23: Filth and Disguise - Facing the Murderer

"Wait, are you serious? You want us to cover our whole bodies in Iron-Spined Earth Dragon excrement?"

Chen Yan stared at Zhou Xing with wide eyes.

"What else? This is the safest way. That pile of Earth Dragon feces can help us get close to our destination."

Zhou Xing shrugged. "A frontal Breakthrough is impossible. There are Gloomshadow Bats on both sides. Underground is an option, but Captain, your abilities don't include burrowing."

"Even if they did, we'd have to worry about Burrowing Worms."

"And the sewage outlet of the Earth Dragon's nest leads directly to the lower levels of the Divine Gene Experimental Base."

"Do you guys have any other ideas? Don't forget, this isn't just a mission; it's to avenge A Sheng."

At that, everyone was left speechless.

Along the way, they held their breath and successfully sneaked into the Earth Dragon's nest.

A pungent, thick odor filled the air, making everyone's eyes sting.

Chen Yan almost gagged, but Ink Rain quickly covered his mouth.

"Take off your coats, hurry up."

Looking at the pile of semi-solid green excrement before him, Zhou Xing spoke in a low voice.

He then quickly took off his coat, grabbed a handful of the waste, and began smearing it on himself without hesitation.

In the end, he didn't even spare his face.

What impressed everyone most was that Zhou Xing didn't seem to feel any discomfort at all.

However, remembering Zhou Xing's former status as an ace sniper, they understood.

Once everyone was covered, they pinched their noses and moved forward quickly.

Sure enough, the roars of many Mutated Beasts ahead went silent as they approached.

After successfully entering the nest, they found a small Iron-Spined Earth Dragon hatchling curled up by the sewage passage, fast asleep.

Its back was covered in metallic scales that hadn't fully hardened yet, but its aura fluctuations had already reached the E-grade Early Stage.

"Be careful," Zhou Xing whispered. "The adult Earth Dragon must be nearby."

Meanwhile, a wisp of Extreme Cold Qi from Zhou Xing's fingertip silently drifted into the hatchling's nostrils.

It wouldn't kill it, but it was enough to put the hatchling into a deep coma, ensuring it wouldn't wake up for a while.

"Let's go, don't stop!" Zhou Xing turned to the group, keeping his footsteps as light as possible as he entered the passage.

"Crack!"

However, at that moment, Chen Yan, who was the last to enter, accidentally stepped on a piece of metal debris.

"Roar!"

Instantly, a low roar echoed from deep within the passage, followed by heavy footsteps rushing toward them.

A second later, an adult Iron-Spined Earth Dragon, five meters tall, appeared at the end of the passage.

With every step it took, the entire passage shook violently.

[Warning! Target detected as a dual-element Fusion mutant!]

[Divinity Composition: god of steel (33%) + god of strength (28%)]

[Traits: Exceptional physical defense and strength.]

[Suggestion: host should remain still. This creature's vision has degenerated; it primarily relies on smell and vibration sensing.]

"Quick, everyone hold your breath!"

Receiving the System's prompt, Zhou Xing quickly turned around, grabbed Chen Yan, and pressed him against the rock wall of the passage.

The others also scrambled to find a spot and held their breath.

Currently, it lowered its head, its nostrils twitching as it seemed to sniff for anything unusual in the air.

Everyone pressed tightly against the rock wall, not daring to breathe; even their heartbeats nearly stopped.

The massive body slowly approached, eventually stopping right at the entrance of the passage.

Its foul-smelling breath blew onto Zhou Xing's face, causing his brow to furrow slightly.

One second... two seconds... five seconds later, the Earth Dragon seemed to find nothing out of the ordinary. With a low growl, it turned and moved back toward its hatchling.

Zhou Xing gestured forward with one hand, and everyone continued to advance while holding their breath with all their might.

Only after reaching a safe distance did they slowly let out a long breath, their backs drenched in cold sweat.

That was truly a close call.

Whether it was a D-grade Mutated Beasts or a human Controller level, even at the Early Stage,

they were enough to easily deal with a group of Awakened One at the Peak of the Foundation Condensing Realm.

The power erupted from a single attack by an entity of this level was dozens or even hundreds of times greater than that of the Peak Foundation Condensing Realm.

Once they reached the end, they saw a somewhat rusty metal filter screen.

Through the gaps, they could see the situation above.

"We've finally arrived!" Qin Yue said in a low voice.

At this moment, Ink Rain condensed a wisp of Shadow Power at her fingertip, silently cutting through the metal filter.

"I'll scout ahead."

Then, her figure flashed and she vanished from the spot.

After a moment, she reappeared: "It's safe, come in."

Everyone quickly crawled through the sewage outlet and finally arrived at the lower level of the Divine Gene Experimental Base.

The surroundings were dark and damp, with the air filled with a mixture of disinfectant and the smell of blood.

There were surveillance devices every short distance, but for some reason, they were all in sleep mode.

"Commence the operation. Remember, leave no one alive," Qin Yue ordered with cold eyes.

The group cooperated with silent understanding. After quietly taking out many guards, they confirmed that no Controller-level Awakened One were present.

Immediately, they began to indiscriminately destroy the entire base.

However, they didn't find the killer who had murdered A Sheng.

Meanwhile,

In the monitoring room at the center of the experimental base, a man wearing a silver mask suddenly looked up.

The surveillance screens in front of him had instantly gone black.

"Damn it, what's going on?"

Though he didn't know what had happened, years of alertness led him to immediately press a hidden red button by his side.

"Bang!"

At that moment, Qin Yue kicked open the door to the monitoring room.

"Swish, swish, swish!"

However, Qin Yue was greeted by three incoming energy beams.

Qin Yue instantly condensed a Rock Shield and quickly dodged to the side.

"The famous Captain Qin Yue? This is quite a surprise."

The moment he saw Qin Yue, a mocking voice came from beneath the mask.

Then, as if smelling the scent on Qin Yue, he sneered, "No wonder you could get here. You actually smeared yourselves with Iron-Spined Earth Dragon excrement? That must have been hard for you."

At that moment, the shield Qin Yue had condensed was directly pierced by the three energy beams.

The powerful destructive force made Qin Yue's expression tighten.

"You rat who only hides in the shadows, today I'll make you pay in blood!"

Qin Yue had endured for three whole years for this moment.

"Let me guess, this must be for that trash named A Sheng?"

The man chuckled softly. "I have to say, that guy was quite resilient. I cut him 108 times, and he didn't utter a single word."

"I had no choice but to feed him to the Mutated Beasts to satisfy their hunger."

"Oh, right, I should thank him. The divinity fragment he dropped gave me quite a boost."

These words were like a detonated bomb. Qin Yue's eyes turned bloodshot, and the ground beneath his feet instantly cracked.

Like a cannonball, he charged at the man and threw a punch.