This assassin is upright

Chapter 466 The Secret Beneath the Ruins
"Click——"

In the darkness, a foot crushed a stone that had long been weathered and made extremely fragile, and a crisp sound broke the silence that was filled only with the sound of footsteps.

"There really is nothing here." Black Hawk stared around, his sharp, eagle-like eyes revealing every detail of the darkness, but there was nothing that could pique his interest or be considered valuable.

Iron Tower is right. After so many excavation teams have visited, this place has been dug up to the bone, and even the smallest pieces of value have been dug up.

Yu Zhun remained silent, taking a deep sniff of the musty and damp air in the ruins of the mining area. With his greatly enhanced senses after breaking through to the third-tier evolver level, he accurately identified the few remaining traces of human activity.

"The last group of people came in about a week ago."

The 37th district is vast, with countless excavation teams inside. It's an open ruin that can be freely entered and explored without any cost. The last person to come here was a week ago, which shows how desolate this place is.

"I mean, can we really find something here?" the mouse muttered under its breath. "Or maybe we should just walk around and leave, then go up and tell those guys who were following us that we didn't find anything!"

"Do you think they'll believe us?" Wolf Fang said quietly. "Yu Zhun is right. When others doubt that we have something, we'd better really have it."

At this point, he turned to look at the iron tower, who had become somewhat silent after entering the ruins, and asked, "Iron Tower, are you familiar with this place?"

“I’ve never been inside; I’ve only seen the entrance to the ruins from the outside a few times.” The tower shook its head. “I’m no more familiar with this place than you are.”

"Did Higgins mention anything else related to this mining ruin back then?" Yu Zhun suddenly asked. "Iron Tower, try to recall."

“Okay.” Iron Tower nodded, frowning in thought as he followed the others deeper into the mine ruins.

Halfway there, he suddenly stopped, his furrowed brows relaxing slightly. "I think I've thought of something."

Everyone stopped in their tracks and turned to look at the Eiffel Tower, waiting for him to continue.

“Higgins once mentioned it,” Eiffel Tower said slowly, “that in three days at most, every member of our excavation team will have immeasurable wealth.”

"When he said that, we were just one step away from obtaining the excavation rights to the Roland mining ruins." At this point, Eita sighed, "No one expected that the Rebella team would interfere at this time."

“At most three days…” Yu Zhun’s eyes flickered slightly. “According to the rules of District 37, how long after obtaining excavation rights can one enter the ruins?”

"As long as we obtain the excavation rights, we can enter immediately," Iron Tower hurriedly said.

"So, in other words..." Yu Zhun paused slightly, "Higgins believes that after entering the mine ruins, they will be able to find the most valuable thing here in three days at most?"

"This should be."

Eiffel Tower nodded, then added, "But he might have just said it offhand, since everyone was excited and had a few drinks."

“Digging a mining ruin from scratch, according to the normal excavation process, three days is simply not enough,” Black Hawk said slowly. “The other party is either drunk and talking nonsense, or they know where the things in the mining area are.”

At this point, he couldn't help but look at the Eiffel Tower.

"Are you sure no one from Higgins' squad went in here?"

Upon hearing this question, the expressions of the other members of Black Hawk Team became somewhat strange.

As Eiffel Tower had previously stated, Higgins' team had never been here before.

But the current situation, along with the speculations of other excavation teams, seems to point to a completely different possibility.

It's hard to say whether all of this is just baseless speculation.

As teammates, Iron Tower naturally believed that the other party's unfamiliarity with this place was definitely not an act. Before this, Iron Tower must have never entered the Roland Mine Ruins.

But that doesn’t mean the rest of Higgins’ team didn’t come.

The tower was silent for a moment, then shook its head, its voice filled with confusion, "I...don't know."

"Back in Higgins' squad, my relationship with my teammates wasn't as good as it is now, and that was actually a major reason why I survived."

"I will never forget the scene after I left District 37, when Higgins and the others ordered me to investigate the mutated beast's lair ahead. I returned safely, only to find that they had all been ambushed by the mutated beasts and none of them had survived."

"So, perhaps it really is as you guessed, that one or more of them entered this place without my knowledge."

At this point, the Eiffel Tower fell silent again.

