On the border between the Wandering Marsh and Sunset Province, thin sunlight pierced through the dense mist, cloaking the grayish-yellow wasteland.
A crow tearing into a corpse raised its head, its amber pupil reflecting a silver-gray cross that stood in stark contrast to its surroundings.
"...This is Torch-1. 'Seagull' has arrived above the coordinates... Let me look. Are you sure these coordinates are correct?"
Inside the cockpit of an Orca transport plane, the co-pilot chewed gum as he tapped his index finger against a tablet.
His name was Xiao Hua, a pilot belonging to the Enterprise's Aviation Division. However, the "Enterprise" was not just a single corporation; his actual employer was the Just Looking Salvage Company, a subsidiary controlled by the Kangmao Group.
While the name sounded casual, their operations were renowned for being steady and reliable. It was for that very reason that the insurance company underwriting the crashed aircraft had entrusted this major contract to them.
They had also been exceedingly cautious when taking on the job, never letting their guard down once they entered Sunset Province.
Although this was far from the active combat zones, the Aviation Division had lost a plane nearby just a week earlier, so he dared not take anything lightly.
Those eccentric, dark-minded swamp dwellers couldn't be judged by common sense. God only knew why they had fired missiles at their "old friends" from the East Coast.
Still, since the Board of Directors didn't want complications, the salvagers had to avoid conflict as much as possible.
Consequently, they had prudently kept their Orca hovering high in the air a hundred kilometers away, dispatching a drone ahead to scout the situation and pin down the exact location before deciding how to proceed.
If the Academy tried the same trick again, their altitude gave them ample room to glide south toward the desert.
Crackles of static came over the communications channel. Perhaps because the dust storm had finally passed, the unstable signal had recovered slightly.
"Wrong coordinates?! How could that be?!"
"Do you think I'd joke with you?" The pilot swiped a finger across the tablet, using the momentary clear signal to compress and transmit the aerial reconnaissance photos.
The other end of the line went quiet for a moment.
Having seen the aerial photos, the pilot named Sun Ze seemed to sink into bewildered self-doubt.
"That's impossible... The leftover craters are still on the ground."
"Are you sure those are craters?" The pilot in the captain's seat leaned in, asking cautiously, "We haven't spotted a single corpse on the ground... nor have we found the 'Hive' you mentioned. We haven't even seen a single sub-drone."
"Right... The Academy people probably cleaned it up for us. Maybe after hitting it, they realized they'd messed with someone they shouldn't have, so they cleared it away for us."
"Makes sense, haha."
There was no response from the comms channel to the two pilots' banter, only the hiss of static.
That pilot Sun Ze was likely questioning his life choices.
Regardless, they didn't intend to wait any longer; their remaining battery reserves wouldn't permit them to dawdle here any further.
"In any case, we saw nothing... Battery's running low, so let's call it here." The pilot in the captain's seat looked at Xiao Hua, who was operating the drone.
Xiao Hua looked up at the captain. "Then how do I write the report?"
The captain said nonchalantly, "Whatever. Just snap a few photos near the coordinates and toss them in."
"Understood."
Xiao Hua nodded. Not wanting to borrow trouble either, he reached out with his index finger and tapped the return button.
Receiving the recall order, the silver-gray drone ceased its circling and flew back toward the Orca hovering over the southern mountains.
Two crew members in the hold retrieved the drone. Xiao Hua continued swiping across the screen, selecting pictures to slot into the report.
Just then, a soft gasp escaped his lips, and he sat bolt upright in his seat.
"What is it?" Sitting beside him, the captain glanced at the tablet in his hands, but saw only a mountain range with nothing particularly notable.
Xiao Hua didn't answer. He double-tapped the toolbox with his index finger, switching the display to thermal imaging mode.
The instant the image flipped to black and white, several silvery-white glowing dots suddenly appeared in a pitch-black mountain col.
A look of mild surprise crossed the captain's face. "What's that?"
"No idea... but looks like quite a few people," Xiao Hua muttered in confusion. "In a col about thirty kilometers away from us. The drone captured it on its way back."
The captain offered no further thought. "Then leave it alone."
Xiao Hua shrugged, his finger lightly swiping across the screen. "You call the shots."
***
At the same time, in that mountain col thirty kilometers away, a group of ragged scavengers was pushing and pulling large and small carts, trudging along the mountain trail.
The returning Enterprise pilots had no idea that the Orca transport they had spent so long searching for was right under their noses—nearly captured in their aerial photos!
Even if these wastelanders had strutted right in front of them, though, the pilots likely wouldn't have recognized that those parts had been stripped from their own transport.
Spurred on by the monstrous bounty of one million silver coins, these scavengers were like ants moving a nest.
