Morgue

At a campsite, the rescued genetically modified girl is treating Tamil's injuries.

During the chase, Tamil was hit by three arrows. One arrow was blocked by the mechanical shell, and the other two were lodged in his abdomen and shoulder, respectively.

"It's okay, just pull it out."

Tamil said indifferently.

The genetically engineered girl bit her lip, picked up her small knife, and began cutting her wound. Due to her lack of skill, blood spurted out from time to time, but even so, Tamil did not make a sound.

What a determined man!

Soon, the two barbed crossbow bolts were removed, the cut strips of cloth were rinsed with boiling water, and then tied up again.

Luckily, the campsite had some odds and ends, otherwise it would have been quite troublesome.

Ap also returned, his expression somewhat grave.

"Something went wrong."

"Our manpower was blocked on the outside. In addition to this convoy, the other side also sent three other convoys led by 'The Butcher' to block our reinforcements outside Flame Pass."

Seeing Tamil frown, Apu smiled again:

"Brother Blood Blade, don't be angry yet, there's actually some good news."

"Um?"

"They must have lost something important, and that thing must have fallen into our hands, otherwise they wouldn't be so furious."

Tamil seemed to have thought of something, and immediately took out the thing that the inside man had given him, opened it and took a look.

A map?

Ap came over, glanced around, and exclaimed softly, "This is a map of Flame Pass. No, these advanced buildings are definitely not something those natives could have built."

Tamil also realized something. "This facility is very similar to Professor Han's bionics research institute."

"You mean, there's also a pre-war research institute on their territory!?"

"Very likely!"

Tamil finally understood why the mole had said the Boss would be interested.

What is the current stance on the base?

"The base's message is that we should find a place to hide first, and we'll be safe once they take Flame Gate."

The genetically engineered girl standing nearby shuddered upon hearing this.

They actually dared to attack the supreme god!

Apu looked around at the endless yellow sand. "Where can we hide? We didn't bring any supplies with us."

The genetically modified girl mustered her courage and said, "I... I know a place where I can take you!"

Ap and Tamil looked at each other at the same time. The courage that the genetic girl had finally mustered dissipated a lot, and she subconsciously leaned closer to Tamil.

Ap complained, "Hey, little girl, I'm definitely more approachable-looking than the guy next to you, so why are you relying on him instead of me?"

Tamil said coldly, "Maybe he just thinks you're unreliable."

Ap rolled her eyes. "Fine, you win, little girl. Where are you planning to take us?"

The place the genetically engineered girl mentioned is called the "morgue," which is also an underground trading market in the Land of Flames. This trading market is about three hours away from here.

If you ride a horse, it will take less than half an hour.

Half an hour later, the three of them finally arrived at the morgue. By the time they got there, it was already late at night, and the interior was brightly lit from the outside.

The cable horse was too conspicuous, so Ap whispered a few words to it, and the modified horse disappeared into the darkness.

The three, dressed in cloaks, entered the morgue.

As they approached, they saw a cluster of rain shelters set up. Once inside, the two realized that the place was a melting pot of people, with all sorts of businessmen in each of the shelters.

Soon, the two understood why this place was called a morgue, because a large part of its merchandise consisted of all sorts of corpses.

The genetically modified girl led the two of them to a garbage dump.

There were several children, all younger than the girl, and they were all dirty. They seemed to know the girl, and when they saw her, their eyes lit up as they came over to greet her.

According to the girl, they were all cleaners at this "morgue," responsible for its hygiene, until the important figures completely abandoned it and turned it into a campsite, at which point they would leave.

Tamil was tall, and the ferocity in his eyes was impossible to conceal, so he was hidden away and sent by Ap to gather information.

The genetically modified girl somehow obtained a half-eaten nutritional paste and gestured to Tamil.

Tamil glanced at the other person, then closed his eyes again.

The genetically modified girl immediately showed a disappointed expression.

In the middle of the night, a noise was heard. Tamil opened his eyes a crack, and the switchblade in his hand was sprung out halfway.

"It's me!"

Ap crept over quietly, holding a nutritional paste he'd somehow acquired, which Tamil then wolfed down.

"I discovered that there are many warlords here, doing business, and their trading partners seem to be corporations."

Tamil paused, "Are you sure?"

"As you can see, you've forgotten that last time Committee Member Du negotiated with those company representatives, I was the bodyguard. I can never forget the smell of those people."

"So, behind these warlords are actually corporations?"

"I guessed so, otherwise where would they get so many weapons?"

"This is a bit troublesome," Tamil frowned.

