Fifteen days passed in the blink of an eye, and the day of the Divine Wind Camp Battalion's assessment arrived.
Jiang Fan followed Wei Cangyue and the others to the Divine Wind Camp's main camp.
This was, in fact, his first time officially visiting this place.
The reason it's described as "formal" is because he had previously used his Psychic Power to probe it.
but--
Jiang Fan turned his gaze to the Heaven-Reaching Tower standing in the center of the base camp.
His eyes were narrowed, their expression unreadable.
This place was impenetrable to Psychic Power; the entire Heaven-Reaching Tower seemed like an isolated entity, and no matter how many times he tried, he could not detect even the slightest thing.
He had asked the Crazy Old Man about this matter.
It was on that occasion that he saw a rare serious side of the Crazy Old Man.
The Crazy Old Man warned him in an extremely solemn tone.
That's right, it's a warning!
Tell him not to do anything so reckless again.
This piqued his interest, and he tried to ask more questions, but the Crazy Old Man didn't give him the chance and hung up the phone immediately.
So—what unknown secrets are hidden within this Heaven-Reaching Tower?
Just as Jiang Fan was deep in thought, his train of thought was suddenly interrupted by a cacophony of voices.
I pulled myself out of my thoughts and listened intently.
"Look, it's the Sharp Edge Squad! They're back!"
"Sigh--" Someone let out a long sigh and shook their head.
"Looks like we're going to witness the disbandment of the Sharp Edge Squad today."
The person next to him sighed, "Back in the day, the Sharp Edge Squad was a rising star. Everyone in the Divine Wind Camp knew them. But who could have imagined they'd end up like this?"
"Actually, everyone in their team is excellent, and their mission completion rate is very high. They're just really unlucky; they always seem to run into problems at crucial moments."
At this point, someone glanced around and whispered:
"I heard that someone is forming the Sharp Edge Squad '."
"I've heard what you said, but without evidence, it's best not to make such statements."
Everyone agreed with this statement and cast sympathetic glances at the Sharp Edge Squad.
This is the Divine Wind Camp's headquarters.
We are all iron-blooded soldiers, sharing an irreplaceable bond of camaraderie, and possessing the courage and determination to forge ahead even at the cost of our lives.
Therefore, such underhanded things as backstabbing and infighting are extremely rare.
Everyone still hopes that things can be alright for each other.
Suddenly, the members of the Edge-Breaking Squad appeared in everyone's sight.
"It's the Edge-Breaking Squad!" The person who shouted this clearly expressed envy and excitement.
"I heard they're aiming for a fourth-tier squad this time. Based on their previous performance, I think they've got it pretty much guaranteed."
"It's not just a high probability, it's a sure thing! It's 100% certain!"
"Sigh, from now on we're not on the same level as their Edge-Breaking Squad. It really proves the old saying, some are happy, some are sad!"
Unlike when we were discussing the Sharp Edge Squad earlier, everyone was much quieter now, since they're about to disband.
Everyone praised and admired the Edge-Breaking Squad, so they stopped hiding their opinions and spoke up loudly.
What they didn't know was that Jiang Fan's actions had caused the Edge-Breaking Squad to fail in their mission, and their faces were so gloomy they looked like they could drip water at any moment.
At that moment, the long queue had just reached the Sharp Edge Squad.
The staff member responsible for verifying the crystal cores looked at Wei Cangyue with a complicated expression.
His expression was complex, and his thoughts were equally complicated.
Speaking of which, he used to be a big fan of Wei Cangyue and had personally witnessed the other's glorious and glamorous life.
And now... sigh...
Just as he was thinking this, Wei Cangyue took off the bag he was carrying and threw it onto the table.
With a "thump!"
The sound was like thunder.
The shock startled the staff and everyone else.
Before anyone could react, Wei Cangyue suddenly grinned, reached out his large hand, unzipped the bag, and turned it upside down.
"Splash--"
Countless crystal cores fell out of the bag in a rush, piling up into a small mountain.
"W-What's going on?!"
So shocked was the person who shouted that they stammered.
However, this is only the beginning.
Following Wei Cangyue, the other members of the Sharp Edge Squad each carried a bag and turned it upside down one by one.
"Splash splash splash--la la la la--"
They formed one small hill after another.
This scene left everyone dumbfounded, frozen in place, completely stunned.
It took a long time before the sound of swallowing saliva could be heard.
The sounds of swallowing saliva rose and fell.
"Wow—this—this is way too exaggerated!!"
The person who said this rubbed their eyes vigorously, wondering if they were seeing things.
But even though he rubbed his eyes until they were swollen, the mountain made of crystal nuclei still stood there, gleaming alluringly in the sunlight.
suddenly!
Someone has identified the key point.
"How come there are so many Five Star crystal cores?"
"Hiss--We're both fifth-tier teams, so how come they're so much better? Look at the crystal cores we have, they're nothing!"
"It can only be said that they truly lived up to their reputation as the once-glorious and formidable ' Sharp Edge Squad!"
"Something's not right." Someone realized something was amiss.
" The Sharp Edge Squad has been on a downward spiral for years, especially recently. They failed the assessment twice in a row and were on the verge of disbanding. But—but—but in fact, not only did they not have to disband, they far exceeded expectations and completed the mission. I think 'far exceeded expectations' is not an exaggeration. In fact, since joining the Divine Wind Camp, I have never seen any fifth-class squad complete a mission so well. Let alone a fifth-class squad, even fourth-class and third-class squads have never handed in so many crystal cores!"
"Your analysis is correct, that's right! Look at him—"
The man pointed at Jiang Fan, whose face was completely covered.
"Do you think it could be because of him?"
" The Sharp Edge Squad didn't have this person before. Wait! I suddenly remembered that a while ago in the Mercenary Guild hall, Wei Cangyue was trying his best to recruit an archer. Looking at the bow and arrows on his back, could this be him?"
"It must be him. You mean, the Sharp Edge Squad turned the tide because of him?"
"Impossible. How could a newcomer have such great abilities? It's probably just that the Sharp Edge Squad got lucky this time and only encountered relatively weak monsters."
I think so too.
Most people agree with this statement, but a small minority disagree.
"Anyway, once might be a coincidence, but can it still be a coincidence twice, three times, or four times? So let's see what happens to the Sharp Edge Squad in the future."
Hearing the discussions, Wei Cangyue joked to Jiang Fan, "It seems there are quite a few discerning people who guessed you're a real gem."
Jiang Fan's lips twitched, and goosebumps rose all over his body.
"Can you not put it so disgustingly?"