Tonight, Alice joins the hunt.

The continuous explosions finally exceeded the underground tomb's capacity. The pillars of the hall behind her snapped one by one, and thousands of tons of sand, gravel, and clods of earth crashed down. Even the warriors of the Death Army, originating from mythology, could not escape being pulverized under this terrifying pressure. Ming Yanwei, who was struggling to recover from the shockwaves of the impact and explosions, seized the opportunity and lunged towards the direction the heat source was pointing!

......................................................

"It seems they're having a lot of fun down there."

On the gyroplane, Zhang Jie sat in the open doorway, gazing down at the vast land under the night sky. A half-smoked cigarette was between his fingers—it was unclear where he got so many cigarettes. Every now and then, he would take a puff and glance around.

Of course, he wasn't using his eyes. After all, the limit of the distance that the naked eye, an optical sensory organ, can reach is only so far. At least for him, mental power is much more useful than the eyes.

He coughed softly.

"Chu Xuan, judging from the mission description, the chances of the Death Bracelet still being in the treasure room are very low. If we really can't find it, what should we do next? Go directly to those men in black, or wait for them to come to us in those temples mentioned in the movies?"

“Do both.” Chu Xuan replied without looking up, his busy fingers still rapidly writing the program to be input into the satellite network. Less than half a minute after the exploration team set off, Patchouli had completed the launch preparations for the remaining satellites, and now the two were working together to add various plugins with different effects to the soon-to-be-completed satellite system.

"As chosen warriors and guardians of the relics, O'Connor and Evelyn are highly likely to know the location of the Pyramid of Anubis. Therefore, they are very likely to go directly to the Pyramid of Anubis instead of staying in those temples. However, it is possible that the protagonist's visit to these temples in the story is actually to complete a ritual to activate the bracelet. Therefore, we must monitor those key points at all times using satellite networks."

"Secondly, the Tomb Keepers are their natural allies, or rather, their subordinates. If O'Connor wields the Spear of Judgment, he will fulfill the Tomb Keepers' traditional prophecy of becoming the warrior who ends the curse of the Scorpion King. He has no reason to give up such a convenient source of manpower; by observing them, we can..."

“…I can do this level of intelligence analysis without you having to explain it.” Zhang Jie’s lips twitched. “I mean, besides this, what other plans do you have? You didn’t just prepare this, did you?”

"You ask questions, I answer questions, is there anything else you're dissatisfied with?" Chu Xuan's voice remained indifferent, cold, and devoid of emotion.

“…Okay, I admit it was my fault back then. I shouldn’t have stared at you so intently during Alien and Ju-on. But I was also being watched very closely by the Main God, so I couldn’t help it… Okay, I won’t make excuses.” Zhang Jie raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. “I was wrong, please forgive me.”

“I don’t hold grudges.” Chu Xuan stopped typing and gently adjusted his glasses. “I don’t harbor hatred, so you can rest assured.”

"Please let me go. From now on, if you say east, I will never go west."

"........."

“Zheng Zha is the captain; you should follow his orders.” Chu Xuan lowered his head and continued fiddling with his program. But while coding, he added a couple of sentences. “Imhotep was supposed to be resurrected in the second part with the help of the Order, but because of the Cairo War, his remains should have been taken back to Britain by the clergy as a rare item. If all our preparations fail, then we’ll go to Britain, resurrect him, and have him lead us to the Pyramid of Anubis.”

"...Can't we locate the pyramids directly using satellite networks?"

Chu Xuan did not answer; instead, Patchouli answered his question.

“That would be very difficult, and not very meaningful,” Patchouli explained. “First of all, Anubis’s pyramids could very well have been covered by Anubis’s divine power. Trying to find them using only optical means through satellite networks would be an impossible task. Secondly… finding the pyramids would be meaningless.”

"Our goal is reward points, which are part of the side quests. To do that, we must first trigger the main god's quest. And to trigger the quest, we need to interact with key characters and items from the second part of the story. O'Connor and Evelyn are the main characters, the Death Bracelet is a key item, and Imhotep and Anklub are villains on par with the main characters. We must find at least one of them to have any chance of triggering the quest. If we don't trigger the main god's quest, even if we pack up and move Anubis's pyramid, it will be meaningless."

