Please pull the trigger for this world one more time.

Soon, a streamlined team was selected to enter the underground area.

Shen Yi led the team, with Du Chi as his deputy. The team members were Mo Zian, Han Dafu, Chen Bunei, Wei Qiao, Lin Qingning, and Wei Ru.

Shen Yi considered this combination repeatedly. First of all, the underground structure may be relatively narrow, so the composition of personnel should not be too bulky.

Han Dafu was impeccable as a scout, and Wei Ru was indispensable as a communications soldier.

For the remaining few people, Shen Yi mainly considered their individual combat strength, because he felt that they were likely to face close-quarters combat in the confined space, so their actual combat strength was very important.

For example, Luo Chong and Chu Yan have better overall training results, but in close combat, they are indeed at a disadvantage compared to Wei Qiao and Lin Qingning.

……

Inside the Northwest Army's supply depot, the furtive voice of a certain "male duck" could be heard.

"Chen Bu'nei, take a few more grenades. Put down the [Jin Biao-3]... and put down the [Zhang Lei-2] too, replace them all with [Zhang Lei-3]!"

Du Chi lowered his voice, "Anyway, it's all surplus grain from the landlord's family. Are you stupid? We can just bring a few offensive grenades."

Wei Qiao had already replaced his [736-High Precision] weapon with [Gan Qi-Modified]. "Old Bi, aren't you going to change your weapon?"

"No, our squad can't be without any ranged firepower."

Mo Zian, now fully dressed, shook his head and fastened his [Jade Style] heavy helmet. "I brought quite a few extra [Martial Attendant] magazines."

Mo Zian then pointed to the exposed hilt of his sword behind him, "If all else fails, I still have this."

Just then, Du Chi gestured for everyone to be quiet. Not long after, Shen Yi lifted the tent flap at the supply point, followed by Major Ma.

"Major Shen, the corps commander has already informed us of this matter. He means that if we need any manpower, we should just ask and not hold back," Major Ma said, looking at Shen Yi. "The same goes for supplies, since we don't know anything about the situation down below."

Shen Yi thought for a moment and shook his head: "No need. We have all the supplies here, which is already very good. As for personnel, the team shouldn't be too bulky, and having unfamiliar members join rashly could lead to difficulties in command."

Major Ma nodded somewhat helplessly.

He knew perfectly well that Shen Yi's words, though polite, implied that people from the Northwest weren't necessarily stronger in combat than these so-called cadet soldiers.

Each of them possessed the strength of an Awakened One, and coupled with their previous combat performance, Major Ma couldn't find a single reason to refute this subtext.

"Alright, then we'll have to rely entirely on Major Shen and the others." Major Ma sighed. "Sigh, we're used to being in bunkers and fortifications all the time... This kind of combat environment is indeed a weakness of our Northwest Army."

"Major Ma, you flatter me. We belong to different branches of the military, each with our own strengths and duties. I heard that you graduated from the Imperial Artillery Academy with top honors. We can't expect artillerymen to be armed with bayonets, can we?"

As Shen Yi organized the equipment, he said, "Major Ma, according to the plan we discussed before, we're entrusting our backs to you."

"Yes, don't worry." Major Ma nodded solemnly. "The corps commander has already ordered the troops to start a large-scale search of the mountains. If there really is another exit, we'll catch the thief in the alley."

"good!"

Shen Yi quickly finished organizing his equipment.

"Line up!"

Looking at the seven people standing in front of him, Shen Yi said in a deep voice, "From now on, all members of the group must remember their code names."

"I am number one, Du Chi number two, Mo Zi'an number three, Han Dafu number four, Chen Bu'nei number five, Wei Qiao number six, Lin Qingning number seven, and Wei Ru number eight. Tactical terminology may not follow etiquette regulations. Is that clear?"

"yes!"

"Set off!"

After completing their preparations, the group returned to the tunnel entrance. Shen Yi raised the Ether Shield and took the lead, slowly descending along the rope.

Shen Yi slowly sank into the darkness, looking as if he were descending into hell.

The tunnel was quite deep, about 50 zhang (25m), before Shen Yi reached the bottom.

After seeing two flashes of light deep within the dark tunnel, the remaining team members began to descend via ropes.

After the entire eight-man team had entered, Major Ma ordered the men behind him, "Notify the engineering corps to prepare, lay cables and lights, advance and lay firepower, and establish an forward position!"

"yes!"

......

the other side.

At the entrance to the pitch-black underground passage, eight beams of cold white light from ethereal sources formed a circle, shining out in all directions.

"Count off, one!"

"Two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight!"

"Report your location to me and determine the direction of advance!"

"Report from Number Two, I'm beside you, road ahead spotted."

"Report number three: There is no passageway to your left."

"Report number four: There is no passageway to your left front side."

"Report number five: There is no passageway to your right rear side."

"Report number six: There is no passageway to your right front side."

"Report number eight: There is no passageway behind you."

"Understood." Shen Yi continued issuing orders, "Using me as the baseline, number two and I will be in front, number four on the left, number five on the right, numbers six and seven in the back, and numbers three and eight in the center. Understand?"

"Report, number four is recommended first, as I am naturally able to see in the dark."

"...Agreed. Number four and number two will switch positions. Do you understand?"

"clear!"

The squad quickly rearranged its formation according to Shen Yi's orders.

"Report the count every fifteen minutes, proceed with the search!"

Guided by Han Dafu, the team began to search and advance in the darkness. Although the underground passage was dark, it was not cramped; in fact, it was quite spacious, and there were obvious signs of artificial excavation.

Mo Zian's light shone on the wall, revealing obvious traces of murals, though they were almost invisible due to their age.

After walking through a nearly straight passage, the team turned a corner under Han Dafu's guidance.

As soon as they entered the other end of the passage, Du Chi took a few deep sniffs and said in a serious tone, "Report from Number Two, there's a smell of blood."

"alert!"

The team slowed down and walked for another fifteen minutes.

"Report number four: An unidentified body has been discovered on the ground 300 zhang (150 m) ahead!"

No one was surprised by Han Dafu's report, because at that moment, not only Du Chi, but everyone else smelled a metallic, rusty odor and a faint foul smell.

"Advance 200 zhang (100m) and then establish a perimeter. Number Two and I will go forward to conduct an inspection."

"Yes."

Following Shen Yi's orders, everyone stepped forward only after Du Chi signaled safety with his flashlight.

"What...is this thing?"