How to Reduce the Production Cost of Bioweapons and Truly Apply Them to Civilian Fields, Rather Than Just Killing

This was the mute father's research topic. A scientist dedicated to lowering the lethality and production cost of bioweapons, wishing to adapt them for civilian use, would hardly be valued by the military. This oversight, consequently, made him a prime target and eventual sacrifice for terrorists seeking his data.

Eliminating the terrorists had become the mute man's sole driving force for the past five years; all his efforts pointed toward this single goal.

Even though he knew Du Zhanpeng’s approach wasn't rooted in genuine goodwill or friendship, but merely a tactic of recruitment, he didn't push back.

As long as revenge could be achieved, what did it matter if he became a demon or descended into hell after death?

Da Shi also felt uneasy. In the cabin where movement was restricted during the flight, he slowly stood up and sat beside Qin Fen, lowering his voice, "I know that very few people can stop the Mute if he enters a berserk state. You can, so..."

"I understand," Qin Fen nodded slowly. "If he truly loses himself to rage on the battlefield, I'll knock him out."

"Thank you."

"It’s nothing. We are comrades in arms."

The cabin fell silent again, filled only with the roar of the propellers.

Qin Fen quietly began using the Huisheng Jue technique to regulate his stamina. Having witnessed truly terrifying terrorists, he knew that a mere B-rank mission had nearly cost him his life last time. This mission was A-rank. Would anyone truly have the spare energy to look after others on the battlefield?

After X2 flew steadily for a while, everyone suddenly felt it begin to slow down, eventually hovering above the sea not far from the shore.

Looking down from the aircraft. It was another island!

It was significantly larger than Paradise Island in area.

On this island, also covered in tropical rainforest, stood a complex of buildings constructed from stone blocks. Green moss covered half the structures, adding an extra layer of mystery.

Crash...

The door connecting the cockpit to the cabin suddenly swung open, and a lieutenant emerged. He pointed to several metal crates inside the cabin and announced, "These are your weapons. Take them and prepare for deployment. Your objective is to breach the large stone structure ahead before 14:30 hours. Rescue one research scientist from inside."

A research scientist? The mute man's expression shifted once more, the tragedy of his father’s death years ago flashing back into his mind.

As he finished speaking, the metal crates automatically sprang open, revealing the P308 carbines—the weapons they had grown most familiar with recently—along with a batch of high-explosive offensive incendiary grenades.

The other metal crates followed suit with snap-crack sounds, revealing pieces of the fourth-generation "Dragon Scale Armor" body armor inside.

A faint smile finally touched Qin Fen's face. The military brass had managed to do one decent thing; while the overall gear wasn't exceptional, this body armor was quite good.

The "Dragon Scale Armor," created by the former American Apex Armor Corporation, possessed astonishing ballistic protection upon the release of its first generation. It could withstand 40 hits from a standard 7.62mm military round at a distance of 6 meters without being penetrated, and it could even stop 7.62mm steel-core armor-piercing rounds. 9mm submachine gun rounds were simply ineffective against it.

It could be said that this first-generation "Dragon Scale Armor" achieved remarkable defensive capabilities, with its only significant shortcoming being a lack of breakthrough in shock absorption.

After several refinements, the Federation's Apex Armor Corporation produced the fourth generation of the "Dragon Scale Armor," which not only saw a considerable increase in defensive capability but also boasted vastly improved shock absorption. It was no longer like the first generation, where rounds from close-range assault rifles might not pierce the body, but the violent impact force alone would be enough to kill the wearer.

Qin Fen put on the "Dragon Scale Armor" vest, then picked up a Kevlar ballistic helmet weighing over three kilograms. This weighted version had no high-tech features; its sole benefit was superior anti-ballistic performance—even an AK47 assault rifle couldn't kill the wearer from a hundred meters away.

Holographic electronic maps suddenly projected themselves onto the cabin walls.

Qin Fen frowned as he selected a P308, two grenades, and a smoke grenade. He returned to his seat and studied the floating electronic map, his brow furrowing tighter the longer he looked.

Judging by the map, these buildings, which appeared civilian, were laid out in a decidedly military formation—ideal for defense but poorly suited for attack. If they were to take the location quickly and smoothly, even without being issued heavy weaponry like mobile armor, they should at least have been equipped with light support weapons such as grenade launchers or mortars.