"Okay, I see... Wait, wait a minute! Patchouli, you guys aren't really planning to pack up and take Anubis's pyramids with you, are you?!" Zhang Jie suddenly noticed something important and hurriedly shouted, "Like the Hamunaptra! Like the floating base you were talking about at the dinner table in Final Destination! Like that Great Library you've been repairing!"

"I've noticed that you witches have a real fascination with floating fortresses!"

“This is necessary,” Patchouli replied. “Because we must leave a permanent foothold, even a force, in this world. Because of the Cairo War, the supernatural forces of this world have paid too much attention to Egypt. And in order to ensure that our resurrection altar can be preserved in this world for a long time, and not be found to have been torn to pieces by the local natives when we come to resurrect others, we must have a sufficiently concealed foothold with sufficient firepower.”

"But it doesn't necessarily have to be Hamunata, there are many other options..."

Zhang Jie continued shouting, but this time even Patchouli ignored him. The purple-haired witch abandoned the conversation and focused on coding. Just a dozen seconds later, she flexed her fingers and let out a soft breath.

"I've finished my work here, how about yours?" She looked at Chu Xuan.

“Let’s launch the satellite now.” Chu Xuan nodded, closing his personal terminal. “Once the satellite network is complete, how much of your spellcasting ability will be restored?”

"Around 30%, it might increase over time, but it should be enough to help you activate the enhancement," Patchouli replied. She set the gyroplane to hover mode, picked up the box containing the satellite, and floated out of the cockpit. Chu Xuan glanced at Zhang Jie, who was still chattering and trying to join the conversation, put on a pair of earplugs, and then went to the side to continue reading his data.

Zhang Jie's expression froze.

"Well, you bunch of smart people are really hard to deal with... Oh well, more practice is good. Without the assistance of the main god's authority, I do need a few major battles to rebuild myself." He sighed melancholy, almost already foreseeing the series of battles his team would face in this world... no, it should be the series of battles against him and his fellow newly resurrected. In the past few hours alone, he had gained a very deep understanding of Chu Xuan's intelligence, especially considering that Alice, who had once considered him a nobody, so highly praised Chu Xuan and even chose to abandon thought after his resurrection...

Without a doubt, a great battle awaits them. The difficulty may not exceed their capabilities, but Chu Xuan will definitely squeeze their potential to the limit.

What a tragedy.

He couldn't help but light a cigarette with a melancholy sigh, and took small steps to the other side of the gyroplane, where the overlord was holding the heavy particle rapid-fire cannon that Alice had handcrafted and placed on the side of the cockpit, completely captivated. Watching this large Russian man diligently familiarizing himself with the weapon's performance, he sighed sadly.

“Brother Bawang,” he patted Bawang on the shoulder. “We dim-witted fools are probably in for a rough time… How about we find somewhere to have a drink later? I just checked the supplies in this gyroplane and found that Miss Patchouli has prepared some alcohol in the back cabin.”

His intention was to find someone to share his inner turmoil with, and at the same time, to strengthen the bonds between his comrades in the unit. Based on his experience in the military, the easiest way to build a good relationship with the Russians was to get them drunk at the dinner table.

however……

Ba Wang chuckled and waved his hand. "It's best not to drink during a mission, and if you want to drink, wait until Captain Zheng Zha returns."

“…You make a lot of sense.” Zhang Jie stroked his chin and nodded. “That was something I overlooked. So, let’s…”

He suddenly tilted his head and looked at the ground.

........................

In short, this is 1

Section Fourteen: I heard this game involves stomping frogs OAO

When Ming Yanwei awoke from the momentary coma caused by the continuous shockwave, the timer built into her armor showed that there were still four minutes left before the arrival time limit. She struggled to her feet, took a deep breath despite the aftereffects of activating the gene lock, and began to observe her surroundings.

