Chapter 109: Task Force Organization and the No. 7 Rift
The barracks area of the War Zone Field Operations Headquarters was located within the inner defense perimeter of the bastion, far from the bustling city streets. Armed sentries patrolled everywhere. After the meeting, Lin Yan and the others followed the logistics officer to the temporary task force outpost to handle the supply and organizational paperwork.
The metal barracks were simple and cold. The walls were plastered with war zone regulations and rift danger level charts, while the corners were piled with detection instruments and demolition consumables undergoing maintenance. Five sets of brand-new field equipment had already been laid out in advance on a long metal table.
"The organization of Task Force Squad 7 is officially in effect." The logistics officer pushed up the protective goggles on his nose and picked up a standard document. "The original five members are retained, and the war zone will add two more members: a Sea of Consciousness tracing expert and a heavy firepower specialist. They will report to the outpost tomorrow morning. Your exclusive supply priority has been upgraded to Class-B. Ammunition, Sea of Consciousness stabilizing serums, and detection consumables will be prioritized. However, remember that once you enter a rift to execute a mission, external support will have difficulty arriving quickly. You must rely on the squad itself."
Xu Yang reached out and picked up a palm-sized micro-demolition bomb from the table, his fingers tracing the casing. "Class-B supplies mean we can bring more directional demolition charges. When it comes to dealing with moss nodes, explosives are always the most reliable method."
Su Wan picked up the new detector, disassembling its outer shell to inspect the internal wiring. "The new model has added a Sea of Consciousness tracing module, which can capture the psychic veins emitted by the priests from a distance in advance to predict ambushes. The downside is that it consumes a lot of power; in an underground environment, the battery life is only four hours."
Leaning against the wall, Shen Ke wiped his short knife, his gaze fixed on the rift map on the wall. "The next target is the No. 7 Rift?"
"Correct." The logistics officer's finger landed on a section of the map on the west side, marked in orange-yellow. "The No. 7 Rift is located in the broken valley area of the Black Mountain branch, rated as secondary high-risk. Frontline mobile sentries have recently captured faint resonance signals three consecutive times, and the signal strength has been steadily rising. However, drones dare not venture deep inside; the psychic interference within the broken valley's rock strata is too strong, and all aerial photography equipment loses its signal upon entering. Previously, two reconnaissance squads were sent in. One lost contact, and the other fled back in panic. All members suffered minor Sea of Consciousness injuries, bringing back only fragmented records."
Lin Yan leaned forward, staring at the topographical marker of the No. 7 Rift on the map. Both sides of the broken valley were filled with collapsed giant concrete ruins—the remnants of pre-disaster highway foundations. The rock strata were crisscrossed with fissures, and the passage branches were extremely numerous, making it highly suitable for ambushes.
"What was the last sentence transmitted by the squad that lost contact?" Lin Yan asked.
"'The moss is in large patches; there is more than one node. Psychic veins cover the rock walls like a net,'" the logistics officer replied in a low tone. "After that, communications were completely severed. The war zone speculates that there is more than one lesser priest inside the No. 7 Rift. It could be a dual-person coordination, with two sets of resonance nodes covering for each other."
Zhao Hu's brow furrowed as he gripped his alloy short spear tightly. "Two lesser priests coordinating? That means the psychic network can back each other up. If we take out one, the other will immediately take over the command of the beast swarm. It will be very difficult to paralyze them all at once."
"That is indeed the most troublesome part." The logistics officer nodded. "In the past, we only encountered single priests at single points. If the No. 7 Rift features dual-node linkage, our tactics must be completely overhauled. We cannot advance rashly. Prioritize exploration, mark the node locations, and do not engage in forced combat. Once you sense the situation is spiraling out of control, retreat immediately. The war zone does not require you to destroy the nodes at all costs; bringing back intelligence while staying alive takes higher priority."
After explaining the supplies and the mission, the logistics officer turned and left, leaving them time to rest and discuss tactics.
Inside the barracks, the group gathered around the topographical sand table.
Su Wan brought up the fragmented scanning data left behind by the lost squad, projecting it above the sand table. "The entrance to the broken valley is an open gravel beach. Three hundred meters inward, the passage splits into three. The left path is damp and is most likely the main growth area for the moss. The middle path is narrow and suitable for ambushes. The right path has an underground water current with a lower temperature; psychic signals will be weakened by the water flow, making it suitable as a retreat route."
