The corridor in the deepest part of the military prison echoed with uniform metallic footsteps.

A heavily armed squad of soldiers stopped in front of Gandalf's cell, and the heavy alloy door was slowly pushed open with a harsh scraping sound.

Leading them was a middle-aged man with a ferocious scar on his face.

His gaze was icy, devoid of a shred of emotion.

"Gandalf, come with us."

On the bed, Zhou Huai's consciousness quickly occupied the body of this Avatar.

He sneered in his heart.

Marshal Zhao had just left, and already someone couldn't wait to make a move against him.

They really couldn't wait even a moment.

Zhou Huai manipulated Gandalf, sitting up from the bed and calmly looking at the scarred face leading them.

"Where are you planning to take me?"

The scarred man coldly spat out a few words: "Don't ask too much, you'll know when you get there."

He took a step forward, his voice carrying undisguised warning.

"I warn you not to make any petty moves, otherwise we have reason to execute you on the spot!"

Zhou Huai said no more.

Escorted by several soldiers, he walked out of this icy prison and got into a fully enclosed military heavy truck.

The truck door closed, cutting off the last shred of light from the outside.

The sky gradually darkened, and the night sky like a huge black gauze slowly enveloped the imperial capital.

This military vehicle did not stay in the city, but instead drove all the way out, entering the uninhabited wilderness.

Inside the carriage, the atmosphere was suffocatingly oppressive.

Zhou Huai manipulated Gandalf, his gaze calmly sweeping across the dozen or so soldiers around him.

Everyone's hand rested on their weapon, their eyes icy and killing intent fully exposed.

He suddenly spoke, breaking the dead silence.

"Are you guys planning to kill me?"

The scarred man let out a cold snort.

"You colluded with the enemy country, killed Principal Lin Zhu, and caused the deaths of so many Prodigies of Great Xia."

"Did you really think the Marshal would let you off so easily?"

A soldier beside him took over the conversation, his tone filled with abhorrence.

"So what if you are an SS-Rank Professional? A sinner like you should be hacked to pieces!"

Hearing this, Zhou Huai actually chuckled in a low voice.

"You sure talk with such righteous indignation."

He turned his head, his gaze piercing like a sharp sword toward the scarred middle-aged man, as if trying to see right through the other's soul.

"Your name is Chi Chong, right?"

Chi Chong's pupils suddenly shrank.

Zhou Huai didn't give him a chance to react and continued.

"A trusted confidant of the Liu Family, it was the eldest son of the Liu Family, Liu Qizhi, who promoted you from a nobody straight to the position of corps commander of the Central 36th Group Army."

"Over the years, how many dirty deeds have you done behind the scenes for the Liu Family? Why are you suddenly playing the role of a patriotic middle-aged man now?"

Chi Chong's face instantly turned pale, and fine cold sweat oozed from his forehead.

"You... how do you know?"

His voice became hoarse due to extreme shock.

Zhou Huai ignored his loss of composure, his voice suddenly rising like rolling thunder.

"Saying I should be hacked to pieces? I think your masters, the Liu Family, are the ones who should be hacked to pieces!"

"On the surface, they are conservatives, shouting about maintaining peace with Sakura Country."

"Behind the scenes, how many resources have they secretly transported to Sakura Country!"

"They are the true traitors who collude with the enemy!"

This intelligence was pieced together bit by bit by Zhou Huai over the past few days through Caesar's Information Bug.

Most of the magic crystals that the Zhou Family dug out from the Secret Realm back then were transferred to Sakura Country by the Liu Family through secret channels.

Even Liu Yuru and her precious son had long been secretly sent into the territory of Sakura Country.

Their intentions were obvious.

They were preparing to have the entire clan defect to the enemy and leave a backup plan for themselves.

The killing intent in Chi Chong's eyes climbed to its peak at this moment.

He no longer disguised himself, roaring ferociously,

"Don't listen to his nonsense! Do it!"

In an instant, within the cramped space of the carriage, several soldiers suddenly erupted simultaneously!

