Ren Zhong: "Hmm. I’m leaving now."
After Ren Zhong really left, the pretending-to-sleep Ju Qingmeng opened her eyes again.
She felt something was off, as if Ren Zhong’s way of speaking was strange.
He had conflicts with Lin Wang, but things weren’t bad enough to warrant this.
Why was he talking like he was giving last words now?
That afternoon, the team encountered an unexpected situation in the abandoned mine pit.
It wasn’t that they ran into a Ruined Beast they couldn’t beat, but they encountered another of the three professional teams in the town.
The two sides met at a pit node in the mid-upper area.
Ren Zhong and the other side were both targeting a Level Four Ruined Beast.
Both sides advanced from opposite sides of the pit toward the same point. As they prepared to attack the beast, they simultaneously noticed each other’s presence and unanimously chose to stop, making the atmosphere strangely confrontational.
The Ruined Beast, emitting a faint glow from its body, was curled up deep in the cave, unaware that danger had quietly arrived.
Ren Zhong, the straightforward one, made a gesture of invitation while switching the communication channel to Starfire Resources’ designated profession team channel, "Captain Tang, please."
He was the first to show goodwill, indicating he had no intention of snatching the beast.
The other side was one of the three major professional teams of the same level as Lin Wang’s team.
Their captain’s name was Tang Shuying, a seasoned Fourth Level Blast Master.
She had two Mechanical Warriors, one Demolition Master, and one Gunsmith under her command.
Her team’s setup was basically similar to Zheng Tian’s team, the only difference being the absence of an Armored Soldier.
Of course, the biggest difference was that the other side was entirely Fourth Level, and if it came down to a fight, their team would probably be wiped out by a single person from the other side.
Seeing Ren Zhong being sensible, the mature and full-figured Tang Shuying nodded slightly, looking somewhat satisfied.
However, she didn’t smile, just coldly pointed into the distance, indicating that Ren Zhong and his team could leave.
She then signaled to the two Mechanical Warriors behind her, indicating they could go ahead.
A burly and a lean one, both with different combat styles, the two Fourth Level Mechanical Warriors stepped forward from behind her, their exoskeletons emitting a humming sound representing the start of energy, planning to charge directly.
On this side, Ren Zhong didn’t hurry to turn around and leave but instead kindly reminded, "This Long-necked Beetle is different from ordinary underground eyeless insects. It has mutated very strong optical visual organs. Look at its limbs, it’s an agility type. Combined with its super strong vision, it will become very troublesome in the dark. If you insist on going hard, although you can win, you will consume a lot more ammunition, and the equipment might be damaged. Even if you win, its carcass will be too damaged, and its value will drop."
Tang Shuying frowned slightly.
But she didn’t say much more. Instead, she reached into the square pocket on her thigh and pulled out a fingernail-sized round ball, tossing it forward casually.
Simultaneously, she instructed, "Turn off the optical night vision, leaving only the thermal and ultrasonic feedback enabled."
Ren Zhong immediately relayed this to his teammates.
The next moment, an intense flash of light lit up in the cave room where the Fourth Level Long-necked Beetle was hiding, and the two Mechanical Warriors boldly rushed in simultaneously.
The subsequent battle had no fancy moves and nothing particularly commendable.
The super strong optical vision was originally the strength of this Fourth Level beetle, but under the illumination of the high-brightness light source of tens of thousands of lumens, it became blind, covering its eyes was useless.
The Fourth Level beetle, accustomed to the conveniences brought by self-illumination and optical vision, suddenly lost its visual ability and became particularly clumsy in panic.
Over a dozen seconds later, as the flash bomb’s light dimmed, Tang Shuying’s two team members took it down effortlessly.
This battle, compared to normal fights, saved Tang Shuying’s team at least hundreds of points in costs.
"No wonder you caught Lin Wang’s eye first, and now you’re selected by Director Yang. You’re indeed quite capable."
Tang Shuying, who received Ren Zhong’s aid for free, changed her attitude slightly and praised unsolicitedly.
Ren Zhong modestly replied, "I don’t deserve it."
"You used to be Lin Wang’s person, I actually quite disliked you guys. But now that we’re colleagues, we can chat more in the future. Let me remind you, Lin Wang doesn’t consider you one of his own. Otherwise, with your abilities, he should have taken you along for the big task this time."
Tang Shuying continued.
Ren Zhong picked up on another layer of meaning, lowering his voice, "Captain Tang seems to have resentment about not being chosen herself?"
Tang Shuying’s face darkened.
But it was the burly Mechanical Warrior next to her who spoke boldly, "Going to the new mining site is a fat assignment, and there’s even a chance to find Source Stones. If you find a piece of that, Purple Crystal Mining offers a buyback price of at least tens of thousands of points. Director Yang didn’t even consult anyone else and directly gave the good assignment to Lin Wang. Can we not have resentment?"