9: Chapter 9: Get Your Gear and Set Off

Yuan Shoucheng paused and looked at the captain who had just spoken with a frown.

Clearly, Yuan Shoucheng was very displeased with this confidant's "well-intentioned" reminder.

He certainly knew that there were still three students from the Mobile Bait Post who hadn't been assigned.

He had read that ridiculous order three times, and every time he read it, he cursed.

He didn't want to mention this matter at all.

He even intended to simply let them fend for themselves or just stuff them into logistics.

Sending a few students who had just reached adulthood to act as bait?

Yuan Shoucheng had led troops for over a decade and had never done anything so gutless!

But with his subordinate pointing it out in public, if he continued to pretend he'd forgotten, it would be an open defiance of his superior's orders.

"Damn it, where are those three unlucky bastards from the Mobile Bait Post? Step forward."

Yuan Shoucheng roared irritably.

The crowd stirred slightly, and three figures slowly walked out under the watchful eyes of the multitude.

Lin Mo, Shen Fei, and Shi Huaian.

At this moment, in this very scene...

Two thousand pairs of eyes from all over the field converged on Lin Mo and the other two.

Surprise, sympathy, pity, schadenfreude...

"Ah, weren't there only three posts? There's also a Mobile Bait Post?"

"Yes, there is a Mobile Bait Post. I heard about it a long time ago, but isn't it a bit few? Just three people?"

"Haha, three unlucky bastards. I don't know how they were chosen... This is just too miserable."

"Hey, isn't that the madman Shen Fei from Lingwu University? I heard he requested to go himself. That nickname really isn't wrong; he's a madman in every sense of the word..."

"Shen Fei is confident in his own strength and wants to temper himself, but the other two just look unlucky..."

"The one from Jiangcheng University is named Lin Mo. I've heard of him; apparently, he offended someone... How tragic!"

Yuan Shoucheng looked at the three young men before him, slightly surprised.

Because he discovered...

The young man on the left had no fear on his face; instead, he had a look of eagerness and excitement, his eyes shining as if he wasn't here to be bait but to play a thrilling game.

This person was none other than Shen Fei from Lingwu University.

The young man on the right looked honest and simple, trembling slightly with nerves, but his stance was very steady and his lower body was firm, marking him as the type with very solid fundamentals.

This person was Shi Huaian from Sishui University.

And the young man in the middle had an abnormally calm expression, even looking a bit... distracted?

It seemed he was observing the camp layout! What did he want to do!

This person was Lin Mo.

Yuan Shoucheng sighed inwardly. He had heard that one was a madman who requested to be in the bait post, one was an unlucky bastard who drew the short straw, and one had seemingly offended a school teacher...

Still, they all looked like good prospects. What a waste...

"You three..."

"Forget it!"

"If it were up to me, it would be impossible for you three to enter the bait post!"

He spoke, his tone much gentler than when he addressed the elite team earlier.

"But an order is an order."

Yuan Shoucheng paused, as if searching for the right words.

"Recently... my battalion has no military operations that need you, so for the time being..."

He looked at the three of them, his gaze lingering on Lin Mo's face for an extra second.

"You have no fixed tasks or formations."

"Until you receive specific orders, you can move freely within the camp, familiarize yourselves with the environment, or go to the training grounds to practice on your own."

"No one will specifically look after you, just don't cause trouble for me!"

"Of course, if you go looking for death yourselves by running out of the camp and dying at the hands of beasts, that has nothing to do with me!"

"When a combat mission comes down and you are needed, you will naturally be notified."

"Do you understand?"

"Understood!" Shen Fei was the first to answer loudly, a look of disappointment flashing across his face.

He had thought he would be assigned some more exciting task.

Shi Huaian responded in a small voice: "Un... Understood."

Lin Mo could barely suppress the corners of his mouth, but he still endured the urge to laugh out loud and nodded, replying, "Understood."

"Free movement, no supervision? No one cares even if I run outside the camp?"

"This is simply a godsend! It's exactly what I wanted!"

"The commander's arrangement is wise! Reasonable!"

Soon, the crowd on the field gradually dispersed, and the students were led away by their respective officers and veterans.

Lin Mo stood in place and didn't move. Only when the crowd had mostly left did he choose a direction and depart.

"If I'm not mistaken, that direction should be the armory!"

Lin Mo was in a pleasant mood. He had been observing the surrounding environment all along and had already more or less mapped out the camp's general layout.