From the externally mounted plasma engines right down to the glass covers on the dashboard dials, in under half a day they had stripped that massive transport clean and packed every piece onto carts loaded with assorted pots and pans.
They hadn't left behind so much as a single screw!
Not only that, but even the "Hive" drone launcher launched by Beacon Squad and the countless small attack drones disabled by the EMP had all been scooped up by these scavengers without exception.
Just as the old man Gust had bragged, when it came to scavenging junk, they were professionals!
"A salvage company? What's that?"
"There are companies in Ideal City dedicated to recycling and salvage work. We originally planned to hire them for the job, but they only provide free delivery within Cloud Province."
"Free delivery?"
Hearing yet another unfamiliar term, Gust, leisurely puffing on a long pipe atop a two-headed ox, cast a curious look at the Alliance soldier who called himself "Corner Camper."
Corner Camper cleared his throat and explained in accented Human Alliance language, "It means door-to-door delivery... right to your doorstep."
"Oh, I see." The old man nodded, then gave a chuckle. "Well, we 'deliver free' too. That's nothing special."
Corner Camper looked at him in surprise.
Most wastelanders spoke of the Enterprise and Ideal City with sheer reverence, just as they spoke of the Legion with dread.
This was the first time he had heard a completely dismissive evaluation of Ideal City from a wastelander's mouth.
"'Nothing special'? Isn't working for the Enterprise supposed to be a big deal?"
"Tch, so what?" Gust twisted his mouth and tapped his pipe. "My ancestors worked for the Post-War Reconstruction Committee. Who's scavenged more junk is still anyone's guess."
The surprise in Corner Camper's eyes deepened, and he gave an involuntary nod. "Then you folks probably have scavenged more... if you count everything from the old days."
Although the old man had looked envious when discussing the fine goods of Ideal City, the moment conversation turned to his lifelong trade, his heavily wrinkled face radiated undeniable authority and pride.
Walking alongside them, Lost Noob wore a completely dazed expression from start to finish.
During yesterday's dismantling, he had recorded the scavengers tearing the plane apart.
Yet no matter how many times he rewatched the footage, he still couldn't comprehend how these people had managed it.
"...Holy crap, they really hauled it all back," Lost Noob murmured under his breath.
Glancing back at the sprawling column and the jumbled scrap loaded onto the carts, Free Delivery with Sniper scratched his head and asked, "But how do we put it back together?"
Hearing his teammates talking, Corner Camper came over with a grin. "Who knows! Why worry about that? Whether it can be assembled is a problem for life-profession players and NPCs. Let's just haul it back first!"
***
Before long, the grand procession crested another ridge.
While the players were pulling off their "vanishing act" right under their allies' noses, Lao Bai, who had logged back on after a night away, finally approached his two good brothers with an embarrassed look to make a full confession of what had transpired the previous night...
"...In short, that's what happened. The Administrator put me on temporary suspension, and I have to head back to the rear for three days."
Looking awkwardly at Kuang Feng, Lao Bai continued sheepishly, "While I'm gone... I'll leave things in your hands."
He had thought that even if his two good brothers didn't sympathize with his plight, they would at least offer some regret or understanding.
Yet before he could even finish his sentence, Ye Shi burst into uproarious laughter beside them.
"Hahahahaha! Serves you right!"
While Kuang Feng's reaction wasn't as exaggerated as Ye Shi's, a subtle expression still washed over his face upon hearing Lao Bai's account.
Sorting through his thoughts for a moment, he tried to summarize, "So... because you pleaded on behalf of that Ms. Chen, the Administrator suspended you?"
"No, didn't I tell you? The Administrator thought I was doubting whether he would doubt... Argh, damn it, why is this so hard to explain!"
Watching Lao Bai on the verge of being driven mad, Kuang Feng said nothing, merely staring at him scratching his ears and cheeks with a look that clearly said, *Do you think I believe that?*
Still, whether one believed it or not, the notification pop-up on the corps system interface wasn't fake.
Kuang Feng sighed, held his forehead in thought for a moment, and suddenly realized something.
"By the way, is that Ms. Chen going back with you?"
Lao Bai paused, nodding instinctively. "Of course. This is a war zone; there's no reason for a non-combatant like her to stay..."
Ye Shi, who had been clutching his stomach laughing just a second ago, suddenly froze.
The juicy gossip in his mouth had turned into public displays of affection in less than two seconds, his gleeful face instantly twisting into a mask of agony.
"Holy crap! That's not fair!"
Lao Bai looked at him in total bewilderment. "What are you throwing a fit for now..."
Kuang Feng cleared his throat. "This time I'm on Ye Shi's side... We're heading to the front, while you run back alone to live comfortably. That really is a bit uncalled for."
