136: Chapter 136 What kind of monsters are these freshmen...?

The Night Curtain fell, and the edge of the Black Swamp Forest was shrouded in a heavy layer of deathly silence.

"Hurry! Don't look back!"

Chen Xi shouted in a low voice, leading his three team members as they sped across the desolate plains.

The image of that purple bat diving into the spatial rift weighed on everyone's hearts like a dark haze.

Although the mission had been successfully completed, the sense of crisis from being watched made the Nirvana Battle Team's evacuation speed more than twice as fast as when they arrived.

Two hours later.

In the distance, that towering black shadow finally appeared at the edge of their vision—the final barrier of the Southern District defense line, the "Wall of Sighs."

Above the city wall, the massive beams of searchlights pierced through the darkness like sharp swords, scanning the wilderness back and forth.

At this moment, the cold light seemed remarkably warm and welcoming to the four of them.

"Phew... we finally made it."

Li Murou wiped the sweat from her forehead, her tense nerves relaxing slightly:

"Seeing this wall, I finally feel like I've returned to the human world."

The group quickened their pace and arrived beneath the massive alloy city gate.

It was already late at night, and the main gate was tightly shut. Only a small side door remained slightly ajar, where two night-shift guards were leaning against the wall, smoking and chatting to pass the time.

"Oh? Someone's back?"

One of the stubble-faced veterans heard the footsteps, exhaled a puff of smoke, and squinted at the four figures emerging from the darkness.

When the searchlight's beam revealed that it was Chen Xi's team, the veteran paused, then nudged his companion and chuckled softly:

"Hey, Old Zhang, look. It's that pretty-girl team that took the C-Rank Mission earlier today."

His companion, Old Zhang, also leaned over, checked the time on his bracelet, and scoffed:

"How long have they been out? Not even half a day, right? Why are they back already?"

"What else could it be? They retreated because they realized it was too hard."

The veteran flicked his cigarette butt onto the ground and crushed it, wearing an 'I knew it' expression:

"A C-Rank Mission requires clearing out a Third-Tier Fierce Beast. With this group, they probably just reached the edge of the forest, heard a few wolf howls, and got scared back."

The two looked at each other, their eyes devoid of much mockery.

It was more of a habitual reaction to seeing young people who were overconfident and lacked ability.

Chen Xi led his team to the city gate.

"Stop, routine inspection."

The veteran stepped forward, blocking their path.

He looked the four of them up and down and noticed that other than being slightly dusty, they were almost completely uninjured, and their clothes weren't even torn, which only confirmed his judgment—

This group must have just wandered around the perimeter and snuck back.

"Young man, you're back pretty quickly."

The veteran looked at Chen Xi, his tone carrying a hint of senior-to-junior teasing and consolation:

"It's fine, don't feel embarrassed. For your first time Outside the Border, being able to leave and come back in one piece without wetting your pants means you've already beaten 99% of your peers who are Professionals."

"Just cancel that C-Rank Mission; it's meant for regular special forces teams. Go back, get a good night's sleep, and pick up a new mission. It's nothing to be ashamed of."

Behind him, Li Murou and Su Xiaoxiao looked at each other, their expressions somewhat strange.

Chen Xi wasn't angry; he knew these guards meant well.

He smiled faintly, offered no further explanation, and calmly raised his left wrist.

"Thanks for the advice. However..."

Chen Xi's finger tapped lightly on the screen, bringing up the mission log, and he held it directly in front of the veteran:

"I think we won't need to pick up an E-Rank Mission again."

"Huh?"

The veteran glanced at it casually.

However, that single glance caused him to freeze in place instantly, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.

There, on the pale blue holographic projection, a line of bold green text appeared, looking particularly striking in the night—

【Mission Status: Completed】

【Mission Grade: C-Rank (Clear Black Swamp Forest)】

"This... this..."

The veteran's mouth hung wide open. He pointed a trembling finger at the screen, then at Chen Xi, unable to utter a complete sentence for a long time.

His companion, Old Zhang, saw that something was wrong and leaned over as well.

When he saw the data clearly, he nearly dropped the rifle in his hands.

"Holy crap?! You completed it?!"

The two guards looked at the four young people in front of them as if they were monsters.

You have to realize, that was a Third-Tier Fierce Beast!

These college freshmen killed it and made it through in less than a day?!

"Can we go in now?"

Chen Xi withdrew his bracelet and asked politely.

"Ah... yes, of course! Of course you can!"

The veteran snapped back to reality, his attitude instantly doing a 180-degree turn.

He hurriedly stepped aside to clear the way, even subconsciously standing at attention and giving a standard military salute.

This was an instinctive respect for the strong.

"Please, come in! Heroes truly come from the youth! This is a real eye-opener!"

As the side door opened, the four of them entered the inner safe zone of the Wall of Sighs.

Watching the four figures depart, the two guards remained unsettled for a long time.

"Old Zhang... pinch me."

The veteran muttered to himself:

"What kind of monsters are the freshmen this year?"

...

The next morning.

After a night of rest at the guesthouse inside the Wall of Sighs, the four members of the Nirvana Battle Team boarded the early bus back to the special training base, feeling refreshed.

At nine in the morning, the bus stopped on time in front of the administrative building of the Southern District Military Special Training Base.

The atmosphere in the lobby was lively at this moment.

The Greedy Wolf Team from Magic City happened to be returning to turn in their mission at this time.

Although only one day had passed, the appearance of Jin Tong and his team had undergone an earth-shattering change.

Their armor was tattered, and everyone was covered in injuries.

Especially Zhao Gang, who had lost an arm; although it had been reattached after treatment, it was still wrapped in thick bandages.

Although the group looked disheveled, their spirits were high.

Commander Sun stood in the center of the lobby with his hands behind his back, watching the Greedy Wolf Team submit their mission items, and revealed a rare smile of satisfaction.

"Hmm, not bad."

Commander Sun nodded and praised them in a loud voice:

"Although you ended up covered in injuries, at least you completed it."

"Compared to yesterday, when you were bewildered and scared by a few Hellhounds, today you finally look a bit like soldiers! High efficiency, rapid progress!"

Receiving praise from the chief instructor, Jin Tong's originally somewhat dejected face instantly beamed with radiance.

He straightened his back and said loudly:

"Report to Commander Sun! The Greedy Wolf Team will never be cowards! Mere Second-Tier Fierce Beasts—as long as we want to fight, we can fight!"

The other teams around them, who hadn't dared to go out yet or were still hesitating about which mission to take, looked at the Fierce Beast materials brought back by the Greedy Wolf Team with eyes full of envy and admiration.

"As expected of the geniuses from Magic City, they adapted so quickly."

"A D-Rank Mission—that's a level 40 monster, and they actually managed to do it."

"It seems the strongest of this year will still be the Greedy Wolf Team."

Just as Jin Tong was enjoying the attention of the crowd and preparing to say a few words,

the light at the entrance suddenly dimmed.

Four figures walked into the lobby against the morning light.

It was Chen Xi and his Nirvana Battle Team.