Pretending to be a genius starts with the civilization advancement assessment.

Chapter 67 Reunion of old friends

Lin Yi patrolled and cleared the outer area for another hour or so, until his internal energy was almost completely depleted, dropping to the warning level of about 30%, before he stopped.

During this time, they also dealt with more than ten wandering elite-level abyss beasts and dozens of ordinary abyss wolves, further ensuring the relative safety of this area for a short period of time.

It was nearly noon when he leisurely returned to the settlement in Helu City.

As soon as he approached the outer defense line, the armed police officer on duty recognized Lin Yi at a glance. He immediately straightened his body, gave a perfect military salute, and quickly let him pass with a burning gaze.

Lin Yi nodded slightly in return and stepped into this bustling fortress of survival.

On the way to the old department store, Lin Yi noticed that there was an armed helicopter parked near the outer armored vehicle group.

The fuselage still carried the dust from its long journey, and although the rotors had been retracted, its sharp and imposing presence was still eye-catching.

"It seems that the Tianpeng Squad was quite efficient in reaching the General Staff."

Lin Yi understood immediately; this must be the Tianpeng Squad that Ren Yinuo mentioned yesterday as being responsible for escorting the crystal.

As soon as he reached the vicinity of the old department store, he saw Zhang Weidong waiting downstairs with several military officers and staff.

Clearly, the soldiers on the outer perimeter had already relayed the message back when he entered the defensive line.

"Officer Lin, you've worked hard."

Zhang Weidong strode forward and firmly grasped Lin Yi's hand.

"Li Gang had already given a preliminary report on the situation via radio. More than two hundred survivors were rescued from four residential areas, along with a large amount of supplies. Staff Officer Lin, on behalf of all the rescued people, thank you!"

Lin Yi smiled calmly: "Captain Zhang, you flatter me. It's my duty, and it's always good to save as many people as possible."

“It’s your duty, but it’s a great favor to us,” Zhang Weidong said solemnly. He then stepped aside to lead the way. “Chief of Staff Lin, the Tianpeng Team sent by the General Staff to transport supplies has arrived and is waiting in the conference room upstairs.”

Lin Yi nodded and went upstairs with Zhang Weidong and the others.

As soon as the meeting room door was opened, everyone inside stood up upon hearing the sound.

Besides the two accompanying officers from the detachment and the familiar members of the Tianpeng Squad, there was another figure that surprised Lin Yi.

He was a young officer who looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. He was tall and handsome, and carried the rank of major.

"what……"

"Why does he look so familiar?"

Lin Yi took another careful look, and then his heart skipped a beat.

"Liu Yuan?!"

"How did he end up here now?"

Liu Yuan was a very famous person in his previous life.

He was the first human civilization on Blue Star to break through to the Star Core level, an absolute hawk in the military, with outstanding combat power, a resolute character, and, more importantly, he took great care of his juniors and never held back his knowledge.

Lin Yi had received guidance from him many times when he was at the Stardust level, and they had cooperated many times after joining the military. Although they could not be considered close friends, they were definitely comrades-in-arms who trusted each other and fought side by side.

"At this time, Liu Yuan should still be working as a staff officer in some department of the General Staff, and he should not have shown any particularly outstanding personal strength... I remember that he really rose to prominence after he was assigned to a large shelter and took charge on his own."

"Why did he suddenly come to Helu City?"

Lin Yi's mind raced, his gaze sweeping across Liu Yuan's face, and a guess instantly surfaced in his mind.

"Could it be that he's hit a difficult point in his cultivation of the 'Basic Source Energy Guidance Technique' and is stuck?"

Aside from this, Lin Yi couldn't think of any other reason why he would come to Helu City with the supply team at this time.

After all, based on his understanding of Lao Liu, this guy was a cultivation fanatic and a workaholic. Unless it concerned improving his own strength or major military affairs, he would never easily leave his post.

Having figured this out, Lin Yi suppressed his surprise and showed no unusual expression on his face, as if he were just looking at an ordinary, unfamiliar military officer.

At this moment, the captain of the Tianpeng Squad stepped forward, still with his capable and composed demeanor, and saluted, saying, "Officer Lin, I am here to hand over the supplies allocated by headquarters to you."

As he spoke, he handed over the silver-white metal box he had been carrying with both hands. Lin Yi took the box; it felt heavy in his hands.

He unlocked the latch and lifted the lid of the box.

Instantly, an even richer and purer energy shone on his face than before.

