The agreed time arrived quickly.

Xiao Jin woke up early and, as agreed beforehand, went to the command room to meet the base commander.

In the command room at this moment, there were other players besides Xiao Jin.

"Everyone's here." Upon seeing Xiao Jin, the base commander sat up.

Xiao Jin glanced around, then stood to the right of the door. Beside her was a boy covered in bandages, black mist seeping from the gaps in the bandages, writhing like a living thing…

Xiao Jin withdrew her gaze, her fingers unconsciously stroking the hilt of the knife at her waist.

The base commander stood on the command platform, his voice cold and stern: "There is only one objective in this operation—to destroy the Mist Demon's Mother Nest!"

She pointed to the red area marked "Dead Zone" on the screen map and continued, "The military is responsible for clearing the way and providing fire support. Your mission is to break through the core area, find the Mother Nest core, and destroy it!"

“Remember, minimize casualties as much as possible.” She paused, her gaze sweeping over everyone. “But if given the chance, I would prefer that you complete the mission.”

That's just how cruel reality is.

The base chief's words implied that players could abandon the base's people if necessary.

As the military's leader for this mission, One-Eyed Dragon showed no reluctance upon hearing this. He stood ramrod straight, as if ready to sacrifice himself at any moment.

Xiao Jin and the other players remained silent, knowing that giving up was out of the question. In the system mission, the survival rate of the native inhabitants would significantly impact their final evaluation.

………………

The convoy slowly drove out of the base, the heavy armored vehicles rumbling over the broken road.

The dull roar of the engine shattered the brief silence around them.

A convoy consisting of a rugged military truck and several modified off-road vehicles provided by the players slowly drove into the distance like steel behemoths, plunging headlong into the suffocating, churning, blood-red fog.

The military dispatched a small force this time, only about thirty elite soldiers, all fully armed and with grim expressions.

Including Xiao Jin and the other temporarily recruited players, the entire team had fewer than fifty people.

Because of the thick fog ahead, the car could only drive very carefully on the road. The headlights of the cars in front and behind were all on, and Zhao Chun, the one-eyed leader, held the communicator tightly, not daring to look away for a moment.

Xiao Jin, the man in black armor, and the smiling tiger Yu Liu were assigned to the same off-road vehicle.

In fact, this was also a tacit choice made by the other players. Compared to the others, they were even less willing to sit with Xiao Jin and his two companions.

Therefore, when the vehicles were being allocated, they all tacitly got into the cars first, leaving Xiao Jin and the others staring at each other in bewilderment.

The armored man moved the fastest and most directly.

His heavy metal combat boots slammed into the ground with a dull thud, and his tall frame exuded an invisible sense of oppression. He opened the heavy rear door of the SUV as if no one else was there and got in first.

He chose a position close to the inside, with his back against the side wall of the carriage, ensuring his back was absolutely safe—this was a battlefield instinct ingrained in his bones, a lesson he had clearly learned through countless life-or-death battles.

He didn't even glance at Xiao Jin, who followed behind.

Xiao Jin had no objection to this, and even quite agreed with it; she also hated exposing her back to unreliable "companions".

She followed nimbly, also choosing a window seat on the other side of the back seat.

Half of her face was reflected in the cold car window. Xiao Jin's eyes were sharp as a hawk's as she warily scanned the ruins outside the window, which were distorted by the thick fog.

The last person to board the bus was Yu Liu, the Smiling Tiger. He gave himself that name, but it's unclear whether he was using a pseudonym like Xiao Jin.

His face still wore that harmless, seemingly eternally gentle smile, completely out of place in the somber atmosphere.

"Hehe, I hope everyone will take good care of me during the missions to come." He said with a smile, his voice carrying a lazy magnetism, as if he were going on a picnic rather than a mission.

He seemed completely unconcerned about Xiao Jin and the other person's scramble for the back seat, and even comfortably adjusted the seat angle as if it were his own private sofa.

After Yu Liu finished speaking, the car fell silent.

Xiao Jin has always been wary of such cold-hearted vipers, and she's not one to be overly polite, so she simply ignores them.

As for the armored man, he didn't even glance at the others, let alone introduce himself.

No, he did glance at Xiao Jin when he first met her.

Faced with no response, Yu Liu's smile grew even more 'kind,' while the young soldier in the driver's seat silently swallowed.

"Set off!"

Just then, a deep, powerful command came through the communicator from team leader Zhao Chun, breaking the brief silence inside the vehicle.

Upon hearing this, the soldier in the driver's seat seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and the engine roared even louder.

About five minutes later, Zhao Chun's voice came through the vehicle radio again: "We estimate that it will take the team at least six hours to reach the mother nest coordinates!"

"But that's assuming everything goes smoothly!" He paused, emphasizing his words.

The voice pierced through bulletproof glass and thick fog, striking everyone's heart: "Everyone, please be on high alert! The closer we get to the Fog Demon's lair, the more likely we are to be attacked!"

Once we get bogged down, the time will only drag on indefinitely, and neither we nor the base can afford to waste it!

The atmosphere inside the vehicle instantly tensed, like a fully drawn bow. The soldier instinctively gripped his rifle, his knuckles turning slightly white.

Suddenly, a charming female voice came from the radio.

"Don't worry, Team Leader Zhao."

Xiao Jin glanced at it; she remembered the voice—it belonged to that fox woman!

“We have an agreement that the base needs not only to destroy the Mother Nest, but also a large amount of purification serum. If any Mist Ghosts appear, just leave them to us.”

After all, players need the special substances extracted from the serum to generate more transmogrification metals.

Even if they exceed the agreed amount, they might be able to use the extra serum they have to exchange for some enhancement stones from the base leader.

Therefore, there is no such thing as too much serum.

As soon as the fox-woman finished speaking, Zhao Chun and the other NPCs remembered the player's unpredictable methods, and their hearts swelled with confidence.