Just as Brother Zhou was about to speak, a sucker punch hammered directly into his stomach.

The punch was so heavy that it nearly made Brother Zhou's pupils disperse!

Had it not been for his strong will and the mission sustaining him, he would probably have already fallen to the ground, unconscious!

With great effort, Brother Zhou looked at Zhang Beixing and opened his mouth.

"This is a drill…"

Right at that moment.

"Disciple, let go of that thug, and let your master deliver the finishing blow!"

Liu Yi's voice came through as he jogged over, his face brimming with excitement!

In his eyes, this isn't some terrorist, he thought. This is clearly a piece of my exemplary citizen jigsaw puzzle! Just one more strike, and it's practically in the bag.

With that thought, Liu Yi stretched out his hand—filled with his anticipation of becoming an exemplary citizen and his bubbling enthusiasm—and delivered a powerful, forceful hand-chop to Brother Zhou's neck.

Suddenly, Brother Zhou's eyes rolled back, and he stiffened...

Liu Yi wiped the sweat from his forehead, feeling quite proud as he surveyed the alley, now littered with terrorists taken down by the teamwork between him and his disciple, Zhang Beixing.

I can't believe my skills haven't declined from my heyday, even after all these years of inactivity, he mused.

Then, thinking this good news shouldn't be kept to himself, he opened his phone. He found his brother Liu Pan's WeChat, composed a message, and sent it, pleased to be sharing the good news a bit early.

「Meanwhile.」

In the suburbs of Yanjing.

Inside a simple green tent, Liu Pan sat in a corner munching on sunflower seeds, the picture of ease, as he watched the tense soldiers busily moving back and forth.

"Liu Instructor, you seem quite at leisure," the deputy commander teased with a smile, seeing Liu Pan.

"What can I say? After a month, this old man has only had these few days to relax," Liu Pan sighed. "Initially, who was it who told me, 'Train once a year, retire securely at sixty'? I believed them and joined, only to find out... sigh! And I'm sixty-two this year!"

Hearing his words tinged with a touch of complaint, the deputy commander covertly glanced at the chief commander beside him. Not daring to pick up on Liu Pan's topic, he lamely said, "Well, seeing as you're just eating sunflower seeds and they look a bit dry, how about I get you a fruit platter to moisten your throat?"

"That would be great! Bring me plenty of durian; I love that stuff!"

Liu Pan was truly unabashed. Hearing his request, the deputy commander nodded repeatedly and instructed his subordinates to prepare it.

"Speaking of which," Liu Pan continued, "I heard that the opposition has mobilized their special forces this time, all elites. Do you think our Blue Team can handle it?"

Faced with Liu Pan's inquiry, the deputy commander became serious. "It's hard to say," he said gravely. "They may be special forces, but the members we've selected this time are also top-notch. The key is to hide well. If Little Zhou and his team can escape the exercise area within forty-eight hours, that counts as a win for us. As for a direct confrontation… that'll depend on how effective your recent training has been."

Liu Pan immediately slapped his chest and declared, "You still doubt my military combat training? I guarantee I can take them down one by one!"

DING-DONG—

Just as he finished speaking, his phone chimed. Liu Pan took it out and saw a message from his younger brother, Liu Yi, who was apparently up in the middle of the night sending him a lengthy text.

What's this kid up to now? Liu Pan's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

He had been very happy to learn recently that his brother had returned, especially since Liu Yi had brought a disciple with him, boasting about how incredibly talented this disciple was, which had piqued Liu Pan's curiosity.

However, as he was caught up in the military district's exercises these past few days, serving as a specially hired temporary instructor, he had taken the opportunity to join in the excitement, even though he had some downtime. That was why he had asked Liu Yi to wait at home for a couple of days.

And now he can't wait any longer? What's he rambling about?

Just as Liu Pan was about to see what Liu Yi had written, a voice cut in.

"Report to the commander!"

A soldier walked in from outside, addressing the middle-aged man at the chief commander's post. The commander stood with his hands behind his back, wearing a crisp military uniform with a Senior Colonel's insignia on his shoulder, as the soldier requested instructions.

"It is now 1:30 a.m., and our side's preparation time is over. Please give your orders!"

Hearing this, the Senior Colonel turned around, his expression serious, and announced, "Now, the Red-Blue exercise confrontation officially begins!"

"Everyone, get ready! Commence 'Operation Hidden Dragon' and, according to exercise regulations, try to contact our undercover personnel and help them escape Yanjing!"

"Yes, sir!"

However, as soon as his command was issued, a ringtone sounded. He saw it was the exercise directorate calling. Somewhat surprised, he answered. A voice on the other end spoke with a strange tone.

"Uh, Old Wang, I'm calling to inform the Blue Team that the exercise has ended. You've already lost!"

"What? It just started! How the hell could we lose?"

The Senior Colonel was completely dumbfounded, his brow furrowing as he was about to curse.

But the person on the phone sighed and said helplessly, "You've indeed lost. You were taken out by some enthusiastic citizens…"

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