very slowly, at twenty yards, the tires crunching over the gravel road with a rustling sound.

Exiting the alley, they reached the main street. There were few people on the street, the streetlights were dim, a few shops were still lit, and a tea stall was emitting puffs of white steam. A dog lay in the middle of the road; as the car drove around it, it didn't even lift its head.

Leaving the old town, the road widened. Liu Mo turned on the headlights and accelerated. On both sides of the road were farmlands, pitch black, with the occasional house visible with lights on, and dog barks heard from far away.

After driving for over twenty minutes, they arrived at the wooded area.

Liu Mo parked the car behind a low hill, killed the engine, and turned off the headlights. Everything plunged into darkness, so thick you couldn't see your own hand.

"We're here."

Li Xin got out of the car. The woods were dark, and nothing could be seen clearly. A chilly wind blew from the north, carrying the scent of soil. In the distance, insects chirped—chirp, chirp, chirp—very densely.

He looked around. His eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, and he could see the silhouettes of the tree trunks, standing there like dark shadows. There were stars overhead, sparse and scattered.

"You guys stay here. I'll go over myself."

Liu Mo nodded. "Call me if anything happens. The headset is on."

Li Xin walked away. Stepping on gravel and dry grass made a rustling sound. After walking over a hundred meters, he arrived at the spot chosen yesterday. It was a relatively flat clearing, surrounded by trees on three sides and backed by a low hill, making it invisible from the outside.

He crouched down and sat on the ground. The soil was cool and slightly damp.

"AI System, start Extraction. Extract the reservoir first."

"Extraction started. Initial rate: 50 tons/hour. Target: Mineral deposits under the reservoir, 80 tons. Estimated time: 1.6 hours."

"Target energy field intensity rating: A- (Mughal Military Soul + Islamic Protection), estimated interference level: Severe. It is recommended to activate Mental Defense Mode."

"What is Mental Defense Mode?"

"Shields the central nervous System from external energy interference via low-frequency white noise. Side effect: The user may experience temporary tinnitus."

"Activate it. Having tinnitus is better than being driven crazy by 'them'."

"Mental Defense Mode has been activated."

The progress bar began to jump. Zero percent.

Li Xin crouched there, staring at the system panel. The woods were very quiet, with only the sound of the wind and insects. He could hear his own breathing, very light.

Liu Mo's voice came through the headset.

"Outer perimeter is normal. Mobile sentries report no abnormalities."

"What about your side?"

"The two points in the middle ring are quiet. The direction of the old castle... is a bit strange."

"What's strange?"

Liu Mo hesitated for a moment.

"I can't quite explain it. It feels like there's… a sound over there? A very low one, like chanting."

Li Xin became alert. Can Liu Mo sense it too?

"It might be the night wind. Continue observing."

"Understood."

The progress jumped to eleven percent.

In the distance, headlights flashed once and quickly went out. Li Xin stared in that direction, his hand still pressed against the ground.

Liu Mo's voice came through again.

"There are motorcycles to the northwest. Three of them. Approaching."

"Distance?"

"About four hundred meters. Still approaching."

The sound of motorcycles grew closer. Put-put-put, very loud in the night. The headlights flickered through the woods and went out again. Someone was talking in Hindi, but it was unclear what they were saying.

Li Xin didn't move. His hand pressed against the ground, feeling the coolness of the soil.

Liu Mo's voice was very low.

"They've stopped. Three people, getting off the bikes."

"Drive them away. Do not engage."

"Understood."

Liu Mo whispered a few words to the people beside him. It was unclear what was said, but the tone was soft, as if giving orders.

A while later, the sound of stones hitting the ground came from afar. Rolling, rolling, then stopping. Then came a few dog barks, very loud, carrying far into the night.

The motorcycles started up again. Put-put-put, getting further and further away. The headlights flickered through the woods a few times and then disappeared.

Liu Mo's voice.

"They've turned north. They're gone."

The progress jumped to twenty-three percent.

Li Xin breathed a sigh of relief. His palms were sweaty, and he wiped them on his pants.

The wind picked up. The tree crowns rustled loudly, and a few leaves fell onto his head.

The progress jumped to thirty-one percent.

The System popped up a line of text.

"Active interference detected. Soundprint identification: A mix of thousands chanting and warhorses neighing. Energy density increased by 40% compared to the first stage."

Li Xin felt a sharp pain in his temples. It felt like a needle prick—very short, but very painful. It went from his left temple to his right, like a straight line.

He gritted his teeth and didn't make a sound.

"Can you filter it out?"

"Cannot filter it out completely. It is recommended to adjust the frequency of Mental Defense Mode."

"Adjust it however you want. As long as I can last for 1.6 hours."

"Frequency adjusted. From 440Hz to 528Hz."

The sharp pain lessened, but it was still there. It felt like a string was being pulled in his brain, twitching, not painful but annoying. His ears started to buzz with a low frequency, like someone beating a drum in the distance.

The progress jumped to forty-two percent.

Liu Mo's voice came through again.

"There are vehicles from the direction of the old castle. Two of them, heading this way."

