Peerless Genius System

Ji Siying made her way to the adjacent hill, as instructed by Xiao Luo. She was a Grade C soldier and had undergone intensive special combat training, therefore negotiating the climb across the mountain terrain in the night posed no challenge to her. She reached the first location without much effort, then unscrewed the flare's cap and pulled hard on the firing cord to discharge the device. It shot out with a muffled burst and rose high into the air, emitting a dazzling light as it slowly floated down to the ground. For half a minute, it illuminated the ground below over a radius of several hundred meters. As Ji Siying headed for the second location, she couldn't help thinking how the parachute flare resembled the Golden Crow[1] of legend.

The Cobra Mercenaries were positioned halfway up Mount Luo, and seeing the flare go off, they immediately tried to work out the point from where it was discharged. Despite staying hidden, Xiao Luo was able to detect their subtle movements.

"Three confirmed."

Xiao Luo's eyes were as sharp as an eagle's, being fortified by the abilities of the King of Mercenaries and the Yi Jinjing.

Then, as suddenly as the flare illuminated the surrounding area, the ground fell into darkness. At this point, Xiao Luo began to advance under cover of darkness toward the halfway point of Mount Luo.

Soon, Ji Siying arrived at her second location, and she quickly launched another flare.

Seeing another flare shot from a different direction, the Cobra Mercenaries shifted in their positions once again to make an assessment.

"Five confirmed."

As soon as the second flare was fired, Xiao Luo hit the ground and lay prone, hidden by the tall grass. As he scanned the area, the corners of his mouth lifting to form a smile.

When the last flare was fired, the positions of two more mercenaries were confirmed. Xiao Luo had now located seven of them, but he knew they had eight men. He pondered his next course of action if he should wait for the next flare to establish the eighth man's position or strike.

It was time to make his move!

Moving stealthily like a phantom, Xiao Luo crept toward the Cobra Mercenaries unseen.

The seven Cobra mercenaries were deployed in two-man fireteams, with one of the teams carrying an additional man. After about ten minutes, Xiao Luo had quietly crawl through the tall grass and was now positioned not far away from the first team. This was the team with the additional man, and they were well camouflaged, scanning the surroundings through their night-vision goggles. Xiao Luo kept still, only his eyes moved as he stared at the soldiers, like a stalking predator waiting for the right time to strike.

"Have you spotted the target?"

"No, nothing over here."

"Damn, I'm getting goosebumps. Something's wrong."

The three whispered through their headsets, oblivious to the shadow lurking in the darkness close by.

Then, without warning, two black daggers came from behind two soldiers and were quickly pressed against their throats. They were highly-trained Grade B mercenaries, with well-honed skills and heightened senses beyond ordinary men's limits. But before either of them could even react, the blades slashed across their throats.

"Croak…"

There was no scream, but just a faint wheezing sound as the daggers sliced deeply and severed their windpipes. Their glazed eyes stared blankly, and they died without another sound.

The third mercenary, a burly man, hissed in shock when he realized his two companions had been attacked. Instinctively, he turned around and fired off continuous bursts with his submachine gun, spraying the area with an indiscriminate hail of bullets.

RAT-TA-TAT… RAT-TA-TAT

Flames flashed from the muzzle, and the piercing sound broke the silence of Mount Luo.

The burly man panicked, horrified to find nothing behind him, except for the two dead bodies of his comrades lying still on the ground. He gathered his nerves and composed himself.

He immediately contacted the other fireteams over the headset. "No. 3 to Cobra, target located, target located!"

"Where's the target now?" A cold voice responded.

"I don't know!"

"What do you mean?"

No. 3, the burly man, broke out in a cold sweat as he scanned the immediate area with his night-vision goggles. There was no sign of the target at all—where was he? "He's a phantom, incredibly quick. He's just disappeared after taking down No. 1 and No. 2."

"B*stard!"