The feeling of being marginalized, ostracized, and isolated resurfaced with the memories of the past, making him feel depressed.

“It’s all in the past.” Sensing the change in Iron Tower’s emotions, Black Hawk patted him on the shoulder and then slowly said, “Now, you are Iron Tower of Black Hawk Team, an important teammate to whom we entrust our lives.”

"Yes!" Iron Tower nodded emphatically, his spirits gradually lifting.

"Captain, what do we do next?"

“Search.” Black Hawk said calmly. “The Roland Mine Ruins are already considered a medium to large-scale ruin. If Higgins’s statement that he can find it within three days is not just empty talk, it means that the most valuable thing in these ruins is not deep within them.”

"Judging from the fact that the excavation teams outside are following us, the most important or valuable thing here has still not been found."

"So..." Black Hawk paused slightly, "where could that thing, which isn't in the deepest part of the ruins but we couldn't find even after digging three feet into the ground, be?"

Upon hearing this, the team members all began to ponder.

Yu Zhun's eyes flashed with a thoughtful light as he quickly surveyed his surroundings and kept sniffing the air, trying to discern anything unusual from the strong musty smell and dampness.

After a moment, Yu Zhun paused slightly.

and many more…

Who says dampness isn't abnormal?!

This is a mining ruin, with ore and veins deep underground, so theoretically there shouldn't be a lot of groundwater here.

So where does this dampness come from?

Thinking of this, Yu Zhun spoke in a low voice, "Captain."

"Hmm?" Black Hawk quickly cast a glance over.

"It's a bit damp here, could you help me find a water source?"

Black Hawk paused for a moment upon hearing this.

He quickly realized the problem, his pupils contracted to the size of pinpoints, and he activated his evolutionary abilities to quickly scan his surroundings for the source of the dampness.

Yu Zhun was not idle either. He lay on the ground, listening to the sounds coming from deep underground, trying to find the location of the water source in this way.

Almost simultaneously, the two turned their gazes in a certain direction.

"Over there!" x2
“We’ve found the same direction, so we shouldn’t be wrong.” Black Hawk smiled. “Let’s go, everyone, let’s go take a look.”

"The presence of water in the mine is indeed unusual," Rat said, following closely behind. "Mine areas are usually dry."

"If groundwater is found in the mining area, that's already considered an accident."

"But with such an obvious feature, others shouldn't overlook it, right?"

“Of course not.” Yu Zhun shook his head. “Don’t underestimate anyone.”

"With so many teams, someone is bound to notice the unusual dampness."

"So the water source should have already been inspected."

"And the only explanation for their lack of success is..."

"That thing was hidden deeper than we thought."

As they spoke, the group quickly traversed several areas, the faint sound of flowing underground water reaching them, which even the three members of Wolf Fang could clearly hear.

The five of them simultaneously showed delight and slowed their pace to approach cautiously. Soon, a spring in the darkness appeared before them.

The spring was located in a depression in a mine shaft, from which large swathes of slightly turbid groundwater mixed with silt would occasionally gush out and deposit on the surrounding mineral veins.

There are obvious signs of human excavation around the spring, and the marks are numerous and messy, clearly belonging to different excavation teams.

As Yu Zhun said, the people in front had obviously also noticed the anomaly here, but even after digging three feet into the ground, they still found nothing.

"Shall we continue digging down along the spring?" the rat asked casually, as its prosthetic arm rapidly transformed into a high-speed rotating drill.

"No rush." ​​Yu Zhun shook his head, stopping the rat's behavior.

"Let me take a look first." With that, he approached the spring step by step, and after thinking for a moment, he reached out his hand to the gushing spring.

Upon touching it, it feels warm to the touch.

The water temperature at this spring is as high as seventy or eighty degrees Celsius. The dense dampness in the ruins is also due to the continuous vaporization of the groundwater as it gushes out, which has accumulated over the years.

After experiencing it for a while, Yu Zhun turned his gaze to the edge of the spring.

The groundwater there has become much clearer after sedimentation.

He hesitated for a moment, then picked up some and put it directly into his mouth.

As the member of the team with the highest poison resistance, he naturally wouldn't let anyone else do it for him in this situation. Besides, he could only analyze more details by trying it himself.

The groundwater didn't taste sweet; instead, it had a slightly bitter taste, which was due to the high content of alkaline minerals in the water.

