I started with a portal, then turned around and handed it over to the nation.

Chapter 33 Men, Don't Be Brave

Even with the combined effects of the medicine and anesthetic, Dingzi couldn't help but gasp, a layer of white sweat breaking out on his forehead, and his teeth grinding together.

Li Na's wrist was very steady. With a "clink," she tossed the blood-stained black arrowhead onto the instrument cloth next to her.

Without even looking, she immediately picked up a piece of sterile gauze and pressed it firmly against the bleeding wound on the nailed arm.

"Lin Mo!" Li Na exclaimed urgently without looking up, "Press here! Push!"

Lin Mo immediately squatted down and pressed his hands firmly against the wound through the gauze. The warm blood quickly soaked through the gauze and stained his fingertips.

Raine, standing to the side, shifted his gaze from the peculiar arrow to the wound from which the nail was still bleeding. He frowned, pointed at the wound, and quickly spoke a few words in the local language to Lin Mo.

"He said there was too much blood." Lin Mo pressed hard while quickly translating, "He needs herbs, a plant called 'Adiantum capillus-veneris,' crush it up and apply it; it will stop the bleeding quickly."

"It's too late."

Li Na quickly pulled a roll of bandage and a small bottle of hemostatic powder from her medical kit: "I have military-grade stuff here, let's hold on for now."

She tore open the packaging of the hemostatic powder, poured the entire bottle of white powder onto the wound, covered it with new gauze, and finally wrapped it tightly with bandages, one loop at a time.

After the bandage was applied, she finally breathed a sigh of relief, her forehead covered in sweat.

Lin Mo loosened his grip and looked at Dingzi's arm, which was wrapped tightly, with blood still seeping from the bandage.

Li Na observed him and said, "It's stopped for now, but he's lost a lot of blood and is very weak."

Nail leaned against the tree, his face pale, his lips ashen, but his eyes still defiant.

He looked at his arm, then at his busy teammates beside him, and his lips moved as if he wanted to say something.

"Save your energy." Long Fei walked over, patted him on the shoulder, and said in a deep voice, "Surviving is more important than anything else."

Time slipped away in silence and suppressed gasps.

The dappled light in the forest gradually dimmed, changing from bright gold to warm orange-red, and finally sinking into deep blue.

During the day, the birds stopped singing, and instead, unknown insects began to chirp, their calls delicate and continuous.

Night fell.

Raine stood up, observed the sky, and listened intently to the sounds coming from the depths of the jungle.

He walked over to Lin Mo and lowered his voice.

"It's getting dark, the goblin patrol is about to come out." He spoke softly, with a hint of wariness. "We have to go."

Lin Mo immediately relayed Ryan's words to Long Fei through his headset.

"However," Lin Mo added, "Raine said that we have too many people and are too conspicuous, so we must slow down and not make any big noise, otherwise we will be easily discovered."

The channel was silent except for the hissing of electricity.

A few seconds later, Long Fei's calm voice came out.

"clear."

He stood up, looked around at the team members who were taking a break, and spoke in a low voice, which carried clearly throughout the temporary camp.

"Attention all personnel, prepare to depart."

At the command, the soldiers, who had been sitting or lying down, opened their eyes almost simultaneously and began to quickly and quietly organize their equipment, fill their water bottles, and check their weapons.

"Tiger Team, send two people to support Nail," Long Fei then ordered.

"yes!"

Shi Lei responded and immediately selected the two tallest players.

The two men walked up to the nail, one on each side, and were about to grab his arms.

"I can walk by myself!"

Nail struggled to stand up, his face pale from blood loss, but his tone was as hard as a rock.

"Alright, hero."

One of the Tigers members grinned, revealing a set of white teeth, and lifted him off the ground, hoisting him onto his shoulder: "Man, don't be stubborn, we don't want to go back and have your funeral."

Another teammate jokingly added, "Exactly, save your energy. Your wife will make you some nourishing soup when you get back."

With Nail held on either side of him, his face flushed red. Knowing his current situation, he could only groan and stop resisting.

The slightly tense atmosphere was eased by these jokes.

"Set off."

Long Fei gave the final order.

The team regrouped and changed its formation.

Raine and Long Fei led the way, followed by six elite soldiers from the Snow Wolf Special Forces, who were responsible for reconnaissance and clearing the way.

In the middle of the team, two Tiger team members supported Dingzi, with Li Na and Lin Mo following closely behind, ready to deal with any emergencies. The remaining Tiger team members were positioned on both flanks, protecting the core.

At the rear was the Eagle Squad, who were responsible for covering the rear while Wang Hao controlled several miniature silent drones to rise into the treetops to monitor the movements over a wider area.

This team, a silent and sophisticated war machine, has started up again.

This time, the movements were lighter and more careful than before.

The jungle at night was eerily quiet.

Everyone treaded as lightly as possible, each step taken with trepidation, afraid of stomping on the dry branches.

The sounds of weapons clashing were kept to a minimum, with only the occasional soft rustling of clothes brushing against the bushes.

The moonlight sliced the dense canopy into fragments, with only scattered spots of light falling on the decaying leaves.

The group followed the ghosts that had merged into the night, moving forward step by step with determination in this unknown jungle.

Time passed second by second.

Exhaustion and drowsiness overwhelmed everyone at once; they were all on the verge of collapse.

The intense fighting and desperate escape had long since exhausted their physical strength, and now they were only holding on by sheer willpower.

Lin Mo followed closely behind Li Na, and could clearly hear the heavy breathing of himself and his teammates around him.

Several times, his eyelids felt so heavy he could barely lift them, and he almost collapsed to the ground. But the silent backs of his teammates in front of him, and the faint footsteps behind him, brought him back to his senses.

We cannot stop, we cannot fall.

This team, in this dark, otherworldly jungle, is a unified entity. If any link in the chain goes wrong, the whole thing could be wiped out.

It didn't stop all night.

As the deepest darkness in the forest began to loosen and a sliver of dawn appeared on the horizon, the group had been walking for several hours.

It was probably late at night, around 2 a.m.

Ryan, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped.

The entire team froze, everyone raising their guns warily and looking around.

Ryan listened intently for a moment, then carefully sniffed the air, and his tense body finally relaxed.

He turned around and gave Lin Mo a weary smile.

"It's safe!" He pointed to an area ahead, his voice hoarse and almost inaudible. "This is the edge of our hunting grounds; the goblins dare not come here."

He took a breath and pointed further ahead.

"We can speed things up now! Once we get through this forest, we'll reach the village! We... can go home!"

Come back home!

Lin Mo immediately repeated Ryan's words aloud.

These two words struck each exhausted soldier like a bolt of lightning.

The hope of survival is within reach!

Light returned to everyone's eyes.

"Speed up!"

Long Fei's voice rang out on the channel, filled with excitement and relief.

"Target: Village ahead! Forced march!!"

"yes!"

The roar that had been suppressed all night finally erupted in a low, guttural burst.