Shen Ke pointed his fingertip at the middle path. "The most dangerous is the middle path. With two priests, it is highly likely that one guards the main node while the other lies in wait in a side cave along the middle path. Once our main force enters, they will immediately cut off our retreat and attack from both sides."
Lin Yan fell silent for a moment. His Sea of Consciousness slowly spread out. Although they were merely inside the barracks, he still maintained his habitual state of alertness. After the battle in the No. 3 Rift, his Sea of Consciousness had grown slightly again, expanding his perception range and strengthening his ability to distinguish psychic veins.
"We cannot cram the entire squad into a single passage," Lin Yan said slowly. "We will split into two groups. The reconnaissance group: me, Su Wan, and Shen Ke, will take the right path to maneuver, tracing from a distance to locate the two priests and the nodes. The firepower and demolition group: Zhao Hu and Xu Yang, will establish a temporary alert position behind the gravel beach. Once we send the signal, you will wait for an opportunity to advance and detonate. If you encounter an ambush, you will be responsible for holding the retreat channel and covering our evacuation."
"Splitting up? If the enemy cuts us off, the two groups won't be able to support each other," Xu Yang frowned.
"The risk is inevitable," Lin Yan said calmly. "But with a dual-priest linkage, pushing forward bunched together is equivalent to walking straight into an encirclement. Splitting up at least preserves a backup plan. Moreover, the two new members will arrive tomorrow. They can be assigned to the two groups to make up for the numbers."
As night deepened, sporadic air raid sirens echoed from the distant bastion city. The sounds were short and low, a routine nighttime alert drill. Yet everyone in the squad knew clearly that the siren served as a constant reminder of the hidden dangers lurking beneath the earth.
Su Wan lowered her head to calibrate the detector, then suddenly raised her eyes to look at everyone. "There is another suspicious point. The lesser priest in the No. 3 Rift was stationed alone. Why would the No. 7 Rift be assigned two priests? Could there be something in this area worth the Ancient Progenitor investing double the manpower to guard?"
This question instantly silenced the barracks.
Lin Yan looked at the position of the No. 7 Rift on the sand table. It was situated at the transit node of the Black Mountain rift zone, where multiple underground passages converged.
"It is possible that this is not just a resonance node," Lin Yan guessed in a low voice. "Perhaps it is a supply transfer point used to transport moss spores to other rifts. Or even... a relay station used by the Ancient Progenitor to transmit intelligence."
Just then, footsteps sounded outside the barracks door. The two new members had arrived ahead of schedule, standing at the entrance.
One was a short-haired woman carrying a bulky Sea of Consciousness monitoring helmet. Her eyes were calm; she was the Sea of Consciousness tracing expert, Wen Lan. The other was a tall man with a portable pulse heavy cannon on his shoulder. His skin was covered with old scars. He was the heavy firepower specialist, Pang Lie.
"Task Force Squad 7, Wen Lan, reporting for duty."
"Pang Lie. Retired from the war zone heavy defense battalion." Pang Lie's voice was deep and thick. His gaze swept across the sand table. "I heard we are going to an underground rift hiding two lizard priests? When do we depart?"
Lin Yan raised his eyes to look at the two new teammates and spoke slowly, "We depart the morning after tomorrow. Tomorrow will be spent entirely in squad joint drills, integrating tactics, and familiarizing ourselves with each other's Sea of Consciousness fluctuations. There can be no margin for error in the No. 7 Rift."
Wen Lan set down her backpack and unrolled a Sea of Consciousness chart. "I have read the Sea of Consciousness trauma reports of the squad members who lost contact in the No. 7 Rift. That kind of psychic erosion is not just simple resonance; it is mixed with illusions that alter memories. The enemy doesn't just want to kill people using the beast swarm; they also want to use illusions to dismantle the squad's sanity."
Illusions.
It was another common tactic of the Ancient Progenitor. Recalling the psychic illusion arrays encountered underground previously, Lin Yan's vigilance deepened.
"Everyone, remember this," Lin Yan looked at all the squad members. "After entering the rift, the primary objective is to distinguish reality from illusions. Once your Sea of Consciousness experiences dizziness or you see the phantoms of the dead, immediately call out each other's codenames and use your voices to anchor your minds. Do not act alone. If anyone is out of sight for more than thirty seconds, immediately initiate the emergency evacuation protocol."
