We Are Born Warriors

"She doesn't just like the Scavenger Project. Give her some of the previous project reports to look at for now."

The butler nodded and noted it down, his hunched back bending even lower. "And the young master has already gone to contact President Zhao..."

Lan An tossed the rest of the fish food into the pond, his face expressionless. "He won't do it well. I'll give it to Yuan Yuan when the time comes."

"Since I'm going to discard him, I should give him a bit more and let him mess it up himself."

The butler straightened up. "Yes, sir."

...

Fu Xi Ming replied to Nan Yue much faster than she expected.

Almost five days after they parted, Fu Xi Ming sent a message.

Fu: "All city state guardians have been notified. You can start preparing. Departure is scheduled for three days from now."

Strongest A-Nan in History: "How many people stayed?"

Although those who stayed could not control their own destinies or stop people like Fu Xi Ming and Nan Yue from fighting, they could at least live their lives in relative safety and caution.

Scavengers, who were destined from birth to struggle for survival, perhaps needed stability more than anything.

Even if it was only temporary.

Fu: "93.4% of people stayed."

Nan Yue looked at the number in shock. Those were all living, breathing people.

So many...

Fu: "I told you, don't put so much pressure on yourself. You won't be fighting alone."

Fu: "We might not be able to help with the Federation devouring pollution, but your rear will be a battlefield for countless of us."

Fu: "Trust us."

Nan Yue's eyes turned red. She raised her hand to wipe them, then wiped them again.

Strongest A-Nan in History: "Okay."

Fu: "Sharp Blade will exchange mission delay tools for those of you leaving the city states. This will ensure you don't trigger the monitoring system's alarm."

Fu: "I'll come find you in three days."

Over the next few days, Sharp Blade would likely prepare the technology and information they needed to leave the city states.

Nan Yue explained the situation to the other three. What they needed to do now was build up their energy.

No one knew what they would encounter once they left the city states.

More importantly, if they successfully opened the path between the two city states, they would have to enter the purification missions arranged by the system immediately after returning from the polluted zone.

On one hand, it was to meet with Wen Xiang Yuan and exchange information.

On the other hand, it was to deceive the monitoring system.

It could be said that the pressure they faced was immense.

Fortunately, all four of them had very stable and powerful mental stability, enough to face the upcoming scenes.

But even someone with a powerful sense of apathy like Gu Xiang Kai couldn't take it after Nan Yue ate three hot pot meals in a row.

"Boss, can we give it a rest? Let's eat when we get back."

Gu Xiang Kai had a blister on his lip; he had been stressed for a long time.

It wasn't because of the spicy food.

It was because Nan Yue was too exhausting when she was drunk.

Even though Jiang Siyan was the one taking care of her, Gu Xiang Kai looked tired just watching.

Jiang Siyan, on the other hand, looked refreshed and composed every day, even though he barely got any rest while watching over Nan Yue.

Nan Yue pursed her lips and compromised after seeing the blister on Gu Xiang Kai's lip.

Fu Xi Ming appeared outside Nan Yue's suite exactly three days later.

To Nan Yue's surprise, Fu Xi Ming didn't come alone; there was also a man who looked somewhat effeminate.

Nan Yue knew him. It was He Jiu Chen, the man who had a love-hate relationship with Fu Xi Ming.

He Jiu Chen began sizing Nan Yue up the moment he saw her.

But after only a few seconds of scrutiny, he was locked on by a cold gaze.

He glanced at Jiang Siyan, raised an eyebrow, and smiled meaningfully.

"This is He Jiu Chen."

Fu Xi Ming didn't offer much of an introduction, simply handing a black briefcase to Nan Yue.

"This time, Sharp Blade will arrange for three other members to enter the polluted zone with you."

"This is their information."

Nan Yue took it and looked through. The other two weren't of much concern, but she pointed at one resume.

"This one... is a researcher?"

Fu Xi Ming nodded. "Think of him as a worker who helps you use and maintain equipment. He's not a scientist, but he's from the research group."

Nan Yue frowned. "He doesn't have an awakened ability, and he hasn't entered missions many times. His abilities might not be enough to handle what happens in the polluted zone."

Fu Xi Ming's attitude toward this was indifferent. "He will have his own tools. As a team, you can protect him when you have the spare capacity. If things get critical, his life is in the hands of fate."

Nan Yue was silent for a moment. The risk this researcher was taking by joining their team was too great.

But it was a personal choice.

"Understood."

"Normally, team cooperation should allow you to get to know each other, but there isn't enough time."

Nan Yue put away the resume. "I understand that."

"These are communication devices, one for each of you. They were developed using the awakened ability of the scavenger who went out of the city with Shen Nian and can communicate remotely."

Nan Yue looked at the rice-sized black circular device in her hand and gently pressed it behind her ear.

She felt nothing, but she could hear Fu Xi Ming's voice.

"A light press will temporarily mute it," Fu Xi Ming added. "However, this thing won't work in mission worlds. It can only be used when a path is open or in areas with thin pollution."

If mission worlds were like soap bubbles, then the pollution outside the city states was like an ocean.

Entering a soap bubble meant entering a relatively independent space where messages could not be sent out.

Nan Yue nodded. If they met with misfortune, they would need this to leave their final words.

"Ideally, Sharp Blade should provide you with more personnel support. But if your exploration is successful, Sharp Blade's teams will depart from their respective city states at the same time to open the paths, so..."

Fu Xi Ming sounded somewhat apologetic, but they were indeed short-staffed.

It was not yet time to reveal the truth to the ordinary scavengers.

For those who were barely struggling to stay alive, it was better not to add to their psychological burden for now.

Otherwise, if a scavenger with weak psychological value found out, they might be driven mad by their mental stability and seek death before even triggering any death rules in a mission.

Nan Yue waved her hand. "I understand. You've already done a lot."

She was just the soldier clearing the way; the subsequent paths could not be opened by their team alone.

Sharp Blade and its countless members were the warriors who would follow.

Waiting to take that "sharp blade" from Nan Yue's hand.

"How is the research group's study of the system going?"

Fu Xi Ming shook his head apologetically. "It's been too short a time. We don't know anything yet."

Nan Yue rubbed her nose, feeling a bit embarrassed. She had been too impatient.

"One more thing. I need to log into your Neural Interface account."

Fu Xi Ming explained, "The research group can briefly shield the monitoring and change the controller of the Neural Interface."

"That way, I can communicate with your friend in the Federation if she contacts you."

Nan Yue had no objections and reached out to let Fu Xi Ming press a magnetic card against her bracelet.