Minh Thu's short message was like an electric current running through Lam Minh's body. The fatigue and frustration that had accumulated over many days vanished instantly, replaced by high-strung excitement and focus.
He immediately zoomed in on the map. The red dot Minh Thu had sent was in a place he had never considered. Not a cave or a dense forest, but beneath a large lake, nestled in the middle of a basin surrounded by rocky mountains.
"Under a lake?" he murmured. "Truly a perfect hiding spot."
Water was an excellent medium for concealing one's aura and blocking most types of conventional detection waves. If it weren't for a super hacker like Minh Thu, who could analyze the smallest changes in the earth's energy flow through satellite data, it would be almost impossible to detect.
"How did she do it?" Lam Minh couldn't help but admire her.
He sent back a message: 'Details?'
Minh Thu quickly sent back a series of analytical data.
'Energy_fluctuation_detected. Consistent_with_a_shielding_array. Anomaly_in_water_temperature_at_depth_of_50m. Suggests_heat_dissipation_from_a_facility. High_probability_of_submerged_entrance.'
The information was incredibly detailed and precise. Minh Thu had not only found the location but had also sketched out the basic structure of the base.
"Thanks. You're the best," Lam Minh texted back, a sincere compliment.
'^_^' (A smiley face emoji.)
Lam Minh put away the tablet, not wasting another second. He immediately set off, heading towards the "rat hole" that Minh Thu had found.
The lake was nearly a hundred kilometers from his current position, and the terrain was quite treacherous. It took him almost half a day to get close.
Standing on a high rock and looking down, the lake appeared before him, as calm as a mirror, its clear blue surface reflecting the clouds in the sky. It was a peaceful and poetic scene; no one could have imagined that beneath that beauty lay a den of evil.
He didn't act immediately. He knew that a base built in such a strategic location would surely have a sophisticated defense system. Especially its only entrance, which was underwater.
He began his familiar work of observation.
He spent an entire afternoon just circling the lake, using his spiritual sense to feel, trying to find the patterns of the energy flows, searching for weaknesses in the defense system.
He discovered that the entire lake was covered by a hidden barrier. It not only blocked spiritual sense probes from the outside but also had the ability to detect any intrusion. The moment a creature with a cultivation level beyond the Qi Refining Realm entered the lake, the alarm would sound immediately.
"Quite troublesome," he thought. "If I just rush in like this, I'll definitely be discovered."
He needed a plan. A plan to infiltrate without attracting any attention.
He looked at the lake's surface, then at the dense surrounding forest. A bold idea popped into his head again.
If he couldn't enter through the "main door," why not create his own "back door"?
The base was underground, beneath the lakebed. So, he wouldn't go down from the lake. He would go from the mainland, digging a tunnel through the rocky mountain, aiming straight for the side of the base.
This was a plan that required enormous strength and patience. Digging a tunnel hundreds of meters long through solid rock was not an easy task, even for a Peak Foundation Establishment cultivator.
But for Lam Minh, this was the safest and most unexpected option.
"It's decided," he said. "A bit of hard work, but it's worth it."
He chose a discreet location in the forest, a few hundred meters from the lake shore. He carefully calculated the angle and direction, ensuring the tunnel would lead to exactly where he wanted.
Then he began his work as a "miner."
He didn't use the Thuan Thien sword to dig noisily. He used his own spiritual energy. He condensed his spiritual energy into small, sharp drills that slowly ate away at the rock face. The speed was very slow, but it produced almost no sound or vibration.
As he dug, he used the excavated earth and rock to backfill behind him, leaving just enough space for one person to crawl through.
The work was incredibly tedious and tiring. It lacked the drama of battle, only the repetition of consuming and replenishing spiritual energy.
But Lam Minh persisted. He knew that every meter of tunnel he dug was a step closer to rescuing his captive kin, and also a step closer to overthrowing that criminal organization.
Little by little, in silence, a secret path to the heart of the enemy was gradually being formed. And the enemy, still hiding in their underwater fortress, was completely unaware of the rat that was silently digging a hole into their granary.
...
Day after day passed. Lam Minh was like a diligent worker ant, silently carrying out his tunneling work.
