We moved forward under a hail of bullets, constantly taking cover. Fortunately, the aquarium was filled with various glass tanks, tables, and display cases that served as barriers against the gunfire. We narrowly escaped death under the barrage of prisoners' concentrated attacks. After passing through a tunnel with glass on both sides, we finally met up with He Jinghui's people.
He was engaged in hand-to-hand combat with numerous SWAT officers and mercenaries. He was initially gaining the upper hand, but his men began to be suppressed as the mercenaries arrived in waves. By the time I rushed to support, several SWAT officers had already been shot. I dragged the injured and Liu Yuning, tackling many mercenaries and beating them severely. Then, the police opened fire. After a fierce battle, the center of the aquarium fell silent.
He Xin and Dao Zhiyong, leading a large group, breached through another entrance. Upon finding us, He Xin told me, "We still haven't found Su Yaxin's trace."
"It seems she's hidden very deep."
"I will continue to search!"
We split up, maintaining contact via radio.
We had to find her as quickly as possible, but mercenaries constantly intercepted us. Numerous fish tanks were shattered by our gunfire, and streams of water gushed out. We stepped on the flowing water, pressing forward, maintaining our speed amidst the splashing water. At several turns, we preemptively eliminated many mercenaries who suddenly appeared.
I saw that most of the aquarium staff had been turned into their people and were resisting with weapons, but some surrendered directly and joined our fight.
This group of staff members was strong and numerous. It seemed they could be useful later.
With their help, even more mercenaries were killed, and we stormed all the way to the third floor of the aquarium, where we found only mercenary corpses. We retrieved some weapons, but still had no information about Su Yaxin.
Where on earth had they hidden her?
After suppressing the aquarium and eliminating the immediate danger, we began a thorough and cautious search. We searched from the upper floors to the basement, and even in the water. Just as I was wondering where the person could be, the sound of countless vehicles echoed from outside the aquarium. Liu Yuning was the first to react: "This is bad! The Northern Star's reinforcements must be here!"
"Damn it, they must be furious after being beaten by us this time. They want to seize the aquarium back! He Bailing, He Jinghui, Gao Mingqiang, Dao Zhiyong, Xie Chuchu, Ling Xiaotao, and all police officers, immediately reinforce our defenses. We must repel this invading reinforcement! He Xin, Liu Yuning, and I will continue to search for Su Yaxin!"
"Understood!"
Everyone took their positions, armed and concealed in ambush spots. Snipers, shotguns, assault rifles, and light machine guns were deployed. They had to hold the aquarium, or all would be lost.
I knew this mission was arduous, so I spoke solemnly to Gao Mingqiang and Dao Zhiyong with serious words.
"Don't worry, leader. You've known me for so long. You know I can be a bit slow sometimes, and I still have my moments even now, but I've never lost a tough fight!"
"Alright, Mingqiang, you take Monkey. He doesn't have enough experience yet. Don't let anyone get hurt!"
"Understood!" Everyone set off. I glanced at Yuning and He Xin. We, this family of three, had to find Su Yaxin!
He Xin fumbled with her wristband, using her radar to scan meticulously. As we put on our diving suits, we plunged into the water. We searched for a long time, ruling out the aquarium's land areas before focusing on the water. The three of us swam continuously. The oxygen tanks should last for an hour. If we couldn't find her within an hour, High Mingqiang and the others would likely be finished. Therefore, we had to be fast.
We separated in the water. We thought there would be no mercenaries, but as we swam, several individuals in diving suits approached me!
Damn it, how could this be? I felt a surge of tension, but my instinct told me I had to deal with them, or I would be finished!
There were three of them, and they were all very strong. Seeing a large glass container nearby, I realized that Su Yaxin must be here, otherwise, there wouldn't be guards. This meant these three divers were the mercenaries guarding the container.
I gripped my weapon. Although I could shoot underwater, not all guns were capable of this. If I took an M4 out of the water and fired, it would immediately backfire, posing a high risk. Furthermore, bullets that could travel hundreds of meters on land were useless underwater.
However, this pistol, codenamed Falcon, which my father used, had been modified with waterproof cotton, making it function just like it would on land, even underwater. I pulled the trigger recklessly. The mercenaries likely didn't even react, or perhaps didn't understand why I could still fire. However, within a minute, I had killed all three of them. I swam past their bodies, and through the blood-tinged water, I reached the container. There was no switch, so I tried to ram it, but after several attempts, it didn't budge.
The glass was too strong. He Xin and Liu Yuning swam to my side, likely hearing the commotion. Seeing the bodies, they understood immediately. But now came the problem: how to open this container.
As we hesitated, He Xin gestured in front of us, communicating entirely in sign language. Then, we all understood. He Xin took out a bomb and attached it to the glass. We retreated a bit. This bomb had a small explosive power and wouldn't harm the person inside. Furthermore, it had been specially modified by He Xin to adapt to various environments. The specific principles are omitted here for brevity...
You wouldn't understand even if I explained it. Only a scientific genius like her could grasp its principles.
After we moved a distance away, a dull thud echoed. Perhaps due to being underwater, the sound wasn't loud and didn't create much of a splash. We had dived deep. When we approached the gap, we indeed found Su Yaxin in the container. Originally, the container was sealed, and water couldn't reach inside, but now it was different. He Xin and Liu Yuning immediately pulled Su Yaxin out and took turns helping her with her diving mask. I also helped replace them and then swam as fast as possible towards the surface, pulling her along.
When we surfaced, everyone took a deep breath. We were all okay. Su Yaxin, however, had red eyes.
"Wuwu, I thought I was going to die! In that environment, it's impossible for a human to survive! I imagined countless times starving to death, being tortured to death by fear!"
"Yaxin, pull yourself together! Don't cry!"
But Su Yaxin collapsed to the ground, seemingly unresponsive, as if her entire world had crumbled. But we knew, her sky had fallen.