Me? I was transported into a book? And I became a vicious villain?

In the command room, the red alarm light shone on everyone's face, and the atmosphere was so solemn that it seemed as if the air had stopped flowing.

"Has the source of the signal been located?" Chu Mengmeng broke the silence, with a barely perceptible hint of anxiety in her tone.

"We've located the approximate range," the technician's fingers jumped quickly on the console, "the signal source comes from the Luofeng Mountains southwest of the city."

The terrain of Luofeng Mountain is complex and rarely visited. If the signal source really comes from there, it will undoubtedly increase the difficulty of tracking. Xiao Yichen frowned and quickly issued an order: "Su Mubai, you take a team to be responsible for the outer perimeter security. Lin Wan'er, you take a team to go into the mountains with me and Mengmeng to search for the source of the signal."

"Yes!"

As night fell, three black off-road vehicles drove silently into the Luofeng Mountains. The rugged mountain road was bumpy, and the headlights could only illuminate a small area ahead. The unknown darkness was like a giant beast, opening its bloody mouth, ready to devour everything at any time.

After several hours of arduous trekking, the group finally arrived at the area where the signal was located - a quiet valley surrounded by steep mountains. The entrance of the valley was filled with thick fog, visibility was extremely low, and there was an eerie silence in the air.

"Everyone be careful and stay alert!" Xiao Yichen reminded in a low voice and got out of the car first. The energy gun in his hand emitted a faint blue light, illuminating the road ahead.

Chu Mengmeng and others followed closely behind, and under the cover of night, they carefully groped their way deeper into the valley. The further they went, the thicker the fog became, with visibility less than five meters.

"Wait!" Chu Mengmeng suddenly raised her hand to signal everyone to stop, "Did you hear any sound?"

Everyone held their breath and concentrated, and sure enough, a slight sound of metal friction came faintly from the depths of the thick fog, and it was particularly clear in this silent environment.

"Something's happening! Be alert and prepare for battle!" Xiao Yichen shouted in a low voice, and everyone immediately entered combat status, with energy guns aimed at the direction where the sound came from.

After clearing away the last bit of fog, a camp hidden deep in the valley appeared before everyone's eyes. The camp was small, with only a few simple tents, but it was surrounded by various advanced defense facilities, and even a few small energy turrets, which were obviously not something that ordinary poachers or explorers could have.

Just as they were about to sneak into the camp to investigate, a woman in strange clothes slowly walked out of the camp. She had a pretty face and a cool temperament. She held a peculiarly shaped energy sword in her hand, emitting heart-pounding energy fluctuations.

"Who are you? Why are you trespassing into our territory?" The woman's voice was cold and full of unquestionable majesty.

"we are……"

"We are the city guardians," Chu Mengmeng answered before Xiao Yichen, her bright eyes staring directly at the woman in front of her, "We detected abnormal energy fluctuations here, so we came to check the situation."

The woman narrowed her eyes slightly, as if evaluating the truth of Chu Mengmeng's words. The air fell into a suffocating silence again, and a war was about to break out... "We are the guardians of the city," Chu Mengmeng answered before Xiao Yichen, her bright eyes looking directly at the woman in front of her, "We have detected abnormal energy fluctuations here, so we came to check the situation."

The woman narrowed her eyes slightly, as if evaluating the truth of Chu Mengmeng's words. After a moment, she raised a meaningful smile and slowly said, "City Guardians? Of course I know you. A group of brave young people who fight against the dark forces at all costs to protect this city."

"You know us?" Xiao Yichen frowned slightly, alarm bells rang in his heart. The identity of their city guardians has always been secret, who is this mysterious woman, and how can she know them so well?

"Don't be nervous," the woman seemed to see through Xiao Yichen's doubts, and her tone remained calm, "We are friends, not enemies."

"Friend?" Lin Wan'er couldn't help but ask, "Who are you? Why are you playing tricks here?"

