Chapter 22: How to Break Through?

Silence was the only response Yu Fei received. It seemed the other party had no intention of negotiating with him at all—that is, until he uttered his next sentence.

"I have the Red Queen motherboard."

...

"Are we really going to hand over the Red Queen motherboard?" Matt asked, his voice filled with intense dissatisfaction. Coming from a civilian background, he did not fully grasp the strategic importance of the motherboard. However, the fact that the Umbrella Corporation valued it so highly—even going so far as to promise their safe passage in exchange—made him realize just how critical it was. Thinking of his sister who had died a tragic death in the Hive laboratory, Matt couldn't help but clench his fists. *Whatever the Umbrella Corporation wants, I must never let them have it!*

Yu Fei glanced at him. "Who said we were actually going to hand it over?"

"Huh?" Matt was stunned, then stammered in confusion, "But didn't you just say..."

"That was merely a delaying tactic," Yu Fei replied, waving his hand dismissively. "It’s not just us; the Umbrella Corporation is the same. They never had any intention of letting us go!"

"What??" Matt’s expression went blank. *No!* They had already come to an agreement; how could they just go back on their word so easily?

Rain looked at the "honest man" and couldn't help but step forward to pat him on the shoulder. "You'll get used to this kind of thing. Don't take it too seriously."

"..." Matt was speechless. *Is this something one can actually get used to?*

"Alright! Let's get ready! We’re about to break out!"

The group began loading their ammunition. They had nearly exhausted their supplies while clearing out the zombies, but thanks to the "assistance" of the three assault teams, they had secured a massive amount of gear. Unlike James's team, these three squads had anticipated the dangers and had arrived fully equipped with vast quantities of ammunition.

Knowing the situation beneath the Hive, they hadn't just prepared for waves of zombies; they were even equipped to handle Lickers. One can only imagine how much ammunition they were carrying. Theoretically, the combined stockpile they had seized would have been enough to fight a small-scale war.

Unfortunately, it all ended up in the hands of Yu Fei and his group. The main reason was that Yu Fei had moved with such overwhelming speed that the three assault teams hadn't even had time to react before they were wiped out in one fell swoop. Throughout the entire process, only the last member of the final assault team had managed to fire a single shot; all other weapons and ammunition remained perfectly intact. James and the others, lacking enough people to carry it all, even had to reluctantly leave some behind.

"Now, the question is how we proceed with the breakout," Yu Fei said, scanning the room before fixing his gaze on James. "James, you’re the most familiar with their tactics. Why don't you start?"

"Fine," James said, skipping the formalities. "The location of the mansion is unique. It’s situated on the outskirts of Raccoon City, bordered by water on two sides, mountains on one, and a direct road to the city on the last."

"First, the two sides bordering the water. The distance to the water isn't far—about a thousand meters—but the terrain is flat with almost no cover. Based on my understanding of the Umbrella Corporation, they likely won't station many troops there, maybe one or two teams at most. In terms of resistance, these two directions should be the easiest!"

James paused for a moment before continuing. "But that is only on the surface. While you might face the fewest enemies there, you would likely encounter something far more terrifying: attack helicopters."

He said the words in a deep, grave tone. Everyone hearing the mention of an attack helicopter couldn't help but gasp. That piece of equipment was a true engine of destruction on the battlefield. If they were to run into that, they probably wouldn't even be left with intact corpses. "Besides, without boats, crossing that river won't be easy. To sum it up, in my personal opinion, I don't recommend breaking out in those directions."

His assessment was accepted by everyone, including Yu Fei, who agreed. While someone with his physical stats of 1.5 might be capable of a forced river crossing, the attack helicopters were just too much of a "bug" in the system. Even Yu Fei couldn't guarantee he would come out unscathed if he faced one.

"If those two directions are out, then only two options remain," Yu Fei said, rubbing his chin.

"James, go on."

"Right." James nodded. "The remaining two directions are the south, which leads to the city, and the north, which leads into the mountain forest."

"Let’s talk about the southern city route first. Compared to the flat terrain of the east and west, the south does offer some cover, but the ground is still relatively level. The most critical point is that this is where the Umbrella Corporation will have concentrated the bulk of their forces! A conservative estimate would be at least five teams in that direction."

Five teams, with a standard configuration of five men per squad, meant twenty-five people. It didn't sound like a huge number, but these were twenty-five heavily armed, elite soldiers, comparable to special operations forces. Don't let the fact that Yu Fei wiped out three teams so easily fool you; there were special circumstances involved. If both sides were fully prepared and alert, Yu Fei would be lucky to take out a single team on his own. Five teams? Unless Yu Fei awakened some kind of superpower on the spot, he shouldn't even think about it.

"Finally, the northern mountain forest. It doesn't lead to the city. Based on my understanding of Umbrella, they shouldn't have many troops there—at most, three teams. Furthermore, the terrain of the forest provides excellent cover for us. From the perspective of breaking through, this is the most suitable direction!"

"However..." James hesitated before saying, "This forest isn't particularly large. If we break in, even if we manage to break through their initial perimeter, it would be very easy for the Umbrella Corporation to surround us again."

To summarize: The east and west have the lowest resistance, appearing to be the easiest routes, but they would likely lead to being bombed by heavy weapons like attack helicopters. One mistake, and there would be nothing left of them. The south toward the city has the highest resistance and is the hardest to break through, but if successful, once they hit the urban sprawl, they would be free to disappear. The north through the forest offers moderate resistance, and thanks to the complex terrain, it has the highest success rate for a breakout, making it the most suitable path. But because the forest is small, even if they escape the initial blockade, they could easily be counter-encircled by the Umbrella Corporation.

Which way to choose?

Everyone turned their eyes toward Yu Fei.