Chapter 275 Chapter 275
Half a year later.
Beijing, strange response department headquarters.
Four young men in department uniforms were walking slowly in the corridor, chatting as they walked.
"The assessment was really difficult. I almost lost half my life in this mission." Huang Tianzhen put his hands behind his head and said lazily, "If I hadn't dodged the boss's last attack quickly, I would have lost half of my arm."
"Don't worry, even if your arm is gone, the medical department will do their best to reattach it to you." Han Qi said, stroking his chin, "Or just retire like this? Although we didn't spend a long time together, I will miss you."
Huang Tianzhen: "Are you kidding me? Retire now? Even if I really retire, at least I want to reach A rank before retiring! No, wait, maybe there is hope to reach S rank?"
Su Sanan: "S-level, this goal is really ambitious. Can humans really reach this level?"
"Maybe." Qingtong stopped and said, "We are here."
In front of me is the office of Si Zai, the head of the weird response department.
Qingtong raised her hand and knocked on the door. After hearing a "come in" from inside, she pushed the door open and walked in.
Si Zai was sitting behind the computer desk, with a scruffy beard and dark circles under his eyes. When he saw Qing Tong and the others, he shrugged and smiled, then threw four certificates on the table: "You have passed the assessment to be promoted to B-level, congratulations. From today on, you are the third B-level team in the country."
As for the first two, although they are also B-level teams, they were formed earlier than the Qingtong team. All of them are from the military and have more people.
As an awakened person born from an ordinary person, the Qingtong team is the first to be promoted to B-level by defeating a B-level monster. It is quite outstanding.
"Hey, your attitude is so casual." Huang Tianzhen curled his lips, "Show some respect for the elite team." As he said that, he picked up the B-level certificate on the table, looked at the silver letters on it, and the corners of his mouth curled up with pride.
Si Zai held his chin with his hand: "You are the one. Please show some respect to me, your superior."
Looking at Han Qi next to him, he saw that while putting away his ID, he had already skillfully gone to the shelf next to him to pick up some tea.
"You bastards." Si Zai cursed with a helpless smile.
Like boss, like subordinates. He is not serious enough and is lax in enforcing rules for his subordinates. This lazy attitude is just his habit.
Fortunately, they are not lazy about their missions and are even the most diligent team in the country.
"You called us here today not just to issue us new certificates, right?" Qingtong asked.
Although B-class sounds impressive, it is not the first B-class team. The disaster-stricken officer has so much work to do. Who can do it but hand in the credentials? In the end, this thing is a certificate of honor. When the Qingtong team performs tasks on weekdays and hands over to various branches, it is enough to report their team number. When facing other agencies that require them to show their credentials for cooperation, whether it is the original C-class or the current B-class, it has the same effect.
Si Zai nodded and said, "Yes, there are two main reasons why you are here. First, there will be someone assigned to your team. Don't be too nervous. He is not a complete frontline member. He is specifically responsible for your medical staff. Of course, if you think it is necessary to send him to the front line, you can order him to go. He is an awakened person and has the ability to protect himself."
"You also know this person." Si Zai turned the computer screen around.
Qingtong and Huang Tianzhen went over to take a look, and saw a very familiar face on the screen - Gong Qian.
"He still joined the weird response department." Huang Tianzhen sighed.
Gong Qian, who was wavering between "joining the weird response department" and "continuing to become a doctor", took the opportunity to help and planned to see with his own eyes how Qingtong and others handled the task. As a result, he encountered the weird area and A-level weirdness.
If Qin Xiaocao hadn't come to their rescue in the light, they would have died there.
"I thought he would give up joining us after encountering such a dangerous situation." Han Qi said.
Si Zai: "I have asked him about this matter. He said that instead of becoming an ordinary doctor and being unable to protect himself in the future when encountering strange things, it would be better for him to join us. At least he can learn some skills. Besides, since we are all saving lives, it is more meaningful to come to the strange response department to save lives. The hospital does not need an ordinary surgeon like him, but we are indeed short of awakened people who can provide medical treatment."
"He's absolutely right." Si Zai smiled, "We are short of people."
'Qingtong': "Then why was he assigned to be our exclusive doctor?"
"He asked for it himself." Si Zai turned the computer back. "I also thought you needed a medical staff who could come to the rescue immediately, so I agreed."
"Then the second thing is," Si Zai said, "In recent months, the movements of members of the Lantern Organization have concerned me."
Qingtong raised her eyes and looked at him: "Lights?"
