Chapter 180

Shen Zexi nodded and kept this discovery in mind.

He knows too little about these people's Aberrant Arts; the one he is most familiar with is still Ying Duo, yet he cannot figure out which law Ying Duo's Aberrant Arts actually belongs to.

It resembles a pop‑up from a game interface, seeming to be a Consciousness Law, but Ying Duo also happens to wield storage under the Space Law; the shot just fired at Qi Hengyu also felt a bit like a Chaos Law.

Ying Duo is riddled with puzzles, and the others are no less so.

Luo Jinyou has a bizarre constitution that is sensitive to Mutation, Chen Mo Zhi has ever‑changing exotic toxins, and, moreover, he still does not know what Qi Hengyu's Aberrant Arts actually are.

From start to finish, Qi Hengyu seemed only to employ the most basic use of energy covering his body; could it really be as the rumors say—that Qi Hengyu awakened a useless Aberrant Art with no combat value?

Shen Zexi massaged his temples; although he knows he shouldn't pry into others' privacy, as a commander he still needs to understand the members' abilities better in order to know how to arrange tactics at critical moments.

If Ying Duo's explosives could blend better with Chen Mo Zhi's toxins, perhaps they could create something even more powerful.

However, this will have to be tested slowly later, and this idea must not be learned by Ying Duo.

Speaking of Ying Duo, what exactly is the "team‑mate damage immunity" mechanism? How large is its range? Does it ever fail?

We have to figure that out; it could be a great trump card or a huge trouble.

"Pack up, we'll keep moving."

Shen Zexi cleared his thoughts; he feared that if he kept thinking like this, he might start to think about night falling here.

"The commotion just now was too loud; although it hasn't attracted other Aberrant Species for now, we can't linger, the interior of the mine is full of unknowns, so we must be extra careful once we go in."

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This time, the road to the Black Stone Mine entrance finally stayed peaceful; perhaps the lingering aftereffects of that brief yet fierce battle still linger, or maybe this area is simply the territory where the bone‑gnawing hyenas have made their den.

The party trudged along the rugged mountain path and finally reached the entrance of the Black Stone Mine.

The mouth was wider than expected; perhaps because no one has come here for a while, the entrance was covered with some rubble, and a thin layer of ash had settled on the supporting wooden frames.

Mining tools were still scattered on the ground outside, looking as if they had been abandoned for some time.

"There are no fresh footprints or claw marks near the entrance; at least in the past few days, nothing large has been coming and going frequently."

Shen Zexi stood up, clapped his hands, noting that at least this proved no large Aberrant Species would appear inside.

While speaking, he gave Qi Hengyu a glance, signaling him to go fetch Ying Duo, who was packing a few manuscripts, and bring him back.

"But that doesn't mean it's safe inside; the mine's depths have many branches, and any situation could occur, so everyone stay alert."

He turned around, addressing his teammates, especially the one just hauled back by the members—the true Regiment Leader of the Mercenary Corps, Ying Duo.

"Once inside, keep formation: Luo Jinyou and I take the front, Qi Hengyu follows, Chen Mo Zhi handles the middle with improvisation, Ying Duo…"

Shen Zexi stared at Ying Duo's dazzling Ying Guang Lu and paused, his tone suspicious.

"You stay behind me and Luo Jinyou, don't fire recklessly, especially with those bombs; absolutely no random detonations, understand?"

Even if bombs and bullets grant teammate damage immunity, would this still work if a collapse occurs inside?

That's certainly impossible, and Shen Zexi doesn't want to gamble on that pitifully small chance.

Ying Duo nodded; how much of Shen Zexi's words actually got through is known only to the heavens.

Having finished the briefing, Shen Zexi pulled a mineral lamp from his pack; this device is a common tool for underground navigation and is frequently used outdoors.

Luo Jinyou, Qi Hengyu, and Chen Mo Zhi each prepared one in advance.

...... except Ying Duo.

Ying Duo also looked at him, tilting his head; the Ying Guang Lu hair swayed slightly with his movement.

Given his innate luminescence, it seems he doesn't need extra lighting.

That Ying Guang Lu in the darkness might even be more useful than a mineral lamp…

Although the player has it, the player can't use it; seeing everyone else prepared, Yang Yixie guided Ying Duo and stepped toward the pitch‑black tunnel.

"Wait!" Shen Zexi's eyes flicked and his hand was swift, pulling Ying Duo back in one grab.

"What?"

Ying Duo turned back, confused; could this chatter‑prone NPC need to ramble a whole lot of story before entering the instance?

Shen Zexi's face darkened as he simply pointed a finger at Ying Duo's head.

"Your head is too bright! Such intense light could alert light‑sensitive Aberrant Species, making them notice us or inexplicably provoke an attack."

As he spoke, his gaze fell on the century‑old black sweatshirt Ying Duo wore, which happened to have a wide hood.

Shen Zexi barely hesitated, grabbed the hood and pulled it over Ying Duo's head, covering it tightly, then tugged it down further, as if to smother the glaring Ying Guang Lu completely.

"Pfft—" Qi Hengyu, watching the scene, couldn't hold back and burst into laughter.

Because the hood's top had two triangular cat ears sewn on, at this moment the two cat ears stuck out from Ying Duo's covered head, striving to hide his green glow.

"Hahaha! That outfit works! It even has cat ears! Fits you perfectly!"

Qi Hengyu pointed at Ying Duo's head, laughing unabashedly.

Hmm, the player's gear is surely flashy, but this NPC looks like it's mocking us no matter how you see it.

Ying Duo didn't remove the hat; instead, he silently lifted his hand, and the heavy pistol reappeared in his grasp, the barrel casually aimed toward Qi Hengyu.

"Bang!" Another sound rang out; the bullet still whizzed harmlessly through the air, skimming past Qi Hengyu and striking the rock wall behind him, sparking a few embers.

Qi Hengyu's laughter seemed abruptly cut off, his face turned a shade of green from Ying Duo's glow.

"Damn! You're still here?!"

"All of you, settle down."

Shen Zexi massaged his temples; the thought of leading these two lively nuts into the mine made his head ache.

At this moment, he wished Qi Hengyu would learn from Luo Jinyou and Chen Mo Zhi and just stay silent.

There's no choice; their Mercenary Corps is too extreme—those who love staying silent are overly quiet, and those who love causing trouble are overly active.

He again took a mineral lamp from his pack and shoved the extra one into Ying Duo's hand.

"Once inside, unless absolutely necessary, don't use the light from your hair."

Luo Jinyou's attention, however, was drawn to another corner protruding from Shen Zexi's backpack.

It looked like several bound documents, the edges neat, and some seemed familiar.

"What other documents did you bring?"

If they're important, what will you do if they get lost inside?

Shen Zexi followed his gaze, a helpless smile appearing on his face, and explained.

"Oh, this? It's a few other backup materials that might be needed to register the Mercenary Corps, copies of identification documents."

He said this while pressing those few documents inward, seemingly not worried about crushing them.

"But luck was decent; the process of registering the Mercenary Corps went more smoothly than imagined, and these weren't needed at all."

Qi Hengyu listened and couldn't help clicking his tongue.

"No wonder you're a top student; the preparation is overly meticulous, huh?"

It's not hard to guess what Shen Zexi is guarding against, and the key is that this preparation is indeed necessary.