Super Zoo

"Where's the fish! Where's the fish! Where's my fish! I want it alive!"

In the Lu'er village's largest central house, Suming's demand for fish kept echoing.

The two soldiers standing guard at the door were both annoyed and amused, thinking how strange this guest of the High Priest was. Why must he eat fish, and why must it be live fish?

It seemed that the High Priest valued this guest highly, instructing that although he couldn't leave the room, all his other demands should be met as much as possible. Amir had even taken a few men to the nearby river to catch fish.

Ever since IS issued their final ultimatum for surrender to the tribe, the nearby mountains had become less safe, with IS armed forces occasionally appearing, subtly putting pressure on the tribe. The tribe had strengthened its defenses around their territory, hoping that the Fire God would protect Amir and he would return safely.

Thinking about IS made the guards feel deeply troubled. If they didn't surrender, IS would surely not spare the Lure people; according to IS's consistent style, the entire tribe would be annihilated. But if they surrendered, the outcome wouldn't be much better; it was just a matter of dying sooner rather than later.

"I heard the High Priest and Basel and brother Amir saying behind the scenes that the man inside is the messenger of the Fire God, who will lead us out of trouble," one guard said, nodding towards the wooden house behind him.

"Him? Hmph, I don't believe it!" snorted the other guard disdainfully, "How could the messenger of the Fire God be a gluttonous Easterner?"

"Where's the fish! Why hasn't it arrived yet?!" Suming's voice came from the house again, and the two guards looked at each other, sighing heavily in unison.

...

The Deputy Foreign Minister of Iraq hung up the phone, full of frustration.

Just one problem after another. The whereabouts of the Russian volunteer fighter and the Huaxia businessman were still unknown, and now the Americans had run into trouble!

Just now, the minister had brought another piece of stifling news: two journalists from National Geographic had sneaked into an IS-occupied zone and had been captured by IS before they could proceed deep inside. They were being held hostage, and IS was demanding a ransom of one hundred million US dollars from the American Government.

The US ambassador was particularly irritable today, completely disregarding diplomatic etiquette. He lambasted the minister and several government officials over the phone, demanding that the Iraqi Government resolve the situation quickly.

The minister, in turn, lambasted the Deputy Minister over the phone. The Americans had already located the general area where IS was holding the journalists hostage, within a hundred-kilometer radius of the Lu'er settlement in the Zagros Mountains.

Considering that the military had already been contacted to send a battalion to the Lure territory to negotiate the rescue of Ludmila and Suming, the government decided to combine the two matters: after rescuing the Easterner and the Russian, the battalion would move deeper into the mountains to search for the American journalists.

The Deputy Minister thought for a moment, then dialed his secretary to make contact with the deployed battalion and report back on the progress of the rescue operation.

Not long after, the secretary entered the office with a tense expression, whispering a few words to the Deputy Minister.

Upon hearing the news, the Deputy Minister nearly leapt from his chair, exclaiming, "What, a whole battalion wiped out by IS?! Why would there be a large IS force near the Lure settlement?!"

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"Sir, the Lure people had already sought help from the government half a month ago. IS demanded their surrender and had troops stationed in the Zagros mountain region. But the government side didn't take it seriously," said the secretary in a low voice.

The Deputy Minister quickly calmed down from the shock.

If a battalion can be wiped out in a short amount of time, even if its combat strength is considered second-rate among the government forces, it indicates that the opponent is definitely not just a small unit.

In other words, IS likely had already sent a large force into the Zagros Mountains, intending to coerce the Lure People into submission, and they coincidentally encountered the battalion that went for the rescue.

"So, does that mean the American reporters, the Eastern businessman, and the Russian mercenaries very likely have already fallen into the hands of the large IS force?" the Deputy Minister analyzed.

"Sir, we cannot be certain either, as we have no way of contacting these three groups," the secretary replied, dripping with sweat.

The Deputy Minister rubbed his temples, thought for a moment, then suddenly revealed a very relaxed smile, "Very good."

"Huh?" The secretary thought he had misheard, or perhaps the Deputy Minister had gone mad? Before, the Deputy Minister had been as anxious as a lamb on a bonfire, and now, as the situation grew increasingly serious—to the point it could hardly be covered up—he actually said 'very good'?

The Deputy Minister hadn't gone mad; upon calming down and thinking it over, it was as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. This incident was no longer a minor internal conflict between the government and the Lure People; it had escalated into a war issue involving the government and IS Country, entangling the world's three largest powers. This wasn't something he, a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, could handle.

The following matters should be left for the commanders and the President to worry about.

The Deputy Minister indeed possessed sharp political acumen; that very afternoon, the President held an emergency meeting with high-level government officials.

The incident could no longer be covered up, and various international media outlets began featuring related reports, with a mix of fact and speculation flying everywhere.

Newscast: "At four o'clock yesterday afternoon, Iraqi time, the Iraqi Government Army and IS Country engaged in fierce combat in the Zagros Mountains, with IS Country annihilating an entire Iraqi battalion with overwhelming superiority... According to our Baghdad correspondent, a Huaxia businessman is likely trapped in the Lure region of the conflict zone. Our embassy has already begun negotiation talks with the Iraqi Government..."

CNN: "The facts have proven once again how foolish it was for the United States to send troops directly to Iraq. Over the past decade, other than the hatred of hundreds of millions of Islamic people, countless terrorist attacks, what else have we gained? Oil? God, at least half of Iraq's oil has been divided between the Huaxia and the Russians, and even the European Union has had a piece of the pie. Our foolish government has been completely used as a pawn..."

"Yes, I completely agree with your point! That's why I say that at least three US Presidents before me should be dragged out and shot, oh God, once is not enough, they should be shot three times!"

"Mr. Trump, as a Republican presidential candidate, what would you like to say to the current US President?"

"Of course, first, since we have already withdrawn from Iraq, we cannot send troops on a large scale again and get mired in this quagmire; second, if he manages to rescue those two poor American reporters, I will consider acknowledging that he did have some contributions after I become President..."

On the Russian state television, the unchanging, impassive face of the anchor appeared on screen, with a row of ready-to-deploy airborne troops behind him.

"I do not know what IS or Lure People are, but I do know that Miss Ludmila was once a soldier for our country, she protected my ex-wife, she paid taxes for the country, and she is also a very beautiful girl. So, boys of the 76th Airborne Division, I order you to rescue this girl and bring her back to her motherland!"@@novelbin@@

Meanwhile, on IS Country's own television, a group of armed militants ranted frenetically, "Come on, Americans, Russians, Iraqi Government, your blood will dye the Zagros Mountains red, and the fire of the true God will burn all infidels to death!"