My Misfortune Crushed Instances

The control over the members of the Demon Race village in Mire Marsh is very strict, especially for the young ones. It is strictly forbidden for them to go out freely, as there might be threats from Yin Sha at any time nearby.

As a result, the disappearance of Ba Yan immediately raised the villagers’ vigilance and concern.

It wasn’t a secret that this guy longed for firsthand battle experience. The elders had been closely watching him, but despite their efforts, prolonged peace made them let their guard down, and eventually, he slipped away unnoticed.

At this moment, the demons in the village naturally had to organize a search, and Hu Neng had no choice but to call for assistance. However, before they managed to mobilize, another demon came to report.

"Ba Yan is back."

"....."

"Ah?"

"Did he come back alone?"

The demons breathed a sigh of relief; it turned out to be a false alarm.

The village chief quickly asked: "Where did the child go?"

The messenger didn’t know, so they could only bring the person back.

With a foolish grin, Ba Yan explained: "Grandpa Chief, I was just sleeping at home."

A female demon, who seemed to be his mother, grabbed his ear and asked: "Did you sneak out, you brat? Nonsense, I searched the entire house and didn’t see you."

Ba Yan chuckled awkwardly, "Uh, I, I forgot. I was sleeping next to the swing in the village."

The mother and child apologized while bickering, and only said goodbye after receiving the chief’s permission.

The chief smiled wryly at Hu Neng and said, "Kids being naughty, it’s embarrassing."

Hu Neng nodded, having nothing much to say, but wondered, since the young demon was back, where did Yu Xin and the reinforcements go?

Just then, another person came to report: "Chairman Hu, Yu Xin is back, and there’s someone else beside him, supposedly from Team 01."

Hu Neng was overjoyed, not expecting the reinforcements to be from Team 01, which consists of top-notch experts comparable to the high command.

With such support, the subsequent operations would undoubtedly be much easier.

He felt that today was much smoother than the previous days.

"Chief, you see, we have new helpers again. Let’s go meet them; he’s much more proficient than I am and can surely be of help."

The chief pondered for a moment, nodded, and walked out with him.

The two walked out of the central area of the village and saw from a distance two figures standing outside, each holding a bunch of tattered flags.

Hu Neng rushed forward to greet them: "Hello, Officer, may I ask...."

Ordinarily, even an average member of Team 01 holds a high rank, as they report directly to the command and are considered almost part of the command structure. It’s standard to address them as officers.

But halfway through his speech, he became puzzled because the person he saw looked far too young.

"Hello, Chairman Hu."

Li Rui placed the flags on the ground, "I am 0109, my name is Li Rui."

The two shook hands, and before Hu Neng could inquire where they had been, what the flags were for, and how they got them, the village chief of Arrow Spear Village suddenly rushed over. Without speaking or even glancing at anyone else, he squatted by the heap of broken flags.

"This....this is...."

Yu Xin carelessly said, "We wandered around the swamp and dispersed those ghosts; these flags are the evidence."

It was only then Hu Neng understood what they were for.

"But....."

His eyes darted between the two faces in confusion, "How did you find the way into the swamp?"

Yu Xin was about to speak but was pulled back by Li Rui.

"Got lost!"

"We were wandering on the side and accidentally took a wrong turn, and then we stumbled into it by mistake."

Hu Neng wasn’t ignorant; linking it to the recent news of the missing young demon, he quickly understood.

He glared at Yu Xin with some resentment, but with Li Rui being a genuine 01 number, he couldn’t say much.

He looked at the flags on the ground, furrowed his brow, and said, "Judging by the markings, it seems like more than one tribe?"

"Yes, once we got lost, we wandered far. We accidentally cleared more than a dozen gatherings of Undead, plucking down every flag we saw," Li Rui said without a hint of shame.

Stop mentioning you got lost!

Hu Neng was speechless, but soon realized something was off.

A dozen or so?

The team of about ten people struggled to clear just one point, and these two took down more than a dozen?

What kind of terrifying efficiency is that?

For a moment, Hu Neng couldn’t comprehend, but at that time, the chief spoke up.

"Did you two truly charge into the swamp?"

Li Rui said, "How could it be fake? These flags—unless you think I conjured them out of thin air?"

The village chief also understood the real reason for Ba Yan’s disappearance, but at this point, it couldn’t concern him much.

He identified every single flag, and they indeed belonged to other villages. Sometimes when miasma spread or ghosts invaded, entire villages would relocate, leaving behind some banners as a norm.

"Quick, heroes, please enter, let’s discuss inside."

The chief’s attitude became exceedingly courteous, as nothing speaks as loudly as concrete victories.

Watching the favorable change in demeanor, Hu Neng suddenly felt the command was wise to dispatch such a formidable character, speeding up the process considerably.

Upon seeing those reclaimed flags, Arrow Spear Village was abuzz. Outsiders who perished in the marshlands before had never achieved such feats, indicating a real chance to counterattack the swamp this time.

Li Rui was warmly received, replacing Hu Neng to sit by the chief, listening to him lament about how arduous it was for the demons of Mire Marsh.

"Chief, if things are so hard, why don’t you move away?"

"Hero, how could we do that? The Holy Land of our tribes is inside, how can we easily relocate? After all these years, indeed some tribespeople left, and I didn’t stop them, but at least I cannot leave."

Li Rui did not press further, simply saying, "Chief, when will you assign me a guide to take me deeper? I can clear everything inside for you."

"You mentioned the miasma gradually appeared and wasn’t there from the beginning; I suspect there’s a source. If we eliminate the source, the poisonous miasma in Mire Marsh could vanish."

Upon hearing his conjecture, the chief said, "Indeed it’s so, but the source isn’t an object. Once, a towering python came ashore from beside the East Sea, and though heavily wounded, the ancestors killed it and feasted on it. However, overnight, they all perished, becoming Yin Spirits...."

"Oh, back then I was merely a child, only remembering being taken away. At that time, our various tribes in Mire Marsh fell into decline, leaving only a dozen or so villages now."

Li Rui felt something was off upon hearing this.

"Could it be something from decades ago again?"

"It naturally was several decades ago," the chief said, "Hero, your foresight is truly remarkable."