The woman did not directly answer Lin Wan'er's question, but turned her gaze to Chu Mengmeng and said, "I have heard that Miss Chu is very smart. After meeting her today, I can see that her reputation is well-deserved. My name is Phantom, and on behalf of my organization, I would like to invite you."

"Invitation?" Chu Mengmeng was slightly stunned. "What invitation?"

"We have been secretly observing you and admire your courage and wisdom," the Phantom said sincerely, "We believe that you are qualified to join us and fight against the coming darkness together."

"Fight the darkness together?" Su Mubai sneered, "That sounds good! Who knows where you are from? What's your purpose?"

Phantom ignored Su Mubai's doubts and continued, "I know you have a lot of questions in your mind, but I can only tell you that we, like you, hope that the world can return to peace. As for the rest, you will know when the time is right."

"You mean, you want us to trust a person of unknown origin?" Xiao Yichen's tone was full of doubt.

"Believe it or not," Phantom smiled faintly, "But I can show you something that may dispel your doubts."

After saying that, Phantom took out an antique metal badge from his arms. On the badge was engraved a phoenix with its wings spread out, ready to fly, which looked lifelike.

"This badge..." Chu Mengmeng widened her eyes, as if she had thought of something, with an incredible look on her face.

 Chapter 122: An unexpected reunion and a new journey

"This badge..." Chu Mengmeng murmured to herself, her eyes fixed on the metal badge in Phantom's hand. The lifelike phoenix seemed to be about to break through the air. A familiar feeling surged in her heart, but she couldn't grasp it or touch it.

Xiao Yichen keenly noticed Chu Mengmeng's abnormality, gently held her hand, and asked in a low voice: "Mengmeng, what's wrong with you? Do you recognize this badge?"

Chu Mengmeng shook her head, then nodded, frowning as if trying to recall something. "I seem to have seen it somewhere, but I can't remember where..."

Phantom took the badge back, with a meaningful smile on his face. "It seems that Miss Chu has recognized the origin of this badge. Yes, we are followers of the Light Messenger just like you, and we are committed to protecting world peace and justice."

“The Messenger of Light?” Lin Wan’er exclaimed, “You mean the Messenger of Light who is said to have great power and can fight against all evil forces?”

Phantom nodded slightly, agreeing with Lin Wan'er's guess.

Su Mubai was still full of suspicion. "Since you are followers of the Light Messenger, why don't you show up directly, but hide instead?"

"The time has not come yet." Phantom's tone left no room for doubt, "Our existence cannot be made public for the time being."

"We need time to think about it." Xiao Yichen decisively interrupted Meiying's words. He knew very well that this matter was of great importance and must be treated with caution.

The Phantom did not force them to make an immediate decision, but left a meaningful sentence: "The footsteps of darkness are getting closer and closer, and you don't have much time left." After that, he disappeared into the night, as if he had never appeared.

After watching Phantom leave, Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen immediately gathered the team members and told everyone in detail what happened tonight.

"The Messenger of Light? This is too unbelievable!" Lin Wan'er couldn't help but exclaimed after hearing this.

"No matter who they are, we can't trust them easily." Su Mubai remained vigilant.

"I agree with Su Mubai's point of view." Xiao Yichen analyzed calmly, "Their appearance was too sudden, and their purpose is unclear. We must remain vigilant."

"But what if they are really followers of the Lightbringer?" Lin Wan'er hesitated. "If we refuse their cooperation, will we miss an opportunity to fight against evil?"

"Wan'er has a point." Chu Mengmeng pondered for a moment and said, "We can't give up any possible opportunity just because we are afraid of risks. I think we can temporarily accept their cooperation proposal, but we must maintain independent judgment and never let them lead us by the nose."

After a heated discussion, everyone finally agreed with Chu Mengmeng's proposal.

A new adventure is about to begin. What awaits Chu Mengmeng and Xiao Yichen are unknown challenges and a more confusing truth.