The new plan Sonny mentioned came as a complete surprise, and as the squad leader, Jason had no prior knowledge of it, leaving him thoroughly confused.
At the same time, he was somewhat annoyed!
He felt compelled to ask what had happened and why Sonny had decided to change the original orders without informing him.
However, considering the current situation, the time for B Squad's retreat was running out. If there was a vehicle available for evacuation, it would be much faster and safer than the earlier plan to run on foot.
Jason decided to hold off on questioning for the time being and responded that Sonny and his team would arrive in time.
Sonny was relaying information while retreating, and by the time the communication ended, he and Long Zhan had reached the first floor, and after sprinting out the door, it took them less than 10 seconds to reach their designated position.
Along the way, Long Zhan also casually took out one of the Lionheart King's soldiers hiding in an alley, dragging the body back to the assembly point.
The 100+ kilogram body in Long Zhan's hands was as light as a balloon.
When they reached the assembly point and noticed that Jason and the others hadn't arrived yet, Long Zhan squatted down, removed his tactical backpack, and began fiddling with it.
"These African warlord soldiers are even poorer than the junkies and homeless on the streets of New York. I'd advise you not to waste your time," Sonny teased.
Most American soldiers had a habit.
That is, after killing an enemy, they would often look for some unique items to take with them as mementos of the combat, souvenirs from the battlefield.
In simpler terms, it's something they can brag about once they retire.
As for the psychology behind it, it's similar to how ordinary people like to bring back local souvenirs when they travel.
Although it was against military regulations, it had become an unspoken rule in the U.S. military. Every soldier returning from a mission would often have all kinds of bizarre "souvenirs" in their backpacks.
Sonny assumed that Long Zhan was searching for "loot," so he teased but didn't stop him.
"Leave some gifts for the boys!"
Long Zhan replied with action instead of words, pulling out two blackened grenades and stuffing them beneath the body, turning it into a makeshift, highly effective booby trap.
To avoid the grenades being discovered prematurely, Long Zhan deliberately stuffed them inside the clothing.
"Wow, now that's a good idea."
Sonny immediately understood, and was impressed by Long Zhan's ingenuity.
He laughed vividly, "When the kids catch up and flip the body to inspect, BOOM, the body explodes, sending them all to meet their maker. Long, this move of yours is really cruel, but I love it. Haha."
"Just a simple trick, nothing special. I've got more fun stuff up my sleeve; you'll see next time," Long Zhan said with no hint of modesty, even a touch of pride and boastfulness.
In reality, he wasn't exaggerating.
After years as a mercenary, Long Zhan had used countless devious methods. This trick with the body and grenades was as simple as snapping his fingers.
"Gogogo!"
Just as Long Zhan finished setting up the booby trap, Jason, along with his three men, emerged from the back door of the house and signaled everyone to retreat toward the alleyway exit.
"They're still chasing us? They really don't fear death, do they?"
Long Zhan saw through the door that Lionheart King soldiers were attempting to climb through the window to follow them. He casually took out two fragmentation grenades and tossed them inside the door through which Jason's team had just exited.
Then, he adjusted his tactical backpack and ran, quickly catching up with the main force.
As a professional providing support fire for his team, Long Zhan excelled at creating better retreat conditions by covering the team's rear.
"Boom~ Boom~"
After running about 10 meters, the two grenades exploded one after the other.
A Lionheart King soldier, who had been chasing closely, was thrown into the air by the blast. The resulting smoke and dust spread rapidly, obscuring the area around the door.
The remaining Lionheart King soldiers dared not rush in, so they had to climb out through other windows or doors.
Upon emerging, one soldier saw a comrade face down, his life uncertain. As for the soldiers who had been pursuing, they had vanished.
In the usual procedure of checking if any of B Squad's members were dead, one Lionheart King soldier hastily ran over, flipped the body over, and shined his flashlight on the face.
After checking the eyelids and trying to detect any breath, he failed to notice the smoke rising from the body's chest.
Three seconds passed in the blink of an eye!
"Boom~"
Two high-explosive grenades detonated simultaneously, their blast far stronger than the defensive fragmentation grenades.
Both the body and the soldier inspecting it were blown into the air, with chunks of blood and flesh splattered across the alley's walls.
The remaining four Lionheart King soldiers were also affected by the explosion.
Dazed and unable to breathe, their vision was clouded with stars, leaving them unable to continue their pursuit of B Squad.
"Nice, it worked."
Having just climbed into the car's trunk, Long Zhan heard the explosions and knew his booby trap had done its job. He high-fived Sonny in celebration.
The successful detonation of the booby trap meant the enemy would not be able to catch up.
Despite being outnumbered nearly ten to one, B Squad had managed to retreat without a scratch, which was definitely worth celebrating.
"Drive, go get the bomb!" Jason called from the back of the car, slapping the roof to signal.
At the command, Clay started the car again, skillfully weaving through the narrow dirt roads of the town, heading toward the location of the bomb.
"Sonny, I need to know what happened here. You need to explain it to me," Jason shouted, gripping the car's side rail.
The changes to the plan were too drastic, and Jason felt that if he didn't get some answers, he was going to go crazy.
The new plan had gone off without a hitch, and Sonny, as a key participant, felt quite accomplished, his mood naturally a little excited.
Hearing Jason's request for an explanation, Sonny immediately began describing the situation with animated gestures.
Every time he mentioned Long Zhan's name, Sonny praised him generously, portraying Long Zhan as the key figure in the entire plan and the true hero behind the scenes.
Jason had always thought highly of Long Zhan, but after hearing Sonny's full account, he realized he had underestimated this new recruit.
Looking at Long Zhan, Jason felt not only an increasingly strong admiration but also a sense of disbelief.
"Are the new recruits this strong now?" Jason asked himself in astonishment.
...