The temporary forward operating base was established in a relatively secluded canyon, swiftly constructed by the engineering corps of the Central Army's Seventh Rapid Response Brigade.
Alloy defensive walls, Energy Shield generators, a temporary command post, medical tents, and logistical supply points were all readily available, showcasing the Central Army's extremely high mobility and engineering efficiency.
The Dawn Squad was placed in a medical tent on the edge of the base to receive examination and treatment.
Zhou Yunguang's condition was the most severe; the mental backlash combined with intense emotional fluctuations had plunged him into a semi-comatose state, requiring continuous treatment and observation. Chen Xue stayed by him, her face still pale, her eyes vacant, clearly not yet fully recovered from the impact brought by "Lin Chen."
Li Mingyu silently tended to his external injuries, his eyes gloomy.
Lin Wei assisted the military doctor while subtly gathering intelligence within the base.
Li Fan stood at the tent entrance, his gaze sharply sweeping over the busy Central Army soldiers and Ash Squad members outside, his brows tightly furrowed.
Inside the command post, the atmosphere was equally heavy.
Colonel Gao Zhan was on a video call with the Seventh Brigade's Commander, reporting on the skirmish and the latest assessment of Zhuang Han's strength.
Ling Chen (Lin Chen) stood to the side, his expression calm, as if the previous interlude had never happened.
But the will of his Soul Jade Physique, like an invisible spiderweb, quietly covered the entire base, capturing every energy fluctuation, every whisper, every subtle emotional change.
"...Zhuang Han's strength has been confirmed to be in the early Hundred Forms Realm, but the number and ferocity of his mutated army far exceeded expectations, and they exhibited a high degree of organization and... an eerie Devour characteristic."
Captain Lin said in a deep voice.
"The Dawn Squad's surprise attack, if not for your unit's timely assistance, would have had unimaginable consequences. Thank you, Brigade Commander Zhang."
On the other end of the communication screen, a middle-aged man (Brigade Commander Zhang) with a resolute face and shoulder insignia showing a Major General rank nodded: "Colonel Gao Zhan, there's no need to be polite. Eliminating the mutated creatures is our unit's responsibility. Headquarters attaches great importance to the situation in Jiu'an City, and Zhuang Han and his lair must be eradicated as soon as possible. Our unit will fully cooperate with the Central Special Operations Bureau's operation. Regarding the next course of action..."
At this moment, Ling Chen stepped forward, saluted, and spoke in a steady tone:
"Brigade Commander Zhang, Chief Gao. Based on some data collected by the Ash Squad during their previous escort mission in the Western Rift Zone, and observations from the recent skirmish with the Dawn Squad, I have an unrefined hypothesis."
Colonel Gao Zhan and Brigade Commander Zhang both looked at him.
"Speak." Brigade Commander Zhang said succinctly.
"Yes." Ling Chen brought up his personal tactical tablet, which displayed some processed energy spectrum graphs and terrain scans (some data was real, some was cleverly fabricated or guided by him).
"We've found that the activity patterns of Zhuang Han's mutated creatures are not entirely random. They seem abnormally sensitive to specific types of energy fluctuations, especially... in areas related to deep earth spiritual energy disturbances and certain high-intensity mental fluctuations."
He pointed to several marked spots on the map:
"These areas happen to overlap with some energy anomaly zones in the Western Rift Zone, and... historical records of ancient battlefields, large-scale sacrificial sites, and even the possible locations of some unrecorded ancient ruins."
He paused, his tone becoming more serious:
"Combining this with Zhuang Han's 'devouring evolution' characteristic, I suspect that it might not just be devouring flesh and blood. It... or rather, the controller behind it, might be utilizing certain 'energy imprints' or 'spiritual reverberations' remaining in these special locations to accelerate the evolution of the mutated creatures, and even... specifically catalyze the emergence of certain mutated leaders with special abilities."
This hypothesis was half-truth, half-fiction.
