1424: Big circle within small circle

Buzz buzz buzz!

Under the dim sky, space rippled like water, with visible waves.

The next second, five figures emerged from the ripples, each exuding a vibrant aura that was out of place with the surrounding dead silence.

The group was Wang Chen and his four teammates.

After learning that the military base had a small demiplane where Nightmare Ghosts were kept, Wang Chen immediately couldn't sit still.

With a large amount of experience points right before his eyes, how could he waste time exchanging pleasantries with these old military hands?

He directly declined Lieutenant Colonel Li's suggestion to hold a welcome banquet, stating that to achieve good results in the Military Region Martial Arts Competition, he needed to immediately enter the small demiplane to hone the team's chemistry.

Naturally, Lieutenant Colonel Li would not refuse this and immediately arranged for someone to lead the way.

However, it was hard on Chang Ming and the other three; they were dragged here right after their injuries were treated at the infirmary.

At this moment.

"This place is similar to the Secret Realm I once entered on Blue Star..."

After a brief sensation of dizziness, Wang Chen looked around, observing the surrounding environment.

His current position was a flat area between two hills; looking around, the environment was desolate, with no trace of green, very similar to the environment inside the Yunshan Forbidden Area.

At the same time, the front and sides stretched endlessly, but behind him, a gigantic dark light curtain that connected heaven and earth blocked the view.

That was the boundary of this demiplane; if it were broken with overwhelming power, they would return to the main world's military base.

"Captain, our current landing spot is one of the safe points within the demiplane; the surroundings have been set with Restrictions, so Nightmare Ghosts wandering in the demiplane won't approach here."

"In the past, whenever we entered the demiplane for training, we would set up camp at such a safe point."

At this moment, Shen Zixuan, who had recovered from the dizziness of the teleportation, came closer and explained.

He was not unfamiliar with this demiplane; in fact, he was quite familiar with it.

After all, for more than half of each month, he would be fighting Nightmare Ghosts in the demiplane, honing his combat skills and improving his combat experience.

And after Shen Zixuan spoke, Lin Chenhui also came up and added:

"The entire demiplane has been divided into five different areas by the higher-ups according to the strength of the Nightmare Ghosts. The Nightmare Ghosts on the periphery are the weakest, and the Nightmare Ghosts in the center are the strongest. That Nightmare Ghost Contamination Source is in the center. Overall, it looks like several concentric rings of different sizes."

"These five different areas haven't been named by the higher-ups, but we usually refer to them as Level One, Two, Three, Four, and Five, from weakest to strongest."

"At the same time, every safe point is established along the boundary of this demiplane. After we leave the safe point's range, we can see a large number of Nightmare Ghosts. The Nightmare Ghosts encountered in Level One will not exceed Three Realm in strength. After entering each subsequent level, the strongest Nightmare Ghost's strength increases by one Realm."

"Since the establishment of this demiplane, the Nightmare Ghosts in Level Five, the innermost area, have always been handled by the base officers. The highest danger level during training has only reached Level Four."

"Captain, if we want to enter Level Two, we need to kill Nightmare Ghosts with special markings in Level One. These Nightmare Ghosts have been marked by the officers, and killing them will drop a pass to enter Level Two."

"Without a pass, even with Eight Realm strength, one cannot cross the barrier between each level."

"Oh, right, Captain, I heard that the situation of the Nightmare Ghosts in the demiplane used for this Military Region Martial Arts Competition is pretty much the same as here."

Lin Chenhui spoke in much more detail than Shen Zixuan, and it was clear that this guy with a baby face had an expression of conviction in his eyes as he spoke.

Apparently, after being thoroughly thrashed in the training ground, this guy was completely convinced.

However, Chang Ming and Lieutenant Xu, who were beside him, stood motionless.

But Lieutenant Xu was poker-faced; he had a cool demeanor from their first meeting, so his current behavior was not unexpected.

As for Chang Ming...

Wang Chen noticed that Chang Ming was stiff-necked, pretending to be as aloof as Lieutenant Xu on the surface, but in reality, his gaze frequently drifted over, which made people feel conflicted.

"Hehe!"

At this, Wang Chen chuckled inwardly, too lazy to bother with this troublemaker.

"What is the external marking of the Nightmare Ghost that carries the pass to the next level?"

He silently retracted his gaze and asked Lin Chenhui.

"...The Nightmare Ghost that can drop the pass will have the characters ' Token' (token) carved on its chest."

Lin Chenhui was silent for a moment, his tone somewhat subtle as he spoke.

"???"

Wang Chen raised an eyebrow upon hearing this.

Good heavens!

Are the officers at the military base so mischievous?

Carving it directly on the Nightmare Ghost's chest, aren't they afraid these monsters will scratch off the marking?

"Captain, which area do you think we should go to for training next?"

Shen Zixuan asked at this moment.

The three others nearby all pricked up their ears in unison, clearly curious as well.

"You all can move freely. I plan to first explore the Level Three area, and then I might enter Level Four."

"I'll be back before we depart. In the meantime, you all can practice your coordination and prepare a few more cautious tactics; they'll definitely come in handy once the competition begins."

Wang Chen waved his hand, indicating that the four of them didn't need to act with him.

He didn't want these four guys to share his experience points.

Whether it was now or in the competition three days later.

After giving his instructions, Wang Chen flew directly away from the safe point.

After he left, Lin Chenhui and Shen Zixuan exchanged glances, their expressions somewhat dejected.

"It seems we've been disliked by the Captain."

Lin Chenhui slumped to the ground, saying with a look of despair:

"I can already imagine, when the Military Region Martial Arts Competition begins, other participating teams will cooperate wholeheartedly to overcome difficulties, while we..."

"The Captain will be showing off alone, and we'll be slacking off."

At this point, Lin Chenhui simply lay down on the ground, clearly intending to give up.

"Tch!"

Chang Ming let out a scoff at this moment.

"It's not your fault for being too weak! If you were of any use, you wouldn't be disliked now."

"Hehe!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Chenhui narrowed his eyes and looked over:

"Good heavens! Good heavens!"

"Brother Chang Ming, the way you say that, it's as if you weren't among those who were beaten down in the training ground earlier. Don't forget, you were the one who got beaten the worst."

"You..."

Chang Ming's face flushed, and he immediately glared angrily at Lin Chenhui.

However, before he could say anything, Lieutenant Xu, who had been silent since entering the demiplane, suddenly moved, stepping directly to chase after the distant Wang Chen, leaving only one sentence echoing in place:

"It's not our fault for being weak; it's that the Captain is too strong."