Chapter 75: Blue Light Membrane
When these whispers drifted into Su Tang’s ears, she couldn’t help but smile.
She had wondered why the Third Squad was so different today; it turned out it was all thanks to this little guy. Watching the little fellow walk with its head held high, weaving through the rows of seats as if patrolling its territory—and seeing the Sentinels sitting ramrod straight with nervous expressions wherever it passed—Su Tang couldn’t help but clap her hands at Xiao Yu.
“Come back, don’t scare everyone.”
The little black cat seemed to understand. It immediately turned around and ran back to her feet, rubbing its head against her pant leg while letting out a low purr. That affectionate display left the Sentinels in the cabin dumbfounded.
Was this still the “Tyrant of the White Tower” who scratched everything in sight?
Zhan Ye saw all of this, and jealousy surged in his heart. Su Tang was far too biased toward this little brat. Why did she never clap for his Golden Eagle?
Angry but not daring to lash out at Su Tang, Zhan Ye scanned the Third Squad Sentinels in the cabin with a burning gaze. Every one of them was tall and brawny, yet they were afraid of a tiny kitten—they were truly an embarrassment to his Third Squad.
“For this mission, the Vice-Captain will command in my stead. Follow all orders from Mo Xiao, the Captain of the First Squad. If anyone dares to drop the ball during this mission, I’ll personally skin you alive once we return to the White Tower.”
Hearing their Captain’s threat, the Third Squad Sentinels all straightened their backs and tensed their muscles, standing ready.
As the darkness outside the window deepened, Zhan Ye gave a wave of his hand. The Third Squad Sentinels began to put on their protective shields. Su Tang took her own shield from Zhan Ye and put it on, then fished out a pink collar from her backpack and fastened it onto the little black cat in her arms.
The aircraft’s landing gear ground over the gravelly earth. After a bout of turbulence, the cabin finally settled steadily in an open area.
The moment the hatch opened, a cold wind laden with the scent of decay rushed in. Su Tang instinctively scooped Xiao Yu down from her shoulder and held it in her arms.
A spiritual entity is connected to its Sentinel; the Sentinel can sense the entity’s condition at all times. However, since Xiao Yu was with her and Ya Suo couldn’t look after it constantly, it would be difficult to find it if it got lost.
With that thought, Su Tang held Xiao Yu tightly. The little guy flicked its ears, its emerald-green eyes shining startlingly bright in the dim light as it vigilantly scanned the surroundings.
“Attention everyone! It is forbidden to remove your helmets before the protective barrier is activated!”
Mo Xiao’s voice came through the communicator.
“First Squad, follow me to establish a defensive position and set up the barrier generators. Third Squad’s reconnaissance team, depart immediately. Explore the location of the ‘Cocoon’ and the distribution of high-level pollutants in the Abyss according to the coordinates provided by the White Tower. Be cautious during your search; do not attract the attention of high-level pollutants.”
“Received!”
The Vice-Captain took five members of the Third Squad, summoned their respective spiritual entities, and immediately flew into the air.
Zhan Ye was the first to jump out of the cabin. The Golden Eagle spread its wings on his shoulder, its sharp gaze scanning the forest shrouded in black mist.
Su Tang surveyed the environment. The terrain of the Abyss was a dense forest—though calling it a forest wasn’t entirely accurate. While the leaves were green, a closer look revealed a ring of black aura surrounding every single leaf.
It looked more like a normal living environment than the White Tower did, yet every corner exuded an eerie aura.
Zhan Ye turned back and reached out his hand to Su Tang.
“Careful, Little Beauty. The ground is all gravel. Give me your hand, I’ll help you down.”
His team members had seen too much of their Captain’s usual reckless behavior; seeing him so considerate now made the remaining Third Squad Sentinels cringe.
Zhan Ye clearly noticed his team’s gazes and shot them a fierce glare.
“What are you looking at? Get down and help the First Squad set up camp! I’ll see who dares to embarrass the Third Squad—I won’t let you off easy when we get back!”
The Third Squad Sentinels immediately straightened up and rushed out of the cabin to organize their equipment.
A tall Sentinel paused as he passed Su Tang. She looked over and saw him scratching the back of his head.
“Um, Guide Su Tang, I wanted to ask… do we need to prepare a protective shield for Xiao Yu? The pollution level here isn’t low…”
A spiritual entity like Xiao Yu, who wasn’t by its master’s side, was very susceptible to erosion.
Before Su Tang could speak, Xiao Yu had already raised its head and let out a “Meow” at him, its tail curling proudly as if to say: This cat doesn’t need one.
Su Tang smiled and shook her head.
“The thing around its neck is a spirit power storage collar developed by Minister Anse. Ya Suo’s spirit power is inside; it can soothe it.”
Hearing it was developed by Minister Anse, the tall Sentinel nodded repeatedly and stopped mentioning the shield.
On the other side, the First Squad had already begun building the camp.
Mo Xiao commanded his team members to install the barrier generators while the Silver Wolf crouched at his feet, watching the First Squad Sentinels work in an orderly fashion.
Once the generators were assembled, a pale blue light membrane slowly expanded across the ground, completely enveloping the camp they had built. The black aura permeating the air was isolated outside the light membrane, and the Sentinels finally removed their masks and breathed a sigh of relief.
Su Tang walked over holding Xiao Yu, watching the blue light membrane being constantly buffeted by the black mist. She couldn’t help but ask:
“How long can this light membrane hold?”
“Hard to say.”
“What?”
“The mist outside is mostly low-level pollutants; no matter how they act, it’s impossible for them to penetrate. But I’m afraid of encountering high-level pollutants…”
Mo Xiao finished and looked at the little black cat in Su Tang’s arms.
“So we need Xiao Yu’s help to provide early warning. If we can know about a high-level pollutant attack in advance, we can reinforce the barrier ahead of time.”
“How is its condition?”
Xiao Yu seemed to understand the concern. it rubbed against Su Tang’s chest, letting out a comfortable purr.
Su Tang’s fingertip brushed against the pink collar, tapping lightly on the casing.
“It seems quite stable for now. I hope the spirit power Ya Suo stored inside can last for a while.”
Zhan Ye walked over with two tubes of nutrient solution, handing one to Su Tang.
“Eat something first. The recon team will take at least three hours to get back.”
He glanced at Xiao Yu and pulled a small box from his pocket, tossing it over.
“Here, for this fellow. The Third Squad brought back some energy ores from a mission last time. These ores can be directly absorbed by spiritual entities to stabilize their spirit power.”
Xiao Yu nimbly caught the box with its paws. Although the gift was from Zhan Ye, Xiao Yu showed no intention of getting close to him.
Perhaps it still remembered Zhan Ye scaring it earlier; it even bared its teeth at him crossly.
Zhan Ye didn’t bother with the little thing, but the Third Squad Sentinels watching from afar couldn’t help but huddle and whisper.
“The Captain didn’t hit back? He doesn’t usually have such a good temper.”
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