There was a man with a full beard.

"Principal Yuan, an hour ago we received your distress signal from the military district, saying that the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult had led an attack on the special trainees, and that you had managed to intervene in time. What's the situation now?"

The man looked at Yuan Dongzhi and asked about the attack.

Yuan Dongzhi did not answer the question, but instead coldly countered, "You knew it was sent over an hour ago, so why did your military district take so long to get here?"

"There was trouble in the military district."

The man explained with a hint of apology, "Some heretics who had been undercover for years in the military district suddenly acted up, preventing us from coming to your aid."

Yuan Dongzhi frowned, "What kind of heretics are capable of delaying you for so long?"

The man hesitated before replying in a low voice, "You might find this hard to believe, but Deputy Commander Chen is a heretic planted inside the military district by the Divine Plant Cult."

"The problem isn't resolved yet. Commander Yao is still facing off against Deputy Commander Chen in the military district, and the situation is at a standstill."

"It took me quite an effort to be able to pilot the Shanhai to come here for rescue."

"..."

Deputy Commander Chen is a heretic?

Upon hearing the man's words, Lu Tianrong's eyes widened in disbelief.

How could a deputy commander in the military district be a heretic of the Divine Plant Cult?

What was going on?

And had the Divine Plant Cult gone mad?

Just to kidnap Lin Zichen, were they actually willing to pay such a high price, exposing a heretic who had worked up to the position of a deputy commander in the military district? Was it worth it?

Was there some secret within the Pureblood Human Path?

Did the Divine Plant Cult go to all lengths to take Lin Zichen away, regardless of sacrificing a heretic who was a deputy commander?

Lu Tianrong was filled with countless thoughts.

On the other side.

Having explained why his rescue came so late, the man piloting the mecha asked again, "Principal Yuan, what's the specific situation on your end now?"

Yuan Dongzhi still didn't answer, his tone tinged with dissatisfaction, "Now that the battle is over, you come to provide support and still ask what the situation is. Is there any point?"

"This..."

The man looked guilty and didn't know how to respond.

Yuan Dongzhi didn't waste words with him and went straight to the point, "The military district is still in chaos; we can't return yet. Lend us one of your armed helicopters, I need to take my students from Shan University back first."

The man felt this was inappropriate, "Principal Yuan, the trainees from Jing University, the Mech God Consortium, and our military district haven't been found yet. How about you join me in looking for them before we all leave together?"

"If you are here, if the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult shows up, I can easily take them down with your help."

"If you leave, should the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult come, just this Shanhai mecha I'm piloting might have difficulty resisting."

"..."

Yuan Dongzhi was unconvinced, "You're overthinking it. The goal of the Divine Plant Cult was to capture Lin Zichen. As long as Lin Zichen is gone, the other special trainees are safe."

The man's face showed difficulty, "That's easy to say, but better safe than sorry, Principal Yuan. Perhaps you should stay and work with me."

As he finished speaking, there was a faint sound of something cutting through the air in the distance.

"Buzz—"

"Buzz—"

"Buzz—"

Hearing this noise, Lin Zichen and Yuan Dongzhi immediately looked in the direction of the sound.

The former with the help of "Eyes of the Sky", and the latter with her high Rare-level mental strength, saw the arrivals from a distance of over a thousand meters.

It was the hunchbacked man in a mask!

He was rapidly jumping from one giant tree to another, heading straight in their direction!

In just a moment, the hunchbacked man had jumped hundreds of meters, entering the field of view of everyone present.

"Principal Yuan, the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult is here!"

The man warned anxiously.

He immediately closed the hatch and operated the mecha to enter combat mode.

The other Mechanically Modified Humans also turned toward the incoming hunchbacked man as if facing a formidable enemy.

Yuan Dongzhi frowned deeply, looking at the rapidly approaching hunchbacked man, filled with puzzlement.

Couldn't the Ninth Elder see such a huge mecha?

Alone, how dared he approach so quickly?

Wasn't he afraid of being ganged up on?

You should know that the combat power of a mecha can rival that of a Rare-level fighter.

