Hunter of Mysterious Creature-Chapter 366 - 27: Curtain of Rain
"Could something have happened?" Another person said as he started taking off the equipment hanging on his power armor one by one, and began changing the batteries.
"Pah, don’t jinx it with your nonsense!" his colleague spat. "I’m going out to take a look. Remember to reinforce the tent... damn it, if this rain doesn’t stop, I feel like this place will soon become a swamp."
"It’s already a swamp now." The person changing the batteries lifted his foot, with dark, sticky mud sliding off his calf and landing on the waterproof mat inside the tent.
"When Mr. Li and the others come back, let’s apply to move the observation post back a few miles... I reckon in less than half a day, this whole area will be flooded." The mechanical arm, painted with black and yellow warning stripes, lifted the tent flap as the over three-meter-tall power armor stepped into the rain once more.
With one step, a "squelch" sound was heard as the boot of the power armor sank deep into the soft mud, with the muck and dirty water from all sides instantly submerging his instep.
Fortunately, the joints of the power armor were specially waterproofed, and a layer of polymer material was used for sealing on the outside. So not only could it traverse a rainy swamp but it could also move underwater without any problem.
The man glanced at the screen projected on the inside of his visor. The remaining oxygen content was 67%, which was fully sufficient for trekking back and forth in the mission area twice.
He reached back to feel the backup oxygen tank hanging on his lower back and continued to tread forward, one foot deep, the other shallow.
The rain was heavy, and the wind fierce. Aside from the static crackling in the communication channel, there was only the constant rustling sound of the rain. He reached out and turned on the searchlights on top of the helmet and on his shoulders; however, the light was swallowed by the darkness in less than fifty meters, showing only a faint outline of things farther away.
"Wang, how’s it going on your side? Did you manage to extract the video files?" he asked over the communication channel.
"Not good, most of the video files are already corrupted. I’ll send them back first, and as for how much can be restored, it’s just a matter of luck." Wang, the field operation officer who earlier complained about his skin irritation, replied. "Honestly, restoring them may not have much point anyway. It’s all just a big black blur with nothing valuable captured."
"I’ll head in the direction Mr. Li and the others went. You hurry up and reinforce the tent." He looked back at the tent. "The wind is too strong. I feel like the tent is going to get blown away."
"Forget reinforcing it; just pack up and retreat to Observation Post One." Wang grumbled. "This place is just unbearable... Damn, my camera lens hit the ground!"
"That works but we have to wait for Mr. Li and the others first." The person who walked out of the tent switched the communication to public channel. "This is Observation Post Zero, Liu Yu, number 0261, calling Lee Yimin, Peng Wei. Please respond if you hear. Repeating, Liu Yu calling Lee Yimin, Peng Wei, please respond if you hear."
In the communication channel, there was only the rustling sound of static with no response.
"Mr. Liu, I’d say you should stay here." Wang’s voice came through the communication channel. "Visibility outside is less than thirty meters, and it’s still raining heavily. If you go alone to find them and they come back while you’re lost, that would be trouble."
Liu Yu, who had just crept forward a few meters, stopped. After thinking for a moment, he realized Wang had a point... They were only five minutes past the scheduled return time, and the other group might not have run into any accident, just being slowed down by the bad weather.
"You’re right..." Liu Yu murmured. He lifted his head and looked towards that colossal figure standing glowingly in the rain... For some reason, an inexplicable irritation began to grow in his heart.
"Mr. Liu, we got approval to withdraw from Observation Post Zero." Wang’s voice sounded again. "They told us to take all equipment and personnel and immediately retreat to Observation Post One. Furthermore, new reinforcements are on the way."
"Alright, pack the stuff up, and make sure nothing is left behind," Liu Yu nodded. "Just waiting for Mr. Li and the others."
"Already packed," Wang said. "There wasn’t much; just stuffed them into the box and clipped it onto the rack at the back... As for the tent, let’s just leave it. It’s not worth much anyway." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶
"Since it’s not coming out of your pocket, of course, you’re not concerned." Liu Yu glanced back at the junior emerging from the tent. "Back in the day, when the department’s budget was tight..."
"Enough, enough, let’s not start reminiscing in the middle of this situation. We’re already dealing with enough." Wang couldn’t help but complain.
Liu Yu turned his head back and didn’t continue.
"Man, I wonder if all the Field Operations Department personnel in Tianfu City are wiped out or something? Such an important task handed over to us. We just landed, didn’t even get our bearings, and we’re thrown right onto the front lines... just my luck!" Wang, carrying a tall stack of boxes, wobbled over to Liu Yu, his mouth never stopping with complaints.
