Prologue 1 The sword is drawn from its sheath

The total length is less than 200 meters. Kang Xiaoting adjusted the camouflage net covering his head, stating, "As far as I know, there are very few oil fields in the world where oil can be extracted with a 200-meter drill rod. Moreover, the geological activity in the East African Rift Valley is very frequent; a major earthquake occurred just last month, making it impossible for there to be any oil here"

Old Kang, do you say there is oil here

The night gradually descended, and the earth was draped in a black quilt, while the lights on the construction site also illuminated.

Fortunately, I am your partner, not your enemy

Should we scan it with the instrument

A slight tremor was felt from the ground, and the beam of light gradually moved aside. When the two raised their heads, a convoy of more than ten off-road vehicles was driving along the dirt road to the west of the bushes. Two workers stationed at the gate of the construction site opened the iron gate, and all the workers inside the site stopped working and gradually returned to their tents

Kang Xiaoting and Su Mingjin were not tense, but rather very anxious. They had only a few minutes left.

In a drilling site marked by the logo of Mobil Oil Company, located southwest of Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, and northwest of Lake Magadi, on the eastern bank of the Ngiro River, workers are busily engaged in their tasks. Occasionally, a few workers pause from their work to pick up foul-smelling towels to wipe the sweat from their bodies, casting resentful glances at the blazing sun overhead. Before they set down the towels, they have already cursed the damned God in their hearts hundreds of times.

Oil? I do not know. In any case, they are not looking for oil.

Aren't you afraid

"Send out the signal." Kang Xiaoting wiped the sweat from his right hand, which was holding a gun, on his backpack.

In the thicket eight hundred meters northeast of the construction site, a group of lions that have just filled their bellies is basking in the shade. The two leading adult male lions are eagerly watching the humans behind the barbed wire, as if contemplating whether to add an appetizer to their dinner. Several lionesses are busy managing a group of playful cubs, occasionally calling back those that stray away, as if fearing that they might be harmed by the mysterious visitors.

Su Mingjin, twenty-four years old, hails from Xuzhou, Jiangsu. He is a second lieutenant special forces soldier in the 103rd unit. He enlisted six years ago and joined the special forces four years ago, officially becoming a partner of Kang Xiaoting two years ago. Although he serves as an observer in the sniper team, Su Mingjin triumphed over many competitors in last year's team shooting competition, winning the championship and gaining widespread recognition. Unlike Kang Xiaoting, Su Mingjin has a slightly slender build, which gives him a somewhat delicate appearance. However, this is merely superficial. Su Mingjin's grandfather participated in the Battle of Xuzhou, later joined the uprising with the troops, and fought in both the War of Liberation and the Korean War. His father was also a soldier, losing an arm during the counteroffensive battles on the southern border. From birth, Su Mingjin has had the blood of a soldier flowing through his veins, destined to inherit the "family business" and become a soldier, an excellent soldier.

Some workers had finished their dinner and returned to the construction site. The drilling machine started up again, and the roar of the engine immediately drowned out the sounds of nature

Su Mingjin quickly took out a piece of specialized equipment resembling a professional camera from his backpack

Both of them began to laugh. The mournful cries of the bison from the north drowned out their conversation.

Have you seen those drill rods at the construction site

The newly armed workers also took swift action, each proficient in individual combat tactics

As the sun sets in the west, the night will bring a touch of coolness to this land forgotten by God

A middle-aged Caucasian man in a suit approached the door of a mobile home, accompanied by more than ten armed personnel. The other armed personnel quickly dispersed, forming a loose defensive line. The middle-aged man took a magnetic card from his person and swiped it on the probe of the electronic lock, causing a small keypad to pop out from the door panel beside the probe

Such events unfold daily on the vast grasslands. They repeat endlessly, a cycle of life that never ceases

Approximately two minutes later, a Caucasian man walked out of the mobile home

What are you afraid of

In the thicket, Kang Xiaoting and Su Mingjin also took action

"Are you talking about lions?" The man on the left coldly smiled and said, "The most terrifying enemy is not the beast, but man."

The pride of lions has succeeded. One life has departed, allowing more lives to gain the right to survive

The convoy came to a stop in the open area to the north of the construction site, and more than ten fully armed individuals, dressed in civilian clothing, disembarked. Workers emerging from the tent were also equipped with harnesses and carried firearms and other light weapons

550GM model smart password lock, equipment of the CIA

Su Mingjin put down the telescope and cast an admiring glance at his partner beside him

Kang Xiaoting, 28 years old, hails from Cangzhou, Hebei. He is affiliated with the 103rd Unit, commonly known as the "Lion" Special Forces, and holds the rank of Captain. He has served for ten years, eight of which have been spent in the Special Forces, making him a genuine "veteran." Like all people from Hebei, he possesses a strong physique, a generous personality, and a rugged style. Coming from a family of martial artists, he had already honed his skills before enlisting. After joining the Special Forces and the logistics team, he thrived in the environment, further enhancing his abilities, and won the championship in the military district's combat competition for five consecutive years. In addition, Kang Xiaoting excels in reconnaissance, infiltration, shooting, and other areas, ranking among the top in his unit.

