Hunter of Mysterious Creature-Chapter 404 - 46: Field Team 67

"So... so are we really going in?" Jiang Yu hesitated.

"I don’t know. The command center hasn’t given definite orders... basically, it means we should act according to circumstances," Yin Xiang said. "I think the team leader is currently discussing this issue with the officers of the unit."

Just as Yin Xiang mentioned, two minutes later, the voice of the leader of the 67th Field Operations Team rang out on the group communication channel: "Attention all agents, the mission details have changed. We are now responsible for investigating Factory 105 and searching for the missing Hunters. The allied forces will provide us with security and fire support. We’re still two kilometers away from the target... everyone do a final check of your equipment to ensure nothing goes wrong."

The leader’s voice was youthful, his speech before the mission formally structured—truth be told, just a few months ago, this leader was just another newbie at the Mysterious Creature Research Institute’s Field Operations Department, often nodding and bowing to seniors. Now, he has transformed into a leader overseeing a dozen people.

The reason was simple, because the old veterans more experienced and better qualified than him have almost all sacrificed themselves... As someone who joined before the major recruitment drive, anyone who has survived until now could more or less find themselves in a position of leadership.

The deputy leader of this 67th Field Operations Team is the former investigator who just transferred from the Investigation Bureau to the Mysterious Creature Research Institute—now a field agent—Yin Xiang.

"Sigh... the leader..." Yin Xiang said bitterly, "Why did he take the most tiring, hardest, and most dangerous job upon us?"

"What’s... what’s wrong with that?" Jiang Yu asked puzzled, "We’re the Field Operations Department of the Mysterious Creature Research Institute; dealing with mysterious creatures is our job, and in terms of experience, we should be even more seasoned than those military professionals..."

"Seasoned my ass..." Yin Xiang sighed, "You know that apart from the leader and me, all other team members were recruited during the major recruitment drive, what experience do they have? In terms of firepower, we’re not as good as those soldiers... they’ve got machine guns, tanks, and tactical mechas. What do we have?"

Yin Xiang pulled out his personal pistol from his waist—a nine-millimeter semi-automatic handgun, with a nine-round magazine—and casually tossed it onto the empty co-driver seat.

"Is the leader really considering letting those heavily armed soldiers stand by and watch while we take these little pistols into the factory to handle the mysterious creature?" Yin Xiang couldn’t help but complain.

"We..." Jiang Yu glanced at the parallel armored car, where soldiers clad in heavy exoskeletons almost indistinguishable from powered armor clutched tightly onto the 12.5-millimeter heavy machine gun mounted on the roof, "We should be able to borrow some equipment from them, right?"

"Borrowing a few guns is possible, but does swapping a handgun for a rifle make much difference?" Yin Xiang shook his head, "In my opinion, why not just drive a tank in, blasting all the way, and destroy everything moving in sight, leveling the entire factory...?"

"Then we wouldn’t be needed for this mission, just bomb the plant with drones." Ling Xiao said blandly, "The leader has mentioned that the Factory 105 production line is significant, and our ultimate aim is to restore the factory’s production, not to eliminate the mysterious creature."

"True, I forgot about that," Yin Xiang slapped his forehead, "What a headache... there’s no telling if the mysterious creature inside has already destroyed the equipment... frankly, while I’m not afraid to die, I’m afraid of dying without any value."

"We’re here." Ling Xiao suddenly said.

The armored off-road vehicle in front of Yin Xiang had already stopped, and Yin Xiang followed suit, stepping on the brakes.

The soldiers and field agents swarmed off the vehicles, while Yin Xiang climbed onto the roof, gazing into the distance through his binoculars.

Being downstream from the Reverse Meme Potion, Factory 105 was not set up in a crowded industrial park but had a plot designated along the suburban highway for factory construction, with several kilometers of deserted land surrounding it. The only visible man-made structures were the four-lane highway beneath Yin Xiang’s feet and the steel-structured power line supports beside it.

The binoculars showed Factory 105 exactly as captured by the drone; the entire factory appeared normal apart from the absence of people.

The factory gates were shut, with an electronic warning on the door stating, "Production underway, unauthorized persons keep out."

"Hasn’t the factory’s power been cut?" Yin Xiang mumbled.

"No." A young man in black-gray combat attire, wearing a carbon-fiber helmet, approached, carrying two large bags, "Not only is the power intact, but all communication lines are operational, just no one is answering the phone."

"Then can’t we access the factory’s security system? There should be cameras everywhere inside the factory, right?" Yin Xiang lowered the binoculars and asked.

"The security system encountered an issue and is locked down, completely inaccessible." The young man shook his head, "Even the permissions from the Research Institute and Management Committee can’t be recognized."

"Tsk... that’s really frustrating." Yin Xiang returned the binoculars to his bag and climbed down from the roof, "Leader, did you even discuss properly with them? Are you planning to have tanks and mechas just watch from the outside while we, without even exoskeletons, charge inside to engage mysterious creatures?"