Bright Sword: Conquer the monk at the beginning and take down Zhou Weiguo

Qin Cang ignored his teasing, instead staring intently at two patrolmen changing shifts in the distance. They did exchange a few simple words as they passed the campfire, but their tone was casual, with no obvious signs of a secret code. Qin Cang frowned, his heart sinking slightly. If the enemy hadn't used a secret code, then they would have to use some other method to determine the patrol's true purpose.

"Wait a minute." Qin Cang suddenly whispered, his eyes as sharp as a blade.

He saw a soldier among the patrolmen not far away, gesturing with his hand in front of his chest during the handover, as if doing some kind of habitual action. Qin Cang's heart suddenly tightened.

"That action just now..." He muttered softly, his mind quickly recalling the information he had previously obtained from the prisoner.

Liu San frowned: "What did you see?"

Qin Cang didn't answer, his thoughts racing. He remembered a captive mentioning that some of this group were veterans, and that these veterans had an unwritten custom: when changing shifts at night, they would gently wipe their chests with their hands. This was their unique way of communicating, confirming their identities.

If it were an ordinary patrol soldier, they wouldn't have noticed this at all. But the man just now clearly made this move...

Qin Cang's heart was filled with alarm.

This is a disguised patrol!

The real patrol team may have been replaced, and these people in front of us may very well be enemies lurking in the dark!

Qin Cang raised his hand suddenly and made a retracting gesture, signaling everyone to step back.

When Liu San saw his actions, his face suddenly darkened and he lowered his voice and asked, "What do you mean?"

"Something's not right." Qin Cang whispered, his tone revealing a hint of extremely obscure coldness. "There's something wrong with their patrolmen."

Liu San's brows furrowed even more tightly, and he whispered impatiently, "Are you sure you're not overthinking it? Is there something wrong with the patrolman? Just because he touched his clothes?"

Qin Cang ignored his questioning and stared at the patrolmen with a burning gaze, his heartbeat steady and his breathing calm. His intuition told him that something was wrong with these people.

Xiaohu swallowed nervously and whispered, "Captain Qin, if they are really ambushing us, what should we do now?"

Qin Cang did not answer, but quickly made a gesture, indicating that everyone should retreat slowly.

But at this moment——

One of the patrolmen beside the campfire suddenly stopped and looked in the direction of Qin Cang and the others!

Qin Cang's breathing suddenly stagnated, and all the muscles in his body tensed up instantly.

The other party discovered them? !

In an instant, the atmosphere around them became extremely tense. The night wind rustled the leaves, making the air seem to freeze.

The patrolman frowned, as if he had heard something. He slowly took a few steps towards this side, looking around vigilantly.

Liu San's hand slowly moved towards the weapon at his waist, a murderous look flashed in his eyes, and he whispered, "Kill them?"

Qin Cang's pupils shrank slightly, and then he quickly shook his head and said in a low voice: "No, we can't alert the enemy."

Xiaohu's breathing quickened, his palms dripping with sweat. He stared at the patrolman, his eyes fixed on his every move, like a cheetah ready to pounce.

The patrolman took a few more steps forward, glancing around, but still didn't seem to notice anything unusual. He hesitated, but ultimately didn't go any further. Instead, he turned and walked towards the campfire, mumbling something, as if complaining about the hard work of patrolling at night.

Qin Cang breathed a sigh of relief and raised his finger slightly, signaling everyone to continue retreating.

Everyone held their breath and retreated cautiously. In the night, their figures gradually faded into the darkness, as if they had never appeared.

After retreating to a safe distance, Liu San finally couldn't help himself. He whispered, "Qin Cang, aren't you being too cautious? Just because of the actions of a patrol soldier, you concluded that they were ambushing?"

Qin Cang did not answer immediately, but was silent for a moment, then slowly raised his head with an extremely deep look in his eyes.

"It's better to miss than to misjudge." His voice was low and firm. "If they really are setting an ambush, we've been exposed now."

Liu San frowned, as if he wanted to say something else, but in the end he didn't open his mouth.

Xiaohu swallowed and asked in a low voice: "What should we do next?"

Qin Cang narrowed his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife, and said slowly: "Change the method and continue to explore."

The night deepened, and a chill quietly permeated the forest. Occasionally, a breeze rustled the leaves, like a low whisper. Qin Cang's steps remained steady, each precise and silent. His nerves were tense to the extreme, like a fully drawn bowstring, ready to react instantly at the slightest disturbance.

Liu San was on his left, Xiao Hu on his right, both holding their breath and following his steps. They were already far away from the enemy's patrol range, but Qin Cang's vigilance did not relax at all.

He didn't believe Liu San would suddenly appear here for no reason, nor did he believe the enemy would reveal a flaw so easily. He had an inexplicable intuition in his heart, a keen perception honed by long-term fighting, telling him that the danger was not over, in fact, it was approaching.

Qin Cang's gaze fell on Liu San, and he glanced sharply at the darkness behind him.

His heart sank suddenly—

Behind Liu San, there seemed to be a vague shadow moving.

At first, he thought it was an illusion, because the shadow almost merged with the darkness and was extremely well concealed, but at that moment, the shadow swayed slightly, as if it had adjusted its posture, and Qin Cang's eyes instantly became sharp.

——Someone is following Liu San!

Qin Cang's muscles suddenly tensed up, his fingers slightly bent, and he slowly grasped the weapon at his waist.

But he did not alarm Liu San immediately, but thought quickly.

If there really is someone behind Liu San, then there are only two possibilities -

First, Liu San had been targeted by the enemy, but he had not yet realized it.

Second, the man was brought by Liu San himself, but he did not tell himself.

Whatever the case, it shows that the current situation is more complicated than he imagined.

Qin Cang's breathing became slower, his eyes narrowed slightly, staring at the shadow, and began to quietly adjust his position to put himself in the best position to attack.

At the same time, he spoke in a low voice, his tone sounding calm, but with a hint of probing: "Liu San, did you come here alone just now?"

Liu San was obviously stunned for a moment, then said impatiently: "Nonsense, of course I brought my people with me."