Samsara Space: They're all begging me to heal them one more time.

Under the cover of the sandstorm, the chameleon made its move.

Without making a sound, even the movement of air was neutralized by his special combat suit. Like an invisible ghost, he instantly traversed ten meters and appeared behind Zhang Yuan.

The dagger stabbed out silently, aiming straight for the gap in Zhang Yuan's back armor!

Fast! Accurate! Ruthless!

This strike combined all his agility and unwavering determination. No squishy class in the D-class train had ever survived a single blow from him.

"Die!"

The chameleon's eyes flashed with murderous intent.

however.

Just before the dagger touched Zhang Yuan's body—

"bite--!!"

A crisp, metallic clang rang out abruptly in the noisy square.

There was no dull thud of a blade piercing flesh as expected, nor was there any sight of blood splattering.

Chameleon felt as if his wrist had been stabbed into a solid titanium alloy plate!

That high-frequency particle dagger, capable of cutting through iron like mud, was actually blocked? Not only did it fail to pierce the seemingly ordinary plate armor, but the immense recoil even caused his hand to crack, and the dagger nearly slipped from his grasp!

"Wh...what?!"

The chameleon's pupils dilated violently, and its exposed form froze on the spot.

Only then did he notice that an iris badge emitting a pale golden light had appeared on Zhang Yuan's back at some point.

【Guardian Badge (Lv.1)】

[Effect: Significantly increases physical armor!]

But that wasn't the end of it. Chameleon was, after all, a seasoned assassin who had seen countless battles. His missed attack didn't throw him off balance; instead, it fueled his ferocity.

"You're trying to defend against high-altitude attacks, huh? Let's see how many you can defend against!"

The chameleon let out a sharp cry, no longer trying to hide, but instead unleashing the maximum agility attribute of a D+ level assassin.

"Ghost Combo!"

His figure instantly transformed into a blurry gray mist, spinning wildly around Zhang Yuan. The particle dagger in his hand was at full power, emitting a piercing buzzing sound.

"Zzzzzzz—!!"

In a mere second, he unleashed over twenty slashes at more than a dozen vital points on Zhang Yuan's body, including his carotid artery, armpit, lower back, and back of the knee! Each slash precisely cut into the seams connecting the plate armor, attempting to tear open the tortoise shell with a high-frequency attack.

Sparks flew everywhere, as if igniting a firework display on Zhang Yuan.

However, what chilled the chameleon to the bone was—it was useless. Utterly useless.

The golden iris emblem seemed to possess a life of its own, releasing an indestructible force field. Whenever his dagger was about to touch his skin, that light field would precisely illuminate, deflecting all attacks powerful enough to cut through gold and jade.

With a constitution of 20 points, plus the heavy plate armor he was wearing, Zhang Yuan's base armor had reached a staggering 80. Not to mention the [Guardian Badge] he had previously enhanced. The combined armor value even exceeded the Chameleon's base attack power, which is why the message "failed to penetrate enemy armor" appeared.

[Block!]

[Block!]

[Defense not breached!]

This isn't a fight; it's like poking steel plates with toothpicks.

"Is the gua sha session over?"

The man who had been "obsessed with counting money" finally turned his head slowly.

Zhang Yuan leisurely stored the rare material into his storage space, then adjusted his glasses. He let the chameleon's dagger slash across his breastplate, sparks flying, without a trace of panic on his face, not even a flicker of emotion in his eyes.

"My friend."

Zhang Yuan looked at the exhausted and bewildered assassin and gave him a kind smile:

"Didn't you eat?"

The next second, Zhang Yuan moved.

He didn't use any fancy techniques; he simply extended his hand.

The chameleon tried to dodge, but he was horrified to discover that his agility was a joke in the face of this overwhelming power. The large hand, clad in a rough, hydraulically assisted glove, was like a precision hydraulic clamp, ignoring all his attempts to dodge and gripping his wrist.

[Strength Detection: Passed!]

[Physical fitness assessment: Completely superior!]

"Snap!"

