Please Focus, Combat Machine

There were Mimic Blade Beasts inside the fortress.

When Wu Man said this, Daoist Wang and the others all thought they had misheard him.

How could there be Mimic Blade Beasts inside the fortress?

The residents of the Fortress Era all knew that fortresses had become humanity's last refuge for three main reasons.

First, Underground Fortresses were structurally Easy to Defend, Difficult to Attack.

At the very least, they would not repeat the tragic sight of surface cities being swept away and devoured by overwhelming Blade Beasts.

Second, Underground Fortresses could continuously strengthen their defenses by thickening their outer walls and setting up underground mine networks, effectively preventing Mimic Blade Beasts from infiltrating.

Third, they made it convenient to carpet-bomb the surface with airburst nuclear weapons.

If Wu Man's senses were not mistaken and Mimic Blade Beasts had indeed appeared inside the fortress, then there were only two possible sources.

Either the Mimic Blade Beasts had taken the opportunity to slip into the fortress during this Fortress Siege Battle;

Or they had infiltrated during one of the fortress's routine intervals for exchanging supplies with the outside world.

No matter which possibility it was, it pointed to One Problem—the Psionicists of Fortress No. 76's Psionic Home had neglected their duties and done nothing. They clearly possessed instruments capable of detecting Mimic Blade Beasts.

As for Wu Man's sensing ability...

It could also be considered Wang Jixuan's contribution.

After the Resentful Energy of the Remnant Soul of Blade Beast that had constantly been eating away at Wu Man's body was extracted, Wu Man's Beast Speaker-like ability was further strengthened.

Although Wu Man could not understand the information exchanged between Blade Beasts, he could receive the commands of the Young King Insect, roughly comprehend those commands, and further sense the Mimic Blade Beasts responding to them.

It was as though he had... plugged into the Blade Beasts' command network.

The atmosphere in the Supply Station grew slightly stagnant.

Uncle Tai asked quietly, "What do we do next?"

Zheng Shiduo said, "Kid, where exactly are those Mimic Blade Beasts?"

White membranes appeared over Wu Man's eyes again. He stared toward the fortress, then slowly tilted his head and said softly, "Very deep underground. I can only sense that they're in the lower part of the fortress, below the One-third line."

"They're most likely in the Lower City."

Wang Jixuan pondered briefly.

"It's suitable for hiding there. The Middle City has a large population, but almost everywhere is visible at a glance."

Sister Wan used a tablet to conduct a quick search. "The One-third line is on the thirty-eighth floor. We'll need to inspect everything from the thirty-eighth floor downward."

"Who's going?" Uncle Tai asked.

Zheng Shiduo said bluntly, "I suggest informing Psionicist's Home."

"I'll go," Wang Jixuan volunteered. "I don't really trust Kong Nu or those Psionicists Qin Qin brought out."

Wu Man said quietly, "Sir, the Psionicists of Psionic Home are supposed to inspect whether the fortress has been invaded by Mimic Blade Beasts. It's dangerous. Why not let Mr. Zheng push me over there?"

Uncle Tai glared at him from the side. "Isn't that like delivering yourself right into their hands? They're looking for you!"

Zheng Shiduo grinned. "For an ordinary E-Class Psionicist, it would definitely be dangerous. But for... a great benefactor like you, those Mimic Blade Beasts are hardly worth mentioning. The only ones to watch out for are those two B-Class Psionicists."

Click.

Ling Tong's room door opened, and everyone instinctively looked over.

She had already changed into a Silver White Combat Suit. The special fabric designed to enhance load-bearing capacity traced her perfect figure, and even the tie around her ponytail had been reinforced.

Uncle Tai was about to report when Ling Tong slightly Raised Hand and said simply:

"Protecting the fortress's stability is a heavy responsibility. Captain Zheng, Wang Zheng, the two of you will go together. Xiao Qi will Take Care Of Wu Man. Sister Wan, coordinate the mech."

"It's already coordinated," Sister Wan immediately said. "The mech will need another twelve minutes to be ready."

"Good. Have them transport it by aircraft. I'll go support Red Snake first."

As Ling Tong finished speaking, she had already walked beneath the ascending passage and Opened her arms.

Uncle Tai opened the equipment case for the Blade-Slaying Armor set. One component after another flew out on its own, attaching itself to Ling Tong's body in sequence.

Sister Wan brought over the matching helmet and carefully put it on Ling Tong.

The helmet's visor panels retracted to either side. Ling Tong turned to Wang Jixuan and asked softly:

"Any problems?"

"No problems, Commander."

Daoist Wang's tone was relaxed, though he could sense the faint Sense of Oppression of being given an order.

