Chapter 138: Sudden Mutation

Feng Yang was in an absolutely ecstatic mood. Although he had sacrificed his entire Blazing Mercenary Corps, which he had painstakingly built over many years, what did that matter compared to the spoils before him? As long as he dealt with the Sky-Piercing Stone Beast that was currently undergoing a breakthrough, all these spirit beasts would be his. The wealth they represented was staggering! Once he processed this haul, he would never have to be a mercenary again. He could live a life of luxury until his dying day. Most importantly, he didn't have to share a single thing; everything belonged to him alone.

Wait, it wasn't time to celebrate just yet. The Stone Beast leader still needed to be dealt with. If he didn't strike now and the beast successfully broke through, he would be no match for it. Just as Feng Yang prepared to act, he suddenly grew vigilant. He sensed movement behind him.

The members of the War Wolf Mercenary Corps had arrived. Lin Xiao had been observing the battlefield from afar, witnessing everything. He had not expected the Blazing Mercenary Corps to end up in such a mutually destructive stalemate. In particular, he had seen Feng Yang use his own brothers as cannon fodder. That man truly deserved to die. He had communicated the situation to Zi Shu and the others, and upon learning that Feng Yang was the sole survivor, they had stopped concealing themselves and rushed to the scene at full speed.

When Feng Yang saw Zi Shu and his team, his expression turned ghastly. He recognized them—they were both B-grade mercenary groups operating in the capital, and they had crossed paths before. He hadn't expected that while he was playing the role of the oriole stalking the mantis, he himself had been hunted. Was this the classic case of "stealing a chicken only to lose the rice"? Still, knowing the War Wolf Mercenary Corps had a good reputation, Feng Yang held onto a shred of hope.

"Brothers of the War Wolf, you saw it—my men fought to the death for these. You aren't planning to swoop in and steal the fruits of our labor, are you?"

Zi Shu curled his lip. Had he not known what Feng Yang had done, he might have felt guilty and refused to take advantage of the situation. His military code of honor would have prevented him from looting. But now that he knew Feng Yang’s true nature, he felt no remorse. He ignored Feng Yang and gave orders to his team. "Don't just stand there! Attack the Stone Beast leader. If it completes its breakthrough, we might all end up dead here."

Zi Shu fired a wind-element spiritual technique at the beast. He would not make the same mistake as Feng Yang; the beast had been breaking through for a while, and he could feel the surrounding spiritual energy rushing toward it. The priority was to kill the leader; as for Feng Yang, a level-six fire-element user, he wasn't worth the trouble. The others followed suit, though the melee fighters held back as ordered—partly because the beast’s physical defense was high, and partly to keep an eye on Feng Yang.

Seeing himself ignored, Feng Yang’s face turned bright red. What kind of people were these War Wolves? He had spoken to them politely, and they hadn't even deigned to respond. He felt a pang of regret. If he hadn't sent his men to their deaths, he wouldn't be forced to endure such humiliation now.

Shen Hou watched Feng Yang’s face shift between shades of green and purple and found it amusing. "Tell me, Commander Feng, how did you end up a one-man army? Were you planning on hogging all this for yourself?"

"Brother Monkey, what are you saying? You can see these are high-level spirit beasts. We fought a fierce battle to bring them down. Surely you won't leave me with nothing? I have to provide pensions for the families of my fallen brothers."

Shen Hou was surprised that Feng Yang was still angling for a cut, even inventing a righteous excuse. Having heard of the Blazing Mercenary Corps' reputation, he knew better. "Tsk, tsk, pensions? I heard your lot never pays them. I even heard you beat up the families who came to demand them."

With his thin veil of decency torn away, Feng Yang felt his face burn, but his hide was thick. "Brother Monkey, don't listen to rumors. That never happened."

"Hmph! You know the truth. Just stay aside and don't force our hand!"

Feng Yang was furious but dared not act. He stood there silently; though he was level six, opposing the entire War Wolf team was suicide. Zi Shu paid him no mind, focusing his attacks on the Stone Beast. Under their barrage, rock shards flew from the beast, and it suffered heavy injuries, but the breakthrough was not interrupted. Instead, the spiritual energy gathered even faster.

"Everyone, full output! We must take it down; I have a bad feeling about this!"

The team redoubled their efforts. Feng Yang watched, secretly relieved that the War Wolves had arrived. If their concentrated fire couldn't stop the beast, he certainly couldn't have done it alone. As the others focused on the beast, Feng Yang’s eyes glinted with malice. These people wanted to steal his prize? He had been charging up a wide-range spiritual technique. If he unleashed it now, he could catch them off guard and kill a few. If he couldn't have it, nobody would!

He prepared to strike, planning to flee in the chaos. Just as he raised his hand, a bullet pierced his skull. He died without ever understanding how he had been killed while the War Wolves were clearly focused on the beast.

The movement caught the team’s attention. Before they could speak, Lin Xiao’s voice came through their communicators: "Guys, next time, can you just kill the guy immediately? Do you really feel safe leaving someone like that alive? If I hadn't stepped in, he would have ambushed you. *Ugh!*"

Lin Xiao had seen dead bodies before, but this was his first time killing. It was a completely different experience. He managed a brief explanation before he couldn't hold back his nausea.

Seeing Feng Yang’s raised hand, the team realized Lin Xiao was right. They had been saved by him again. Zi Shu was struck by a new realization regarding Lin Xiao’s abilities. The distance from the small hill was at least two thousand meters; none of them could have made that headshot. As Lin Xiao continued to gag over the radio, they truly wondered if he had been a soldier all along.