Chapter Sixty-Four: Still Too Weak

The blame-shifting had begun.

Yin Qian had long anticipated this, but now that he was truly faced with it, a suffocating sense of grievance welled up in his heart.

But what could he do?

The strong always overpower the weak!

No matter how unjust it felt, he could only endure it!

Yin Qian’s whole body trembled. Then, with his head bowed, he gritted his teeth and said, “It is entirely my fault. I misjudged my subordinates and failed in leadership... I am willing to bear full responsibility for the current situation! Whatever punishment the group decides... I will accept it without complaint!”

He took the blame swiftly and decisively.

This clearly surprised Zhou Potian, who paused for a moment, caught off guard by this unexpected response.

The words he’d prepared froze on his lips and would not come out…

His eyes flickered as he looked at Yin Qian, who stood with his head lowered, awaiting punishment. In the end, Zhou Potian merely gave a cold snort and said indifferently, “At least you have some sense of responsibility. As for your punishment... We’ll see what the captain decides when we return.”

With that, he said no more.

Yin Qian’s heart was filled with bitterness, but he could only bow and reply, “Yes, sir.”

With the burden shifted from his own shoulders, Zhou Potian’s somber expression lightened a little. He then turned to Yang Hong and said, “The target may have escaped, but she’s already ‘gone berserk’—and at a time when her genetic energy was completely depleted. Her chances of survival should be slim. Even if she does live, she’ll be ruined. I think we can consider the mission accomplished… I’ll contact Wei Lin and have him come over so we can discuss our next steps…”

Yang Hong, a gold-rank ‘Fist Fighter,’ was a lean man with some stubble and rugged features, exuding a strong masculine charisma.

He had been frowning slightly the whole time. Hearing Zhou Potian’s words, he nodded gently, without objection.

So Zhou Potian took out his communicator, intending to contact Wei Lin.

But after a moment, Zhou Potian’s brow furrowed tightly.

“What’s wrong?” Yang Hong asked, looking at him with concern.

“I can’t get through…” Zhou Potian replied, glancing at Yang Hong.

Yang Hong’s eyes narrowed sharply.

How could he not get through?

Could it be…

A look of disbelief flickered in his eyes.

Zhou Potian seemed to realize something as well, and his face darkened.

“Let’s go check!” Yang Hong didn’t hesitate; he stood up and rushed toward the glacier crevice.

Zhou Potian’s expression was grim, but he said nothing more and hurried after him.

The other members of the Greedy Wolf group stood frozen in place…

“Could it be… Vice Captain Wei has run into trouble too?” someone beside Yin Qian muttered in disbelief.

Yin Qian was momentarily stunned, then said quietly, “Impossible! That person, that person…”

He wanted to say more, but in the end, he fell silent.

He had already taken the blame.

Would he now confess that Shen Tian had judged the opponent to be only an iron-rank gunfighter?

If he said that, his own situation would be even worse!

An iron-rank gunfighter ruining their operation… What kind of incompetent leader would that make him?

But then, a new thought suddenly struck him.

If Vice Captain Wei really had gotten into trouble… While this was bad news for the Greedy Wolf, for him personally, it might actually be a stroke of luck…

Look, even a gold-rank berserker ran into trouble. What could a silver-rank berserker like him possibly have done?

For a moment, Yin Qian didn’t know whether he should be hoping for Wei Lin’s misfortune or not. He could only look on as Zhou Potian and Yang Hong raced off into the distance…

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Several minutes later, at the bottom of the glacier crevice.

Zhou Potian and Yang Hong stared at a scorched corpse lying at the foot of the cliff, their faces shifting between pallor and purple rage.

Yang Hong, his expression grim, reached down and took a charred identification tag from the corpse’s neck.

He placed the tag against a watch-like device on his wrist and scanned it.

After two beeps, a virtual screen popped up from the watch, displaying a photograph…

“It really is Wei Lin!”

He drew in a sharp breath.

The tag was forged from C-series metal, embedded with an identity chip that could be read by the device to verify the owner.

“How could this be? Was the enemy a gold-rank gunfighter?!” Zhou Potian was utterly incredulous, his eyes wide.

Wei Lin was a gold-rank berserker!

With his combat ability, even Zhou Potian himself couldn’t guarantee victory in a fair fight.

And now, he’d been burned to ashes?

It was nearly impossible!

Even against a gold-rank gunfighter, such an outcome was unthinkable… At long range, gunfighters certainly had the advantage. But within a kilometer, berserkers reigned supreme!

Even with gene rounds, the enemy shouldn’t have been able to take Wei Lin down so easily!

And yet…

Zhou Potian was dumbfounded.

It defied all logic!

Even if, against all reason, the opponent was a gold-rank gunfighter… If Wei Lin couldn’t win, surely he could escape? With his near-sonic speed, there were few on the entire Tier One battlefield who could have caught him!

Both Zhou Potian and Yang Hong were at a loss, unable to accept the reality.

