In the current era, it is the age of the internet.
From deploying aircraft carriers and large-scale ambushes to special forces officers apprehending petty criminals, everything relies on the internet.
The internet enables all units to coordinate seamlessly, maximizing their combat effectiveness.
Without the internet, like the king and others trapped in the Blackwater Forest, they would be blind and deaf.
Qin Zhou and his companions understood this deeply.
Having finally obtained mobile phones from James and Jack, they naturally intended to make full use of them.
Running out of power was also not a problem.
As long as the snowmobiles were available, charging the phones was feasible.
However, to prevent their location from being pinpointed by the enemy and thus exposing their hiding place, Qin Zhou would only turn on his phone for a few minutes at uncertain intervals, swiftly browsing information on the dark web.
Today, as soon as his phone was powered on, it was about to die.
Just as Qin Zhou plugged it in to charge, it rang.
The mobile ringtone immediately attracted the attention of Chu Yingying, Jing Hongye, and the others.
Tie Yuan, however, quickly led his men up the slope and scanned their surroundings with binoculars.
It was impossible to rule out the possibility that the enemy was calling James's phone, intending to lock onto Qin Zhou's exact location.
"No anomalies."
Tie Yuan turned back and quickly made a hand gesture.
Qin Zhou then answered the call: "Who are you? I'll give you ten seconds to tell me who you are and what you want."
Ten seconds later, to prevent his coordinates from being tracked, Qin Zhou would immediately end the call.
"I am Bai Du Niao."
A stranger's male voice came through: "And who are you?"
Bai Du Niao?
Bai Du Niao!?
Qin Zhou was stunned, then exclaimed: "How can you prove you are Bai Du Niao?"
The man retorted: "Where are you from?"
This question was not important.
Qin Zhou immediately replied: "Xiangjiang."
The man immediately said: "There is a family named Qin in Xiangjiang. In this family, there is a man named Qin Zongheng. Qin Zongheng's wife is surnamed Zhou. Qin Zongheng also has a confidante named Lou, Lou Jinling. Lou Jinling has a daughter named Qin Yimeng. Qin Yimeng is exactly 20 years old this year."
"Holy crap—"
Qin Zhou let out a strange cry: "You're from the Li family!"
Many people knew of Qin Zongheng.
But only someone from the Li family would know that Qin Zongheng also had a confidante and had a daughter named Qin Yimeng with her.
Hearing the man reveal this information, Qin Zhou immediately knew that the other party had an 80% chance of being the legendary Bai Du Niao.
"Yes."
The man said concisely: "If you are still in the Blackwater Forest, withdraw immediately. Because a group of pig teammates has been captured alive. The enemy will soon use them to force you out."
What?
Qin Zhou, who had not yet checked his messages after powering on his phone, his pupils visibly constricted upon hearing this.
A few minutes later, the call ended.
Qin Zhou immediately opened the dark web and saw Luna's public announcement!
"Idiots!"
"Damn their mothers, calling them pigs is an insult to pigs."
"How much water must be poured into their heads to treat the rescue of the Blackwater Forest as a tourist trip?"
After reading it, Qin Zhou and the others leaped up and cursed.
"Stop cursing!"
Chu Yingying sharply admonished: "What we need to consider now is what to do."
She was the only girl.
Crucially, her temper was not to be trifled with; here, even Qin Zhou, the "leader," had to look up to her.
As soon as Chu Yingying spoke, everyone immediately stopped jumping and cursing.
Yes, what should they do next?
Everyone instinctively looked towards their leader, Qin Zhou.
At this moment.
The number of people in the team led by Qin Zhou had already reached fifteen.
If not for Bai Du Niao's call, the hot-blooded new generation, upon learning about the Thunder Squad, and relying on their considerable numbers, would have had an 80% chance of formulating a rescue plan for those 66 individuals.
Even though they were a group worse than pigs.
They still could not abandon them.
But Bai Du Niao had miraculously contacted them and requested their immediate withdrawal!
"Bai Du Niao said they would find a way to handle this matter."
Qin Zhou, with a cigarette in his mouth, paced back and forth for a full five minutes before looking up: "We withdraw."
Withdraw?
Jing Hongye and the others exchanged glances.
Qin Zhou no longer had his usual casual demeanor.
He said in a deep voice: "Bai Du Niao made it very clear. We can come here and shed blood and sacrifice ourselves for our brothers trapped in the Blackwater Forest, because they are all true men! But a group of dogs worse than pigs does not deserve us to fly into the flames for them."
As Jing Hongye and the others subconsciously nodded, their faces were still filled with unwillingness.
"Bai Du Niao also said!"
Qin Zhou raised his voice: "We endure the ice and snow here, while those pig-like dogs were partying with beautiful women all the way, actively delivering themselves to the enemy! Bai Du Niao asked me, do our brothers need to risk their lives for these idiots?"
No!!