Moonlight shone through the narrow blast-proof glass window of the barracks onto the sand table. The marker for the No. 7 Broken Valley Rift looked, in the dim light, like a black pupil lurking deep underground.
A more perilous underground exploration had entered its countdown.
End of Chapter.
The metal barracks were simple and cold. The walls were plastered with war zone regulations and rift danger level charts, while the corners were piled with detection instruments and demolition consumables undergoing maintenance. Five sets of brand-new field equipment had already been laid out in advance on a long metal table.
"The organization of Task Force Squad 7 is officially in effect." The logistics officer pushed up the protective goggles on his nose and picked up a standard document. "The original five members are retained, and the war zone will add two more members: a Sea of Consciousness tracing expert and a heavy firepower specialist. They will report to the outpost tomorrow morning. Your exclusive supply priority has been upgraded to Class-B. Ammunition, Sea of Consciousness stabilizing serums, and detection consumables will be prioritized. However, remember that once you enter a rift to execute a mission, external support will have difficulty arriving quickly. You must rely on the squad itself."
Xu Yang reached out and picked up a palm-sized micro-demolition bomb from the table, his fingers tracing the casing. "Class-B supplies mean we can bring more directional demolition charges. When it comes to dealing with moss nodes, explosives are always the most reliable method."
Su Wan picked up the new detector, disassembling its outer shell to inspect the internal wiring. "The new model has added a Sea of Consciousness tracing module, which can capture the psychic veins emitted by the priests from a distance in advance to predict ambushes. The downside is that it consumes a lot of power; in an underground environment, the battery life is only four hours."
Leaning against the wall, Shen Ke wiped his short knife, his gaze fixed on the rift map on the wall. "The next target is the No. 7 Rift?"
"Correct." The logistics officer's finger landed on a section of the map on the west side, marked in orange-yellow. "The No. 7 Rift is located in the broken valley area of the Black Mountain branch, rated as secondary high-risk. Frontline mobile sentries have recently captured faint resonance signals three consecutive times, and the signal strength has been steadily rising. However, drones dare not venture deep inside; the psychic interference within the broken valley's rock strata is too strong, and all aerial photography equipment loses its signal upon entering. Previously, two reconnaissance squads were sent in. One lost contact, and the other fled back in panic. All members suffered minor Sea of Consciousness injuries, bringing back only fragmented records."
Lin Yan leaned forward, staring at the topographical marker of the No. 7 Rift on the map. Both sides of the broken valley were filled with collapsed giant concrete ruins—the remnants of pre-disaster highway foundations. The rock strata were crisscrossed with fissures, and the passage branches were extremely numerous, making it highly suitable for ambushes.
"What was the last sentence transmitted by the squad that lost contact?" Lin Yan asked.
"'The moss is in large patches; there is more than one node. Psychic veins cover the rock walls like a net,'" the logistics officer replied in a low tone. "After that, communications were completely severed. The war zone speculates that there is more than one lesser priest inside the No. 7 Rift. It could be a dual-person coordination, with two sets of resonance nodes covering for each other."
Zhao Hu's brow furrowed as he gripped his alloy short spear tightly. "Two lesser priests coordinating? That means the psychic network can back each other up. If we take out one, the other will immediately take over the command of the beast swarm. It will be very difficult to paralyze them all at once."
"That is indeed the most troublesome part." The logistics officer nodded. "In the past, we only encountered single priests at single points. If the No. 7 Rift features dual-node linkage, our tactics must be completely overhauled. We cannot advance rashly. Prioritize exploration, mark the node locations, and do not engage in forced combat. Once you sense the situation is spiraling out of control, retreat immediately. The war zone does not require you to destroy the nodes at all costs; bringing back intelligence while staying alive takes higher priority."
After explaining the supplies and the mission, the logistics officer turned and left, leaving them time to rest and discuss tactics.
Inside the barracks, the group gathered around the topographical sand table.
Su Wan brought up the fragmented scanning data left behind by the lost squad, projecting it above the sand table. "The entrance to the broken valley is an open gravel beach. Three hundred meters inward, the passage splits into three. The left path is damp and is most likely the main growth area for the moss. The middle path is narrow and suitable for ambushes. The right path has an underground water current with a lower temperature; psychic signals will be weakened by the water flow, making it suitable as a retreat route."
Shen Ke pointed his fingertip at the middle path. "The most dangerous is the middle path. With two priests, it is highly likely that one guards the main node while the other lies in wait in a side cave along the middle path. Once our main force enters, they will immediately cut off our retreat and attack from both sides."
