Chapter 82: A Bird

What a persistent shadow—never truly gone! Tang Mubai thought to himself, yet his expression remained unchanged. He spoke calmly, “Go on.”

“Yes, yes…” The burly man gasped for breath, then continued, “Our original target was the herd of Iron-armored Cattle. But on the way to their gathering grounds, our deployed drones accidentally discovered the nest of the King Velociraptor. There was an egg inside, and no King Velociraptor guarding nearby!”

“We were excited. The Iron-armored Cattle are valuable, but a King Velociraptor egg is worth far more! So, we unanimously voted to abandon the hunt and instead steal the egg!”

“Once the target was set, we discussed our strategy and put the plan into action. At first, everything went smoothly. The ordinary velociraptors guarding the nest were lured away and wiped out. But when the egg was in our hands, we realized that the King Velociraptor had left a mark on it. Less than five minutes after leaving the nest, the King Velociraptor sensed us and, leading hundreds, maybe thousands of velociraptors, began chasing us.”

“A handful or even a dozen velociraptors are nothing to fear, but when hundreds charge together, we were powerless to resist. Those who stayed behind to cover our retreat didn’t even make a splash—they were utterly overwhelmed.”

“At that point, our perimeter team, using drones, discovered you in the valley, hunting the Centipede Medicine Beetle. Our captain made a snap decision to divert disaster toward you, secretly placing the King Velociraptor’s egg in your truck bed, so you would bear the brunt of its wrath.”

“Once the King Velociraptor retrieved the egg and vented its fury, we could slip away from its pursuit.”

The burly man finished, exhaling deeply. “That’s everything. The captain and the others are on the far side of that mountain.”

He turned his head toward a peak a few hundred meters to the left.

“I’ve told you all I know. You may kill me now.”

“No rush,” Tang Mubai replied, his voice steady. “You diverted trouble to us simply because we happened to be nearby. Before this, you had no connection to us, right?”

“…Right!” The burly man shuddered inexplicably as he answered.

“Good.” Tang Mubai drew a deep breath. “One last question: what is your captain’s name?”

“Hu Zonghan!”

“Hu Zonghan?” Tang Mubai repeated the name twice, nodding.

In the next instant, he swung the alloy battle blade in his hand.

A flash of steel, and the burly man's head was severed from his neck. Blood spurted across the treetops, and the headless body slid slowly to the ground.

[Vitality +78]

The recovery prompt flashed in Tang Mubai’s mind.

He flicked his blade clean of blood, turned, and soared toward the mountain peak the man had indicated.

To die simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time?

Is there any justice in that?

Tang Mubai’s rage flared within him.

Unless he wiped out Hu Zonghan and his crew, he would never sleep peacefully!

…

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mountain, atop a dirt slope—

Led by Hu Zonghan, the entire Red Star Mercenary Corps was gathered together. Some rested, some ate, others practiced their skills.

At the foot of the hill, a dozen modified vehicles were parked.

Inside one off-road vehicle, two guards operated a computer, controlling a drone that hovered overhead, monitoring the surroundings.

At one moment—

“Hmm, what was that shadow just now?” asked a bespectacled man.

“Shadow? Did you see a shadow?” The chubby youth beside him, chewing jerky, replied indistinctly, “I didn’t see anything. If you’re worried, rewind the footage. But I bet it’s just a bird.”

“Alright, I’ll rewind.” The bespectacled man answered irritably, working the computer as he muttered, “Out here in the wilds, it’s best to be cautious.”

“You don’t need to tell me that,” the chubby youth responded indifferently, munching on jerky and crossing his legs lazily. “The more dangerous beasts and giant insects on these mountains fled long ago. Heh, the velociraptor swarm cleared them out—what’s left is just crap! Velociraptor crap! Hahaha…”

He roared with laughter.

The bespectacled man, speechless, said feebly, “You’re amazing—eating while talking about crap. Admirable!”

“Yeah, it’s a bird for sure. It’s fast, but its shape is obscured by leaves. Nothing to worry about—it’s not a large raptor.”

Staring at the screenshot on the computer, the bespectacled man saw a white blur weaving through the forest. Though the foliage hid its form, its outline resembled a bird’s wings.

“Told you it was a bird, but you wouldn’t believe me! Hahaha…” The chubby youth laughed again. “If a big raptor were here, it wouldn’t be weaving through the woods. As for crap, don’t you have any?”

“Get lost!”

“Hahaha…”

…

Tang Mubai, darting swiftly through the mountain forest, had no idea he was being mistaken for a bird.

With drones circling overhead, he noticed them as soon as he crested the mountain.

So Tang Mubai chose to move beneath dense trees, darting from branch to branch.

Both advanced movement techniques activated, pushing his speed to the limit.

He moved through the forest like a bird, weaving between trees.

With his sixth sense, the drone above was useless.

Soon, Tang Mubai arrived at the Red Star Mercenary Corps’ gathering spot.

Hiding atop a lush tree, he peered through the leaves, counting their numbers—over one hundred thirty!

So many. No matter how skilled Tang Mubai was with a bow, he couldn’t kill them quickly.

Not enough arrows!

Wait—he still had a few of the “poison pellets” crafted in the Valley of Flowers!

Tang Mubai remembered his gear, reached into his pocket, and retrieved the last three “poison pellets.”

“Three ‘poison pellets’ should be enough if I spread them wide,” he murmured, tearing strips from his clothes to bind each pellet to an arrow.

He descended from the tree and quickly approached the camp.

As he neared—

Swish!

An arrow shot forth, striking a tree amid the crowd. With a thunderous bang, it exploded.

Explosive Arrow Technique!

The burst of energy triggered the poison pellet, releasing a cloud of toxic gas.

The sudden explosion threw the camp into chaos.

Tang Mubai didn’t pause.

He rushed forward, changed direction, and fired two more arrows, detonating them on the spot.

A grayish cloud of poison spread swiftly across the slope…