Using the MC system to pretend spiritual revival

Chapter 160 The First Casualty

After simple preparation and selection.

A group of six team leaders, each accompanied by several skilled members of their teams, stepped forward, intending to make contact with the independent cultivator group.

However, despite the friendly gestures, the six captains and their team members remained in combat stance to prepare for any unforeseen events.

At this moment, Captain Leopard stood upright, with only his upper body and limbs, some orange-yellow fur, and black spots remaining.

He whispered to another Minotaur captain beside him, a large, stout man with exposed skin covered in black and white stripes.

"Why are these rogue cultivators blocking our way? There seem to be quite a few of them, but there are only a few hundred. Do they really think they can attack us with such a disparity in strength?"

The leopard man maintained his half-orc form, but the beard on his yellow-black fur-covered face trembled, and his voice was still somewhat hoarse and unpleasant.

Upon hearing this, the half-bull captain, with bull horns and an elongated face, shook his head in a muffled voice.

"I don't know, let's wait and see. Shh... don't make a sound, we're very close, they can hear us."

They were only a few hundred meters apart, although for a normal person, that distance would be absolutely impossible to hear the two whispering their secret plot.

But with the current resurgence of spiritual energy and the emergence of all sorts of awakened beings, it's hard to say whether some of their ancestors had super hearing.
After all, the current captain, who now has two bull horns, has always believed that his ancestors had the blood of the Bull Demon King.

Although the Special Operations Bureau's research lab determined that he was a dairy cow.

While the two were chatting, the entire team consisted of powerful awakened superhumans, so they moved very fast and covered the distance of several hundred meters in no time.

After that, the two groups consciously maintained a distance that was neither too close nor too far, and the leopard man captain, who was on the official side, was the first to speak.

"Who are you people?! Why are you obstructing the Special Operations Bureau from carrying out its mission?!"

Although it is a negotiation, as an official representative, there is no way they should be subservient.

Naturally, the leopard man's tone was also very aggressive, more like an interrogation.

As soon as these words were uttered, the scattered cultivators gathered behind the distant rock formations stirred into a commotion.

Soon, an elderly man with a cane was chosen as the person in charge.

The old man looked frail, but his voice was surprisingly loud.

"Gentlemen of the Special Operations Bureau, there may be some misunderstanding. We did not intend to obstruct the government's work."

"We were hiding in the woods, and you rushed in with such a big fuss, so we had to take precautions to save our lives."

Upon hearing these words, the leopard man's eyes flickered. Clearly, the information in the other party's words differed greatly from his initial speculation.

As the squad leader, he also heard about the purpose of this mission: to escort a section chief from the capital to explore a historical site in the mountains.

Since the news has already spread in the black market, it will inevitably attract many rogue cultivators and evil cultivators who covet it.

Because the site contained important treasures needed by the government, they had mobilized their own people in advance to come to the outer edge of the mountain range to provide support.

If necessary, confront the scattered cultivators who rush to the scene upon hearing the news.

Because of this information, they prejudicially assumed that these rogue cultivators were there to stop them.

But the old man's words seemed to imply otherwise.

He paused for a moment, then called out again.

"Old man, since it's a misunderstanding, why don't you remove these obstacles and let us pass?"

"So that you too may be spared from death or injury, how about that? Our mission is merely to enter the forest; we have no intention of threatening you rogue cultivators."

When these words reached him, the sharp-eyed leopard man could see that the old man with the cane who was being pushed forward looked somewhat hesitant.

However, he was soon pulled aside by several other rogue cultivators who also seemed to have some experience, and they whispered among themselves.

Then, the old man spoke again.

"My lords of the Special Operations Bureau, I am not making any malicious assumptions, but if we remove our cover, what if you experts pursue us relentlessly?"

"Many of our people here are elderly, women, or children, and those with weak footwork and agility are probably less than one in ten. It's difficult for us to agree to this!"

This answer left the leopard man speechless.

To be honest, he did have that thought just now.

As an official superhuman of the Special Operations Bureau, capturing and eliminating idle cultivators who endanger society is their daily work.