Once he picked out a handy weapon from the armory, he could begin his own feast of slaughter!

The armory of Outpost No. 9 was located on the west side of the camp, a semi-underground reinforced concrete building.

The heavy iron doors were wide open, and the sounds of instruction drifted from within.

When Lin Mo walked in, a dozen or so students were already lining up under the leadership of veterans to receive their gear.

The ventilation here was poor, and the air was filled with the smell of engine oil and leather. Diagrams of various weapons hung on the walls, and striking yellow warning lines were marked on the floor.

"Name, ID, assigned post."

The quartermaster in charge of registration spoke without looking up.

"Lin Mo, Jiangcheng University B26332, Mobile Bait Post."

Lin Mo reported his post and ID.

The quartermaster's fingers paused, and he finally looked up.

He was a veteran in his forties with a black eyepatch over his left eye, sizing Lin Mo up with his remaining right eye.

"Bait post? A student???"

"Fine. According to regulations, you can apply for standard-issue equipment. What do you need?"

A flash of surprise crossed the quartermaster's lone eye, but it was quickly suppressed.

"A C-rank alloy battle saber and standard-issue gear."

Lin Mo answered directly.

He had already figured out the outpost's situation on the way here and knew exactly what equipment he could apply for.

"This is your communication bracelet. You must wear it all day long; you can't even take it off to bathe. Collect your gear in the back. This is your claim tag!"

The quartermaster gave Lin Mo a black communication bracelet and a leather tag.

Lin Mo walked to the gear collection point in the back warehouse, where a young soldier brought him a set of standard-issue protective suits.

After Lin Mo took it, he frowned slightly.

It was somewhat different from what he had imagined. This was the most basic hard fiber armor. Although its defensive capabilities were decent and it could block some damage at critical moments, the texture was too stiff, affecting mobility, and it was too heavy—the whole set probably weighed seventy or eighty pounds!

For an ordinary soldier, this bit of impact could be ignored.

But it wouldn't work for Lin Mo. He relied on speed for his livelihood, and this flaw was fatal.

"Sorry, I don't want to apply for this combat protective suit for now. Please take it back for me. Just give me a C-rank battle saber!"

Lin Mo spoke directly.

The young soldier raised an eyebrow and said, "You're not applying for protective armor? Are you sure?"

"No need, it affects mobility."

Lin Mo's answer was concise and blunt.

Several students nearby who were trying on protective armor heard the conversation and looked over one after another.

A male student from Lingwu University couldn't help but speak up:

"Brother, don't try to act tough at a time like this. If you don't wear a protective suit, any random beast that gives you a scratch will disembowel you."

Another male student nearby took up the conversation, mocking:

"Haha, he's an expert, he doesn't need a protective suit. Didn't you see that he applied for a C-rank battle saber? A 40-plus pound C-rank battle saber, haha, that's hilarious..."

"40-plus pounds? It's not hard to pick up, but you'll be tired as a dog after a few swings. How are you going to fight beasts..."

Lin Mo didn't pay attention to the surrounding mockery, only looking at the young soldier distributing gear.

The young soldier didn't try to persuade him further either. He took the combat suit from Lin Mo's hands, turned around, and put it back on the shelf behind him.

A moment later, he returned carrying a sheathed battle saber, which made a dull "thud" when placed on the counter.

Lin Mo gripped the hilt. The touch was solid and the weight was heavy, indeed around 40-plus pounds.

He pushed the catch with his thumb and drew the blade three inches out of the sheath.

The blade appeared a matte dark gray, which was the unique color of high-density alloy.

There was an extremely fine bright line at the edge, which was the mark left after sharpening. A serial number was engraved on the crossguard: C-7732-09.

"C-rank standard battle saber. The blade is infused with black tungsten steel; it has high hardness and good toughness."

"Under normal use, cutting through the bones of third-order beasts won't cause even the slightest chip. However, don't use the edge to block heavy blows; no matter how good the blade is, it can't withstand such abuse."

The young soldier reminded him.

Lin Mo nodded, sheathed the blade completely, and then signed for it according to the procedure. As he turned to leave, he could clearly hear the bursts of ridicule behind him.

"He really thinks he's some expert."

Someone whispered.

"A piece of trash from the bait post and still so arrogant. Does he think he's not dying fast enough?"

Lin Mo didn't bother with these people either, carrying the battle saber as he walked straight toward the camp gate.