"Hello, Leader, I have something to report to you." Qi Yun hadn't interacted much with Minister Lan, and couldn't gauge his personality, so he spoke very solemnly without any frivolity.

"Go ahead, what's the matter." Minister Lan's voice didn't reveal any emotion.

"Leader... it's like this, I've encountered some difficulties here and wish to contact our colleagues in the United States for assistance."

"Yes, yes, rest assured, this isn't for personal matters. Once it's done, I'll return and explain it to you face to face..."

"Okay, okay, thank you, Leader."

After hanging up the phone, Qi Yun sighed in relief.

He didn't directly confess about Seth; the outcome of this matter was still uncertain. It's better not to brag when lacking confidence, to avoid being stuck in a difficult situation and leaving an impression of showboating on the leader.

Though Minister Lan didn't ask for details, he must have guessed the issue Qi Yun was dealing with was substantial; otherwise, he wouldn't have bypassed levels to reach him.

If it were others, he probably wouldn't have agreed, as it wouldn't follow procedure.

But Qi Yun's identity was rather special, not only because Fu Haibo from the Fu Family had put in a good word for him, advising Minister Lan to look out for Qi Yun, but also because even the notable figure expressed some interest in him. So he straightforwardly agreed to Qi Yun's request.

Soon, Qi Yun received Minister Lan's contact details on his phone. After waiting for a few minutes, estimating that the other side had gotten the message, he dialed the number.

"Hello, this is Qi Yun."

"Consultant Qi, hello! My name is Xu Cheng, you can call me Old Xu." Came the response from the receiver.

Qi Yun didn't stand on ceremony and said directly: "Alright, Old Xu, has Minister Lan contacted you?"

"Yes, the head instructed me to do everything possible to meet your requirements. May I know what instructions you have at this moment?"

"Hmm, I need a covert hideout, and I also want to inquire with you about some information..."

...

At dawn, just as the sky started to lighten, three cars left the hotel. When they reached a fork in the road on the outskirts, one of the cars branched off from the convoy, turning to the right.

By the time Qi Yun and the others returned to Anchorage, over ten hours had passed.

Without any pause, they boarded a plane again, heading to Juarez, Mexico.

The reason for going there, of course, is that Juarez is close to Texas, making it convenient to conceal their tracks.

At noon the next day, Qi Yun met with the United States head officer of Guo An in a restaurant downtown.

"Consultant Qi, hello, I am Old Xu."

"Hello, Old Xu, you can just call me Qi Yun." The two exchanged brief greetings and sat down facing each other.

Qi Yun took a sip of water from his glass, observing the surroundings as he asked Old Xu, "Did my man get picked up?"

"Yes, we've arranged for him to stay in a safe house, which is very discreet, ensuring he's not found." Old Xu replied earnestly.

"Hmm, good." Qi Yun nodded and then asked, "Additionally, I want to inquire about Hede Company. Do you know the background of this company?"

"Hede Company..." Old Xu frowned slightly, then informed Qi Yun of the details he had learned.

This company indeed had an impressive background, with unclear relations with the United States' Ministry of Defense, Department of Energy, and some Celestial Dragon People.

"I want to investigate some of their secret bases in Texas, such as private islands along the Gulf of Mexico. Can you help me with any leads?"

"I can try to look into it." Old Xu considered briefly, "We have some resources in Texas, we can filter through at the docks for private islands along the Gulf of Mexico that have been active recently, possibly finding some traces."

"How long will it take?"

"Within twenty-four hours." Old Xu gave a definitive timeline.

Qi Yun nodded, "Alright, I'll rely on you then. Inform me as soon as you have results."

"Okay."

The two didn't exchange further words, with Old Xu getting up and leaving.

After about an hour, the restaurant door opened, and Harris walked in casually.

"Qi, my best friend, I've missed you dearly."

As soon as they met, Harris gave Qi Yun an exaggerated hug.

Black people are like that.

Since Qi Yun resolved the issues involving the Japanese royalty, Harris no longer had to hide in Africa and had long returned to live freely in the United States.

That's why he could come over so quickly at Qi Yun's call.

Qi Yun invited him to sit down and then recounted the questions he had just asked Old Xu.

"...I need precise intelligence. Can you help me search for such information? Money is not an issue; confidentiality is key."

"Private island?" Harris rubbed his chin, "It's not easy to inquire about such information, but I know a few drug dealers, they transport goods from over there, most aware of the movements in the Gulf of Mexico. Give me some time, I'll check in with them."

"Alright, but hurry, and don't reveal that I'm asking about this." Qi Yun reminded once again.

"Don't worry, I get it." Harris grinned, pulling out his phone in front of Qi Yun and started calling around.

A few minutes later, Harris put down his phone with a somewhat intriguing expression.

"Qi, it's quite interesting."

"My friend said his guy was driven away by an armed patrol speedboat when transporting goods from Seagull Rock two days ago. They couldn't identify who they were, but it was definitely not official personnel."

"Seagull Rock?"

"Yes, it's a small island about twenty nautical miles off the coast."

Qi Yun rubbed his chin without saying anything further.

From the looks of it, the safest method is to wait for Old Xu's information. If the information from his end also points to Seagull Rock, then Seth's daughter is very likely being held on that island.

"Can you get a helicopter? Preferably with a pilot."

"Helicopter..." Harris was startled, guessing what Qi Yun intended to do.

He swallowed, reminding, "Buddy, that's US territory, don't be too reckless."

"I know, the helicopter isn't for assault, it's for extraction." Qi Yun explained.

"You scared me. I thought you wanted an armed helicopter." Harris breathed a sigh of relief, "That's easy to arrange. I can get you a civilian helicopter anytime, and I have a reliable pilot."

"Great, make the arrangements." Qi Yun checked the time, "Keep helping me gather information about that area, as detailed as possible."

After discussing with Harris, Qi Yun returned to the hotel.

Another day went by quickly. Old Xu didn't keep Qi Yun waiting long, providing him with the investigation results.

Recently, among those private islands along the coast, only three have shown signs of activity, and one of them is the Seagull Rock Harris mentioned yesterday. The other two belong to a chain hotel, where wealthy individuals vacation regularly.

It seems likely that people are on that Seagull Rock...

Qi Yun immediately gathered the team in a room, sharing the information with them and bringing out a tablet with photos of Seagull Rock that Harris had sent.

"The island doesn't look large in area, but the terrain is quite complex. The east side has cliffs; only the west has a simple dock, with main structures concentrated on the north slope..." Brother Quan analyzed the situation on the island.

"This place... if we don't know the personnel deployment on the island, it's not easy to assault from the front..."

Everyone was silent, pondering over the strategy.

"How about... we split into two teams. One attracts attention from the front, while the other lands from the back." Chen Wei suggested.

Brother Quan nodded slowly, "That idea is possible, but... we only have ten people in total, if we split..."

"Manpower isn't an issue; we could hire a professional mercenary team to draw fire." Qi Yun provided further support, "I've had Harris prepare a helicopter for us to withdraw directly to Juarez after the task."

"Hmm, in that case, it should work." 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

After finalizing the plan, Qi Yun spent five million getting Harris to hire a top-tier mercenary team.

This group had a good reputation in the circle, all retired from the Navy SEALs, with rich experience.

Brother Quan communicated the mission with the mercenary team leader, who accepted without hesitation.