Chapter 158: Let Me See What's Going On

A massive crack ran all the way from the circular roof down to the wall, twisting and bulging the red bricks and cement that made up the structure. The uneven, brick-tiled floor was littered with debris, earth, and shards of glass.

Directly ahead in the room stood a small, elevated platform, which likely once served as an altar for a deity. Now, however, it was strewn with a few charred bones, surrounded by fragments of wooden pews.

Gao Wu surveyed the spacious room. Originally a cathedral, it had miraculously managed to remain largely intact despite a century of destructive warfare.

The entrance to the secret realm was located on the wall beside the altar. Its position was relatively concealed, and judging by its state, it had not yet been discovered by ferocious beasts or alien races.

Only the barbecue-like bones left on the altar looked uncomfortably human...

Gao Wu observed his surroundings. The architectural style here was entirely different from that of Dachang Town, sharing only a cold, lifeless, and oppressive atmosphere.

He had not entered the secret realm first out of sheer reckless bravery; rather, he had used his Yin Spirit to scout ahead and confirmed that there were no anomalies.

Since he could not explain the Yin Spirit, he simply took the lead in entering the realm. Action saved much more time and effort than verbal explanations.

Following closely behind him, Bai Ying, Zhang Ping, and Yang Dahai quickly searched the building. Finding no lurking werewolves, all three of them breathed a sigh of relief.

As long as they did not charge blindly into an ambush of werewolves, relying on their advanced weaponry and equipment, safely retreating from the secret realm would not be difficult.

Holding binoculars, the three men carefully peered out the windows. The long street outside was silent, with various broken building materials lying motionlessly on the ground, save for a scrap of torn fabric tumbling back and forth in the wind.

Gao Wu also approached a window to observe the outside. He could see that the scrap of fabric was actually a piece of a combat uniform, and huge craters were visible everywhere along the street and on the surrounding buildings.

It was easy to imagine the fierce battles that must have taken place here.

"Over the past few months, the number of alien races has grown steadily, and the count of high-level werewolf warriors has increased rapidly. Drones and other electronic equipment have suffered severe interference. Their sudden advances inflicted heavy losses on our forces, leaving us with no choice but to withdraw from the secret realm..."

Bai Ying whispered an overview of the secret realm through his helmet's wireless microphone, primarily intending it for Bai Yuzhen. In his view, the other young man was merely a hothead.

Courage was commendable, but that kid seemed more reckless than brave...

Yang Dahai and Zhang Ping had already opened the heavy equipment cases and set up a compact wireless communication workstation.

With this comprehensive workstation, the effective range for wireless communication, including synchronized video, was three kilometers. Though the latency was relatively high and it frequently suffered from severe interference, it was more than sufficient for reconnaissance work.

"Werewolves generally sleep by day and roam by night. Their night vision is exceptional, and the electromagnetic interference at night increases a hundredfold, rendering almost all electronic equipment unusable..."

Bai Ying dutifully explained the situation to Bai Yuzhen, while Zhang Ping operated the drone, sending it out into the open.

The footage captured by the drone was displayed on a tablet monitor. Despite a high level of digital noise, the image was reasonably clear.

Gao Wu drew closer, watching with keen interest. The drone reconnaissance mode was extremely convenient, fast, and cost-effective.

The drone first circled the ruined cathedral to confirm the surrounding environment before ascending to a higher altitude to film the area above.

Linked to the real world via a wired connection to the wireless communication workstation, the observation data, including audio and video, was transmitted back in real time.

Command departments at all levels could access this live information according to their respective clearance levels.

Battalion Commander Yan Xiling of the 341st Battalion was watching the surveillance feed in the command room. As the highest-ranking commander on site, his clearance level was extremely high, allowing him to receive all wireless communication data.

He even had the authority to issue orders to the reconnaissance team.

However, the directive from above was very clear: Bai Yuzhen was under the direct command of the military headquarters, and his only task was to provide full cooperation.

Seeing that the secret realm was still relatively calm, Yan Xiling also let out a breath of relief. He genuinely feared seeing white-furred werewolves everywhere the moment they stepped inside—that would spell disaster!

"Could you take a look at that low red-brick building?"

Gao Wu gazed into the distance using his Yin Spirit, spotting numerous auras of life. He suggested to Zhang Ping that they lower the drone's altitude to investigate.

Zhang Ping glanced at Bai Ying, who in turn looked at Bai Yuzhen. Bai Yuzhen nodded.

Such a minor request could easily be accommodated. Although Gao Wu was accompanying them on this trial, he was not her subordinate, and she had no authority to order him around.

After all, Gao Wu had been recommended by Lu Yuan, and his special mission had been personally approved by Corps Commander Bai Tiefie.

Strictly speaking, the two parties were merely traveling companions by coincidence, each with their own objectives.

The drone descended to the height of the second floor, capturing a vast expanse of white through a shattered window...

Then, the screen went black.