Excellent, we're very close to the marked heat source now, and the treasure chamber is almost in sight. The passageway connecting the numerous underground tombs and the temple above has collapsed from the bombardment of high-explosive grenades, so there's no need to worry about the Death Army warriors attacking again anytime soon.

[I won't be trapped here, because the Scorpion King's treasure will trigger a trap that draws the Nile River, and this fully enclosed armor will allow me to walk directly back to the surface through the waterways along the riverbed. Even if the trap isn't triggered, Miss Alice won't abandon me.]

All I need to do is get to the secret room within these remaining four minutes.

She took several deep breaths and activated the armor's healing function to inject herself with an energy potion to replenish the energy consumed in unlocking the gene lock—she had learned from Zheng Zha that the aftereffects of unlocking the gene lock were mainly caused by a weak physique and energy deficiency. Soon, the discomfort caused by unlocking the lock subsided, and she quickly regained her combat strength.

[Enable Infrared Vision]

Her vision through the mask subtly shifted, revealing the massive underground heat source she had identified as the treasure room to be about twenty meters ahead of her. Between her and the heat source lay a wall adorned with murals.

There must be scorpions behind that wall... Theoretically, they shouldn't be able to break through my armor, but considering the mythical Death Army warriors behind me... I'd better adopt a cautious strategy.

She drew an arrow with a piercing tip from her quiver. She drew back the bow, aimed, and released it—the arrow, like a meteor, pierced a large hole in the wall several meters away. Without hesitation, the instant the hole appeared, she drew another arrow from her quiver, this one coated with a chemical toxin, and, still attached to the first arrow, shot it into the blasted-open hole!

A thick, dark green smoke immediately filled the cave. Through her sensors, she heard clear sounds of corrosion and arthropods striking the ground. She waited quietly for several seconds until no other sounds came from the cave before cautiously approaching. She was vigilant, wary of any possible attack.

She breathed a small sigh of relief as she stepped over the hole in the wall.

Right before her eyes, more than a dozen enormous mutated scorpions, each at least as tall as a person, lay dead on the ground, slowly dissolving. Several of them even retained some vitality, and when she entered the cave, they even tried to leap up and pounce on her—naturally, they were all shot dead by Ming Yanwei on their way to attack.

[Highly poisonous]

She glanced at the giant scorpion's thick, dark stinger and had no doubt that without armor, a single blow would be fatal. And without this luxurious set of composite armor, even if she had miraculously escaped the Death Army soldiers' pursuit, she would now be facing the perilous prospect of hand-to-hand combat with these highly venomous creatures.

I really need to thank Miss Alice properly when I get back...

With that thought in mind, she watched the countdown on the timer, which had less than two minutes left, and used ordinary arrows to shoot at the wall to pinpoint the wall that served as the mechanism in the movie. Then, a single piercing arrow completely solved the problem.

Then the Scorpion King's treasure room came into view.

—Task complete.

As she cautiously entered the treasure room, she heard a prompt from the Supreme God in her ear. Simultaneously, the reward points for completing the quest and the side quest arrived in her name. And less than three meters before her, the treasure chest containing the Death Bracelet from the movie lay quietly on the platform, waiting to be opened.

She felt as if something was fading away. There seemed to be a thin film covering her, something she hadn't noticed before. Now that the film was gone, she realized it had once existed—she wasn't sure what it was; perhaps it was some kind of barrier, perhaps the interference of a supreme deity, but in any case, this obstacle was no longer there. And now, nothing stood between her and the treasure chest.

Should I open it myself? Or should I wait for Zheng Zha and Miss Alice to arrive?

Hmm, let's wait a bit. If they don't come soon, I'll take this box. The current plan doesn't seem to address what to do with the Death Bracelet, so I'd better not make any decisions on my own.

Thinking this, she decided to find a suitable place to wait for the others. However, just then...

"Get out of the way!"