"Distance?"

"About one kilometer. Still approaching."

Li Xin looked up. There was light in the distant sky—not moonlight, but the hazy glow of headlights.

"Pause Extraction. Everyone go into hiding. Kill the car engines and shut down all electronic equipment."

"Extraction paused. Cooldown timer continues."

Li Xin crouched in the darkness, motionless. He pulled his hands from the ground and placed them on his knees.

The headlights lit up in the distance, getting brighter and brighter. Two military trucks, one after the other, were not moving fast. The engine noise was loud, rumbling, very audible in the night.

The trucks drove past the edge of the woods, less than two hundred meters from him. The headlights swept across the forest, the beams flickering against the tree trunks before moving away. He could see people sitting in the truck beds, wearing camouflage, several of them, but he couldn't see their faces clearly.

Li Xin held his breath.

The trucks drove past. The engine noise grew fainter. The taillights flashed twice in the distance, turned a corner, and disappeared.

Liu Mo's voice.

"They're gone. They continued heading south."

"Resume Extraction."

"Extraction resumed."

The progress jumped to fifty-three percent.

His temples started hurting again. This time it was worse, like someone was beating a drum inside his brain, rhythmic and steady. The buzzing in his ears also grew louder, drowning out the insect sounds.

Li Xin closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. He bit through his lip, tasting the metallic tang of blood.

There were sounds in his brain. Not tinnitus, but other sounds. Chanting, buzzing, unclear what they were chanting. There were also hoofbeats, da-da-da, very dense, like many horses running. And the sound of metal clashing, clanging, like swords.

He knew it was a hallucination. But it still felt noisy.

His hand pressed against the ground, feeling the coolness of the soil. He stared at the progress bar, forcing himself to look at the number.

The progress jumped to sixty-four percent.

Liu Mo's voice.

"Mr. Li, are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"You don't look so good."

"I said I'm fine. Continue the watch."

"Understood."

The progress jumped to seventy-five percent.

The sounds in his brain grew louder. The buzzing of chanting, the hoofbeats, the metal clashing—all mixed together like a chaotic mess. His temples throbbed, hurting intensely.

Sweat streamed down his forehead, running into his eyes and stinging. He didn't wipe it away.

He took a deep breath. Then another. And one more.

A voice was screaming in his brain—not from the hallucination, but his own. But he held it back.

The progress jumped to eighty-six percent.

There were headlights in the distance again. This time it wasn't a truck, but an SUV. One vehicle, moving very fast, its headlights sweeping wildly through the woods.

Liu Mo's voice.

"There's a vehicle approaching from the east. Distance five hundred meters. Moving fast."

"How many people?"

"Can't see clearly, but the car has an antenna, just like the one during the day."

"Don't worry about it, stay in hiding."

The SUV drove past the east side of the woods without stopping. The headlights swept over, then moved away. The engine noise was loud, buzzing, and only began to fade after it passed.

Li Xin stared at the progress bar.

Ninety-two percent. Ninety-four percent. Ninety-six percent.

The sounds in his brain suddenly quieted down.

The chanting stopped, and the hoofbeats were gone. Only the buzzing in his ears remained, low-frequency and muffled.

The progress jumped to ninety-eight percent.

He stared at the progress bar, counting every second.

Ninety-nine point two, ninety-nine point five, ninety-nine point seven.

"Ding... First batch of Extraction complete. Mineral deposits under the reservoir, 80 tons. Accumulated gold: 6712.5057 tons."

"System entering cooldown state. Countdown: 11:59:59."

Li Xin closed the system panel and didn't move.

Sitting in the darkness, waiting.

The sounds in his brain vanished completely. His temples stopped hurting. The buzzing in his ears was gone too.

He stood up, steadying himself against a tree for a moment, and stretched his legs.

Liu Mo walked over, holding a flashlight in his hand, but it wasn't turned on.

"Are you done?"

"Done. Let's retreat."

The two walked back. Liu Mo led, and Li Xin followed. The woods were dark, making it hard to see the path, and their footsteps crunched on the gravel with a rustling sound.

Getting into the car, Liu Mo started the engine and made a U-turn.

"Just now, after those two trucks from the old castle passed by, another car went in. Black, no license plate."

"When?"

"About ten minutes after you resumed Extraction."

"Has it come out?"

"No. It's still inside."

Li Xin thought for a moment.

"Find out about that car tomorrow. See what's up with it."

"Already have people looking into it."

The car drove through the darkness. In the distance, dogs barked, but stopped after a few sounds. Both sides of the road were pitch black, and nothing could be seen.

Returning to the courtyard, it was nearly 2:00 AM.

Li Xin went upstairs and took a shower. The water was cold; it splashed on his face, making him more alert. He stood under the showerhead, letting the water run over the back of his head for a long time.

After washing and drying off, he lay in bed.

He opened the system panel. Accumulated gold: 6712.5057 tons.

The 80 tons from the reservoir were in hand.

Tomorrow night, the double-layered secret room. 120 tons.

He closed the panel and closed his eyes.

The insects outside the window chirped all night long.