Chapter 416: The Traitor Exposed |
After the teleportation incident, everyone in the command room at the rear was utterly shocked.
Li Meng was the first to rush in front of the Suroma senator, demanding sharply, "Is Suroma colluding with the Fire Thief Worship Cult, deliberately setting a trap to harm the other teams?"
The senator was also dumbfounded.
He was aware that the Suroma team's teleportation destination was different from the other teams'.
But the Fire Thief Worship Cult knowing the Action Team's teleportation coordinates in advance and setting a trap was something he had never anticipated.
In his plan, after the teleportation was complete, the leaders of the other teams would inevitably question why the Suroma team hadn't teleported to the same location as the main force. He had intended to brush it off with the excuse that "there might have been an error."
After all, it wouldn't have a major impact. As long as Adam and the others, who teleported inside the cathedral, found the Pope first and captured him, it wouldn't fundamentally affect the overall outcome of this operation.
But he never expected the Fire Thief Worship Cult to be prepared in advance, which made the Suroma team, with their different teleportation point, the most suspicious party.
"Yes! What exactly is going on?!"
It wasn't just Li Meng; the leaders of the other teams also began to challenge the senator.
Facing the collective anger, the senator defended himself, saying, "Everyone, please calm down! Suroma has a blood feud with the Fire Thief Worship Cult. How could we possibly collude with them? If that were truly the case, I should have ordered your arrest right now!"
Upon hearing this, Li Meng and the other leaders frowned. This statement wasn't without reason.
If Suroma truly harbored malicious intent, besides harming the Action Team, they certainly wouldn't have spared these leaders either.
"Then how do you explain why your Suroma Action Team teleported to a different location than the other teams?" Li Meng pressed, not letting go of the key point.
"This... there might have been some error."
"An error? Don't be ridiculous!"
The senator guiltily avoided Li Meng's sharp gaze.
Li Meng forcefully suppressed his anger, knowing that the overall situation had to take priority now.
"Right now, the other teams have been ambushed, and the enemy seems to have jammed communications, making contact impossible. If Suroma has nothing to hide, you should immediately contact Adam and the others right now and have them go support the other teams!"
"Mr. Li is right! The Suroma team wasn't teleported into the ambush zone; they can break the encirclement for the other teams from the outside!"
The senator helplessly took off his headset and handed it to Li Meng. "I want to do that too, everyone, but I can't reach Adam either! Communications inside the cathedral are also jammed. If you don't believe me, listen for yourself."
Li Meng took the headset and listened; it was all busy tones.
"Crack!"
He threw the headset to the ground and said in a threatening tone, "Then use a Mind Power item like a [Communication Scroll] that ignores jamming interference to contact them! I can tell you responsibly, if our team suffers casualties or losses, the responsibility lies entirely with Suroma. Beixing will pursue this to the end!"
The Xisiya team leader also immediately stated their position, "Xisiya will stand on the same side as Beixing!"
Since Yelanka came to power, cooperation between the two nations had increased significantly. Moreover, this incident clearly had issues, both overt and covert. If important members from both sides suffered casualties, they would inevitably jointly hold Suroma accountable.
The senator's hands trembled slightly, his heart filled with panic. He couldn't bear the responsibility of causing a rift with nations like Beixing and Xisiya. After some thought, he decided to pass the decision-making authority to his superiors.
"This... everyone, please remain calm. I will contact His Majesty immediately to request..."
Just as he finished speaking, a communication voice came through Li Meng's headset.
"Section Chief Li, can you hear me?"
"Guan Tong!" Li Meng was overjoyed to hear the voice. He pressed the headset and said, "Did you destroy the jamming equipment? What's the situation over there?"
"The Fire Thief Worship Cult knew our teleportation time and location and set an ambush in advance. However, we successfully broke through and eliminated everyone involved. Chen Na detected that the Suroma team members teleported inside the cathedral. We suspect this matter might be related to them."
Not only did Li Meng receive the communication, but the leaders of the other teams also regained contact with their respective team captains, urgently asking about the situation.
"This matter is highly problematic," Li Meng said quickly. "I initially thought Suroma had betrayed you all, but after your incident, our freedom as leaders hasn't been restricted."
"So, Suroma isn't colluding with the Fire Thief Worship Cult?" Guan Tong asked.
"Not necessarily, we can't draw a conclusion yet. Regardless, the fact that they deliberately teleported to a different location is undeniable! By the way, how is the team? Any casualties?"
"None for the Beixing team. The Xisiya team has one injured. The Six-Nation team has one dead and one seriously injured."
Hearing that his team had no casualties, Li Meng's hanging heart finally settled.
He had been extremely anxious earlier, fearing that this ambush by the Fire Thief Worship Cult would cause casualties for the Beixing team.
After all, every member of the team had immense potential. If they suffered losses due to an intelligence leak, not only him, but the Countermeasures Research Office and even the Beixing authorities would find it unacceptable.
"Right now, I don't plan to enter the cathedral," Guan Tong's voice continued. "I'm going to blow up this building from the outside and force anyone who can survive to come out."
Hearing this, Li Meng's heart skipped a beat. He didn't doubt Guan Tong's capability, but the previously formulated combat plan was to infiltrate the cathedral. Otherwise, for blowing up the building from the outside, long-range missiles would have been more convenient.
He must be angry because of this ambush...
Although Li Meng couldn't detect intense emotion from Guan Tong's voice, the latter's actions clearly indicated he no longer considered the previously formulated combat plan.