The layout inside the box remains the same, but the quality of the crystal has been comprehensively improved!

There are two rows, a total of twenty crystals, all of which are radiant white crystals.

The middle row, in particular, is quite eye-catching.

The two pieces on the far left and right sides, although they have a white base, are covered with clear green lines.

Four white high-grade crystals.

The two crystals next to it are white with golden threads, similar to the three that Lin Yi had just acquired, and are obviously golden-patterned crystals dropped by a leader.

And right in the center, surrounded by stars, is a striking green crystal.

Tianpeng added from the side, "Chief of Staff Lin, there are still some high-grade white crystals in the headquarters' inventory, but the staff department's analysis suggests that some of their functions may overlap with your existing equipment or are not currently the most urgently needed. As for the green crystals, the General Staff asked us to convey that we have obtained two before, and this is the second one. It's not that the headquarters is stingy, please understand."

Looking at the box of Spirit Crystals that embodied countless hopes and efforts, Lin Yi sighed softly, "I've only done so little, yet the country has already given me so many resources. How could I possibly have other ideas?"

After saying that, he seemed to remember something and took out the gold-gray crystal containing the "photocopying" printing machine from a special slot on the inside of his Flowing Cloud Belt.

"Captain Tianpeng, please take this crystal back with you when you return to headquarters and present it to the Chief of the General Staff."

Lin Yi handed over the gold-patterned gray crystal, his tone solemn, "I think headquarters can make the most of this crystal and maximize its value."

"Grey-colored crystal with gold veins."

Tianpeng accepted the crystal with both hands, somewhat puzzled.

The next second, his expression suddenly changed, and he looked up at Lin Yi.

He clearly sensed the information within the crystal the instant he made contact, and immediately understood the terrifying strategic value of this "copying" device.

Tianpeng took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart. He carefully put the crystal close to his body, then took a step back, gave a military salute, and said in an extremely serious voice: "Officer Lin, please rest assured, I guarantee with my life the importance of this item, and it will definitely be delivered safely."

"While waiting for your return, I have already copied and backed up the training video footage from Captain Ren Nuo's location as required." Tian Peng paused, his tone becoming more urgent: "Because this item is of great importance, I must escort it back to headquarters immediately. I won't stay any longer. Farewell!"

After saying that, he didn't linger for a moment, or even have time for pleasantries, and immediately led his team members out of the conference room in a hurried and efficient manner.

The others in the conference room, including Zhang Weidong and Liu Yuan, were all curious about the crystal that had caused Captain Tianpeng to lose his composure, but their good discipline prevented them from asking any questions.

After the Tianpeng Squad left, Lin Yi's gaze turned to Liu Yuan, who had been waiting quietly to the side.

Upon seeing Lin Yi looking over, Liu Yuan immediately stepped forward, saluted, and said, "Hello, Staff Officer Lin! I am Liu Yuan from the Operations Department of the General Staff."

His self-introduction was concise and clear, and then his tone became earnest, "I apologize for disturbing you, because I am stuck on the last key point in my practice of the Basic Source Energy Guidance Technique and I can't understand it. I think I might be stuck in a rut, but I can't get out of it for the time being, so I specifically applied to headquarters to come with the escort team, hoping to get your guidance."

"Just as I thought," Lin Yi thought to himself.

"Major Liu, you're too kind. It's good to learn from each other and discuss things. You've come all this way, you must be tired." Lin Yi smiled gently. After a moment of contemplation, he continued, "How about this, you take a short rest first. I need to go to the rooftop this afternoon to recover the energy I used up today. You can come with Captain Ren then, and I'll explain things to you specifically. What do you say?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yuan's face lit up with joy, and he quickly said, "It's no trouble at all, thank you! I'll come to the rooftop again this afternoon to bother you!" He suppressed his excitement, knowing that it was not appropriate to say anything more at this moment.

Lin Yi nodded and said no more.

He closed the box full of crystals, gestured to Zhang Weidong, and then picked up the box and left the conference room, returning to his tent area.

Since the General Staff sent a bunch of crystals at such a crucial time, it certainly wasn't a random selection. He needs to go back and carefully organize and arrange them. With these new forces, he might be able to be bolder in some tactics during the upcoming nest extermination battle.

　I'll be posting on Sanjiang this afternoon, so I won't write a preface yet. I'll put it all together before it goes on sale. I'll add an extra chapter at 10 PM tonight.

　　Also, thank you to all the readers for your generous donations over the past two days.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)