When Chia Stanv died, Fang Senyan had already dug a passage near the ruins, approaching the surface. At this moment, he felt the ground begin to vibrate slightly, knowing that Geli was likely demolishing things violently underground and was about to burst forth from beneath the rubble. If he and Geli could join forces and exert themselves now, the winning momentum of the Banks Gang would be curbed. However, under the circumstances of this melee, it would be hard for Fang Senyan to continue playing the wolf in sheep's clothing, and his terrifying strength—a stamina of 31 points—would inevitably be exposed to everyone without reservation, just like what happened with Mrs. Xie previously…

At that moment, having learned a painful lesson, the story behind the mountain monster and the crowbar could not avoid giving rise to endless doubts, eventually being completely uncovered… At that point, the Sailors would either have to return and flee or go solo. (Mobile access: ) Therefore, in the face of Fang Senyan’s personal interests, the pitiful interests of the Symbiotic Society were once again betrayed. Inheriting Mr. Crowbar’s legacy, Fang Senyan also carried on his will, continuing to place personal interests above the collective. Shamefully, he continued to play the role of a mole/earth-borer beneath the ruins.

And what Fang Senyan intended to do was not just this. After careful thought, he went against the flow, listening closely, and instead intensified his efforts, drilling down further into the crevices beneath the ruins.

Almost instantly, upon first contact, the Symbiotic Society had three members killed by the Banks Gang, who burst in like a sudden downpour, while the remaining few were pressed close, exchanging clangs and bangs and fighting in utter disarray. In battles between Contractors, once a long-range physical attacker is closed upon, it is absolutely not like modern warfare where bayonets can be fixed to counter; rather, it is akin to ancient longbowmen being approached by shield-bearers wielding great sabers—a feeling of being flustered and scrambling for escape.

The Banks Gang clearly had plans in place. They dispatched several agile members to lock onto the still-fighting Symbiotic Society members one-on-one, and then Fante, along with another Contractor skilled at slowing enemies down, focused on key eliminations.

Fante had exhausted the flame on his sword when he previously slew Chia Stanv, and he was not as formidable as when he first entered the fray; his burst period had likely passed, but his strength was estimated to still be around 24 points. Aided by the other Contractor, he was still ferocious, and as he swung his greatsword, a faint smell of blood permeated the air. Even without frequently landing crushing blows, his attacks whistled sharply and ruthlessly, scattering his enemies into a complete rout, displaying the might of one who strikes down gods and slays Buddhas!

In less than half a minute later, another member of the Symbiotic Society was killed. The situation began to snowball, worsening and creating a chain reaction. The Banks Gang member who had been tying down the agile ranged attacker was now freed up to join Fante and the other in a three-way pincer movement! If this continued, in just a few more tens of seconds, all the Symbiotic Society members above the ruins would be wiped out.

But just then, two massive hands shot out from underground. Amidst a flurry of dust and debris, they clamped down like iron pincers, tightly grasping the ankle of a Banks Gang member who was pressing the attack, yanking him backward until he fell flat on his back! It was Geli bursting forth from the earth! For a Contractor possessing immense core strength, a fall of this magnitude would at best be a mere delay, perhaps costing only a second, but the person he snagged happened to be one of the mid-level cadres of the Symbiotic Society—the captain of the ranged physical attack class, Mogansa!

If he didn't have some real skill, how could he have stood out among the most fiercely competitive ranged physical Contractors, overwhelming the others into submission?

Mogansa immediately seized this fleeting opportunity, leaping backward suddenly. While airborne, his golden pistol spat out bullets in a da-da-da rhythm—his signature three-round burst!

As everyone knows: when a person suddenly loses balance, to maintain physical stability, they are bound to extend a hand to the ground to ensure a safe landing.

Mogansa’s first bullet struck the left wrist of the Banks Gang member reaching down to brace himself, preventing him from achieving a stable landing posture!

The second bullet struck a broken brick nearby, causing the shattered piece to snap back and hit the back of the fallen Contractor’s head. Even with a Contractor’s robust physique, a direct impact to the vital back of the head under these circumstances would cause the eyes to blacken and result in about a second of stunning! This undoubtedly gave Mogansa precious extra time to disengage and create distance.

The third bullet was aimed at a Banks Gang member to the right, who was grinning sinisterly, dagger poised to stab another Symbiotic Society member. The strike was certain to land, but the bullet struck the blade of the dagger, sending sparks flying and deflecting the trajectory. It only managed to rake a superficial graze across the member’s body!

