Chapter 228: Departure

【System Prompt: Of the seventeen areas originally controlled by the Iron Hand Group, initial takeover is complete; registration of remaining personnel is in progress.】

Lin Chen sat in his headquarters office chair, his gaze falling on the ice sculpture opposite his desk,

where Lin Xiaoxiao still maintained her terrified expression. Reports from various squads kept coming through the communicator:

the supply warehouse in Chengxi, the survivor camp in the North District, the weapons workshop in the East District—

the Starfire Group's flag had been planted in every one of the Iron Hand Group's territories.

The takeover process was smoother than expected, with most Iron Hand Group members choosing to surrender; only a few die-hards resisted and were cleared on the spot.

Li Wei pushed the door open, holding a thick roster,

and placed it on the desk: "Team Leader Lin, there are 317 remaining personnel from the Iron Hand Group,

103 of whom have murder cases on their hands. I suggest immediate execution; the rest can be broken up and assigned to various squads or arranged to work in the logistics department."

Lin Chen picked up the roster and flipped through a few pages, which were densely packed with each person's name,

hometown, and past experience. His fingers slid over the names,

his eyes showing no fluctuation: "Lock up those with murder cases separately; once the takeover is complete,

hold a public trial. For the rest, arrange for them to repair the city walls and clear the snow; the safe zone's protective shield still needs reinforcement, and there can be no mistakes."

"I have already arranged it,"

Li Wei nodded and handed over a blueprint, "This is the location of the Iron Hand Group's secret weapons depot,

right in an abandoned mine in the South District. There are quite a few heavy weapons and ammunition inside; I have already sent a detachment to guard it, ready for transport at any time."

Lin Chen took the blueprint and looked at it carefully; the mine's location was clearly marked,

with several hidden passages around it. He placed the blueprint on the table: "I will go with you this afternoon; these weapons cannot fall into anyone else's hands and must all be transported back to headquarters."

As the two were talking, the office door was suddenly pushed open, and a team member ran in, flustered,

his face deathly pale: "Team Leader Lin, it's bad! Something happened at the South District stronghold! The detachment we sent there

has completely lost contact!"

Lin Chen and Li Wei looked at each other, their expressions sinking simultaneously. Lin Chen stood up,

grabbing the ice blade hanging on the wall: "How many people lost contact? Did we receive any distress signals?"

"Twenty people," the team member swallowed, "The last message said there was an ambush in the mine,

and then communication was cut off. We sent people to check, and only saw blood all over the ground, but no corpses."

"An ambush?" Li Wei frowned, "The core members of the Iron Hand Group have all been captured; who else has the guts?"

"Whoever it is, anyone who dares to touch the Starfire Group's people must die." Lin Chen's voice was icy. He waved his hand at Li Wei, "Notify the clone soldier detachment to come with us; let's go to the South District mine and take a look."

Ten minutes later, Lin Chen and Li Wei arrived at the abandoned mine in the South District with two hundred clone soldiers.

Some shell casings and blood were scattered on the snow at the mine entrance, but no corpses could be seen,

and even the team members' equipment was gone. Lin Chen crouched down and touched the blood on the ground; it was still warm, clearly indicating the incident hadn't happened long ago.

"Go in and take a look."

Lin Chen stood up and walked into the mine first. It was pitch black inside,

with only the faint light from the headlamps. The walls on both sides of the passage were covered in spiderwebs, and the air was filled with a mixed smell of rust and blood.

After walking about five hundred meters, the passage ahead suddenly became spacious,

forming a huge underground space. In the center of the space, rows of wooden crates were stacked, all filled with weapons and ammunition. But around the crates, there was no one.

"Something's wrong,"

Li Wei whispered, "It's too quiet, terrifyingly quiet."

As soon as he finished speaking, a sound suddenly came from the surrounding walls,

and countless machine gun barrels extended from hidden compartments in the walls, aiming at them.

A hoarse voice echoed in the space: "Lin Chen, Li Wei, you finally came. I've been waiting for you for a long time."

Lin Chen looked up and saw a man in a black trench coat standing on a platform above the space,

wearing a silver mask and holding a sniper rifle.

"Who are you?"

Lin Chen asked coldly.

"Who I am doesn't matter,"

the man laughed, his laughter filled with malice, "What matters is that you will all die here today. The Starfire Group is too strong, strong enough to be an eyesore to others, so it must disappear."

"Fire!"

The man gave the order, and countless bullets shot toward Lin Chen and Li Wei.

The clone soldiers immediately formed a defensive formation, blocking in front of the two.

The bullets hit the clone soldiers, making a clattering sound,

but couldn't penetrate their armor. Lin Chen gripped his ice blade, his figure flashing,

and he rushed toward the platform. Li Wei pulled out his machine gun and fired wildly at the machine gunners in the hidden compartments.

The man on the platform saw Lin Chen rushing over and raised his sniper rifle,

aiming at his chest. Just as he pulled the trigger, Li Wei suddenly lunged over,

blocking in front of Lin Chen. The bullet pierced Li Wei's chest, and fresh blood splashed onto Lin Chen's face.

"Li Wei!"

Lin Chen roared, swinging his ice blade, and a cold light flashed; the man on the platform screamed and fell down.

Lin Chen rushed over and held Li Wei, who had fallen to the ground; blood continued to gush from his chest,

and his eyes were already beginning to lose focus.

"Team Leader Lin..." Li Wei opened his mouth,

wanting to say something, but only spat out a mouthful of blood, his head tilting to the side, his breathing stopping.

Lin Chen's eyes turned blood-red instantly. He put down Li Wei's corpse,

and turned to rush toward the machine gunners in the hidden compartments. Wherever the ice blade passed,

blood splattered, and screams followed one after another. He was like a madman, hacking and killing every enemy that appeared in his sight, his body covered in blood and gore.

Just then, a loud noise suddenly came from the top of the underground space,

and countless stones began to fall. The man's voice sounded again: "Lin Chen, forgot to tell you, this mine is buried with enough explosives.

Now, the countdown to the explosion has begun; go to hell with your Starfire Group."

Lin Chen looked up, and the man had already disappeared from the platform's exit. He wanted to chase after him,

but found the stones at the top falling faster and faster, and the entire underground space shaking violently.

"Retreat!"

Lin Chen roared, turning to grab Li Wei's corpse, but his path was blocked by falling stones.

The roar of the explosion sounded, and the entire mine collapsed. Lin Chen was blown away by the huge shockwave,

hitting the wall heavily, his consciousness beginning to blur. He looked at the falling stones, looked at Li Wei's buried corpse, and his heart was filled with despair.

When the rescue team arrived, the mine had completely collapsed. They dug for three days and three nights, but only dug out some broken weapons and ammunition, failing to find the corpses of Lin Chen and Li Wei.

The two core figures of the Starfire Group had disappeared into the collapsed mine, neither seen alive nor dead.

The Iron Hand Group's territory was still being taken over, and the remaining personnel were still being registered; everything was proceeding as planned. Only, in the headquarters office, Lin Chen's figure was no longer there, and the ice sculpture opposite the desk still stood quietly, ignored by all. ===== CHAPTER 229 =====