Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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The giant wolves’ weak point was their abdomen. Destroying the source crystal that powered them would easily eliminate them.
After taking down several, Bai Yue was already quite adept at the hunt.
Following the map, he approached the location of the source crystal step by step.
Along the way, he discovered many giant wolf “corpses.” The surrounding grass was cut or flattened, bearing numerous signs of struggle.
However, he didn’t encounter any other team members.
This meant that the missing Imperial First Military Academy students were merely missing, not dead. But whether this news was a blessing or a curse was uncertain.
Bai Yue shook his head, stood up, and continued deeper into the area.
The investigation had delayed him somewhat, and by the time he reached his destination, it was already dark.
The sun was setting, and warm rays filtered through the dense, intertwined branches, dappling the ground.
The entire mountain range was shrouded in a dark, orange glow.
Upon seeing the scene before him, Bai Yue paused.
Not far ahead, there was a narrow cave. Vines climbed up the entrance, completely obscuring it, blending seamlessly with the surrounding moss.
If he hadn’t specifically scouted, he would have definitely missed this inconspicuous cave entrance.
Bai Yue checked the coordinates again. The location of the Source Crystal was indeed a few hundred meters ahead.
Therefore, he had to enter this cave.
Bai Yue stepped forward, pushed aside the hanging branches, and crouched down to enter.
The cave was dark, narrow, and deep. Sunlight could barely penetrate.
Bai Yue turned on his phone’s flashlight to see the scenery inside.
The walls on both sides were extremely close together, barely wide enough for one person to pass through. Stalactites hung overhead, dripping water droplets.
Apart from the sound of water droplets hitting the rock walls, it was extremely quiet. Quiet to an eerie degree.
A few meters later, the path suddenly widened, and many branching paths appeared.
The specific routes were not mentioned in the intelligence. From now on, he would have to investigate them one by one.
Bai Yue picked up the pebbles under his feet, preparing to mark them as he moved forward.
He first took the right branching path.
The path was very long and deep. In this almost unchanging cave, the passage of time was almost imperceptible.
After walking for an unknown amount of time, a glimmer of light suddenly appeared ahead. Though faint, it was remarkably conspicuous in the dark cave.
Bai Yue quickened his pace and found the light emanating from a corner of the wall.
A thumb-sized stone was embedded in the ground, emitting a pale blue glow.
A Source Crystal?
The thought flashed through Bai Yue’s mind. Just as he was about to crouch down to examine it, he suddenly heard a wolf howl behind him.
Turning around, he saw a giant wolf lunging at him.
The cave was narrow, making immediate evasion impossible. He simply didn’t dodge or evade, grabbing the wolf’s jaw with one hand and thrusting his knife into the wolf’s belly!
With a single blow, the Source Crystal shattered, and the giant wolf fell silent.
Bai Yue tossed the wolf aside and stood up.
When did it follow him? He hadn’t heard a sound at all.
“So that’s how it is. You’ve already discovered it. You killed all the ‘wolves’ outside too?”
At that moment, a cold male voice suddenly came from deep within the cave.
The voice was very familiar.
Bai Yue looked up and saw the man emerge from the shadows.
His expression was completely undisguised. His eyes were sinister, piercing through his glasses as he stared directly at him.
“…Du Qin,” Bai Yue slowly uttered the man’s name.
“It’s me. What, didn’t expect that?” Du Qin smirked.
Bai Yue looked at him.
Indeed, he hadn’t expected it.
Judging from what he’d just said, these giant wolves seemed to be Du Qin’s doing. How could the culprit behind the three-star military merit mission be connected to a student from the Imperial First Military Academy?
Bai Yue: “You’re helping to buy and sell Source Crystals?”
“Hmph, that’s a really harsh way to put it.” Du Qin pushed up his glasses. “Source Crystals have nothing to do with me. My only purpose, from beginning to end, has been just one thing.”
He looked at Bai Yue, his eyes growing even more sinister: “That’s to kill you, Bai Yue.”