Ye Shi couldn't help shouting, "Exactly! I've made contributions to the Alliance! I've bled for the Alliance! Why don't I get a reward?!"
Lao Bai: "???"
*I got suspended, damn it! What kind of reward is this?!*
***
In all honesty, there certainly were rewards.
Having avoided direct conflict with the Academy, successfully completed the rescue mission, and maximized the Alliance's interests, all participating players received a handsome payout.
Because the official website occasionally hosted mysterious auctions, there was never any shortage of buyers for silver coins on the forums, making this hefty reward very attractive.
Yet looking at the pale string of digits on the settlement screen, Ye Shi's eyes were filled with pure grievance.
Too embarrassed to meet his gaze, Lao Bai gave a dry cough, tossed out a quick "See you in three days," and turned toward the nearby transport plane.
Luo Yu and Xiao Yu were already in the cabin.
Also aboard were the bionic Xuan Feng secured inside a steel coffin, the sealed containers holding the fruiting body fragments, and the two Enterprise pilots rescued earlier.
Plans had changed: since their remaining fuel was insufficient to return to Ideal City, they needed to fly back to the aviation base north of Xizhou City to transfer flights.
Waiting for takeoff, the two pilots whispered back and forth, sharing the "ghost story" they had just heard.
"I'm telling you, it's spooky as hell."
"What happened?"
"The plane is gone."
"Gone?!" Sitting beside him, his partner turned to Sun Ze with wide eyes. "How could that be? Can a plane that big grow legs and run off on its own?"
"I don't know either... The salvage company contacted by the Aviation Division went to the coordinates I reported, and they insist on bullshitting that I got the location wrong."
Sun Ze was thoroughly baffled.
He had calculated the rough coordinates from the flight recorder data—calculated them twice, in fact. How could there be an error?
Moreover, the aerial photos clearly showed the very spot where the Burning Corps had clashed with Beacon Squad. He was certain he hadn't made a mistake.
A massive plane, in a barren wasteland where there wasn't even a proper road...
Just how had it vanished?!
"Hey."
Noticing his partner tugging at his sleeve, the perplexed Sun Ze looked up. "What?"
Without a word, his partner pointed toward the cabin entrance, where a young woman in a beige jacket had just stepped inside.
Her brownish hair was tied in a ponytail. She was tall and slender, though with curves where they counted.
What surprised him wasn't simply seeing a pretty girl here, but that he had seen this woman before.
Out of curiosity, Sun Ze let out a whistle and called out, "Hey, beautiful, didn't you head back?"
Chen Yutong sized him up for two seconds. "I stayed."
Sun Ze was even more astonished. "Stayed?"
His partner beside him wasn't surprised at all. Smiling, he said, "I told you long ago, the life people live in the Academy isn't fit for normal humans. Why would anyone want to go back to a place like that... Want to visit Ideal City sometime?"
"Maybe later," Chen Yutong brushed him off casually, found an open seat, and buckled her safety harness.
Even though she had left the Academy, she still couldn't bring herself to like people from the Enterprise—flippant, never serious, and fond of bragging about things that, to her eyes, were hardly worth bragging about.
She knew it was likely prejudice.
Yet a prejudice formed over twenty years couldn't be undone in a day or two.
"Fastening it like that might reopen your wound."
Hearing the accented Human Alliance language, Chen Yutong looked up just as Lao Bai walked in from outside the cabin.
Her brow arched slightly, and she asked with curiosity, "How should I fasten it then?"
"Avoid placing pressure on the abdomen; it's better to center the load across your legs and shoulders... like this." Unable to explain clearly with just his fingers, Lao Bai sat beside her and demonstrated.
Following his example, Chen Yutong unfastened the abdominal buckle and refastened the harness. Sure enough, it felt much more comfortable.
"Thank you... Aren't you heading to the front lines?"
"Same as those two, plans changed," Lao Bai gestured with his chin toward the Enterprise pilots sitting nearby, speaking helplessly. "In short... I have to go back and stay put for a few days."
Chen Yutong studied his face for a moment. Intuition honed by her former profession told her something was off. "Because of me?"
Lao Bai hesitated, then shook his head. "Nothing to do with you."
Though his good brothers had teased him relentlessly, he stubbornly maintained that, just as the Administrator had said, this was a punishment.
In truth, that was entirely fair.
Even if he had never doubted the righteousness of the Alliance or wavered in his loyalty, he couldn't deny that personal feelings had influenced his words.
"I'm sorry."
Lao Bai smiled openly. "What are you apologizing for? I told you, it has nothing to do with you."
