Dinner was served in the cafeteria beside the Command Center. The Special Affairs Bureau's logistics staff had prepared food for twelve. It was nothing lavish, but there was enough to fill everyone up.
Xiao Yuanfeng sat in a corner, shoveling down his food without a word. His chopsticks never left his bowl throughout the meal. He ate quickly, set them down when he finished, and sat there staring blankly.
Xu Yunda sat across from him, glanced at him, and said nothing.
Over the course of the day, they had endured every shock there was to endure. Formations, combat, Artifact Refining—three trials, three utterly crushing defeats in different fields.
There was nothing left to say.
After dinner, everyone went their separate ways. Chen Hao's disciples returned to the dormitory area to cultivate. Yang Wanqing really did take the halberd into her room—Ying Wenjie's prediction had come true.
Qin Xiaoyu knocked on Chen Siyao's door, and the two spent half an hour discussing the details of the third island's formation in preparation for tomorrow's operation.
Chen Hao sat alone in the Command Center.
The screen displayed a satellite map of the Thirty-Six Penglai Islands. The marker for the Thirty-Sixth Island had changed from red to green, indicating that its mysteries had been unraveled.
His gaze shifted to the Thirty-Fifth Island.
This island was larger than the previous one. The satellite image showed a mountain at its center, with the outlines of buildings on its summit, though their exact layout was indistinct.
Energy scans showed that the Thirty-Fifth Island's energy fluctuations were an order of magnitude higher than those of the Thirty-Sixth Island.
Chen Hao watched for a few seconds, then turned off the screen.
The corridor was quiet when he left the Command Center. As he passed the disciples' dormitory area, he