Chapter 40

Chapter 40

Unable to assess the effects of the treatment immediately, Xu Qiao went home first.

Qinchi watched her enter Room 101, nodded goodbye again, and closed the door.

The moment the lock tongue clicked into place, the fire dragon materialized behind him, a burst of flames rushing forward: "When will you let me show myself?"

Qinchi asked expressionlessly, "What did you do just now?"

The massive fire dragon circled the living room, its body covered in golden-red scales coiling around the ceiling light, its fierce head facing Qinchi, its golden pupils narrowed into vertical lines, revealing indifference about the matter and annoyance at Qinchi's questioning: "I wanted to touch its petals."

Why could the little fatso and the black scorpion get close, but it couldn't?

The fire dragon had felt the soldiers' awe and admiration for it in the military; it believed that if Qinchi let it out, the lotus flower would be delighted to befriend it.

It was only aggressive towards other beasts; it would never scare the lotus flower. It blamed Qinchi for hiding it and slandering it, which made the lotus flower fear it first.

Qinchi's gaze turned cold: "Did you touch it?"

Fire dragon: "No, I only touched the stem."

It was cool and refreshing; as soon as its scales brushed against the stem, the entire lotus flower vanished.

Qinchi: "Do you want to be like that yellow cat?"

Fire dragon, enraged: "How could that be! I just wanted the lotus flower to feel my body and guess my identity!"

Qinchi: "Then you should be grateful they mistook your actions for an attack. If they thought it was harassment, I'd have to find another place to live."

The fire dragon paused in its circling around the lamp and then disappeared.

Qinchi sat down on the single sofa, where two fruit platters still sat, one with half-eaten watermelon and the other with a few grapes eaten.

After a few minutes, Qinchi tried to release his suppression over the fire dragon.

This time, the fire dragon didn't immediately seize control. Was it reflecting on the word "harassment" without noticing the mental force restraining it had vanished, or was Xu Qiao's treatment taking effect?

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a layer of dragon scales appeared tentatively on his arm.

Qinchi directly suppressed it with twice the usual mental force.

The fire dragon struggled irritably for a while before finally settling back into his mind.

Qinchi leaned back on the sofa with his eyes closed.

Meng Li's mother had been undergoing beastification for at least a decade, gradually worsening until she fully transformed into a black scorpion in recent years.

His situation was different. During his years on the battlefield, he had indeed experienced the ferocity of his mental entity, but his body hadn't shown any signs of the fire dragon until once, when it unexpectedly took control and dove into the deep sea to fight, swimming far away before resting on a random island when tired.

When the fire dragon possessed his body, Qinchi fell into a deep sleep, unaware of its actions and thoughts.

That time, an S-level general stationed at the coastal base searched for him all day without a clue and had no choice but to notify his parents.

His father, a marshal, wouldn't leave the base unless there was an urgent battle. His mother brought out their already retired centenarian grandfather to search the seas together. After finding him, the two S-level powerhouses teamed up to knock the fire dragon unconscious, allowing Qinchi to regain consciousness and control of his body.

Initially, they thought it was a one-time incident, but it became increasingly frequent.

Professor Wu, at a loss, suggested he retire for rest and observation to see if it helped.

His father hesitated, but his grandfather said he was too old to fight anymore, and his divorced mother was also exhausted from dealing with it, so his father approved his leave.

Was Xu Qiao's assistance in Meng Li's mother's recovery a one-off event, or was Xu Qiao's current level too low to affect an S-level mental entity?

Considering they needed to go out for training during weekends, Xu Qiao specifically adjusted her night shift schedule with her colleague Zhao Lu, changing it to Thursday night.

On Friday afternoon, Sun Fushan popped up in the group chat: "This time, shall we continue going to An County? After the beast rampage in Jing City, nearby Yellow City and An County have seen fewer visitors recently, allowing us to focus on practice. Besides, the scenery there is beautiful."

Qinchi: "Thanks."

Meng Li: "Sure."

Xu Qiao: "We've been to both the north and south of An County. How about going west this time? I heard there's a large lake there, which used to be a 5A scenic area in the Old Era."

Sun Fushan: "Yes, that's why I mentioned the good scenery. Also, Yellow City has a natural 5A scenic area. Here's what I'm thinking: On Saturday, we'll hunt C-level beasts in An County to practice our abilities, spend the night there, and then drive to Yellow City on Sunday to face B-level beasts, returning by the afternoon."

With the team's full B-level strength, hunting C-level beasts lacks challenge and doesn't serve as real training. Going to the more dangerous B-level zone in Yellow City allows us to truly test ourselves. If we encounter one or two A-level beasts, our teamwork, B-level strength, and A-level weapons give us a good chance of success, unlike the previous two times.

Meng Li: "Sure."

Qinchi: "Training should be the priority; we don't need to consider the scenery every time."

Xu Qiao: "Then I'll prepare some things for the overnight stay."

Sun Fushan: "Just bring changes of clothes; I've got everything else covered—tents, food, etc. Do you need anything added?"

He then sent a list of equipment to the group.

Xu Qiao noticed four sets of A-level armor listed, followed by five notes in parentheses:

First, these were modified from my parents' old armor, with only the labor cost incurred.

Second, considering our luck, it's better to be prepared.

Third, they're lent to you; whoever damages them is responsible for repairs.

Fourth, wearing full armor keeps us mysterious and prevents revealing our true strength.

Fifth, given our rapid progression, buying B-level armor with points isn't practical.