To incentivize its employees, the Special Operations Bureau has always used headcount and threat level as metrics for contribution.

Of the hundreds of rogue cultivators in front of him, at least 30% were probably wanted by the authorities, which did indeed tempt him.

Clearly, these independent cultivators were very familiar with the Special Operations Bureau's style of operation and treated it with utmost caution.

But this is a bit difficult. The commanders above have ordered that these scattered cultivators be dispersed quickly.

However, the scattered cultivators were worried about being picked off one by one if they dispersed, and their escape speed was not as fast as that of the Special Operations Bureau.

The two sides distrusted each other, resulting in a stalemate.

Unable to come up with a solution, Leopard Man reluctantly dialed the communicator in his hand and connected to the command channel.

"Reporting to command, the negotiations have encountered difficulties. The other side does not trust our terms. What should we do now?"

The message had barely been sent when there was silence on the other end of the communicator.

But soon there was a loud bang, as if the communicator had been smashed into something.

The shock caused the leopard man to instinctively move the communicator away from his highly sensitive four-channel ears.

Immediately afterwards, an angry roar came through the communicator.

"Outrageous! Charge! Helicopters, open fire! Kill them all! He..."

The angry roar was only halfway through when a series of crackling and noises stopped.

Waited for another moment.

Then a gentle, calm voice came through – clearly the communicator had been taken by someone else and was now in a different person's possession.

"The above command is invalid. Now do as I say..."

The leopard man put the communicator back to his ear, listened to the commands coming from the other end, and kept nodding and making "uh-huh" sounds.

Their gaze shifted from confusion to surprise, and then to admiration.

On the other end of the phone, the unknown state governor spoke clearly and gently, a stark contrast to his own superior.

As he was thinking, the instructions had been conveyed, and after the leopard man confirmed that he had received them, the communicator was disconnected again.

While their communication went smoothly, the independent cultivators hiding behind cover a few hundred meters away became increasingly anxious.

The balance of power between the two sides is clear; if war breaks out, they will inevitably suffer heavy casualties.

Even if they could run, only the more elite ones could escape; no one believed they were a strong person who could easily escape the government's encirclement and suppression.

Or rather, those who couldn't withstand the pressure and left the dense forest were simply rogue cultivators whose mental strength and abilities were not particularly outstanding.

Those who were strong or daring were scattered throughout the dense forest, hiding and observing the situation.

Just as some people were getting so nervous that they started thinking about turning around and running into the dense forest, the long-silent negotiating team finally spoke up again.

"Gentlemen, how about this, I'll be frank with you all."

"I know you've all come here for that cultivation site, but I'll tell you the truth: the things in that site are extremely important, and have been classified as top secret by the government!"

"If you really want a piece of the pie, the only way is to fight against the entire government!"

"And now! Since neither of us can reach a consensus, how about this..."

At this point, the leopard man paused, gathered his thoughts, and earnestly repeated, "Anyone among you who wants to give up the fight for the ruins can step forward. You should know the ways of our government!"

"We have zero tolerance for those evil practitioners who commit crimes and harm others, but we maintain a neutral stance towards those who are law-abiding and cultivate themselves!"

"If you're willing to give up the fight with the government now, you can step forward. As long as you're checked against our database and have no criminal record, you can leave safely!"

After these words were spoken, the expressions of the people behind the haphazardly constructed defensive line varied.

Some looked visibly uneasy, some hesitated, while others had gloomy faces and their eyes darted around, seemingly lost in thought.

It can be said that the hundreds of people who were originally gathered together by external pressure, greed, doubt, and distrust have now been dismantled by a single sentence.

Those with clean backgrounds who had long wanted to give up after seeing the official grand gesture were quite tempted.

Those who are persistent and greedy, unwilling to give up, or have criminal records and are destined to be unable to leave, try their best to keep the others.

Otherwise, once isolated, they will only face slaughter.

However, among this group of people who are driven by pressure, those who are unwilling to give up are ultimately in the minority.

After a discussion among the group, it was finally the elderly man with the cane who spoke.

"Sirs of the Special Operations Bureau, we agree to your conditions, but please give us a way out first, otherwise it will be difficult to convince the public!"

