"Like hell it's a coincidence. Not a single decent person comes from your Shenyin company," Han Xiaoyu shot Xu Que a glance and said, "Uncle, this guy's bad news. Do you want to switch teams with us?"
Before Xu Que could respond, Wei Yanqing interjected, clearly annoyed.
"Han Xiaoyu, what's that supposed to mean? Are you saying there isn't a single decent person from Shenyin?"
Turning her head, Han Xiaoyu retorted, "You know perfectly well what you've done. Don't assume everyone is blind to it."
"People die in these dimensional rifts, and that's normal. Don't act as though your team has never suffered losses," Wei Yanqing sneered.
"At least we don't throw lives away like trash!" Han Xiaoyu shot back, her eyes blazing with anger.
Xu Que ignored their quarrel, his attention fixed on Wei Yanqing. Honestly, he couldn't recall meeting him before or ever hearing of him.
"Shenyin Company sure lives up to its name…"
As Xu Que pondered, Han Xiaoyu slammed her hand on the table.
"Uncle, whose side are you on?"
Huh?
Xu Que looked from Han Xiaoyu to Wei Yanqing, bewildered.
"Brother, join us at Shenyin; we guarantee you'll live like a king," Wei Yanqing urged with a smile.
Instead of responding, Xu Que rose and stepped out of the tent. To be honest, neither option appealed to him.
Han Xiaoyu, though sincere, lacked tact. As for Wei Yanqing, though seemingly capable, was nothing but cunning—a liability in a team venture.
Rather than wasting time with them, Xu Que approached a nearby soldier and asked, "Are we waiting for more people for this team?"
"Yes, you'll need to wait for another three or four teammates," the soldier replied after checking the roster.
Xu Que stifled a sigh. He was beginning to question the logic of these group assignments, knowing that such mismatched teams could lead to serious issues.
While Xu Que considered simply breaking into the dimensional rift alone, a team of two men and a woman approached.
"Hello, we're from Honor Hunters Company. Is this the waiting area?" the woman asked.
"Yes, please show your roster sheet," the soldier replied.
After confirming their entry, the soldier gave a formal salute. "You're all set. A guide will escort you shortly."
The woman glanced at Xu Que, a question in her eyes, but before she could speak, a lieutenant walked over.
"Here's the resource distribution contract. Please sign," the lieutenant instructed.
Xu Que and the woman scanned the document and signed quickly.
Wei Yanqing and Han Xiaoyu, having heard the team was now complete, ended their argument and joined them.
"Pretty lady, they're from Shenyin. I don't need to explain further, do I?" Han Xiaoyu muttered as she signed.
The woman simply smiled, her gaze fixed on Xu Que.
After all parties had signed, the lieutenant spoke into his radio, "Strike team ready. Open the gate."
With a signal to proceed, the team stepped forward, crossing into the dimensional rift one by one, their figures vanishing as they passed through the portal.
Once everyone had crossed, the portal's surface should have stilled like calm water after a ripple, as was customary. But instead, the entryway glowed red, and the stabilizing barrier turned an ominous black.
"Why did the rift turn red?" a soldier murmured, curiosity piqued.
"Who knows? They're in there now; it's out of our hands," another soldier replied.
Inside the Dimensional Rift
Snowflakes drifted from the sky, blanketing everything in white. Xu Que and his companions were awestruck by the surreal beauty of the scene.
"This is gorgeous!" Han Xiaoyu exclaimed.
"Wait, something's off," Wei Yanqing scrutinized their surroundings. "We're in a southern region—this rift should connect to a verdant world, not a winter landscape."
"You're right. This feels strange," murmured one of the Honor Hunters men.
Xu Que remained silent, frowning as he observed the area. This wasn't the realm he was supposed to conquer; something was clearly amiss.
Just as Xu Que checked his timer, Han Xiaoyu shouted, "Check your return stones!"
At her words, everyone immediately examined their belongings, finding their return stones turned gray and unusable.
"What's going on? The return stones aren't working!" said a member of Shenyin, alarmed.
"This is bad—we're stuck here!" another muttered anxiously.
Xu Que's heart sank. He recognized this phenomenon all too well—spatial overlay!
"Damn it, what luck… how did I end up in a spatial overlay?"
Spatial overlay was no trivial matter; it occurred when two rift portals intersected, forcing participants to confront challenges from both worlds. To escape, they would need to defeat two final bosses or endure until the rift destabilized completely—a ninety-eight-hour wait, while the current rift had only sixty hours left before eruption.
Now it was clear to him why he hadn't encountered Han Xiaoyu and the others in his previous life—they'd perished here.
Unease spread among the group as they surveyed their surroundings, each hiding a flicker of dread.
Just then, Xu Que's gaze locked on a distant figure concealed in the snow.
"No movement detected…"
Everywhere was blanketed in snow, even the thick layers accumulating on distant branches.
As Xu Que approached a nearby tree, he noticed Wei Yanqing watching him with a calculating gaze. Their eyes met, but neither spoke, each turning away without a word.
Han Xiaoyu ran up beside Xu Que, saying, "Uncle, you're with the Zhatiang Company. You must know what's going on, right?"
Before Xu Que could answer, he sensed something—a chilling, hostile aura from his right.
"Swish!"
He snatched an arrow from mid-air, mere inches from Han Xiaoyu's head.
Stunned, Han Xiaoyu's eyes went wide, frozen in shock. Realization dawning, she let out a scream.
Before Xu Que could silence her, several more arrows sliced through the air.
Screams of pain erupted in their group as the arrows hit home.
"Aghh!"
"Ughh…"
An older man, arrows embedded in his flesh, cried out in agony.
Beside him, a man lay dead, blood oozing from an arrow lodged in his temple.
"Down, everyone!"
Though panicked, the group immediately dropped to the ground at the command.
"What's happening? Who's attacking us?"
"It's those bastards!" Wei Yanqing shouted, pointing at a distant tree.
Xu Que had already fixed his gaze in that direction.
Amidst the snowy landscape, he could just make out four figures standing among the trees.