Chapter 658: 648 Forward! Forward!! Forward!!!

648 Forward! Forward!! Forward!!!

Su Yun really didn't want to talk to that guy.

This idea was originally his genuine thought. Zhao Yunlong, that guy, would still do emergency rescue? Nonsense, let them come, young master, I'm not at ease.

But these words actually came out of Zheng Ren's mouth, and I couldn't refute them.

Really holding back anger, really holding back anger.

Su Yun closed her eyes and muttered a few more sentences. The day's Fatigue surged like a tide, and she quickly fell into Silence.

After a few hours, the rain finally stopped. The sky remained overcast, and Zhao Yunlong promptly noticed after the rain stopped.

He observed the road conditions, seeing the ice on the surface gradually disappear; before dawn the temperature had already warmed, at least no more freezing rain, and he felt somewhat relieved.

Because when the freezing rain stops determines whether the mission can be completed smoothly.

This situation indicated at least 3-4 hours of time saved, he thought.

At 3:40 a. m., Zhao Yunlong shouted to wake everyone, and they continued forward.

After the rain, the mountain road, although the thin ice had completely melted, remained slippery enough that each step felt unstable.

It took nearly two hours for the group to barely traverse this treacherous, slippery stretch.

The sky was already dawning; moving forward, the huge Landslide Dam Lake became increasingly visible and clear.

The greater the Clarity, the more shocking it was.

It seemed as if countless tons of water were trapped mid‑air; if any stone gave way, collapse would inevitably cause another catastrophic disaster.

Zhao Yunlong reported the situation to the newly established command headquarters via GPS and satellite phone, emphasizing the mountain road and the Landslide Dam Lake.

One could say the path we took is a dead end; even with heavy engineering machinery, hoping to clear the road quickly is absolutely wishful thinking.

From a certain perspective, the mission has already been accomplished.

Countless squads pressed on through aftershocks, mudslides, and freezing rain, constantly making trial and error.

Wrong choices are borne by the squads; personnel or time losses, in the overall view, are tolerable. (Note 1)

Even so, although the mission failed, the squads still need to move forward, striving to enter the seismic epicenter area sooner to learn the situation there and rescue survivors.

Bypassing the Landslide Dam Lake, the road ahead seemed incredibly distant.

Usually they say 'seeing a horse run to death chasing a mountain,' but Zheng Ren felt that here, even without a mountain… not to mention a horse, even a mouse couldn't run.

Silently pressing forward, the Fatigue crowd felt as if they had performed Shou Bing all day while wearing Lead clothing; each step was extremely difficult.

Suddenly, Zheng Ren heard a buzzing sound in his ear.

Dragonflies, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, swarmed from the nearby woods.

Zheng Ren frowned, shielded his eyes with his hand, and stopped.

"Ah!" an exclamation.

Sun Zeli was already exhausted to the extreme, moving mechanically, when suddenly she encountered countless dragonflies and was startled. Trying to dodge, she twisted her ankle, lost balance, and fell to the ground.

Fortunately, this place wasn't as narrow as the mountain road; it was more like flat ground, so Sun Zeli only sprained her ankle, not life‑threatening.

Zheng Ren turned back, glanced at Sun Zeli; the System Panel showed a faint red, diagnosing a right ankle sprain.

It's fine, just a minor soft‑tissue contusion.

But she was completely exhausted, and with the ankle sprain she could no longer keep up with the squad.

If it were flat ground, Zheng Ren wouldn't mind carrying her; it's only over a hundred pounds, not a big deal.

But this is a mountain road, wet and slick from recent freezing rain. Zheng Ren carried a military first‑aid kit, water, and dry rations, needing to walk with extreme caution; carrying a person forward? Don't be ridiculous.

Zhao Yunlong shared Zheng Ren's thought; without bothering to comfort Sun Zeli, he did a quick check, found no substantial injury, and had the cameraman stay to guard her.

He told the cameraman that he had already notified the Emergency Rescue Command Headquarters, the exact location had been GPS‑located, and a rescue team would soon arrive to perform the rescue.

Sun Zeli could only accept reality, no matter how stubborn she was.

She had seen all of this along the way; if she acted willfully and kept moving forward, she would be nothing but a burden. Even if she weren't afraid of death, would she really drag the whole squad to die with her?

Tears dripped down; in front of the camera she cried like a child.

Her clothes were soaked by rain, with an olive‑drab jacket thrown on top, looking rather comical. Her normally neat hair was messily stuck to her face, her lips frozen purple, making her look especially disheveled.

But respecting Zhao Yunlong's arrangement, she and the cameraman moved to a slightly higher, flat spot. Watching the squad march ahead without looking back, seeing the water and food they left behind, she still wanted to do something.

She haphazardly fixed her hair, revealing an uncommon sight of noodles facing upward, directly facing the camera.

"This is frontline reporter Sun Zeli reporting for you."

After the earthquake, the Frontline General Command Headquarters formed several Sharp Blade Squads to scout terrain and rescue injured civilians. After a night's trek… my ankle is sprained, I can't keep up with the team, the medical squad from Di Du 912 Hospital is still advancing toward the Seismic Center to conduct rescue.

She habitually smiled in front of the camera, but when she did, tears streamed down even more fiercely.

The cameraman quickly switched the shot; the picture showed over ten people stepping on the gravel at the edge of the Landslide Dam Lake, continuing——

Forward!

Forward!!

Forward!!!

"The road ahead is even more dangerous than the way we came." Sun Zeli cried, saying: "But…"

Just then, a figure in the marching squad slipped, a chunk of mountain rock gave way, he lost his footing and slid straight toward the Landslide Dam Lake.

Before Sun Zeli could even gasp, a hand grabbed his collar and, with one arm, hauled him up.

No one knows how deep the Landslide Dam Lake is below; if one fell in, even a swimmer would have little chance of getting back out.

Sun Zeli knew all of this.

Just a little… really just a little.

The cameraman was also stunned—indeed a military doctor, able to lift a person with one arm, something an ordinary person couldn't do.

"Be careful." Zheng Ren patted Su Yun on the shoulder and said calmly.

Su Yun was also frightened; at the moment her foot slipped, she struggled a bit. She didn't expect the ground to be utterly unsolid, so her force had nothing to push against; she exerted strength, a stone slid away, her footing vanished, and she was completely dazed.

He glanced down, heart still pounding; the lake water was murky, and he didn't know what lay there.

He almost missed the Nobel Prize; Su Yun smiled. At such a moment, he was still thinking about the Nobel Prize—how deep his resentment must be?

This scene was recorded by the cameraman.

Zheng Ren and Su Yun didn't know, Zhao Yunlong also didn't know. They continued forward, detouring around the Landslide Dam Lake, disappearing into the mist.

The path grew harder to walk; looking around, the surroundings were even more chaotic than when they first entered the mountains.

All the terrain had changed; even Zhao Yunlong, from a military map, judged there was a small river here. The river water also changed its course, making a large loop far away and rushing onward.

Feelings of shock, surprise, and bewilderment had long vanished; now everyone was numb, with only one thought in mind—

Forward!

Forward!!

Forward!!!

……

……

Note 1: During the New Year, watching Da Liu's The Wandering Earth, countless teams swarmed to the engine's location. Back then the situation was similar—countless teams, exploring from all directions, seeking a possible passage.