Bai Yue tilted his head: “Is there such a big conflict between us?”
“Such a big conflict?”
Du Qin repeated the question. When he spoke again, his tone had become agitated: “It’s that same old pointless talk again. It doesn’t matter to you, but to me, you’re more of an eyesore than anyone else!”
Bai Yue didn’t want to dwell on this, his hand lightly gripping the dagger: “Where are the others?”
Du Qin: “Who knows?” He scoffed, “Dead, aren’t they?”
Bai Yue: “…”
Du Qin: “You’re angry? Ha, you can get angry too?”
He seemed to have discovered something terrible, his expression twisting: “The dead can’t be brought back to life. If you care that much, I’ll help you out—!”
With that, he drew a pistol from his waist, pointing it directly at Bai Yue.
“This isn’t a game; there’s no possibility of resurrection. This time, I can finally fulfil my long-cherished wish.”
Bai Yue remained calm, his hands behind his back.
Du Qin, with his sharp eyes, immediately noticed. The muzzle moved down, aiming at Bai Yue’s arm.
“I advise you not to make any rash moves. It’s so cramped here, I could hit you even with my eyes closed.”
“Obediently put down your weapon, raise your hands, and kneel down.” Du Qin’s tone was mocking. “If that’s the case, I might let you live a little longer.”
Hearing this, Bai Yue was silent for a moment, then chuckled: “That’s not very appealing.”
Du Qin didn’t expect the other party to be able to laugh at a time like this, and angrily said: “What’s so funny!”
Bai Yue: “You did all this just to kill me?”
“What’s the problem?!” Du Qin’s tone was sinister, “I don’t need any inspirational words!”
He was about to pull the trigger when he suddenly heard something, and his brows furrowed.
Only then did Bai Yue notice that the other party was wearing an earpiece, seemingly communicating with someone.
Someone was giving instructions from behind?
Bai Yue thought calmly.
Although Du Qin was listening to the person in the earpiece, his gun remained raised high. After a moment, he said: “Someone wants to talk to you.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a mechanical voice that was indistinguishable between male and female rang out in mid-air.
“Hello, classmate Bai Yue.”
The voice was obviously distorted.
Bai Yue didn’t reply, his gaze passing over the phone and landing on Du Qin.
The mechanical voice seemed to read his mind: “Releasing pheromones is useless. No matter how strong your genetic level is— Du Qin still has the ability to pull the trigger.”
Judging from the voice’s description, it seemed to know him.
Bai Yue: “Who are you?”
Mechanical voice: “Someone who can help you.”
Bai Yue: “Help me?”
“I’ve seen everything you’ve done. You must have felt it these past few days. Is everything the Imperial Military Academy has done absolutely right?”
“Sending you freshmen on such dangerous missions, treating human life as nothing. Even with so many people missing and dying, they remained unmoved. Don’t you have any thoughts about this?”
“Moreover, you are an S+ level alpha. Such a noble status, yet the Empire hasn’t given you the treatment you deserve. Haven’t you suffered enough hardships so far?”
Bai Yue: “…”
Bai Yue: “What are you trying to say?”
Mechanical voice: “Escape this place, pursue what you want. Whether it’s power, wealth, or any other wish, I can help you achieve it.”
Mechanical voice: “And now, only I can save you. As long as you agree to come with me, I can save your life.”
While the mechanical voice was speaking, Du Qin, though his expression was unfriendly, didn’t interrupt. It seemed the other party did indeed have some control over him.
Bai Yue smiled: “What you said is quite attractive.”
The mechanical voice: “Then…”
Bai Yue: “But I’m sorry.”
He put his hands behind his back, “I am wholeheartedly devoted to the Empire.”
After saying that, without waiting for the other party’s reaction, he drew a spherical object from his waist and threw it violently to the ground.
Instantly, a blinding white mist filled the narrow passageway.
A smoke grenade?!
Du Qin’s eyes were blinded, and ignoring the mechanical voice’s previous warning, he pulled the trigger and fired several shots.
