Chapter 179: Intersection

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Unaware of what was happening at the Headquarters, Squad #1 continued on their patrol.

Fortunately, after the army's bombardment and the death of the Nightmare Worm, the squad didn't face any unexpected encounters or events as they continued on their route.

As was predicted, all demons nearby were rattled by the sudden shelling. The imps and some of the weaker demons ran away in fear. Others stayed completely still.

That resulted in a rather uneventful patrol for the squad, which was a good thing since none of them were really looking for a fight. Their task is to simply follow the patrol route and report anything they notice. That's all there is to it. No need to go the extra mile, especially when it poses a risk to their lives.

Since the squad was following a route parallel and close to the walls, the horrifying sights they came across were minimal. However, since the length of the route they needed to follow was extended, they figured that it would even out the further they went eventually.

Their first three hours on the shift were relatively peaceful...well, as peaceful as it can get.

They could still hear the screech and soul-shivering groan coming from the depths of the Black Lands echoing out and reaching their location, but the squad had been conditioned to shake those off as if they were nothing. They maintained high-alert of course, since they're at an unfriendly territory.

After their three-hour march, Cedric ordered the team to have a break. They ate some rations and drank some water to replenish their energy. They also went completely still and focused their efforts on restoring the energy they spent so far be it mana or ki.

Cedric watched over them. He's the only one who's still relatively full of energy since all he does is observe things and dish our orders. His energy expenditure was low, and his natural recovery rate greatly outpaces it so he didn't need to rest at all, this also applies to his ki.

They spent a total of 20 minutes to rest, not one second further, Cedric ordered them to continue the patrol. None uttered a word of complaint or dissatisfaction, they knew that this was gonna happen so they were not surprised.

As they moved on, Cedric said: "Alright team, talk to me. What have you discovered so far."

One by one, Cedric's squad reported their discoveries to him...

Most of their findings were similar, which was to be expected given that they're moving as a unit, but there were some minor things where it went differently.

For example, some people saw a pond of black miasma nearby and promptly wrote it as it was. However, there was one who said that they saw a figure swimming on the surface of that miasma pool. Others didn't notice it because the creature was covered in a thick glob of miasma, but it was definitely there.

If it weren't for that slight difference, the pool of miasma would just be written off as an environmental hazard. However, because someone sees a creature in it, it becomes a potential trap that everybody should look out for.

While the Squad Leaders began their information exchange, their squad members took advantage of this downtime to rest.

Some from Cedric's squad saw the state of Squad #2 and decided to help them out. They've been verified so there's no problem in doing this.

Cedric and Garrick discussed things for about 10 minutes before concluding their information exchange. After that, their respective squads returned to their formation and the intersection ended with the squads passing by each other.

This was how it was supposed to be, not like what happened during their encounter with Isabella's team previously. That said, everything changed now and Cedric saw that Isabella had taken his advice to heart so it would be different this time...not that his squad would meet her's again, she picked the other option for the patrol after all.

"Alright, listen up." Cedric ordered his squad as they continued moving, "#2 told me and from beyond here, things will get a little bit boisterous."

"Apparently, a large horde of Beast Demons were migrating when the shelling occurred. This caused their paths to diverge greatly, forcing them this close to the walls."

"The aura of the dead Nightmare Worm also didn't help. Because apparently, even though it's supposed to be charred black by the bombardment, it still appears as a 5-star meal to demons nearby. The migrating beast demon horde caught a whiff of this and started fighting each other, causing the environment to be rowdy."

"Although the carcass of the Nightmare Worm was far from our route, the chaos of the beast demons could possibly reach us. Stay alert and primed for battle. We will try to avoid it if we can but if we can't, then we will handle it as usual...eliminate with extreme prejudice. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Sir!" The squad vigorously replied.

"Good! Let's use Formation F though, just for an extra layer of security. #2 said that the felt presence of Tier 7s nearby. As much as I believe in our collective strength, I believe that it'd be much safer if we stay out of trouble, altogether."

The squad already moved to the new formation before he could even finish his words. In truth, Cedric didn't need to explain his reason to them any longer. He had long since convinced them of his vision and foresight as a leader. Each order he dishes out is made for the sake of the team's preservation.

That's why none of his members found it difficult to follow his lead. How could they when every decision Cedric made had them in mind?

Still, Cedric wanted to be as transparent as he could, that's why he explained his thoughts anyway.

F in Formation F, stands for 'Fade'. This formation was created for stealth operations. Because of how the members are distributed for the formation to take effect, their speed will visibly go down in this. However, that's a valid exchange for increasing the team's security.

As Squad #1 moved in this formation, they heard several roars of Beast Demons nearby. It hadn't even been 10 minutes since the intersection with Squad #2 was concluded yet here they were already.

"There's a pack of Demon Wolves nearby, they're fighting against Hyenas. Let's not disturb them if we can."