Chapter 398

Chapter 398: The Killing Game

Lin Mo clearly did not believe Nong Lan’s words. He pulled out his phone in front of the two and made an inquiry to the "Night" Intelligence Group using a secret number.

After a regional inquiry, fifteen minutes later, Lin Mo received a reply. Just as Nong Lan said, it was indeed a coincidence that this pair of men and women worked for China’s intelligence department. Although they were coerced, they posed no real threat.

The three of them meeting was purely a coincidence.

If anyone was to blame, it would be the ridiculous ticketing system of the railway department.

These two had become bait for the Chinese intelligence department to dig for information about the "Eden" intelligence agency’s covert operations in China, and they had implanted monitoring devices in their bodies, integrated with bombs. If they dared to disobey, the bombs inside them could blow them to pieces.

"You should believe us now, right?"

Nong Lan said lightly, trembling slightly. When she saw Lin Mo’s face soften after he hung up, she knew that the call must have come from the Chinese intelligence department explaining the situation to him.

"Alright, I will temporarily trust you."

Lin Mo used the word "temporarily" to define his relationship with them, indicating that he did not fully trust the two.

Only dead enemies are the best enemies. As for turncoats, they can betray one thing today and another tomorrow. Even with special devices to restrain them, human ingenuity cannot be underestimated.

Human wisdom is the scariest thing in the world.

Even Bayu, who was known for his boldness and meticulousness in the "Chocolate" operations unit of "Eden" in Thailand, dared not breathe, his gaze firmly fixed on the young man in front of him.

He understood very well how frightening this young pilot was. It wasn’t just that “Eden” had labeled him a fighter ace; on the ground, he was probably a ground combat ace as well.

The legend that one could punch a cow to death sounded far-fetched, but having witnessed it firsthand, Bayu completely overturned that notion.

The train to Xi’an had started moving, gaining speed. The rhythmic sound of the wheels clacking over the gaps in the tracks resonated from outside the carriage.

“Drinks, snacks, hot water…”

Once the train started moving, the crew pushed a long cart through the carriages selling items. Things that might cost one yuan outside the station could sell for two or even three yuan on the train.

And that was nothing; in the dining carriage, a hundred yuan per person wouldn’t even guarantee a full meal.

The scent of durian filled the air of Guangzhou Train Station. The rich, sweet, and pungent smell of durian wafted throughout the station. Even though the train’s air conditioning worked hard, the unique aroma of durian lightly lingered in the carriage.

After the train took off, the sleeper compartment quickly fell silent. Passengers, having stowed their luggage, busied themselves with various ways to pass the time during their journey.

Newspapers, Walkmans, laptops, phones, and books were pulled out alongside packed snacks and piled on the small table in the sleeper compartment or the small shelf by the window in the aisle.

Long-distance travelers often stock up on food in advance. Although food was available on the train, the options were limited. Having their own supplies was both cost-effective and satisfying to personal tastes.

In the sleeper compartment with six beds, only Lin Mo and the others occupied it. After the train started moving, no one else entered, perhaps because it was the crew’s reserved space, waiting to sell seats at high prices to travelers boarding midway.

The atmosphere in the sleeper compartment turned tense. Since seeing Lin Mo, Bayu sat in the lower bunk at the entrance, staring at him motionless, clearly wary of the fearsome figure traveling with him. He wished he could jump off the train and escape far away.

Unbothered by the situation, Lin Mo leaned against the window, staring blankly at the scenery outside, lost in thought.

Meanwhile, Nong Lan, the only woman, filled the small table by the window with various snacks and fruits. She casually peeled a mango and happily munched on it. Now that they were like parallel lines, she didn’t feel the need to strike up a conversation; she treated him like a stranger and ignored him.

“Bayu, aren’t you eating?” Nong Lan asked as she offered a banana to the silent Bayu sitting next to her.

“No, thanks!” Bayu shook his head, having no appetite at all.

Perhaps it was either her carefree nature or a forgotten fear, but Nong Lan instead greeted her former target, Lin Mo, “Do you want some? I have plenty here.”

The table was filled with fresh fruits, dried fruits, and a lot of nuts. Nong Lan also packed many of her favorite snacks; even on the run, she refused to shortchange herself.

“Sure!”

Lin Mo casually picked up a walnut, squeezed it in his hand, and with a crack, the hard shell shattered into evenly sized fragments, revealing the walnut meat inside.

Bayu, watching Lin Mo, suddenly widened his eyes and involuntarily shivered. It felt as if the sharp sound had crushed not the walnut but his own bones.