This was a true test of his patience. There were no enemies to fight, no experience points to farm. Only darkness, silence, and mind-numbingly repetitive work. His spiritual energy was constantly depleted and then replenished with Spirit Stones.
During this process, he inadvertently discovered something interesting. The continuous depletion and recovery of spiritual energy to its limit, combined with the high concentration required to meticulously control the energy drills, had significantly tempered his control over spiritual energy and the resilience of his meridians. His Peak Foundation Establishment foundation became even more solid, like a piece of steel that had been heated and forged a thousand times.
After nearly a week of non-stop work, his spiritual sense finally detected a change.
The layer of rock and earth in front of him was gone. In its place was a cold, metallic structure.
"I'm here," he murmured, a hint of excitement in his heart.
He had successfully dug a tunnel through the mountain to the outer wall of the secret base.
He carefully pressed his ear against the metal wall, listening. There was no sound. He used a tiny wisp of spiritual sense, trying to probe inside.
This wall was also protected by a defensive barrier, but it didn't seem as strong as the one at the main underwater entrance. Perhaps they never thought an attack would come from this direction.
Lam Minh didn't rush to break through the wall. He needed to know what area of the base was behind it. If he unfortunately broke through right into the commander's room, or an area with many soldiers, his infiltration plan would fail from the start.
He resorted to his old method. He condensed his spiritual energy into an ultra-fine drill, smaller than a strand of hair, and slowly, carefully, drilled a tiny hole in the metal wall.
This was a task that required absolute concentration and energy control. A small mistake could trigger the alarm.
After nearly an hour, the ultra-fine drill finally broke through.
He sent an even smaller wisp of spiritual sense through the hole to observe the inside.
Behind the wall was a long, deserted corridor. Only occasionally did a few "Holy Children" pass by. It seemed this was a less important area, perhaps a warehouse or a rest area for low-level soldiers.
"Lucky," he breathed a sigh of relief.
He decided to act at midnight, when all activities in the base had quieted down.
He sat in the tunnel, closing his eyes to meditate, adjusting his state to its peak.
Midnight.
Lam Minh opened his eyes, his gaze as sharp as a knife.
He placed his hand on the metal wall, and spiritual energy slowly flowed in. He didn't break it with force, but used his spiritual energy to analyze and disable the structure of the welds and joints.
After a few minutes, a circular section of the metal wall, just big enough for one person to crawl through, was gently detached without making a sound.
Lam Minh slipped inside, then carefully placed the metal section back in its original position. It looked almost no different from before.
He was inside.
He was standing in a cold metal corridor, with dim light coming from the light strips on the ceiling. The air here had a mixed smell of disinfectant and something indescribably foul and fishy.
He restrained his entire aura and used a stealth technique, his body seeming to merge with the shadows of the corridor.
He began to move, his first goal being to find the central control room to disable the surveillance and alarm systems.
He passed a few intersections. This base was very large and complex. He saw a few "Holy Children" on patrol, but with his stealth skills, he easily slipped past them without being detected.
He was walking along a long corridor when he suddenly froze.
He heard a sound.
Not footsteps, not talking.
But crying.
The soft, suppressed sobs of a child.
The sound came from a room with a thick steel door, which had a small window made of reinforced glass.
Curiosity and a bad premonition urged him closer. He gently tiptoed and looked through the small window.
And the scene inside made him, a person accustomed to death and blood, stand stunned. Then, a terrifying rage, stronger than ever before, erupted in his heart.
Inside the stark white room, it wasn't a prison cell, but a laboratory.
And on the operating tables were children.
Human children, only about five or six years old, were tied down, their bodies pierced with tubes and wires.
And standing around them were several figures in white lab coats, but they had the grotesque features of the mutants. They were injecting strange green liquids into the children, recording their reactions.
One of the crying children's bodies began to convulse, and small scales started to appear on its skin.
This wasn't a military base.
This was a slaughterhouse, a living hell on Earth. A place where they were conducting the most disgusting experiments on the very buds of humanity.
The killing intent in Lam Minh's eyes, in that instant, solidified into a tangible substance.