A few days later.

Northern Sudan, Darfur Region.

Yellow sand fills the sky, and the heat wave distorts the horizon.

Five desert-camouflaged SUVs form a loose convoy, slowly advancing on the rugged desert highway.

The dust lifted by the wheels trails behind the cars like a slowly dissipating snake.

Song Heping sits in the passenger seat of the second vehicle, his eyes scanning the desert on both sides behind his sunglasses.

He's wearing a light desert combat uniform, with binoculars hanging from his chest, tapping his left-hand index finger rhythmically on his knee, holding a satellite phone with his right hand during a call.

"Old Demon?"

"Hey, is it Heping?"

"Yes, yes, it's me. By the way, how are you and Mr. Hou doing?"

"We're safe, currently in Central Africa."

"How's his injury?"

"Mostly healed, he's very grateful to you. He said, you can come for the gold mine anytime."

"Damn! Hahaha!"

Song Heping couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Gold mine.

The one in Mexico is the real gold mine.

"That's too polite, I helped him because of you, not for his gold mine."

"A man must keep his word, and Old Hou is straightforward."

"Here's the thing, if he wants to thank me, it's simple, help me with something. But I must state upfront, there will be some risk, not sure if he's willing."

"I don't see a problem, you saved his life, a little risk is nothing."

"I'm currently inconvenienced to return to the country, but I have something to do there, not sure if he or you can help."

"What's wrong with you? Can't return home?"

"Yes, can't go back."

While saying this, a trace of bitterness rose in Song Heping's throat.

Actually, it's more than just not being able to return home.

He doesn't even dare to contact his family now, fearing implicating them.

His identity is too sensitive, not knowing how the country and the old unit view him. He must ask Captain Lei clearly next time or call Lao Yinbi to inquire.

"Then tell me, if I can do it, I surely will. If I can't do it, I'll find a way to get it done!"

"Alright, just help me take a device to Huaqiang North, find the best tech personnel to see if it can be replicated. If it can be replicated, I'll pay a high price, whatever amount they say."

"Cough!"

Old Demon laughed heartily on the phone.

"I thought it was something major, isn't it just taking something back for cloning! What's replication!"

"Yes, yes, it's cloning, but this item isn't easy to clone."

"What item is so difficult to clone? It's not like it's aircraft or artillery! Any electronic product at Huaqiang North can be cloned."

"You guessed right, it really is an aircraft."

"Damn!"

Old Demon exclaimed in surprise.

"How do you want me to transport it back for replication!?"

"You don't need to worry about transporting it back, I have channels here to get it back home. It's an aircraft, but not a large one, it's a UAV, a very small one, which makes it quite precise, hard to clone."

"A UAV..."

Only then did Old Demon understand.

"Yes, a UAV, and it's military. Once you get it, go to Huaqiang North and find someone to replicate it. Tell the master to replicate the internal diagrams for me, I need it. Also, inform the cloning factory that as long as they can replicate this, my orders will be continuous in the future."

"Alright!"

"But first let me be a gentleman before a villain, Old Demon. This UAV is American, a military short-range reconnaissance UAV, so when you go, you might be watched, bringing certain risks. If you are watched, you might not be able to go abroad in the future."

There was a brief silence on the phone.

"No worries! If I can't go out, then I won't! I'll just stay in the country."

Over the airwaves, Song Heping could hear Old Demon gritting his teeth.

"Rest assured, I won't let you suffer either. Even if you can't go abroad, I'll support you, give you a consulting fee every month through overseas companies. Also, if you want to do business, just tell me, how much you need, I'll fund it for you. Now, isn't real estate quite good? You might try it, I have the funds."

"Really?!"

"We've been brothers for so many years, have I ever lied to you?"

"That's true!"

"It's settled then, I'll contact you in a while."

"OK, no problem!"

After hanging up the phone, another problem was solved, Song Heping felt the pressure on his shoulders lighten considerably.

If the clone succeeds, the fighting power of his defense company will soar. In the future, it could be sold to countries in need, especially Avanti, he would be highly interested.

Meanwhile, inside the car, the air conditioner is turned on to the maximum, but still can't keep out the heat seeping through the window gaps.

"Twenty kilometers to Point A, Boss."

The driver reports quietly, with a hint of tension in his voice.

Song Heping nods, presses the earpiece: "Group A, report situation."

A static sound comes through the earpiece, followed by a calm male voice: "Group A in position, clear view, no anomalies detected. Over."

"Maintain vigilance." Song Heping responds briefly, then switches channels, "Group B?"

"Group B at designated location, detected three unidentified vehicles wandering five kilometers northwest, avoiding contact. Over."

Song Heping's lips slightly curve upward.

Everything is going according to plan.

He turns to look at the two technicians in the back seat, who are focused on the laptop screens displaying real-time satellite images of the area and position markers for the three groups.

"Group C?" Song Heping asks.

"Group C has reached the backup meetup point, setting up an observation station."

A technician responds: "UAV has been launched, coverage radius fifteen kilometers."

Song Heping nods in satisfaction.

On the surface, he leads only this twenty-man team, while in reality, the three elite groups A, B, C are already pre-positioned at key locations, forming an invisible protection net.

The convoy drives past heavily weathered rock formations, and Song Heping gestures to slow down.

He picks up binoculars and carefully observes the rock formations that might conceal ambushes.

Sunlight casts sharp shadows in the crevices, hiding places for enemies could be anywhere.

"All clear." After observing for a while, he lowers the binoculars, "Proceed."

Meanwhile, seventy kilometers away in Langley, Virginia.

In the emergency conference room on the third underground floor of CIA Headquarters, the air is so tense it could be wrung dry.

Deputy Director Michael Pence stands before the electronic screen, staring at the satellite feed showing the small convoy slowly moving through the Darfur desert.

"What the hell is going on here?"

Pence taps his knuckles on the enlarged image of the SUV that Song Heping is in.

"He's only taking twenty people deep into Darfur? Either this is a trap, or they have an unavoidable reason to go."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com