They had barely exchanged a few words when the distant sound of a massive thunderstorm erupted once again.

  The ground trembled from the vibrations.

  Both the Cheetah Team and the White Dove Team were visibly excited, their gazes fixed on the direction where the thunderstorm had burst forth.

  “It must be Captain Qin’s ability! So cool!”

  “The 3A Team is just on another level!”

  “That ability is insanely awesome! I’m so jealous. Imagine how amazing it would be to have a lightning-based ability!”

  “I think Captain Qin’s ability is called Lightning Storm, right?”

  Mu Mei glanced in the direction of the commotion and couldn’t help but smile. “This place is like a playground for his Lightning Storm ability. Unfortunately, all this water is both an advantage and a limitation.”

  But at least without allies nearby, he could unleash his full power without restraint.

  Mu Mei’s expression turned serious as she warned the newcomers, “Don’t get too close to the 3A Team and disrupt their performance.”

  The Cheetah and White Dove teams obediently nodded, not daring to entertain any reckless ideas.

  If they got too close and ended up as collateral damage, it would be a tragic mistake. After all, the world of the elites was not one they could casually step into; they simply couldn’t keep up with their pace.

  Over on Qin Luo’s side, he had just brought down the mutated octopus. His ability had only consumed about a third of its energy.

  In this environment, his ability consumed less energy.

  This was because the three necessary conditions for generating a thunderstorm were present—ample moisture, unstable atmospheric layers, and sufficient upward motion or a triggering mechanism.

  These three conditions respectively provided the water, energy, and driving force needed for a thunderstorm to form. When all three were met, the unstable energy in the atmosphere would be released, resulting in a thunderstorm.

  In such an environment, Qin Luo’s ability had a significant advantage. However, the abundance of water was also a limitation. Teammates had to be extremely cautious when approaching him.

  Chen Xiaofei, accompanied by Xu Duoduo, stayed far away, while Wang Weihu drove Bai Shu to a safe distance. This allowed Qin Luo to unleash his power freely, thoroughly enjoying the fight.

  He felt completely invigorated!

  “Ah, that’s the stuff! After being stifled for so long, my whole body was aching. Nothing beats a good fight!” Qin Luo exclaimed with satisfaction.

  Wang Weihu drove the vehicle back, and Bai Shu stepped out to replay the recorded footage. “Captain Qin, don’t you think your ability has grown stronger? Regardless of the environment, I think you should test your ability level again when we return.”

  Meanwhile, Chen Xiaofei and Xu Duoduo had already approached the electrocuted, massive octopus.

  The two squatted next to the enormous creature.

  Chen Xiaofei poked at it with a crowbar. “This thing doesn’t eat people, right? What a waste if it does! Just think of how many octopus takoyaki balls we could make! Or grilled octopus legs, boiled octopus, lemon-marinated octopus…”

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  Xu Duoduo began drooling as her mind raced through various octopus recipes and ingredient lists. Suddenly, she stood up with a calm expression.

  Chen Xiaofei, still lamenting whether the octopus was edible, looked up in confusion. “Huh? Squad Leader, what are you doing?”

  Xu Duoduo gave him a calm glance, then pulled out a long knife from her spatial storage. With a dramatic “shiiing,” she unsheathed it and, with a decisive “thunk,” plunged it into the octopus. She began dissecting it on the spot!

  What kind of terrifying scene was this?

  It suddenly reminded everyone of the time she went on a rampage slaughtering mutated monkeys. The imagery was both horrifying and strangely mesmerizing.

  Chen Xiaofei was dumbfounded, his mouth agape for a long moment before he snapped it shut, suddenly remembering to avoid getting sprayed by the octopus’s ink. He quickly stepped back.

  However, the anticipated ink spray never came. Instead, Xu Duoduo continued cutting up the octopus, carefully avoiding rupturing the ink sac. She even set the ink sac aside separately. The little zombie tilted her head thoughtfully, deciding that the ink sac could be sold to the Research Institute for study. Satisfied with her frugal decision, she nodded to herself.

