Chapter 1768 - 2070: Climbing the Mountain (3)
After sorting out the supply boxes, the men in the tent gradually walked out. Ling Chen carefully stood up and slowly moved to the tent’s entrance, opening a small gap to look outside. The tent was well-positioned, possibly in a corner of the mountaintop, allowing him to clearly see the entire situation on the mountaintop through the gap.
According to the intelligence, Zhu Hong started relocating the headquarters of the Heavenly Dragon Sect a week ago. Even though it has only been a week, it has to be admitted that Zhu Hong’s efficiency is very high; several buildings have already been constructed on the mountaintop. Of course, these buildings weren’t made of cement and bricks but from a special kind of steel beam joined together, first forming a solid framework and then installing a thick wall panel outside. At first glance, they looked no different from ordinary buildings.
The mountaintop area was quite large, easily accommodating a hundred people or more. However, it’s still in the construction phase, so there weren’t many people around. Ling Chen observed for a while, then focused his attention on the building in the center of the mountaintop. That building was not only large but also looked luxuriously decorated from the outside, likely Zhu Hong’s residence.
According to the intelligence, Zhu Hong and his group haven’t descended from the mountain since they ascended.
"Where would he keep the people?" Ling Chen thought to himself with a frown. They were in a hurry to take action this time because Zhu Hong had captured around twenty people, all ordinary citizens.
Unfortunately, the intelligence only mentioned the captured individuals but did not specify the reason for their capture.
There weren’t many buildings on the mountaintop, but finding those captured individuals without alerting others wasn’t an easy task. After thinking for a moment, Ling Chen took a headset from his pocket, put it on, and contacted Qiu Yong at the mountain’s base before sneaking out of the tent and heading towards a row of nearby bungalows.
At this moment, the sky had already darkened, providing cover for Ling Chen. Soon, he reached the back of the row of bungalows. This row of bungalows seemed to be where the disciples of the Heavenly Dragon Sect resided, with each small room equipped with windows, through which one could see inside.
As Ling Chen glanced into each room, he found nothing of interest. Just then, a man emerged from a tent not far away, holding a wooden bucket in one hand and a large bag in the other, the contents of which were unknown.
The man hadn’t walked far before someone rushed out of the tent, shouting, "Hey! You forgot the bread!"
The man turned back, complaining, "Why feed prisoners so well? Just give them something to keep from starving." With that, he continued walking forward.
Seeing the direction in which the man was headed, Ling Chen couldn’t help but smile. The man must be taking food to the captured individuals, so following him would surely lead to their whereabouts. However, his smile didn’t last long. To his surprise, the man entered the largest building.
This might be troublesome!
Ling Chen thought to himself. Those people were being held at Zhu Hong’s residence. Since it’s Zhu Hong’s place, Chen Quan must be there. Honestly, he wasn’t confident about confronting Chen Quan yet. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought so many Heavenly List experts with him.
Forget it! Ling Chen thought for a moment before abandoning his original plan. There was no way he could complete the rescue alone, so he had to rely on everyone’s strength. With that in mind, he turned his attention to the lift at the edge of the mountaintop.
As the only passage up and down the mountain, the lift was always guarded. Ling Chen observed three individuals, who seemed to be ordinary members of the Heavenly Dragon Sect. Dealing with them wouldn’t be difficult; he was mostly concerned about anyone showing up unexpectedly.
"Hey! Big brother, you can take action now."
"Got it!"
About five minutes later, Qiu Yong’s voice came through the headset again: "Sixth Brother, it’s all set."
Ling Chen nodded to himself, knowing that if Qiu Yong’s group were to ascend, they needed to handle those in the camp at the mountain’s base first. With their skills, dealing with some third-rate people would naturally be no problem.
For now, he quietly approached the lift’s location, picking up a few stones from the ground. As he neared the lift, he flicked his wrist, sending the stones flying out instantly, striking the three men’s heads. Immediately, the three men showed no reaction and collapsed unconscious.
After neutralizing the guards, Ling Chen quickly ran to the lift control panel and slowly lowered the rope. As the lift started, Ling Chen thought to himself that this wasn’t good. The high-powered lift’s gear noise was loud enough to be heard across the entire mountaintop.
Sure enough!
Shortly after the lift started, someone began hurrying over from the row of bungalows.
Ling Chen found a spot to hide behind. As the person reached the control panel, he swiftly attacked, easily dealing with the person. By this time, the rope had already descended to the mountain’s base, and he heard Qiu Yong’s voice in his headset, prompting him to pull the rope back up.
Due to weight constraints, it took at least a few minutes to travel from the base to the peak, so he had to buy enough time. After considering the control panel before him, Ling Chen hesitated for a moment, ultimately deciding against sabotaging it. If he damaged the panel, no one could stop Qiu Yong and the others from coming up, but this meant they couldn’t descend the mountain later when retreating.
Two minutes passed, and Ling Chen remained stationed at the lift control panel. Fortunately, apart from the previous person, no one else came to check the situation. It seemed the people from the Heavenly Dragon Sect felt no one would attack the mountain, so they let their guard down.
Before long, Qiu Yong and his group all arrived at the mountaintop.
After regrouping, Ling Chen efficiently made arrangements. Except for Chen Junfeng and Yu Beifeng, the others, led by Qiu Yong, would perform a sweep of the entire mountaintop, discreetly handling all members of the Heavenly Dragon Sect. Meanwhile, the three of them would head straight to Zhu Hong’s residence to locate the detained individuals. If possible, it would be best to find Zhu Hong’s whereabouts and deal with him as well.
After seeing Qiu Yong and the others off, Ling Chen led Chen Junfeng and Yu Beifeng to the large house, pressing against the wall and listening to the sounds inside. The footsteps inside were chaotic, indicating there were quite a few people.
Ling Chen signaled to the two, then moved cautiously towards the door. Upon reaching outside, he carefully peeked in to see a wide corridor inside. On the benches lining the corridor sat a few people, smoking and chatting enthusiastically.
Seeing this, Ling Chen pressed the brim of his cap down to shield his face, then lowered his head and walked inside.