"Ah!!" Chameleon screamed in agony. He felt as if his wrist had been clamped by hydraulic clamps, and his bones shattered instantly.

"Since you're here, don't be in a hurry to leave."

Zhang Yuan did not let go. He held the assassin who tried to kill him in one hand, as if he were holding a chick.

With his other hand, he slowly drew out the weapon that everyone had been mocking as "out of place" from behind his back—

[Troll Spine Cross]

The pale, thick spine, stained with dried blood, cast a chilling shadow in the setting sun.

"You...you're a devil?! Aren't you the nanny?!"

As the weapon drew ever closer and he felt the irresistible force on his wrist, the chameleon completely broke down.

Which healer can stand still and let you hack and slash twenty times without losing health? Which healer is stronger than an assassin?

"I am indeed the wet nurse."

Zhang Yuan explained gently, then slammed the cross in his hand down with a whooshing sound:

"But I never said I don't kill."

"Bang!!!"

A muffled thud, like the sound of a watermelon being smashed by a hammer.

The world is peaceful now.

[Defeat the enemy faction's Reincarnator (Chameleon) to receive 2000 reward points, 1 D-rank side quest, and 4000 Federation War Merit Points.]

Zhang Yuan released his grip, letting the assassin, whose head had been deformed, slide limply to the ground. He shook off the bloodstains on the cross, bent down, and rummaged through the corpse for a while, pulling out a [bio-communication device] that was still flashing red.

Looking at the coordinates on the communicator screen that were still sending commands, Zhang Yuan's smile grew wider and wider.

"I've found you."

He looked at the large hole dug by the Tank Bug in the underground of Area B. It was a shortcut to hell, and also a red carpet to S-rank evaluation.

"Qiang, Lin Qingyue, Tao Tao, gather together."

"We've got a job."

-----------------

"BOOM—!!!"

Just as Zhang Yuan crushed the communicator, a belated loud bang suddenly came from the direction of the armory in Sector B.

That wasn't the sound of battle, but the mournful cry of a collapsing foundation.

Although the two tank bugs were killed, their frantic digging and final attempt to self-destruct completely destroyed the stability of the underground structure. Amidst billowing smoke and dust, the armory, originally intended to provide unlimited ammunition for the 800 defenders, collapsed with a deafening roar and sank into the massive underground cavity.

"My ammunition! My supplies!!"

The bald, burly man knelt at the edge of the collapsed pit, staring at the buried supply crates below, and let out a heart-wrenching howl, "Without the armory, how are we supposed to defend against the next wave? By ramming our heads against it?!"

A sense of despair instantly spread through the crowd.

Zhang Yuan raised his wrist and glanced at the mission countdown.

[Remaining defense time: 07:42:15]

"Only four hours have passed..."

Zhang Yuan pushed up his glasses, his tone chillingly calm, "The air defense tower in Area A was destroyed, and the ammunition depot in Area B collapsed. We used a third of the time to deplete 80% of the base's strategic resources."

"At this rate of consumption, we'll probably have no choice but to engage the swarm of insects in hand-to-hand combat with bayonets for the remaining seven and a half hours."

This is the enemy's open strategy—even if they can't capture the position, they will destroy your logistics.

For humans who rely on technological weapons, a gun without bullets is no better than a stick for burning.

"What should we do then? Just wait to die?" Lin Qingyue frowned. Although her demon sword didn't need bullets, she knew that once the firepower network disappeared, her close-combat skills would be instantly overwhelmed by the swarm of insects.

"It cannot be defended."

Zhang Yuan walked to the edge of the pit, looking at the bottomless, steaming tunnel, a glint of madness flashing in his eyes:

"Since defense is a slow death, then we have no choice but to attack."

"Now, you only have two paths before you."

Zhang Yuan turned around and looked at the group of veterans behind him, their faces ashen, and the equally bewildered Federation soldiers:

"First, stay on the ground, conserve every bullet, and pray that rescue arrives before you are all eaten."

"second……"

He pointed to the abyss beneath his feet:

"Go down underground, destroy their lair, and drag that damned brain worm out!"