19: A massive, awkward performance is about to begin, and the protagonist with OCD is volunteering to take the stage!

That night.

Jiangcheng East Suburbs, Third Steel Factory.

Two dark figures moved through a landscape of shattered walls and ruins.

It was Lin Yuan and Su Wanqing, now in black combat suits.

"We're here."

Su Wanqing's voice came through the micro-earpiece.

Lin Yuan paused, his mind sinking into his thoughts.

Electromagnetic Induction, activate!

After entering the D-rank - Condensation Realm, his perception range had surged from the initial one hundred meters to a radius of five hundred meters.

In an instant, the entire world presented another scene in his mind.

Most areas were dim.

But to the southeast, about five hundred meters away.

A huge, brilliant light source was emitting a powerful energy!

A substation!

Lin Yuan's Adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard.

It was too tempting.

"Keep up, let's find a vantage point first." Su Wanqing's voice interrupted his reverie.

Lin Yuan reluctantly shifted his perception away from the substation and followed Su Wanqing's steps.

Her experience was indeed seasoned.

Instead of rashly entering the factory area, she led Lin Yuan up to the top of an abandoned concrete silo.

From here, the view was open, offering a panoramic sight of most of the factory.

Su Wanqing took out a pair of night vision goggles from her tactical backpack and began to scout.

"Factory center, two o'clock direction, there's a battle."

Lin Yuan lay beside her, looking in the direction she indicated.

In the open space at the center of the factory, two groups of people were already engaged in fierce combat.

Flashes of fire, sword qi, and the glow of talismans intertwined.

"Who are they?" Lin Yuan asked.

Su Wanqing's voice came through the earpiece: "They are civilian forces from the Inner World."

"The group in cloud-patterned Daoist robes are disciples of Dragon Tiger Mountain, the orthodox Daoist sect of Jiangnan."

"The other group, using swords, is Willow Leaf Sword Manor, an ancient martial arts family that has been passed down for hundreds of years locally."

She paused, then added: "They are not under the jurisdiction of our Dragon Shield Bureau, but we occasionally run into them when dealing with supernatural events. They are... unofficial allies, I suppose."

Lin Yuan nodded.

He focused his attention on their opponents.

They were a pack of twisted, mutated hounds.

Their bodies were two sizes larger than ordinary wolves, their fur had fallen out, their skin was bluish-black, and saliva dripped from their fangs, corroding the ground with a sizzling sound.

"The intel said these Corrupted Ground Runners were only 'ordinary-level' threats, easily cleared with heavy firepower. But look at those few, they're almost growing armor," Lin Yuan said in a low voice through the earpiece.

"The Dragon Shield Bureau's beast disaster rating is divided into: Ordinary, Elite, Warlord, Lord, Monarch, and Mythical six levels." Su Wanqing's voice was as calm as ever, "Most Corrupted Ground Runners are indeed 'ordinary-level', corresponding to E-rank combat power, acting purely on instinct."

She paused, her gaze fixed on those particularly strong individuals.

"But the energy concentration here is abnormal, accelerating their mutation."

"The individuals you see with bone armor on their backs, who understand coordinated attacks, have already reached the threshold of 'elite-level' combat power, comparable to a D-rank Awakener, requiring a team like ours to handle them effectively."

She lowered her night vision goggles, her brow furrowing slightly.

The state of these beasts... was a bit off.

Amidst the ferocity, there seemed to be a fouler aura mixed in.

As if something had nested within them.

Just then, a loud shout came from the battlefield.

A young Daoist priest from Dragon Tiger Mountain, holding a peach wood sword, stepped in the Seven-Star Gait, drawing a talisman in the air with his fingertips, while shouting loudly:

"Friends from the Liu family, brute force alone won't work!"

"Why don't we compete and see whose True One Divine Thunder of my Dragon Tiger Mountain is faster, or whose Wind-Chasing Sword Art of your Liu family is sharper? Let's see who clears these evil creatures first!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the talisman transformed into an electric snake, electrocuting a Ground Runner until it convulsed and fell to the ground, unable to move.

The scene was quite spectacular.

On the other side, the leading young man from Willow Leaf Sword Manor snorted coldly upon hearing this.

His figure was like the wind, his long sword swirling into a dazzling display of sword flowers, beheading two Ground Runners that lunged at him.

But his words were merciless: "Daoist Zhang, my Liu family's sword is a skill for killing enemies, not some juggling act of drawing talismans and chanting spells like yours. Watch closely!"

With that, he flicked his wrist, and the sword light surged, a move called "Willow Catkins Fluttering," sword qi crisscrossing, forcefully conjuring a storm of sword blades in the open space.

It looked incredibly powerful.

However... Lin Yuan, hidden at the top of the silo, felt uncomfortable all over, goosebumps rising.

These two, while verbally mocking each other, their moves became increasingly flashy.

The young Daoist priest, who could have solved the matter with a single Palm Thunder, insisted on performing a grand ritual first, drawing talismans for ages.

The swordsman, who could have finished it with a single throat-slitting strike, insisted on performing a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree sword flourish, as if afraid others wouldn't see how bright his sword was.

The efficiency was extremely low.

Several times, the beasts clearly exposed weaknesses, yet they missed the best attack opportunities just to achieve a "cool" finishing move.

Lin Yuan's mouth twitched.

He gently nudged Su Wanqing beside him with his elbow.

"Hey." He lowered his voice, "Beautiful Older Sister."

Su Wanqing didn't turn her head, merely emitted an "Hmm?" from her throat, signaling him to speak quickly.

"I can't take it anymore."

Lin Yuan had a constipated expression.

"Can I go down there and just smash them to death?"

"...?" Su Wanqing's movements froze.

Lin Yuan continued with a look of disdain: "No, I mean those beasts."

"Showing off is one thing, but they have to make it awkward for me."

"With all that effort, the beasts would have been wiped out long ago."

Su Wanqing was silent.

A full few seconds passed.

She turned her head slightly and glanced at Lin Yuan.

In her eyes, there was actually a hint of... approval?

Lin Yuan understood.

A "you know, I know" smile immediately appeared on his face.

"Heh."

Lin Yuan flexed his wrists, his knuckles cracking.

He stood up, looking down at the farce below.

The next second, he leaped from the silo dozens of meters high!

His black combat suit flapped in the night wind.

"Leave it to me."

Lin Yuan's voice, transmitted to Su Wanqing through the earpiece, carried an irrepressible excitement.

"Professional clear-out, guaranteed satisfaction."

Su Wanqing watched his falling figure, without the slightest hesitation, and followed closely behind.

The two, like two arrows shot from a bow, rushed towards the center of the battle.