Wow! The item-dropping rate is really high!

"Hush~"

A slight jostle abruptly woke Bai E from his deep sleep, like two bright stars igniting in the night, his eyes snapped open instantly, retaining a crystal-clear consciousness as he tried to locate the source of the disturbance.

The next moment, the faint touch on his shoulder entered Bai E's awareness.

Despite scanning the dense twilight outside the car window, Bai E then turned to look behind him.

The steady old soldier raised his index finger to his lips, "Hush~"

Signaling Bai E not to panic, the old soldier then pointed towards the side window—

In the jungle, drifting phosphorescent green glows floated in mid-air, and the eyes accustomed to the darkness of night could vaguely make out the shapes in this dimly lit environment. Mud-streaked vines, greenish-brown, had unknowingly crept onto the reinforced glass.

Bai E's gaze became sharp, instinctively reaching for the machine gun beside him, hesitating slightly, then releasing his right hand that had already gripped the handle.

Too much noise, better use a combat knife.

"Shall we take action?"

"Ask the commander."

The two whispered softly, trying not to disturb their comrades' rest before confirming the need to take action.

The main strength tomorrow would lie with those close-combat experts; their role as firepower support was to keep watch at night.

"Hiss~" Turning on a separate channel, the steady old soldier softly requested over the mic, "This is Vehicle 1, this is Vehicle 1, abnormal situation detected. Requesting permission to engage?"

Almost instantly, Gregory's equally soft reply came through the earpiece, clearly not just Vehicle 1 had noticed the anomaly, "Those vines? We've seen them too."

"Commander?"

"Have the soldiers on watch duty remain alert, but for now, it seems the threat isn't significant, no need to disturb everyone's rest."

According to the gathered data, these plants were not very aggressive, all attacks seemed to be some kind of instinctual stress response, not a formidable enemy. It was better to let everyone get a good rest to preserve energy for the next morning when they could deal with it together.

Conversely, kicking up a fuss with these plants and attracting attention from potentially dangerous beasts lurking in the jungle or nomadic orcs would really spell trouble.

This part of the jungle wasn't far from the orcs' main plantation, so encountering small groups of wandering orcs was quite possible.

"Received," the steady old soldier acknowledged promptly.

With such orders from the commander, there was no need for undue worry.

"Do you want to sleep some more? You were tired today, and I probably won't be needed tomorrow..."

"It's fine." The shock had chased away all desire to sleep, "Can't sleep, I'll keep watch, go get some rest."

"Suit yourself."

Bai E took over from the old soldier, who then switched with AB, as the four firepower support soldiers completed their night watch handover.

Sitting in the driver's seat, Bai E stared at the jungle ahead, lost in thought.

Feedback from other players accumulated, only being processed by his consciousness after he awoke—

[From the quest feedback, your Insight +0.2.]

[From the quest feedback, Long-Range Weapons Mastery experience +52.]

[From the quest feedback, Light Weapons Mastery experience +30.]

…

[From the quest feedback, your Reflex +0.1.]

[From the quest feedback, Combat Mastery experience +36.]

…

Enhanced Insight made Bai E's eyes even brighter, allowing him to see further distances in the nearly pitch-black Dark Environment, or to observe those minute details that are almost imperceptible.

The vines creeping over the vehicle were like a thief sneaking into a house while its owner slept, moving as slowly and quietly as possible, inch by inch, trying to envelop the entire vehicle.

Bai E watched one of the vines closely and realized it took a long time before it moved just a tiny bit.

Unlike the vines at dusk that reacted violently, the current motion was growth rather than crawling.

Just like its host plant, which rooted itself in one place and grew slowly over hundreds of years, not vying for height with the sun and the moon day after day.

Trying to trace the vines back to their origins as much as possible, apart from the occasionally "stretching" living trees, there were no other clues to be found.

The lucky hit indicator didn't register those large trees as attackable targets—was it because it deemed that one couldn't burst through them, or because it defaulted to them being part of the background environment?

Any detail could be valuable information when out and about, and Bai E's brain was running at full tilt.

…

"Crack!"

"Crack!"

"Whoosh~"

At dawn, the sound of vines snapping startled some of the soldiers still deep in sleep.

Suddenly awake, Morton and other soldiers arose from their slumber, looking out the windows.

The soldiers who had woken earlier or were on the last watch duty were now using combat knives to clear the vines that had nearly enveloped the vehicle.

Those branches were extraordinarily tenacious, some seemingly with a retaliation instinct, as they immediately tried to locate the source and lash out to attack or entrap their prey the moment they were assailed.

The tall soldiers, unconcerned, stepped into the fray, allowing themselves to be wrapped by the vines without immediate resistance. Only when completely bound did they explosively exert strength.

"Ah~~~ah!"

The muscles beneath the combat suit burst with unimaginable power, instantly snapping the vines that even Bai E found difficult to sever with a combat knife and had wrapped around several times.

The bursts of the broken branches whist through the air, making a "snap" sound.

The Blood God… that was the guy who nearly gave him a concussion with just a few punches in the competition.

So strong…

Even with physique nearing the limit at 15 points and having the specialty—Overlimit Drive, he couldn't match that level of performance.

In fact, it wasn't just him; those who hurled daggers to slice through the air, cleaved through four or five in a single stroke, rapidly retracted to attempt escape only to be caught in an instant by a large hand...