The true part was based on his understanding of the path of flesh and blood ascension and Zhuang Han's actual behavior;
The false part was to lead the cause towards the direction he wished to guide it—ancient ruins, and clues potentially related to Zhang Liang's hidden treasures.
Colonel Gao Zhan and Brigade Commander Zhang's expressions grew solemn.
If Ling Chen's hypothesis proved true, then Zhuang Han's danger and potential threat would greatly increase!
It would no longer be a simple mutated leader expanding purely by instinct, but potentially a terrifying entity that understood how to utilize its environment, and even purposefully "cultivate"!
"What is your basis?" Colonel Gao Zhan's sharp gaze fell on Ling Chen.
"Currently, it's only a hypothesis based on energy pattern analysis and behavioral logic, lacking direct evidence."
Ling Chen admitted frankly.
"But I suggest that the next clear-out operation should strengthen reconnaissance efforts on these suspected 'energy rich zones' or 'ancient ruin sites.' If we can find evidence of Zhuang Han utilizing these locations, or even discover its 'catalyst' base, perhaps we can fundamentally weaken its power, or even find its weakness."
Brigade Commander Zhang pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Captain Lin's hypothesis is very valuable. Colonel Gao Zhan, what do you think?"
Colonel Gao Zhan's eyes flickered, clearly weighing the options.
Ling Chen's proposal was logical, and if successful, the results would be immense.
However, deep down, he always maintained a flicker of instinctive vigilance towards Ling Chen (Lin Chen), this officer who had appeared so suddenly and resembled the traitor so closely.
"We can try."
Colonel Gao Zhan finally nodded.
"I will have the Dawn Squad cooperate with your Ash Squad to form an elite reconnaissance detachment to prioritize reconnaissance of these key areas. Captain Lin, you seem to have a good grasp of energy perception and ruin analysis, so you will lead this reconnaissance, with Commander Li Fan assisting. Be extremely careful, and if you find anything, report it immediately; do not act on your own!"
"Yes! Mission accomplished!" Ling Chen stood at attention and saluted, his eyes firm.
This arrangement was exactly what he wanted!
Gaining the lead in reconnaissance would allow him to more effectively guide the Dawn Squad to "discover" what he wanted them to discover, and shift their attention from himself to the connection between "Zhuang Han and ancient ruins."
At the same time, placing Li Fan in an "assistant" position would both utilize his powerful combat strength and allow for closer observation and... subtle influence on him.
The order was quickly issued.
Inside the medical tent, Li Fan received the order, his brows furrowing even tighter. Cooperate with Lin Chen? And the lead was still in his hands? This made him extremely uncomfortable. But military orders were absolute, and he could not refuse.
"Commander, this is too dangerous! That Lin Chen..." Li Mingyu couldn't help but whisper, his face full of worry and rejection.
Lin Wei also looked worried: "Although his hypothesis is reasonable, I always feel... it's too much of a coincidence. And for him to lead..."
Li Fan raised a hand to stop them, his eyes cold:
"Execute the order. This is a mission. But..." He lowered his voice, a hint of severity flashing in his eyes, "Maintain maximum vigilance! Keep your eyes peeled! I want to know if this Lin Chen is truly analyzing the enemy situation, or... has ulterior motives!"
His suspicion of Ling Chen had not only not dissipated but had deepened because of this cooperation order.
A moment later, the two squads assembled outside the command post, ready to depart.
Ling Chen brought Su Qing, Chen Mo, and Wang Yuan. From the Dawn Squad, Li Fan, Li Mingyu, and Lin Wei were deployed, while Chen Xue stayed behind to care for Zhou Yunguang.
When the two sides met, the atmosphere remained somewhat tense.
Ling Chen seemed to have completely forgotten the previous conflict, his expression normal, and he took out a detailed reconnaissance route map, beginning to assign tasks:
"According to energy scans and ancient text comparisons, the first suspicious point is located at the 'Ancient Battlefield Site' in the western suburbs of the original Jiu'an City.
