Lend You a Hand

Feeling the hard touch against his forehead, a flash of red light flickered deep within the eyes of Chen Chong as he stared fixedly at the finger Liu Xun held on the trigger.

However, before he could make a move, Liu Xun slammed the gun down:

"If it weren't for our company strictly following protocol, I'd kill you right here! Hmph, forget it! I'll spare your dog life for now, but once we get back, I'm reporting you to the General Manager to have you properly dealt with!"

Liu Xun certainly wouldn't take action here; otherwise, who would be left to take the fall when they returned?

After putting on a show, he shoved Chen Chong hard with the gun.

Yet, he found that he hadn't budged him at all.

Chen Chong did not resist, but he didn't move either, standing before him like a silent mountain that would not shift an inch.

Liu Xun's expression turned ugly instantly, but he didn't say anything more, merely letting out a cold snort before turning back to check on the status of the wounded.

The team members were still quite confused by Liu Xun's attitude.

In their eyes, Chen Chong had been a massive help; after all, they hadn't expected a bar fighter to be of any use at the start—and in truth, neither had Liu Xun.

But Chen Chong had used his own strength to resolve the crisis of this Twin Dragons attack entirely. Had it been any other Official Fighter in his place, the best-case scenario for their squad would have been more casualties, and the worst-case would have been total annihilation.

Talented people command respect wherever they go, or at least receive serious consideration, and the team members' attitude toward Chen Chong had clearly become much more respectful.

Yet, their captain had suddenly listed three major crimes against this hero. Though the members vaguely felt something was off, they still stood silently behind their captain.

Their gazes toward Chen Chong turned hostile again, but no one dared to provoke him to his face.

After all, they were neither as strong as their captain nor as strong as the Earth Dragon.

Chen Chong reached into his pocket and pulled out a large quantity of Nutrient Paste—a great many.

He began to tear open the first tube.

A long while passed.

Liu Xun felt that Chen Chong seemed to be staring at him constantly, and he couldn't help but turn around with a dark face and bark:

"What are you looking at?"

"Nothing, sir."

Chen Chong stared at him, then tore open another tube of Nutrient Paste and put it into his mouth.

Liu Xun's gaze involuntarily followed the falling plastic wrapper down to Chen Chong's feet, where a pile of Nutrient Paste packaging had already accumulated.

His eyelids twitched.

The quantity felt like it already exceeded his own intake. He was a fighter who had broken through the Beam Setting, so even if Chen Chong needed to replenish energy due to his injuries, could he really eat more than him?

However, as a captain of the Security Department, he had never had to rely solely on Nutrient Paste, so he couldn't be sure. But Chen Chong's gaze made him extremely uncomfortable; he always felt that the man was looking at him the same way he looked at the Nutrient Paste.

Feeling restless and agitated, Liu Xun snorted coldly... and simply stopped looking in Chen Chong's direction.

He did not realize that, subconsciously, he no longer wanted to provoke a conflict with Chen Chong.

Chen Chong naturally did not view Liu Xun as Nutrient Paste; in his eyes, Nutrient Paste was far more lovable than Liu Xun.

5%.

He glanced at the number before him. The Third Form was indeed much harder to activate than before; this was the progress of two days.

Having just activated the Second Form for a moment, the energy he had accumulated on the road was already completely exhausted.

He looked at Liu Xun, evaluating how much Nutrient Paste would be needed to open it again.

And then, kill this guy.

If it really came down to it, he could even consume his progress.

Chen Chong took a breath.

Calm down first.

Emotional venting was only temporary; only a fighter who could control their emotions could last.

If he killed Liu Xun in public, he would likely face the pursuit of the entire Thunder Dragon across the Wasteland, a place he was not familiar with.

He had to find an opportunity later.

He wasn't sure if the convoy had detailed maps or sufficient fuel; just stealing a vehicle to run away might not even get him out of the Wasteland, let alone with pursuers on his tail.

But if he pointed that gun at him again...

Chen Chong's eyes turned icy.

"Why haven't they returned yet?"

On the other side, Liu Xun felt increasingly anxious.

Logically, a battle-hardened Security Department captain shouldn't be this jumpy, but firstly, there had been one accident after another since entering the Hunting Grounds today; secondly, Chen Chong's temperament made him subconsciously uncomfortable; and thirdly...

The surroundings had been quiet for too long.

Liu Xun frowned, looked around, and suddenly shouted sharply.

"Alert!"

The security team members still capable of moving immediately raised their guns. Chen Chong also frowned, and just as he was about to head to the camp to grab an unclaimed weapon, Liu Xun reached out to stop him.