Where did the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult get the confidence to face, alone, both a large mecha with Rare-level strength and a Rare-level fighter of the same class?

As Yuan Dongzhi pondered this, her expression suddenly turned ghastly pale.

Immediately, she grabbed Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan, the childhood sweethearts, and leaped into the water with them. Using both her Qi-Blood and mental energy, she erupted with speed to escape the area as fast as possible.

There's an undercover agent among the reinforcements!

An agent working with the Divine Plant Cult!

Otherwise, why would the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult dare to pursue them alone in the presence of military reinforcements?

Was he insane, seeking his own death?

It couldn't be insanity.

The only possibility was that there were undercover agents of the Divine Plant Cult among the reinforcements, ready to work with him.

And this agent was most likely the man piloting the mecha.

That man said so much just now, clearly stalling for time until the Ninth Elder arrived, and then to join forces in capturing Lin Zichen...

While Yuan Dongzhi considered all these things, she led Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan through the water at full speed.

She wanted to take Li Moyu and the others with her, but she simply couldn't carry so many people.

"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom..."

The second Yuan Dongzhi jumped into the water with the two, all the Mechanically Modified Humans suspended in the air plunged into the water as well.

Even the Mechanically Modified Humans piloting the armed helicopters activated the autopilot mode and swiftly followed into the water.

At the same time, the hunched-over masked man and the massive Shan University mecha, which were rapidly closing in from a distance, also rushed into the water one after another.

The single purpose of their rapid dive into the water was to chase Yuan Dongzhi, who was fleeing with the two.

More accurately, they were after Lin Zichen, who was being carried away by Yuan Dongzhi.

Yuan Dongzhi realized that her belief in the presence of a Divine Plant Cult undercover agent among the reinforcements was incorrect.

Because it wasn't a case of reinforcements being infiltrated by the Divine Plant Cult, but rather that the reinforcements were all covert operatives of the Divine Plant Cult!

"What's happening here?"

In the trees, Lu Tianrong was utterly baffled.

Just a moment ago, he thought the hunched-over masked man was courting death by pursuing them alone, surely doomed to be killed by the combined forces of Yuan Dongzhi and the mecha.

But right after that thought, Yuan Dongzhi suddenly took Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan and fled into the water.

Following that, the hunched-over masked man and all the military reinforcements also dived in.

In just a brief moment, nearly everyone was gone.

Only four people stood disheveled in the trees, utterly bewildered, not having processed what had happened.

"Could it be... that all the reinforcements just now were from the Divine Plant Cult?!"

Lu Tianrong suddenly thought of this and was struck with a chilling fear, feeling utterly hopeless.

Li Moyu, Ma Xiwei, and Luo Yongjian, upon hearing him, were somewhat frightened.

Lu Tianrong quickly came to his senses, turned to the three and said, "Let's go, we need to get out of here fast, in case things are as I suspect. We might get caught up in the ensuing battle if we stay here!"

No sooner had he spoken,

A massive spray of water exploded hundreds of meters ahead of them.

It was Yuan Dongzhi, emerging from the water with Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan, shooting up at an incredible speed and bringing up a deluge of seawater.

Then "Boom, boom" resounded several times.

All the Mechanically Modified Humans who had followed Yuan Dongzhi into the water, the Shan University mecha, and the Ninth Elder of the Divine Plant Cult, burst out of the water in an instant, surrounding Yuan Dongzhi on all sides.

Confronted with the encirclement, Yuan Dongzhi looked horribly ashen.

There was no escape!

It was impossible to flee underwater!

Every route was blocked by a net of bloody vines; there was no way out!

"Principal Yuan, it's not easy to evolve into a Rare-level creature. There's no need for both sides to suffer. Hand over Lin Zichen to us, and we won't trouble you any further."

The hunched-over masked man looked at Yuan Dongzhi and urged.

Although the current situation was many against one, and their side had two Rare-level combatants,

If a Rare-level fighter chose to fight to the death, it was very likely they could take down another fighter of the same rank with them.

The hunched-over masked man didn't want to pay this price and hoped to complete the mission without injuries.

...

PS: Bowing for votes, seeking monthly and recommendation tickets!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read