This short burst, while seemingly simple, actually achieved three objectives simultaneously: injuring the enemy, impeding the enemy, and providing aid! It even managed to create an opportunity for him to pull away and create distance for himself! More importantly, this feat was accomplished by capitalizing on a split-second opportunity, vividly demonstrating Mogansa’s formidable ability and his grasp of the overall tactical situation.

At this point, Geli was not idle either. After lunging out of the ground, he had already reversed his grip on his Tiger-Tooth military knife, aiming directly at the Contractor in front of him and stabbing downwards. This Contractor, having just recovered from the stun of the blow to the back of his head, let out a miserable cry and attempted to use his own weapon to parry Geli’s second thrust.

But then, gunfire rang out again from a distance. Mogansa, while rapidly retreating, fired again. Two rounds of his three-round burst struck the enemy’s weapon with loud clang sounds, causing the parry, which should have been accurate, to falter momentarily. Another bullet hit the Contractor directly in the head! Geli’s second stab thus met no resistance and smoothly plunged into the man’s abdomen! This attack severely wounded the Contractor, eliciting a piercing death shriek.

Simultaneously, the mobile slaughter force of the Banks Gang, led by Fante, was also intercepted. When Geli burst from the ground, the other two members of the melee squad also made a powerful appearance! They were Vance and Number 13, both skilled with shotguns. They fired crossfire toward Fante and his group. Because all shotguns possess a chance to inflict a “knockback” effect and deal terrifying damage up close, Fante and his two companions could only seek cover and were pinned down. Only an abnormality like Fang Senyan would dare to charge fearlessly into such an intersecting field of fire composed of rifles!

Of course, every advantage has its drawback. The weakness of the shotgun is its extremely limited ammunition capacity—at most seven rounds, and even with top-tier modifications, the magazine holds only nine rounds. This leads to a significant lull in firepower while reloading ammunition.

Thus, Vance and Number 13, while appearing fierce, could only hold back Fante’s group for about twenty seconds at most. After that, their combat effectiveness would drop sharply, potentially turning them into easy prey.

Twenty seconds, however, was enough time for Geli to deal with the trouble in front of him with Mogansa's help, and then come to the rescue! Once the ranged firepower was unleashed, they could easily coordinate under command to achieve a “focused fire” situation, concentrating the firepower of several Contractors onto a single target, which could greatly reverse the current unfavorable situation.

In fact, after only ten seconds, Geli had dispatched the Contractor he was engaged with and was already holding a square shield of antique bronze, engraved with a family crest, in his left hand, while still gripping his bizarre, serrated Tiger-Tooth military knife in his right. He positioned himself directly in front of Fante, acting as a barrier blocking his path!

Although Geli had not learned advanced basic skills related to shields, he could still maximize the shield’s defensive potential—just as Fang Senyan could only use "Ambition" as a melee weapon without unleashing its strongest abilities—this certainly did not mean it was useless! Furthermore, the shield Geli held was faintly surrounded by black light, indicating it was at least of black quality, and this black aura occasionally condensed into a substance-like texture, giving the immediate impression that it was nigh impenetrable.

This shield was equipment specifically transferred to Geli by the Metal Mentor after he took charge of the melee squad. For the Metal Mentor, although it was a reluctant parting, it was a necessary predicament. After all, the melee strength within the Symbiotic Society had suffered grievous losses, and if Geli wasn't powerfully equipped or met with disaster, it would create a severely unbalanced impact on the team's overall occupational structure, and the Society's high-stakes gamble on the Stone would see its chances of success drastically reduced.

Fante took a deep breath and raised the two-handed sword in his grip high above his head. The dazzling sunlight shone on the blade, giving off a searing heat.

Suddenly, a magical fluctuation came from a distant building, and then a fireball was seen appearing vividly in a window there, burning fiercely. The fireball then hurtled downwards with a rushing, spinning trajectory, aimed directly at Fante's two-handed sword.

When the sword and the fireball met, there was no explosion. Instead, there was a loud peng sound, as if a snuffed-out torch had been instantly relit.

And on Fante’s two-handed sword, fierce flames reignited, making the weapon in his hand look like a shining torch!

He let out a cold laugh, stepped forward one pace, and brought the blade across in a sweeping cut.

Simultaneously, the two men beside Fante also lunged forward, the edges of their weapons flashing with a cold, predatory gleam under the sun, aiming for a fierce pincer attack on Geli! These three had clearly coordinated before, displaying impeccable synergy in this critical moment.