"It’s me, cough, cough..." As Zhuo Hao attempted to move, the surrounding water plants swiftly wrapped around him, leaving just his head exposed. Zhou You and Shao Qi rushed over, one fighting off the plants, and the other rescuing the man, their teamwork impeccable.

Once Zhou You safely brought the man to the conveyor belt, Shao Qi threw another incendiary grenade to the center. These aquatic plants were clearly a new, aggressive species. It was best to take some samples and eradicate the rest.

Chapter 113: Battle with the Mutated Snake

"Quick, how's the injury?" Zhou You laid Zhuo Hao down, undoing his clothes. Miao Miao approached with a towel, wiping his face and body, "We only found water from one tap, probably reserve water from an old supermarket, but it's clean."

Zhou You noticed everyone had changed into clean clothes. Li Yunxi leaned against the wall, sipping water from a bottle. Long Gan's chest and arms were bandaged, and other than a pallid complexion, he seemed to be alright.

Only after examining Zhuo Hao's condition did Shao Qi ask, "How did you all fall in the first place? And all of you fell at once? What are the odds that all four of you would stand on the same unstable floorboard?"

Li Yunxi's face turned red with embarrassment. "It was my fault. I stepped on that plank, and when I was falling, Sister Miao pulled me."

Miao Miao interjected, "Little did I expect that my spot was also unstable. We both fell together. Old Zhuo and Captain Long tried to save us, but unexpectedly, there was a slope beneath. We initially planned to go to the basement and were unprepared. Before we could react, the underwater plants entangled our limbs."

Shao Qi's face darkened. "Did you get too comfortable at the Jiangnan base? Don’t you know that you should be extra cautious in the wild? You went down without even assessing the situation below. What if it had been a rat's nest? Were you just serving yourselves up to them?"

Miao Miao and the others were deeply ashamed. They had faced many challenges before, but to falter here was a lapse in judgment.

Zhou You hastily consoled, "Fortunately, everyone's safe. Let's take this as a lesson. Rest up and recover; we resume our journey tomorrow."

Shao Qi still had an unresolved query. Turning to Zhuo Hao, he asked, "Why did you end up so far away? Even if you fell, you shouldn’t have been dragged that far, right?"

Remembering the ordeal, Zhuo Hao's face turned pale, "Initially, I was caught with them. But midway, something swam towards me and bit me. Fearing it might be dangerous, I grabbed it, but it was so strong that it dragged me a long distance. I later lost consciousness and was only awakened by the smoke."

Thankfully, they deployed the smoke grenade. Otherwise, by the time they reached Zhuo Hao, he might have drowned.

Shao Qi didn't know how to react. If word got out about this incident, what would become of their team's reputation?

"Let’s put tonight's events behind us and never mention them again. At least we discovered a new plant species – that compensates for the mishap. It wasn't all in vain."

"What about the underwater plants?"

"I'll burn them before we leave tomorrow. However, this place probably can't serve as a base anymore." A fierce burn would likely damage this protective stronghold.

In the middle of the night, gunshots echoed. Everyone immediately awoke, quickly dressed, and armed themselves. Zhou You, pressed against the wall, tried to listen; the storage room was soundproof. The gunshots indicated human presence.

"I'll go check it out; you all stay here," Shao Qi said, getting up. Zhou You, concerned, followed.

The duo removed the stone blocking the entrance and stealthily observed their surroundings from the ruins. The gunshots sounded close, but they were some distance away. It took about twenty minutes before footsteps neared.

"Hurry! Find a place to hide!"

"Damn this mission! Had I known, I wouldn’t have been lured by the bonus. It's a disaster for everyone."

"Chen, let's focus on getting out of this mess."

"Spit it out! Even if we survive and manage to sabotage Wang's plans, do you think Qian Ji Hall will spare us? It's a death sentence either way."

"Then...what do we do?"

"Chen, let's run. As long as we don’t return to Yang City, who would know we're alive?"

"Are you planning to abandon your parents? You want me to forsake my wife and child? What nonsense are you spouting?"

"Chen, calm down. We can lay low for a while and, once things settle, secretly get our families out. What other choice do we have? I can't die. Without me, who will take care of my parents?"

Upon hearing the stifled sobs and Chen Ge's incessant grumbling, Zhou You exchanged a glance with Shao Qi, choosing not to intervene.

"What do you say we go back and check on Wang Shao? Maybe... just maybe he's still alive?"

"Are you out of your mind? There's a high-level mutant beast there, along with dozens of mid to low-level ones. Even his formidable bodyguards have fallen; going there would be suicide for us!"

Gritting his teeth, Chen Ge said, "Never mind that now. Let's find a place to hide first. This place looks promising; half of the buildings are still intact. Let's search for an entrance."

Zhou You noticed them cautiously looking for an entrance around the supermarket. As they were about to reach a large rock, Zhou You's heart raced, contemplating whether to act. Suddenly, the ground trembled, and a robust rhinoceros charged out from the corner, rampaging through the streets.

"Oh my God, the rhino is coming after us! Run!" The group didn't bother looking for an entrance anymore; they sprinted away. However, the loud footsteps alerted the mutant rhino, which promptly gave chase.