It is said that it was the decisive battleground of the Yanhuang War, with extremely strong killing intent and chaotic spiritual energy remaining.
The second point is an unrecorded canyon with abnormally active energy reactions, suspected to contain ancient sacrificial pits. We will operate in two groups to improve efficiency.
The Ash Squad will be responsible for the ancient battlefield, and the Dawn Squad will be responsible for the sacrificial canyon. Maintain real-time communication, and if anything is found, share it immediately. Unauthorized deep penetration is strictly forbidden."
His arrangement seemed reasonable, separating the two teams to reduce direct contact and lower the risk of conflict.
Li Fan gave Ling Chen a deep look, not objecting: "Understood."
The two teams boarded high-speed reconnaissance vehicles separately and sped out of the base, heading in different directions.
Ling Chen sat inside the vehicle, a cold arc forming at the corner of his mouth.
The ancient battlefield site? There were indeed some interesting energy remnants there, but more importantly, it concealed an extremely hidden, small ancient teleportation array remnant that even the central database had never recorded!
That was information from his past life memories.
He needed the "Ash Squad" to "accidentally" discover it and "report" it, laying a reasonable groundwork for certain actions that his "true self" might take later.
And that sacrificial canyon... was the "stage" he had meticulously prepared for the Dawn Squad.
According to his calculations and fragmented memories from his past life, there should be a small ruin there, vastly different in style from Zhang Liang's Martial Training Grotto-Heaven, but possibly much older, whose energy attributes tended towards cold and deathly stillness, which coincidentally aligned to some extent with Zhuang Han's "devouring" and "death energy" characteristics.
He needed the Dawn Squad to "discover" it and find some "evidence" to solidify the connection between Zhuang Han and the ancient ruins, thereby guiding the investigation in a direction favorable to him.
He even... left a little "surprise" deep within that ruin—a fragmented rubbing of an ancient stone tablet about "flesh and blood sacrifice" and "devouring evolution" (naturally fabricated by him), on which some symbols would bear an "astonishing" similarity to the patterns on the black rectangular object he had previously "discovered" in the Western Rift Zone!
He wanted the higher-ups of The Boulder and the Central Special Operations Bureau to focus their attention on the topic of "ancient ruins" and "mutated evolution," thereby creating a more relaxed environment and more resources for his true research into Zhang Liang's hidden treasures and the fourth path to ascension.
On the chessboard, he quietly made his move.
On the other side, the atmosphere inside Li Fan's vehicle was silent.
"Commander, are we really going to follow his plan?" Li Mingyu couldn't help but ask.
Li Fan looked deeply at the desolate landscape rushing past the car window and slowly said:
"Mission first. However, Lin Wei, once we enter the canyon, fully activate your Bianwei (Discern Micro), and don't miss any abnormal energy fluctuations, especially... traces related to that Lin Chen's aura! Mingyu, be ready for combat at all times. I have a feeling it's not that simple."
"Understood!" both replied in unison.
They both had a premonition that this reconnaissance would be far from peaceful.
And shortly after the two reconnaissance detachments departed, several rapidly approaching, unidentified energy signals suddenly appeared on the temporary forward operating base's radar screen!
"Report! High-speed moving targets detected in the southeast direction! Energy characteristics... holy attribute! Very high intensity! It's the Knights Templar!" the radar operator reported loudly!
Colonel Gao Zhan and Brigade Commander Zhang's expressions darkened simultaneously!
People from the Knights Templar? How did they find this place?! And what do they want?!
Colonel Gao Zhan immediately ordered: "Activate defenses! No one is to open fire without my command! I'll go meet them!"
The sudden arrival of the Knights Templar undoubtedly added new variables to an already complex chess game.
Ling Chen, sensing all of this through a hidden mark left at the base, sneered in his heart.
Perfect timing.
The muddier the water, the better.