Hunting the Instructors 4

The sky continued to darken, and visibility dropped with every passing minute. Once the six of them regrouped, their first order of business was finding Liu Zheng a suitable sniper perch. The terrain was ideal for an ambush, but no spot was perfect—every option offered only mediocre concealment. In the end, based on the heavy sniper rifle's maximum effective range, Xu Lingqu positioned Liu Zheng at the highest point on the right flank. A shallow depression there, filled with weeds for cover, allowed Liu Zheng to blend seamlessly into the rocks and brush in the growing darkness. The only drawback was that the distance hovered right at the edge of the rifle's effective range, putting Liu Zheng to the test. She would have to stay rigid and hidden for long stretches, suppressing the instructors as they entered the ambush zone from that extreme distance.

"Five."

Just as Liu Zheng nervously made final adjustments to her heavy sniper rifle, Xu Lingqu, who had come to help her, spoke up.

"What?" Liu Zheng was confused.

"Your minimum requirement: take out five instructors." Xu Lingqu placed a camouflage weed on her. "If I were in your position, I could do it. Since you beat me, you definitely can."

Liu Zheng paused, then smiled. "Understood, Commander."

Xu Lingqu assigned positions to the others based on their shooting skills and habits. During the supply drops, they'd tried to scavenge ammunition, but whenever they ran into ordinary students competing for the same supplies, they backed off. As a result, their haul was modest—just ten extra rounds per person.

"In this exercise, only bullets can eliminate you, so aim carefully," Xu Lingqu said to everyone. "But there will be times when you have to engage the instructors hand-to-hand. When that happens, watch their muzzles and try to maneuver them into our snipers' line of sight. Our snipers will handle it."

Everything was in place. They only had to wait for the right moment, and then the trap would spring.

Meanwhile, the "prey"—the instructors—were still outside, gearing up.

"I specifically requested this batch from the Military Department. Outstanding new recruits. They're working well, aren't they?" Vice Principal Su Li asked, one hand on her hip, addressing Instructor Chen and Kai Ang.

"Excellent, truly excellent," Kai Ang nodded. In the past, Moye Military Academy would typically use third-year students as ordinary instructors, but getting personnel from the Military Department was a good start.

It was almost time for the instructors to enter the assessment area and clear out the remaining students. The smart screen showed that only 37 students were still inside, including Xu Lingqu's group. Their kill count still showed zero. Something was off. Very off.

Kai Ang had planned to go in with them to check things out, but Vice Principal Su Li stopped him. "You don't really need to go in, do you?" Su Li said, puzzled. "Don't you trust this batch?"

"It's not that." Her words made Kai Ang give up the idea. At that moment, he recalled Instructor Chen's remark about Xu Lingqu capturing him alive, and a flash of inspiration hit. He emphasized to the twenty instructors about to go in, "Don't let your guard down. When you get in, prioritize finding those five."

The lead instructor, surnamed Zhang, was an outstanding graduate of Shaji, one of the six major military academies, and had performed brilliantly among the new recruits in the Military Department.

Instructor Zhang replied on behalf of the others, "Yes, sir."

At the designated time, they entered the assessment area, now shrouded in darkness. The moment they stepped in, another ordinary instructor behind Zhang grumbled, "What does Commander Kai Ang mean by that? Does he really think those students could pose a threat to us?" After all, they were new recruits of the Military Department and veterans of three military academy leagues. They might not be famous figures, but they had far more practical experience than the students.

Another instructor chimed in, "Yeah, yeah. If any of those brats got a hit on me, my squad leader would laugh me to death."

Instructor Zhang turned to look at them. "You all know very well what level this new batch at Moye Military Academy—especially the top five—are at." As instructors, even if they weren't the head instructors like Kai Ang or Instructor Chen, they had witnessed the students' growth. These new students, especially those five, were on the verge of reaching the top tier among military academy students. Shen Shouli had been groomed since childhood to be the future star of the military, given his family background. Jin, though his background was unclear, had clearly received professional training. Xu Xiqin needed no introduction—her brother often bragged to his colleagues about how outstanding his sister was. And Liu Zheng's shooting record was known across the entire star system.

But none of them were the most terrifying. The other four could be explained by family background or innate psychic ability. No, the most terrifying was that B-rank student, Xu Lingqu. Her rate of improvement was simply monstrous. Give her a little more time, and it wouldn't be surprising if she became the military's next pentathlon soldier.

"Do not take this lightly. Approach them with the same seriousness as your live-fire training in the Military Department," Instructor Zhang said, then immediately divided them into four groups of five, each heading in a different direction to conduct a systematic search for the five students.

In the darkness, Guan Zhongli was frantically fleeing with Lin Xiao, who had a leg wound from a branch.

"Can you make it?"

"Absolutely."

Lin Xiao gritted her teeth and kept pace with Guan Zhongli as they raced toward the coordinates Xu Lingqu had sent them. They had run into a group of instructors who were originally supposed to be searching for the five. Likely not having taken Instructor Zhang's warning to heart—they just wanted to clear out the students early and go home—these five instructors immediately opened fire and gave chase upon spotting Guan Zhongli and Lin Xiao.

The gap between the two students and the instructors narrowed. Just as it seemed they would be back within shooting range, with one final push, they managed to step into Xu Lingqu's ambush zone. They threw themselves into the undergrowth, feigning total exhaustion and injury.

Seeing that they couldn't run anymore, the five instructors slowed their pace, focusing only on the two students about to be eliminated, and walked straight into the ambush without a care.

"Commander Zhang's really something, isn't he? These students have been at it for so long that even if they were top-notch, they'd be dead tired now. Why the extra caution, and why bother hunting down those five who are hiding away? Ugh," one of them complained as he moved closer to tag the two students out.

A gunshot rang out, but not from his weapon.

The heavy sniper round tore through the air, striking the instructor precisely in the shoulder with incredible speed. The force of the bullet sent him sprawling. Before his expression could even change, his combat uniform's alarm blared, emitting white smoke to signal his elimination.

His teammates were not spared either. Bullets from various angles claimed them in the blink of an eye.

In an instant, an entire instructor team was wiped out.