Chapter 1840 - 1389: The Yellow Sparrow in the Rear (Part 2)

After disembarking the team, the Black Hawk Helicopter ascended and hovered in standby five kilometers away.

The dust kicked up by the rotor blades hadn't settled yet, and the seven were already unfolding in a double-arrow formation.

Blake signaled in hand gestures—

Check equipment, maintain spacing, move silently.

They wore OCP camouflage, and the Combat Uniform had undergone infrared suppression treatment.

The weapons were HK416D, equipped with EXPS3 holographic sights, LA-5 laser designators, and SOCOM silencers.

The helmets integrated GPNVG-18 panoramic night vision goggles, capable of switching to thermal imaging mode.

The sand beneath absorbed most of the noise.

The seven advanced like specters in the green hue of their night vision goggles.

A hundred meters away, Blake raised his fist, and the squad halted abruptly.

He pulled up the building's structural diagram on his tablet.

Lemont provided detailed blueprints, marking each load-bearing wall and ventilation duct.

"Chains, establish a sniper position."

"Understood."

Chains broke away from the team, silently heading towards the elevated western pipeline.

He chose a twelve-meter high maintenance platform with coverage over the control building's main entrance, flanks, and peripheral areas.

Upon arrival, he swiftly deployed the bipod of the MK13 Mod7 sniper rifle, resting the .300 Winchester Magnum barrel on the railing.

"Sniper position established, clear view, no anomalies detected."

Blake scanned the control building with thermal imaging.

The room on the eastern side of the second floor had a steady, low-intensity heat source, matching the shape of a seated human.

There were three moving heat sources on the first floor—two patrolling and one in the hall.

"Guard shift in three minutes," Thom reported: "According to routine, the second floor guard will come downstairs to hand over."

"Team A, front; Team B, flank," Blake ordered: "Chains providing cover. Once action begins, prioritize eliminating first-floor threats, then swiftly assault the second floor. Quinn, prepare the flash shock bomb."

"Understood."

"Victor, Renault, Thom, you will enter from the rear of the building, cutting off the retreat."

"Received."

The six dispersed into two groups.

Blake led Derek and Quinn along the shadows of abandoned oil barrels approaching the main entrance.

Eighty meters.

Sixty meters.

Forty meters.

In the night vision, the wooden door of the control building's main entrance was clearly visible, with faint light leaking through the door crack.

At the same time, elevated pipeline sniper position.

Chains pressed his right eye tightly against the Nightforce ATACR 5-25x56 scope.

The crosshairs firmly pinned to the chest of the guard at the first-floor entrance.

The target was yawning, the old AK-47 casually slung on his shoulder.

His finger lightly touched the trigger, pre-loaded to the critical point.

Now, just another 200 grams of pressure, and the bullet would hit the target in 0.3 seconds.

At this moment, the hair on the back of his neck suddenly stood on end.

It was a sixth sense possessed only by those who had crawled back from the Grim Reaper's Scythe numerous times.

No sound, no heat signal, no airflow change.

But she knew there was something behind.

Chains instantly abandoned the shot, releasing the handguard with his left hand, and lightning-fast reached for the M18 pistol at his waist.

His body simultaneously rolled to the right—

This would allow him to quickly counter the threat behind.

But it seemed a bit too slow.

A hand wearing a black tactical glove reached from the shadow behind, precisely covering his nose and mouth with such force that his cheekbones hurt.

At the same millisecond, another hand cut into the side of his neck with a tactical knife.

The Blade sliced at a 30-degree angle, severing the carotid and jugular veins while avoiding the trachea and spine.

Expert technique, ensuring rapid blood loss for fatality, preventing a dying scream.

Chains widened his eyes, as black spots began to appear in the view of the night vision goggles.

He saw the face of the attacker.

The face and neck were smeared with camouflage paint, with only the eyes reflecting the green glow of the night vision goggles.

Details were entirely obscured.

As the Blade pierced, Chains' consciousness rapidly drained away.

The last thing he heard was the voice coming through the headset: "Chains? Report your status."

Then, darkness surged up like a tide, engulfing everything.

11:16 PM, the control building's main entrance.

Blake hid behind a concrete pier twenty meters from the entrance, staring at the timer on the tablet.

"Three, two, one—"

The first-floor door opened.

A sleepy guard with a kerosene lamp came out to meet the colleague at the entrance.

The two conversed in a low voice in Arabic.

Just as Blake was about to issue orders, Renault's urgent voice suddenly came through the headset: "Chains lost contact! Repeat, sniper lost contact!"

Damn it.

Lost contact?!

Something went wrong!

It's a trap!

A thought flashed instantly through his mind.

"Plan change! Retreat! Everyone retreat!"

Blake, always cautious, made the safest decision immediately.

But the ambush had already been triggered, and everything was too late.

The windows on the second floor of the control building burst open from inside.

Two barrels simultaneously reached out.

Not the old-style AK, but HK416 equipped with silencers.

Pap-pap-pap—

Pap-pap-pap—

Pap-pap—

Pap-pap—

All were dense, short bursts.

It's an expert!

The muted gunfire broke the silence.

Bullets aimed at the ground and cover behind the "Cleaner" squad, precisely blocking the retreat path.

"Directed suppression!" Derek shouted: "They're forcing us into the building!"

Blake instantly understood.

It's not about killing; it's about capturing or driving into a kill zone.

"Team B, report!"

"Encountered enemies at the rear!" Victor's voice mixed with gunfire: "At least four! Tactical cooperation flawless, we're being pushed towards the building!"

Blake's mind raced.

The number of enemies was unknown, well-prepared.

The sniper's loss meant losing the vantage point.

Staying out in the open was a dead end.

"Into the building! Establish defense!" He decided immediately: "Quinn, shock bomb!"

Quinn leaned out from behind cover, tossing an M84 flash shock bomb.

Blinding white light and 170-decibel blasts exploded at the entrance, followed by several gunshots, two guards screaming, and clutching their eyes as they fell.

"Move!"

The three-man group charged into the door in a triangular formation.

Blake entered first, swiftly sweeping the gun across the hall.