Chen Hao wore his headphones. On the screen, his character had just scored a triple kill and was still looting.
"Bro."
Chen Hao did not turn around.
"Bro!" Chen Siyao raised her voice a notch. "Something happened in Penglai."
Chen Hao's hand stopped.
He took off his headphones and swiveled his chair around.
Chen Siyao handed him her phone. The footage Han Songyue had sent was already loading.
"Director Han called. Xiangliu entered Penglai's Tenth Island. Xiaoyu and the others are on the island."
The video shook violently, filmed from the deck of a warship.
In the distance, a translucent barrier of light enveloped the Tenth Island. Pale golden patterns flowed across its surface, a telltale sign that the formation had been reactivated.
Over a dozen warships had spread out in a fan across the sea, surrounding the Tenth Island, but not a single vessel ventured close to the barrier.
Broken exchanges from the command channel could be heard in the footage. "...Thermal scans have detected five humanoid targets... one massive biological signature... unable to confirm conditions inside the island..."
Chen Hao watched the entire video from beginning to end. One minute and twelve seconds.
"When was the formation reactivated?"
"Director Han said about twenty minutes ago," Chen Siyao replied. "Xiaoyu and the others had been working on dismantling the Tenth Island's formation, and everything was going smoothly. Then Xiangliu suddenly shot up from the deep sea. It was too fast. By the time the warships reacted, Xiangliu was already on the island."
"Then Xiaoyu and the others reactivated the formation."
"Yes. Director Han said they were probably trying to trap Xiangliu with it. But now they can't see what's happening inside, and they don't dare use heavy weapons for fear of hitting our people."
Chen Hao handed the phone