Lin Yan fell silent for a moment. His Sea of Consciousness slowly spread out. Although they were merely inside the barracks, he still maintained his habitual state of alertness. After the battle in the No. 3 Rift, his Sea of Consciousness had grown slightly again, expanding his perception range and strengthening his ability to distinguish psychic veins.
"We cannot cram the entire squad into a single passage," Lin Yan said slowly. "We will split into two groups. The reconnaissance group: me, Su Wan, and Shen Ke, will take the right path to maneuver, tracing from a distance to locate the two priests and the nodes. The firepower and demolition group: Zhao Hu and Xu Yang, will establish a temporary alert position behind the gravel beach. Once we send the signal, you will wait for an opportunity to advance and detonate. If you encounter an ambush, you will be responsible for holding the retreat channel and covering our evacuation."
"Splitting up? If the enemy cuts us off, the two groups won't be able to support each other," Xu Yang frowned.
"The risk is inevitable," Lin Yan said calmly. "But with a dual-priest linkage, pushing forward bunched together is equivalent to walking straight into an encirclement. Splitting up at least preserves a backup plan. Moreover, the two new members will arrive tomorrow. They can be assigned to the two groups to make up for the numbers."
As night deepened, sporadic air raid sirens echoed from the distant bastion city. The sounds were short and low, a routine nighttime alert drill. Yet everyone in the squad knew clearly that the siren served as a constant reminder of the hidden dangers lurking beneath the earth.
Su Wan lowered her head to calibrate the detector, then suddenly raised her eyes to look at everyone. "There is another suspicious point. The lesser priest in the No. 3 Rift was stationed alone. Why would the No. 7 Rift be assigned two priests? Could there be something in this area worth the Ancient Progenitor investing double the manpower to guard?"
This question instantly silenced the barracks.
Lin Yan looked at the position of the No. 7 Rift on the sand table. It was situated at the transit node of the Black Mountain rift zone, where multiple underground passages converged.
"It is possible that this is not just a resonance node," Lin Yan guessed in a low voice. "Perhaps it is a supply transfer point used to transport moss spores to other rifts. Or even... a relay station used by the Ancient Progenitor to transmit intelligence."
Just then, footsteps sounded outside the barracks door. The two new members had arrived ahead of schedule, standing at the entrance.
One was a short-haired woman carrying a bulky Sea of Consciousness monitoring helmet. Her eyes were calm; she was the Sea of Consciousness tracing expert, Wen Lan. The other was a tall man with a portable pulse heavy cannon on his shoulder. His skin was covered with old scars. He was the heavy firepower specialist, Pang Lie.
"Task Force Squad 7, Wen Lan, reporting for duty."
"Pang Lie. Retired from the war zone heavy defense battalion." Pang Lie's voice was deep and thick. His gaze swept across the sand table. "I heard we are going to an underground rift hiding two lizard priests? When do we depart?"
Lin Yan raised his eyes to look at the two new teammates and spoke slowly, "We depart the morning after tomorrow. Tomorrow will be spent entirely in squad joint drills, integrating tactics, and familiarizing ourselves with each other's Sea of Consciousness fluctuations. There can be no margin for error in the No. 7 Rift."
Wen Lan set down her backpack and unrolled a Sea of Consciousness chart. "I have read the Sea of Consciousness trauma reports of the squad members who lost contact in the No. 7 Rift. That kind of psychic erosion is not just simple resonance; it is mixed with illusions that alter memories. The enemy doesn't just want to kill people using the beast swarm; they also want to use illusions to dismantle the squad's sanity."
Illusions.
It was another common tactic of the Ancient Progenitor. Recalling the psychic illusion arrays encountered underground previously, Lin Yan's vigilance deepened.
"Everyone, remember this," Lin Yan looked at all the squad members. "After entering the rift, the primary objective is to distinguish reality from illusions. Once your Sea of Consciousness experiences dizziness or you see the phantoms of the dead, immediately call out each other's codenames and use your voices to anchor your minds. Do not act alone. If anyone is out of sight for more than thirty seconds, immediately initiate the emergency evacuation protocol."
Moonlight shone through the narrow blast-proof glass window of the barracks onto the sand table. The marker for the No. 7 Broken Valley Rift looked, in the dim light, like a black pupil lurking deep underground.
A more perilous underground exploration had entered its countdown.
End of Chapter.
