Chapter 124: If You Cannot Find It, Burn It Down

The hunting mission posed no challenge to Lin Mu. Whenever he encountered anyone, he would eliminate them instantly and plunder the supplies from their spatial storage. By the time he left, all that remained on the ground were piles of scattered limbs.

Half a day had passed, and Lin Mu had already secured nearly a tenth of his total resources. His eyes gleamed as he surveyed the haul.

"It would be even better if there were more missions like this."

Anna’s eyelids twitched violently. *You’re thinking too optimistically,* she thought. Missions of this caliber were rare; one might not even encounter such a portal in a month. Being able to stumble upon one was already a stroke of immense luck.

Luck... Anna couldn't help but think of Shu Yi. If that woman were the one out searching, perhaps it truly would be possible. Could there really be people in this world with such heaven-defying luck?

"Captain, we haven't seen a soul for five kilometers. Have we already killed them all?"

"Yeah, there’s a plaza in the distance similar to the one we started at. Could they have been teleported here just like we were?"

Lin Mu zoomed in his camera and, indeed, spotted a plaza. It was quite similar to the situation they had encountered in the highway world, where they would stumble upon a game from time to time—though back then, they had only faced beasts.

"No matter. Keep searching. This area is large enough; there should be more."

The heavy helicopter continued to drift through the air, hunting for targets.

Deep within an underground cavern, a group of people peered through a crack at Lin Mu’s aircraft.

"Are you sure our mission isn't just to survive? How could we possibly defeat a metal beast like that?" A man in his forties, clad in armor, looked thoroughly exasperated. Their mission felt like absolute nonsense.

"Who knows? You know how absurd the tasks given by this game always are. The only question is how many people were brought in this time."

"For a high-difficulty mission like this, there must be at least ten thousand of us."

"Sigh... let's just hide. Hide until it’s over. As for the rewards, forget it. We can't take down something like that."

Aside from this hiding spot, every other concealable location was packed with people. Everyone had the same mission, but the opponent was simply beyond their capabilities. They were certain it was Lin Mu’s vessel because he was the only red dot on their interface.

Lin Mu flew for three hours without seeing a single person.

"How strange. Could I have really killed them all? That shouldn't be right; if they were all dead, the mission should have ended."

"Anna, have you ever encountered a situation like this?"

Anna shook her head. "I'm not sure. In every previous mission, we only left when the time ran out. Perhaps that’s the case for us now." She had never experienced such a crushing, one-sided victory. It was beyond her imagination.

Lin Mu curled his lip. She was a veteran player, yet she didn't even understand this? He looked at the screen, and the dense forest below gave him an idea. Lin Mu brought the craft to a hover and activated his modification skills.

*Ding, ding, ding.*

Watching the machinery suspended above them, the people hiding below were confused.

"Captain, is that thing broken? Should we try to shoot it down?"

"Shoot it? With what? Have you ever seen such a steel construct on our planet?"

With no other options, the group could only continue to hide. Ten minutes later, the machine whirred to life and began to descend.

"Captain, Captain! It looks like it's coming down. Should we rush out?"

"Rush out? Are you crazy? Let's just wait and see!"

Only a fool would run out... No sooner had he finished speaking than a squad of people charged out from a nearby corner, launching an attack on the metal beast. However, whether it was arrows or battle qi, everything was blocked. Seeing this, the others hidden nearby were speechless.

*What’s the point? We can’t even touch it.*

In the void, two figures watched the game unfold.

"What kind of setup is this? How are they supposed to fight back?"

"...How should I know? Logically, the creatures near that portal shouldn't be this strong."

Every game was meticulously arranged. Both sides entering usually had their own strengths, but the power gap should never be this vast. Otherwise, what was the point of such a one-sided massacre?

"Could it be that someone from the Core Region came out?"

"Impossible, absolutely impossible. The people in the Core Region are all busy with their promotions; why would they run to a remote corner?"

"Could it be that the people you selected are just too weak?"

While the two figures were chatting, Lin Mu had already begun his counterattack. Long, thick pipes extended from the bottom of the craft, and streams of fire began to incinerate the forest.

The aircraft increased its speed. Within just one hour, a vast expanse of the forest was ablaze.

"Perfect. Keep it up. I estimate that in three hours, I can burn down every tree here. If there’s still no one, then there truly is no one left. Everyone, stay alert—if you spot a target, open fire immediately."

Anna watched the scene on the screen and couldn't help but shake her head.

*Tragic! It’s too tragic!* If there were actually people in there, they would probably be reduced to charcoal. Besides, what kind of sane person does things this way? Even a high-level mage couldn't set an entire forest on fire like that.

Not long after, some finally couldn't take it anymore and fled. They were greeted by a barrage of lasers and killed on the spot. Others took the opportunity to bolt into the distance. They ran as far as they could; as long as they survived the final few hours, it would be a victory. As for the rewards? At this point, survival was the reward.

Exactly at the 24-hour mark, Lin Mu was whisked away by a beam of white light. Lin Mu sighed in disappointment—he had just spotted a group of dozens, and they had slipped through his fingers right before his eyes. It was such a waste.

In the ruined forest, the survivors were filled with relief. It was finally over; they no longer had to live in fear.

Back in the white space, Lin Mu fell into deep thought as he looked at the rewards before him.

*That’s it?* He had killed so many people, and this was all they gave him?

[Basic Supply Package: 100,000 Iron Ingots, 100,000 Gold Ingots, 10,000 Electronic Components...]

It was just basic supplies. He had robbed—no, *raided*—no, *engaged in friendly exchanges* with so many villages that had yielded more than this.

[100,000L Gasoline], [Mysterious Element x10]

Lin Mu shook his head. It was too lackluster. If this was all there was, then this portal was a disappointment. There were four light orbs in total, and he didn't like three of them. If the fourth one was more of the same, he would never want to visit a place like this again.

[Vehicle Component Blank Blueprint (SSS) Permanent: Allows for the custom design of reasonable vehicle components. Once confirmed, it cannot be changed.]

Lin Mu raised an eyebrow. This one actually seemed useful. He just wondered how "reasonable" was specifically calculated.