Chapter 24: Monster Tide

"Monster Tide?"

Lin Mo asked curiously.

Seeing his young master's blank expression, Shi Tou quickly stepped in to explain:

"Young Master, what we call a Monster Tide is actually a special spatial disturbance that appears in wilderness areas."

Shi Tou gestured with his hands as he spoke:

"This disturbance will draw wild monsters from within several hundred kilometers around, and they'll swarm madly toward the disturbance's center point."

"Moreover, the closer they get to the center, the more berserk they become—their aggression and attributes both spike dramatically."

Saying this, Shi Tou's expression grew serious:

"The most critical part is that once the time is up, a wild BOSS will randomly spawn near the center point. That's why a Monster Tide almost always means extreme danger."

At this moment, A-Hu chimed in to add:

"That's right, Young Master. Once wild monsters enter a ten-kilometer range, their strength gets a noticeable boost. For the safety of wilderness professionals, we'll also impose a military lockdown on the surrounding ten-kilometer area."

Lin Mo nodded thoughtfully.

"I see."

Just then—

The phone in Ye Hongyu's hand buzzed.

She glanced at the caller ID and quickly pressed answer.

"Commander!"

"……"

"Yes… understood! I'll lead the team over right away!"

"Please rest assured, Commander. The mission will be completed!"

After only a few brief words, Ye Hongyu hung up.

She turned around, her gaze sweeping over everyone present, and said in a low voice:

"The Commander has ordered us to strike camp immediately and head to the 'Sunset Gorge' lockdown zone—and to bring the Young Master along!"

"Huh? Bring the Young Master too?"

Both A-Hu and Shi Tou froze, looks of surprise on their faces.

Shi Tou said with some concern:

"Ye Dui, that's a Monster Tide. The monsters are berserk and packed tight. Even though the Young Master has 【Earth Wall】 for protection, it's still a chaotic battlefield…"

"Yeah, Ye Dui, isn't this a bit dangerous…"

A-Hu was also a little hesitant.

But Ye Hongyu shook her head.

"With me, with you two, with the Special Forces Battalion—what danger could there possibly be?"

"Same as last night: pass the word down. Have everyone beat the monsters down to low health, then leave the finishing blow to the Young Master."

"With monsters this dense and harvesting this efficient… the Young Master might just be able to power all the way up to Level 15 today."

Hearing this analysis, A-Hu and Shi Tou exchanged a glance and instantly saw the light.

"Holy crap! How did I forget about that!"

"That's right! Where do you normally find a deal like this? This is practically a leveling holy land custom-made for the Young Master!"

The three reached a consensus in an instant.

After all, in this world, the higher the level, the harder it gets to level up.

Lin Mo is currently Level 10. Even with people helping to pull monsters, given normal wilderness density, he'd at most break past Level 12 in a day—and that's already the limit.

But this Monster Tide is different.

If the harvesting goes well, he really might power all the way up to Level 15!

Ye Hongyu looked at Lin Mo and asked for his input:

"Young Master, what do you think?"

Before Lin Mo could speak, the 'Earth Shield' on his panel trembled first.

【'Earth Shield' curls up into a ball, desperately trying to dissuade: Monster Tide? Just the name sounds terrifying! Master, it's too dangerous! Let's not go, okay?】

Before the words faded, another irritable voice rang out at once.

【'Fireball' flew into a rage: Shut it! You spineless coward!】

【'Fireball's flames danced wildly as it pointed at the 'Earth Shield' icon: All you know is hiding! Don't listen to this turtle shell—go! We must go! This one wants to burn to its heart's content! I'll turn that place into a sea of fire!】

【'Earth Shield' weakly retorted: You… that's the behavior of a brute! The Master's safety comes first…】

【'Fireball': Get lost! The strong stay strong! What's the point of being timid and hesitant? You just need a good burning!】

"Stop, stop, stop!" Lin Mo felt his temples throbbing and quickly shouted stop in his heart. "Enough bickering, my head is buzzing."

Lin Mo looked at the fully armed A-Hu and Shi Tou, then at the calm and composed Ye Hongyu.

With this lineup, plus the Special Forces Battalion, plus his own "Wall of Sighs" and "Artillery."

What danger could there possibly be?

Thinking this, Lin Mo shrugged, an indifferent look on his face:

"I'll go with whatever Sister Ye says."

"Good!"

Ye Hongyu was about to turn and give the order to assemble.

Lin Mo shifted his tone and added in all seriousness:

"Bring the bed along too, while you're at it."

「……」

The air instantly fell silent.

He possesses top-tier talent that countless others look up to, yet still needs to bring his bed along just to level up…

Should we call him a genius who trains even while sleeping, or a spoiled brat too rotten to be salvaged, only interested in comfort?

