"But unfortunately, although we managed to rescue Zhu Yan, we couldn't lift the Curse Power from his body, resulting in his perpetual slumber."

...

Wu Yan led Xiao Mu forward, introducing each coffin to Xiao Mu in turn.

He spoke in great detail, down to what each person in the coffins had done, what kind of person they were, what had ultimately happened to them, and why they were placed in coffins.

Xiao Mu's mood gradually became heavy.

He asked himself if he was not some noble person, nor did he possess a spirit of dedication, yet, after hearing the deeds of these people, he still felt a repressive mood and an intense impulse to rescue them back.

"The reason I, Wu Yan, choose to stay in the position of team leader is not because I desire power and influence,"

Wu Yan chuckled, his expression filled with deep disdain, "Honestly, the position of team leader means nothing to me, Wu Yan."

"Even without this position of team leader, I, Wu Yan, would still be myself, with no change whatsoever."

"No, without this position of team leader, I, Wu Yan, would no longer be restrained and might even have a better life."

"However, this position is something I cannot give up, nor can I allow Cui Yan to take it, because here…"

Wu Yan's gaze wandered across all the coffins in the hall, slowly saying, "It's because here lie my comrades, members who were once wounded in the line of duty for our Task One group—I must rescue them."

"Yet, some people within the Alliance feel that…"

Wu Yan suddenly let out a cold laugh, his face thick with contempt, "Some people feel that maintaining these injured comrades is a waste of resources."

"If these resources could be used on newly risen Mutated Beings instead, the combat power of new recruits could be greatly increased, creating more experts and enhancing the Alliance's strength."

"But I say, that kind of talk is bullshit…"

Having cursed sharply, Wu Yan couldn't hide the fervor in his expression and continued to address Xiao Mu, "If it were you, Xiao Mu, if you were injured, would you want the Alliance to save you? Or would you rather the Alliance save the resources to help you and give them to other Mutated Beings who are uninjured, to increase their combat power instead?"

Xiao Mu curved the corners of his mouth slightly but didn't answer the question.

He was very clear that Wu Yan didn't need his answer.

In fact, Xiao Mu's views were the same as Wu Yan's; he did not possess that sense of self-sacrifice for the greater good.

If he was injured because of the Alliance and the Alliance decided to forsake him due to the severity of his injuries, deeming it a waste of resources to save him, and instead used those resources to train newcomers, then it was possible that Xiao Mu would defect from the Alliance on the spot.

That's right, he was that selfish.

Apart from him, no one had the right to make the decision to give up on him.

Wu Yan continued, "Yet in the Alliance, there are indeed some shitty people who think that taking care of our wounded comrades is a waste of resources."

"This includes Cui Yan, the Second Leader, and the Second Task Group's leader Qin Duan, among others."

"Think about it, if Cui Yan became the leader of Task One group, what do you think the consequences would be? Would these comrades of ours still have hope? Could they still survive?"

Xiao Mu still did not respond to Wu Yan's question, but his eyes unconsciously deepened a bit.

"The opposition between the Third Leader and the Second Leader is not merely a power struggle; it's more about a conflict of ideologies."

"In regards to saving comrades, the Third Leader and I share the same view, so I am a man of the Third Leader."

"Similarly, the opposition between our Task One and Task Two groups is based on this foundation, not just on whether the tasks are completed more or less, which is meaningless."

Wu Yan appeared somewhat emotional and couldn't help but curse from time to time.

Xiao Mu listened silently, without speaking.

The words of Wu Yan clarified something for him.

Even without Zhou Pudu's targeting forcing him to re-choose between Task One and Task Two groups, once he understood the principles of the two, Xiao Mu believed he would still undoubtedly choose Task One group.

Simply because the principle of Task One group regarding the treatment of comrades matched his own, but Task Two was the complete opposite.

Wu Yan continued, "Saving our comrades is one of the tasks for our Task One group members."

"There are rewards for saving people, and the Alliance wouldn't be so miserly in this regard. Even the Second Leader, Cui Yan, and Qin Duan wouldn't have any objections to that."