This was undoubtedly a sign of anger—according to Countermeasures Research Office records, this was completely consistent with Guan Tong's behavioral pattern from long ago when he angrily blew up the Andai State Royal Palace.
Li Meng reminded him, "The Suroma team is also inside the cathedral."
"Since they didn't come out to help us and didn't care about our lives or deaths, why should I care about theirs?"
"...Then proceed according to your plan. But you must act swiftly and withdraw as soon as possible. According to satellite surveillance, all the cultists in Liruo'an City are heading your way now. Enough ants can kill an elephant; don't forget your Action Team only has enough personnel for an assassination mission."
Li Meng understood Guan Tong. He knew this guy usually seemed easygoing, but his personality was actually extremely stubborn.
If you wanted him to change his mind, it was best to intervene before he made a decision. Otherwise, once he decided, nothing anyone said would matter.
At the scene, after ending the communication with Li Meng, Guan Tong raised the Silver Hunt in his hand, aimed at the building in front of him, and expressionlessly pulled the trigger.
"Boom boom boom boom boom boom...!"
He had previously stored dozens of Missile No. 6 rounds and didn't hold back this time, firing over a dozen right from the start.
Facing the immense power of the missiles, this ancient-era building couldn't withstand it.
When the Republic of Fahe constructed it, mature steel reinforcement bar technology wasn't available, so its defensive capabilities weren't strong. As the missiles struck, large sections of bricks and tiles shattered and flew apart. The entire building swayed precariously, emitting a creaking sound akin to a scream.
This scene left the other Action Team members dumbfounded. They hadn't expected Guan Tong to possess such a powerful weapon.
This kind of weapon, which could be carried on one's person, fired continuously, and had power comparable to ordinary missiles, would undoubtedly rank as a "divine artifact" in any Ascendant's mind.
Meanwhile, inside the cathedral, Adam and his three teammates, who had been operating with extreme efficiency, had fought their way to the fifth floor, eliminating over a hundred cultists blocking their path. Just as they were about to reach the sixth floor where the Pope was located, the entire building suddenly shook violently, with flames bursting forth continuously.
Looking at a window destroyed by an explosion, Amanda exclaimed, "Someone outside is bombing the building with thermal weapons!"
Moon Key looked up at the torn ceiling. "The building is about to collapse."
Adam raised his hands slightly, and an invisible force spread outwards with him as the core. "Everyone, stay close to me. I'll protect you with a force field."
Rumble rumble rumble!
Unable to withstand the relentless bombardment from outside, the building began to collapse and crumble.
Some cultists still inside cursed loudly, others desperately tried to save themselves, but the collapse came too quickly and urgently. Many were unprepared and were crushed or killed.
Adam manipulated the invisible force field to deflect all the bricks, tiles, wood, and stones crashing towards them. Simultaneously, he looked upwards, searching for the target amidst the collapse.
They were currently on the fifth floor; above them was the sixth floor. If the Pope was up there, he might fall down as the floor collapsed.
However, to his disappointment, no one fell from above. Not a single person.
The dust settled.
Outside, Guan Tong and the others looked at the collapsed building. Some couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions.
Before the Doomsday Rules, this was at least a historical architectural site. Now, it was just destroyed.
Seeing the heavy atmosphere, Yang Ran tried to lighten the mood a bit, peering into the dusty ruins. "By the way, wasn't this building the National Library of Fahe before? Why aren't there any books?"
"The books were all gathered and burned by the Fire Thief Worship Cult," the Luruiguo Ascendant said.
"What?"
"You didn't know?" the Luruiguo Ascendant explained. "It happened a long time ago. The Fire Thief Worship Cult believed that books other than 'The Word of God' were unnecessary and had long ago burned all the books in the national library to ashes... Oh, 'The Word of God' is..."
"I do know about 'The Word of God'," Yang Ran said. "These cultists compiled every Doomsday Rule issued by the Fire Thief into a booklet, naming it 'The Word of God' as a prayer book... But there was no need to burn all the other books, right? That's insane!"
"That's why they're called cultists."
At this moment, the dust gradually dispersed, and figures began to emerge.
Some cultists in black robes crawled out from the ruins, but the Action Team members didn't pay them much attention. Their gazes quickly focused on one spot.
The Suroma team's Adam and his teammates were standing on a pile of rubble and broken walls.
The moment their eyes met, fury ignited in the hearts of everyone in the Joint Action Team.
The captain of the Xisiya team stepped forward and pointed at Adam, shouting accusingly, "Adam! Did your Suroma team collude with the cultists and betray the rest of us?!"
Hearing the accusation, Adam frowned. "What are you saying? Wait, did you destroy the cathedral? Why would you..."
"Stop pretending! If you aren't traitors, why was your teleportation location different from ours? Why were we ambushed while you were fine?"
"You were ambushed?"
Adam's expression changed. Suddenly, Amanda's exclamation came from behind him.
"Adam, watch out!"
Zzzzzap—!
An immensely powerful, extremely fast crimson-white lightning bolt suddenly shot from behind, directly aiming for the back of Adam's head.
This scene took everyone present by surprise; almost no one could react in time.
Although Adam activated his force field defense in time, it was still too late.
Hearing the sound of someone falling, his heart sank. He turned to look and saw a large hole blasted through Amanda's chest, her worried expression frozen on her face.
"Amanda!"
"The traitor, the traitor is that Peter?!"
"Grab him now!!!"