The last line of defense inside him was unexpectedly breached. A complex expression appeared on his face, and he sighed heavily, no longer staring intensely at Lin Mo.

Fear!

What good is it?

"That’s amazing!" Nong Lan exclaimed, her eyes wide with awe. She exaggerated her praise, eager to flatter him.

Having met briefly before, she thought it wise to build a good relationship with such a powerful figure. It might benefit her in the future.

Compared to Bayu’s simple fear, Nong Lan had a more strategic mindset regarding Lin Mo, leading to their contrasting attitudes.

“Boxed meal! Boxed meal! Two meat and one vegetable, three meat and two vegetable.”

Just past eleven o’clock, the sounds of the crew selling food echoed through the carriage.

"I’ll have one with two meat and one vegetable."

"Okay, that will be ten yuan."

"I’ll take two with three meat and two vegetables."

"One is twenty, so that’s forty in total. You paid fifty, so here’s ten back."

Although the passengers had brought their own snacks and some food, the temptation of warm meals was irresistible, especially for those with children who couldn’t rely on snacks alone to fill up, so many began to dig into their wallets.

The crew member pushing the boxed meal cart called out as they walked from one end of the carriage to the other.

“Do you want boxed meals? I’m getting a bit hungry,” Lin Mo heard the call from outside. The snacks Nong Lan brought weren’t enough for him, so he stood up, shaking off the fruit shells stuck to his clothes, and said, "Are you hungry? My treat!"

"I want one! I’ll have one!" When someone offers to treat, Nong Lan was more than happy to accept a free meal.

"What about you?" Lin Mo turned his gaze toward Bayu, who seemed a bit more at ease, no longer so tense and guarded.

Bayu didn’t respond, but Lin Mo took it as a sign of acquiescence and continued, "You get one, he gets one, I want to eat ten, so that makes twelve in total."

"Ten? My goodness!" Nong Lan thought she must have misheard. What kind of appetite required ten meals to satisfy? Surely, this wasn’t a joke.

Could it be that he planned to buy enough food to last three days? China couldn’t be in such dire straits, could it?

"I want three meat and two vegetable, twelve meals!" Lin Mo shouted toward the outside while pulling out his wallet.

To their surprise, whether the crew had misheard or other passengers had already placed their orders, the meal cart and crew didn’t stop at the sleeper compartment but instead pushed on through.

“Crew member! Crew member! I want a boxed meal! I’ll give you two hundred fifty yuan and just need ten back.”

Lin Mo counted out two hundred-yuan bills and a fifty-yuan bill and dashed after them.

As Lin Mo rushed out of the sleeper compartment, a young couple that looked like a husband and wife followed him, seemingly also eager to catch the meal cart.

As the woman passed the sleeper compartment doorway, she turned her round, apple-like face toward Nong Lan and Bayu, a strange smile flickering at the corner of her mouth.

“…”

What was that expression? A smile that was not a smile, completely not the demeanor of a normal person. Bayu and Nong Lan exchanged alarmed glances, both sensing something was off.

She was not an ordinary passenger. Almost simultaneously, they both noticed a glint of cold light flashing between her fingers as they hung by her side.

They could vaguely see a blade, as thick as a chopstick, but incredibly sharp.

The “Lan Ye Ci,” a unique assassination weapon, was about 10 centimeters long, only 1 millimeter thick, and as thick as a chopstick. It had a double-sided edge and was extremely sharp, crafted from high-strength tungsten alloy steel or special nano-ceramics. It had strong piercing capability and was typically used for stealthy attacks by experienced assassins, often inserted into the spinal joints to cause paralysis or death. A more brutal approach could directly pierce the heart from between the ribs. Even a stab to the kidneys could render someone unable to speak from the pain.

This was an assassination weapon requiring special skills. A masterful user could pierce even an inch-thick steel plate with one thrust.

Whether for killing or immobilizing someone, it was a top-tier weapon.

As members of an intelligence agency, both Nong Lan and Bayu had encountered this type of weapon before, so they recognized it immediately.

“‘Blackwater’…”

Bayu and Nong Lan blurted out in unison. They both recalled the warning from the contact they had met at Guangzhou Train Station, mentioning an organization called "Blackwater" planning to target a certain pilot.

What was Blackwater?

Connecting this with past intelligence they received in Thailand made it clear—this was the American Blackwater.

A colossal figure in the international mercenary world, an entity that no force dared to underestimate, also a strategic partner of the “Eden” intelligence agency. They provided intelligence while being responsible for action, a perfect partnership of cunning and power, both embodying the dark forces on the global stage.