But the facts were right in front of them. Refusal to accept them was pointless.

Only after a long while did Yang Hong regain his composure. He exhaled slowly and said, “We’d better contact the captain.”

Zhou Potian’s expression flickered, but in the end, he nodded, his face ashen…

In this operation, over a thousand members of the Celestial Palace had already died—a grievous loss.

But Greedy Wolf had lost two gold-rank evolvers outright!

In that sense, Greedy Wolf’s losses were far greater!

More importantly, they had failed to kill the target, and their own identities had been exposed. It was clear that the Celestial Palace would not let this go easily.

The situation had become extremely dire.

“Damn it, who the hell is plotting against us? If I ever find out… I’ll make him wish for death but be unable to die!”

Zhou Potian’s fury was off the charts, his hatred for that mysterious gunfighter now bone-deep.

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As for Greedy Wolf’s situation, Fang Mu no longer cared. Dragging his severely injured body, he pressed on at top speed. It was only after he’d entered the vast sea of green grasslands, his figure completely hidden by the tall grass, that he finally let out a long sigh of relief…

Only now did he feel somewhat safe.

He glanced back at the glacier plain to make sure he wasn’t being pursued, then gasped for breath and came to a stop.

He hadn’t dared to pause before, but now he had to tend to his wounds.

At the very least, he couldn’t leave himself exposed like this.

He struggled to remove his clothes, but the fibers had melted and fused to his burned skin. The pain was so intense that cold sweat poured down his body, but he persisted.

Piece by piece, he peeled off the blackened fabric, sweat pouring like rain from the agony.

He then flipped his hand and produced a medical kit. On the battlefield, injuries were common, so he always carried basic supplies.

He took out a vial of gene medicine—just the most basic G-grade type.

This was the most widely used gene medicine on the battlefield, akin to ‘alcohol’ or ‘hydrogen peroxide’ in ancient times, though its effects were much better.

Applied to wounds, it would form a thin film, temporarily sealing the injury and reducing the risk of infection.

But as for true healing, G-grade gene medicine was far from sufficient.

He didn’t have much of it either… After all, he’d never expected to be so gravely wounded this time.

He’d have to focus on the most critical areas.

Dipping a cotton pad into the gene medicine, Fang Mu began tending his wounds.

The injuries to his face were especially gruesome—just a light touch sent waves of searing pain through him. Gritting his teeth, he applied the medicine as best he could.

Soon, the cotton pads were soaked with blood and blackened flesh, piling up on the ground…

By the time he’d used up the entire vial, he’d only managed to treat his face and a few areas on his body.

The treated spots felt cool and soothing at first, but quickly dried, as if covered by a soft film…

Unfortunately, he had no more medicine and no alternatives. Fang Mu took out what little gauze he had and began to bandage himself.

He was in a pitiful state.

There wasn’t much gauze, so in the end he could only wrap his head, face, and exposed limbs, leaving the rest uncovered.

He then retrieved a set of clothes from his storage gear and, gritting his teeth, dressed himself.

After half an hour or so, Fang Mu looked like a camouflage-clad mummy…

He examined his hands, gingerly touched his bandaged face, and forced a bitter smile.

Very well, a mummy it is—it was still better than the ghastly sight from before.

Earlier, his bald head and body, stripped of skin and covered in blackened, raw flesh, had made him look like a vengeful spirit from hell. Now, at least, he appeared somewhat normal.

Once he’d calmed himself, Fang Mu glanced down at the traces he’d left on the ground. He took out a spade from his storage, dug a small hole, and buried all remnants of his flesh and blood before letting out a quiet sigh of relief.

“This was a brush with death. Surviving was pure luck… When I get back, I must truly become stronger!”

A solemn light flashed in Fang Mu’s eyes.

The past two days had been a true trial by life and death. Though he’d cut a bloody path through his enemies with results that were nothing short of astonishing—a bronze squad, four bronze gunfighters, and even two gold-rank evolvers—

Such achievements were nothing short of legendary.

But Fang Mu knew well… In terms of raw power, he couldn’t compare to those two gold-rank foes… In fact, everyone who had died at his hands was stronger than he was!

His success came from a mix of luck and ability, but the bulk of that ability lay in cunning—‘soft skills’ rather than brute force.

In terms of actual strength, he was sorely lacking.

If his enemies hadn’t all underestimated him… the outcome would have been completely different!

Especially in terms of life level—he was still just iron-rank…

His offensive options were limited, with only ‘Blazing Fire’ at his disposal…

In short, he had a long list of shortcomings!

But thinking of his gains this time, Fang Mu let out a slow breath.

There were many places in Battlefield City to strengthen oneself, but in the past he’d only been able to look on enviously, lacking the funds.

This time, though—when he returned, he was determined to seize every opportunity…

With that thought, he licked his charred lips, then, without lingering, slipped into the cover of night, disappearing into the green grasslands on his way toward Battlefield City…

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