Chapter 7, Briefcase Nuclear Bomb

The old chief glanced once more at the tall and renowned Khalid, who was sitting against the wall by the door. He was the deputy military leader of Al-Qaeda, an explosives expert, and a key figure in planning the September 11 attacks on the United States in 2001. The short and stout Tajik, Lev Ivanovsky, sitting by the window, was an international arms smuggler, reportedly having served in the Soviet strategic missile forces before the dissolution of the Soviet Union

In the northwest region of Pakistan, there lies the undulating Hindu Kush mountain range, with its highest peak, Tirich Mir, reaching an elevation of 7,690 meters, perpetually covered in ice and snow. The village of Nurd, located at the foot of the mountain, consists of only about ten tribal households. Crossing the small river to the west of the village leads to the town of Ishkashim in Afghanistan, while heading north along the Panj River takes one to the Republic of Tajikistan.

Khalid opened the briefcase beside him, revealing bundles of U.S. dollars neatly arranged inside. "Please take a look, Chief," he said. Muhammad waved his hand and replied, "No need, Khalid is our friend"

In the sparse forest, there is an inconspicuous earthen house, with several men dressed in Arab robes, vigilantly guarding outside the courtyard and along the forest edge, each carrying an AK47 assault rifle. On the hillside, a few snipers armed with M16 rifles lie in wait, the reflection of their telescopic sights flickering intermittently. Inside the dilapidated house, six or seven individuals sit cross-legged on a worn-out felt blanket, all in tribal attire, with the elder seated at the innermost part being the tribal chief, Muhammad.

"Unfortunately, you will never see it again, Khalid," the cold voice of Rasim echoed in his ears. Before Khalid could react, his neck had already been snapped. Rasim threw Khalid's body out of the car and drove away, leaving a cloud of dust behind.

The old chief noticed that Rasim's gaze quickly swept across the piece of paper

Khalid stepped out of the house, got into the off-road vehicle, and signaled Rasim to drive. The car climbed up the slope, and Khalid took out his phone, entered a series of numbers, and pressed the call button. With his head sticking out of the car window, he looked back; after a loud bang, a thick plume of smoke rose from the edge of the forest, and the house that had just been there had vanished.

"Chief, don't you really want to know what the goods of this transaction are?" Levinoffsky said with a beaming smile, unable to conceal the joy in his heart

The old chief waved his hand and said, "My tribe only wants 200,000 US dollars and guarantees your safe departure; I do not wish to know anything else"

Khalid said, "This one is fine, load it onto the vehicle first." Khalid gestured to Rasim, who lifted the metal box with effort and turned to walk outside

Khalid took the piece of paper but could not understand it, as it was written in Chinese, so he handed it back to Levinoffsky

Levinovsky nodded, signaling his assistant to open the travel case standing in the corner. Inside was a silver-colored metal box, the lid of which bore the abbreviation CCCP, representing the former Soviet Union. The assistant took out two keys and inserted them into the keyholes, turning them. The lid of the metal box slowly popped open, revealing a nuclear bomb inside

Levinoffsky, 2.5 million US dollars has already been credited to your Swiss bank account, and the remaining balance will be deposited within 15 minutes after the goods are inspected The voice of Khalid had a metallic and piercing quality

Levinovsky smirked slyly and said, "There is still one in China, buried there during the Cold War. Here is the hiding address and the contact person." As he spoke, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper

"What about the other one?" Rasim asked, he was Khalid's assistant, in his thirties, with a stern gaze

Khalid sneered: "Erasing 4 million people in the United States, the Schwarzenegger administration should pay the price for Bush, 9/11 was merely a warning, 'America - Hiroshima' is the true holy war!"

The suitcase nuclear bomb weighs 50 kilograms, with plutonium and uranium separated into two parts. The central detonator is set with a 13-digit password and can be remotely detonated using a mobile phone, with a yield of 20,000 tons.