In the vast night, a solitary off-road vehicle moved alone.
Only Song Heping was in the car.
He stared at the GPS device hanging on the dashboard, constantly correcting his direction.
He was no stranger to this sense of solitude.
He thrived in the darkness even more so.
The road was tough to navigate, and due to unfamiliar terrain, Song Heping had to stop several times to find a passage for his off-road vehicle.
However, with his rich experience in wilderness survival, Song Heping still arrived at the designated meeting place early.
After stopping the car, he didn't immediately get out but instead used night vision gear and a telescope to observe his surroundings from inside the vehicle.
It was obvious he had arrived early.
Naxin hadn't come yet.
He suddenly noticed something slowly approaching his feet.
Looking down, it was a scorpion from the desert.
Song Heping stepped on it, crushing it into a pulp.
This creature was common in the desert.
But you always had to deal with it when you saw one.
Because you never knew when it would climb up your pant leg and give you a bite.
Some scorpions aren't deadly, but some are.
Like the ones here, they're lethal.
Back when he was doing business in the Green Zone, he'd seen American soldiers rushed back by helicopter, claiming they were bitten by a scorpion and needed urgent care, or they'd die.
"Too bad I can't light a fire..."
Song Heping felt a bit regretful.
Scorpions are a good source of protein.
A survival delicacy.
In the past, if he caught one in the wild, he would definitely kill it, roast it, and eat it. Crunchy and delicious.
Just as Song Heping was lamenting over the scorpion, he suddenly heard a strange noise.
The sound was coming from the sky.
Looking up.
What the hell!
He was startled.
A dark silhouette appeared in the distance.
Under the moonlight, it was clearly a helicopter.
"Whose helicopter!?"
Out of instinct, Song Heping immediately ran and hid behind a nearby sand dune.
The helicopter drew closer.
He finally saw clearly that it wasn't a US Army helicopter.
Americans usually have Black Hawk Helicopters or Chinooks.
Or the armed Apache.
This one was definitely none of the three.
Song Heping had thought to just hide until it flew past, but to his surprise, the helicopter began to hover near his off-road vehicle and slowly descended.
"This is bad..."
Only then did Song Heping remember that his off-road vehicle was a huge object that hadn't been camouflaged.
Who would have thought a helicopter would appear in such a remote place?
This location was only less than five kilometers away from the mountain area.
Past those mountains, it was Persia.
The inner conflicts of Illiguo had turned it into chaos, and the borders were long unguarded.
Especially in the northern mountainous region here, it's the area where various armed organizations and Kurd people operate.
The focus of the US Army was on major cities like Mosul, Tikrit, and Haditha, leaving them no resources to patrol this place.
The helicopter landed on the ground.
A person came down from the machine.
Song Heping looked and breathed a sigh of relief.
It was Naxin!
He walked out from behind the sand dune and shouted from a distance at Naxin, "Quite the grand entrance, you actually dare to openly fly a helicopter here?"
Naxin also saw Song Heping.
However, he was a bit shocked to see the other party alone.
"Just by yourself?"
"Yes." Song Heping said, "Where's your superior?"
Naxin pointed to the plane, "Get on the plane, I'll take you to him."
Song Heping asked, "What do you mean?"
"It means nothing." Naxin said, "The meeting point is not here, this is the rendezvous point. My superior wouldn't leave his own country to meet you here, we are not as foolish as the Kurd people."
Obviously, Naxin was referring to the incident where Lars was targeted for assassination during a meeting with Kurd people.
It seemed the incident had a significant impact.
Probably all armed organizations around the border were aware of it.
"What's the matter?" Seeing that Song Heping hadn't immediately responded, Naxin's mouth showed a sneer of disdain: "Aren't you very bold? You're even scared to get on our helicopter now?"
Song Heping said, "Let's go, I'm not afraid to come here alone, so why would I fear you taking me to your Persians to meet your superior?"
He guessed the superior Naxin was taking him to meet was definitely not a minor official.
Otherwise, why wouldn't he dare to cross the border?
He must be avoiding any possible mishaps, not allowing any at all.
Otherwise, there was no need to go to the trouble of arranging a helicopter to transport him across the border just for a meeting.
A person who could so easily arrange a helicopter for a meeting wasn't an ordinary Persian military official.
Naxin was an officer in the special forces squadron of the Revolutionary Guard.
His superior...
Could it be the commander responsible for special operations?
"Let's go, I'll fly you there."
Naxin gestured with a wave of his hand, pointing towards the helicopter.
Song Heping didn't bother with him any further. If he even hesitated for a moment, the Persian man before him would probably scoff at his cowardice.
As he got closer to the helicopter, Song Heping could see it clearly.
It was indeed an American-made helicopter.
But the model was quite old.
Song Heping recognized the model; it was the Bell 212 utility helicopter, a relic of a model first introduced to the market in 1968.
