After Crossing Over, I Marked the Empress

Chapter 210 : Unyielding Spirit

The fierce sun hung high in the sky, scorching the earth like a giant furnace.

Shen Han stood silently on the sandy ground outside the Yin Country tent area.

The two soldiers guarding her initially stood close by, watching vigilantly.

But as time passed, they moved to the shade of a tree about three meters away.

After all, their superior's order was only to monitor her, not to stand in the sun themselves.

After about ten minutes, a crowd gathered outside the Yin Country team's area.

Some were from the earlier conflict.

The two Ksenrode speakers and the woman with dreadlocks were among them.

Others came to satisfy their curiosity about the Alpha with striking presence in the camp.

After all, in this mountainside "utopia," entertainment options were scarce.

Fighting, gambling, and drug use were the most common leisure activities in this jungle.

This was why Takeda Tatsuya had been suspicious of the previous main camp.

Now, as the residents of this cliff and waterfall area saw Shen Han standing in the blazing sun, they immediately began to discuss openly.

"Where was she captured from? She's quite pretty, just looks too pale, like she might faint any moment."

"I'm telling you, that Alpha can't be an ordinary person!"

"Someone who can remain so composed in this situation - I've traveled far and wide for over fifty years, and this is the first time I've seen it."

"Does anyone else think she looks like that celebrity from Solan who was popular recently? Called Lin something, I forget, the name had three characters!"

"You mean Lin Xiaoying?"

"Haha, with that plastic surgery face of hers, how could she compare to this one?"

"This Alpha is a real gem. Wonder how she offended those Yin Country folks."

The surrounding people's discussions were in the international common language.

Shen Han listened silently, filtering out information that might be useful to her.

The two Yin Country soldiers guarding her also heard the crowd's chatter.

They didn't know Shen Han's identity, but seeing the local interest in their prisoner, they felt an inexplicable pride.

If not for their duty, they would have joined the revelry.

After all, who could truly ignore a tall, striking beautiful woman?

At this moment, someone from the crowd threw a bar-shaped item towards Shen Han's position.

It was a common nutritional supplement in the jungle camp, gel-like inside, quickly absorbed by the body.

The package flew from Shen Han's side, so fast it reached her forehead in the blink of an eye.

This throw, almost like an attack, immediately stirred the onlookers' emotions.

Whistles arose, and some let out excited shouts.

This was the lawless foreign jungle.

Here, people's behavior faced no constraints.

Even if they were admiring a calm and reserved woman one second, the next they could stir up excitement at her expense.

However, contrary to most people's expectations, the scene of the handcuffed woman being hit on the head didn't materialize.

Instead, Shen Han, who had been standing quietly, suddenly raised both arms, gently grasping to the side, catching the nutrition bar.

The Alpha's long fingers closed slightly, gripping the pink package.

The scorching sunlight illuminated her palm, making it look like an exquisite work of art.

Shen Han moved the item to her eyes, and after reading the description on the package, she immediately bit open the bag, swallowing the contents as quickly as possible.

After these days of trekking, Shen Han had regained her original appearance.

The ponytail tied at the back of her head was gone, her black hair spread messily over her shoulders like flowing clouds, giving her a wild beauty.

Though her condition looked terrible, her reactions were surprisingly sharp.

Her movements were crisp and efficient, showing no sign of weakness.

This contradiction directly ignited the onlookers' passion.

Immediately, more people began throwing their food, fruit, and medicines towards Shen Han.

From afar, it somewhat resembled the ancient custom of "fruit-filled carriages" for admired officials.

However, the crowd's throwing wasn't out of admiration, but more for amusement.

Shen Han didn't care why the people around her were throwing food and water.

She kept catching these things she needed most, then selectively consuming them.

Seeing this, the two Yin Country soldiers standing in the shade were dumbfounded.

They didn't dare shoot at the surrounding crowd, so one went forward to disperse them while the other angrily rushed towards Shen Han.

The already noisy scene became even more clamorous from this point on.

……

Takeda Tatsuya sat with a gloomy face in the innermost military tent.

Hearing the growing commotion outside, he was curious but couldn't spare the attention to investigate or deal with it.

Because on the other end of the satellite phone, Kitahara Tei was berating him furiously.

Those merciless words made even the seasoned professional spy's head spin.

The loss of the auction items, the sacrifice of personnel, and the damage to the Yin Country cabinet's reputation -

Kitahara Tei pinned all these failures on Takeda Tatsuya.

Moreover, Takeda Tatsuya was also bombarded for taking detours and changing camps.

When Kitahara Tei raged about this point, his anger was genuine.

One reason was that he hadn't had an easy time these past few days either.

Though he hadn't been beaten or abused, the pressure from the Federation Empress's side had him living in constant terror and despair.

Another reason was that even Kitahara Tei, the overall commander of the operation, didn't know about the backup camp.

Only after Takeda Tatsuya's explanation did he learn that the second camp was a contingency the other had reserved by applying to higher-ups without his knowledge.

From a third-party perspective, one had to admit that Takeda Tatsuya's forethought and judgment were impressively astute.

However, from his own standpoint, Kitahara Tei was extremely dissatisfied with the other's actions.

In his view, if not for Takeda Tatsuya, he wouldn't have been dealt with so harshly by the Federation Empress.

He had now become a discarded pawn.

