Wang Gang. Xia Di suddenly felt a crushing weight, as if a massive pressure was bearing down on her body. She reacted just in time, or she would have made a complete fool of herself!

What on earth was going on?

"Leader, are you alright?" Fern inquired, starting to step forward before being sharply pulled back by Charlotte.

"Something's off!" Charlotte said sternly to the bewildered Fern. She wouldn't let her subordinates take risks before figuring out what was happening!

Seeing Charlotte's grave expression, Fern was startled. He knew their Captain’s observational skills were sharp, and that look always meant trouble. Could there be an ambush here?

Thinking this, Fern scanned their surroundings, trying to locate any hidden enemies.

Once bitten by a snake, one fears a well rope for ten years; they had been ambushed by the "Double Axe Mercenary Group" once, and they couldn't afford to make the same mistake! However, after searching thoroughly, they found nothing suspicious. The only oddity was that this place should have been two small courtyards but had somehow been merged into one!

In truth, there was no ambush; the strange sensation Charlotte felt was merely the effect of the gravity array set up by Zhong Shenxiu?

Just as Charlotte hesitated about whether to advance or retreat, Robin and Anjieliya walked over, clearly having heard the commotion.

Because the two yards had been opened up and obscured by a lean-to, Charlotte and her group hadn't noticed Robin and Anjieliya eating.

When Charlotte and Anjieliya met gazes again, both froze, each with their own thoughts occupying their minds.

Charlotte thought: She really is here!

Anjieliya thought: Why is she here?

"Who are you people?" Robin asked flatly. Here, aside from Zhong Shenxiu, she was the mistress!

Charlotte shifted her gaze to Robin. She had only seen this little girl once before and hadn't paid much attention, but looking now, she noticed a distinct difference from ordinary girls. Setting aside the sharp, bright gleam in her eyes, her skin alone—smooth as jade—suggested something extraordinary!

Is there such a cute and beautiful girl in this world? Charlotte thought involuntarily.

But then, she wouldn't think that way for long!

Charlotte looked down again at the spot where Robin and Anjieliya stood and felt a great surprise. Instead of answering, she asked, "Don't you two feel anything strange?"

Anjieliya remained silent, and Robin ignored her!

Feeling rebuffed, Charlotte grew slightly awkward and quickly explained, "We are from the 'Cloud-Rending Sky Mercenary Group.' We apologize for the intrusion!"

"If you have something to say, hurry up. We are very busy!" Robin stated flatly again. It was apparent that the influence of Zhong Shenxiu was showing more and more in her.

Charlotte was surprised again; she hadn't expected this little girl to have such a strong personality, finding her even more astonishing than Anjieliya’s sister, Emirida, whom she had met earlier!

Are all the children here precocious? Such a bizarre thought flashed through Charlotte's mind.

"May I ask if you are Anjieliya?" Charlotte redirected her gaze to Anjieliya.

Anjieliya nodded. She didn't believe she knew these people, but how did this person know her name?

Charlotte smiled; just as she suspected, this girl was indeed Anjieliya!

"We have a few things we’d like to ask you about. My name is Charlotte!" Charlotte said cordially.

Ask me questions? Anjieliya immediately wore a perplexed expression.

"What do you want to know?" Anjieliya scanned the group with slight apprehension. Since following Zhong Shenxiu, she had become much more alert and wary!

"You don't need to be nervous. We mean no harm; we just need to understand a few things—they are very important to us!" Charlotte smiled and added, "Do you mind if we step inside to talk?"

This wasn't something that could be explained in a few sentences, and standing outside wasn't convenient for a discussion!

Following normal protocol, Anjieliya should have said something like, "I'm sorry, please come in." But she didn't. Not only did she say nothing, but she looked down towards Robin instead!

Here, Anjieliya held the least authority. Although she wanted to let Charlotte and her group in, the rule was: if it's not your territory, you don't make the decisions!

Charlotte was puzzled why Anjieliya kept looking at the little girl, but she soon understood why!

Then Robin stated decisively, "We do mind!"

Just two words, yet they stunned Charlotte and her entire group!

"If you have something to say, say it here. Keep it brief; don't waste our time!" Robin added coolly.

Fern and the others exchanged glances, seeing "at a loss" written clearly on everyone's face!

This little girl is too arrogant, isn't she?