At that moment, the cabin doors sealed shut. Before long, the hum of plasma plumes sounded from outside the aircraft.
Accompanied by a gentle tremor, the transport plane slowly ascended into the air.
Sitting at the far end of the cabin, Luo Yu and Xiao Yu were still whispering back and forth.
"...Snacks, snacks, always snacks! When we get back, I'll buy you a whole box of lollipops to chew on! Let you eat your fill!"
"*Ee-woo!*"
"Ice cream? Are you sure? Don't you hate things that are too cold?"
"*Ee-woooo!!*"
"Alright, alright... I'll buy it, okay?"
Watching that harmonious, affectionate scene, Lao Bai couldn't help showing a fond, motherly smile. Still, he couldn't fathom how the two of them communicated.
Through brainwaves?
How did that even work?
"Truly incredible..."
Voicing his exact thoughts, Chen Yutong watched with keen interest, her voice dropping soft. "A mutant slime mold broodmother capable of communicating with a human... It completely overturns two centuries of our understanding."
Lao Bai nodded. "Yeah, we were just as surprised when we found it. Especially in a place like Qingquan City, slime molds are practically synonymous with death and plague. If not for the Administrator's orders, no one would have allowed it to live."
Players didn't care much.
As long as they could communicate, they'd use even a Deathclaw as a mount, let alone a mutant slime mold. The weirder it looked, the cooler it was.
If not for the fact that mutants' minds were too violent and bloodthirsty and mind-interference devices couldn't affect their brains, Goblin Technology would have definitely kept a couple as free labor.
However, compared to the rule-breaking players, the wastelanders truly living in this world were far more wary.
It was only through the Administrator's personal charisma and prestige that they had come to accept the existence of such an anomaly.
Chen Yutong turned to Lao Bai. "Yet even so, you still accepted it?"
Lao Bai scratched his head. "Well, at least for now, it's harmless. Maybe through it, we can find a way to make those hives harmless too... Personally, I think wiping them out entirely is practically impossible. Those things can survive over two hundred years without air, water, or oxygen."
Chen Yutong pondered for a moment. "I once heard a rumor."
Lao Bai asked casually, "What rumor?"
Chen Yutong pointed toward the ceiling. "They came from up there."
"Up there?"
Lao Bai blinked.
He reflexively tilted his head back, but saw only the silver-gray cabin roof.
"She probably means Alpha Centauri."
Sun Ze, unable to sit quietly nearby, chimed in. Under Xiao Yu's longing gaze, he popped a piece of gum into his mouth with a grin. "A former colony of the Human Alliance, a planet shrouded in auroras. I've heard the rumor too, but hearing it doesn't mean anything... By the way, you can't see it from inside here."
Lao Bai gave her a questioning look.
This was lore that had never been elaborated on the official website.
Ignoring the Enterprise employee's remark, Chen Yutong nodded gently, her voice tinged with faint regret.
"Many people have already forgotten that it once belonged to us."
***
At the same time, thousands of kilometers away in the desert, hundreds of trucks lay stranded along a ruined highway, wrecked steel burning across the dunes.
Standing in the center of a tank turret, Brother Mole peered through his binoculars at the devastated battlefield in the distance.
Another resounding victory.
Thanks to the intelligence provided by Comrade Pangolin, this retreating ten-thousand-man unit had been crushed into complete disarray by the Alliance's armored tide.
This was already the third ten-thousand-man unit they had annihilated this week.
Counting the achievements of their allied forces, the Legion had precious few pieces left on the board.
Brother Mole had only one goal on his mind: to beat Brother Spring to the Falcon Kingdom's royal capital and intercept the supplies sent from the east by the Legion.
He brought his communicator to his mouth.
"Panzergrenadiers, advance!"
"Copy that!"
Patting the hood of the truck, Elaina, stationed by the roof-mounted machine gun, signaled the driver to start moving while steadying the 20mm heavy machine gun welded to the cabin roof.
The dark muzzle pointed straight at the chaotic wreckage across the battlefield ahead, heat waves shimmering off the scorched metal barrel.
The armored units had already wiped out most of the resistance.
Next came the infantry's turn to mop up the battlefield.
In truth, their task was merely to round up the surrendering soldiers, confiscate their weapons, and hand them over to the Lion Kingdom Army following behind.
At this moment, the Skeleton Corps was only fifty kilometers away from the Falcon Kingdom; they would soon see that royal palace General MacLaren had been so "fondly attached" to.
Glancing at the Wilantes holding their hands over their heads, Elaina chuckled, "Hope Battlefield Guy isn't among them."
Hearing that comedic banter, Construction Site Boy and Bricks traced a hammer across his chest.
"Pray for him."
Chapter 482