The deafening gunshots echoed in the narrow passageway, and billowing white smoke billowed from the muzzles.
Did he hit him?
He thought to himself, trying to open his eyes wide to see the location of the person. At this moment, he suddenly heard a sound from his right side.
Right side!
Du Qin reacted quickly and immediately turned around and pulled the trigger.
The dark figure fell down, lying at his feet.
Du Qin was overjoyed. By this time, the smoke had dissipated a bit, and he crouched down to check. But he couldn’t help but be stunned.
The dark shadow at his feet was the giant wolf he had released earlier!
Suddenly, a sharp pain shot through his shoulder. Du Qin felt paralyzed and convulsed. He could no longer grip the gun.
The gun clattered to the ground.
Then, he collapsed heavily. Even his earpiece fell out.
The white smoke dissipated.
He finally saw everything around him.
All the shots he had fired missed. On the opposite rock wall, only a few dark, round holes remained.
Beneath him lay the corpse of the giant wolf, and the person he wanted to defeat stood behind him.
His head was slightly lowered, and his light gray hair partially obscured his eyes. Then, he half-squatted down and picked up the earpiece that had fallen to the ground.
“Hello, can you still hear me?”
Bai Yue said into the earpiece:
“The culprit behind all this is blaming the disciplinary team… How ridiculous.”
“Although I don’t know who you are, you won’t be able to hide for long.”
A series of static noises came from the other end, then the line went dead, and there was no more sound.
Bai Yue tossed aside the headset and looked at the fallen Du Qin.
Although the other man was paralyzed and unable to move, he hadn’t immediately lost consciousness.
Bai Yue grabbed his arm and helped him sit up: “I avoided fatal wounds. Once the mission is complete, the disciplinary team should come to rescue you.”
Du Qin’s glasses had shattered in the fight.
His shoulder was still bleeding, and due to the paralysis, his body was already somewhat weak.
Even so, he didn’t relax in front of Bai Yue.
“What do you mean by this?” Du Qin sneered, “Rescue me? You might as well just kill me and be done with it.”
“Murder is illegal,” Bai Yue said, “My life doesn’t need to be ruined by someone like you.”
Du Qin: “You—!”
But before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted.
“You’re the same,” Bai Yue said calmly, “Your life doesn’t need to be ruined by me.”
Du Qin was stunned.
Bai Yue looked at him. The other man looked disheveled, no longer resembling the proud young man he once was.
He sighed, “Is this what you wanted, class monitor?”
Hearing that familiar address, countless fragments of memories flooded Du Qin’s mind.
Was this what he wanted?
From childhood to adulthood, he had always been the class monitor, and always the most outstanding among them.
Excellent grades, humble and polite. He grew up surrounded by flattery, and firmly believed that his future would be as glorious as those people said.
Until Bai Yue appeared as a variable.
From leaving Luohua Academy to entering the Imperial First Military Academy, the other party had always been one step ahead of him.
He didn’t know when things started to change.
Was it that he lost his first place? Was it that he failed to enter the disciplinary team? Or was it that in the end, he gambled everything for his obsession, doing so many heinous things?
Now, not only had he failed to achieve his so-called long-cherished wish, but he was also about to face imprisonment.
Probably no one would have thought.
“What do you want?”
In a daze, Du Qin seemed to see a person appear before him. It was himself as a child.
Incomparably proud, incomparably self-respecting.
The other person stared at him silently, repeating the question, “What are you doing now?”
The stab wound on his shoulder hurt. But the pain seemed to finally clear his mind a little.
Du Qin lowered his head. His glasses, perched on his nose, were a little unsteady. They fell off and landed on his knees.
Bai Yue stood up after saying that. The most urgent task was to find the Source Crystal as soon as possible.
Although Du Qin had just said those things, as a fellow military academy student, he didn’t think everyone would be so easily dealt with.
Even if such a thing did happen, all he could do now was complete the mission as quickly as possible.
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