Please pull the trigger for this world one more time.

With a soft "poof" sound...

A sharp blade emerged from the chest cavity of a demon.

After stirring it a few times, Han Dafu used his foot to pull out his Miao sword, just in time to see Mo Zian successfully behead a demon next to her with his greatsword.

Wearing specially made iron-nailed gauntlets, Wei Qiao, who was almost back-to-back with Mo Zi'an, slammed one of the demons down with his right hand and stabbed the demon in the heart with his left.

Not far away.

Chen Bu'nai wielded a large sword and cleaved a demon in half at the waist. The monster, having lost its lower body, did not lose its vitality and still tried to move with its upper limbs, but its skull was smashed by a long iron rod.

Chen Bu'nai nodded to Lin Qingning.

Chu Yan, who was holding a long knife, swallowed hard. Lin Qingning's weapons were rarely used in actual combat. They were usually disassembled into several sections and made into a three-section staff for easy carrying.

The batons used in training exercises didn't seem to have much power, but today... he vowed never to touch Lin Qingning's bald head again.

The heavy, gold-hilted Chenhuan military knife in Shen Yi's hand was dripping with a purplish-red liquid, and at his feet lay ten incomplete demons—

These things are not very rational, nor are they particularly powerful, but they are really hard to kill.

"Old Bi, identify the location. Da Fu, go and sneak a peek over the elves. Luo Chong, you organize the regrouping and keep watch! The rest of you, adjust your positions!"

Du Chi took out a piece of cloth from his waist pouch and wiped every drop of blood off the exquisite Chen Huan longsword in his hand. After wiping it, he even blew on it.

"Tch... Show-off." Song Chen muttered, glancing sideways and pouting.

"Hey, Old Song, don't be so unconvinced. Look, look, it's a silver-hilted viscount's sword!"

Du Chi pointed exaggeratedly at the longsword in his hand, "If you're so capable, why don't you take one too? Oh, right, I remember you captured the Baron's sword once, take it out and use it, don't be so stingy."

"Hmph, what are you showing off for? I think it's not as good as Guangwu's horizontal sword!"

"Alright! Du Chi, you should also change your show-off habit!"

Shen Yi interrupted the two of them, then snatched the cloth from Du Chi's hand and began wiping his own military knife. "This is still an Earl's military knife, you know. What did I say? Song Chen, you should hurry up and wipe your knife too. The blood of these beasts is sticky."

A short while later, Mo Zian ran back.

"How is it?"

"Report, we're on the right track, and we've covered more than half the distance."

Mo Zian pointed to the map provided by Sober, "At this pace, we will reach the large southern wall in a quarter of an hour, and then we will reach the western gate by walking around the wall."

"Okay, take a break and go get some water."

"Yes."

A little while later, Han Dafu emerged from the darkness.

"Report: The elves are progressing a little slower than us. They have fewer melee fighters, just a few shapeshifting swordsmen. But their advance is steady, and they seem to be doing well."

"Okay, go drink some water and catch your breath."

"Yes."

After resting briefly for a few minutes, the team regrouped and continued their advance.

The thirteen-person team was split into four groups: "three-three-three-four".

Shen Yi, Du Chi, and Song Chenwei are in the vanguard at the front; Mo Zian, Han Dafu, and Wei Qiao are on the left; Chen Bu'nei, Lin Qingning, and Chu Yan are on the right.

Luo Chong, Xu Yun, Zhao Shengnan, and Wei Ru are positioned in the center, serving as both coordinators and rear guards, and also as the team's mobile support force.

As Mo Zian reported, after cutting through some unidentified bushes, the team arrived at a dark white wall about 20 zhang (10m) high. There were obvious signs of road excavation at the foot of the wall, and the direction was exactly around the wall.

The space available for walking under the wall was not wide, so in order to ensure that everyone had enough room to maneuver if something happened, the team members had to advance carefully in a single file.

After defeating several more monsters along the way, the Guangwu Squad finally arrived at the gate known as the "Old Temple".

Not long after, Sober's elf team arrived at the gate and successfully joined up with Guangwu's team.

"Thank you for your hard work, Commander Sober." Shen Yi took a few steps forward. "Have you left all the markings along the way?"

"Put it down, keep it safe." Sober gave Shen Yi a reassuring look and then asked, "Aren't we going in?"

Shen Yi glanced at the elves behind Sober and said, "As is customary, let's double-check our plan after entering the Old Temple. We can also use this time to give our warriors a final check before we complete the mission and leave."

"it is good."

Sober readily nodded and took out a map of the old temple. "This is a standard underground shelter, so the first place we encounter after entering the gate that might have water is the large central reservoir..."

Praying to Sari that it wasn't here, and then to some sacrificial vessel in the main hall—these are the two most likely places.

"If the above two areas are not the problem, then we will check the residential areas last."

Shen Yi continued, "According to intelligence, there is only one source of pollution, and it must contain water. In other words, if no water is found, it can be eliminated directly?"

"That's right."

"Okay, let's check our watches. We'll be leaving in five minutes."

Five minutes later.

The two teams finally stepped through the gates of the old temple, where they were greeted by a variety of buildings that were predominantly dark white.

The buildings are all exceptionally well-preserved, even to an excessive degree. There is a straight, wide, dark white main road, without a speck of dust or even weeds, as if someone had cleaned and tidied it up just yesterday.

Shen Yi frowned and looked at Sober. "Why do I feel that this place doesn't look like it's been abandoned for a thousand years? The buildings don't look more than ten years old."

"That's right, it just means we've found the right place."

Sober seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "According to our records, this situation does indeed occur near the source of the calamity's pollution. Inanimate objects like bricks and stones become... well, sorry, I can't think of a suitable word to describe it."

"Incorruptible?" Shen Yidao asked.

"Pretty much, anyway... that's roughly the idea."

"Since this area is already within the contamination range of the remaining calamities, why haven't we been affected?" Shen Yi continued to ask.

Sober smiled and said, "That's because all of us here are enlightened beings who possess ether, which has nothing to do with mages or warriors."

Although the reason is unknown, ether and calamity counteract each other, and the source of pollution here is not powerful. The ether on our bodies is more than enough to shield it from its influence, so there is no need to worry.

The squad advanced slowly, the surroundings eerily quiet.

The faint sound of wind that originally existed in the underground space could not be heard at all here, and no air movement could be felt. Mo Zian, who was walking in the middle, could even hear his own heartbeat.

It was so quiet it was suffocating.

The group passed through a long corridor and arrived at their first stop—the large water well. The large water well was perfectly circular, with a width of about 15 zhang (7.5m) by sight. There were steps around it, and eight sets of lever pulleys for drawing water were installed on top.

Sober walked to the well, and an ice ball the size of a peach appeared in his left palm, then fell naturally to the bottom of the well.

After about seven or eight breaths, a crisp cracking sound was heard – the well was most likely dry, and it wasn't here.

Before Sober could even put on a smile, a sickening hissing sound came from the bottom of the well.