The leopard man showed no surprise when the conversation was called out, or rather, this response had already been anticipated during the previous communication.

Without hesitation, he replied loudly once again.

"No problem, we can agree to this condition! Now, remove your respective bunkers and clear the blocked road!"

As soon as he finished speaking...

Prior to this, under the advance arrangement of the headquarters, the cars turned around and drove to both sides, and the personnel also evacuated to both sides.

In an instant, a 100-meter-wide passage leading directly to the plain outside was cleared.

Upon seeing this, the old man with the cane couldn't help but show his joy.

He walked out of the cover, leaning on his cane, and headed towards the opening that had been cleared.

However, before he could take more than a few steps, a dark figure suddenly darted out from behind him.

next moment.

The hunchbacked old man with a cane suddenly stopped in his tracks, his pupils dilated instantly, and the light faded.

Then, his body went limp.

A short, thin man wearing a mask and a leather vest, with a sinister look in his eyes, pulled a short knife from the back of the old man's head.

It left a trail of scarlet blood and was flung aside.

"No one is allowed to leave! I'll kill anyone who tries!"

After saying that, he suddenly took a few steps back and retreated behind a tall mushroom as cover.

His gaze swept over the other rogue cultivators and supernatural beings standing around him, dumbfounded.

When his gaze met theirs, some people turned their heads away in fear, while others showed delight.

Clearly, these people, burdened with bloodshed and destined to be unable to escape, are the last to want this group of a hundred people to be broken up.

The more people involved, the higher the security level, and the stronger the concerns of these officials will be.

As long as the people around him are kept in check, and the threat is significant enough, the government officials might back down.

At that time, we might actually be able to get some benefits from the ruins inside the mountain.

But clearly, this impulsive and sinister man forgot one thing.

Nowadays, society is no longer like it used to be, where you could intimidate others simply by daring to take action, fight, or struggle.

The world we live in now is an era where everyone has the power to resist and everyone can speak out against injustice.

next moment.

Several men and women gathered around the man in the vest who had made the move, their eyes filled with hostility.

At this moment, the masked man finally sensed that something was wrong.

He held the dagger horizontally in front of his chest and threatened in a tense tone.

"What are you trying to do? Do you believe I'll kill you all? Get back here right now!"

But clearly, his blustering yet cowardly demeanor was not convincing at all.

A muscular, bearded man, nearly two meters tall, stepped out.

He clasped his hands together, and a shovel gleaming with a cold light appeared in his hands.

After performing a flourish with his stick, he took another step forward without hesitation.

"I can't stand you bunch of scoundrels, and now you dare to block our way..."

"Then there's no other way! Let's all attack together!"

As he spoke, he took the lead and rushed forward, swinging the gleaming shovel in his hand and chopping down on the head.

The masked man was quite skilled; he immediately raised his short sword to block the path of the attack.

"boom!"

Amidst a clang of metal on metal, they successfully held their ground.

But before he could catch his breath, another tall, masked woman appeared beside him.

A pair of iron boots on his feet whistled through the air as they kicked straight at his side, which was covered in leather armor.

With a muffled thud, the masked man's entire body flew backward.

The powerful impact made the masked man feel as if he had been hit head-on by a car.

It flew a long way before finally crashing straight into a giant red mushroom that served as cover.

Then, it was bounced to the ground by the slightly elastic cap.

Even with the protective leather vest and magic weapon, he couldn't support his body for a long time. Finally, he clutched his sunken abdomen and spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Cough cough...you!..."

"Ugh!..."

Before he could finish his harsh words, a middle-aged woman who had been standing next to the mushrooms jogged over to his side.

He pulled out a piece of gleaming metallic rail from his hand and swung it around, slapping it onto the masked man's back, silencing him from saying anything more.

And this seems to have become the final trigger.

Then, a large number of other supernatural beings from the surrounding area rushed over.

All sorts of fists, kicks, and magical weapons came crashing down.

One person per room.

The brown leather vest shattered in a matter of moments, scattering into pieces on the ground.

After the crowd dispersed, only a mangled corpse remained on the spot.

(End of this chapter)