Ye Hongyu took a deep breath and spoke calmly:

"Young Master, don't worry—even if you want to bring your whole house, we can do it! Ah Hu, go arrange the vehicle and pack up the Young Master's things. Shi Tou, gather the troops."

"Yes!"

……

……

Two hours later.

A steel tide surged heavily into the outer region of Sunset Canyon.

At this moment, the sky over Sunset Canyon glowed an eerie dark red, as if soaked in blood.

Large numbers of city defense troops had already set up checkpoints at every intersection.

Lin Mo's extended luxury car slowly drove into the restricted zone.

No sooner had he stepped out than a clear voice came from afar.

"Lin Shao?"

Lin Mo turned to look.

There, not far off, Xia Qingyue stood waving at him.

The next moment.

Xia Qingyue ran over.

"Lin Shao, are you here to join this defense mission?"

Lin Mo paused for a moment, then said:

"Uh… sort of. What are you doing here?"

Xia Qingyue smiled bitterly:

"We were leveling inside the canyon, but got kicked out because of the monster tide alert."

Lin Mo nodded:

"Oh, I see. Stay safe."

He had no intention of letting Xia Qingyue follow him to leech off the experience here.

After all, he wasn't close to her.

Besides, there were plenty of other places suitable for her leveling—she could just go somewhere else. No need to stay here.

Seeing Lin Mo made no invitation, Xia Qingyue felt no disappointment; after all, this was normal.

She thought for a moment, leaned closer to Lin Mo, and lowered her voice:

"By the way… Lin Shao, Zhao family contacted me last night."

"Zhao family?" Lin Mo raised an eyebrow. "Zhao Yu's dad, the general? What did they want?"

Xia Qingyue nodded, candidly saying:

"They wanted to bribe me."

"The Zhao family said that if I don't try too hard in tomorrow's exam and give the city top scorer position to Zhao Yu, they'll compensate me with three million Dragon Nation coins."

"Did you accept?"

Lin Mo asked curiously.

Xia Qingyue shook her head, a flash of determination in her eyes:

"I refused."

"Why? Too little money?"

Lin Mo was surprised.

Xia Qingyue glanced at Lin Mo, then sneered slightly with disgust:

"It's not about the money. I just can't stand Zhao family's haughty attitude—especially Zhao Yu. He's got no talent but a huge ego."

Saying this, Xia Qingyue took a deep breath, her tone turning especially serious:

"More importantly, I know exactly who the real powerhouse is."

"Lin Shao, rather than groveling to the Zhao family for a few million, I'd rather stand by your side—even if it's just a show of support."

She was smart.

She didn't want to get involved in aristocratic feuds, but if she had to pick a side, having seen Lin Mo's strength, she chose the Lin family without hesitation.

If she took Zhao family's money now and made Lin Shao think she was a money-grubber who'd betray allies at any moment, it would be a terrible mistake.

The air fell silent for several seconds.

"Puh—"

Lin Mo couldn't hold back—he burst out laughing.

He couldn't resist poking Xia Qingyue's forehead:

"What… are you dumb? You won't take free money? Or do you really think you can win top scorer with full effort?"

"Huh?"

Xia Qingyue blinked, stunned by the poke.

Lin Mo shook his head, clucking:

"The Zhao family's brains must be fried. What's the point of bribing you? Do they really think yesterday's Abyss Team Fuben was cleared by your team?"

"This..."

Xia Qingyue opened her mouth, her face flushing bright red.

Though the words were blunt and stung, there wasn't a single flaw in them.

The reason the Zhao family was willing to spend a fortune to buy her over was purely because she was an A-rank genius, and on top of that she had cleared the Abyss Team Fuben last night, assuming it was her team that had pulled it off.

"Alright, stop with all this 'this' and 'that'."

Lin Mo waved his hand, looking matter-of-fact:

"Since they're willing to play the sucker, just let them."

"Keep the money, take the exam however you need to. As long as I don't go easy, the top scorer definitely won't be either of you two."

Watching Lin Mo's calm and unhurried manner, the last trace of hesitation in Xia Qingyue's heart vanished like smoke.

"Understood, Lin Shao!"

She nodded heavily, then pulled out her phone and left.

Watching Xia Qingyue's departing back, Lin Mo nodded in satisfaction.

That's more like it.

Don't pick a fight with anyone you don't have to, but never pick a fight with money.

Just then.

An adjutant strode over.

He first saluted Lin Mo, then glanced at Ye Hongyu beside him and said in a lowered voice:

"Ye Dui, Commander Zhao's unit has also arrived. Their Captain Zhang says he has something to discuss with you."

"Captain Zhang?"

Ye Hongyu's brow furrowed slightly. "Zhang Chao?"