Upon hearing Qin Zhou say this, Jing Hongye and the others' reluctance to simply withdraw vanished.
Indeed.
They were also trying to save people.
Qin Zhou and his companions had been squatting in snow dens all day, and as their food dwindled, they had long since reduced their meals from three to one.
But the Thunder Squad?
They were partying with beauties in their arms, and just like that, they had willingly walked into the trap like fat pigs.
To die saving such people—
Unless they were crazy!!
That night.
Qin Zhou and his fifteen companions, under the cover of a raging white wind, quietly evacuated their snow pit hiding spot with the three bodies of their compatriots they had collected, disappearing into the snowfields east of the Blackwater Forest.
Although.
They had not yet charged into the Blackwater Forest.
They had not brought back their brothers from the Kill Hu team.
But they had been there!!!
Crucially, this experience had a significant impact on their lives.
This group of young talents from the East, having endured the ravages of the snowstorm and even the threat of death, had their minds and spirits mature significantly.
"Old Gao, I'm sorry, I'm withdrawing first. If you're still alive, you must persevere."
Qin Zhou, walking at the very back, looked back in the direction of the Blackwater Forest and said softly.
Whoosh—
The snowstorm raged, freezing water dripped, and even wolves hid where they could.
Yet, thousands of miles to the south, in a small English town, the moon hung high and the sea was calm.
The name of this town was Rhodes Town.
This town, only three hundred meters from the sea, had a total population of 3666 people.
There were men, women, and children, and the buildings in the town looked no different from any other.
There were even tourists from other countries who came to visit the town.
The townspeople were warm and hospitable, making visitors feel at home.
But—
If you mistook this town for an ordinary town, you would be greatly mistaken.
This was the birthplace of the Rhodes family, rumored to have a total family fortune of 50 trillion, rich enough to rival the world, and even the stronghold of its most direct lineage!
Among the 3666 people, at least six hundred able-bodied men could form a super armed force in the shortest possible time, capable of destroying a small African country.
Even.
In the sea north of the town, not only were there vessels disguised as fishing boats, but beneath the invisible surface of the water, a submarine was hidden.
If foreign enemies were to invade, the outcome was predictable.
This was also the greatest reason why the Rhodes family was not afraid of Bai Du Niao's bloody purge.
Currently in the Blackwater Forest, Rhodes, who commanded the mercenary group, and his wife Mary had already brought their two daughters to the town and were staying in the ancient castle by the sea.
Let alone Bai Du Niao, with only two or three people.
Even if there were thirty or fifty of them, they would have been locked onto two kilometers away from the town.
Dare to cause trouble—
Consider the consequences yourself!
Inside the castle.
Jessica was on the phone with Rhodes.
Upon learning that Rhodes had annihilated the Thunder Squad and captured as many as 66 people, Jessica, after a surge of joy, knew that the crisis caused by the blood and gore stirred up by Bai Du Niao had finally dissipated.
To use a saying from the East, it was like "lifting the thick fog to see the blue sky."
Jessica, who had intended to personally lead a team to deal with Bai Du Niao, naturally no longer needed to stay in Gaul.
Of course.
She did not want to return.
Because she deeply missed the feeling of being summoned by the god of death.
She even had a powerful illusion—
A small seed from the East had already cracked the hard shell of a certain cell, causing her to feel an urge to vomit whenever she saw anything greasy, within two months at most.
She had gone to the hospital, intending to take some "regret medicine."
Was this the only "regret medicine" in the world?
But after much hesitation, Jessica still gave up.
Perhaps it was her God, guiding her in the unseen?
Jessica wanted to stay in Gaul, waiting for her God to summon her, this most loyal servant, again.
She could only wait.
After all, her God had not left her, his servant, any contact information.
Reason, however, triumphed over Jessica's unspeakable desire, prompting her to return swiftly to Rhodes Town.
"Now the advantage is ours."
Jessica held her phone, looking at the dark sea in the distance, and said faintly.
"Moreover, the enemy has sent you a large number of beautiful women. You should use them, don't be polite. For the specific action plan, temporarily follow what you said. We can afford to wait, the enemy cannot."
She had just finished saying this when the door was forcefully pushed open.
A man in his thirties, whose appearance, looks, and temperament could all be described as gentlemanly, walked in filled with excitement.
This man was Jessica's husband, the future patriarch of the Rhodes family, Jin Rhode.
"Alright. That's all. If there are any unforeseen circumstances, leave a message through the fifth website of the dark web at any time. I will contact you proactively when I see it."
Upon seeing Jin Rhode, Jessica immediately ended her call with Rhodes.
"My dear Jessica!"
Jin Rhode strode to her side, embraced her tightly, and kissed her deeply.
Then, he said with urgency: "Our research on the 209 original virus has finally achieved an unprecedented breakthrough! There must be someone around Li Qianfan who can contain the original 209 virus!"
He paused.
Jin Rhode continued: "That person can only be a woman."