Qin Fen glanced at the P308 in his hand, then back at the projection of the electronic maps. If the opponents possessed a battery of mortars and grenade launchers, their current equipment, even with excellent body armor, was little better than a suicide mission.

No matter how versatile the P308 was, its inherent power output was virtually fixed, allowing for no significant increase. Furthermore, the equipment was too singular. A combat unit should, at minimum, be assigned a sniper, or if not a dedicated sniper, at least sniper equipment.

Qin Fen looked out at the environment beyond the cabin, his thoughts turning to curses aimed at the commanding officer who clearly lacked foresight. If they had been notified earlier, or given some modification parts to customize their gear, anything would have been better than this standard P308.

"Do any of you new recruits have sniper training?" the lieutenant asked, finally opening the last crate.

Upon seeing its contents, a genuine smile broke out on Qin Fen’s face: Barrett M82A1 heavy sniper system!

He immediately discarded the P308 and, with astonishing speed that surprised everyone, rapidly assembled the Barrett M82A1 heavy sniper system. Although it was a standard-issue rifle without modifications, its sheer power was in an entirely different league compared to the P308.

The lieutenant cracked his neck. "Happy Paradise truly lives up to its name. They can train a raw recruit to be this proficient with sniper gear."

Qin Fen couldn't be bothered to correct the compliment. He gathered every single box of specialized sniper ammunition from the crate and tucked them into his gear.

"Listen up, boys. You're facing roughly a hundred hostiles, about equal to your own number," the lieutenant announced, throwing open the cabin door. A rope shot out. He snapped a crisp salute, "Gentlemen, remember your mission is a frontal breach. Good luck."

The mute man, who could barely contain himself any longer, was the first to charge out of the cabin door, weapon in hand. Qin Fen didn't rush out immediately. He studied the map again, his expression growing distinctly troubled.

According to the map display, the frontal approach offered at least three potential penetration points, two choke points where the enemy could establish strong defenses. Breaching the first would lead to a choice between two pathways. The left and right paths both led to the enemy's second checkpoint. The left was obstructed by rock formations, meaning that a slight turn into the path would expose the entire body to enemy fire. The right side was a tunnel carved through the mountainside. The end of this tunnel opened out about three stories high above the ground, facing another identical tunnel about fifty to seventy-five meters away. If the enemy placed just a few men there, a few automatic rifles would be enough to suppress nearly a hundred men, preventing them from even poking their heads out.

"Kid, what are you thinking about?" The lieutenant clapped Qin Fen on the shoulder. "Time is running out. If you haven't rescued the hostage by the deadline, get out immediately. Heavy bombers will be dispatched from above to completely level this terrorist base."

"Level the base?" Qin Fen was momentarily shocked. Who was this hostage that warranted such drastic measures?

Standing at the edge of the cabin, feeling the biting chill of the wind, Qin Fen stared at the distant terrorist base, a deep sense of unease stirring in his heart.

There were over twenty thousand islands here, many without even names. The sheer quantity of islands, combined with the dense, mysterious tropical rainforests, made it difficult even for military satellites overhead to survey everything clearly. This geographical reality had turned the South China Sea Archipelagos into a paradise for various underground forces.

In the areas invisible to military surveillance, these underground factions had installed countless surveillance monitors, displaying streams of video feeds gathered from across the island, twenty-four hours a day, on hundreds of screens within the island’s monolithic stone buildings.

In front of the screens, a pair of black, thigh-high military boots rested casually crossed over the dense array of buttons on the operating console, occasionally shifting slightly.

"New recruits? What is the Federation planning? Are they trying to distract us from the captive's true identity? These scout recruits move quite efficiently. Too bad he hasn't spotted the surveillance. He’ll soon regret seeing his comrades fall..."

Pop... hiss... hiss...

Two screens abruptly dissolved into static snow, indicating two fixed cameras had been instantly neutralized. The softly rocking black leather boots instantly froze in place.

After a two-second pause, the owner of the boots spoke again, "An accident? Or were they discovered? Immediately activate the backup mobile biological sensors."

Beneath a tree where a surveillance device was mounted, two gray, aged rats cautiously emerged from a hollow in the trunk. They peered left and right, and their four small feet rapidly propelled them out of the tree hole.