Ling Tong in combat mode gave off a powerful, icy presence.

Ling Tong's calm, sharp gaze softened somewhat. She seemed to want to say something, perhaps reminding him to be careful, but in the end she merely nodded lightly.

The visor closed. Flames burst from her back and feet as she accelerated upward, leaving waves of Heatwave throughout the Supply Station.

"Cool!"

Zheng Shiduo praised her, then winked at Wang Jixuan. "Boss, the two of us are teaming up now. Heh heh heh."

Daoist Wang: ...

There was a miraculous pill in the Cultivation World called the [Bone-Strengthening Pill], specially prepared for male cultivators who had suffered from Entering Demonic State while training and had their yin and yang reversed.

He wondered whether stuffing a few into Zheng Shiduo would help him regain even a little of the feeling of being a normal man.

Now that he could make pills, he definitely had to Give It a Try.

It would be better if this Daoist acted alone.

Bzzz—

The noise of the engine rang Beside the Ear, following them from the electrically powered Off-road Vehicle to the elevators inside the fortress.

Daoist Wang, Zheng Shiduo, and Wan Xiaoqi sat in the seats of Elevator No. 7.

All three wore Nano masks, changing into unfamiliar faces, and had put on Enforcement Team uniforms.

Wan Xiaoqi had specifically chosen a glamorous fake face. While changing, she had even secretly stuffed two wads of toilet paper into her clothes.

She had taken the initiative to request joining them, claiming she wanted to provide logistical support for Wang Jixuan and could infiltrate the fortress's internal network at any time. In truth... she merely wanted to see the Lower City of Fortress No. 76 for herself.

Wang Jixuan looked at the "bracer" on his wrist. It held a Projection Screen displaying a three-dimensional map of the fortress.

For now, their official mission was to investigate Mu Liang's whereabouts.

This Daoist is looking for himself. Wonderful.

Daoist Wang laughed inwardly as his upper pocket began to vibrate.

It was a Text Message from Zhou Zhengde.

[Zhou Zhengde (Young Master Zhou): No Need to Worry about Ling Tong's side. The Blade Beast Swarm outside the combat zone hasn't gone berserk, so this probably won't escalate into a major battle. Based on the intelligence Wu Man provided, we've roughly Locked Onto the Young King Insect's location. That thing is hiding underground and has already begun moving. It's very cunning.]

[Zhou Zhengde (Young Master Zhou): All Psionicists above D-Class inside the fortress have been Locked Onto with Bio-radar. Move carefully.]

[Wang Zheng (Righteous Person): Alright. Any news on this side will be synced to you immediately.]

[Zhou Zhengde (Young Master Zhou): How many Mimic Blade Beasts did Wu Man sense?]

[Wang Zheng (Righteous Person): Around seven or eight. They're all in the lower part of the fortress, most likely in the Lower City. We'll begin searching from the thirty-eighth floor. We have to find out where the Mimic Blade Beasts entered from. Continue scanning the fortress's structural systems.]

[Zhou Zhengde (Young Master Zhou): Understood. Although I have more than enough confidence in your strength—you killed a Special Winged Dragon... I still have to remind you of one thing. You are now a valuable technical talent. Preserving your life takes priority over every other option.]

[Wang Zheng (Righteous Person): (￣ー￣) Fine, combat-type technical talent.]

Putting away the document exchanger, Daoist Wang glanced at the backpack and golf bag by his legs, feeling a little more at ease.

Naturally, he had to keep his magical spear with him.

Later, Wang Jixuan would be responsible for finding the Mimic Blade Beasts, Zheng Shiduo would be responsible for Slaying Demons and Eliminating Evils, and Wan Xiaoqi would be responsible for clearing any surveillance records that might exist.

So long as the Mimic Blade Beasts did not gather in clusters, Wang Jixuan would not need to act personally. Zheng Shiduo could Deal With them alone.

Ding ding!

Wan Xiaoqi reminded them from the side, "The elevator is about to Arrive At the target floor."

The moment she finished speaking, the Elevator Door opened on its own. Two Young men wearing Security Team uniforms outside simultaneously gave military salutes.

The Two Brothers were not outsiders either. They were Zhou Zhengde's trusted subordinates, Lin Bo and Lin Yong.

Behind Lin Bo, two narrow sightseeing vehicles were quietly parked. This would help them rapidly search the entire floor and improve efficiency.

"Commander! Under the pretext of an Enforcement Team investigation, we have closed the Checkpoints between the Middle City and Lower City. Autonomous guards have been dispatched to every upward and downward passage!"

"Mm." Wang Jixuan took the initiative to sit in the back seat of the sightseeing vehicle.

