Otherworld Advance Team
Chapter 356 - 349: Team Union

Chapter 356: Chapter 349: Team Union

"If there comes a time when it is necessary, I hope we can count on your assistance, Mr. Yalunte," Lin Wei said, his gaze meaningful.

Confronted with his gaze, Yalunte looked somewhat at a loss. He averted his eyes and, after a moment of silence, he asked hesitantly, "Um, Lin... she..."

"The princess’s remains are preserved at the academy’s research center. Would you like to see her?" Lin Wei guessed his thoughts and asked.

"She..." Upon hearing Lin Wei’s words, Yalunte looked at him in shock. His eyes instantly turned red, and tremblingly, he stuttered, "Can I... Can I still see her?"

"Of course. The princess’s body has been very well preserved. We deeply regret that we couldn’t save her and her child. If you’d like, I can arrange for someone to escort you there—the service robot can guide you to her."

"Then, can I go now..." Yalunte stood up hurriedly, looking rather at a loss.

"Certainly," Lin Wei nodded and said respectfully, "But Mr. Yalunte, please try to contain your grief."

With that, he tapped lightly on the sofa. A camera quickly picked up his movement, and the office door opened in response. Murong entered from outside.

"Chief!" Murong greeted respectfully.

"Ask the service robot to escort Mr. Yalunte to the research center. I’ve authorized his entry. The robot will guide him inside," Lin Wei ordered nonchalantly.

"Understood. I’ll do it right away!" Murong nodded, then turned to Yalunte and said, "Mr. Yalunte, please follow me."

"Come back as soon as possible. We’ll start the meeting once everyone is present," Lin Wei instructed without looking back.

"Yes!" Murong nodded, then turned and left the office.

Soon, he had made arrangements for Yalunte - all he had to do was follow the instructions from the service robot. The academy’s robots supported multiple languages. Not only could they understand Tasta, but they also understood Elvish, no matter how uncommon.

After he saw Yalunte off, Murong ran into Cheng Ziang on his return. The two of them walked side by side in silence back to the office entrance.

Lin Wei had been waiting for quite a while by the time they returned. Murong ushered his team in to sit on the sofa opposite Lin Wei.

It was their first time before such high-ranking leadership, so they all sat nervously and formally. Cheng Ziang, however, having seen much in Otherworld, was not intimidated by Lin Wei. He was noticeably more casual than the others.

"Cheng Ziang, you were here on Earth on a reconnaissance mission, weren’t you?" Lin Wei asked straightforwardly once everyone had sat down.

"Yes," Cheng Ziang nodded.

"When did you find out that they were trying to open the Otherworld Gate?" Lin Wei pressed.

"Just these past few days."

"Why wasn’t this reported?" Lin Wei probed.

"We weren’t sure where the Otherworld Gate would open, just that we suspected it would link to Earth. So we spent some time on deciphering and computing research, finally confirming the coordinates of the Otherworld Gate’s opening," Cheng Ziang explained.

Having heard his explanation, Lin Wei nodded in satisfaction. In fact, he had already heard everything from Luo’er’s intelligence report - he just wanted to double-check Cheng Ziang’s account.

"Did you know, I initially wanted to keep this gate around," Lin Wei said with a light laugh.

"I’m aware," Cheng Ziang nodded. He didn’t doubt Lin Wei’s statement, given that he himself had considered preserving this passage to the interior at one point.

"If it weren’t for that damned gene weapon, Wang Xu would have ordered you to stop," Lin Wei grumbled, his internal anger palpable to everyone.

Lin Wei’s plans were not wrong - without the gene weapon, any Otherworlders venturing over would be marching to their deaths. If they could wipe them all out, they could take control of the Otherworld Gate. Then, the headquarters would have its very own Otherworld Gate.

"It seems our old friend’s methods are increasingly deplorable and blatant," Lin Wei snapped, his tone growing harsher. Even Cheng Ziang involuntarily softened his demeanor, growing more reserved.

"This gate was opened by someone intentionally, right?" Lin Wei continued his questioning.

"Yes," Cheng Ziang nodded, "The coordinates were deliberately altered and activated."

"And who was that person?" Lin Wei enquired.

"It’s unclear. The rumor is this person is a civilian summoner. Maybe Yarunte knows something about it..." Cheng Ziang hesitated before responding.

Lin Wei nodded his head and fell into deep thought, then said, "At any rate, there’s a plan I want to propose. If we succeed, our lives will be a lot less stressful. But before we act, I may need you to carry out some tasks."

"Us?" Cheng Ziang was puzzled as soon as he heard this. Who was Lin Wei referring to – him and Murong’s squad, or the Advance Team?

