Stronger with More Jobs

"Did you change to another channel?" Fang Qingyu's steady voice filled the car.

Qi Hao seemed startled awake, suddenly snapping back to reality. He looked at Fang Qingyu with a bit of panic: "Yes, Qingzi." His voice was hoarse, "It seems... a lot of people have died. The numbers of casualties in other squads keep jumping... in the B3 area... it seems even worse..."

The bewilderment and fright in his eyes hadn't yet dissipated, like a persistent shadow.

At this moment, Qin Hui, who was sitting next to Qi Hao, opened his eyes.

He didn't look at Qi Hao, his gaze was still fixed straight ahead at the rainstorm sweeping rapidly past the windshield, but his voice was low and resonant, with a hoarse, ponderous weight, as if tempered through blood and fire:

"Kid," Qin Hui's voice wasn't loud, yet it was like a stone dropped into a stagnant pond, instantly drawing everyone's attention, even Old Qiao, who was resting with his eyes closed, slightly inclined his head. "Martial artists, there's no such thing as avoiding death. From the day you stepped on this path, the Life Ghost is something that will accompany you all your life."

He paused for a moment, as if organizing his words, or perhaps reminiscing.

The only sounds left in the car were the roar of the engine and the rain.

"Earlier at the plaza, facing that Buddha-bone monster," Qin Hui continued, his voice steady, yet containing an undeniable power, "were you scared? I know you were, everyone was. I was scared, Old Qiao was scared, Qingzi... he wasn't made of iron either. But despite the fear, you didn't run."

Qin Hui slightly turned his head, those deep, serene eyes finally settling on Qi Hao's face, his gaze so sharp it seemed it could penetrate the soul.

"That's enough! That already makes you damn stronger than many others!" Qin Hui's tone suddenly intensified, carrying a nearly severe affirmation. "Do you know why?"

Qi Hao subconsciously shook his head, looking at Qin Hui in confusion.

"Because once a backbone bends, it's hard to straighten again!" Qin Hui's voice was firm and forceful, like a heavy hammer striking everyone's hearts.

"On the battlefield, if you take a step back and expose your back to the Life Ghost, to fear, then you're done for. Once your spirit is dispersed, even the best skills are half wasted! What's worse is that once you retreat, next time you encounter something even more perilous, that thought of 'running' in your mind will grow like a weed! It will tell you, 'Didn't running last time keep you alive? You can do it this time too...'"

Qin Hui's eyes became extremely sharp, intently staring at Qi Hao: "And then what? If you run, what happens to your teammates behind you? What about the ordinary people expecting you to hold back the monsters? Who will maintain the force field? Who will seal the breach?"

"Today at the plaza," Qin Hui's voice softened, carrying a hint of approval, "you didn't run. You withstood that terrifying pressure that could make people collapse in fear and held out with us until the end. This proves that at your core, you're tough! Hold onto that breath for me! Bring it to the B3 area!"

"When you get there, listen to Qingzi, withstand when needed, kill when needed! Just like before, don't screw up, understand?!"

Qin Hui's words were like burning brands, searing themselves into Qi Hao's heart.

Qi Hao's eyes refocused, his chest puffed out, and he met Qin Hui's gaze, nodding heavily. His voice was still somewhat hoarse, but it was unusually clear and firm.

"Understood! Brother Qin!"

Sitting in the passenger seat, Fang Qingyu's lips seemed to slightly twitch upward, as if wanting to smile...

On the other side.

The abandoned logistics center in the south part of the city.

In front of an invisible barrier with a small opening.

A silent queue!

A squad of roughly a dozen who presumably arrived first as reserves stood like sculptures in the pouring rain.

Rain streamed down their helmets and combat suits, forming rivulets.

No clamor, no crying, only a suffocating stillness.

Every face was ashen like the concrete beneath them, eyes inflamed with blood threads, concealing immense grief but, more so, a resolute determination forged in despair.

They were not waiting for orders nor hesitating.

They were... lined up, ready to meet death!

A sturdy figure at the front of the queue took a deep breath, as if the action demanded all his strength.

He took a final look at the flashing warning lights and busy personnel outside the force field, his gaze complex with reluctance and fear, yet ultimately settling into a deadpan calm.

He didn't turn back, left no words behind, just stepped forward forcefully!

His body, like a stone thrown into a lake, instantly fused with the violently fluctuating force field barrier, disappearing from sight.

Inside the force field, the dull thunderous crashes became more violent!

Then a brief shriek, so piercing it made one's scalp tingle, burst through the opening, clearly audible!

But it lasted hardly half a second before a louder, terrifying sound, as if something was thoroughly shattered, completely engulfed it!

The sound vanished.

On the force field barrier, the ripples symbolizing energy conflict surged violently, then settled again into near-breaking instability.

The second in line was a seemingly young team member who involuntarily shuddered violently upon hearing the scream, his face turning deathly pale like paper.

But he bit his lip fiercely, drawing blood, his gaze fixed intently on the barrier.

In the moment after the first member vanished, he stepped forward in near synchronization with the echo of the thud!

Then the third...

The fourth...

They didn't enter to defeat the unknown terror inside.

That was utterly impossible!!

Unless a Mystic Martial Artist came...

They entered merely to capture the monster's attention, even if just for a moment, with their vibrant lives!

With their flesh and blood, they fought for the negligible yet possibly decisive few seconds of respite for that teetering force field barrier!

Outside the force field, the temporary squad leader, a scar-faced man with eyes like a wounded lone wolf, was shouting into the communicator in a voice completely torn apart by extreme grief and rage: "Hold on! Listen in there! Hold on for me!! Support is outside! It's about to arrive! Don't give up!! Repeat!! Don't damn give up—!!"

His bloodshot eyes fixated on his brothers stepping silently into the hell-like field, his gaze filled with a despair and endless blood tears enough to drown a person!

At this moment...

Engine roared, a black SUV streaked through the muddy path like an untamed beast breaking free, skidding to a halt outside the rusty gates of the logistics center in the south of the city.

Fang Qingyu pushed the car door open, the cold rain instantly drenching him head to toe.

His gaze swept over the edge of the force field.

The scene before him made Qin Hui and Old Qiao, who had just endured a fierce battle and whose wills were as steely as iron, have their pupils suddenly contract, a heavy chill gripping their hearts in silence!

"Damn..."

Qin Hui squeezed out a word from his clenched teeth, his voice as low as muffled thunder.

His back remained straight, but his fists clenched tightly at his sides, knuckles cracking under the intense pressure.

Old Qiao stood next to Qin Hui, rain coursing down his furrowed, weathered old face, a cigarette already soaked in his mouth, at some point bit off fiercely by his teeth, the bitter taste of tobacco mixed with rainwater flooding his mouth.

He fixed his gaze on the silent queue marching toward death, his lips quivering, but ultimately said nothing.

The sight before them was more soul-searing than any monster's roar, imparting a profound, bone-chilling despair.

Fang Qingyu stood at the front of the queue, silently watching the line heading to its doom, observing the scar-faced temporary squad leader's desperate cries, his gaze devoid of ripples.

Only a chilling cold that froze everything, beneath which lay imminent eruptive lava.

No words were spoken, just slowly, unwaveringly grasped the handle of the Dragon Sparrow Calamity-Slaying Blade at his waist...

"Prepare to enter."

Fang Qingyu's voice wasn't loud, yet like a blade tempered in ice, it cut through the rain clearly, reaching the ears of everyone around.

Carrying a resolute will that severed all hesitation and pessimism.