The two of them, one ahead and one behind, cautiously circled toward the woods on the left. They held their breath and focused intently the entire way, not daring to make the slightest mistake.
Ever since the investigators had moved into the area and set up defenses, the scattered mutant beasts that had once roamed the surrounding region had all been cowed by humanity's presence and equipment, not daring to come within a single step.
The entire perimeter of the restricted zone was terrifyingly quiet. There were no roars from mutant beasts, no sounds of disturbance—and that happened to provide Mu Qi and Zhang Zhao with ideal conditions for infiltration.
They did not need to divide their attention to guard against surprise attacks from mutant beasts. They only needed to focus on avoiding the investigators' patrols.
With extreme caution and perfect cover, the two of them successfully slipped past every guard post and silently circled around to the side of the underground cavern.
Ahead stood a towering evergreen tree, its branches lush and its crown dense—a perfect observation point.
The two exchanged a glance. Perfectly in sync, they used both hands and feet, gripping protrusions in the trunk for leverage as they rapidly climbed up.
They crouched steadily in the fork of a thick branch. Layer upon layer of leaves completely concealed them, making it impossible to spot the figures in the canopy from the ground. Their concealment was maxed out.
Each of them removed a backpack and took out a folding telescope. Raising them to their eyes, they skillfully adjusted the focus, fixed their gazes on the distant underground cavern, and began a thorough reconnaissance.
The weeds and loose stones around the cavern entrance had all been cleared away, revealing a broad, level stretch of open ground specially opened