Apart from that, the water didn't seem to have much of an abnormality.

At least, with Yu Zhun's current analytical abilities, he hasn't been able to detect anything unusual.

"How is it?" Black Hawk couldn't help but ask.

"No problems have been found yet." Yu Zhun replied casually while carefully looking around, trying to find a new breakthrough.

“Speaking of which, this spring is really murky.” Wolf Fang, imitating Yu Zhun, put his hand to the spring. “It’s quite hot.”

"Is there lava down there?"

"Don't talk nonsense, kid." The rat rolled its eyes. "If lava erupts, it's no joke."

"There are only a few of us. We'll be buried inside in an instant, and none of us will be able to get out."

The speaker has no intention, the listener has the heart.

Upon hearing the rat's casual remark, Yu Zhun suddenly had an idea.

"How did Rebella's squad get wiped out?"

Upon hearing this, everyone was slightly taken aback.

"I'm not quite sure." Iron Tower shook his head first. "We had already left District 37 when the enemy was completely wiped out. We only found out about it later."

"But the information we gathered was vague."

"Is it possible..." Yu Zhun paused for a moment, "that the enemy was swallowed by the lava, which is why they were all wiped out?"

Everyone was stunned again.

Yu Zhun stopped talking, reached his hand towards the spring, picked up some of the accumulated filth, and gently rubbed it. "It does look a bit like volcanic ash."

"If there really is magma beneath this spring, if Rebella's team was indeed wiped out by a magma eruption..."

"Is it possible that Higgins was the one who ignited the lava?"

“If that’s the case…” Yu Zhun looked at the bubbling spring and spoke slowly, word by word, “Is it possible that the thing is under the spring?”

"Or rather... hidden within the magma?"

Upon hearing this, the surroundings fell silent.

After a moment, the rat spoke in a low voice, "That's lava."

"Temperatures of over a thousand degrees Celsius can even melt rocks."

"Let alone third-tier evolvers, even fourth-tier or fifth-tier evolvers probably wouldn't be able to enter it unscathed."

Even if you're right, the thing is still there.

"How should we search for it?"

"I'll go down and give it a try." After a moment of contemplation, Yu Zhun spoke in a deep voice.

"Are you crazy?" Black Hawk couldn't help but ask.

“No, I’m not crazy.” Yu Zhun shook his head. “I have a mutation inducer. In extreme environments, it is possible to mutate and develop corresponding resistance.”

"Magma is indeed an extremely dangerous environment, but if I can develop the corresponding high-temperature resistance, I can stay in it for a short time."

“This…” Black Hawk was a little unsure, so he turned his gaze to the rat.

"You really think the mutation inducer is a panacea?" The rat's expression also turned serious. "I admit it's powerful, but even with mutations, there are physiological limits. It can't be achieved overnight."

"If you enter magma, you'll most likely be burned to ashes before you've even evolved the corresponding heat resistance!"

"No, not just a high probability, it's one hundred percent!"

"Trust me," Yu Zhun said firmly. "I won't easily put myself in danger. Even if I enter the spring, I will proceed step by step."

"If things are not going to work, I will give up immediately."

"You bastard..." The rat was about to say something more when Black Hawk interrupted it.

“In that case, go and give it a try.” Black Hawk looked at Yu Zhun seriously. “Remember your words: if something is impossible, give up immediately.”

"Hmm." Yu Zhun nodded, then quickly drew two daggers and began to dig out the spring.

When the spring expanded to be wide enough for one person, he jumped into it.

"Boss, how could you just let him go like that!" Mouse couldn't help but say, watching the water splashing at the spring and Yu Zhun disappearing in a flash.

"If you don't allow it, will he not go?" Black Hawk retorted.

Seeing that the mouse had stopped talking, he slowly opened his mouth.

"After all this time, haven't you figured it out yet?"

"Yu Zhun is a very opinionated and thoughtful person."

"So let him be."

"Perhaps he really can bring us some new surprises."

Black Hawk paused slightly at this point.

"More importantly, we are about to welcome a group of uninvited guests."

At this point, he looked up at the entrance to the ruins, his eyes narrowing slightly. "It would be best to have Yu Zhun hide for the time being."

(End of this chapter)