"Whoosh!" A bullet struck Luo Zheng's backpack with precision. Almost simultaneously, Luo Zheng saw the female soldier leap up from the ground like a predatory cheetah, catching the thrown gun mid-air. As her body began to fall, an intense killing aura burst forth from her entire being, as dense as if it were tangible. The gun in her hand let out a shocking roar, and the bullet emitted a sharp sonic boom, tearing through the air and vanishing from sight. After landing, the female soldier quickly rolled her body, and two bullets almost followed the path of her rolling back, embedding into the ground. Under Luo Zheng's astonished gaze, she suddenly slapped the ground and exploded upward, leaping five meters away and steadily landing behind a large tree. She curled her body into a ball, minimizing her exposure to the lowest possible level, and remained motionless. "Too strong," Luo Zheng muttered in a daze, watching the concealed female soldier. He had not expected the enemy's shots to be so fast, nor the female soldier's evasions to be even quicker. Such formidable skill—could this be the legendary mysterious and powerful special forces?

The female soldier didn't shoot herself; could she truly be one of their own? Thinking that the female soldier might be a special forces operative from his own country, Luo Zheng's blood boiled with excitement, his panic gradually subsiding, and he regained his usual calm and shrewdness. He continued to hide behind the large tree, motionless, fully aware that this high-level battle was not something he could participate in. To step out would be to court death, and staying hidden was tantamount to waiting for death. With an unknown number of enemies, he had to do something to help the female soldier. Saving her was saving himself.

With this thought in mind, Luo Zheng began to observe his surroundings. There was nothing he could utilize, but he noticed that the machete in his hand was still there. An idea struck him. Looking at the dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves, he estimated the possible hiding positions of the enemies and slowly extended the machete from behind the tree. The blade tilted, reflecting a sliver of sunlight outward.

"Whoosh!" A gunshot sounded.

Luo Zheng felt a powerful force hit him, causing him to lose his grip on the machete, which flew far away and landed on the ground, its blade broken into two pieces.

"Whoosh!" Another gunshot came from a nearby location.

Luo Zheng was taken aback. Turning his head, he saw that it was the female soldier who had fired. Then, he heard a faint grunt, clearly someone had been hit. He couldn't help but feel joyous, gaining a clear understanding of the female soldier's terrifying marksmanship, and he felt that his own plan was feasible, boosting his confidence.

"Whoosh—Boom!"

A gunshot rang out, shaking the great tree and sending splinters flying. Luo Zheng felt a slight pain in his arm, blood streaming down, and he was completely stunned. Suddenly, he heard a female voice shouting to get down, and instinctively he flopped to the ground. Only then did he realize that the large tree he was hiding behind had been shot through, forming a large hole. Fortunately, the bullet had changed trajectory after entering the tree, only grazing his skin. Realizing he had narrowly escaped death, Luo Zheng was thoroughly enraged, a fierce anger surging within him—he was determined to fight back, regardless of the cost. As he was about to counterattack, Luo Zheng heard gunshots not far away. Without looking, he knew it was the female soldier taking advantage of the situation to fight back. He didn't care about anything else, pushed off the ground with force, let out a wild cry, and charged forward, intending to use himself as bait to draw the enemy's fire and create an opportunity for the female soldier. Luo Zheng had full confidence in the female soldier's marksmanship. If it came to it, he would rather die a glorious death than a suffocating one. 'Whoosh whoosh whoosh, get down!'

The sound of three consecutive gunshots mixed with an angry roar echoed in Luo Zheng's ears. Having already rushed several meters away, Luo Zheng couldn't stop his momentum. Unaware of an exposed tree root beneath his feet, he lost his balance, tripped, and tumbled far away.

Just as he fell, Luo Zheng felt a bullet whizzing past his scalp, the scorching heat nearly suffocating. Rolling onto the ground, Luo Zheng frantically hid behind a nearby tree, sitting down with his back against it. He touched his head and a sense of surviving a calamity surged within him. Perhaps having experienced death many times, his heart had gone numb, and Luo Zheng didn't feel it was so terrifying anymore. Taking a deep breath to calm his emotions, he saw the dappled sunlight on the ground as if butterflies were dancing, and couldn't help but look up at the sky, muttering to himself: 'Could it be the spirits of my brothers watching over me from above?'

'Swoosh swoosh!' Two more sharp bullet sounds erupted. A female voice shouted, 'Are you dead?'

Luo Zheng suddenly remembered that it was the same voice that had warned him to duck earlier, using the familiar Mandarin. He turned his head to see the female soldier, who had somehow arrived behind another large tree about five or six meters away. She was hiding her body under the raised roots of the huge tree, her gun pointed forward.

'Not dead, one of our own?' Luo Zheng responded, questioning in return.

'Retreat first,' the female soldier ordered coldly, without answering Luo Zheng's question.

'Uh?'

Luo Zheng looked at the female soldier in surprise when suddenly a sharp whistle came from the direction of the enemy. He didn't know what it meant, but seeing the female soldier's face as stern as frost, he guessed it wasn't good news. Feeling that the female soldier was completely trustworthy, and since she called for a retreat, there must be a reason for it, he didn't hesitate to sprint back in the direction he came from, picking up his marching bag and machete along the way. After running out more than ten meters in one breath, no worrying sound of a stealthy gunshot arose. Luo Zheng didn't know what had happened, but he noticed that the female soldier had not retreated. Feeling that it was unmanly for him, a big man, to leave a woman behind and run first, he was about to turn back when he heard a girl shout loudly: 'Run.'

Luo Zheng felt the sound was nearby and was startled. He turned his head to see that the female soldier had somehow rushed over, hiding behind a large tree about three to five meters away diagonally opposite him. She was staring at him coldly, her face filled with murderous intent. Luo Zheng felt that this female soldier, who appeared like a ghost, was even stronger than he had anticipated. Without any further ado, he increased his speed and ran wildly.

In a battle between masters, staying behind would only be a burden. At this moment, Luo Zheng realized how useless he was. Compared to the female soldier, there was a world of difference, a chasm of ten thousand miles. As for those enemies, they were evenly matched with the female soldier, which was no simple feat, and they were not someone he could compare himself to.

After running a long distance in one breath, he could no longer hear gunshots behind him. Luo Zheng slowly came to a stop and looked around, but he saw no sign of the female soldier. He couldn't help but worry. With a grit of his teeth, he ran back. Leaving a woman behind to save his own skin was something Luo Zheng could not do, especially since the enemies ahead might be the killers of his comrades.

After walking back about two hundred meters, all around was silent except for the rustling of leaves in the wind. He saw no suspicious figures, as if nothing had happened just a moment ago. Luo Zheng was alarmed and was pondering what to do when an angry voice sounded from not far away, 'Why did you come back? Are you seeking death? Run!'