A voice cursed over the headset and immediately ordered the others to head toward No. 3's position with haste.

The burly man stayed alert, but he was becoming very nervous and jumpy, imagining every blade of grass and tree to be his enemy. He felt the strong presence, an overwhelming aura of a predator waiting to strike. He was sweating profusely, and suddenly, his hair stood on end as he felt a chilling presence right behind him. He swung around and pulled the trigger, sweeping the area in an arch.

Then, he caught a glimpse of Xiao Luo!

Xiao Luo was taken by surprise, and he immediately knew he had underestimated the burly man. He was about to deliver a mortal blow, but the Cobra mercenary reacted instantly and fired his submachine gun. He was barely able to dodge the incoming rounds, and had he been a split second too slow, he would have taken more than a dozen bullets in his chest.

"B*stard, I'll kill you!!!"

The burly man gritted his teeth and yelled, firing controlled bursts at the quick moving target, as Xiao Luo darted about like a phantom.

When he depleted the clip, the burly man immediately switched magazines, but while as he was loading the clip, he heard a loud snap followed a creaking sound. Xiao Luo had just smashed the trunk of a pine tree with a hefty kick.

CRACK!

The pine tree snapped into two and came crashing down, rustling through the foliage as it fell toward the burly man.

And as he tried to avoid the crashing tree, he found his head caught in a vice-like grip. The strong hand that held his chin snapped the head sideways, breaking his neck. The man lost all control of his body, and as he slumped to the ground, all he saw was a young man attired in dark combat gear staring at him—Xiao Luo.

"Since you have come here, then stay forever!"

Xiao Luo stood there to watch the burly man die. Blood was flowing out of his nose and mouth as his life force slowly slipped away.

BANG!

A high-velocity round whistled through the trees and almost hit him. It grazed his face and cut him like a sharp dagger, leaving a scar on his cheek.

Following the shot, an intense barrage of bullets flew in his direction.

Evidently, the remaining five of the Cobra mercenaries had arrived, and they were well-armed, with every man equipped with night vision equipment.

Xiao Luo could not stay in one place for too long to avoid being hit. As he constantly changed his position, he slowly led the mercenaries further into the Mount Luo forest.

As a child, he had spent a lot of time running all over Mount Luo, and he was thoroughly familiar with the trails and terrain of the mountain. As he kept leading them in circles, the Cobra Mercenaries began to feel the strain of keeping up.

Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.

Several rocket-propelled grenades streaked through the air and blasted into the ground close to where Xiao Luo was last seen. The entire mountainside shook, and the air reeked of explosives.

Unaware that Xiao Luo had already circled behind them, they stood looking at the direction of the blasts, trying to assess the situation. Suddenly, in a single attack, three of the mercenaries howled in pain and fell immediately, forming a pool of blood around them.

Before the remaining two men could react, Xiao Luo vanished from sight again.

"Come out! If you are truly capable, come out, and we'll have a duel!"

The two men dropped their firearms and drew out their combat knives, as they yelled into the darkness.

Their firearms were useless against their swift and silent adversary, and they chose to take a more direct approach—a duel.

"Very well, I accept!"

A voice echoed eerily around the forest, then, moving silently about like a phantom, Xiao Luo pounced from behind a large tree and attacked the men.

He instantly pushed them back with his extreme speed and overwhelming power.

He saw an opening and delivered a stinging blow with his right palm through the defense of one man, thumping him directly on his chest. The force of the blow surged through the man's body, and the man went limp instantly as his chest collapsed.

Crack!

Xiao Luo's palm broke his ribs, and the palm went through his chest cavity, fully exposing the ruptured heart.

Footnote:

[1] The Golden Crow: a tripedal creature in Chinese mythology, usually depicted as a three-legged crow. Legend has it that ten of them lived in the Sun, and during a calamitous period when all ten descended on Earth, the famed Celestial Archer, Houyi, shot all but one, thus saving the world.

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