180: Steel Trailblazers

Dead silence.

A silence so profound one could hear a pin drop.

The roar of the explosion faded, leaving only a maddening quiet in its wake.

Wang Dalong's heart hammered against his ribs; he felt as if Death's fingernails had truly just scraped across his scalp!

"Insane! These German bastards are all lunatics!"

He was practically flat in the tire tracks, hissing at Lin Feng in a voice strained with hysteria.

"Burying this many mines at their own doorstep? Were they planning to go straight to heaven the moment they stepped out?!"

"They had maps and specially cleared safe passages."

Lin Feng adjusted his glasses, his reply chillingly calm, as if the explosion had been nothing more than a firecracker at a village entrance.

"But clearly, when they cleared out eighty years ago, they took the maps with them."

At this, Wang Dalong was left completely speechless.

Nearby, Shitou's face was as dark as a thundercloud.

How big was the minefield? Unknown.

How many mines were buried? Unknown.

What models were they? Still fucking unknown!

In this state of total ignorance, sending someone up with a probe for manual demining wasn't professional; it was suicide!

"Sir."

Shitou turned around, his voice raspy with tension.

"We must reassess the risks of this operation. Forcing our way through the minefield will likely lead to unnecessary casualties."

However, Lin Feng just looked at him quietly and gave a slight shake of his head.

"There's no time."

As his words fell, every syllable pierced the hearts of everyone present.

"We've come all this way. Do you think I'd turn back for the sake of a few rusty lumps of iron?"

Shitou looked into Lin Feng's eyes behind the lenses, his Adam's apple bobbing.

On his employer's face, he saw not a trace of fear or hesitation—only a near-maniacal stubbornness.

This wasn't a discussion; it was a notification.

After a few seconds of silence, Shitou seemed to make up his mind and gritted his teeth hard.

He raised a hand to his walkie-talkie and growled.

"Sam!"

"Here, Captain!"

"Execute 'Plan B'!"

"Copy that! Initiating Plan B!"

"Plan B?" Wang Dalong was bewildered. "What the hell is Plan B?"

No one answered him.

The technician named Sam nimbly dragged a black metal case out of the trunk.

Opening the case revealed a complex console covered in joysticks, buttons, and display screens.

Without a word, Sam quickly pulled out several thick cables, ran to the front of the first vehicle, and crouched down to plug them into the reserved ports on the chassis.

Having finished, he stood up and reported rapidly into his walkie-talkie.

"Captain, the vehicle remote control system is connected! Driving control has been transferred to the console!"

Shitou nodded and turned to command everyone, "Everyone, fall back thirty meters! Find cover!"

Swish!

Everyone immediately retreated to the leeward side of a sand dune in the rear.

Only then did Shitou glance at the bewildered Wang Dalong and explain.

"Our vehicles have all undergone deep modifications. The first one is equipped with autonomous driving and remote control modules. It was originally intended as a mobile shield or a remote-controlled bomb in case of a heavy-fire ambush."

He paused and looked up at the steel behemoth parked at the edge of the minefield, his tone sharp and fierce.

"But now, it seems it has a better use."

Wang Dalong's head buzzed as he suddenly understood!

His eyes went wide as saucers, and he stammered while pointing at the vehicle.

"I... you don't mean... using it... using it to clear the mines?!"

This was a top-tier off-road vehicle worth millions of dollars, modified from the inside out with premium materials!

Using this thing to clear mines?

Even a spendthrift wouldn't play like this!

Before the console, Sam took a deep breath and opened his eyes. His hands rested steadily on the main joystick, his gaze focused and fervent!

"Engine system starting!"

Vroom—!

The Land Cruiser's V8 engine was instantly awakened, roaring like an infuriated beast before battle!

"Throttle locked! Forward posture confirmed!"

"Forward!!"

With a low growl, Sam slammed a blood-red lever on his right all the way forward!

"Roar—!!"

Four massive tires churned the sand frantically, kicking up a cloud of dust!

In the next second, the steel behemoth shot forward like an arrow from a bow, launching a suicidal charge into the silent, unknown minefield ahead!

Everyone held their breath, staring intently at the unstoppable torrent of steel!

Ten meters!

Twenty meters!

Thirty meters!

All was calm; nothing happened.

Just as a flicker of hope rose in Wang Dalong's mind—

Boom!!

A deafening blast erupted from beneath the vehicle's left front wheel!

A massive orange fireball soared into the sky!

An Anti-tank Mine!

The terrifying explosive force lifted the three-ton front end over half a meter high! The entire left front wheel and suspension system were blown to pieces, flying into the distance!

"Hiss!" Wang Dalong shuddered in fear.

However, a scene that nearly made his eyes pop out unfolded!

This devilishly modified Land Cruiser had outrageously thick chassis armor, and its engine had been given top-tier explosion-proofing!

It let out a metallic wail in the air before crashing heavily back to the ground!

Then, relying on only its three remaining wheels and trailing thick black smoke, it continued to charge forward stubbornly and erratically!

It wasn't dead yet!

"Go! Keep going!!"

Before the console, Sam's eyes were bloodshot, veins bulging as his hands gripped the joystick tight, straining to correct the vehicle's direction!

Boom! Boom!

Two more explosions went off almost simultaneously!

This time, they were at the vehicle's flanks!

Two S-mines were detonated, sending countless scalding steel balls like twin metal storms lashing against the bulletproof body and glass!

Clang, clang—!

Amidst the dense clatter of impacts, the vehicle's body was instantly riddled with pits, showering dazzling sparks!

The vehicle swayed violently, its speed noticeably slowing.

But still, it forged ahead!

Fifty meters! Sixty meters!

However, its journey ended there.

Rumbbbble—!!

An unprecedentedly violent explosion rang out!

The sound wave threatened to tear everyone's eardrums apart!

This time, it seemed several Anti-tank Mines had been detonated at once!

A massive mushroom cloud of black smoke and flames rose arrogantly from beneath the vehicle!

The indestructible Land Cruiser didn't even have time to let out a cry before it was completely torn apart in mid-air into a heap of burning, twisted parts, falling like a grand metallic rain.

After the explosion, only a blazing steel wreck remained in the minefield ahead.

The world fell silent once again.

The air was thick with the pungent stench of gunpowder, fuel, and scorched metal.

"Reporting... based on the analysis of the final footage from the on-board camera... a safe passage approximately three meters wide and eighty meters long has been cleared."

Sam put down the controller and reported in a raspy voice.

Everyone looked at the wreckage that was once worth a million dollars in silence.

An eighty-meter path at the cost of a top-tier war machine.

"The remaining twenty meters,"

Shitou's voice broke the silence, calm and devoid of emotion.

He reached back and pulled a long, slender probe gleaming with metallic coldness from his tactical vest, tapping it lightly against his glove.

"We'll walk the rest of the way ourselves."