Survival of the Nation: My luck was a tiny bit worse.

Upon reaching the entrance to the crevice, the white fox was the first to slip inside.

Nanbei followed closely behind, then Leng Ruolan, and Ou Yun brought up the rear.

The crack was deeper than I had imagined.

The rock walls on both sides were damp and covered with moss that emitted a blue glow, making the entire crack glow faintly.

After walking about fifty meters, the view suddenly opened up ahead—

A hidden cave came into view.

The cave is small, only about ten square meters, but inside it's a completely different world—

The cave walls were covered with minerals.

These are not ordinary ores—each piece of these ores is glowing, with red, orange, yellow, and green lights intertwining to illuminate the entire cave like a starry sky.

In the very center of the cave, there is a protruding stone platform.

There was a sphere about the size of a fist on top.

The sphere has a translucent texture, as if a storm is trapped inside a glass ball.

Tiny lightning bolts flashed continuously inside the sphere, and clouds churned and spun.

"The core of the storm."

Leng Ruolan said softly, "Like a game prop."

"Isn't the forbidden area just a game for us?"

Ou Yun stared at the ball, his heart pounding inexplicably, muttering to himself, "It's just a game where you could really die."

This is the energy core they're looking for.

The two men stepped forward, both ready to put the money in their pockets.

"etc--"

Ou Yun suddenly remembered something.

"If the core of the storm is here, then what is that eagle guarding outside?"

The voice just fell.

A deafening eagle's cry came from overhead.

"Gah—!!"

At that moment, the ground trembled, causing the entire cave to shake. The minerals on the cave walls jingled and clanged, like pearls falling onto a jade plate.

"Oops, we've been found out."

Leng Ruolan looked up at the cave ceiling, her hand already on her gun.

The building collapsed, but the eagle didn't advance any further.

"Walk!"

The white fox also perked up its ears and immediately turned around and ran out of the crevice.

Nanbei hesitated for a moment, then followed.

Ou Yun grabbed the Storm Core from the stone platform, stuffed it into his backpack, and rushed out of the cave with Leng Ruolan.

The group quickly left the cave.

When they returned to the plateau, Storm Blackhawk was no longer in its nest.

It flew in mid-air, then unfurled a pair of light wings—

The wingspan was at least ten meters, so wide that it blotted out the sky.

Its entire body was enveloped in a layer of blue-white electric light, like a ball of lightning suspended in the air.

It looks angry.

However, below it—the white fox stood in the center of the plateau, looking up at the giant eagle.

Its posture was neither one of fear nor preparation for battle.

Rather, it was like greeting an old friend.

The white fox raised its head and let out a long howl.

"Awoooooo!"

Hey bro! How are you?

The giant eagle circled once in mid-air, its lightning-fast eyes fixed on the white fox, and then—

It also let out a cry of an eagle.

The howling was no longer angry, but carried a certain...

Complex emotions?

"Awoooooo!"

Fuck you, who's your brother?!

Then a flap of wings.

"Boom!"

Thunder roared down and struck the white fox.

The white fox dodged as if it had anticipated this, ignoring the fact that the spot where it had stood was now completely shattered, and instead, with a smile, it continued to call out to the black eagle a few more times:

"Awoo! Awoo~"

Bro, don't be angry!

"Gah!?"

What are you doing at the pharmacy?

The two-legged creatures also noticed this.

Leng Ruolan looked at Ou Yun, "Are they using the team voice chat?"

Ou Yun scratched his head. "It seems so?"

Both North and South were stunned by the scene.

It looked at the white fox, then at the giant eagle, its ears twitching as if trying to understand what was happening before it.

Seriously? This fox spirit knows such an awesome creature?

"Aww~"

The white fox cried out again, this time with a longer sound, accompanied by the movement of its tail, as if explaining something to the giant eagle.

"Awooooo!"

Brother, let's go over there. I'll repay you handsomely later!

"Gah~"

The giant eagle hovered in mid-air for a few seconds before slowly landing on the branches of a dead tree.

"quack?"

What are you thanking me for? Tell me!

Although she still looks angry.

However, its electric arc energy has diminished considerably, now crackling and no longer possessing the same ferocity that threatened to obliterate everyone.

"etc."

Ou Yun suddenly realized a problem: "If the white fox knew this eagle, why didn't it say so sooner?"

Leng Ruolan gave him a cold look. "If I had told this scumbag about it earlier, would you still be so interested in him?"

Ou Yun responded with an "Oh," and added, "That's true."

The white fox, of course, didn't hear the thunderous conversation on this side.

It turned around and hopped and skipped towards Ou Yun and the others.

It ran up to Ou Yun, tugged at his trouser leg with its mouth, and then pulled him toward the dead tree.

"What, it's letting us through?" Ou Yun was unsure.

The white fox nodded.

Ou Yun and Leng Ruolan exchanged a glance.

"Are you going or not?"

"Since we're already here..."

So the two of them carefully moved forward.

Although Nanbei looked reluctant, he still stayed close to Ouyun's side, still in his Stegosaurus form.

As they approached the dead tree, Storm Blackhawk was looking down at them.

Observing this giant eagle up close is much more intimidating than seeing it from a distance.

Its beak was thicker than Ou Yun's arm, and each toenail on its claws was like a scimitar, with arcs of electricity on them that seemed to emanate from a nightmare, emitting a low buzzing sound.

"Dude, we're here to..."

Ou Yun also tried to explain a few things.

The white fox suddenly leaped onto the roots of the dead tree and howled a few times at the giant eagle.

The giant eagle lowered its head and looked at the white fox with its piercing, electric eyes, then at Ou Yun—or more precisely, at Ou Yun's backpack.

Then it slowly raised one paw and dug into the nest.

A silver supply crate rolled out of the nest and landed with a thud in front of Ou Yun.

Then the giant eagle flapped its wings and went back to its nest.

A feather, gleaming with electric light, fell.

European Express: ...

Leng Ruolan: ...

North and South: ...

Dragon Kingdom audience: ...

"Wait, it's already delivered???"

"White Fox, just who are you?!"

"This must be the betrothal gift for Mr. Ou!"

"White Fox is on fire today! Nanbei, you need to step up your game!"

"Nanbei, you're in a really dangerous situation, hahaha!"

Ou Yun looked down at the silver supply box.

Then I looked at the white fox.

The white fox was squatting on the tree root, with a smug expression on its face that said, "How about that? I'm awesome, aren't I?"

Okay, although I don't know exactly what happened in between—

Ou Yun stepped forward and stroked the white fox's forehead with satisfaction.

"Well done!"

The white fox squinted its eyes and flicked its tail gracefully.

"Aww~"

If you take my gift, you're mine now!

The silver supply crate lay at Ou Yun's feet, gleaming and quite captivating.

When Ou Yun bent down to pick it up.

For some reason, he always felt—

wrong.

Things are not going right.

According to the normal procedure, they should first fight Storm Blackhawk for three hundred rounds, until the sky darkened and the sun and moon disappeared.

Then, at the critical moment, he opened the golden supply box and got some outrageous item.

Finally, they captured the Storm Core by sheer luck.

This is the normal procedure!

How come now the giant eagle brought the supply box over after the white fox made two calls?

What kind of divine treatment is this?

"Captain Leng..."

Ou Yun patted Leng Ruolan's shoulder with a serious expression. "Do you think this is reasonable?"

"unreasonable."

"Then why aren't you surprised at all?"

"Because I'm used to it."

"What are you used to?"

"It's only reasonable to have an irrational habit."

"..."

That seems to be true.