A loud shout suddenly rang in Ming Yanwei's ears. She was startled at first, then immediately realized it was Zhang Jie's voice. Her body instinctively reacted, lunging to the side like a cheetah unleashed—

'Puff—'

It felt like a gust of wind brushed against the side of her neck. In an instant, she felt a sudden lightness on the side of her head, and the sensors in front of her eyes shattered, displaying a distorted image. When she came to her senses, she realized that a large chunk of the left side of her helmet had broken off, exposing half of her face, and the tip of her ear was burning with pain!

What happened?! What's there?!

Ming Yanwei's pupils contracted sharply, her gene lock reactivating, and her arms instinctively crossed in front of her to block. The next moment, she felt the world spin around her, her arms throbbing with excruciating pain. When she came to her senses, her back had slammed against the outer wall of the hall behind her, and the lingering poison gas rushed into her respiratory tract. Even though her armor was still functional and she was immediately injected with antidote serum, a burning sensation rose in her throat, and she violently spat out a large pool of blood!

Both hands were severed. Along with the metal powered armor that could withstand a direct hit from a light machine gun, they were reduced to a bloody mess. The fact that he was still alive was probably the best news, but even that life, like a candle flickering in the wind, would vanish in an instant.

Because she found nothing.

She couldn't see, hear, or feel anything. She didn't know what had attacked her, or the extent of the attack. Her primal instincts, aided by her genetic lock, seemed to offer a clue, but given her current physical condition, the possibility of a third dodge was negligible.

Am I going to die?

[Having just come back to life, am I going to die here?]

He seemed to hear Zhang Jie's voice again, but his consciousness was beginning to blur. Although it was just a simple physical impact, every bone in his body was in excruciating pain. It felt as if a legendary martial arts master had used hidden force to strike his body; his exterior was still relatively intact, but his internal organs were probably necrotic.

The voice seemed to grow closer.

What?! You can't even speak clearly... Damn it...

Her head was tilted slightly to the side.

[Do you want me to... tilt my head?]

The next moment, her vision was filled with endless light. In this myriad of rays of light, she seemed to see a blurry, strange shape disintegrating and dissipating within the radiance.

—She fainted.

..................................................................

Half a second later, Alice, following the scorching trajectory of the magic cannon, appeared directly from the hall dozens of meters away at the unconscious Ming Yanwei's side. As she injected the medicine, the Isis statue she was clutching turned to ashes with the flow of magic. The female archer lying in a pool of blood also saw her wounds heal rapidly. Although the internal and skeletal injuries still required further treatment, at least for the time being, her life was no longer in danger.

“You really are heartless, Margot Lloyd,” Zheng Zha’s voice rang out beside her, his tone seemingly tinged with displeasure. “You dragged it out until the very last moment before making your move. Aren’t you afraid…”

"Don't worry, mere physical damage isn't even considered a fatal injury to us witches. Haven't you caught up in your common sense? You yourself are the kind of person who can reattach your head and continue fighting even if it's cut off." Alice gave him a disgruntled look. "If the apocalyptic atmosphere outside hadn't faded yet, I could have pulled her back even if she had melted away. Not to mention Zhang Jie was watching over her."

"Yo." Zhang Jie's voice came from the air. "Sorry, I'm not that good, hahaha."

"I wasn't complimenting you." Alice glanced up coldly, and the laughter stopped abruptly.

She shook her head, her gaze shifting from Ming Yanwei to the corpse whose mass had been mostly incinerated in the magic cannon, leaving only a few remnants. Even from these meager remains, she could discern the object's shape when it was alive.

It resembled a mass of fleshy, limb-like appendages, a slime-like substance. And without a doubt, this thing was not a native product of Egyptian mythology.

“The Child of No Form.” She frowned slightly. “Just a low-ranking servant, and the master behind him isn’t particularly powerful. If it’s only this level of corruption, then it should still be within the realm of redemption…”

She reached out and used her force field to restrain the remains. At the same time, Zheng Zha picked up the treasure chest containing the Death Bracelet.

The temple ruins then began to collapse.

………………

In short, this is the second...

Section 15 - The Fighting Nation, The Fighting Nation.jpg