"Yes, you, and Murong’s Squad Two," Lin Wei nodded, "you’re going to the Otherworld to rendezvous with the Advance Team and complete the tasks I assign."

"However," Cheng Ziang started to say, glancing at Murong and Zhuanzhu, "what about the chain of command...?"

"In principle, Squad Two will be under the command of the Advance Team!" Lin Wei stated flatly.

After hearing this, Cheng Ziang nodded in satisfaction. He looked over at Murong, whose face revealed no emotion, obviously not affected. On the other hand, Zhuanzhu showed discontent, mumbling under his breath.

Lin Wei seemed to heed Zhuanzhu’s grumble, giving everyone in the Murong Squad a glance before he looked back and remarked, "The Advance Team has been on a mission in the Otherworld for over a year. Their experience on there surpasses yours greatly."

"I understand, we’ll comply with the Chief’s arrangement!" Murong said emotionlessly.

"Good," Lin Wei nodded, then continued, "Your mission is to locate the summoner who can open the Otherworld Gate and bring him back here. If he can’t be brought back, kill him! I don’t want that guy messing up our plans anymore!"

Upon hearing this, a chill ran down everyone’s spines. It appeared that Lin Wei was genuinely upset. If the summoner wasn’t of use to headquarters, they figured he would likely have issued a kill order by now.

"But we don’t know where he fled to," Cheng Ziang interjected hesitantly.

"Don’t worry. Once you reach the Otherworld, there will be someone who’ll exclusively provide you with intel. All you need to do is to track him down and bring him back," Lin Wei said, picking up his teacup.

"So, can we move out now?" Noticing his gesture, Cheng Ziang asked.

"Yes, go ahead," Lin Wei nodded and then casually added, "Remember, try to capture him alive if possible. Killing him is the worst-case scenario. Do you understand?"

"Understood!" The entities present stood up and nodded in agreement.

"Cheng Ziang, what’s your angle? Why did you make such a request in front of the Chief?" Once they were in the corridor outside the office, Zhuanzhu pointedly questioned Cheng Ziang.

"I just don’t want confusion over command to cause unnecessary errors. We have experience in that regard," Cheng Ziang turned around and replied coldly.

"You just want us to listen to you, don’t you..." Zhuanzhu began accusing him, he was beside himself with rage.

"Enough," Murong stepped in, pushing down Zhuanzhu’s hand, then said, "Luo’er’s team has been operating in the Otherworld for over a year. Their experience is certainly more valuable than ours, there’s nothing wrong with taking their lead."

"Murong, can’t you hold your pride for once? Why must you always concede to Luo’er? Remember, we were once the champions. They were just runner-ups!" Zhuanzhu expressed his disbelief.

Hearing this, Cheng Ziang snorted, sneered and retorted, "Still harping on about your championship, huh? It’s been over a year and that’s your only glory?"

"Shut up, if it weren’t for your trickery back then, how could we have possibly..." Zhuanzhu was about to lash out, but Murong abruptly grabbed his collar.

With a stern face, he locked eyes with Zhuanzhu, saying forcefully, "Zhuanzhu, I’ve told you before, there was no wrongdoing in the Advance Team selection that year. No one is to pass comments on this matter again. Are you questioning the selection? Are you challenging the headquarters’ arrangements?"

After this, he violently pushed Zhuanzhu away. Zhuanzhu staggered back a few steps, gawking at him, then said in frustration, "Fine, fine, there’s nothing wrong. It’s my mistake, I’ll stay out of your business, okay?"

Watching Zhuanzhu’s response, Cheng Ziang shook his head, turned away, and left without a second glance. He began to worry about the potential fusion between the two squads. Someone like Zhuanzhu, who was always stirring up trouble, was undoubtedly a potential threat to unity.

Despite Zhuanzhu’s attitude, Murong didn’t mind Luo’er taking command of his team now. A year ago Luo’er might have had only a slight advantage over him, but now Luo’er had a full year’s worth of combat experience. Unlike Murong and his fellow academy-graduates, Luo’er’s team had earned their stripes on the battlefield, making their advice more persuasive.

Under the guidance of a service robot, they arrived at their temporary quarters. They would be relocated to the frontline headquarters in the Otherworld in the next few days, where Luo’er would meet them. Once the two squads rendezvoused, they would immediately start the hunt for the summoner.

Whether it was coincidence or not, the academy had arranged for Cheng Ziang and Yarunte to share a room. As soon as Cheng Ziang opened the door, Yarunte approached him and hugged him tightly.

"What are you doing?" Cheng Ziang pushed him away and retreated a step, asking in a suspicious tone.

"Nothing really, just, feel a bit out of place. Unaccustomed," Yarunte smiled. Cheng Ziang noticed that his eyes were red, as if he had been crying.