Cultivation Online novel Chapter 2636

Chapter 2636: A Soldier Or a Bandit?

Another two months passed after news of Yuan’s presumed death spread throughout the military.

Because of the incident, the Scorpion Squad had become one of the most hated squads in the entire military and was constantly harassed and bullied by other soldiers, particularly those aligned with General Mei.

At first, almost no one was willing to stand up for them. However, as time passed, more and more soldiers from General Gu’s side began stepping in to protect them.

Whenever someone confronted the Scorpion Squad, the encounter almost always devolved into a heated argument or outright brawl.

Although Yuan was still a new soldier, he had already earned a favorable reputation among his peers, largely because he frequently helped others during gathering missions—work that most soldiers considered tedious and burdensome.

However, the Scorpion Squad couldn’t care less about the situation or being targeted. They were simply relieved that Yuan had not returned to the city, as that could spell their end.

Meanwhile, in the Black Zone, Yuan had been hunting Void Specters nonstop, continuously increasing his Eternal Essence.

Though for efficiency, he did not simply wander the Black Zone killing Void Specters. Whenever he would encounter a tunnel, he would enter it and clear it alone, as the Elite Void Specters and Unknown Crystals found inside granted the most Eternal Essence.

One day, purely by coincidence, Yuan entered a tunnel that was already occupied by another group of soldiers.

The moment he sensed their presence, he concealed his own. However, rather than leaving, he decided to clear the tunnel before they did.

Fortunately, the tunnel branched into numerous paths, allowing Yuan to easily avoid the other group, slip past them unnoticed, and reach the end long before they could.

After defeating the Void Guardian at the end of the tunnel, Yuan absorbed all of the Eternal Essence contained within the Unknown Crystals before swiftly making his way out, leaving the other soldiers completely unaware that someone had beaten them to their destination.

Several days after Yuan secretly cleared the tunnel, the soldiers finally reached the end, but to their shock and puzzlement, the Void Guardian was nowhere to be seen.

"What the heck? Where’s the Void Guardian?"

"Did someone already clear this tunnel?" another soldier wondered aloud.

Although it wasn’t unheard of for two groups to enter the same tunnel without realizing it until they reached the end, the soldiers quickly dismissed that possibility. If another group had truly arrived before them, the Unknown Crystals should have been harvested as well, yet every single one remained untouched.

"Don’t tell me that this tunnel was created without a Void Guardian?"

"This would be an unprecedented event if that were the case!"

In the end, the soldiers decided to document the unusual occurrence before harvesting the Unknown Crystals and leaving the tunnel.

They then hastily returned to their city to report the discovery.

In the third month of wandering the Black Zone, Yuan had his second encounter with soldiers from another city.

Although Yuan could have easily avoided the soldiers, he decided to see for himself whether encounters with people from another city were truly as dangerous as the Ironwoman had warned.

"What the—?"

The soldiers froze the moment they saw Yuan. While encountering someone alone in the Black Zone was surprising enough, what shocked them even more was the insignia on his uniform.

"Am I seeing things, or is this guy a corporal?"

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