In fact, it was a civil version converted from the UH-1 military helicopter. The US Army no longer uses this type of helicopter, with most now being used by oil companies for transporting equipment to and from drilling platforms.
If Song Heping guessed correctly, Naxin's Bell-212 was likely purchased during the Pahlavi dynasty era from Bell Helicopter. Back then, the Persians and the Americans were on the same side until relations soured.
Because of this history, Song Heping felt rather uneasy sitting in it.
This helicopter must have been purchased in the '70s, which means it was already over two decades old. After the Persians fell out with the Americans, they undoubtedly couldn't get any parts.
After so many years, surely parts of this helicopter must have broken down, right?
What if something broke?
Could they repair it themselves?
"Why do you seem a bit uneasy?" Naxin noticed, as Song Heping looked around the cabin left and right, and then down at the ground, seemingly anxious.
"Aren't you worried this helicopter will fall out of the sky? Relax, the pilot is the best, very experienced!"
He burst out laughing.
Song Heping chuckled coldly and said, "It's not that I'm uneasy about your pilots. I just have no confidence in your helicopter."
Finally, he asked Naxin, "We're heading into your territory, right?"
"Yes," Naxin replied. "We have a camp on the border. We'll meet there tonight."
Song Heping asked, "What rank is your superior?"
Naxin shook his head, clearly unwilling to answer: "Don't ask. Even if you do, I won't tell you!"
It was all very secretive.
Song Heping's interest in the mysterious superior he was about to meet was growing stronger.
Fortunately, after just over 30 minutes in the air, they began to descend.
That meant they weren't far from the actual meeting place.
With the help of night vision goggles, Song Heping saw a valley appearing in front of them, and within the valley, a camp site.
The style and layout of the buildings made it clear that it was a military camp, and definitely one belonging to a combat unit.
The arrangement and construction of buildings in a military camp has specific requirements, and combat unit bases around the world are no exception.
For example, the buildings in a combat camp are typically not very tall, with five or six stories being the limit. Most have only two or three floors, or even just one, which allows soldiers to assemble quickly.
Moreover, the buildings in a camp are spaced far enough apart from each other and there is sufficient open space for assembling equipment.
All buildings in this valley met these specifications.
The helicopter quickly landed on an open space within the camp, and suddenly, over twenty armed soldiers gathered around.
Song Heping glanced at the men.
From their aura, they all appeared to be elite soldiers, and judging by their formation, they were also well-trained as they surrounded him and the helicopter.
As he got off the helicopter, Naxin said, "Follow me."
He then led the way.
Song Heping followed.
The soldiers immediately formed two columns, one on each side, flanking Song Heping in a manner one might reserve for a significant threat.
When they reached a one-story building, Naxin stopped and looking at the pistol on Song Heping's waist, said, "You must hand this over, and you'll also need to be searched."
Song Heping quipped, "Is this the Persian way of hospitality?"
Naxin immediately appeared embarrassed.
Indeed.
Song Heping had come alone to their territory, and with at least hundreds of men in the camp, searching him did seem a bit over the top.
"Go ahead and search," said Song Heping, spreading his arms. "I won't make it tough for you. After the search, take me to meet your esteemed leader."
Naxin was inwardly shocked, wondering how Song Heping knew they were going to meet someone important.
But he held back the question.
After all, asking would be an admission.
After the search was complete and they confiscated all of Song Heping's weapons and ammunition, Naxin finally led him inside the building.
There were two doors to get inside.
The security was just as tight.
As they moved along, Song Heping began to wonder about the situation.
It didn't make sense.
He was just the owner of a small defense company.
He was only guarding a couple of oil fields, so there was no need for such a grand response to transport him to Persia to meet with what appeared to be a high-ranking officer of the Persian special forces unit.
Was it really necessary?
The number of question marks in his mind was growing.
But he knew he wouldn't get any answers by asking.
So, he had no choice but to take it one step at a time.
From the current situation, he could be sure that at least Naxin and his superior had no ill intentions towards him.
That much seemed certain.
After passing through two iron doors and entering the inner room, the whole scene changed.
The inside, while modest compared to the outside, was a different story. When Song Heping stepped on the red Persian carpet on the floor, he knew this pure wool carpet was a high-end item.
Having done business in these parts, he had some understanding of carpets.
The softer it was, the higher quality the wool, and it might even be cashmere.
The thicker the carpet, the more material it used, and the more expensive it was.
Sitting on the carpet was a man in his forties or fifties, wearing a khaki jacket, with gray crew-cut hair and the typical beard common in this region.
What attracted the most attention were the several rings he wore, one of which had a large red ruby set in it.
The red ruby was a Persian specialty.
And was one of the finest rubies found in Blue Star.
The man sat cross-legged on the carpet, seemingly meditating, quietly chanting scriptures as if in prayer.
"Avanti,"
Naxin moved forward, lowering his voice respectfully.
"He's here."
Avanti?
Song Heping felt a jolt inside.
To be addressed as "Avanti," this man was no ordinary individual.