Cold light flashed in their hands, and various weapons carrying deadly whistles greeted Gandalf's vital points from all directions!

However, the moment those weapons were about to touch Gandalf's body,

the interior of the entire military vehicle was, without warning, completely enveloped in extreme darkness.

There were no screams, no struggles.

Only dead silence.

Screech—!!!

On the wilderness highway, the military heavy truck emitted a violent and harsh screech of brakes.

Afterward, it abruptly stopped on the roadside, like a dead object, making not the slightest sound anymore.

The engine stalled, and the headlights went out.

Long after, the inside of the car remained as calm as before, and not a single person was seen getting out.

At that very moment, dozens of dark figures took advantage of the deep night, emerging like ghosts from the shadows of the wilderness, silently surrounding this stationary military truck.

The leading captain was a man with eyes as sharp as an eagle.

He looked at the dead silent truck, his brow tightly furrowed, and an ominous premonition rose in his heart.

In the plan, after Chi Chong and his men resolved the target, they would send a signal.

But now, there was still no movement inside the car.

He no longer hesitated, quickly making a tactical gesture.

Within the team, a few Classer wearing mage robes immediately understood, pulling out their staffs and starting to chant spells.

The magical elements in the air began to fluctuate violently, and several destructive spells were about to take shape.

They were actually prepared to blast this military truck along with everyone inside it into pieces!

However, right at this moment,

a faint, barely audible "buzzing" sound quietly rang in their ears.

An inconspicuous batch of flying bugs had quietly arrived beside them at some unknown time.

Under the cover of night, these Classer who were fully focused on casting spells did not notice a thing.

Just at the moment when those mages' skills were about to be released!

These flying bugs, without any warning, began to self-destruct!

Boom—!!!

The first explosion suddenly rang right in the ear of a mage!

Following closely was the second, the third, and countless more!

The dense explosions sounded instantly among the crowd like a lit prelude to death!

"Ah—!!!"

The shrill screams tore through the silence of the wilderness.

This sudden attack left no one present any time to prepare!

Those frail HP mages and assassin-class Classer didn't even have time to let out a single scream before they were torn into pieces in the first wave of explosions!

The healer-class Professional in the team had just raised their staff and hadn't even had time to chant a single healing syllable when both arms were blown off by the violent energy, falling to the ground screaming and wailing in pain.

Several thick-skinned tank-class Classer roared as they activated defensive skills, attempting to withstand this wave of attacks.

But how could the self-destruction power, which was enough to blow a Hell-level BOSS to death, be something they could resist?

The sturdy shields shattered instantly as if made of paper.

Their bodies were also completely swallowed by the endless explosion flames in the next second.

The leading captain saw that the situation was bad, his face filled with shock and fear.

Without even thinking, he turned around and prepared to run, shouting at the top of his lungs,

"Retreat! Retreat!"

As a result, the moment he turned his head, his pupils suddenly shrank to the size of needle tips.

Yet another massive swarm of dark flying bugs, like life-claiming grim reapers, had already flown right in front of him.

Even denser explosions rang out with a boom.

This time, there were no more screams.

Flames soared into the sky, illuminating this wilderness as bright as day.

After the explosions, only dozens of charred deep pits remained in place, along with the nauseating stench of burnt flesh lingering in the air.

Not a single person survived.

At this time, the rear door of the enclosed military vehicle that had remained stationary all along was slowly opened.

Zhou Huai manipulated Gandalf and walked down from the vehicle.

He was covered in blood, but not a single drop was his own.

Inside the carriage, Chi Chong and his subordinates died miserably, their faces permanently frozen with the terror and astonishment of their final moments.

Zhou Huai glanced at the messy and tragic scene outside the car, clicking his tongue a couple of times with a sense of release.

"To deal with Gandalf, they only sent this little bit of troops? Isn't that looking down too much on an SS-Rank Professional?"

He raised his head, looking at the bright and clear moon in the night sky.

In his eyes, however, was a piercing chill.

"Since you have already made your move, next, it's my turn to fight back."