If Charlotte hadn't been present, Fern and the others would have liked to teach this child a lesson about manners! Although, it wasn't certain who would end up teaching whom...

Seeing their stunned expressions, Anjieliya also looked embarrassed and apologized, "This isn't my house." After a moment of strange silence, she finally asked, "I wanted to ask about the 'Double Axe Mercenary Group.' Do you know where they went?"

Anjieliya was greatly alarmed. Did these people belong to the "Double Axe Mercenary Group," and had they come specifically for revenge?

Though it had nothing to do with her, Anjieliya felt uneasy and kept looking towards Robin!

Charlotte noticed Anjieliya's reaction and knew there must be some hidden story—this girl knew something and yet feared something!

But why did she keep looking at that little girl?

"Can you tell us?" Charlotte pressed again, unaware that this question put great pressure on Anjieliya.

Anjieliya knew her struggle best, thinking, It was the two of us who did it; don't look at me! But she couldn't say that!

"We haven't heard anything. You should ask somewhere else!" Robin covered for Anjieliya. Her expression was akin to telling a beggar: Go somewhere else; we have no scraps here!

Anjieliya was speechless. They wiped them out, and now they claim they don't know them!

What Anjieliya admired most was that Robin said this without batting an eye. She knew she could never achieve that level of composure!

The corner of Charlotte's mouth twitched slightly. This was the first time she had encountered such an irritating child; there was absolutely no room for negotiation!

"Do you have anything else?" Robin inquired again, her expression suggesting: If not, then please leave; we won't see you out!

"Then we'll take our leave for today. We will be back to bother you again," Charlotte said with a smile that was extremely forced.

"Let's go back," Robin truly showed no intention of escorting them and instead turned to Anjieliya.

Anjieliya stood there dumbfounded, unsure what to do!

"Hey, don't forget to shut the door properly when you leave!" Robin called out to Charlotte, who was walking away.

Charlotte was furious. She thought her self-control was good, but at this moment, she felt a desperate urge to explode!

"Leader, are we really just leaving like this?" Fern asked, clearly unwilling.

Charlotte looked at him, then finally said after a pause, "We will come back tomorrow."

She wasn't in the right state of mind today. She needed to go back, sort out her thoughts, devise a strategy, and then return.

Meanwhile, Zhong Shenxiu was continuously using light magic to modify the "Skeleton Cocks." Through countless experiments, he finally made another new discovery:

These "Skeleton Cocks" could condense excess light magic into particles!

This phenomenon might seem insignificant to others, but to Zhong Shenxiu, it was an absolute major breakthrough! He could extrapolate dozens of potential applications from a single phenomenon; put simply, he could use one new discovery to develop dozens of new uses!

Everything in the world is connected; it just depends on whether you can find that connection.

Zhong Shenxiu was undoubtedly gifted in this regard. He immediately drew parallels to the inner cores of cultivators—both were condensations of energy. Could these particles achieve the same effects functionally?

If this theory held true, it meant these Skeleton Cocks could also harness the power of nature!

The mere thought excited Zhong Shenxiu. This excitement wasn't just about making the Skeleton Cocks stronger; it was about opening the door to an entirely new domain! For a genius addicted to "research," this was a blood-pumping prospect!

As Zhong Shenxiu continuously cast light magic, the tiny particles began to grow larger, eventually reaching the size of grains of rice.

However, Zhong Shenxiu now faced a technical difficulty: where exactly on the "Skeleton Cock" should these particles be placed?

It is well known that the human body is divided into upper, middle, and lower Dantians, but where was the Dantian of a Skeleton Cock?

An inner core was intrinsically tied to the flow direction of internal energy; a slight error could cause the entire experiment to fail!

After careful consideration, Zhong Shenxiu decided to test on one Skeleton Cock first, placing the particle at the center of its crown.

After completing this tedious step, it was clearly visible that the fine threads of light previously circulating on the Skeleton Cock began to orbit its body in a specific pattern, eventually converging into the particle.

It looked very much like a cultivator practicing a technique, yet there was a fundamental difference—the particle in the Skeleton Cock could not function as an inner core at all!

Ordinarily, Zhong Shenxiu should have been discouraged because his hypothesis did not match reality by a wide margin.

But he wasn't. Instead, Zhong Shenxiu’s eyes lit up, revealing an expression of intense excitement.

Although the imitation inner core failed, he had uncovered another new secret—one specifically related to this particle!