Chapter 289: Hardy and Others Lose Contact, Wu Yaoming Forced to Enter the Mountains to Find Them

At the same time, Wu Yaoming informed everyone about the situation.

“Wang Yun must have made his way up the mountain from the riverbank. You’ve already sent the other four captains ahead to scout, right? Good call. The mountain is vast and filled with dangers. It’s smart to scout first. Now that Wang Yun only has two people left with him, contact Hardy and the others to update them,” Zhao Youcheng quickly speculated.

He had been monitoring the drone fish’s perspective in the river, but the view had shown no activity for some time. He was already convinced that Wang Yun and his group had left the river and come ashore.

Meanwhile, the climbing team sent a report saying there was no path left on the rocks. They had found a cave via drone, with clear signs that someone had been living inside. On the outer edge of the cave entrance, there were visible marks from a rope.

It was now certain.

Wang Yun and his group had descended from the cave, crossed the river, and their tracks had been discovered.

After being spotted, Wang Yun and his four companions jumped into the river to escape. Wang Zi had been injured, and the initial assessment was that a wound on his palm allowed the poison gas to enter, causing him to fall unconscious. His palm was riddled with tiny holes, and the medical team confirmed that it was caused by a plant’s root system, which also carried a mild toxin.

The toxins had mixed with the poisonous mist due to the delay in treatment, which was what caused the coma.

Wu Yaoming received Zhao Youcheng’s message and immediately responded.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Zhao. I’ve already asked Brother Qian to send word to them.”

Qian Guosen received the order and quickly sent a message to Hardy and his team. But strangely, there was no immediate reply from Hardy and the others. Even after Wu Yaoming returned to the tent, Hardy still hadn’t responded.

“What’s going on?” Wu Yaoming first asked Qian Guosen.

He then turned to look at Ying Yuezi.

“Captain Ying, I’ll leave this person in your hands.”

Ying Yuezi was highly skilled in criminological psychology. She nodded when she saw Xiao Gang, who still refused to meet their gaze.

Wu Yaoming then approached Qian Guosen.

“Still no response?”

Qian Guosen nodded, frowning as his fingers danced across the keyboard. The screen in front of him, filled with numbers, kept flashing.

Qian Guosen forcefully hit the enter key. Two seconds later, the screen flashed–Message sent!

“The message went through, but none of the four in Captain Hardy’s group have replied. I tried calling, but there’s no service. It seems there’s no signal inside the mountain,” Qian Guosen said anxiously.

At this point, only Wang Yun and Brother Hu were still in the mountain. Xiao Gang and Wang Zi had already made it out. This meant that the two red dots close together on the heat map were almost certainly Wang Yun and Brother Hu. The other four dots must be someone else.

When Wu Yaoming heard Qian Guosen’s words, his frown deepened.

Wang Yun would have certainly calculated the timing of Xiao Gang and Wang Zi’s escape. He would also be aware that he had been exposed by now, and no doubt he was already prepared. A counterattack was what worried them the most.

At this thought, Wu Yaoming couldn’t sit still any longer.

“I’m taking a team in now. I need to find those eight people before Wang Yun does. They shouldn’t have gotten far.”

After saying this, Wu Yaoming started counting his team members. Wu Mingyu, who knew all about the situation, stepped out of the tent.

“Be careful out there,” Wu Mingyu said.

Both he and Wu Yaoming shared the same surname and family lineage, and after working together for so long, they developed a deep bond. 

Now, with his back injury preventing him from joining the mission, Wu Mingyu felt a tinge of guilt.

“Don’t worry. Right now, the priority is finding those eight people. That’s a lot easier than finding Wang Yun himself,” Wu Yaoming said with a reassuring tone.

Wu Mingyu nodded but stayed silent.

Without wasting any more time, Wu Yaoming led the team into the forest. Fustan, an athlete known for his endurance and speed, joined the group. His skills would come in handy.

By the time Wu Yaoming entered the mountain, it was already eight o’clock in the evening.

***

It wasn’t just the inside of the mountain that was pitch black—even the outside sky was so dark you couldn’t see your hand in front of you. There were no lights anywhere near the jungle. If not for their portable lights, walking alone here at night would be terrifying enough to scare someone to death. 

Inside the mountain, it was even darker. Even the sound of the wind had disappeared. 

It felt like they had stepped into another world, where everything seemed strangely unreal. 

“Everyone, be careful of the plants around you, don’t expose any skin. And stay close to your partners. Try to support each other as you walk. No matter what happens, don’t panic. Remember, we’re here to find people.”

Wu Yaoming’s voice was stern as it came through the intercom.

This time, he hadn’t brought many people—just twenty. 

But these twenty were elite program inspectors. Though the numbers were small, every single one of them was highly skilled.

Their main objective now was to find Hardy’s group of eight and get out of this eerie place safely.

“Captain Wu, the visibility is getting worse,” Fustan whispered, his face full of caution, as they’d been walking for less than half an hour.