BHO2 has cleared the transport line, east-southeast at 12°, search area nine kilometers out.
“Any news?”
The leading Swordbearer removed his goggles and looked at the team member gripping the communicator beside him.
“Has Team Eight replied yet?”
The Swordbearer in charge of communications shook his head, brows tightly knit.
“Not yet. I’ve called three times already… It’s been nearly twenty minutes since their last communication request, and I still can’t reach them.”
The team leader turned to the south, his tone grave.
“All the other teams’ communications have been smooth, only Team Eight’s connection keeps failing… Could they have run into some accident?”
He never once suspected a mistake from the communications specialist stationed at headquarters.
This somewhat outdated second-generation communications system had faced plenty of doubts about its reliability at first, but after nearly twenty-four hours of search and rescue operations, it had never once failed.
Besides, many team members who returned to headquarters to rest—out of curiosity or respect—had gone to observe that specialist operating the system.
Everyone gave almost the same evaluation—simply masterful!
In other words, Team Eight’s communication failure was, in all likelihood, because they themselves had encountered some thorny trouble.
For example… their location was already very close to that suspected Death Zone.
“Leader, headquarters has replied!”
The communications officer who’d been staring at the screen suddenly spoke up.
“We’ve reached Team Eight!”
“They report a strong abnormality in the magnetic field index in the C1-07 area, which is severely interfering with signal transmission. They’ve installed identification beacons on site and are currently returning to headquarters.”
Hearing this, the leader jerked his head around.
“…So the general range of the Death Zone has been confirmed?”
“Not entirely,” the communications officer shook his head, “there are many reasons that could cause magnetic field anomalies. We’ll need to wait for the identification device to send back detailed parameters for analysis, but—”
He changed his tone, voice dropping, “Even just at the edge, the interference is strong enough to disrupt communication… Either way, this is going to be very troublesome.”
“Beep beep—beep beep!”
Before he finished, the communicator in his hand rang again.
“What is it now?” the leader asked immediately.
After quickly scanning the information, the communications officer reported, “New orders from headquarters: all search and rescue teams are to immediately suspend their tasks and return to rest. There will be an operations meeting this afternoon.”
Around 11:20 a.m.
The old Blue Sky Seafood Processing Plant, temporary command center for the search and rescue operation.
Members of the Ninth Search Team dragged their exhausted bodies back to camp, just as the Eleventh Team was returning from another direction, bumping into them at the entrance of the factory grounds.
It was obvious that the two team leaders were old acquaintances.
After saluting and exchanging simple greetings, they naturally fell into step together, conversing in low voices as they headed inside.
“Old Wu,” the Eleventh Team leader nudged his companion with his elbow, lowering his voice, “how’s it going on your end? Headquarters seems anxious, calling us all back… That anomaly Team Eight found—was it really the Death Zone?”
Old Wu, leader of the Ninth Team, habitually frowned at the question, shaking his head with uncertainty.
“Hard to say.”
“Officer Xiao Liu, our comms guy, said that there are all sorts of reasons that could cause a spike in the magnetic field index—it might not necessarily be the Death Zone… But for interference strong enough to disrupt our comms, even if it’s not the Death Zone, it’s going to be a tough problem.”
The Eleventh Team leader furrowed his brow as well, lowering his voice further, worry in his tone.
“I heard some rumors… The provincial capital was considering bringing in the First Synthetic Brigade to help with the search, expanding the search area.”
He glanced around to make sure no one was listening, then whispered even softer, “But seeing this now, good thing they didn’t… No matter how many regular people you send, they’re just cannon fodder in a situation like this.”
Old Wu nodded heavily in agreement.
“Tell me about it. But still, the trouble happened in our own backyard. We Swordbearers have to grit our teeth and settle this, no matter what.”
He shook his head, as if to toss away the heavy thoughts.
“Forget it. Worrying won’t help—there’ll be a meeting this afternoon to assign new tasks. We’d better save our strength.”
“Damn, I’ve gnawed on so many compressed biscuits in the wild, my teeth are about to come loose…”
At that, he suddenly sniffed hard, his expression clearing into the first genuine smile of the day.
“Hey! Smell that! Tsk tsk, it’s got to be braised pork simmering! Smells amazing!”
Reminded by him, the Eleventh Team leader also sniffed deeply at the rich, tempting aroma of meat in the air, instantly feeling his stomach rumble.
He couldn’t help swallowing.
“Damn! Now that you mention it, my stomach’s stuck to my back—I’m starving! Let’s go, let’s go, no more dawdling, time to eat! There’s nothing more important than a good meal!”
The two of them shared a laugh, momentarily putting aside the unknown dangers ahead, and strode off at the front.
Behind them, the other members of both teams clearly heard the words “braised pork.”
Even the most exhausted faces lit up with anticipation as they quickened their pace.
