Sudden Change

The echoes of the bombardment still rang in their ears when three bright green flares finally rose from the camp behind them, standing out sharply amid the smoke filling the sky.

Seeing this, Deputy Director Gao dispelled his spell, and the thick earthen wall dissolved into streams of light.

A scorching blast of air rushed at them, carrying the heavy stench of scorched earth and burned flesh, choking them until they could barely breathe.

"Follow me. Stay alert!"

Deputy Director Gao spoke in a low voice and took the lead. Their four-man team moved through the blasted woodland in combat formation, proceeding with caution.

For the first hundred meters or so, the scene mainly bore the marks of the previous terrifying shockwave. Trees as thick as bowls had been uniformly flattened and snapped, while dense shrubs had been pressed flat as if by an invisible giant hand. Shattered branches and leaves carpeted the ground.

As they continued deeper, the smell of gunpowder in the air gradually grew stronger, carrying a faint burning sensation as it entered their nostrils. The light also seemed dimmer, as dust and smoke farther ahead began to block out the daylight.

It was in this area that they encountered the expected chaos. Countless demon beasts and spirits that had luckily escaped from deeper in the forest were fleeing outward in panic. Most were wounded, and some still bore scorch marks. They had completely lost any will to resist and cared only about running for their lives.

"Clear them out!" Deputy Director Gao ordered decisively.

What followed became an efficient and merciless harvest.

Yang Wenqing brought up the rear, gathering valuable demon beast materials and setting fire to the twisted fiendish creatures deeply contaminated by demonic qi.

They advanced for roughly half an hour.

When the heat waves in the air became distinctly noticeable, the soil beneath their feet gradually darkened, and they could vaguely see an area ahead completely shrouded in dense smoke and dust, Deputy Director Gao raised a hand again and stopped the team.

His sharp gaze swept across the hazy region dominated by smoke and fire ahead as he said gravely:

"We're here. Up ahead is the outer perimeter of the bombardment zone. Stay sharp. The situation inside is unknown, and the danger may not have been completely eliminated."

As soon as he finished speaking, two combat squads from the Operations Division appeared on either side of them.

Deputy Director Gao immediately ordered, "Set up a perimeter and wait for the remaining combat squad members."

After Deputy Director Gao issued the order, the Operations Division's two combat squads skillfully occupied advantageous positions to their left and right. Their rune rifles were vigilantly aimed in every direction, forming a solid triangular defensive formation with Yang Wenqing's group.

Deputy Director Gao walked to one side, activated the communication array within his badge, and spoke in a lowered voice with the other commanders. He was clearly synchronizing information and coordinating the next phase of the operation.

Taking advantage of the pause, Yang Wenqing was able to observe the area ahead more closely, an area that had just endured a devastating baptism.

Yet the dense dust hung like a heavy curtain, obscuring most of his view. He could only vaguely make out the remains of giant trees. The smell of burning and the reek of scorched flesh in the air had reached their peak here, mixed with an intense fiery baleful aura that made him nauseous.

The originally violent and chaotic flow of spiritual energy seemed to have fallen into an eerie dead silence under the bombardment's utter destruction. Yang Wenqing could even sense that the Golden Core in his mind instinctively rejected and warned against absorbing energy from the area ahead.

Time passed as they waited. A quarter of an hour later, the airflow in the forest seemed to strengthen slightly, like invisible hands patiently brushing aside the heavy curtain of smoke and dust to reveal the charred outlines ahead. The suffocating smell of burning and rot in the air was also diluted somewhat by the breeze. It was still unpleasant, but no longer quite as oppressive.

"There are still life signs inside, and they're frantically absorbing this violent energy!"

Deputy Director Gao's gaze swept over Wang Jianchao and Liu Xin before he began communicating with the other commanders. More than ten seconds later, the branch bureau leaders at the front line, dressed in white uniforms, reached a consensus.

Then Deputy Director Gao produced a command flag and sent it floating into the air. The flag expanded in the wind, instantly transforming into an enormous luminous banner. Countless profound silver runes flowed out from it, weaving through the air like living creatures. They intertwined with identical runes spreading in from other directions, rapidly constructing a vast and intricate light-screen array that enveloped the bombardment's core zone!

This was a powerful sealing array, intended to isolate the exchange of energy between inside and outside while suppressing the abnormal fluctuations within.

Just as the light screen was about to close, the Golden Core in Yang Wenqing's mind suddenly trembled. He clearly sensed that an energy vortex had formed at the bottom of the massive ring-shaped crater at the center of the bombardment!

"Stay alert! Find cover!"

Deputy Director Gao shouted. He had clearly sensed that something was wrong as well.

The instant Deputy Director Gao's words fell, a faint crimson flame suddenly sprang up from the bottom of the charred crater at the bombardment's center.

At first, the flame was only the size of a candle flame, but in an instant, it expanded wildly!

Boom!!

A colossal pillar of crimson fire shot into the sky, and violent energy erupted in an instant. The newly formed silver sealing screen was like fragile glass. It failed to endure even a breath before shattering bit by bit amid a teeth-grating crack. The enormous forest barrier around the perimeter also rippled violently like water struck by a boulder before collapsing with a thunderous crash!

A scorching shockwave laden with destructive power swept outward in a ring. Every charred tree remnant in its path instantly turned to ash, and the ground was plowed flat once more!

"Get down!"

Deputy Director Gao roared as the spiritual radiance around him surged, trying to protect the others behind him. Yet before this world-destroying force, his personal defense seemed so pitifully weak.

Yang Wenqing felt an irresistible force crash into him head-on. He immediately cast the Golden Light Bodyguard Spell with all his strength, but the energy impact consumed most of the spiritual energy in his Qi Sea in an instant. Fortunately, the spiritual energy here was sufficiently dense, and with the Golden Core's help, it recovered in the next moment.

Unable to hold on, Wang Jianchao and Liu Xin immediately used the momentum to take cover behind Yang Wenqing.

Yet the pillar of fire that had shot into the sky did not persist. Instead, it rapidly contracted into a streak of crimson light, like a meteor flying in reverse, and instantly shot into the thick clouds high above.

At the same time, a clear, cheerful voice tinged with mockery rang out as though it were speaking directly beside everyone's ears, spreading distinctly throughout the entire area:

"Hahahahaha! Thank you, fellow Daoists, for lending me a hand. I shall repay today's karma another day!"

Even as that mocking voice echoed, the crimson pillar of fire had already soared into the sky, but the shockwave raised by the terrifying energy unleashed during its eruption did not stop. Like a tangible tsunami, it continued crushing outward!

The spiritual light shield raised by Deputy Director Gao began flickering violently after holding for two breaths, on the verge of shattering. He let out a muffled groan, and a trace of blood seeped from the corner of his mouth. He had clearly suffered internal injuries. Seeing that he could not withstand it head-on, he made a swift decision, flashed backward, and retreated behind Yang Wenqing as well.

For a moment, Yang Wenqing had become the foremost shield of their four-man team!