Not only was his hard-earned fortune gone, but even if he was lucky enough to return home, he couldn't escape judgment.

At this point in the conversation, Gu Junwan, sitting near Kitahara Tei, typed a line on her tablet and placed the screen before him.

[Ask him why he took a hostage and detoured, and the hostage's current condition.]

The entire Yin Country delegation was under close surveillance by the Lady's team.

So when Takeda Tatsuya's satellite call came in earlier, Gu Junwan knew immediately.

She came from the command center to where Kitahara Tei was detained and guided the entire conversation.

The moment she heard that Takeda Tatsuya had captured a prisoner and fled, Gu Junwan genuinely felt a sense of surviving a calamity.

Though her expression remained calm throughout, in places no one could see, her fingertips trembled uncontrollably.

Shen Han was still alive!

This news saved Gu Junwan's life.

The gray, numb world that had persisted for days gradually regained its color at this moment.

The current situation was crucial, and Gu Junwan dared not relax for a moment.

She continued to guide the conversation, trying to rescue her beloved while also taking down that cursed enemy.

Through the receiver came Takeda Tatsuya's slightly irritated voice: "Minister Kitahara, I've already explained. I had compelling reasons for the detour."

"The hostage I captured is the captain of the Federation Empress's guard. Her importance far exceeds your imagination. Believe me, if we bring her back, we'll have a chance to make amends."

In the following time, Gu Junwan learned the location of the backup camp through the call.

She ordered Kitahara Tei to immediately set a time with the other side, bring the hostage, and rendezvous with the armed helicopter coming to assist.

While Gu Junwan was behind the scenes, step by step hunting her strongest opponent, an unexpected change occurred in the sandy area of the jungle camp.

As soon as the crowd-throwing incident began, a Yin Country soldier rushed forward to punish the prisoner who had caused the chaos.

Unexpectedly, before his kick could land, Shen Han had already flashed behind him.

The scorching metal chain wrapped around his throat, instantly cutting off the soldier's breath.

A knee strike to his spine prevented him from retreating even half a step.

Shen Han's counterattack completely excited the onlookers.

The soldier responsible for stopping people from throwing food was both shocked and angry.

The development of events repeatedly exceeded his understanding.

If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed that a woman who could barely stand steadily could launch a surprise attack on his comrade.

He called out loudly while releasing the safety on his gun, intending to resolve the problem in the most effective way.

However, before he could find a good shooting angle, his weapon was snatched away.

Four or five of those originally standing outside the Yin Country team's alert zone had somehow broken in.

After seizing the weapons, they didn't attack but laughingly pushed the Yin Country soldiers towards the sandy area.

"It's already unfair for two of you to fight one, no more guns allowed."

"Come on, Yin Country guy! Can't you even beat a handcuffed woman?"

As the taunts grew, the disarmed Yin Country soldier was furious but helpless.

He took out a whistle and baton from his tactical vest, sounding the alarm while quickly attacking Shen Han.

Shen Han dropped the now lifeless body of the Yin Country man.

She opened her wrist restraints with the wire, raised her arm to take a hard blow from the baton, then seized her opponent's shoulder and neck.

Earlier, though Shen Han had consumed some nutritional supplements, the strength depleted over days couldn't be immediately restored.

In her current condition and circumstances, she couldn't engage in prolonged combat with her opponent.

Only a one-strike defeat technique was her best option now.

For the previous enemy, she had used strangulation.

For this one, it was the same.

Shen Han quickly moved behind the enemy, one arm around his carotid artery, the other across the back of his head, pushing forward forcefully.

Amidst the Yin Country soldier's death struggle, both fell to the ground.

The pain from her bones made Shen Han feel like she was falling apart, but she maintained her grip on the enemy's throat without loosening for a moment.

Only after confirming her opponent had no possibility of resistance did she release her arms and slowly stand up.

Not far away, seven or eight Yin Country soldiers were rushing over with guns.

The crowd of onlookers a few meters away fell silent at this moment.

At the focus of everyone's gaze, the tall, thin Alpha wiped blood from the corner of her mouth.

Her back was no longer slightly bent as before. That straight posture was like an unyielding pine, showing indomitable spirit!

The Alpha's cheeks were spattered with bits of blood, unclear whether her own or the enemy's.

A few strands of sweat-dampened hair clung to her well-defined jaw, somehow exuding an untimely sensuality.

However, when those clear black and white eyes swept around, everyone distinctly felt a sharp edge.

Shen Han began to walk outward.

In her path stood a group of people, including the dreadlocked woman who had thrown her water earlier.

Shen Han didn't stop, her gaze calm and steady as she looked at the dreadlocked woman who seemed to be the leader.

The woman first hesitated, then led her people to open a path.

She watched the Alpha walking directly towards her, quite moved.

Both for the person and for her skills.

But she only admired silently; she wouldn't seriously confront the Yin Country team for a stranger.

The unobstructed path made Shen Han breathe a sigh of relief inwardly.

She gradually quickened her pace, then broke into a run.

The mountain wind rushing past made her long hair dance wildly, free and unrestrained.

Her figure was extremely agile, like a cheetah about to return to the grasslands!

At the moment the Yin Country soldiers began their pursuit, she had already reached the edge of the cliff nearest to her.

She leapt, disappearing into the roaring torrent.