Kang Xiaoting slowly pulled out the PSG-1 sniper rifle placed beside him, methodically attaching a custom low-light scope. After zeroing the scope, Kang Xiaoting retrieved a magazine containing twenty rounds from the tactical belt at his right hip, carefully checked the chamber, and then loaded the magazine. He pulled the bolt to chamber the first round, and finally, he gently rested the forend of the sniper rifle on the backpack in front of him, which was covered with dry grass. After zeroing the scope, Kang Xiaoting retrieved a magazine containing twenty rounds from the tactical belt at his right hip, carefully checked the chamber, and then loaded the magazine. He pulled the bolt to chamber the first round, and finally, he gently rested the forend of the sniper rifle on the backpack in front of him, which was covered with dry grass.

Upon closer observation of the workers' manner of walking, do you not feel that they have all undergone rigorous military training and are veterans who have served for several years?" Kang Xiaoting said with a cold smile, and continued, "Moreover, take a look at that mobile house in the southwest corner of the camp, near the riverbank. Do you see it? The one that can be towed by a trailer. Since last night until now, not a single worker has entered it, yet there has always been a group of workers surrounding it. If I am not mistaken, what we are looking for is inside that mobile house.

Damn it, I've been discovered!" Saying this, Su Mingjin pulled the bolt of the machine gun, loading a bullet into the chamber

Su Mingjin picked up the low-light night vision binoculars and adjusted the focus

No, we cannot act rashly and alert the enemy. " Kang Xiaoting immediately stopped his partner. " This group is definitely composed of professional soldiers, mercenaries, or special forces like us; they are certainly not oil drillers. They must have installed counter-surveillance equipment in the camp, and the interior walls of the mobile houses and the books must also have radiation shielding layers. The detection devices we brought will be of no use. Don't worry, it won't be long before we find out what is hidden inside the houses.

"I don't know," Kang Xiaoting shook his head and glanced at his partner beside him. "Xiao Su, did you participate in the secret operation in Iraq three years ago?"

In the thicket where the lion pride rests during the day, two shadowy figures emerged from the ground, only to vanish again into the darkness. Eight hundred meters away, workers were having dinner, completely unaware of this subtle change.

In the evening, the pride of lions rose from the bushes and slowly made their way towards the grassland to the north. Two adult male lions occasionally looked back, their eyes fixed on the intruders who were about to complete their final task for the day. The males were reluctant to give up the prey at their mouths, yet felt helpless. The lionesses, however, showed little interest in those bipedal creatures, likely considering them too weak, lacking in flavor, and insufficient to satisfy the hunger of all the lions. Perhaps in a few hours, they would hunt down a wildebeest or a buffalo on the vast northern grassland, providing enough nourishment for all family members, especially the growing cubs who required a substantial amount of food.

All lighting equipment on the construction site is turned on

At the construction site, a Caucasian man whistled and gestured to the armed personnel around him. More than ten armed personnel immediately jumped into two off-road vehicles and drove towards the construction site gate

The young man from Iraq shook his head, his expression a mix of embarrassment and envy

As he instructed the armed personnel around him to attach the mobile house to the trailer, one of the armed personnel ran up to him, whispered something, and then glanced towards the bushes where Kang Xiaoting and Su Mingjin were located.

Su Mingjin quickly checked the MG4 light machine gun he was carrying, then took out his notebook to memorize the distance data of various landmark reference points on the construction site. This data had been measured using a laser rangefinder during the night when the site was attacked by a pack of hyenas. During combat, he did not need to measure the distance to each target individually with the rangefinder; instead, he utilized shooting reference points, combined with wind speed and other data, to swiftly provide the shooter, Kang Xiaoting, with the shooting parameters for the targets. This data had been measured using a laser rangefinder during the night when the site was attacked by a pack of hyenas. During combat, he did not need to measure the distance to each target individually with the rangefinder; instead, he utilized shooting reference points, combined with wind speed and other data, to swiftly provide the shooter, Kang Xiaoting, with the shooting parameters for the targets.

What are they looking for

Su Mingjin took out a special miniature communication radio from his backpack and pointed the radio's curved antenna towards the night sky above. As the radio powered on, a set of invisible and inaudible yet profoundly significant mixed-frequency electromagnetic wave signals surged into the night sky, heading towards a geostationary communication satellite located 36,000 kilometers above the Earth. Subsequently, these signals reached a military base over 10,000 kilometers away in a flash through another geostationary communication satellite.

As the white man typed the password on the keyboard, the door of the mobile house popped open, revealing a narrow gap. Su Mingjin aimed the front end of the instrument at the mobile house, and a distinctly raised wave immediately appeared on the small screen at the back end of the instrument. As the door opened wider, the wave on the screen became increasingly steep, ultimately breaking through the red line in the middle of the screen

As soon as Kang Xiaoting's voice fell, a beam of light descended upon the bushes, and the two immediately ducked their heads.

In the thicket, two figures began to converse in low voices. They were not ordinary individuals, but special forces soldiers possessing exceptional skills, truly the kings among soldiers

The radiation characteristics are fully consistent, confirming the nature of the target