Seeing the fight was over, Xun Yin popped back out to join the fun: 【I’m telling you, after that display of skill, he’ll definitely tell you everything you want to know.】
Xin Ye took a moment to send another private message to Lian Muyun. This time, even Lian Muyun—who usually replied in seconds—remained silent.
With all four teammates now unresponsive, Xin Ye’s tone turned cold. "Next time, don't bother beating around the bush. I can easily replicate what I just did to those butterflies on any would-be ambushers."
Xun Yin: 【Now, now... don't be so impatient. Your team’s progress is actually quite good right now.】
Xin Ye’s hand paused as he was about to close the communication software. "Really?"
【Really. Just think about who your teammates are.】
"Fine." Xin Ye comforted himself inwardly and let out a small sigh of relief.
Ever since realizing he had run into Xin Ye, Chen Anyang had become utterly dejected, looking as if he had already lost the preliminary round—which, in reality, wasn't far from the truth.
He honestly confessed his situation: "I'm Chen Anyang, a C-class ability user from the Regeneration Squad. Our five members were scattered across the four regions—North, South, East, and West. Two of them are in the desert."
Perhaps Xin Ye’s threat of "chopping off fingers" had left a psychological scar, as Chen Anyang proactively showed Xin Ye his communication logs with his teammates to prove his credibility.
"My teammate in the Battlefield Ruins was attacked by both mutants and other participants from the start. Luckily, they weren't eliminated, so we made a quick decision..."
"A decision to target others," Xin Ye said, idly playing with his dagger as he nodded slightly. "A very confident decision."
Xin Ye leaned in closer to examine the chat logs. "The only mutants that attacked your teammate in the ruins were butterflies? Nothing else?"
He had been suspicious for a while. It was one thing for harsh environments to have only one type of mutant, but it was strange to walk through a forest and see nothing else. It made his constant vigilance toward every nearby tree feel... foolish.
Seeing Xin Ye’s true thoughts, Xun Yin couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
"It seems that way for now. And according to our allied team, their experience was exactly the same," Chen Anyang said. Seeing Xin Ye flipping through his contact list, he hurriedly volunteered information about their alliance. "The team we allied with is the Invincible Squad."
Xin Ye raised an eyebrow. This guy’s mouth was a sieve.
After finishing the notes he wanted to write, Xun Yin asked Xin Ye: 【What’s the plan? You don't want to eliminate Chen Anyang, so are you taking him with you?】
"I'll take him," Xin Ye concluded after a brief thought. "Their two teams are allied and have already lost one person. If I drop him back later, I might be able to claim a favor from both squads."
"After all, we have to stay here for seven days."
Xin Ye asked the ever-capable Mirror for a decorative biscuit, then stuffed it into Chen Anyang’s mouth with a look of feigned heartache.
The man’s face changed instantly. "W-what did you just force me to eat?!"
Xin Ye gave the ignorant Chen Anyang a look of disdain and then silently mouthed a word to him.
—*Poison.*—
Terrified into believing whatever Xin Ye said, Chen Anyang nearly blacked out and fainted.
"Relax, the poison won't take effect immediately," Xin Ye said, patting Chen Anyang’s tense shoulder, which was several times broader than his own. "As long as you follow me obediently, I guarantee I'll give you the antidote and send you back to your team safely."
Chen Anyang wanted to cry but had no tears; he could only nod submissively.
*As expected of a top-ranked powerhouse, his methods are so varied.*
For the rest of the day, Xin Ye did only three things: travel, kill butterflies, and beat people up.
His assessment: none of them could put up a fight.
Strictly speaking, setting aside the freshly beaten Chen Anyang, Xin Ye hadn't fought other ability users in a long time. He originally thought he had handled Chen Anyang so easily because the man was only C-class, until a B-class user crossed his path and was taken down in two or three moves.
It had to be said that among the newer ability users, those with higher ranks were actually easier to deal with. Simply put, these people were overconfident in their abilities and neglected their physical combat skills. As a result, they were often punched silly by Xin Ye before they even had a chance to activate their powers.
Xin Ye saw Chen Anyang looking at the fallen B-class user with the gaze of a senior looking at a junior and said heartlessly, "Stop looking. I have no interest in bringing along another useless deadweight."
Chen Anyang looked away, his expression actually carrying a hint of regret.
Xin Ye: "I don't know what you're so proud of. He went down faster than you? But you were completely useless when we were killing those butterflies—"
Chen Anyang didn't have a gun, and he couldn't touch the butterflies with his bare hands. If he hadn't run into Xin Ye, he probably would have collapsed in some corner of the forest by now.
Chen Anyang: "...I'm sorry."
Xin Ye: "No need to apologize. Just don't let the pot call the kettle black next time."
Chen Anyang replied obediently, "Understood."
Given Xin Ye’s high travel speed and accurate sense of direction, they reached the outskirts of the Unknown Zone by evening.
As dusk fell, the orange-red glow of the setting sun added a touch of danger to the forest. However, a sight more beautiful than the sunset captured Xin Ye’s attention.
The outer edge of the central area was covered by a pale blue, hemispherical, transparent barrier. Ripples flowed down from the center in circles, as if someone were pouring water from above. It sat firmly over the Unknown Zone, cutting off any possibility of the creatures inside escaping.
Xin Ye had excellent vision; he saw several small black dots fly up, hit the screen, and fall back down.