The whole group, carrying an air of urgency, headed straight for the cafeteria set up inside the empty factory building.
As they reached the canteen’s entrance, they saw a figure in a white apron and tall chef’s hat standing behind a long table.
A few unruly red bangs peeked out from beneath the hat brim—who else could it be but Gu Qiancheng?
He held a large serving spoon in one hand, the other resting on the table, beaming at them with a smile that somehow looked a bit too bright to be real.
“Yo, you’re back?”
Gu Qiancheng flicked his wrist, knocking the edge of the dishpan with the spoon and producing a crisp sound.
“Come on, don’t just stand there—line up for lunch! The food’s great today: braised pork, plenty of chicken stew, eat as much as you want!”
“We’ve got rice, pancakes, and fresh steamed buns—guaranteed to fill you up!”
At this, the two team leaders—Old Wu and Old Zhang—exchanged glances, seeing the same shock and confusion in each other’s eyes…
Wait a second… If they weren’t mistaken, wasn’t this Gu Qiancheng, the officer sent from Northern Headquarters?
That infamous prankster, the guy who loved stirring up chaos at every branch he visited?
How the hell did he end up here—apron on, serving spoon in hand?
Could it be… the food was spiked with some weird laxative or something?
Or were they all just hallucinating together?
No way… Has the sun started rising in the west today?
Seeing these ten or so field agents standing rooted to the spot, faces written with “I’ve seen a ghost,” Gu Qiancheng raised an eyebrow, knocking the pan with his spoon again in mock annoyance.
“What are you all standing there for?”
Then, with a milder tone, “You lot work hard on search and rescue, and our logistics staff is short-handed too. I’m not some big shot who can’t get his hands dirty. I’ve known you all long enough—it’s only natural to lend a hand and do what I can. Is that so surprising?”
As he spoke, he deftly picked up an empty tray, flicked his wrist, and dropped a heaping spoonful of glossy, fragrant braised pork onto it.
Immediately after, a generous scoop of steaming chicken stew, piled so high it almost spilled off the plate.
“Here, Old Wu,” Gu Qiancheng pushed the mountain of food forward, wearing a nearly benevolent smile, “Sister Yan in logistics said you love braised pork, right? Here you go, specially gave you extra. If it’s not enough, come back for seconds!”
Faced with Gu Qiancheng’s “hurry up and praise me” look, Old Wu—leader of the Ninth Team—was momentarily stunned.
He quickly stepped forward and accepted the heavy tray with both hands, lowering his head in embarrassment as the real aroma of meat wafted up.
“Th-thank you, Officer Gu!”
At those words, the smile on Gu Qiancheng’s lips only grew, unable to be suppressed.
From the start of the meal until now, everyone who came up for food had the same reaction as Old Wu: initial disbelief, followed by bashful surprise, and finally, a heartfelt thanks.
Though he’d heard it countless times already, this sense of being needed and appreciated washed over him again and again, sweeping away that lingering frustration from not being able to join the front lines.
Ah, so satisfying!
Gu Qiancheng grinned inwardly.
Thinking of this, he grabbed another empty tray and served another overflowing portion, calling out to the still-dazed Old Zhang—leader of the Eleventh Team.
“Old Zhang! Still daydreaming? If you’re not keen to eat, there’s a problem with your head!”
“Ah? Oh!” Old Zhang snapped out of it, hustling forward to accept the tray, his gratitude equally sincere.
“Thank you, Officer Gu!”
Seeing both team leaders submit, the other team members quickly came to their senses as well, lining up eagerly to receive their special lunch from this newly rebranded Officer Gu.
While ladling out food, Gu Qiancheng glanced over the crowd, looking toward the far corner of the canteen, where a small figure sat on a stool, surrounded by a mountain of potatoes, arms working furiously as she peeled away at lightning speed—it was Xia Ji.
A hint of warmth and understanding flickered in his eyes.
No wonder Chu You took such good care of her… That little one might seem timid as a quail most days, but when it counts, the words she speaks really get to you—and always with such sincerity that you can’t refuse.
Thinking of Xia Ji’s earlier “even heroes must start with small things” speech, and glancing at the bustling cafeteria, Gu Qiancheng felt the last bits of his awkwardness melt away.
He turned back, resuming his work with steady hands and a full heart, internally stamping his own conclusion—Old Gu really is a true hero! (OwG) Confirmed!
Outside the canteen, by a tent, Lin Mo and Chu You stood side by side, arms crossed.
“Looking at him now, Senior Gu is actually pretty reliable…” Lin Mo commented, a faint smile playing on his lips.
“Tch~” Chu You squinted, her tone tinged with emotion.
“Who would’ve thought that the infamous Gu Senior from headquarters had this side to him? Just goes to show—”
“Once you smooth down a rebel’s fur, even a Hatchis can turn docile!”