117 Code Name "Money Obsessed" (Please Subscribe!)

Compared to General Hamis of the government forces, Nicholas was clearly more willing to face hundreds, even thousands, of Libyan militias and those damned African mercenaries.

"Damn it! Why are there so many soldiers and mercenaries?"

Upon entering the city, the atmosphere on the streets felt somewhat unusual. Besides a large number of Libyan armed combatants patrolling, there were many mercenaries—white, black, even brown-skinned.

"Hey, Li, I think we’re definitely in big trouble!"

"Shh!"

Li Changjiang gave a sharp hush, signaling to Nicholas to keep quiet. Then he puckered his lips in annoyance as he saw a Libyan officer stride directly toward them from across the street. It was clear that Libya was experiencing some developments unknown to the two of them.

"You two! Are you mercenaries? Report to the front to receive your pay and immediately join the combat squad. You’re not allowed to leave Tripoli before the war ends, do you hear me?"

Those Libyan soldiers had clearly spotted the two wandering men, who obviously looked the part of mercenaries. Tripoli now had tens of thousands of mercenaries serving the government forces; two more wouldn’t raise any eyebrows.

"What? Damn it! I—"

"We understand! We’re here to fight."

Li Changjiang tightly gripped Nicholas to keep him quiet, then nodded to the two Libyan soldiers. He had already sensed that something was off. The scene before them was unmistakably one of an impending great battle. Could it be that something truly had changed in Libya?

What Li Changjiang and Nicholas did not know was that in the past two days, the Libyan civil war had further deteriorated. The government forces, led by Hamis, condemned Western countries, spearheaded by the United States, for brazenly launching airstrikes and bombings against Libya’s democratic regime. These attacks caused massive civilian casualties. Moreover, without authorization from the UN or Libya’s legitimate government, ground forces were deployed into Libya, resulting in heavy losses and violating humanitarian principles.

After Hamis’s official declaration, the US government abruptly abandoned its previous silence and adopted a much tougher stance, asserting that Libya’s military actions threatened human progress. In reality, these statements were a way to shift responsibility for the failed North African command operations—which resulted in significant American casualties—onto the Libyan government forces.

The so-called defense of human rights and world peace was nothing more than a pretext for a new offensive.

The outcome was clear.

The Americans’ shameless denunciation naturally sparked fierce backlash from the Libyan government forces. The most immediate consequence was Hamis preparing to launch a new military campaign against Misrata.

Li Changjiang and Nicholas quickly gathered the information they needed.

That bastard Hamis was indeed gearing up for war—and was currently recruiting en masse.

As a small North African country with fewer than seven million people, before the war began, the Gaddafi government had a force of only about 100,000 troops. After the war erupted, a significant portion of armed forces was disbanded or purged. The government forces now directly controlled fewer than 50,000 men, and among them, the elite units capable of combat or those who completed formal military training numbered fewer than 20,000.

Following the last military operation, the rebels had established a militia defense line of over 10,000 in Misrata, alongside other armed forces, including mercenaries and even some covertly deployed regular troops from Western countries. For Hamis to capture Misrata swiftly, he clearly needed more manpower.

Mercenaries were undoubtedly an excellent choice.

For those who lived off war, the Libyan civil war was undeniably a golden opportunity.

"Li, Hamis’s military campaign is a good chance. We should seize the chaos and storm into Misrata."

Having seen countless battles, Nicholas immediately thought of this possibility.

"Perhaps we should thank Hamis!"

Li Changjiang nodded, somewhat surprised. If not for this campaign, he would have found the situation quite tricky.

That bastard Hamis was not the good man he appeared to be—more accurately, he was a ruthless hero.

He could endure! He was cruel enough! And he commanded tens of thousands of armed men!

If it weren’t out of necessity, Li Changjiang would never have sought his help. Even if he had saved Hamis’s life, and Hamis felt indebted, it was unthinkable that he would change his entire military strategy for the sake of gratitude.

"So? Are you ready to become a mercenary?"

"Of course! Isn’t that the plan?"

Saying that, Li Changjiang walked toward the mercenary registration point set up by the Libyan forces.

"Hey, buddy, soon you’ll see how right this decision was!"

Ignoring Nicholas, Li Changjiang did not think becoming a mercenary was anything glorious. But this was his choice.

To rescue Williams and Elisa, they had to join Hamis’s mercenary corps.

Alongside Li Changjiang and Nicholas, about a dozen other mercenaries of various ethnicities also registered. To Li Changjiang’s surprise, they didn’t seem to have specific combat assignments but were simply grouped into a rather disorderly mercenary unit.

Shouldn’t mercenaries operate independently?

Trying to conduct large-scale operations with a ragtag group of free agents who had no experience working together—even without any military training—Li Changjiang knew this was nonsense.

When the fighting started, he didn’t believe these undisciplined mercenaries would obey a stranger’s orders.

Noticing his doubt, Nicholas leaned close and whispered.

"These guys are local African mercenaries—most are cannon fodder. Look over there; those are the real elites, and their price is much higher."

Following Nicholas’s gaze, Li Changjiang soon spotted a small group of mercenaries whose equipment and spirit were markedly different.

"Hey, you two! Come here!"

Hearing the call, Li Changjiang turned toward the voice—it was the Libyan officer in charge of mercenary registration.

"Li, don’t go! We don’t need to be with them!"

Just as Li Changjiang was about to approach, Nicholas pulled him back.

"I don’t want to be cannon fodder for that bastard Hamis!"

Among the group, some wore surprised expressions. Nicholas suddenly pulled a familiar armband from his backpack and stuck it on himself.

The surroundings instantly fell silent.

"Damn, it’s the elite mercenary corps!"

"Damn it!"

"He’s a fortune hunter! From the Eagle Lion Mercenary Group."

Suddenly, an astonished voice whispered in Li Changjiang’s ear. He looked at Nicholas, equally surprised.

"A fortune hunter?"

Who came up with that name? But it certainly suited Nicholas perfectly.

(Subscription numbers in the past 24 hours have dropped to less than half of before—maybe the author slipped. Nevertheless, please subscribe!) (To be continued.)