Bai Ying’s expression shifted slightly. He zoomed in on the tablet display; although it was riddled with static, he could roughly make out that the interior was packed with white-furred werewolves.

These werewolves possessed exceptionally strong physiques, wearing only lightweight leather vests even in the dead of winter. At this hour, they must have removed their clothing to sleep, accounting for the expanse of pale flesh visible on screen.

For warriors, the buzzing sound of a drone in flight was piercingly loud. Signal latency was severe here, and by the time Zhang Ping attempted to pull the drone back up, it was already too late.

"These werewolves have extremely sharp senses of smell, hearing, and sight. They even recognize drones. We need to prepare to fall back..." Bai Ying said with a serious expression.

Losing a drone was of little consequence; the critical thing was not to let the werewolves discover the entrance to the secret realm.

Bai Yuzhen nodded. "Prepare for withdrawal." Since this was her first time entering, she still needed to assess the situation further.

Gao Wu also nodded. "You guys go ahead. I'll go take a look at what's going on."

He added, "Don't worry about me."

With that, he leaped gracefully out the window and rapidly advanced in the direction where the werewolves had been spotted.

"What?!" Bai Ying was utterly dumbfounded. What on earth was this kid trying to do? Even during a trial, you couldn't just charge straight ahead like that—the opposition consisted of a pack of werewolves!

And that was only a small group they had spotted. There was no telling how many more werewolves were hiding inside the buildings.

Bai Ying looked at Bai Yuzhen, his expression silently asking whether she intended to intervene.

Bai Yuzhen pondered for a moment before shaking her head. "Leave him be, and leave me be as well. Focus on preparing for the retreat."

"Understood." Regardless of whether Bai Yuzhen meant it sincerely or not, since she had spoken, everything was being recorded by the camera, and in a moment of crisis, he would no longer concern himself with Bai Ying or Gao Wu.

"Launch another drone and assess the situation first," Bai Ying commanded Zhang Ping.

Whether that kid was just a reckless hothead or not, he could serve as a probe to test the werewolves' reactions. The drone took to the air once more, this time flying at an altitude of dozens of meters, its camera locked onto Gao Wu as he marched down the long street.

The werewolves reacted swiftly. Spotting Gao Wu strolling toward them in such an overbearing manner, a white-furred werewolf shrieked in excitement and hurled itself out a second-story window.

Following closely behind it were over a dozen towering werewolves. They had the heads of beasts and the bodies of men, standing tall and robust with bulging muscles. They wore crude black leather trousers or went entirely naked, exposing dense, coarse white fur all over their bodies.

It had been a long time since they had last seen living humans, and in their eyes, humans were exceptionally appetizing—tender and juicy.

The pack of werewolves rushed forward in a scramble, each fearing they would be left behind and miss out on the meal.

Gao Wu abandoned the thought of drawing his gun, suppressing the urge to draw his sword as well. He had come to the secret realm specifically to temper his "Nine Transformations of the Heavenly Dragon."

At his current level, he was not yet capable of executing the variations of the technique using a sword.

The werewolf at the very front moved with blinding speed, closing the distance to Gao Wu in the blink of an eye and reaching out to grab him by the throat.

Clearly a warrior, the werewolf stimulated its inner source energy just as it struck, causing its speed to spike abruptly. Its fur-covered hand ended in razor-sharp nails, and the force of its claw stroke made the air shriek under the pressure.

Gao Wu waited until the claw was nearly touching his throat before blocking it with a horizontal sweep of his arm, deflecting the enemy's attack. Following up instantly, he pressed his palm against the werewolf's iron-hard chest muscles.

While he had used only physical muscle strength to deflect the arm, his follow-up strike utilized the principle of "The Subduing Dragon Regrets." The physical strength channeled into source energy made the palm strike both swift and immensely powerful, while simultaneously pulling the force inward by three tenths.

Crushed by the concentrated palm force, the werewolf's internal organs instantly ruptured. The surging power blasted its three-hundred-pound body backward like a massive human cannonball, slamming heavily into the charging werewolves behind it.

Under the impact of such violent force, the leading pair of werewolves suffered shattered and twisted bones, passing out cold on the spot. The momentum of the remaining pack was abruptly halted as well.

Gao Wu, advancing directly behind the human cannonball, had already plunged into the crowd. His palm strikes were light, swift, and agile; moving like a swimming dragon, he wove through the midst of the werewolves.

Wherever he passed, the werewolves collapsed at the touch of his palms, left without the slightest room for struggle.

In less than five seconds, all seventeen werewolves lay sprawled across the long street, utterly limp and dead beyond doubt.

Having casually dispatched so many werewolves, Gao Wu felt a twinge of boredom. For all their formidable appearance and brawny physiques, these creatures were utterly vulnerable!

Bai Ying, Zhang Ping, and Yang Dahai, watching the video feed from behind, were completely dumbfounded. *Good grief, where did this kid come from? He is insanely savage!*

Bai Yuzhen’s gaze also grew a great deal more solemn. Was Gao Wu truly just a primary-tier warrior?