Full-Time Public Enemy

These stone coffins were all ten meters tall, arranged vertically, their layout curiously similar to the stone forest on the surface.

What was extremely strange was that although many parts of the cave walls here had collapsed, these stone coffins, while not entirely undamaged, all had their lids sealed tightly. Not a single one stood open.

"Something's not right!" Charles said in a low voice.

Chen Gu paid them no mind and stepped forward into the cave. Andon finally sensed something amiss and whispered to Benjamin, "Does this kid... really not feel afraid?"

In such an eerie place, they had encountered a group of insects that could possibly use professional skills right after arriving, losing three people on the spot. The deeper they went, the more unnerving it became, yet Chen Gu pressed forward hastily, seemingly unworried about any danger ahead.

After thinking for a moment, Benjamin said with a touch of confidence, "No matter what, we won't let him make it out alive. It's the first time here for all of us; what could he possibly know?"

Andon nodded, and the two of them, along with their team members, followed.

Only Charles felt a sense of unease. He had also heard Andon's words and speculated: Could it be that Chen Gu knew there wouldn't be danger ahead, and the danger... might come from behind?

Charles nervously looked back. The passageway behind them was deep and dark, yet he couldn't discern any obvious danger.

He shook his head lightly and moved on with his team but still said to Andon, "Let's slow down a bit. We'll stay in the middle. You cover the rear."

Andon gave him a suspicious glance, but Charles offered a smile. "My group is the weakest; it's safer if you cover the rear."

Andon glanced at Benjamin. Both simultaneously recalled that Charles was a double-dealer who had previously tried to curry favor with Chen Gu, making them uneasy about letting him cover the rear.

"Alright." Andon moved his team to the back.

Benjamin continued following Chen Gu at the front. Andon's recent words made him observe Chen Gu more closely, and he did notice something odd. Previously, Chen Gu had been running fast, as if trying to escape their control. Now, his speed wasn't slow, but it somehow felt... Light, almost as if he was sauntering?

Just as Benjamin furrowed his brows, he suddenly heard a strange, loud creak behind him. Ever vigilant, Benjamin's Mecha spun sharply on the spot. Its propulsion system surged with power, and the ejected flames left distinct scorch marks on several nearby stone coffins.

When he turned to see the situation behind him, his eyes widened in utter disbelief.

A few meters away, a stone coffin opened on its own. Within the coffin, which should have been shallow, was an abyss so profound one could not see its bottom.

Beside the coffin, four search team members were seizing another, desperately dragging him towards it.

The ambushed team member, caught off guard as he was being pulled, suddenly showed a brilliant light in his eyes, no longer hiding his true strength—he was clearly at the Sixth Energy Level!

The four pulling him were only at the Fourth and Fifth Energy Levels. However, he had been caught in their sudden attack, and half his body was already inside the coffin.

The "abyss" within the coffin suddenly stirred—it was a mass of countless dark iron threadworms! They swarmed over him, coiling around his body and pulling him deeper into the coffin.

A chill shot down Benjamin's spine. The man being dragged away is my teammate, and the other four are Andon's and Charles's men!

Are the Empire and the Freedom Alliance conspiring to trap our Star State?

Moreover, this teammate of mine had hidden his Sixth Energy Level so well. How did they identify and target him so accurately?

Charles and Andon, equally shocked, rushed forward without a second thought. Charles stretched out his hands, unleashing powerful magnetic field lines. "Quick, save him!"

Benjamin also realized something was terribly wrong. There's no reason for Andon and Charles to plot against their own side.

With a cold snort, Benjamin activated his "Psychological Spy" ability, attempting to influence the four men.

However, he was stunned to find his ability completely ineffective!

It wasn't just that. As Charles and Andon rushed forward, with others following to assist, two more team members suddenly changed direction. One operative's left hand turned metallic, stealthily thrusting towards Charles's ribs. The other's face was overlaid with an illusory, ghostly mask, their entire body transforming into a spectral wraith—existing somewhere between the real and the ethereal—as it clawed at Andon's back!

Moreover, Charles's attacker was one of his own men, and Andon's attacker was one of his!

Charles and Andon roared in anger. They dealt with the attacks, looking somewhat flustered, but remained unharmed.

This delay caused the situation over there to deteriorate further. With no time for further thought, Benjamin roared and charged forward.

Seeing Benjamin charge over, the four men, in desperation, slammed themselves into the Sixth Energy Level operative they were holding.

The first to collide burst apart with a POP, transforming into countless iron threadworms. These quickly intertwined with the iron threadworms already in the coffin, weaving together into a large net.

The second, third, and fourth followed. Each forceful collision knocked the Sixth Energy Level operative closer to the coffin, and each attacker then transformed into iron threadworms, joining the others in pulling him.

After all four had done so, the Sixth Energy Level operative had no chance of escape and plunged into the dark abyss within the coffin!