They were avian mutants.
Xun Yin typed a few words, and Mirror stepped forward to ask the question for him: "Shall we enter the Unknown Zone now?"
"No, it's been a long day. Let's set up camp and rest first." Xin Ye looked away and opened his multi-functional watch.
There was still no news from the other four.
When he saw Mirror pull a tent and compressed biscuits out of the shards, Chen Anyang’s mouth formed an 'O' shape.
He had thought Xin Ye being fully equipped with weapons was already exaggerated—since most people entered empty-handed—but he hadn't expected this guy to even have daily necessities.
Was this really a level a D-class could reach?
"I wanted to ask you guys the same thing. Did you come here to work or to go shopping? Every one of you is so casual..." Xin Ye handed a biscuit to Chen Anyang.
Because he had confirmed there were no butterflies nearby and it was time to rest, his expression relaxed significantly. Chen Anyang felt he could see a trace of gentleness and exhaustion on Xin Ye’s face.
"But it's fine," Xin Ye comforted Chen Anyang, a departure from his morning criticism. "You'll be fine... once you've experienced more."
Chen Anyang, who had previously thought Xin Ye was only capable of being sharp-tongued, stared at him in surprise for a moment before giving another "Mm."
Xin Ye: "Then tonight, start by experiencing staying alert while sleeping outdoors! I'm sleeping in the tent; you're sleeping outside."
Chen Anyang: "?"
Xin Ye ate very quickly, a habit developed during past missions. Even the much bulkier Chen Anyang couldn't keep up with him.
As Chen Anyang watched in a daze while Xin Ye finished his biscuit and patted his hands clean, Xin Ye ignored the gaze and opened his watch once more.
His expression froze slightly when he saw a new message pop up.
Many elimination notices had appeared today, and Xin Ye had been monitoring them constantly. Only the absence of his teammates' names allowed him to feel a modicum of peace. But that temporary peace was one thing; actually receiving a message from a teammate saying they were safe was another.
Lian Muyun: Sorry, sorry, I'm late replying! Ah, some people over here started fighting and I got caught up in it. Couldn't shake them off.
Lian Muyun: How are things on your end, Xin Ye? Nothing big happened today, right?
Xin Ye: Yeah, I'm fine. I'm glad you're okay too. There were so many elimination notices from the desert today, I was worried about you.
Xin Ye: It's late now. Have you found a place to rest? Do you have anything to eat?
Lian Muyun: Waaaah, no!
Xin Ye: Tomorrow, let's discuss meeting up. I'll give you food.
Lian Muyun: Yay—Xin Ye is the best—you're so versatile—
The two of them went to the main group chat to report they were safe and mentioned the rendezvous. Xin Ye and Lian Muyun each took a photo of the large barrier in the central area from their respective angles, asking if the other three could see it.
Soon, Leng Xianye and Tang Qiuqiu replied in the group together.
【Are You Guys Gonna Lose Or What Squad】
Leng Xianye: (Image)
Tang Qiuqiu: I've met up with Brother Leng! We're getting ready to rest. Is everyone okay today?
Lian Muyun: Great! Super energetic!
Leng Xianye: The area around the barrier is safe. So far, it only seems to have a containment effect, no other danger factors. Meet up tomorrow?
Xin Ye: OK, but there's no news from Xing Yue yet. Should we wait for her?
Lian Muyun: @Xing Yue @Xing Yue @Xing Yue, you okay? Hurry up and check in!
Leng Xianye hesitated for a moment before sending a message.
Leng Xianye: Xing Yue is an A-class ability user, after all. No elimination notice is the best proof of safety. If she sees the message, she'll definitely follow. I think we can move first.
Xin Ye knew Xing Yue’s current strength. Although the lack of news was worrying, he also felt Leng Xianye’s decision was reasonable.
Xin Ye: I agree. We can trust Xing Yue a bit more. If we finish exploring the Unknown Zone and still haven't heard from her, we'll head to the Flooded City together.
Tang Qiuqiu: It would take us a long time to detour to the Flooded City from our current position... I think Brother Leng and Brother Xin Ye are right.
Lian Muyun: Don't worry! Brother Leng and I know Xing Yue’s strength best. She can take on a whole crowd no problem!
*
The final decision was passed unanimously by the four.
Lian Muyun hummed a tune and turned off his multi-functional watch.
He sat on the sand, leaning against a giant boulder. He idly touched the N/A/R10 beside him; the assault rifle transformed into an exquisite revolver, which he toyed with in his hand.
A field of guns lay scattered around him—all created by his ability. The magazines of these guns were empty, and spent shells littered the ground. Sharing the same fate as the bullets and guns were the corpses of ability users behind the boulder, which had not yet turned into data and vanished.
The desert was cold at night. Although Lian Muyun looked a bit disgusted, he still stripped a coat off one of them and draped it over himself.
As far as he was concerned, he was much better at killing ability users than killing mutants.
Lian Muyun had performed quite averagely in previous missions. On one hand, he wasn't good at using his ability to kill mutants; on the other hand, it wasn't... convenient to expose himself in front of his friends.
But now that no one was watching, it was fine.
"Watching the moon in the desert... it's a first," he gazed at the moon for a long time, then suddenly smiled.
"Xiao Yue will be fine, of course."
"After all, when it comes to killing ability users... back then, Xiao Yue’s grades were better than mine."
***
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