"Per company regulations, you aren't allowed to use a firearm without training."

Chen Chong cast a deep look at the cold-faced Liu Xun before slowly withdrawing his hand.

He walked over to the deputy captain's corpse and retrieved the Alloy Combat Blade.

This time, Liu Xun merely frowned, his hand brushing over his own sidearm, but he said nothing.

He scanned his surroundings, finding nothing unusual in the wilderness, yet his extensive experience told him something was wrong. After another sweep, his gaze locked onto a gentle slope. He raised his weapon and fired a burst of bullets toward the crest.

"Come out!"

Liu Xun's shout carried far across the wilderness, but there was no response for a long while. Just as the team members began to think their captain was being overly cautious, a bald man stood up from behind the slope.

"Hey, hey, hey, friend, why so temperamental?"

The man spread his hands and shouted theatrically.

He was tall and thin, wearing a leather jacket, with a striking skull tattoo etched into his sunken right cheek.

Liu Xun's voice turned icy in an instant:

"Skull Gang?"

"Thunder Dragon?"

The bald man mimicked Liu Xun's tone before immediately grinning:

"We're all old friends, why act so surprised? You're making it look like we don't know each other."

"Hmph, this is the Hunting Grounds of our Thunder Dragon. What is the Skull Gang doing here?"

"Out for a picnic, is that a problem?"

The man chuckled:

"I saw a few big earthworms crawl out, and I thought I'd like a share."

Liu Xun pointed his gun directly at him:

"In your dreams."

"Oh, oh, oh! Calm down, calm down!"

The bald man raised his hands high and let out a whistle.

More than a dozen figures rose up from the top of the slope.

These figures wore leather jackets, trench coats, or padded coats, with a motley assortment of hairstyles—bald, afros, red, green, pink, white—every color imaginable. The only thing they had in common was the skull tattoo on their faces, marking them as members of the Skull Gang.

Compared to the uniform, well-equipped Thunder Dragon security team, the Skull Gang members looked disorganized, like a pack of refugees.

Yet, the security team felt no sense of superiority; instead, their expressions grew increasingly rigid.

Because the dozen or so people standing on the slope, aside from the bald leader, were all brandishing firearms, aiming down at them from the high ground.

"See? I told you to stay calm. What if someone's gun went off by accident?"

The bald man kept his hands raised, grinning.

Liu Xun's expression was grave:

"What do you want?"

"I want you to stop pointing that gun at me first."

Liu Xun's expression flickered for a moment before he slowly lowered his weapon.

Only then did the bald man lower his hands and whistle again:

"That's a good boy."

Ignoring Liu Xun's face, which was as dark as a pot, the bald man continued:

"Like I said, we're out for a picnic today, but unfortunately, after looking around, we're missing a main course. Say, you were just here—did you happen to hunt down some treasures?"

Liu Xun was silent for a moment, then said coldly:

"That was a mission personally issued by the General Manager. I must bring..."

"You don't seem to understand the situation."

The bald man interrupted with a laugh:

"When our Skull Gang goes on an outing, we have to eat. If there's no Earth Dragon Meat, then the only dish left here is you lot."

Liu Xun's face turned grim.

They had just fought a brutal battle against the earth dragon and suffered heavy losses; only five or six of them were still fit to fight.

The Skull Gang had appeared at the perfect moment, holding both the high ground and the numerical advantage.

With over a dozen dark gun barrels aimed at them, sweat began to bead on the foreheads of the security team members.

As for the leader opposite them, although he wasn't holding a gun, he exerted a certain pressure even while empty-handed; he was clearly an expert.

A war raged in Liu Xun's mind, but in the end, he buckled under the pressure.

He slowly reached out, beckoning a team member over, just about to give an order.

Suddenly, he heard a clear voice ring out from the side:

"Captain Liu, you can't!"

Liu Xun whipped his head around, seeing Chen Chong staring at him with an inexplicable look in his eyes.

His heart skipped a beat, and before he could stop him, he heard Chen Chong say righteously:

"According to company regulations, it is strictly forbidden to use company assets to aid the enemy, especially hostile forces like the Skull Gang.

"Captain Liu, your fighting spirit is so wavering that I fear you'll face the family law once we return. I think it's better if I give you a hand.

"Listen up, you scum of the Skull Gang! Thunder Dragon will never surrender, even in death! If you have the guts, then open fire!"

After shouting this at the top of his lungs, he drew his combat knife and hurled it with all his might!

The knife whistled through the air like a bolt of lightning, burying itself into the eye socket of the nearest Skull Gang member.

The Skull Gang member didn't even let out a grunt before falling backward.

Everyone present fell silent.