Including the other cheap equipment, the expenses were also marked as coming from the squad's account, with the remaining balance noted.

Xu Qiao couldn't help but laugh; how afraid was the captain that they would refuse his kindness?

Meng Li: "How much is the armor's craftsmanship fee? We'll split it."

Sun Fushan seemed prepared and quoted two figures: 400,000 points for a female set of armor, and 500,000 points for a male set.

Xu Qiao inwardly whistled in surprise. The modification fee for the old armor alone was so high; no wonder A-grade armor sold for billions.

Fortunately, they had just received a huge sum of 360,000 points from the tiger harrier; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to afford it at all.

When Meng Li and Xu Qiao transferred the points to Sun Fushan, he said, "@Qinchi, brother Qin, if you already have your own armor, you don't need to wear our old set."

Qinchi: "Do you have photos?"

Sun Fushan promptly provided photos of the uniforms.

Two sets for men and two for women, carefully hung on display racks, looked about eighty percent new. They were identical black base designs with golden "S" emblems at the collar, clearly indicating they were squad uniforms.

Qinchi immediately transferred the points.

Xu Qiao: "What does 'S' mean?"

Sun Fushan: [Hehe, it can be the "S" for "Silence is gold," or the "S" for "everyone reaching S-grade." We originally wanted to use our squad emblem, but that would risk exposing our identities if seen by others.]

Xu Qiao: "Not bad, this symbolism is good."

Sun Fushan: "When we truly reach S-grade, I'll order four new S-grade armors and proudly display our emblem."

Xu Qiao was about to laugh when she suddenly remembered that Qinchi would only stay in Southeast Base for two to three years.

At six in the morning, the massive aircraft landed again on the airstrip in An County's urban area.

There weren't many mercenaries left in the cabin, only about a hundred. However, several dozen vehicles from A-grade and B-grade squads roared away into the distance.

The four teammates walked to the outskirts of the city, where Sun Fushan released a brand-new off-road vehicle from an abandoned industrial park to better conceal their identities.

"Armor, should we put it on now?" Sun Fushan asked excitedly.

Meng Li and Qinchi, who usually spoke less in the group, both looked at Xu Qiao.

Xu Qiao: "...Let's put it on now, let's hide thoroughly."

Sun Fushan smiled and took out the armor.

To distinguish them, Meng Li's armor had several deep red accents, Xu Qiao's was lotus green, Sun Fushan's was ink green, and Qinchi's was entirely black.

The armor was made by combining A-grade metal with materials from A-grade beasts, providing both the superior defense of metal and the flexibility of leather, allowing it to be worn over equally form-fitting combat suits.

Qinchi moved to the other side of the off-road vehicle, using its tall body to shield himself.

Sun Fushan carried the armor and followed him.

Xu Qiao and Meng Li quickly changed into their armor and got into the car. Sun Fushan drove, and Qinchi sat in the passenger seat.

Following the path carved out by the other vehicles, the squad soon arrived at the westernmost part of An County. Surrounded by peaks, flying beasts and land beasts occasionally emerged to attack the off-road vehicle, all dealt with by Meng Li and Xu Qiao using their abilities. Sun Fushan focused on driving, while Qinchi, without a helmet, leisurely admired the scenery outside, occasionally taking photos with his communication bracelet.

After circling around several mountains, a vast lake came into view, shimmering in the sunlight.

Perhaps because the C-grade beasts along the way were easily handled, Xu Qiao even had the mood to sightsee, removing her helmet to see more clearly.

Qinchi glanced at the rearview mirror.

The off-road vehicle drove along the lake to the foot of a mountain hundreds of meters high, where Sun Fushan stopped the car.

Beasts typically roamed the mountains and forests, so training required entering the mountains.

Getting out of the car, Xu Qiao immediately put on her helmet and headed straight into the mountains without looking back at the lake.

Meng Li: "Should we split up and meet at the summit?"

The three newly promoted B-grade teammates all needed intense training. Acting together meant finding one or two beasts wasn't enough, significantly affecting efficiency.

Sun Fushan: "Sure, brother Qin, you..."

He directly pointed at Xu Qiao, saving the rest of his words.

Meng Li, with dual B-grade abilities, was the strongest and least afraid of acting alone among the three. He had the most defensive earth ability, while Xu Qiao, despite having dual abilities, could only attack with water, making her the least defensively capable overall.

Qinchi looked at Xu Qiao.

Xu Qiao joked: "Sure, I'll be brother Qin's travel bodyguard."

With that settled, Meng Li and Sun Fushan went east and west respectively, agreeing to signal if any emergencies arose.

Xu Qiao also started into the mountains with Qinchi.

Surrounded by mutated vines, Xu Qiao released a water blade, instantly slicing dozens of thick vine arms into pieces that fell to the ground.

Standing at a distance behind, Qinchi smiled and commented, "I can tell your will to survive is strong."

Xu Qiao realized right after her move that such a wide-range attack was a waste of mental energy. The best approach would be to quickly lock onto the main vine and strike it dead.

But theory was theory; she was still a newly promoted B-grade fighter from C-grade, and her first reaction to an attack was to save herself.

Controlling a water blade to break the mutated vines' attacks twice, Xu Qiao finally hit the main vine's vital point.

She didn't look back at "brother Qin's" expression, silently digging for the crystal core inside the main vine.

A gentle breeze enveloped her, lowering the high temperature around her.

Xu Qiao smiled, forgiving the person for their harsh words, which had sounded like those of a military academy instructor or a driving school teacher.