  Truly, she was a thrifty little zombie.

  After opening up the octopus, they found its insides filled with fish, clams, crabs, and other sea creatures.

  There was nothing horrifying inside.

  Excellent.

  It was a mutated giant octopus that hadn’t eaten humans yet, which meant it was safe for consumption.

  Finally, Xu Duoduo extracted a blue two-star mutation core. It looked beautiful and smelled delicious, like dried squid.

  She swallowed hard.

  Just as she was about to savor her find, she was suddenly lifted off the ground. Qin Luo made a sound of disapproval. “Xu Duoduo, you’re covered in blue blood. You look like a dirty little zombie right now.”

  Chen Xiaofei finally snapped out of his daze. “Captain Qin, Squad Leader is seriously impressive!”

  Her courage might seem small at times, but when it mattered, it was immense.

  Qin Luo glanced at the blue two-star mutation core in her hand. “Oh, it’s a two-star core. No wonder it wasn’t too difficult to deal with. The three-star ones are much tougher.”

  Wang Weihu and Bai Shu also approached. Bai Shu was busy asking Wang Weihu to help him film the scene for documentation. “This big guy is worth a fortune. Two-star mutated animals are going for 1,000 points per pound. This thing must be worth a fortune if sold.”

  Chen Xiaofei immediately objected. “No way, we’re keeping it to eat! How often do you get a chance to eat such a rare giant octopus?”

  Especially a mutated seafood creature that hadn’t eaten humans!

  Xu Duoduo also struggled a bit and let out an “Mhm!” She wanted to eat it too.

  Qin Luo, Bai Shu, and Wang Weihu laughed. “Alright, we’ll keep it for ourselves.”

  After all, the 3A Team wasn’t short on points.

  As for the mutation core from the creature, it was already an unspoken rule that Xu Duoduo would keep it. Zombie and monster cores were reserved for team use, but mutation cores from animals were hers to take.

  This two-star mutated octopus had been dealt with relatively easily. Nearby, a few smaller teams had heard the commotion and rushed over, only to be stunned by the sight of the giant octopus.

  “Holy crap, that thing is massive!”

  “A two-star mutated octopus, and the 3A Team took it down just like that? Amazing!”

  “Why’d you cut it open? Wouldn’t it be worth more if you brought it back whole?”

  “This thing is seriously huge!”

  The passing combat teams couldn’t hide their envy. This single catch was enough to make a fortune. No wonder people said the 3A Team was ridiculously wealthy. Their luck was just too good.

  For combat teams, income came not only from the high bonuses Headquarters awarded for completing missions but also from the materials they collected during outings. These could be exchanged for points upon returning to the base. Although this exchange was semi-mandatory, teams could still choose to keep a portion of what they wanted.

  And points were important! As the current currency, they were indispensable.

  Chen Xiaofei felt smug and showed off to the others. “How’s that? Impressive, right? What? Sell it? No way. We’re not selling it or handing it over to Headquarters. This one’s for us to eat.”

  The other teams had just happened upon the scene, checking if any support was needed. But as their attention shifted from the giant octopus to the surrounding area, they were even more shocked by the pockmarked walls and the absence of the starfish that had previously covered the area.

  “Wait, I passed by earlier, and there were starfish everywhere. Now they’re all gone?”

  “You cleared them out?”

  “That fast? Are you even human? Too strong. Unstoppable.”

  “Incredible.”

  Wang Weihu simply laughed it off to prevent Chen Xiaofei from saying anything foolish. “Not bad. These things are weak to explosives; one blast, and they all fell into the water.”

  Bai Shu grabbed Chen Xiaofei to help him film, replacing Wang Weihu. Wearing gloves, Bai Shu collected samples, preparing to write a report and upload it to the forum later.

  Meanwhile, Qin Luo was holding the little zombie by her collar, urging Xu Duoduo to get into the car and change her clothes. She didn’t seem to care about catching a cold.

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