Close Eyes and Concentrate, spiritual awareness spread outward.

Lin Bo drove Daoist Wang and Wan Xiaoqi forward.

Zheng Shiduo was in the vehicle behind them, already examining Lin Yong's pectoral muscles.

At the center of the Sari Desert, one similar scene after another formed by sand dunes Flashed Across Ling Tong's vision.

"Ling Tong?" Sister Wan's voice sounded through the earpiece.

"Speak."

"Your focus index is only ninety-two," Sister Wan reminded her. "Is something on your mind? I'm your chief logistics officer, and I need to conduct Real-time monitoring of your psychological state... Is it because of Wang Zheng?"

"I was thinking about whether I was too harsh with him just now."

Ling Tong said simply and directly:

"My tone when I gave him the order was somewhat unfriendly, and then I missed an opportunity to make up for it. That may have made him uncomfortable.

"He is the kind of man with very strong self-esteem."

Sister Wan smiled. "Don't think about those things, Ling Tong. If a relationship requires one side to deliberately pretend to be gentle, then that relationship is destined not to last. Being candid and direct are absolutely strengths of your personality."

"I think we are only in the stage where mutual affection is increasing. It is still far from being a relationship."

"This is already the prelude to love. The prelude can rise in key at any time because of passion brought about by hormonal secretion."

Sister Wan spoke gently:

"So you do not need to worry at all. You don't need to deliberately perform for him. Instead, the two of you should get to know and respect each other.

"Would the man you like really hold a grudge over such a Trivial Matter? If he truly were like that, could your good impression of him last?

"Stay logical, Combat Machine. Enjoy love, but don't let love cloud your judgment."

"Mm. There is nothing left that can distract me now."

Ling Tong took several light Deep Breaths, and her gaze became sharp again.

On the translucent map Before One's Eyes, she was already very close to the location where she and Red Snake had been ambushed.

A large number of Red Dots appeared along the edge of the map.

In the natural view beyond the map, Red Snake circled through the air, covering a reconnaissance team of several hundred people below as they fought and retreated.

Blade Beasts constantly burst out of the sand, madly surrounding and attacking this small human force.

Blade Beasts kept roaring and releasing visible Shockwaves, attempting to interfere with Red Snake. Red Snake's laughter had already entered the chat channel.

In the Combat Machine Circle, Red Snake was a well-known battle maniac.

Ling Tong asked, "How much longer until the mech arrives?"

"Three minutes and twenty-five seconds until the airdrop. A batch of missile support has Arrived At."

Ahead, more than a dozen missiles almost vertically Crash Down, bombing the edge of the combat zone.

The Battle Blade Armor immediately accelerated, and Ling Tong joined the battle.

At the Same Time.

In the Pervert Zone of the City of Joy in the Lower City of Fortress No. 76.

Familiar storefronts, unfamiliar signs, familiar Bunny Girls.

Wang Jixuan stood in the corridor With hands behind his back. Listening to the gunfire, screams, and roars coming from a private room beside him, he turned and looked at the trembling Bunny Girl.

Enforcement Team uniforms really were useful;

The Bunny Girl did not dare make those sorts of "little surprise" jokes anymore.

More than ten seconds later, the private room door opened. The dozen or so half-naked men and women inside had already fallen unconscious. The corpse of a Mimic Blade Beast lay on the floor, while the back of a scantily clad woman had been torn open by what appeared to be some terrifying claw.

Obviously, this woman had once been the Mimic Blade Beast's "Human Skin."

Zheng Shiduo lowered his head and spat. "The first one. It only entered the body not long ago. It probably came in during the last siege of the fortress."

Wang Jixuan pointed at the Bunny Girl beside him and said simply, "Put her to sleep for two days. Be gentle."

"Ah, ah? Oh!"

Before the Bunny Girl could Reacted, Zheng Shiduo's eyes had already blossomed with green light. She slowly collapsed onto the carpet in the corridor.

Wang Jixuan pushed open the door and entered. Two True Fire Talismans Flew out, landing respectively on the Human Skin and the Mimic Blade Beast's back. His Two Hands formed Sword Fingers and moved swiftly, igniting two clusters of true fire at once.

They spent half a minute clearing the battlefield. There were no cameras here.

Wang Jixuan and Zheng Shiduo set off on their Return Journey, calling over Wan Xiaoqi, who was standing dumbfounded around the corridor corner.

"No, no!"

Wan Xiaoqi pointed at the photograph of a giant lizard hanging on the wall and asked with wide eyes:

"What does this top seller mean? Is it what I think it means? My worldview has exploded! What exactly have we been protecting?!"

Zheng Shiduo blinked.

"Diversity."