Chu Xuan nodded: "I think you've also tested this point—the effect of the Rebirth Talisman only manifests when it is worn on the body, correct? If they let us know they possessed the Talismans, we could deliberately knock out their mental controller and have our mental controller scan their entire bodies and internal organs. I suspect they have embedded the Rebirth Talismans within their flesh, perhaps surgically, perhaps swallowed, or perhaps inserted from the rear..."

"From the rear..." The moment these words were spoken, the faces of the other three paled considerably. However, Zheng Zha still managed to say, "You mean that white man deceived me from the very beginning when he claimed he didn't see the Rebirth Talisman? But was merely tricking me into not searching for his reaction? Then, when he felt something was amiss, he acted utterly fearless of death. And by making his teammates display extreme fear of death—even exposing his storage belt—our attention was naturally diverted to what was external to him. The fear of death shown by the other teammate then confirmed that their team didn't possess the Rebirth Talismans, and his lack of fear was merely what we perceived as his innate personality. Is that what you mean?"

Chu Xuan remained impassively nodding: "Yes. That is why, after Zero Point gouged out his eyes, this person suddenly fell silent. If he truly felt no fear of death or torture, he could have continued screaming. And do you know why that mental controller suddenly warned you? There is only one answer: he was trying to preserve his teammate's life. If he died too soon, we might have used mental scanning on that man's body. Even if the chance was minuscule, existence implies rationale. If we had truly used mental scanning, that man would also have been dead... Do you recall the very first mental skill that mental controller used? I mean a psychic skill."

"Shielding..." Zheng Zha was currently in the process of unlocking the third stage of his Genetic Lock. As he began to emulate Xiao Honglu's thought process, certain matters in his mind became clearer.

Chu Xuan affirmed once more: "Precisely, mental shielding. But his mental shielding differs from ours; his mental shielding does not make us aware that we are being shielded. Thus, he could protect his teammate. Although I find the existence of such camaraderie within this team surprising, the facts prove they cooperate with each other. Even if it's just to ensure they have a melee specialist to help them through the next horror film, or to continue grooming new recruits—whichever possibility it is, it signifies one thing... we may encounter the Senzhou team again, along with their hidden desire for vengeance."

Zheng Zha silently clenched his fingers: "Then let us encounter them sooner rather than later. If we allow them to acquire Rebirth Talismans again, the outcome might be that they escape us once more..."

Chu Xuan spoke dismissively: "There is no need for such strenuous effort. We will continuously grow stronger. Do not let your gaze be distracted by the pebbles at your feet; you should be looking at the distant great trees beyond the mountains—those are the goals you must pursue. When our team's strength reaches a certain level, even if they possess Rebirth Talismans, escape will be impossible. You must remember that the power of a mental controller increases exponentially as their acquired skills improve. I imagine that after killing a member who had unlocked a Genetic Lock, Zhan Lan should have earned enough to purchase one or two superior mental skills, shouldn't she?"

Hearing this, Zheng Zha’s expression finally eased slightly, but he still stated fiercely: "Damn it, what an unfair trade. If we had known earlier that they possessed Rebirth Talismans, wouldn't we have made a fortune? Equipping two Rebirth Talismans on important but low-strength members would have provided us with more options in team combat or side missions later on... Sigh."

Chu Xuan waved his hand: "Unexpected things always happen. Given the situation at the time, I didn't dwell too much on that aspect. In fact, the moment that man fell silent after gouging out his eyes, I should have realized the loophole that existed between them. That, however, was my oversight... Let's set this aside for now and continue discussing other aspects of the last mission. First point: Brainworm, did you receive a B-grade side mission as your reward?"

Zheng Zha nodded: "Yes. It’s strange. If we completed a side mission, shouldn't we have received Reward Points? A full B-grade side mission reward should be at least over 5000 points, right? What about Zero Point? What did you receive?"

Zero Point shrugged indifferently: "Two B-grade side missions... No Reward Points."