The strength of a company is universally acknowledged.

Did they know about that "pre-war research institute"?

If they knew, would they cause trouble?

Although Tamil did not doubt that they could win, what they wanted was a complete Flame Pass, not a place that had been destroyed.

"Oh, right, I also found a place to gather information. Let's go check it out tomorrow," Ap winked. "You should be interested in that place."

"That was a black market conversion site."

On the outskirts of the Land of Flames, Keiko Matsushima sat on the ground, covered in soot, while Crow, the former vice-captain of the Fireweed Squad, bandaged her wounds.

This was a sudden battle.

The enemy is a squad of ten elite hairless burners led by a butcher.

With equal numbers, the Mechanical Hunters achieved a score of three to five, with two recruits and one mechanical bio-beast killed on their side, while the enemy lost five hairless burners.

In terms of casualty ratio alone, our side wins.

However, this was based on the premise that Keiko Matsushima used her full power, driving the 'combat chip' to its maximum, and she managed to cut down three hairless burners despite the explosion, driving them away.

These hairless burners are essentially an upgraded version of the Flame Boy, covered in thick black burn marks. Whether you attack them or they attack you, it will cause a violent explosion.

Although Keiko Matsushima unleashed her full power, the cost was that one of her knife grips was destroyed, preventing it from connecting to the smart knife until it was repaired.

The biggest difference between the "knife grip" and a mechanical hand is that it is an intermediary connecting the smart knife and the combat chip.

With it, the combat chip can perform combat strategy simulations.

With her knife grip broken, Keiko Matsushima's combat power has been reduced by at least 30%.

The crow stood up and looked at the huge bloody hole in the chest of the C-grade unicorn rhinoceros, its expression becoming more serious.

"I underestimated them a bit."

In fact, Keiko Matsushima's battlefield judgment was correct. If she hadn't gone berserk and repelled the butcher, their side would have suffered even greater casualties.

The enemy butchers' combat power is comparable to that of top-tier mechanical hunters.

"Ahhh, if Fatty Xiang were here, we wouldn't have fought so humiliatingly."

Keiko Matsushima was so angry that she rolled on the ground in frustration.

The crow looked at the other person helplessly, "You're the captain now."

The expansion of personnel will inevitably lead to a decline in strength in the short term. In fact, apart from the few who went undercover, the group of top-notch hunters who followed the senior engineer back then are now all squad leaders, with 10 to 20 mechanical hunters under their command.

In fact, if it weren't for taking care of the other party, the crow could have been a squad leader himself, instead of coming here to be the vice-captain.

In retrospect, my choice was wise.

Although her former captain, Daisy, liked to charge, she would usually choose the right time and place to lead the charge, which was more effective in boosting morale.

But Keiko is different. When she attacks people, she doesn't care about the occasion or the location. She's like a bomb that explodes at the slightest touch.

If the old crow doesn't take charge, every single one of these newbies will be screwed over by the other side.

"Pang Xiang is a captain now, and he's hunting marine species along the coast. If you look like this, will you even have the nerve to greet him when you see him again?"

The crow shook its head helplessly and pulled the other person backward by the collar.

"Let's go back."

"Where to?"

"The higher-ups see us as a disorganized mess and are now preparing to send three temporary company commanders over to take charge of unified task allocation."

"Squad leader, who is it? Is Daisy coming?" Matsushima Keiko perked up.

"It wasn't Daisy, but she's someone I know."

At this moment, on a transport plane, three figures are discussing the next military operation.

Among the three temporary squadron leaders, there was a familiar yet unfamiliar face, and that person was Huang Wen.

Having regained his physical body, Huang Wen seemed to be the same mechanic as before, expressionless and taciturn.

Unlike before, his physical body seemed to have undergone extensive modifications. Although it was not visible on the outside due to human bionics, the other two could feel the powerful electrical signals emanating from him.

Moreover, he carried an electromagnetic rifle called Storm on his back, a reward given to him by the boss.

As for the other two, they are Wriggler and Sun Tu, both of whom are veterans.

After much painful deliberation, the Worm decided to switch to the path of a creature hunter.

Now he exudes a dangerous aura, and granulation tissue keeps oozing out from various parts of his body.

On the other side, Sun Tu also took the "Heavy Armored Mech Hunter" route, reaching a height of three meters, and looking like a small-sized super mechanical gorilla.

Three more people have broken the hunter limit.

There was another person on the transport plane, or more accurately, a figurine.

At that moment, Valkyrie was fast asleep in his crib.