Principles for Forming Exploration Squads

"Call--"

Shen Heng stood still and slowly exhaled a breath of white air.

He raised his gaze and looked into the distance.

The massive black shadow landed dozens of meters away, motionless, seemingly incapacitated, but...

As he watched the rising steam, Shen Heng's eyes narrowed slightly, and the image of the unusually bulging muscles he had seen when the long sword struck with its last strike flashed through his mind.

Before he could even figure out what was going on, Wang Hu braced himself up with his hands and stood up again.

His muscles bulged, his skin, which was not covered by hair, was slightly red, and steam rose even more from his body.

Is this... there's Second Tier?... Shen Heng's lips twitched slightly, feeling that this ability was a bit outrageous, even placing it in the A-Class was a bit of an understatement.

Just when Shen Heng thought the battle was going to continue, Wang Hu's figure suddenly began to shrink, and in the blink of an eye, he had returned to human form.

He opened his mouth, panting heavily, and even coughed twice.

"You... there should be Second Tier, right? Aren't you going to fight anymore?" Shen Heng asked Wang Hu to confirm.

Wang Hu looked up at Shen Heng and grinned:

"There's no need to continue. I acknowledge your strength, and I have no objection to you being the captain."

"While I could certainly continue playing, that kind of condition would be too taxing on my body, not the right way to handle this situation, and besides..."

Wang Hu paused here, then looked at Shen Heng, his smile widening.

"You probably haven't used your full strength yet, have you?"

Shen Heng paused for a moment, nodded slightly, and stopped the Origin Power vibrating within his body.

Seeing this, Wang Hu's grin widened even further.

He stepped to Shen Heng's side, extended a hand, and looked at Shen Heng earnestly.

"Shen Heng, join my team along with Han Ling!"

"..."

Shen Heng looked up at the short man in front of him, and couldn't help but twitch his lips slightly.

Is this guy really out of his mind?

Within the base.

Shen Heng and Han Ling walked side by side on their way back to the dormitory.

Suddenly, a voice came from behind.

"Hey, Shen Heng, wait a minute!"

The two stopped and turned around to look back.

Just a few dozen meters away, Zhou Xuan was walking briskly towards the two of them.

"Are you going back to the dorm too?" Shen Heng asked Zhou Xuan as he walked over.

"Yes, we'll go back, but we'll have to wait!" Zhou Xuan replied.

"Wait a minute?" Shen Heng looked at Zhou Xuan in confusion.

"Okay, I need to go out and call my mom first. I'll tell her I won't have time to call her right now, and that she shouldn't worry!" Zhou Xuan nodded.

Should I call home?... Shen Heng turned his head and looked ahead.

Neat streets, buildings that are almost indistinguishable on both sides, scattered people on the road, and a tall, Light Gate in the distance...

The Erosion Zone cannot communicate directly with the outside world; to make a phone call, one must go outside.

He turned his head back and asked:

Do you call home often?

Han Ling also looked at Zhou Xuan with a hint of curiosity.

"Hehe, not often, maybe once every two or three days!" Zhou Xuan laughed.

Isn't that much more than me?... Shen Heng withdrew his gaze. Although he could also fight, his frequency was far less than Zhou Xuan's.

"Oh, right, let's not talk about this anymore!"

Zhou Xuan looked at Shen Heng with a slight gleam in his eyes.

"I didn't expect you to have become so strong after two years since I left the training camp!"

"After all, two years have passed, so it's normal to have grown. Aren't you much stronger than before?" Shen Heng looked at Zhou Xuan calmly.

"Well, even so, nothing is as outrageous as this!" Zhou Xuan clicked his tongue in amazement.

Shen Heng smiled faintly, not paying any attention.

"By the way, do you know how our team was selected? Based on combat strength? But my combat strength shouldn't be high enough to get me selected, right?" Zhou Xuan asked doubtfully.

"It depends on our abilities, fighting style, and compatibility with the team. Each of us has our own role in the team," Shen Heng said calmly.

"Is that so?" Zhou Xuan muttered to himself, then looked at Shen Heng with suspicion, "How did you know?"

Shen Heng glanced at Zhou Xuan sideways. "Because I chose it."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Xuan paused slightly and looked at Shen Heng with his eyes widened slightly.

"Did you choose all the members of our team?"

"Yes, the base wants to get a general idea of the situation outside first, so that when other teams explore later, they won't be completely clueless." Shen Heng nodded calmly.

"So that's how it is!"

Zhou Xuan nodded slightly, then a smile appeared on his face.

He moved closer to Shen Heng Shen Heng and nudged him with his elbow.

"So? Do you regret bringing Wang Hu in? You gave him so many points for nothing!"

Shen Heng glanced at Zhou Xuan and said calmly:

"There's nothing to regret."

"Huh? You don't regret it? He just fought with you!" Zhou Xuan asked, slightly surprised.

"Given his situation at the time, even without this incident, he would most likely have come to me with something else anyway," Shen Heng said calmly.

"Is he trying to recruit Han Ling into his team?" Zhou Xuan glanced at Han Ling, then turned his gaze to Shen Heng.

"Hmm." Shen Heng nodded calmly.

He hesitated for a moment, then continued:

"Moreover, within the base, his abilities and strength are indeed the most suitable for our temporary team at the moment."

"So even if I knew this would happen, I would most likely still have pulled him into the team."

"Uh... you really are still you!" Zhou Xuan clicked his tongue.

"So, what's your assessment of him?"

"Meat shield..."

The two walked and talked.

Soon, after reaching the fork in the road between the Light Gate and the dormitory area, Zhou Xuan parted ways with the two.

Han Ling glanced at Zhou Xuan's departing figure, then turned her gaze to Shen Heng.

What is his role?

"He has control, and because of his abilities, the public positions he can offer will be more diverse, making him more suitable for dealing with various situations!" Shen Heng replied.

Han Ling nodded slightly upon hearing this, then turned her gaze away.

"Wang Hu shouldn't be coming looking for us again, right?"

"Yes, no, after all, the commander just explained the principles of team formation, and we are destined not to be able to form a team with them," Shen Heng said calmly.

The formation of exploration teams isn't something you can just report to the base and expect them to be formed that way.

At this base, there are two principles governing the formation of exploration teams.

The first rule is that the members of the exploration team need to make up for the team's weaknesses as much as possible.

Avoid forming a squad consisting of people skilled in ranged attacks or those skilled in melee combat.

Such a small team has a very poor ability to withstand risks.

Fighting the Calamity Beast doesn't necessarily give you an advantage.