Chu Xuan pulled out one sheet from the stack of documents: "The matter becomes clear. In Starship Troopers, there are no side mission tasks regarding either the monsters or the human machinery. Instead, the rewards differ based on what is killed. According to my initial deduction, destroying the spaceship should also count as a minor side mission task—one that only yields a reward, albeit a different one."

Zheng Zha took the paper. It was covered entirely with Chu Xuan’s notes on the point and mission rewards for the bugs. After studying it for a while, he finally nodded and said, "Looking at it this way, this conclusion is indeed..." As he spoke, Zheng Zha suddenly remembered something and hurriedly dumped out the contents of his spatial bag and Na Ring. Instantly, a silver metal bow, a translucent two-handed greatsword, two shattered bell-shaped protective talismans, and some shells from the Praetorian Guard bugs spilled out. Among them, a perfectly preserved Praetorian Guard bug shell was the most valuable item from the spatial bag and Na Ring.

Zheng Zha said excitedly, "Although we didn't completely strip the Senzhou team members of their good gear, what we obtained was still quite decent. These two weapons..." As Zheng Zha spoke, he picked up both the silver metal bow and the translucent greatsword, deliberately holding the greatsword out in front so everyone could clearly see the prompt describing it. "It’s a pity these two weapons reportedly formed some kind of covenant with those two; I don't know if we can still use them. These weapons are at least legendary magic-grade equipment of Double-B or higher... And these two Double-B protective talismans; although I shattered them, they can still be repaired, so I brought them back too. Oh, and the shell of the Praetorian Guard bug is just too hard. I brought some back as well. Chu Xuan, can you see if they are useful?"

Chu Xuan paid no mind to the legendary magic items, only taking the Praetorian Guard shells into his hands. He said calmly, "Every time I return to the 'Main God' Space, I only have ten days. Unless I enter a horror film world for research, I simply don't have enough time to complete everything. In comparison, researching the composition of these Praetorian Guard shells is more important. If possible, I hope to use the components of these shells to forge close-fitting soft armor for everyone. That way, even if the Dragon Crystal can only defend against high-tech weaponry, this soft armor could resist most legendary magic-grade attacks, such as the blade light from your Tiger Soul Blade..."

Zheng Zha somewhat disappointedly placed the two weapons and the protective talismans back into his spatial bag. Then he turned to Zero Point and Wang Xia: "What about you two? How many Reward Points and side missions did you get?"

Zero Point replied, "Over 7000 Reward Points and two B-grade side missions."

Wang Xia chuckled, "My Reward Points are much higher. I received over 10,000 Reward Points and one C-grade and one B-grade side mission each. It’s just that my Reward Points are not as high as yours."

Zheng Zha listened, still feeling a pang of dissatisfaction. He muttered, "Let's calculate. First, we killed three members of the Southern Zhou team, earning 3000 Reward Points; then, three spaceships, earning 3000 Reward Points; in addition to killing a large number of bugs, the points everyone received for that varied—the most were likely earned by Overlord and myself... But we were penalized 5000 Reward Points for the base defense. No wonder; it was this part where we lost too many Reward Points. Sigh."

Chu Xuan had just recovered from sorting through the stack of documents in his hands and said calmly, "It is enough. Too many Reward Points and side missions can actually become a burden, just like those two from the Senzhou team. Their combat skills and awareness are extremely poor, relying entirely on high-level legendary magic gear and exchanged techniques for battle. But once they encounter someone with excellent personal combat skills and awareness, or even someone who has self-created skills, their combat power instantly reverts to its original state, just like what we experienced this time. Therefore, rather than pursuing endless Reward Points and side mission counts, it is better to manage the Reward Points and side missions we already possess. That, instead, can enhance the team's strength; otherwise, it will only become a drag on the team, preventing any further advancement in combat capability. What about you, Zheng Zha? Besides reviving team members, what will you exchange for this time?"

"Blade techniques... I need blade techniques capable of unleashing the true power of the Tiger Soul Blade."