At this moment, Xu Lin resembled a panther concealed in the darkness, hiding quietly behind a dead tree. His body pressed tightly against the trunk, the rough bark digging into his back, but this did not affect his focus in the slightest. His eyes were fixed ahead, while his mind secretly calculated the time. Every second that ticked away sounded like a drumbeat in his heart. He knew full well that he had to wait until his comrades were nearly all hidden before he could make a move; this was a crucial matter of life and death.
In the midst of this wait, his thoughts drifted away uncontrollably. Bits and pieces of his encounters with every member of the Special Operations Team surfaced in his mind, flashing before his eyes like slides in a projector. The awkwardness and curiosity of their initial meeting, the sweat and grit during training, the trust and cooperation in battle—every single moment was like a brilliant star embedded in the long river of his memories. Suddenly, however, he seemed to snap out of a dream, a flash of alertness crossing his eyes. He sensed danger. Slipping into reminiscence for no reason felt like an ominous sign, like the calm before a storm, causing his heart rate to accelerate involuntarily. Originally, he had absolute confidence in his special constitution; relying on this unique advantage, he was quite certain he could escape from this heavy encirclement. Yet the sudden warning sign made him feel that things would not be as simple as he imagined…
Chapter 86