Chapter 896: A Crisis Brewing
The content and schedule of the compet.i.tion were arranged in such a way to exceed all the physical limits of humans. Each partic.i.p.ant would have to carry a load of between 66 to 88 pounds and compete under the conditions where there were no reinforcements and enemies were surrounding them from the front and the rear. In a primeval forest of Country S that was named as the world’s worst environment for warfare, they would have to do various tasks. The tasks included rowing in wild waters, executing a beach landing, crossing a minefield, planning a rescue mission, and shooting with a pistol or rifle. Partic.i.p.ants were also tested on high-level tactical techniques such as confrontation and reconnaissance missions. The whole process would take four to five days.
The capability of his five-men team was pretty good, but he was worried about how Li Zilan would fare.
When the compet.i.tion started, Li Zilan did surprisingly well in the first two rounds. So those soldiers from the other countries who had initially thought that Li Zilan was simply a pretty girl no longer dared to underestimate her.
In the first two rounds, Mu Feichi and his team took first place in many different categories. The looks on the men’s faces who had never taken Li Zilan seriously changed from surprise to shock and finally to admiration. The whole situation was fascinating.
Mu Feichi had studied the rules of the last round in the game many times. He discussed their strategy and measures with his team the night before.
According to the reconnaissance segment rules, every partic.i.p.ant would hold onto ten pieces of paper, each representing one penalty point. Then, when a partic.i.p.ant was caught by the enemy, he would have to hand over a piece of paper and deduct a point. Once they ran out of paper, they would be considered as dead.
The team would be disqualified once three out of their five members were dead.
The rules also stated that partic.i.p.ants were not allowed to get aggressive with the enemy. Instead, the point was to think of ways to avoid and evade them. They must surrender once they couldn’t escape any longer.
All five members had to move separately in this round, which would be a big challenge for Li Zilan.
Although Li Zilan had performed well during the past few days and had showed that people shouldn’t underestimate her, anything could still happen in the vast rain forest.
This was what Mu Feichi was most worried about. He looked over at Li Zilan, who wouldn’t dare to let down her guard, and handed her a sewing kit that Yun Xi had given to him.
Mu Feichi’s expression gradually softened as he looked at the adorable pumpkin-shaped pouch. He had a gentle, warm look, just as if the morning sun had shone over his face.
“This is what my girl uses to protect herself. It’s nothing special. These are just sewing needles, but they are all coated with poison. You should only use it when you really have no other options.”
Feng Rui looked at the round pumpkin-shaped sewing kit curiously. “Sir, what made you even bring this thing?”
Before entering the compet.i.tion ground, everyone had to go through many rounds of inspections and searches. But these sewing needles would not attract much attention, as it was not uncommon for soldiers to sew rips in their uniforms.
“I came in with it, just like that. No one would suspect anything since it looked like a standard sewing kit.”
Mu Feichi pa.s.sed the sewing kit to Li Zilan and advised her with all seriousness, “Keep it well hidden but put it somewhere you can reach it quickly. Don’t lose it!”
“Yes, sir!” Li Zilan hid the sewing kit in her hat. She then took out one of the needles and stuck it in her shoelaces.
“It doesn’t matter if we fail at the mission tomorrow. Your safety comes first.”
“Yes, sir!” The four of them nodded. They then started changing and preparing themselves for the last round of the game.
A heavy downpour had just stopped. The tree leaves and branches were covered with rainwater, and one could also get wet just from the mist as they walked through the forest.
Their camouflage uniforms were drenched and stuck to their skins, but no one had the time to be bothered. Everyone went into hiding and completed their tasks as quickly as possible.
However, no one could have known that a crisis beyond anyone’s expectations was quietly brewing.