A teammate charged onto the armored vehicle, where a heavy machine gun was mounted on top. He opened fire wildly toward the sniper's position. Another teammate then pulled out a rocket launcher and fired a shell. In the explosion's firelight, Li Juxu saw the sniper rolling — highly professional, still holding his rifle. But even the best sniper could not withstand a coordinated attack.
At the instant the sniper slowed down, Li Juxu pulled the trigger.
Bang!
The sniper's entire right shoulder was blown apart. A painful scream rang out. Li Juxu fired again without hesitation — a headshot, ending the sniper's suffering.
With the enemy sniper dead, Pu Shaoyun's men went all out. They emerged from cover one after another and poured fire into the enemy. Li Juxu also began cutting down enemies, now little more than stationary targets under suppression.
Soon, all enemies were dead. Teammates rushed forward to check, but Li Juxu did not stand up immediately. He only emerged from behind the rock after the others confirmed no survivors.
The enemy force totaled 36 dead; whether any had escaped in the dark was unknown. Fourteen of their own men were dead, three seriously wounded, and eighteen lightly injured.
Li Juxu had thought he was unharmed — until a burning pain shot up his thigh. He found a five‑centimeter gash on the outer side, cut by either a stone or shrapnel, bleeding heavily and soaking his pants. He had not felt it during the fight, his nerves too tightly strung.
He quickly had the team's medic bandage and stop the bleeding.
He watched Pu Shaoyun discussing something with his close aides and assumed they would turn back. So many had died. But to his surprise, after their discussion, Pu Shaoyun ordered them to continue forward.
"Boss, are you hiding something from us?" a bearded hunter stepped in front of Pu Shaoyun, his tone dissatisfied. "Withholding information left us completely exposed."
The others stared at Pu Shaoyun and his men. No one was foolish. The ambush had clearly been premeditated — not aimed at the hired hunters, but at Pu Shaoyun himself. And Pu Shaoyun must have known something, yet said nothing. If he had warned them, so many would not have died.
"There are things I cannot fully explain," Pu Shaoyun said. "I can only reveal this: the mission is a competition between me and one other person. I did not expect my rival to be so despicable as to ambush us on the road. I swear to you — I had no advance knowledge of this."
His words were met with silence.
The men were judging whether to believe him, and whether the risk was still worth the reward.
"Regardless, casualties have occurred, and the responsibility is mine. I apologize. Furthermore, I promise: compensation for the dead and wounded will be increased fivefold. If we complete the mission, all payments will be tripled."
At that, every member stirred. For hunters, risk was weighed by reward. When the pay was tempting enough, even mountains of blades ceased to be obstacles.
The atmosphere immediately returned to its former harmony.
The team's mechanic was highly skilled. With a few adjustments, the two disabled vehicles were repaired. The low roar of the engines made everyone's blood race. Of course, the armored vehicles were powerful by design, and the damage had not been critical.
While the mechanic worked, Pu Shaoyun approached Li Juxu.
"Thanks to you just now. If you hadn't pinned down and taken out their sniper, our casualties would have doubled."
Pu Shaoyun had not paid Li Juxu much mind earlier. But after the casualty check, his aide reported that an astonishing nine enemies had been killed by the Burster-002B. Li Juxu alone had wiped out a quarter of the enemy force — including their sniper and several rocket launcher troops. That was extraordinary.
Frankly, when hiring Li Juxu, he had only done so because few snipers remained in Settlement 11, and three others had outright refused the mission. He had settled for Li Juxu by default, even looking down on him somewhat. After hearing the kill count, he realized he had found a treasure — and it thrilled him.
"Don't mention it. I'm just doing my job as per the contract." Li Juxu was immune to such thanks. Over the years, he had taken eight or ten private jobs annually and met all kinds of employers. Some were polite but cheap; some were rude but generous; others were cold but kept their promises. He had grown used to empty courtesy. As long as Pu Shaoyun paid in full and on time, he would consider him a good boss.
"Don't misunderstand. I'm not making empty promises. The agreed pay stands. Additionally, for your outstanding performance, I'll give you a bonus of 900,000 copper coins. Ten thousand per kill… make it an even million." Pu Shaoyun was generous.
Li Juxu stared at him for a few seconds, confirmed he was serious, and nodded. "Then I won't decline."
Free money was free money — especially since Pu Shaoyun could easily afford it.
"Everyone! For every enemy you killed just now, you get an extra 100,000 copper coins. I've already made the records. Stick with me, and I won't let you down."
Pu Shaoyun's declaration wiped away all remaining negativity. The men began to look at him favorably again.
For hunters, nothing cheered them up more than money being thrown at them.
Pu Shaoyun arranged for the most heavily damaged armored vehicle to return to the settlement with the bodies of the dead and the seriously wounded. This gesture won over the men once more. They were used to death and leaving bodies in the wild, but given a choice, everyone preferred a proper burial.
The remaining four vehicles set off again. With one fewer vehicle and fewer men, the interior space felt more spacious.
"Thank you!" The huge man Li Juxu had warned was still in the same vehicle.
"It was nothing." Li Juxu didn't care much. In a team, saving each other was normal. No need for special thanks. Only by cooperating sincerely could they survive to the end — basic discipline.
"If not for you, I'd be in that truck heading back," the man said, nodding toward the departed vehicle. "My name is Du Shangfeng. Everyone calls me Black‑headed Wasp."
"Night Owl." Li Juxu was slightly moved. So this was Black‑headed Wasp. He did not know Du Shangfeng, but he had long heard the nickname Black‑headed Wasp.
Individual hunters had no formal heritage, but teams did. When Cao Gang first started out, he had worked under Black‑headed Wasp, who had taught him most of his survival skills. After leaving Wasp's team, Cao Gang struck out alone, formed his own team, and gradually made a name for himself in the settlement.
Cao Gang had once said that the person who had given him the most in his life was Black‑headed Wasp.