418: Chapter 418: Expedition to the Abyss!

Qin Zhan walked to the edge of the shattered glass.

He drew the longsword from his back.

At that moment, the dullness faded from the black blade, replaced by a flowing purple glow that resembled the abyss.

He didn't look at Zhong Huai, nor did he look at the panicked audience.

The tip of his sword slowly rose.

It wasn't pointed toward the sky, but toward the center of the arena, at Yan Pojun, whom Lin Yu had just restored.

"Take this kid along too. He's an official member of the Fangs now."

Qin Zhan's sword tip didn't move.

But that invisible pressure had already shifted from Yan Pojun and settled onto Zhong Huai's shoulders.

Zhong Huai's Adam's apple bobbed.

He didn't immediately respond to Qin Zhan's remark about taking the kid along. Instead, he made a call through the internal channel using the briefest of commands.

"Yan Pojun, return to the unit."

At the edge of the crater, among the crowd that had fallen silent due to the resurrection, a figure moved.

Yan Pojun dragged his war blade—now only half its original length—as he stepped out from the chaotic ruins. The blade scraped against the metal floor, producing a piercing screech. The expensive custom combat suit he wore was in tatters, and his left arm hung limply, clearly having sustained severe injuries in the earlier explosion.

He didn't look at anyone, walking straight behind Qin Zhan and coming to a halt.

A standard military posture.

Like a silent iron tower.

Ordinarily, this would be the point where the team assembled and departed...

But...

Zhong Huai's gaze shifted rapidly between Qin Zhan, Yan Pojun, and Lin Yu at the center of the arena.

The situation in the Abyss Domain was so critical that Qin Zhan had descended in person, which meant the front lines needed the most elite, reliable, and obedient immediate combat power. Lin Yu... he fit none of those criteria. He was an incalculable nuclear bomb. Would bringing him along mean bringing a savior, or a variable even more uncontrollable than the monsters of the Abyss Domain?

But, to not bring him?

From the corner of his eye, Zhong Huai glimpsed the shattered communication tablet on the console. Recorded within it was data capable of rewriting humanity's definition of the word "power."

To leave such power unutilized would be a crime against humanity.

Zhong Huai took a deep breath and made his decision.

He bypassed Qin Zhan and strode toward the center of the arena.

Every step he took on the ashes of those withered plants made a faint rustling sound.

He stopped in front of Lin Yu, took out a folded set of spare tactical armor from a storage compartment at his waist, and held it out.

"Mr. Lin Yu, the situation is urgent. On behalf of the Fangs Special Operations Team, I request that you... come with us."

Lin Yu's gaze moved from the armor in Zhong Huai's hands to his face.

He didn't take it.

He simply reached out and gently pushed the armor away.

Then, he nodded.

"Fine."

A single word.

Lin Yu turned and walked toward Zhao Tianyang, who was not far away.

Zhao Tianyang was staring blankly at the transport fleet in the sky and the air raid sirens; he was still in a state of extreme cognitive dissonance.

Lin Yu walked up to him and gently pushed the still-sobbing Lin Yao toward Zhao Tianyang's side.

"Watch over her."

His request was simple, direct, and devoid of any emotion.

"I... huh?" Zhao Tianyang instinctively supported Lin Yao's arm, his mind still unable to process everything. "Where? Where are you going? Is... is this a movie?"

Lin Yu didn't answer him.

Watching Lin Yu's retreating back, Zhao Tianyang finally snapped out of it. He pounded his chest vigorously, his voice cracking as he shouted.

"Don't worry! As long as I'm here, no one will touch a single hair on her head!"

Lin Yao didn't say a word.

Just as Lin Yu turned, she reached out and squeezed his palm tightly.

It was warm.

Not cold like it had been five years ago.

She let go and silently took a step back.

Inside the VIP room.

Qin Zhan watched Zhong Huai's actions, saw the young man named Lin Yu nod, and then saw him walk toward him without hesitation.

He was somewhat curious.

He never doubted Zhong Huai's judgment, but for Zhong Huai to use the word "request" to invite a student at such a critical juncture?

He didn't understand, but he trusted Zhong Huai.

Qin Zhan didn't ask; now wasn't the time.

He sheathed his sword, turned, and walked toward the VTOL transport plane hovering and waiting outside the venue.

Zhong Huai, Wen Yan, Yan Pojun, and finally Lin Yu followed in sequence.

The heavy hatch closed behind them.

"Hum—"

The transport's engines went to full power, and the fuselage surged upward, passing through the massive hole in the dome to join the torrent of steel in the sky.

Inside the cabin.

Qin Zhan wasted no words, directly calling up a massive holographic star chart on the tactical table in the center of the group.

More than half of the star chart was covered in a shocking blood-red.

"Five minutes ago, the highest-level war bulletin for the entire domain was issued."

Qin Zhan's voice was like frozen ice.

"Abyss Domain, Eighth War Zone—the front-line defenses have completely collapsed. All officially ranked A-class Professionals and above are under mandatory conscription, to be deployed to the front lines immediately."

Zhong Huai's body lurched forward, hands bracing on his knees as he stared intently at the red area.

"The cause?"

Qin Zhan didn't answer. Instead, he reached out and enlarged a pitch-black, unmarked area at the edge of the star chart.

That black region radiated a stillness that even data could not simulate.

"The Ninth War Zone." Qin Zhan's fingertip tapped the black area. "A forbidden zone opened with the lives of the top pioneers centuries ago, and a monster nest that was completely lost after they were all killed in action."

"An 'Unsealed Level' monster from the Ninth War Zone, for reasons unknown, crossed the buffer zones of the Eighth and Seventh War Zones and appeared directly in the heart of our Sixth War Zone. It then launched a reverse assault on the Eighth War Zone... the defensive forces were breached from within."

Lin Yu looked at the blackness representing the Ninth War Zone.

"Unsealed Level"? He hadn't heard the term before, but he could feel the weight those words carried from Qin Zhan's tone.

"It destroyed more than half of the Eighth War Zone's 'Permanent Hubs,' directly triggering a domain-wide beast tide. Currently, the few remaining 'Great Sages' are working together to contain it."

Qin Zhan slammed his fist onto the tactical table.

"We must restabilize the Eighth War Zone's defensive lines before the 'Great Sages' fall. Once the Eighth War Zone is lost, those things will be able to drive straight in and reach Blue Star."

"Humanity has no path of retreat."

Zhong Huai's face had already turned pale.

"The situation... has it already become this dire?"

Qin Zhan looked up, his gaze sweeping over everyone present before finally settling.

"Just now, I received the latest battle report."

Every word he spoke was like a heavy tombstone, crashing into everyone's hearts.

"Of the thirteen 'Great Sages'—the pinnacle combatants registered among all humanity, including residents of the Abyss Domain—ten have already... died in battle."

"Half of the Eighth War Zone in the Abyss Domain has collapsed, and the beast tide has fully erupted. Preliminary statistics show casualties among Professionals and civilians numbering in the hundreds of millions."

Lin Yu stood to the side, listening quietly.

His previous perception of this world was limited to urban arenas, friction between guilds, and so-called "experts."

Until this moment.

Casualties in the hundreds of millions.

Ten of the thirteen strongest humans dead.

For the first time, he truly touched the bloody, cruel reality of this world.