"Yeah." Si Zai supported his chin with his hands folded. "Denghuo and we have a cooperative relationship. We purchase medicines, strange objects, and some other things from Denghuo. The transaction has always been handled by Bai Yixin from Denghuo, who is responsible for supplying the goods and handing them over to our people who stay in Jiuxia Mountain. They will forward them to the headquarters in Beijing and distribute them according to needs. But Bai Yixin has been missing for the past few months."
"The transaction is still going on, but the one delivering the weird object has become Qin Xiaocao." Si Zai rubbed his brows. "At first I thought this was just temporary. Bai Yixin must have something to do, so he temporarily handed the object to Qin Xiaocao. As a result, until now, no one has seen Bai Yixin. No matter in the weird live broadcast or in reality, no one has seen Bai Yixin again."
"The headquarters has actually been quietly observing the movements of every member of Denghuo. They may not appear in the weird live broadcast for ten days or half a month, but there will definitely be rumors of someone encountering them in some corner of the world, or after a period of time, they will be seen appearing in a weird area."
"But it's been almost half a year." Si Zai sighed, "Based on my observations, Bai Yixin and Sha Meng are missing. The leader of the Denghuo organization, Mang Tao, is very mysterious. I'm not sure whether his absence for such a long time is normal or abnormal. In any case, he is considered a missing member. In other words, three members of the Denghuo have disappeared from this world in the past six months."
The water was ready, and Han Qi took out the tea leaves and started to make tea, saying, "Minister, do you think you are going to let us investigate this?"
Huang Tianzhen counted on his fingers: "Mang Tao is SSS, Sha Meng is SS, Bai Yixin is S. Minister, if you want us to die sooner, just tell us."
They just got promoted to B-rank, and they barely managed to get promoted after almost losing their limbs. Now they are investigating the strange disappearances of S-rank and above? How to investigate? Start with the paper figures? They will be turned into paper puppets and burned to death.
"Of course I'm not asking you to investigate directly." Si Zai said, "The next step is to get to the point. A strange area has appeared in Connor Country. Due to its weak national strength, the members of the Lights have been slow to resolve it and have applied for international assistance. China intends to provide assistance. Are you willing to go there on behalf of China?"
"Xiaoyu, this is an A-level commission." Qingtong frowned, "Do you think we can handle it?"
Su Sanan: "The strange area has been formed. We can neither enter nor leave. Even if we apply for international assistance, we can't help."
"That is not a complete strange domain. At most, it is a semi-finished product. It is lower level than the strange domain you encountered in Lu City. There is a small gap that allows free entry and exit." Si Zai continued, "But it is very dangerous to enter. Only a small number of people who went to explore the way have returned."
"But what does this have to do with the missing members of the Light Group?" Huang Tianzhen asked.
Si Zai: "In addition to us, the United States, Silver Country, and Japan also provided support."
Huang Tianzhen and the others were silent.
Si Zai chuckled, "The three countries that are currently under the deepest control of the Light Fire forces will send teams for support. I know without asking that the American team are all believers of Kailet, the Silver Country team are all believers of Crow, and the Japanese team are all fanatical believers of Coil."
Huang Tianzhen was furious: "Minister? Are we going to act together with them? Why do I feel that if we are with the teams from these three countries, they will pose a much greater threat to us than the strange ones?"
As the only ones who are not followers of the Lamp, would they be attacked by this group of fanatics?
Crazy fans are likely to do anything when their minds get hot.
What's more, the craziness of believers in the Western Continent is a tradition, while in Japan, the charm of insect cocoons is so great that the craziness of this group of Butterfly Life fans is not inferior to that of the Western Continent at all!
"I don't want to go!" Huang Tianzhen shook his head desperately.
"In terms of strength, we are actually the strongest, right?" Qingtong asked back.
Si Zai was silent for a moment and nodded: "Although according to the order, you are the third team to successfully defeat the B-rank monster, but according to the average strength, you are the strongest."
You have to know that the first team that succeeded in the crusade had one person dead and two seriously injured, and the second one was also defeated thanks to their large numbers.
The order of promotion to B-level does not represent strength.
The Qingtong team came later and got ahead. From Si Zai's point of view, the Qingtong team had already reached the B-level standard, but Qingtong was too cautious and refused to take action until he was fully prepared, which is why it took so long to take action. With their current strength, they may soon be able to reach the A-level.
"You can take any equipment and medicine you want," Si Zai said. "You won't be asked to take them back if you don't use them up. If the enemy is too strong and you decide you can't win, you can come back."
"I let you go because you are the strongest and most likely to come back alive. I don't mean you have to win at all costs. Do it within your capabilities."
International support cannot be ignored. Sending weak people is a dead end. Letting Qingtong and others go is the best option.
As for the result, just do your best as long as you can protect yourself.