"In fact, behind every injured person, there's an involvement of certain powers, complex and intertwined."

"Perhaps someone might dare to propose abandoning the treatment of the injured, yet no one would dare suggest giving up on saving a specific individual, as that would amount to taking a stance against the powers or the personal relationships behind the injured party."

Xiao Mu nodded his head.

Even without rewards, if by chance he could save the Mutated Beings lying in the Coffins here, he would readily do so.

If there are rewards for saving people, that would be an unexpected bonus.

Wu Yan continued to introduce Xiao Mu to more details, and it was not until half a day later that he signaled for Xiao Mu to come out of the room.

"Have you taken a look?"

The old man Qi Xie, with an aged face and a kind smile, looked at Wu Yan and Xiao Mu coming out of the room.

"I have, Elder Qi, here is the key. You should keep it safe."

Wu Yan respectfully handed the key to Elder Qi.

Elder Qi took the key with a smile and put it in the pocket under his white robe, then turned his gaze back to Xiao Mu.

There seemed to be a flash of divine light in the old man's murky eyes, giving Xiao Mu the feeling that he was seen through, which startled him inside.

But by the time Xiao Mu realized it, Elder Qi had already resumed his frail and aged demeanor.

Qi Xie smiled at Xiao Mu, "Xiao Mu, have you cultivated the Power of Life and Death?"

"Yes, Elder Qi, I have cultivated the Power of Life and Death."

Xiao Mu respectfully replied. The fact that he cultivated the Power of Life and Death wasn't a secret; many people knew about it.

Elder Qi nodded in approval and said, "The Power of Life and Death is the most powerful force below the top tier forces. It is an exclusive secret of the Life and Death Sect, and it's difficult for ordinary people to have the opportunity to cultivate it. Even if one has the chance to encounter it, they can usually only cultivate one of the two, either the Life Force or the Death Force. There aren't many Mutated Beings outside of the Life and Death Sect who can cultivate both forces."

Xiao Mu listened silently, not interrupting Qi Xie's words.

Wu Yan was puzzled, not understanding why Elder Qi would say these things to Xiao Mu, but he did not interject.

The old man Qi Xie, with a frail smile on his face, said to Xiao Mu, "I see, Xiao Xiao, you haven't cultivated any Divine Techniques in the Life and Death Category, have you?"

Xiao Mu was surprised, not understanding how Qi Xie could tell that he hadn't cultivated Divine Techniques in the Life and Death Category.

Although he hadn't cultivated them, he had never shown this fact in front of others.

Despite his surprise, he still answered respectfully, "Yes, Elder Qi, I indeed haven't cultivated any Divine Techniques in the Life and Death Category yet."

Divine Techniques in the Life and Death Category are either very expensive or exceedingly rare.

The reason Xiao Mu hadn't cultivated any was because he lacked sufficient Merit and simply hadn't had the time yet.

Elder Qi gently said, "I once acquired a manual for a body-refining Divine Technique in the Life and Death Category."

"Sadly, not everyone can cultivate the Two Forces of Life and Death, and even I did not receive the chance to cultivate these two forces."

"As a result, despite keeping this manual on me, I never had the opportunity to cultivate it."

"Now I would like to pass it on to you with the hope that you can make good use of this manual and achieve Merits for the Task group."

As he spoke, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a Round Bead containing the Two Forces of Life and Death, held it in one hand, and presented it to Xiao Mu.

Taken by surprise, Xiao Mu's face showed astonishment as he quickly said, "Elder Qi, this... this is too precious!"

Any Divine Technique in the Life and Death Category is of immense value, which is fundamental to the might of the Life and Death Sect.

As the strongest force below the top-tier forces, the Divine Techniques related to the Two Forces of Life and Death are incomparable to the Divine Techniques of other ordinary powers.

Elder Qi smiled kindly, "No matter how precious something is, it only has value when used. In my hands, this manual is no different from waste paper."

"Xiao Xiao, don't be a stranger, take it. After you cultivate this set of Divine Techniques, contributing to the Task group with it will be the best thanks you could give me."

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