Grumpy Grandpa Ah Zu

The center of the explosion was a deep crater about three meters in diameter. The bottom of the pit was completely empty, with only spiderweb-like cracks spreading out in all directions, a testament to the terrifying power it had just endured.

"No way!" A soldier, refusing to believe it, crouched down and tried to grab a handful of dirt from the bottom of the crater.

"Ah!"

With a short, agonizing scream, he yanked his hand back with lightning speed. His entire palm had instantly turned scalding red, blisters visibly forming.

The soldier grimaced in pain, cradling his hand and drawing in sharp breaths of cold air.

The Luzon officer cast a cold glance at him, his eyes devoid of any sympathy, showing only a trace of annoyance.

"Trash."

He spat out the word, then ordered, "Spread out! Search every inch! Even if it's just a rat, drag it out for me!"

"Yes, sir!"

The men immediately dispersed, fanning out to search the area.

The two men previously responsible for guarding Nguyen Khang Dien excitedly joined the treasure hunt, leaving him unattended.

This was exactly what Nguyen Khang Dien wanted. He pretended to search the ground, but the string of danger in his heart was taut to the extreme. A buzzing ringing in his ears was guiding him toward a specific direction.

He did not dare to look directly at it. Using only the corner of his eye, he traced the source of the terrifying warning that made his flesh crawl.

By the side of the road stood a piece of black char, taller than a man.

It just sat there quietly, rough in appearance, like a giant tree stump left over from a fire. Amidst this devastated scorched earth, it should have been completely inconspicuous.

But in Nguyen Khang Dien's perception, this thing was like a black hole devouring light and life.

A shudder originating from the depths of his soul crept up his spine.

Run!

That was the only word left in his mind.

If he didn't run, he would die!

Just as his body stiffened and cold sweat soaked his back, the officer's icy gaze fell upon him.

The officer didn't move. He merely followed Nguyen Khang Dien's almost imperceptible line of sight, his gaze finally resting on that massive piece of char.

He frowned slightly, a flash of doubt in his eyes.

He didn't approach it himself. Instead, he waved to two soldiers nearby and pointed his chin in that direction.

"Hey, go check out that piece of charcoal."

"Yes, sir!"

The two soldiers took the order and strode over. One of them curled his lip, clearly feeling this was an unnecessary hassle.

"What is this piece of junk."

He muttered, walking up to it. Too lazy to even inspect it properly, he raised his rifle, swung the butt in a wide arc, and smashed it down onto the center of the char with all his might!

Thump!

Thump!

Thump!

He struck it two or three times in a row, but failed to crack open this man-sized piece of char.

"Is it really this hard?" the soldier could not help but say.

At that exact moment, Nguyen Khang Dien abruptly turned and bolted down the mountain.

No!

He couldn't stay here!

That was pure terror!

He had never seen anything so terrifying!

In the instant he turned, out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of the soldier who had swung the rifle butt freezing in place in a bizarre posture.

And on the surface of that man-high char, right where the rifle butt had struck, a tiny crack silently began to spread.

The officer saw Nguyen Khang Dien turn and run. He unhesitatingly pulled out his pistol and was about to pull the trigger, but realizing the gunshot would attract the attention of the American soldiers, he ultimately held his fire.

The silence at the mountain peak was torn apart by a short gasp of shock.

On that massive piece of char, a hole shattered open without any warning.

A hand reached out from the hole.

That hand formed an extreme contrast with the charred black exterior. The skin was snow-white and delicate, without a single visible pore, resembling the finest mutton-fat jade.

In the next instant, this artwork of a hand performed the most savage of actions.

With lightning speed, it clamped around the neck of the soldier who had just been knocking.

"I was having a perfectly good sleep, what the hell are you guys doing!"

A lazy yet extremely displeased male voice echoed from within the char.

The soldier's pupils contracted sharply. Both his hands desperately clawed at the wrist, his feet kicking wildly at the ground as his face turned the color of purplish liver.

However, the hand merely tightened its grip slightly.

Crack!

A crisp sound of snapping bone rang out. The soldier's head tilted to one side at a grotesque angle, and his body instantly went limp.

The dead silence lasted for a mere fraction of a second.

"Open fire! Open fire!"

The rest of the soldiers finally snapped out of their horror, instinctively pulling their triggers.

Dozens of tongues of fire erupted instantly. A dense hail of bullets formed a metal storm, frantically pouring onto that piece of char.

Clang, clang, clang!

The bullets struck the charred shell, actually producing the explosive clatter of clashing metal. A cascade of blinding sparks flew into the air, yet not a single bullet could penetrate.

The hardness of this thing completely defied their comprehension!

No one dared to release the trigger. Everyone sprayed wildly, attempting to suppress the unknown terror with sheer firepower until their magazines ran empty.

The deafening roar of gunfire echoed through the mountain forest, startling countless flocks of birds into the sky.

A moment later, the gunfire gradually ceased.

Halfway up the mountain, the marching American soldiers heard the commotion at the peak. The one leading the group could not help but curse, "Fuck! There really are other people up there. It must be those Luzon monkeys."

Their pace involuntarily quickened.

Right then, Jack's unhurried voice came through everyone's walkie-talkies.

"Don't rush, everyone. It seems our Luzon monkeys have run into a bit of trouble. We can appropriately slow down our pace and enjoy the fireworks."

Jack's voice carried a faint hint of a smile, causing the three highly tense squads to inexplicably relax.

A commander's composure is the best tranquilizer.

"Fox Hunt Squad copies. Do you need us to head to the peak for backup?" the voice of the third squad rang out on the channel.

"No," Jack vetoed. "You guys circle around to the beach on the other side of the island. If they have a boat, secure it."

His tone was as flat as if he were organizing the most ordinary of drills.

But just as he finished speaking, the gunfire at the peak erupted once again!

Only this time, after a few seconds, an explosion echoed, and the gunfire was abruptly silenced.

Even Jack, who had reached halfway up the mountain, looked toward the peak with a solemn expression.

Dozens of seconds ago.

Lin Mo, sleeping inside the char, had genuinely been woken up.

Therefore, his morning temper was terrible.

Ever since he stepped onto the path of cultivation, this kind of hearty, deep sleep had long become an unnecessary luxury, essentially replaced entirely by meditation and cultivation.

After surviving the recent lightning tribulation, his soul and physical body were exhausted to the absolute limit, which was why he was able to sleep so soundly.

Who knew that before he could even finish his nap, he would be woken up by someone banging a gun on him.

As everyone knows, waking up a Homelander who just survived a tribulation and is trying to catch up on sleep usually leads to very severe consequences.

In the exact moment the first wave of the metal storm ceased, before the gunpowder smoke had even cleared, that hand retracted back inside.

The surviving soldiers stared intently at the broken hole, cold sweat soaking through their combat uniforms.