Bai E realized that the individuals selected by the military must each possess their unique skills.

Not one of them was easy to deal with!

The encounters they had faced on the road so far were just appetizers. The bioengineered guards within the target facility were the real adversaries of this mission, and the show of force from these powerful men was yet to come.

If everything went smoothly, following behind these tough guys would mean accumulating military merits and exploring the ruins... that would be beautifully ideal.

Bai E wasn't keen on seizing every opportunity to showcase himself. Freed from his teammates' disdainful glances, sometimes he was perfectly content to take it easy.

"Snap!"

With one warrior severing the final vine wrapped around the vehicle, three off-road cars roared off into the cool moisture of the early morning.

...

"We're here."

The silver-grey spires pierced through the gaps in the leaves and branches, appearing vividly before everyone's eyes, just as the target building materialized from the documents into Bai E's sight.

The pictures in the files bore no concept; it was only upon seeing it with his own eyes that he realized... it was truly massive.

"Stop!"

Gregory issued the curt command through everyone's headsets.

"Release the drones."

The car windows slid open, and three black quadcopters, wobbling slightly, flew out from inside the vehicles toward the target direction.

It wasn't advisable for the drones to directly penetrate the target building, but it was always right to scout the perimeter first.

Those bioengineered soldiers, though genetically modified, still followed the basic human biological system; they needed to eat, drink, and relieve themselves.

These needs might leave traces behind.

While waiting, the three vehicles hid under the shelter of branches and leaves.

Until the operation was completely successful, they had to remain concealed.

"Commander, I see it, there's a field on the west side of the target base with signs of cultivation, but it's not very clear."

"There is an enclosed fence on the northeast corner, it seems to contain small animals."

"The drones are flying too high to see clearly, commander, should we move in closer?"

"No need," Gregory's gaze narrowed with a cold glint. With this basic information, it was enough. Getting too close might alert those potentially anti-electronic bioengineered beings to the presence of intruders.

"Lord Pansen, if you please."

The tall man standing beside Gregory with his arms crossed and an indifferent expression nodded at the mention, "I'll have a look."

Watching the figure striding alone from number 2 vehicle toward the target facility, the curiosity in the voice of the person sitting next to Bai E was evident, "He's going alone?"

The seasoned old soldier, seemingly experienced in cooperating with individuals with psychic abilities, explained cheerfully, "The capabilities of our Spiritual Energy users are extraordinary and unpredictable. It's not uncommon for them to act alone."

"What is he going to do?"

"He's probably scouting the interior of the target facility for us…" As the commander hadn't shared specifics about the plans for the Spiritual Energy users, the old soldier could only guess while stroking his chin, "They say those bioengineered people have noses like hounds, right? We'll see whether their noses are sharper or ours..."

"You seem to be insulting someone..."

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the figure carefully advancing through the grass that reached halfway up the calves, moving stealthily toward the target.

In Bai E's eyes, there was even more information to be seen—

[Pansen (Human) (Ally) — Using "Lucky Strike" to kill may drop: Guaranteed (Fresh Meat*1500, 3000 points of combat experience); High probability (Attribute: Mental Resistance, Advanced: Light Firearms Specialization level +1, up to level 6); Possible (Feat: Keen Senses, Spiritual Energy (Heavenly Eye): 100)]

Not entirely comprehensive, but certainly indicative.

However, for some reason, as Bai E stared in that direction for a moment, he felt his eyes blurring. The space where the Spiritual Energy user stood seemed to flicker in and out of existence, and staring too long seemed to make one's head spin.

Rubbing his eyes instinctively, when Bai E looked again, he was shocked to discover—gone!

Under the nearing noon sun, had a human silhouette just vanished like that?

Even if one tried to locate the Spiritual Energy user through the unusual disturbances in the grass and foliage, it appeared to be an impossible task.

It wasn't just Bai E; all the soldiers in vehicle number 1, who were eagerly watching, inadvertently dropped their jaws in astonishment.

"Where... where's the lord?"

"I don't know... I blinked, and he was gone?"

The old soldier expressed his amazement, "That's Spiritual Energy~"

No matter how many times one witnessed it, the miracles of Spiritual Energy always elicited awe.

And this lord's skill in Spiritual Energy lay in concealment and reconnaissance.

Time slowly passed in quiet anticipation.

Unable to see the Spiritual Energy user's actions or know the interior conditions of the target building, everyone could only silently wait for feedback from the Spiritual Energy user.

"He's back," the co-driver beside Bai E suddenly pointed excitedly in a direction; at a spot roughly a hundred meters away, the departed Spiritual Energy user seemed to manifest suddenly before everyone's eyes.

Only... the expression on his face seemed rather somber.

"I can't detect deep inside."

The Spiritual Energy user stated the reality upon returning to vehicle number 2: "The building materials inside this base seem to contain a component that blocks Spiritual Energy."

In the history Bai E was aware of, Spiritual Energy users had existed for a long time, but it was only in recent centuries that they started playing a significant role in the composition of human combat forces.

Earlier, technological development appeared to have restrained the exploration of individual Spiritual Energy, and the occasional awakened individuals were humorously regarded as "magicians."

Unexpectedly, this centuries-old relic base had even considered the Spiritual Energy users, who should not have been very prominent at the time.

"However... they are indeed still alive."

The Spiritual Energy user had not returned empty-handed.